by J Porteous
A small grin pulled Hawke's cheek. 'I'm the Traitor of Sol. I doubt there would be many who would disagree with the idea.' He placed the glass down carefully on the desk, holding it firmly as if afraid it would disappear as soon as it left his grasp. He looked up at them both. 'We'll have to wait and see what our mystery friend has to say, won't we?' His eyes darted back down to the glass. 'I need some time to think.' He looked up towards Carl. 'Let me know when we are ready to dock with the Winter Dawn.'
Carl nodded silently, then stood and followed Justinia out of the room. Arrathnar gave them a brief nod as she retired to her quarters. Carl and Justinia walked in silence down the corridor, both struggling to find any words to speak. His mind drifted to Rix again, of how she had been marked, and how the Kalindros had used her, how they had promised her things. Now Justinia is going to be left with Hawke when they meet this contact. Should I speak to her about it? Surely Hawke wouldn't harm Justinia? He realised the stupidity of that thought as his parents entered his mind. If Rix could do that, then what could Hawke be capable of? He coughed nervously, making a way for the words to come out. 'I need to speak to you.'
Justinia looked almost startled at the sudden break in the silence. 'Not got enough to think about already?'
'Too much, believe me,' Carl said. He checked the corridor both ways. No one. He reached forward and placed his hand upon hers. 'In private, it's important. Please.'
'Goban?' Justinia looked taken aback by his plead. She composed herself. 'If it's important then lead on.'
They glided down the rest of the corridor in silence before detouring into Carl's quarters. He glanced out the door again, checking the corridor was quiet, then secured the door. He turned to Justinia, her face a flowing mixture of emotion. 'Take a seat,' he said, gesturing to the single chair opposite his bunk.
She sat slowly, not taking her eyes from him. 'What's this about, Carl? Why the secrecy?'
Carl sat, hesitating for the moment, his fingers twitching. 'It's about what we found on the Hell Hammer. It's about Hawke.'
Justinia's eyes widened, her mouth opening to respond before shaking her head incredulously. 'What is it? What about him?'
Carl cleared his throat. 'The troopers we followed onto the Hell Hammer. It was Rix, Justinia, it was Rix.' His vision blurred as he tried to fight back the welling tears. 'She...she had the same mark as Hawke.'
'Fuck,' Justinia muttered to herself, then looked up at Carl. 'I'm sorry, Carl, I really am. As if you hadn't seen enough death recently.' She dropped her head into her hands, covering her eyes. 'What happened on the Hell Hammer?'
'We killed the troopers, some of them military, some of them Blistered Suns. I found her cowering in a vent,' Carl said, wiping tears from his face. 'Almost killed her myself until I ripped her helmet off and saw...her.' He sat up straight, taking a few deep breaths. 'She kept repeating the words that “they made her”.'
'The Kalindros?'
'Yes,' Carl said. 'She asked us to remove her jacket, as I'd already crushed one of her hands.' Guilt wracked him. Images of Rix pulled themselves to the front of his memory. Not of her in her military uniform but of her childhood days. A young girl, full of life, not the bedraggled wreck that begged him for forgiveness. 'She had the mark, the same ragged claw mark raked down her.' He paused, waiting for Justinia to look at him. 'She said they spoke to her, that they made promises to her, about things they would give her in return for her service.'
Justinia held his eye contact. 'And did they?' A harsh cough wracked her. 'Sorry,' she mumbled. 'Carry on.'
Carl nodded at her apology. He fought hard to push the image of Rix with the hand cannon still clutched in her hand from his mind. 'No,' he said. 'No, they didn't.'
Silence fell over the pair, both of them staring at the other in silence, waiting for the other to speak first. The stagnant air of the War Goddess seemed as if it held them in a freeze.
'What do we need to do?' Justinia asked, breaking the silence first. Another cough wracked her. She wiped her mouth, fresh blood smearing her arm. She looked at Carl's reaction. 'It's fine, Goban. Don't worry about it.'
'Don't worry about it?' he exclaimed in shock. 'You're coughing blood, Justinia.'
'Don't worry about it,' she repeated.
'It's the Carcino Relic syndrome isn't it?'
