‘No, it can’t – which is the main reason we’re still orbiting Mars. We can’t use the fusion engine until the barrier’s dropped, and Micha won’t drop the barrier while the CFR ship is still in the vicinity.’
‘Hmm. And the last system?’
‘The last system is the most impressive. It works on space-folding.’
‘They can fold an entire ship?’ Sol was staggered. ‘Then why do they need a ship at all?’
‘They can’t fold all in one go. The energy involved would be far too great. Instead, the ship moves by a series of micro-folds, with down-time between. Even for this, the energy required is fantastic. It’s derived from a mini black hole that’s kept suspended in a powerful magnetic field.’
Sol couldn’t believe what he was hearing. These guys had to be nuts to be using this sort of technology. The more he heard, the more he wanted to be off this ship.
‘So, where does the energy for maintaining the magnetic field come from,’ he asked, wondering if he wanted to know the answer. ‘If that fails, we’re all spaghetti.’
‘I think they know that,’ Chard replied. ‘The fusion reactors provide the main power source, as they do for other on-board features, including life-support. They are heavily protected and would be very unlikely to fail. Remember they’ve just survived the destruction of Titan and an impact on Mars. It’s very unlikely they would experience anything worse than that.’
‘So that’s it, then? No back-up for the fusion reactors?’
‘I don’t think so.’
‘Oh, shit! I wish I hadn’t asked.’
§
After some more wondering around, Sol came to the so-called “Power Centre” and spent some time poking at this and that and gazing in awe at the container for the mini black hole. He remained staggered that a race as technologically advanced as the El would be comfortable with a black hole power source that relied purely upon a fusion engine for its containment field. It seemed utter madness to him. He sighed. This was the problem of trying to ascribe human emotions to aliens, and these guys were undoubtedly alien despite the impression that Micha was trying to give – the benevolent uncle figure.
He left the black hole to its own devices and shuffled on round the ship, following Chard’s map to a few more “Centres” before eventually finding his way back to his allocated cabin. Now, he was back to square one – he was hungry again – and what he’d give for a good hamburger and beer! Unfortunately, there was only the automat with its crazy selection of food. He gazed glumly at it and tried to recall what he’d previously found vaguely palatable. Damn, he just couldn’t remember. He’d have to guess – and that wasn’t good because he’d discovered some god-awful crap in that thing.
He was about to key in an option and hope for the best when there was a knock at the door and Micha let himself in. The big El strode across the room and made himself comfortable in one of the huge chairs. Sol abandoned his attempt with the automat and wondered back to the other chair.
‘I feel I owe you a little more explanation than you’ve received so far,’ Micha said in excellent English. ‘I’ve just completed my duties for the day and can afford some time – if that’s convenient for you, of course.’
‘Great! I was wondering what I was going to do until bedtime,’ Sol said. ‘I’d offer you a beer, but your ship’s bar seems a bit depleted.’
Micha went over to the automat and pulled up the virtual screen that Sol had already found, the one full of indecipherable hieroglyphics that produced the various foods he’d previously tried. The good, the bad and the downright ugly, as he’d designated them. Sol watched, intrigued, as Micha engaged in a bit of hand-waving in front of the machine. After a couple of minutes, he stood back and indicated that Sol should come and look. The screen was now covered in English, and to Sol’s intense delight, he saw it was a proper menu that included all sorts of stuff he was yearning for – including beer and hamburgers.
‘It’s a synthesiser,’ Micha said. ‘Can be programmed to make almost anything from recycled waste matter.’
‘I know that, but all I could find was other-world stuff.’ Sol said, finding his juices were already beginning to flow. ‘How did you manage to get Earth food on there? In English?’
Micha smiled. ‘We’ve previously been on Earth and have an extensive database of dishes from all over your world.’
‘But hamburgers?’ Sol was a bit doubtful about that. ‘When was the last time you were on Earth?’
‘I see what you mean. We haven’t been there for many thousands of years. However, the ship’s programmed to update all databases on a regular basis, and it would have continued carrying out that function while it was dormant on Titan. As to the language, I learned it from you when we first met. I’ve subsequently taught the other members of my crew as well as including it in the culinary sub-routine. I’m glad it meets with your approval.’
‘It’s just what the doctor ordered.’ Sol was eying up the menu and already planning the evening ahead.
‘I can’t guarantee you’ll find everything you’d like,’ Micha said guardedly, ‘but it should at least give you a taste of home.’
‘You’re very kind.’ Sol wondered if the El captain had tried bourbon and ordered two glasses, one of which he offered to Micha. Micha took the glass and sniffed the contents suspiciously before returning to his chair and sitting down again. Sol sat too, still feeling like a little boy in a grown-up chair and doing his best not to spill any drink. Micha obviously noted his discomfort because he came to the rescue again.
‘All the furniture in the cabins is adjustable,’ he said. ‘Clearly, there are small differences in size between the crew members. They also have preferences regarding hard or soft, upright or angulated, etc. etc. Allow me.’
He leaned over and passed his hand in front of a sensor pad on the side of Sol’s chair. Another virtual screen appeared, and this time Sol could see its function. There were diagrams of the chair with different angulations of the back, various heights, and a continuously variable scale of size.
