“So that was the legacy the Kulsat were looking for? The
infusion of Kinemet? It was the alien’s body that gave us the clue.”
Alex frowned. “I think the infusion may only be a part of
the legacy, an important step. There’s a piece missing in this equation, and
for the life of me, I don’t know what it is.”
“We need a lab, and a lot of time,” Michael said. “We have
neither.” A moment later, he added, “I don’t know how much time I have,
either.”
“I’m sure you’ll have all the time in the world,” Alex said.
Michael squinted at him. “What do you mean?”
“You told me Patli’s story, about how other aliens abducted
the irradiated villagers a millennium ago.”
“Yes.”
“I believe the rescuers were Gliesans, and the villagers
were Ah Tabai’s ancestors.”
Nodding, Michael looked at the floor, thinking it through.
“That makes sense.”
“So, all we need to do is get Ah Tabai and Aliah to fix you,
as the Gliesans fixed the villagers.”
Michael jerked his head up. “What?”
“What better way to prove our story than to get it straight
from the horse’s mouth?”
“Ah Tabai? Aliah? They survived?”
Alex nodded. “Yes. The same way I did when I first went to
the Centauri System. They’re waiting out there, in the photonic state. Why else
would I want to go to Pluto?”
∞
At first, the general wanted to get authorization, but Alex
pointed out that a message sent to Earth from their position would have taken
nearly fifteen minutes each way, and adding in the time it would take for
someone in command to make a decision, Chow Yin would most likely be an hour or
two ahead of them, traveling at very near the speed of light.
“Also, if he is fully converted to a Kinemat, he can utilize
the star beacons. The moment he travels to the Centauri System, he could signal
the Kulsat.”
“My original mandate was the capture of Chow Yin,” General
Gates said after considering Alex’s words. “Technically, nothing has changed.”
With that, he gave the order to get the quantum drive online.
It only took the engineers a few minutes to prepare everything,
and when the general was notified that all systems were ready, he nodded to
Alex. “You’re sure you can do this?”
“Yes,” Alex said, finding his way to the console area built
specifically for a quantum pilot. “Now more than ever.”
“Very well, I’m transferring navigation to your station. Let
us know when you’re going to engage the drive.”
Taking a deep breath, and familiarizing himself with the
controls, Alex was suddenly reminded of the first time he’d piloted a luminous
vessel, when he’d hijacked the
Quanta
.
He closed his eyes, and could feel a connection to the
Kinemet already loaded aboard the quantum engine. At the same time, he became
acutely aware of Michael and the other three officers on the bridge, as well as
the six engineers on board the ship. It was almost as if he could reach out
with a thin tendril of his own essence and touch each of them.
Alex hesitated as something revolutionary occurred to him.
“What is it, Alex?” the general asked.
“Something’s not right.”
Michael got out of his seat and stepped over, looking over
Alex’s shoulder at the console. “It looks fine to me.”
“No,” Alex said, “not with the drive; with the procedure.”
He glanced up at Michael. “Do you remember one of the primary reasons I took
the place of the first pilot of the
Quanta?”
“You thought a pilot who had not undergone the Kinemetic
conversion process would not be able to dampen the secondary Kinemetic
reaction.”
“And I was right.” Alex looked back down at the quantum
drive controls. “Since that time, I’ve always thought there was something
fundamentally wrong with our theory, that the secondary reaction should never
have been an issue.”
General Gates approached, a harried look on his face. “What’s
the delay? Weren’t you the one who convinced me time was of the essence?”
“All this time we’ve been using the theory a quantum pilot
is for navigation and to control the ship’s return to physical space.” He
smiled. “But there’s much more to it.”
“What do you mean?” Michael asked.
Alex waved the two men back to their seats. “Not to worry. I
think I know what I have to do.”
“You think?” the general asked, his eyes wide and
disbelieving.
“Instinctually,” Alex said and gave him a firm nod. “Trust
me.”
Slowly, the two men returned to their seats, and Alex faced
forward.
