“How do you know this?” Tu-garn asked skeptically.
“He visited Shandar not long after the events on Naveen. He sought out a surgeon willing to replace several bones as well as strengthen damaged joints. And there was drink involved.” Kel-var had stopped being surprised at Gor-van’s sources. “He is just a human, he has no Terran abilities.”
“And yet he has left nothing but death and destruction behind him!” Sel-gar let his chair take his full weight as he slumped back.
“It would seem the humans are not to be underestimated...” Gor-van replied.
Kel-var had never underestimated an enemy. Arrogance only led to death; that’s what his father had said. He considered his own position at the top of the Protocorps chain and knew he hadn’t obtained the role by underestimating his rivals. Over seven thousand potential Terran was not something he took lightly. Ideally, they needed a human of their own to study, to truly understand their enemy.
He gave Gor-van a knowing look and received a nod in reply. Gor-van could be trusted to take care of the bounty hunter problem, while he concentrated on more pressing matters.
“We are going to have to push the timetable on the Trantax project,” Kel-var stated. “I will consult the prophet on the capital before proceeding. What security is watching over the project?”
“The Nova, a Nebula-class,” Gor-van replied.
“Do we have anyone onboard?”
“Of course.”
A redundant question Kel-var supposed. “Notify them of our extraction teams and have them on standby.”
The cube had been found and made public before Protocorps could get directly involved. They had been content to go through official channels to take control since the Conclave had no idea what they had found, but the Highclave had decided to keep it on Trantax IV for now. Should the matter require it, however, Kel-var had organised several specialist teams to remain on standby for retrieval. For reasons he couldn’t fathom, they had brought the humans in on the ancient relic, and Kel-var did not want any interaction between the two.
“Why not consult them?” Bal-son enquired.
“Because I know what they will say,” Kel-var replied sharply. From the beginning, they had always trusted the prophet with carrying out their will, and Protocorps was an extension of that will. “If there is no further business, this meeting is over.” No more topics were offered forward. “Then I shall say this; if any of you are as stupid as Ral-vet Tanek, I suggest you transfer any sensitive data to a secure offsite location rather than storing it on your home terminal. Ral-vet is lucky to have died the way he did after such an oversight. If any of you are responsible for future transgressions of this nature, the consequences will be far worse than an Intrinium round to the head.” With that, he swept his cloak behind him and made for the door. He sent a message to his personal aide and instructed her to ready a vessel for immediate departure; he would be in the capital by day’s end.
The prophet would know what to do...
4
Travelling with an Ambassador had its advantages, Kalian thought. After the Helion nose-dived into Naveen’s surface, the central console showed the moon’s lower hemisphere had been quarantined. No ship could pass through the virtual barrier without authorisation; thankfully Telarrek was a walking authority, especially in Novaarian territory. Ilyseal helmed the Dawnlighter as it passed through the atmosphere to fly over the dry desert below.
The moon would forever hold a special place in Kalian’s memories. It was here that he learned humanity’s origin, a question that had been pondered for thousands of years. It was also the place he unravelled the mystery of his own life and discovered his relevance in the universe. There were darker memories here as well. He had almost lost Li’ara to this moon as well as nearly dying himself.
The Dawnlighter continued to sail over the desert passing through the virtual yellow wall that flashed up on the viewport. The quarantine bubble had a diameter of three thousand kilometres with the Novaarian battleship, Pillar, parked in low orbit above. After a brief exchange with the Pillar’s charge, Telarrek had got them until sunset. Kalian just hoped that would be long enough to find what he was looking for.
“Now that’s a big hole.” Li’ara had risen to stand by Ilyseal in the pilot’s seat. The viewport gave the perfect image of the titanic wreckage left by the Helion. The crater stretched for two and half thousand kilometres in every direction with a depth of over a thousand feet. Hundreds of cranes and retrieval bots were busy at work removing every individual piece of debris. The Wall had been at the centre of the crater before the impact, though there would be nothing left of it now; even the nanocelium couldn’t withstand that kind of attack.
The ground was charred on the edges of the crater with smoke still rising from electrical components that continued to catch fire in the heat. With the main bulk of the Helion already removed Kalian could see the shining interior. Having burned at well over two thousand three hundred degrees Celsius, the sand had turned to glass giving the appearance of a giant concave mirror in the midday sun.
As they drew closer they could see the various teams of Conclave personnel dotted around the massive excavation site. Many were directing the cranes through the use of portable virtual stimulators while their superiors looked on from their podiums surrounded in holographic spheres.
“This isn’t just a cleanup job, is it?” Kalian looked to Telarrek. “They’re looking for any remains of the outpost aren’t they?”
“Yes. We are a society that craves knowledge. The Highclave see you as not only a mystery but also as a threat. They will go to every length to uncover your secrets.”
“You know as well we do Telarrek, the Conclave is not ready for Terran technology. We agreed that the Conclave must continue along its own evolutionary path. No interference.” Kalian wanted to reiterate the conversation they had had shortly after the death of Savrick. He knew Telarrek would be under immense pressure from his superiors to give over everything he learned from his time with the humans. He wasn’t losing faith in his alien friend, he just wanted to hear Telarrek echo his thoughts, and they had to be on the same page about this.