Micha looked enquiringly at him. ‘Perhaps you’d like to try?’
Sole played with the options, using hand-swipes, and it didn’t take him long to modify the chair so that it was a perfect fit. In fact, it was now amazingly comfortable, and it had the added benefit of making him feel less awkward when he talked to Micha.
‘This is great,’ he said. ‘Does the mattress on the bed do the same thing?’
‘Exactly the same.’ Micha showed him where the control pad was, then sat again and took a tentative sip of his bourbon. He raised his eyebrows and looked at it appreciatively. ‘This is very good. I can see I will have to try some more of your food and drink.’
‘I’d welcome your company any time.’
Sol meant it. It was a big old ship, and it was going to get tedious over the next few days, even with Chard to chat to. The occasional friendly get-together with Micha would be good – and he could learn something about what was going on at the same time.
‘Then I’ll try to visit at least once a day.’ Micha drained the glass of bourbon. ‘Excuse me.’ He got up and refilled his glass before sitting again and giving what Sol took to be a small smile. ‘I think I could develop a taste for this stuff.’
He took another sip, a small one this time, and settled back in his chair, crossing his legs as if he was in a gentleman’s club on Earth. It was so incongruous – sitting on an alien ship with a three-metre winged alien who sat and sipped bourbon like a human when given the opportunity. It was also refreshing to find an alien species that was not so very different under the skin to humans.
Sol took a sip of his own drink, swilled it around his mouth and swallowed with a satisfied ‘Ahh’. He smiled at the El as he rolled the amber liquid around the glass. ‘I don’t know how the ship did it, but this is a really good one. Haven’t had anything like it for years.’
‘I’m glad you approve,’ Micha took another sip of his drink, then put the glass
down and leaned forward slightly. ‘Shall we move on to events on Earth over the past few thousand years?’
‘I’m all ears.’ Sol saw a blank look come over Micha. ‘Sorry. It means I’m eager to listen to what you have to say.’
‘Ah. Then I’ll begin. First, I should explain that the recent actions of the Cthon against your planet were not sanctioned. Their remit was to monitor the development of humanity and take selective and very local action to prevent it developing in a certain way.’
‘Something to do with a gateway, or way, that has to remain closed?’
‘Yes, “The Way” is a means of ready access to sub-quantal space and we, along with other species in this galactic arm, act as guardians to ensure it remains closed. Our designated sector of space is of considerable size, and its management would be better suited to a mentalic race. Unfortunately, our own DNA forever precludes us from mentalics, and we have needed to be innovative to successfully carry out our duties. We decided at an early stage that the best way of proceeding was to develop mentalically-capable client races.’
‘The Cthon,’ Sol said. My son, Josh, said it looked like their evolution had been accelerated, and I could see anomalies that I couldn’t properly explain by natural selection.’
‘Yes, the Cthon is a client race responsible for this sub-sector of space. We specifically developed them from herbivores to ensure their docility and compliance with orders. It appears they have somehow escaped from this imperative.’
‘Then, what of the Eich,’ Sol said. ‘They started off as Cthon, and they tell a story that’s way off beam.’
Micha looked embarrassed, a look that for some reason, suited his face very well.’
‘Another Cthon anomaly that wasn’t supposed to happen. The Eich were a Cthon sect that believed The Way should be opened. They became obsessed with the idea, to the extent that their actions began to affect the ability of the Cthon to carry out their primary objective. We were forced to act. With Cthon help, we rounded the Eich up, and were intending to imprison them somewhere safe when they escaped. Despite a detailed search, we failed to find them, and were soon forced to move on if we were to fulfil our obligations in other parts of our sector.’
‘I assume they took themselves to Earth?’ Sol said. ‘Small planet – back of beyond, galactically-speaking. Perfect to hide on.’
‘You assume correctly. However, their choice of Earth had nothing to do with its location, and everything to do with its developing dominant species.’
‘Humanity? What did they want with us?’
‘They detected that humanity was a very promising species in relation to opening The Way. Your genome contains some very interesting sequences that suggest you not only have a high likelihood of developing mentalics but could also become a conduit to sub-quantal space. The Eich reasoned that, if they could initiate a specific programme of development, The Way could be transformed into a highway.’
‘And you detected what they were doing?’
‘The Cthon detected it. They picked up mentalic markers coming from your planet when there shouldn’t have been any. They informed us, and we went to investigate. When we found the Eich, we attempted once again to round them up. However, they had spent the intervening years developing their mentalics, knowing they would have to confront us at some point, and what should have been a short battle turned into a prolonged war. Eventually, and again with the assistance of the Cthon, we beat them and transported them to the caverns on Titan where you subsequently met them.’
‘But why do they give such a different story?’
‘These were highly-developed mentalic beings. We couldn’t simply leave them on Titan because they’d have simply folded back to Earth. The best way to keep them truly secure would have been a folded-space barrier, but the energy required to maintain such a barrier over millennia was prohibitive. Our only option appeared to be psychological – to make them think they had been marooned on Titan for other reasons and provide them with arguments both for watching over humanity and for staying off Earth. It took the Cthon a relatively long time to manage that.’
