Veklocks

by S. H. Jucha

  Harbour and the other Pyreans stepped up on the empty platform, and the envoy signaled the transfer.

  * * * *

  Eggess gazed at the panel. As one of the Loopah’s premier scientists, it had fallen to him to investigate the discovery that had intrigued his race for generations. They’d first observed the mysterious blue orb through their scopes. It sat tantalizingly close on the satellite that orbited their planet.

  The Loopah waited another century until they were able to launch a ship and land on Loomas, their satellite. To their surprise, the structure wasn’t an orb. It was a hemisphere with a sublevel.

  Eggess suspected there was much more to the purpose of the structure than they could observe. It had taken him and others many cycles to gain access from the airless satellite’s surface to the upper level. That indicated to Eggess that a level of sentience and problem-solving capability was required to enter and operate the enigmatic construction.

  The multiple platforms interested Eggess, but it was the operators’ equipment near the deck’s center that intrigued him. Originally, other scientists had worked with Eggess, and it was their consensus that the structure was constructed by vastly superior beings for a purpose they couldn’t comprehend.

  Some scientists had returned home immediately afterwards. They were frightened that a deadly energy might be released if the operators’ panels were improperly activated. Eventually and after hundreds of cycles without progress, the remaining scientists had returned to the planet. Eggess alone continued his work.

  “Eggess, you must rest,” Semgess, the security chief urged.

  Eggess was a brilliant scientist, but his body hair had long since turned from its rich brown to silver. Semgess worried that Eggess would exhaust himself.

  “Semgess, your concerns are appreciated, but you worry too much,” Eggess replied, patting her hand. He did appreciate her attentions. Many cycles ago, he’d lost his mate and two young ones in a horrible accident that had claimed the lives of others. In many ways, he believed his youngest would have grown up to be like Semgess. Admittedly, he was tired, but he was driven to solve the riddles that temptingly dangled before his eyes.

  Eggess regarded his notes. He kept scrupulous details of the things he tried and the glyphs he’d entered. There were possible meanings noted beside the glyph entries, and he felt foolish staring at them. It seemed the pinnacle of hubris to guess the meanings of the supreme beings’ symbols.

  Exhaling a weary sigh, Eggess decided on his next attempt. As he reached out, a panel, two stations away, activated. A bright flash lit the hemisphere, and Eggess shielded his eyes. To his amazement, four figures stood on one of the low platforms.

  Semgess blinked. She was stunned by the light and then the concept of four entities appearing from nowhere. In response, she unslung her needle launcher and pointed it at the four figures. She sought to step in front of Eggess to protect him.

  Eggess saw Semgess’s defensive movements. He blocked her by laying his hand on her needle launcher and slowly forced her to lower it.

  “These might be the creators,” Eggess hissed to Semgess. “Do not antagonize them.”

  The two Loopah watched the four figures hold out their arms away from their sides, and they waited. When Eggess realized nothing would happen until he requested it, he waved the figures forward, but they stayed on the platform.

  “Semgess, your security team,” Eggess growled softly.

  Semgess barked an order to her security team to lower their launchers and step back. She appreciated that the entities displayed no weapons, and they were content to wait until they were invited to move.

  Harbour and Aurelia broadcast low levels of soothing calm. They hoped their ministrations weren’t detected by the simians.

  “What’s first, Jessie?” Harbour asked.

  “We’ve got to demonstrate our value,” Jessie replied quietly.

  “That’s me,” Aurelia whispered. She pointed toward the console and continued to point at it until the silver-haired simian beckoned her forward.

  “Stay put, Devon,” Harbour hissed, when he made to follow Aurelia.

  Aurelia slowly approached the simians at the console. She noticed the protective mannerisms of the female, who stood near the silvered simian. Her first thought was to establish a rapport and see what the simians had learned. Then she realized that she had no foundation for understanding what the race had learned about the console. The Pyreans had been challenged by the Triton dome because they weren’t the original occupants. Worse, they hadn’t entered the dome but resurrected it. It’s probably simpler for the intended race, she thought.