“It is your people who have a habit of playing God, not ours.” It was Naydaalan who replied. It wasn’t hard to miss the underlying contempt he held against humanity.
“Naydaalan!” Telarrek quickly silenced his son. “Forgive him, he is young and forgets his place.”
“No, I’m sorry.” Kalian could sympathise with Naydaalan’s point of view. “We have placed you in a difficult position, Telarrek. Because of us, you have been forced to keep secrets from your own people. It can’t be easy.” Kalian truly felt bad for putting Telarrek in that position; if it wasn’t for the old Novaarian they would have died many times over by now. Even though they didn’t know it, what was left of mankind owed Telarrek a great debt and, being as honourable as he was, Telarrek would never call it in.
“You need no forgiveness. I have seen first hand what the Gomar are capable of, and I have no intention of allowing the machinations of this cube to come to fruition. I have faith in you, Kalian Gaines. I have seen what you are capable of, and together I believe we can save the Conclave from Earth’s fate.”
Kalian felt a pang of guilt for doubting Telarrek’s resolve. It was easy to forget how old he was; at nearly a thousand years he had more willpower than all of them combined. Kalian was proud to call him a friend.
Ilyseal brought the ship to land on a designated pad close to the central pavilion on the edge of the crater. The giant white tent was surrounded by several large generators that were connected by tubes, big and small, to the different equipment as well as the floodlights that encompassed the impact site. Every living worker stopped to watch the craft touchdown as sand was kicked into the air from the manoeuvring thrusters. Kalian could feel the complex structure of eighty-three beings outside the ship, every one of them waiting to lay their eyes on a real human. They had no doubt been alerted by t
he Pillar of the unusual visitors.
They descended the ramp into the dry heat of the cloudless Naveen desert. Kalian felt his breath fall short at the sudden change in atmosphere. Telarrek led the way with Naydaalan still visibly bristling from his recent reprimand. Li’ara came up on his right, adjusting the armoured plating around her shoulder.
“I hope you’re right about this.” They stood side by side, partially concealed from the crowd behind the towering height of the Novaarians. Li’ara activated the display on her gauntlet and brought up climate control. She dragged her finger down the display dropping the suits internal temperature to imitate that of the ship.
Watching Li’ara control her own temperature gave Kalian an idea he had been wanting to put to the test. Pushing his awareness beyond his own physical body, he reached out feeling the atmospheric molecules around his own body. It was as if the world had stopped. He viewed everything at once in only the way a Terran could. It was easy to see how the whole universe was connected through the different densities of molecules. In the heat of Nova Prime’s star, the air particles were vibrating at incredible speeds creating the thermal energy of the desert. He slowed the vibrations down with a single thought before applying that same thought to the particle constituents of his own matter. He then assigned this use of power to a subconscious part of his mind allowing him to function on a higher level with no thought to it.
The world returned in a flood of noise and solid matter that took the form of his Naveen surroundings. Kalian couldn’t help but smile at the difference he felt in temperature under what he knew was a blazing sun.
Looking out, they could both see the many alien faces trying to glimpse the humans between their Novaarian companions. Amid the noise of all the construction, Kalian could still hear the whispers that passed between them. Some were fearful, while others wanted to come up to them and feel their pink alien skin.
“Return to your duties! This mess isn’t going to clean itself up!” A single Laronian made his way out of the crowd as they dispersed. He wore an all-in-one black suit that fitted his every contour with electronic components attached to every limb and across his chest. They each projected a new hologram feeding back information on the various projects around the crater, as well as an inbuilt virtual stimulator for override options. His blue scales glistened in the sunlight, though Kalian knew the shine came from the transparent skin that ran over the scales. As he approached he was soon accompanied by a Raalak and a Shay, both in the red security uniform of the Conclave.
“Greetings of peace...” Telarrek let his words linger, unsure of the Laronian’s name.
“I am Commander Lanakdar of house Trintell.” It annoyed Kalian that he didn’t respond with the polite greetings of peace. It was rude, even a human knew that.
“Commander Lanakdar of house Trintell, I am-”
“I know who you are, Ambassador. The entire Conclave knows who you are.” Lanakdar’s gaze quickly flickered to Kalian and Li’ara. “You are aware that this is a Conclave project, not a Novaarian project, despite its locale.”
“I have already spoken with Charge Tyrek on the Pillar. He has granted us-”
“I am aware of your conversation with the Novaarian captain.”
Naydaalan made a low pitched growl at the Laronian’s continual rudeness.
Lanakdar ignored the young Novaarian, “You may have until sunset, but you will be accompanied by Conclave security at all times.”
“As you wish Commander. We will comply.” Telarrek maintained the diplomatic demeanour required of his stature.
Kalian couldn’t be sure but it looked as if the Raalak was squaring up to Naydaalan. Their eyes were locked together, both of them puffing their chest out while they clenched their multitude of fists.