‘And you. How did you end up inside Titan?
‘Ah, yes. That was most unfortunate. We had just successfully confined the Eich, and the Cthon had departed, when our ship suffered catastrophic systems failure. We think it was a last-minute attack by the Eich before they were effectively neutralised. Anyway, we crashed into Titan and ended up in the mantle, the ship only being saved by the application of the folded-space barrier at the last moment. We knew it would take a long time for the necessary repairs to be made, but what we didn’t count on was the Eich becoming aware of our presence and taking steps to ensure those repairs would never happen. It was stalemate.’
‘Until?’
‘Until the Eich left Titan. We had long since entered stasis because we were aware this could last for a considerable time. When they left, however, they let their mentalic interference drop and the ship still had enough functions left to free itself.’
‘By blowing up Titan?’
‘It might have managed something a little less dramatic had it been intact, but that was the simplest option it came up with given its damaged state. Unfortunately, it then detected your Base on Mars and calculated that this probably belonged to the Eich. It is most regrettable that this planet has been rendered completely uninhabitable by our own ship’s failure.’
A lot was starting to fall into place. Sol had occasionally wondered why the Eich hadn’t migrated from Titan before. Now it kind of made sense. They’d been brainwashed into believing they shouldn’t return to Earth. Everything they believed was wrong. That brought them back to The Way.
‘I follow you so far,’ he said, ‘but I’m still confused about The Way. Why should so many species expend such a large amount of time and energy trying to keep The Way closed?
Micha filled his glass for a third time and looked grim.
‘There are entities in sub-quantal space. Entities that, as far as we can tell, were there at the very formation of the universe. Their presence appears to have helped set the cosmic constants that are responsible for the universe being as it is, able to form stars and planets and giving rise to life. Their continued presence there is vital if these constants are to remain intact. Disruption of the constants would result in the destruction of the universe.’
‘Okay, I follow that. Where does that take your argument?’
‘It’s relatively simple, Sol. These entities are trying to escape from sub-quantal space. We know this, because we have detected some early perturbations in the constants. They can only escape if access to sub-quantal space is suddenly facilitated – and your race appears to be doing just that.’
‘Shit!’ Sol suddenly got it. ‘Mentalic humans are The Way – the means by which these entities can escape. And if they do that, we’re all dead.’ He looked confused. ‘But what about the Eich then? That would imply they want to destroy the universe.’
‘Originally, they simply took the opposite view to the rest of us,’ Micha said. ‘They believed that it was the ongoing presence of these entities in sub-quantal space that was disturbing the constants, and that helping them to escape was the way to save the universe. They were misguided. Now, of course, their original ideas have been supplanted with a simple desire to keep humanity safe from the Cthon.’
‘So, we have been on the wrong side all along.’ Sol sighed heavily and refilled his own glass. ‘Somehow, we’ve got to make this right.’
‘Once the ship has repaired its systems and we take down the folded-space shield, you will be at liberty to leave here and explain these things to your colleagues,’ Micha said. He drained his glass and stood. ‘However, I believe that’s enough for one day. I hope you have a tasty meal.’
‘Yeah. Thanks.’ Sol was still hungry, and still relished the idea of some real red meat (well, nearly real). Unfortunately, the anticipation had been somewhat dulled by Micha’s explanation of what was going down.
Regardless of that, when the El had gone, he lost no time ordering a huge hamburger and fries.
‘Shit!’ he mumbled to himself though a mouthful of fries, ‘Flash Gordon really doesn’t cut it compared to this.’
Chapter 20
The portal opened, and Tao stepped through into the Himalayan valley the Eich had chosen as the site of their new community on Earth. There was absolutely no evidence that anyone was here. The valley appeared its usual pristine self, and it was only when Tao activated the X-ray sensor on her night vision facility that the folded-space barrier became evident. There was no suggestion of an external power plant, as would have been the case if the Cthon had set the barrier up, so she assumed it had been constructed by the Eich themselves, and the means of powering it would be within its perimeter. Okay, that wasn’t a problem. Following her experience with Josh on the Cthon planet, she was something of an expert at getting around barriers like this.
She opened a portal to ten weeks in the past and stepped through. The barrier had gone. Strictly speaking, it hadn’t been constructed yet. With a small smile, she stepped over the boundary and time-folded forwards again. Now she was inside – simple as that. So, next step was to find the Eich and discover what was going on. In fact, it was clear her arrival had activated some sort of alarm, because an Eich was already making its way towards her. It stopped a couple of metres from her.
‘Tao Chen. We feared both you and Josh were lost to us.’
‘Speaker?’ There was something about this individual that seemed different from the Speaker with whom she was familiar.
‘I am honoured to have been selected for that role. I am not, however, the same individual you have been used to dealing with. That one has … passed over.’
‘He’s dead? How did he die? Somehow, I never thought of you as being able to die – except for accidental death, of course.’
‘We are as mortal as you, though our lives are measured in longer time periods than your own. I can assure you, I will be a reliable alternative. You may continue calling me “Speaker”.’
Gods of Titan- The Cosmic Constants Page 15
