Valence (Confluence Book 4)

by Jennifer Foehner Wells

  Ajaya gently shooed Murrrsi off the bed and straightened the bed coverings. She seemed unperturbed. “Well, that’s not so bad. It’s not like they eat babies or something, right?”

  Jane smiled slightly. “I suppose that’s one way to look at it.”

  Murrrsi sobered up. “Are you worried about this, Jane?”

  “Yes! I’m going to have five different species aboard, all with different cultural backgrounds. I’m concerned about potential misunderstandings. Anything could happen. Sex for humans is… fraught with issues.”

  “Jane.” Murrrsi extended her small, furry hands to Jane. Jane reached out and Murrrsi took her hand and stroked it gently. “Apologies. This isn’t a theatric. I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

  Jane continued to worry anyway.

  She worried she was prejudging the pelimarians before they even arrived. Perhaps the delegate had just been playful or had been conveying some other emotion. She had been intensely uncomfortable and he’d surely picked up on that. Or maybe he hadn’t. There was no way to know. Perhaps it was her own cultural baggage that made his gestures and words seem threatening.

  She wasn’t a prude. She was just private. She’d also seen leers like that many times on male human faces, and those leers had never taken any social interaction to a good place. However, a leer didn’t necessarily mean the same thing on a pelimarian face. Or he might have been expressing his own personal feelings, which might not actually be a cultural norm. How many politicians on Earth were truly representative of their constituents?

  And then there was the most important question: Why were they coming at all? Jane didn’t buy the altruistic line the delegate had fed her. This system appeared to be a den of political factionalism and nobody in a place like that did anything without thinking they were going to benefit personally.

  When the pelimarians arrived, she schooled her features and determined to remain kind but neutral. She was the leader. She set the tone. Friendly but cool.

  The pelimarians, two women and one man, arrived and were clearly tired from the journey. They were cordial to Jane and the crew and very affectionate among themselves. Jane noticed lots of lingering touches, pats, and squeezes.

  Also, they smelled amazing. She couldn’t define the scent they wore. It was spicy, musky, and slightly sweet. Not overpowering. She only noticed it when they were close. Whatever it was, it would do well on Earth.

  They were gracious when Jane showed them their quarters, and seemed delighted to find the platters of freshly harvested sectilian food that Pledor had left there for them. Then they begged off of any other social interactions, saying they wished to sleep after the long journey.

  Jane closed the door between them, feeling abashed and hopeful. This was another opportunity for cultural exchange. The pelimarians could be a strong ally. The fact that they were there was a good thing. She’d been silly to worry so much.

  She met Ajaya in the corridor as she walked back to her quarters.

  “An auspicious beginning, I should think,” Ajaya said as she fell into step.

  Jane smiled. Truth be told she felt relieved that the pelimarians seemed so normal. She’d been half-expecting them to launch into a full-scale orgy upon arrival. “Yes, I think so.”

  Ajaya nodded. “I’ve been doing some research on the USR networks for the last few days. I think you’ll find it rather interesting. It seems that the Cunabula left behind some notes on their genetic experiments, and in the intervening time, much study has addressed what modern USR geneticists know of our human genetics and how they differ from other anthropoid species.”

  Jane listened intently. “And what have you found?”

  “Well, it’s all very complex. But the Cunabula seemed to be experimenting with polymorphisms—duplications, deletions, and mutations of various traits on very particular loci that may affect social function.”

  Ajaya seemed to notice Jane’s uncomprehending stare. “Put simply, they tried a lot of combinations in an attempt to affect behavior. For example—and I’m speaking in averages for a species, not of individuals—sectilians code for less of a hormone called vasopressin which does many things in the body, including retaining water when one is dehydrated and constricting blood vessels. But interestingly, less vasopressin is also implicated in decreased understanding of social cues. More vasopressin may give rise to what is termed goodwill behavior. Humans, the nintergertehunt, the nieblic, and pelimarians make more of this hormone by comparison. Pelimarians make the most of this hormone—which, interestingly, is necessary for pair bonding in some mammals. Pelimarians also make more oxytocin, a related hormone which affects social bonding and trust. And that’s just two among dozens of hormones that interact and affect both biology and behavior in extremely complicated ways.”

  Jane tried to digest all of that. “If sectilians fall on the low side and pelimarians on the high side, where are humans on this spectrum?”

  “In the expression of these two hormones in particular, we are somewhere in the middle. But in relation to some other, similar parameters of genetic expression, we are a bit more extreme. It’s quite complex.”

  Jane raised her brows. “So the whole nature-versus-nurture thing?”

  Ajaya smiled. “They both play a role in individual behavior, of course. We are speaking broadly of populations and norms within an entire culture here.”

  Jane stopped in front of her door. “What do you glean from this? What does this mean?”