“I’m not sure what you expect to find here,” Lanakdar continued. “We have removed most of the Helion and have already begun excavating underground, though so far nothing remains of the alien outpost.” The Laronian let his eyes linger on the humans a little longer. “Why are they here? I was under the impression all the humans were confined to that death ship.”
“We’re burning daylight.” Li’ara broke through the Novaarian blockade and strode towards the crater’s edge. Lanakdar took a step back - as did his security detail - while Kalian just smiled at Li’ara’s unique way of cutting through the crap.
The size of the impact was hard to appreciate from the cargo transport; standing on the edge now, Kalian felt an unusual sensation in his gut. It was quite the drop. To think he had been at the epicentre of this. He suddenly felt better about the likelihood of the Conclave finding any Gomar remains. It also made him doubt his own chances of finding ALF.
A recovery bot flew out of the crater, forcing Kalian to duck his head from the proximity of its propulsers. It continued past them with a twisted piece of charred framing in its mechanical arms and Kalian resisted the urge to short-circuit its motors. The glass covering the crater was cracked in almost every section from the constant activity over the surface. There were twenty-one holes that had been mined into the site. Each one had a team of six-legged mechs, clearly designed for dangerous exploration and extreme mobility. With as many arms as there were legs, the mechs moved in and out of the caves carting new samples and potential fragments for testing.
The nearest hole was only a hundred metres away on their left. A mech scurried out using the top of the tunnel, while its powerful pincer legs moved unhindered by gravity. Kalian followed its path as the exploratory mech continued along one of the circular paths dug into the crater. There were twelve rings in total, each one crossed with a vertical path that led up to the ridge. Being so steep the vertical paths had been fitted with massive platforms to help transport any of the recovery team or larger equipment.
“Kalian...” Li’ara moved closer, away from the prying security team. “I hate to say it but, how could anything in the outpost have survived this? It’s just so deep.”
“We don’t know how extensive it was. For all we know, it went right through to the other side.” He couldn’t help but doubt his own words. They couldn’t even use conventional technology since the nanocelium was undetectable to any Conclave scans.
“So where do we start?” she asked.
“Give me a minute.” Kalian stepped away from the group, heading closer to the edge.
What would Esabelle do?
“Put aside everything you know about the universe, Kalian,” Esabelle had instructed during their meditative sessions. “Forget distance and size. Everything is connected. There is no difference between you and the air, the ground spread out beneath you or the mountain before you. You are just as much a part of the universe as the elements or even the stars. Do not be bound by the constructs of the human mind - you can perceive beyond that.”
Kalian closed his eyes, shutting out the sight of the glassy crater, as he knelt on one knee, placing his hand palm-down on the cracked surface. He opened his mind to all the input he could handle. He was instantly flooded with Naveen’s secrets. He felt the size of the moon in his mind as if it was just another part of his body. The sheer mass nearly overwhelmed him as he struggled to comprehend the idea that the moon and he were one and the same. He could feel every grain of sand stretching all the way to Naveen’s northern hemisphere where the Novaarian city, Alavaarn, rested. He tasted salt as the artificial ocean next to Alavaarn was consumed by his awareness. Compared to the size of the moon, the ocean’s tonnage felt like a pebble in his mind. Mountainous caves sat beneath the surface with ancient estuaries scattered like a cobweb across the moon. There were different kinds of minerals and rock that changed density as he looked deeper towards the molten core.
He narrowed his awareness to a ten thousand kilometre radius. Digging through thousands of years of sediment, he quickly found what he was looking for. There was no trace of the outpost’s remains; the impact had completely obliterated it - but that wasn’t what caught his attention. Leading off from where the
outpost should have been was a single tunnel, about halfway up from the bottom of the crater. The nanocelium was easy to detect with its unusual level of intelligence from the individual nanites.
“What’s he doing?” The Raalak took two thunderous steps on his quadruped feet. Naydaalan gracefully stepped between him and Kalian before Li’ara even had the chance. Kalian pushed the distraction away, concentrating on the new tunnel. Tracking it to its source he knew the length of the tunnel continued for another three kilometres, heading away from the crater. At the end, Kalian could feel the cold nanocelium surface of a sphere, two metres in diameter as if he were touching it with his bare hand.
With that he opened his eyes, adjusting his retinas for the change in brightness, and stood up to examine the crater. To the left of their position, he could see one of the many caves dug halfway up the impact site. It wasn’t perfectly in line with the tunnel, but it would do.
“We need to go inside that cave.” Kalian pointed to it for the benefit of the group. They would need the use of the platforms to reach it.
After deflecting Commander Lanakdar’s questions, with regards to the reason for the specific cave, they eventually walked around the track having departed the platform. The cave entrance was twenty feet in diameter allowing the whole group to walk through comfortably. Everything beyond the first forty-feet the cave was pitch black until the Shay activated the white lights that ran along the ceiling. One by one they lit up revealing the incredible length the diggers had travelled. At over a mile away they could all see the great machine parked at the end of its journey, awaiting further orders to dig.
The Terran Cycle Boxset Page 56