Closing his eyes, Alex reached out with his photonic essence
and connected with the crew. Then he formed a bridge between them and the
quantum drive.
Michael said, “We’re ready—”
As Alex had been able to quantize himself in the past, he
knew, deep down, he could convert the crew to photons by willing it to happen.
He did so, and a moment later, he quantized himself. He was fully aware in that
state, and with his electropathic senses, he engaged the quantum drive…
…A little over four hours later, he disengaged the drive,
then returned himself to physical form moments before rematerializing the crew.
It had been the smoothest flight Alex could ever have hoped
for.
“—when you are,” Michael finished, then paused with his
mouth open when he saw the main casement on the bridge showing him that the
ship was in orbit around Pluto.
“We’re here?” General Gates said in a breathless rush. With
a slight shake of his head, he added, “It felt instantaneous.”
“It’s just a matter of perception,” Alex said. “To me, the
flight took four hours, eight minutes, and twenty-seven seconds.”
“Pluto.” General Gates stared at the image on the casement
screen. “I never truly thought I would see it.”
“If you think that’s remarkable,” Alex said, “prepare to be
amazed.”
“What—?” the general began to ask.
Two photonic essences came out of the bulkhead and floated
down in front of the officers on the bridge. Slowly, both of them coalesced
into bipedal forms.
“I’d like you to meet Ah Tabai,” Alex said, standing up and
approaching the two. He shook hands with the shorter of the two beings, who
looked Mayan in appearance. “And Aliah, of the Gliese System.” He bowed to the
tall, bird-like alien who gave him an excited chirp of greeting.
“Alex,” Ah Tabai said. “I didn’t know if you would realize
we were here, waiting. Thank you for rescuing us.”
Smiling, Alex clapped a hand on his shoulder. “It was my
turn to save you.”
Aliah spoke in her whistle-like language, and the words came
out from the translator at her collar. “You are more than an Aetherbeing, Alex.
I can sense it.” She and Ah Tabai glanced at each other.
Ah Tabai nodded. “Yes, I can feel it, too. You are—” Then
his eyes widened. “—you are in a state of Grace! How—?”
Aware that all eyes were on him, and not certain if he
should be telling anyone the secret, Alex realized that it was only a matter of
time before the truth came out.
“Michael discovered the body of one of the Grace on Earth,
and saw that he’d infused Kinemet with his DNA. I was injected and exposed to a
conversion.” He shook his head. “I’m surprised no one else has ever stumbled on
that.”
“No,” Ah Tabai said. “That has been attempted before. It
never resulted in ascension to the Grace.” With a concerned look at Aliah, he
added, “The results of that experiment have always been fatal.”
Michael asked, “Then how did Alex survive it, and become—how
did you say it—ascended?”
“That is the question,” Ah Tabai said.
Aliah spoke. “We sensed another activation of the star
beacon a little while ago. It was on course for the Centauri System.”
“Yes,” Michael said. “That was Chow Yin.” For Ah Tabai’s and
Aliah’s benefit, he added, “He’s a criminal who is trying to contact the
Kulsat.”
His expression turning alarmed, Ah Tabai said, “You must not
allow that. The Kulsat will not make allies with him. They will destroy him,
and then come here. We must stop him.”
“My sentiments, exactly,” the general said. Up until that
point, he had not spoken. Instead, he’d been staring at the alien on his ship.
“Perhaps we can all formally debrief later. Right now, can we get to Centauri
and stop Chow Yin in time?”
Alex took a deep breath. “We had better.” He turned to Ah
Tabai. “I’ve never used a star beacon correctly before. I don’t think we have
time for a lesson. Would you do the honors?” he asked, glancing at the general
for approval.
Once General Gates nodded, Ah Tabai said, “Of course.”
…And then Alex became aware that he, the crew, and the
entire ship, now existed in deep orbit around the Centauri star beacon.
To his perception, the trip had been instantaneous.
The next moment, they were under heavy fire.