  Eggess observed the approaching entity. It was dressed in black, and its shape indicated a female.

  Aurelia stopped, when she saw the furred hand of the one who guarded the aged simian tense on her weapon.

  Eggess saw the dark-clad female’s eyes glance to her left before she stopped. He saw Semgess’s tense posture and her desire to raise her launcher. He growled a low warning to Semgess, who reluctantly released her launcher to let it hang by its strap and placed her hands behind her back.

  “Aurelia,” the empath said, touching her chest.

  Eggess heard the odd speech and recognized the attempt. “Eggess,” he replied, tapping his chest with a long, muscular arm.

  Aurelia indicated the console, and Eggess gestured her forward.

  When Eggess saw Semgess move to place herself between the female figure and him, he barked a command to remain in place. Then he waved the strange entity forward once more.

  Aurelia was close enough to the console to see that the master panel was dark. She glanced at Eggess’s hand and saw he held a stylus. She held up a closed hand with the index finger extended, and then she indicated Eggess’s hand. Finally, she held her digit over the nearby panel.

  Eggess decided to humor the entity. He’d tapped that panel many times without it responding. When he reached out to touch it, the entity uttered a sound and made an abrupt movement.

  Security reacted anxiously, and Eggess growled harshly at them. He ordered them toward the ramp and had a tense argument with Semgess. When he’d gotten his way, he held up his tool toward the entity. He watched her shake her head and raise her digit again.

  Eggess felt like an old fool. It was his habit to point and touch with a tipping tool, and the entity was indicating that it interfered with the panel. He put away his tool, raised his index finger to the female, and then touched the panel she indicated. He felt a slight pinch on his dark skin.

  The panel lit, and it projected a complex molecule. Eggess recognized it. Turning in the projection was the biological key to his species’ cellular construction.

  Aurelia watched the master panel activate and display the Loopah’s biological signature. She was relieved her assumption was correct. She assumed Eggess was thrilled because he bared his teeth. His upper and lower canines were formidable.

  For Aurelia’s next lesson, she decided to show the simians something visually powerful. She accessed a panel, moved down its submenu, and entered a series of glyphs into the projection. The dome darkened, and the Messinants star field appeared.

  Eggess was disappointed. The female entity moved too swiftly to record her actions. He caught her attention and moved his finger in a series of waves like she had done.

  Aurelia knelt on the deck and spread her hands across the glyphs. She saw Eggess stare at the incredible number of symbols etched into the deck. When Eggess gave her a questioning glance, she nodded in the affirmative, and Eggess replied with a couple of deep huffs.

  The other simians were staring at the star field. Even the security team had forgotten their directive to remain at the ramp. They were wandering around the deck and gazing at the star field.

  Aurelia glanced at Harbour and received a strong wave of emotional support and calm.

  Eggess regarded the star field. The female entity pointed to a specific section, but his eyesight was too poor to rec
ognize what she indicated. He’d been born with poor vision. Three operations over his lifetime had marginally improved his sight. Now there was no more to be done. Close work was the only distance in which he had clarity.

  “Semgess, lay your launcher down and come close,” Eggess ordered.

  Reluctantly, Semgess obeyed.

  “Introduce yourself,” Eggess directed.

  “Semgess,” the security leader said, tapping her breast.

  “Good,” Eggess said. “Now what is the entity pointing toward?”

  “A star has a ring around it,” Semgess replied.

  “Ah,” Eggess growled. He held out a thumb toward the female and circled it with a finger of his other hand.

  Aurelia nodded excitedly. Then she pointed at Eggess and Semgess and jabbed several times at the dome’s star field.

  Eggess watched the female repeat her actions several times. When she indicated Semgess and him, he said, “Loopah.”

  “Loopah?” Aurelia queried, indicating the entire group of simians.

  “Loopah,” Semgess agreed. When the entity pointed at them and the top of the hemisphere, Semgess made the connection.