She nodded grimly. 'I knew it was coming, as all of with the syndrome do. The Harathdans may have cured most of the Human race, but they really fucked over some of us.'
'If they hadn't done what they had, we would all have been consumed by the cancers Earth had cursed us with,' Carl offered. 'It's just unfortunate that their fix could not save all of us.'
Justinia wiped the blood away. 'Don't get me wrong Carl, I don't blame anyone. If one person needs to die to save a thousand, then that one must die. I can see why they did it. You just never suspect it will happen to be you.' She gave a small grin. 'Look on the bright side, most of us don't live long enough to reproduce anyway, the defect has practically killed itself off.' The smile dropped from her face. 'Whatever you do, you cannot tell Hawke. This mission needs all of the resources we can muster and I'll be damned if I am made to sit back and watch from the sidelines. I am going to die, Carl. There is no cure. At least let me die doing what I am best at.'
Carl nodded silently. 'I don't like it, but I'll keep it quiet,” he said quietly. He knew better than to deny someone of hope. 'But that doesn't change the current situation with Hawke.'
'I'm glad you see my point of view. And you're right,' she said. 'It doesn't. What do we need to do?'
'What can we do?' Carl offered back, shoulders slumping. 'I thought I needed to tell you, since you are leaving with Hawke once we arrive at the Winter Dawn.'
Justinia nodded a thanks. 'It's appreciated.' She sat still for a moment, lost in her own thoughts. 'I'll keep a close eye on him, maybe get some truth out of him.' The proximity alarm sounded, signaling their imminent arrival at the Winter Dawn. Justinia ran her hands over her shaved head and stood.
'Justinia,' Carl said, reaching out and holding her wrist. 'Be careful.'
She looked down and placed her hand upon his. 'You too,' she said, then left.
Carl returned to the cockpit in preparation for the drop from warp space. As he walked towards the cockpit, he heard voices ahead. Arrathnar and Nelson? The door slid open, revealing both of them deep in conversation.
'What do you mean they came from nowhere?' Arrathnar said. 'They must have left a trail, something at least?'
'I mean exactly that, High Researcher,' Nelson said. 'I've analysed the data four times already, at your request. I do not make mistakes.'
'I thought you said you made a mistake when some of the crew of the Indomitable survived?' Carl said, interrupting the conversation.
Nelson turned to him, blank eyes falling over Carl. 'It was not my intention, ex-serviceman Goban. The fact that you survived was due to a miscalculation within the algorithm I was given, nothing to do with my own AI decisions.'
Well, that's one way to make me feel better, Carl thought grimly. 'You've analysed the data then? What came of it?'
'It is hard to tell,' Nelson said. 'Even with my advanced tracing capabilities, I cannot locate a point from which they traveled from, or to, afterwards. They simply appeared.'
Arrathnar sat back against a console, her hand rubbing her brow. 'It just does not make sense,' she said. 'There must be a way to trace them.'
'There is some additional data,' Nelson said. 'However this outcome would be based on a hypothesis, not proven science.'
Arrathnar looked up. 'Well, it is not like we have got anything else to go on.'
'Are you familiar with the relationship between dark matter and black holes?'
Carl saw Arrathnar nod. This is way over my head. He held a hand up sheepishly. 'Sorry, can someone give me a prompt here?'
Nelson turned to him. 'There is an unproven and untested link between black holes and dark matter. Dark matter is known to accu
mulate around black holes, but for why is unknown.' Nelson turned to the nearest monitor and brought up a basic diagram. 'Any probe ever sent to explore a black hole has been ripped to pieces, so we do not know what is on the other side.'
Carl creased his brow, making effort to keep up with the conversation. 'So how does that affect us now?'
Nelson's AI core whirled as more images streamed onto the green screen in front of them. 'It is theorised that there is a link to the dark matter and entering the black hole safely.' Nelson raised a metal hand, pointing to a wire-frame image of a black hole on the screen. 'If the dark matter can be properly processed through the black hole, it may create an exit point somewhere else. A white hole.'
Carl stifled a laugh. 'A white hole?' He looked to Arrathnar. 'Is this right?'