Aerie
Skanse :
Gliese
System :
Deep down,
Justine
had hoped the day would never come, but when she received the
message from Naila, she held her breath as she listened.
“We have picked up a signal from the Centauri star beacon.
It is activating, indicating a new arrival. It could be a Kulsat ship coming to
relieve the other one, but from what our sensors could detect, the warship in
the system has raised Aethershields and primed its weapons systems. We presume
the new arrival is not expected. If you are coming, you had better hurry. We’re
flying into Centauri in fifteen minutes to investigate.”
Justine, who had been at dinner in Yoatl’s apartment, looked
to the Ambassador. “It’s time. Are you still willing to help me? I know you’ve
had your doubts.”
Yoatl wiped the corner of his mouth with a napkin as his
wife started to clear the table. “It is a terrible risk. If the Parliament
finds out, you’ll have sacrificed your position here for nothing. It’s not too
late to back out.”
Standing, Justine forced a smile. “This might be my only
opportunity. I’m willing to take the chance.”
“Just remember,” Yoatl said as he went to the computer
console on the other side of the room. “If it is one of your ships, and they
have arrived using the Grace, you still may not share any Aether technology
with them until the Collection verifies their method of travel. Warn them to
return to Sol, and then come back here immediately.” He began typing a series
of commands into the computer, granting her permission to accompany the
Fainne
on their reconnaissance mission. “If the Parliament finds out I did this, they’ll
revoke my ambassadorship.”
“Don’t worry, Yoatl. I won’t break Galactic Law. It’s the
same loophole Naila and Fairamai used to save me.”
Yoatl faced her, taking a deep breath. “Be careful. The
Kulsat will be quick to attack.” He gave her a long look. “I would hate myself
if anything happened.”
“You’ve been a wonderful friend, Yoatl. I will do everything
I can to return to Gliese safely.”
∞
By the time Justine got to the area in the space port where
the
Fainne
was docked, Naila and Fairamai had the ship prepped and were
ready to fly. The spaceport controller noticed her striding purposefully toward
the ship. He was a tall Gliesan with red plumes on the top of his head.
With his long legs, he quickly caught up to her. “Envoy
Turner, you aren’t supposed to be here,” he said. “You don’t have clearance.”
“Actually,” she said to him, “I do. There is a possibility
the new arrival is from Sol System. As envoy, it’s my responsibility to be
there to warn them of the Kulsat danger.”
The controller cocked his head in doubt.
Justine shrugged. “Call Ambassador Yoatl, if you like. He’ll
verify the orders. But you’re delaying the
Fainne
. We only have a small
window of opportunity.”
As if imagining the effort of going through official
channels to get verification of Justine’s statement, the controller nodded.
“All right. Go ahead.”
“Thank you,” Justine said, and hurried to the ship. The
portal closed behind her, and the vessel launched a moment later.
Fairamai was in the bay, and motioned for Justine to follow
her to the passenger compartment where she helped secure her in the molded
seat.
“You remember what we talked about?” the bird-like alien
asked, and continued to spell it out before waiting for a reply. “Once the
Fainne
arrives in Centauri, Naila will scan the area for ship signatures. If it is
Kulsat, he will return us to Gliese immediately. Should the new arrival come
from Sol System, you will have less than twenty seconds to send them a warning;
that is the amount of time a Kulsat ship needs to lock on to our ship, charge
weapons, and fire.”
“Yes,” Justine said. “I know. I’ll be ready.”
Frowning, Fairamai said, “We are more than capable of
sending the transmission. You do not need to come on this mission. Remain here,
be safe. We will return with news.”
“No.” Justine shook her head. She could feel the vibrations
of the
Fainne
as it banked around the Skanse Station, lining up for the
run at the Gliese star beacon. “It’s my responsibility.”
A communication speaker in the room hummed, and a moment
later, Naila said, “Engaging Aethersleep in 5 … 4 … 3 … 2 … 1—
∞
Justine had conditioned herself to react the moment she came
out of the photonic state. She did not wait to find out the origin of the
arriving ship, because it didn’t make a difference to her plan.