  “Eggess, the female is telling us that the circled star is the location of our home world system,” Semgess said, grasping the scientist’s forearm.

  “Loopah?” Eggess repeated, indicating the hemisphere’s display.

  “Affirmative. Loopah,” Aurelia replied, bobbing her head. She saw a dark marker in the aged simian’s vest and slowly reached to take it from him. Then she waved to him to follow her. On the deck, she circled a set of glyphs and handed the marker back. When she circled around the simians to return to the console, the scientist and the security leader followed.

  With a broad circle of Aurelia’s hand, she indicted her companions and herself. “Pyreans,” she said.

  “Pyreans,” Eggess echoed and nodded his understanding.

  “Pyreans,” Aurelia repeated, ensuring that she was the last one to speak. Then she accessed another submenu on the same panel. In the projected screen, she entered the glyphs she’d circled. Afterwards, she indicated the dome’s display. She was taken aback by the older simian’s deep growls. By the way he squinted at the dome, she figured his eyesight was failing, and he was angry that the star field display wasn’t clear to him.

  “What do you see?” Eggess asked Semgess.

  “A line extends from our star through many stars,” Semgess replied. “It ends at another star, which is also circled.”

  Taking a guess, Semgess extended an arm upward and asked, “Pyreans?”

  “Pyreans,” Aurelia agreed, exaggerating the nods of her head.

  “Do you realize what these entities are telling us?” Eggess asked, enthusiastically gripping Semgess by the arms.

  “Eggess, you’re the illustrious scientist. You tell me,” Semgess said in confusion.

  “The female is explaining that she and the others have traveled from star to star through these structures,” Eggess declared. “They’re connected.”

  Semgess saw tears form in the old scientist’s eyes. He was emotionally overcome by the greatest discovery of his long life.

  Aurelia could see her demonstrations had broken through the tricky barrier of first contact. She worked through several other simple submenus on the console. Now the two simians crowded around her to observe every detail of her actions.

  “That’s enough, Aurelia,” Harbour called softly. “Step toward us.”

  “Should I?” Jessie offered.

  “Let’s stick with a female empath,” Harbour replied. She walked forward, as Aurelia retreated.

  Eggess eyed the new female. Leader, her decorated covering said. That she was female indicated something important to him about the entities.

  Harbour hoped her pantomiming skills were up to the task. “Harbour,” she said, tapping her chest. Then she cupped her hands, as if she held something liquid. She indicated Aurelia and then swung her cupped hands toward the simians. Simultaneously, she said, “Aurelia gives to Loopah.”

  “Aurelia, Loopah,” Eggess repeated, imitating the female leader’s gesture and nodding his agreement.

  Then Harbour pointed toward Eggess, repeated the cupping motion from him to her, and said, “Loopah give Harbour.”

  “Is this one asking for reciprocity?” Semgess asked.

  “I believe so, but I’ve no idea what we possess that these entities might value,” Eggess replied. Belatedly, he caught the female leader’s final motions.

  “What’s on the deck over there?” Eggess asked Semgess, as he strained his eyes to see.

  “I think she’s requesting my needle launcher,” Semgess replied dubiously.

  “Go,” Eggess ordered. “Pick it up by the rod and return.”

  Semgess grasped her needle launcher, as Eggess requested. She walked carefully to stand by his side, but was reluctant to extend it toward the entity.

  Eggess tapped the launcher’s rod, and the entities’ leader confirmed that was what she wanted.

  “Give her the launcher, Semgess,” Eggess ordered.

  “Please, Eggess, this is dangerous,” Semgess objected.

  “Think about our circumstances, Semgess,” Eggess urged. “These entities travel through these structures. They know how they work. Now they’ve come to us to ask for a needle launcher. How did they know we had them?”

  Eggess’s question stymied Semgess. She had no answer for him. Events had far eclipsed her ability to reason them out. With a huff, Semgess handed her launcher toward the leader, but she didn’t take it. Instead, she spoke to the other entities, who came forward. A male, who also wore decorated markings on his black covering, pointed to her launcher and tapped his temple.