Arrathnar stood stony-faced, wiping the smirk away from Carl's mouth. 'I do not know about right, as it has never truly been proven. What we have here could be the proof we need though.' She looked at Nelson. 'What have you got?'
Nelson flicked another image to the screen, a mess of interconnecting lines and symbols. 'The exact location that the ship appeared from showed a spike of dark energy, as if it was being released.' Nelson turned back to Carl. 'The creation of this white hole is an endothermic reaction, which would explain the drop in temperature in the vicinity when it occurs.'
Carl could not believe what he was hearing. 'So what you're saying is that these beings, the Kalindros, they're some kind of extra-dimensional creatures?'
'Going from the data, ex-serviceman Goban, it would be my primary hypothesis.'
Carl slumped back against the wall. Am I hearing this right? What use would they have from us? Why do they mark some and kill others? These thoughts, along with countless others, raced through his head until he felt light headed. 'The multiverse,' he mumbled. 'It's true.'
'Save this data,' Arrathnar said, appearing unshaken by this revelation.
'Of course, High Researcher.' Nelson placed an info-drive into the console, removed it, then passed it to Arrathnar. 'Shall I be informing Captain Sparov of this?'
Arrathnar turned to Carl and shrugged. 'This will need to be presented to the Grand Researcher. Hawke will find out sooner or later. Either way, it does not matter.'
Whether he liked it or not, Arrathnar was right. Carl nodded in agreement and turned back to Nelson. 'Inform Hawke whenever is convenient, I doubt it changes our current mission.'
The secondary proximity alarm sounded, signaling their immediate arrival at the coordinates of the Winter Dawn. Carl dropped into his seat, pulling his harness tight around him before hitting the intercom. 'Arrival imminent, prepare to drop from warp space in thirty seconds.' He glanced back, Arrathnar had already left and Nelson braced himself for the drop from warp space.
The immensity of what Nelson had told him was beginning to sink in, hopelessness threatening to overcome him. Somewhere in the back of his mind a familiar voice, a comforting voice, whispered to him. Rix. Endure. Weather this storm or more will fall. Carl found himself nodding, making a silent vow. I will make sure you are avenged. All of you.
Chapter Sixteen
Hawke
Watts' send off had been quiet, but dignified. Once the War Goddess had docked with the Winter Dawn, Arrathnar made arrangements for a room to be made available and a short service to be held. The crew each had a few words to say, and Arrathnar had asked to be present, which Hawke agreed to. Within half an hour, Watts had been consumed by the incinerator aboard the Winter Dawn. He left no possessions, apart from what junk was left in engineering and Nelson's frame.
Hawke thought about notifying any family members, then realised that he had never known if Watts had any. It irked him somewhat that a crew member could fly with him for that long, and that he never knew anything of his life away from the War Goddess. With that thought in mind, Hawke and Justinia set off soon after.
Nelson's data had drawn him deep into thought. Extra-dimensional? Can it really be true? Is what they have been showing me, promising me, all true? It was another chance, in another version of himself. Hawke had laughed at the notion when Nelson had first told him aboard the Winter Dawn. As the War Goddess traveled in silence through warp space, the words that the Kalindros spoke to him, along with Nelson's findings, mingled and solidified. The truth of it hit him like a hammer. The more he thought on it, the more he knew their words to be true, and something in the back of his mind whispered a confirmation.
'You okay?'
Hawke jumped back into his own body, bringing his consciousness back into the cockpit. He attempted to straighten his face, so as not to look startled when he turned in his seat to face Justinia. From the look on her face, he had been unsuccessful. He grunted an acknowledgment back.
She arched an eyebrow. 'You look deep in thought,' she said. 'Anything on your mind?'
He shook his head. 'Nothing that isn't bothering everyone else,' he said, the lie just about sounding believable. 'We've had a lot happen recently, what with Watts...' He trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence.
'It's unfortunate,' she said thoughtfully. 'But if we aren't successful, then Dareth isn't going to be the only person we have to bury. If there is anyone left to bury bodies, of course.'
'True,' he said, running his fingers through his greying beard. 'We'll just need to see what this contact has to say for themselves. Maybe then we can get some justice, at least.'