A split-second after returning to normal space in Centauri,
Justine quantized herself and pushed her particles outside the hull of the
Fainne
.
Utilizing the technique Red Spot had taught her, she shielded her
photons—essentially making her invisible to detection—and used her
sight
to scan for the other ships in the area. She figured there would be an even
chance between one of two possibilities.
If the new ship was Kulsat, Justine’s intention was to stow
away on board. So long as the Kulsat didn’t suspect their unseen passenger,
Justine would be able to feed off the Kinemetic radiation of the ship and exist
in her photonic state indefinitely. At such time as the Kulsat discovered Sol
System, Justine would hitch a ride and return to her home world, and there do
the best she could to aid in the defense of her people—by finding the final
component, if it existed on Earth.
If the ship were from Sol, Justine would go on board and do
everything she could to evade the Kulsat warship, and return to Sol, even if
she had to commandeer the ship and pilot it herself.
She felt guilty for deceiving Yoatl about her intentions,
but her promise held: she would not share technical knowledge of Kinemet. It
was possible she wouldn’t have to. It had been a while since Alex, Kenny,
Michael, and Yaxche had returned to Sol System. They would do their best to
prepare for a Kulsat invasion, and to advance their own Kinemetic technology as
far as they could.
No matter what they did, though, she knew the one thing that
could save her system was to do what Red Spot had suggested: possess the only
technology more advanced than the Kulsat’s, and make them surrender.
The first ship she sensed was the Kulsat warship, a behemoth
compared with the mining ship that had abducted her when she first arrived in
Centauri. She could feel the overwhelming quantity of Kinemet on board—they
were stocked, enough to supply a fleet for years. To her surprise, they were
already firing their weapons, not at the
Fainne,
but at the Solan ship
that had just arrived.
She became aware of several things at the same time:
The Solan ship had traveled from Sol to Centauri outside
light. For the first time since she’d left her home system, Justine could momentarily
sense the star beacon from Sol, attached to the
Dis Pater
monument. It
was faint, and the signal dissipated quickly, but it was there nonetheless. The
technology that had hidden it and Sol System from the awareness of the rest of
the galaxy had been tripped by the very act of using the star beacon. In the
back of her mind, she knew it would only be a matter of time before the
Gliesans became aware of this and, with Justine already having laid the
diplomatic groundwork, ratified Sol System into the Collection of Worlds.
Those thoughts came and went in a blink. What captured
Justine’s attention was when she realized the Solan ship had the same markings
as the ship that had chased her and the
Ultio
out of Sol System.
The flashback of narrowly avoiding destruction from a Kinemetic
torpedo gave Justine pause. For a very brief moment, she didn’t know which ship
she would rather see blown apart.
Only a few thousand meters apart, the Kulsat and the Solan
ship were firing on each other, the Kulsat with their sonic energy beams, the
Solans with the Kinemet-modified nuclear warheads.
To Justine’s surprise, the Solan ship was holding its own.
Many of Earth’s industrial ships, especially the long-haul vessels which
traveled between planets, were still heavily reliant on electroceramics—a
highly durable material which provided insulation against solar radiation and
other forms of energy, including sound—to bolster the titanium hulls. The
Ultio,
being a private yacht designed for short excursions, did not have the
electroceramics shell over its titanium hull. The mining ship, with its sound
energy beams designed to rip through asteroidal metals, had torn the
Ultio
right apart.
Even still, the sonic blast was enough to cripple the Solan
ship. Panels of the hull shattered and flew off. The vessel listed, as if its
internal stabilizers had malfunctioned.
As she pushed her photonic particles forward toward the
battle, she could sense the Kulsat ship changing the aim of one of its energy
beams. She had not noticed, but the
Fainne
was coming about and
attacking the Kulsat warship. Their weapons were no match by themselves, but in
concert with the Solan ship, they helped to even the odds.