  The male’s actions were something Semgess understood. She treated the entities as if they were raw recruits and demonstrated the operation of her launcher. She incorporated hand motions to add detail, and the males were quick to understand.

  Devon pointed to the drum, which contained the objects he’d seen in the breach, and he pantomimed reload. The simian pulled a satchel from behind her back. It was full of drums.

  “You two good?” Aurelia asked Jessie and Devon.

  “I understand the weapon’s operation,” Jessie replied. “I just don’t know what it fires.”

  Harbour tapped the barrel of the weapon and held up both hands, with her fingers spread wide. Then she touched Semgess’s pouch and held up ten fingers again.

  “Easy enough to understand,” Eggess commented. “The entities wish ten needle launchers and cylinder satchels. Please provide these, Semgess, by piling them on the platform on which they arrived.”

  “At least I won’t have to worry about losing my position if these entities turn our launchers on us,” Semgess grouched. Then she growled orders to her security team. The launchers and cylinder satchels were laid in two neat piles on the platform.

  “Aurelia, set the console for delayed activation. Give me a few moments,” Harbour requested.

  When Aurelia programed the panel, she did it swiftly to minimize the opportunity for Eggess to copy her. Then she walked slowly to join Jessie and Devon on the platform. They were careful to stand apart from the piles of Loopah weaponry.

  Harbour touched her temple. Then she carefully reached out and touched the thick coarse hair on the sides of each simian’s skulls.

  Eggess was confused by the leader’s actions. Then he felt wonderful sensations sweep through his mind. He believed he was in touch with the entity’s emotions. Warmth and appreciation flooded through his thoughts. When the sensations subsided, he was disappointed. The aches of his aging body had momentarily disappeared during the entity’s mental process only to return and remind him of his advanced years. He opened his eyes in time to see the leader retreating. Soon after she ascended the platform, the blue light speared the top of the hemisphere, and the four figures were gone.

  “I’m pleased we had witnesses,” Semgess whispered. “
Otherwise, I don’t think we’d be believed.”

  Eggess noticed Semgess was gently touching her temple, and he asked her, “Did you feel something from the female leader?”

  Yes,” Semgess replied. “It was as if I’d done some gracious thing and my troubles were momentarily banished for my generous act.”

  “Yes, that,” Eggess agreed. “All my aches and pains were quiet. It was a most uplifting sensation.”

  “I believe you can say that this has been a most successful day, Eggess,” Semgess commented. “We know the purpose of this structure. You’ve been taught valuable lessons about its control, and we’ve met other intelligent entities. We aren’t alone among the stars.”

  “You’ve missed one important point, my faithful companion,” Eggess said. “What do advanced entities, such as those we just met, need with our rudimentary needle launchers and satchels of reloads?”

  -9-

  Targets

  The Pyreans appeared on a Norsitchian platform.

  When dome personnel saw the pile of baggage, they rushed to assist, but Jessie waved them off.

  Devon picked up half the pile of satchels and carried them to the platform they’d originally arrived on via the Crocian route. Jessie did the same, and Harbour and Aurelia carried the weapons.

  The Pyreans journeyed through the domes until they reached the Crocians.

  Mangoth roared when he saw his explorer friends appear with armloads of oddly shaped items.

  “Did you visit the simians?” Hangor asked excitedly.

  Mangoth eyed his clutch mate until Hangor got the cue and subsided.

  Mangoth led the way below. He chose the third-level room where the Pyreans had left their duffels.

  Inside, the women laid the weapons on a pallet, and the men piled the satchels beside it.

  “Success?” Mangoth queried.

  “Hard to say,” Jessie replied. “We don’t know exactly what we’ve been given. It’s not like we could test these in their dome.”

  “Was it the simians?” Hangor asked again.

  “Yes, and they’re called Loopah,” Harbour replied.