The proximity alarm sounded. Justinia buckled herself into the seat next to Hawke, both of them bracing for the harsh drop from warp space. The War Goddess shook violently then shuddered as it returned to a stable flight path. The view-port slid open in front of them. Bright blue light burst through, blasting in to fill the cockpit, until the auto-tint finally kicked in and reduced the glare. The intense light died away, letting the silhouette of a trading station appear against the background of the blue giant.
The surrounding space was heavy with merchant ships, which dropped in and out of warp space, bringing wares from different areas of the galaxy. As the War Goddess grew closer, the age of the station was apparent. Last generation tech littered each component and section. The docking bay arms which came out to meet the War Goddess were at least two generations old, exposed wiring and worn metal creaking as they gripped the ship in a weakened grasp before pulling them into the depths of the station.
'What a shit-hole,' Justinia said, looking out at the station as the docking arm pulled them through the centre and towards the docking bay. 'It's an odd place for a bounty to be picked up from, even if it was from a proxy.'
Hawke nodded in agreement. He glanced down at the galaxy map. 'This is definitely it. Savannah Haven.'
Justinia snorted a laugh. 'Haven? Maybe three hundred years ago.'
Hawke watched the swarming crowds from the view-port. The tiny figures of merchants could be made out with a squint, buying and selling to the throngs of people that flowed through the mass markets. Judging from the ships he could see docked, these were almost certainly merchants on the poorer end of the scale, trying to make money on any commodity they could fix up to an acceptable standard and sell on.
The War Goddess hit the docking pad with a bone-shaking thud, due to the ancient docking arms not hosting the most smooth or agile of components. The drop bay door of the War Goddess opened up, the noises, smells, and heat of the station spilling in to greet them.
Justinia wretched. 'Someone's selling Gorathan soup,' she said, coughs wracking her body. 'I'd recognise that stench anywhere.'
Hawke let out a little laugh. 'I thought you were made of sterner stuff than that? Come on, we need to get to the meeting point.'
The pair of them weaved, and in places barged, their way through the mass of bodies, burrowing their way through the crowds. Merchants called out, vainly attempting to compete with the next merchant to lure in passing trade. Traders and low-end mercenary crews waved off these unwanted harassers, keeping an eagle eye out for specific items and swooping when the
y spotted a bargain.
'I don't see how anyone could make a sale here,' Justinia shouted over Hawke's shoulder.
Hawke glanced back. 'I've heard that ninety eight percent of the goods sold at stations like this are stolen from cargo transits.' He turned around just in time to dodge two men carrying a cache of weapons through the crowd. 'They don't like to hold onto their goods long, so are less concerned with getting the best deals.'
'Not the usual kind of rumours you bother listening to,' Justinia said. 'Don't tell me you've started reading those Galaxy Watch pamphlets?'
'Not quite,' Hawke said with a low laugh. 'Something from my Council guard days.'
Justinia did not respond straight away, too busy with pushing her way through a particularly dense area of crowd. 'Where is it we are heading to again?'
'Some dive bar by the sounds of it, some place called Rodan's.'
Justinia laughed, the sound just about audible over the now thinner crowd. 'Our type of place then.'
Rodan's was just as Hawke had described. The place was poorly lit, with shadows reaching out and touching everything within the room. Drifters sat in various places, knocking back some foul smelling liquid, laughing and joking among themselves. No one bothered to look up as Hawke and Justinia entered, either too involved with their drinks and conversations, or too afraid to look at the wrong person in the wrong way. They headed to a vacant corner, the seats and table only just visible under the shroud of shadows.
'Seems suitable shady,' Justinia said, as she attempted to make herself comfortable in her seat. 'Just the kind of place we used to pick up trade. Do we even know what we are looking out for?'
Hawke nodded back over his shoulder towards an empty table next to the bar, one of three with some semblance of light on them. 'Over there,' he said. 'The proxy will sit by themselves but will be holding two drinks.'
Justinia nodded, then cocked her head to one side. 'You're facing the wrong way if you want to keep an eye on the table.'
Hawke motioned to his face. 'I'm a little too recognisable, don't you think? Even with the darkness I don't want to tip them off.'