The distraction gave the Solan ship enough of an opportunity
to shift itself a few degrees below and to the starboard of their enemy.
The Solans fired a conventional torpedo at the belly of the
alien ship where, by Justine’s estimation, their quantum engine was.
Unlike the Kinemetic ordnance, the conventional torpedo
caused damage. It didn’t disable the warship, but it shredded a section of the
Kulsat’s hull, and Justine could sense a level of protective radiation
diminish. If the Solans followed up with another torpedo in the same spot, or
if the
Fainne
fired its weapons, they might be able to inflict heavy
damage.
Apparently, the Kulsat were aware that if they suffered
another hit they would be dead in space; instead of returning fire, the ship
changed course, pointing toward the star beacon, and engaged its quantum drive.
It vanished from Centauri space.
Justine watched as the
Fainne
moved off from the
Solan ship. There was no way for Naila or Fairamai to know where Justine was,
or if she was still in Centauri space. They also had no way of knowing if this Solan
ship were friend or foe. Their only two options were to go back to Gliese for
further instructions, or stand by and see what happened. They chose to wait.
Not wanting to contact Naila, since he would most likely
charge her to return to Gliese, Justine approached the Solan ship, and experienced
a moment of trepidation.
This group was the same that had tried to destroy her four
years before. She knew they had not followed her right away—the reappearance of
the Sol System star beacon in her photonic consciousness proved that whoever
piloted the ship had not only developed the ability to create Kinemats, but had
also discovered how to travel outside light.
She could only come to one conclusion: one of Earth’s more
aggressive nations had mastered the ability to travel faster than light. The
fate of her friends suddenly became uncertain to her.
Under her current circumstances, however, she did not have another
option. Now that the Sol System star beacon had activated on the interstellar
grid while the Kulsat monitored it, the armada would head there as soon as they
marshaled their forces.
Mentally steeling herself, Justine pushed her photons
through space toward the Solan ship. It took her quite a while to get there. At
first, she had the impression the ship was flying away from the star beacon,
but as she got nearer, she realized it was drifting. It had not come out of the
fight unscathed. Perhaps the ion engines had been damaged in the fight, she
wondered.
She could also sense that many of the electrical systems on board
were blown out. Once she pushed herself through the hull and into the ship, she
heard the cries of the crew who were badly hurt; some of them were dead.
As she floated near one section with several bodies on the
ground, she examined them. The first thing she noticed was that they were
multiracial. Pausing near one man, she looked closer. The style of uniform and
the insignia on the sleeve were unfamiliar to her, but the words written on the
epaulet sent a wave of dread through her: her Chinese was rusty, but she swore
it translated as ‘Solan Empire Space Force’.
The hallways were strewn with metallic rubble, overhead
lights sparked, and smoke filled the air. Still in her photonic state, Justine
was able to navigate through the ship to the bridge.
It was there that her suspicion was confirmed. The captain
of the ship was, indeed, a Kinemat. Justine could sense the radiation emanate
from him. When she saw who it was, she couldn’t believe her senses.
Standing with the assistance of a bulky set of biomechatronic
legs in front of a bank of computer consoles, Chow Yin shouted orders to the
half a dozen men to get the ship’s controls back on line. Justine was glad she’d
learned how to mask her photonic form from other Kinemats and Kinemetic
sensors. She was free to eavesdrop until she had enough information before she
decided what course of action to adopt.
An older uniformed man, with general’s stars on his collar, stood
at a console beside Chow Yin. He looked up and said, “Emperor Yin, we have
reports that the fires in the ion engine room have been put out, but it will
take several hours to repair the damage.”
“What about the quantum drive?”
“Intact, Sire.”
“What about torpedoes.”
The general called up a readout. “Two conventional, four Kinemetic,
Sire.”
Chow Yin pointed to him. “Ensure they are all armed. That
other ship could decide to fire on us at any time. Meanwhile, put as many men
as you can on repairs.” He let out a throaty growl. “And keep your eyeballs on
that star beacon readout.”