  Ajaya looked thoughtful. “To me, it is proof that we are all very closely related, with only minor variations. The same kinds of variations may show up in human populations. These people are our kin. We are more alike than we are different.”

  “Jane,” Brai said. “I’ve found the Vermachten. Would you like to send a message? You may not have long. It has a history of moving from port to port swiftly.”

  “On my way.” She turned to Ajaya. “Brai found Darcy.”

  Jane returned to the bridge with Ajaya and recorded a message, speaking first in English and then in Mensententia. She kept it brief and vague, and did not mention that she thought this young woman was human. There could be a reason she was keeping her true identity a secret, and Jane didn’t want to endanger her in any way if the message were intercepted. Once it was sent, all they could do was wait. It would take a few minutes for the message to arrive through the communication network.

  Twenty minutes later they received a reply. It was text only, requesting that all communications take place via a specific encrypted channel. That was it.

  Jane frowned. “Is this unusual?” she asked Brai.

  “Among the Sectilius, it would be, yes. I have no basis on which to conjecture otherwise,” he replied.

  When no other messages were forthcoming, Jane re-sent the original on the encrypted channel. A response came back a few minutes later in a video format.

  The same young woman was on the screen. She wore a gauzy white jumpsuit and her hair was uncovered. She licked her lips nervously before she began to speak. “Well, you must have worked hard to find me. I guess you’re wondering if I’m human. I am. My name is Darcy Eberhardt. If you don’t mind, I’d like to know more about you and what you’re up to before I tell you more about myself. I mean, I’ve seen the news feeds. I know about the Mars mission and I recognize some of the astronauts with you, but I’m pretty curious about how you got to Terac from there. And, well, I’m sorry for being sort of… oblique. I have good reasons.”

  She sighed and glanced away from the camera. “I’ll try to keep up with communications as best I can, because there are some things I’d like to discuss with you that I think are pretty urgent. I’m about to jump to a new sector, so I’ll look for your reply when I arrive. My co-captain is sending you the coordinates so you can route your message properly. Please continue to use this encrypted channel. Thanks.” She fluttered her fingers in a self-conscious wave that contrasted with her serious expression, and then the screen went blank.

>   “Well that’s very odd,” Ajaya commented.

  Jane furrowed her brow. Darcy had spoken the entire time in Mensententia. She must be from a non-English-speaking country. Jane took her time recording a thorough reply, describing what her original mission had been and how she’d ended up at Terac. She didn’t sugarcoat anything. That would be insulting. This young woman was captaining a starship. She knew what was going on out there. She ended the message by asking where Darcy was from originally and how she had come to be where she was.

  She and Ajaya continued their conversation about galactic genetics while they waited for a reply. It came sooner than they expected.

  Darcy was seated this time. “I’ll start at the top, but I have a lot to tell you. I was abducted,” she said. Her nostrils flared. “Along with thirty-four other humans. I managed to turn the tables on my captor, but not before he sold my boyfriend as a slave.” She seemed to choke on that last word, then gathered herself. Her voice sounded a little stronger. “I’m searching for him. His name is Adam Benally. I know… I know the galaxy is huge, but if you should ever hear anything about him, or run across him, I hope you’ll let me know.”

  Tears sprang to Jane’s eyes. What this girl must have been through.

  Darcy looked down at the console in front of her for a long moment before going on. “I’m originally from Ohio. I understood your message in English, but I can’t really speak it coherently anymore. At least it doesn’t seem like it. Maybe one day we can meet and you can tell me.” She tried to smile but it looked pained. “They… yeah. They put a chip in my brain because I couldn’t speak Mensententia. Guess humans don’t do that like the rest of the galaxy.” She shrugged and looked away.

  Jane frowned. She hadn’t even known that was possible.

  “Horrible,” Ajaya murmured.

  Darcy sniffed and looked back at the camera. “I’m actually glad you found me. I’ve been meaning to contact you after I saw you on the news feeds, but I didn’t know what would be the best way. I can’t come to Terac. Too dangerous. It’s crazy. So, thank you for that. It’s good to know you’re out here too. It makes me feel less alone.”

  She rubbed her hands up and down her thighs. “Because of what I’m trying to do, I have to keep an ear out in less-than-savory places, you know? I have to find out where the trading centers are, who buys who, and where they’re taking them. My biggest resource has been my kuboderan navigator, Do’Vela. I really depend on her. Kuboderans talk. They talk a lot. More than anyone realizes.

  “Do’Vela kept hearing about a kuboderan named Kai’Memna. Sounds like you’ll know who I’m talking about. This guy. Whoa. He’s sly. He’s working to recruit kuboderans to rise up against their captains—telling them how to kill them, how to kill an entire crew. It’s some serious shit.” She held her hands up, palms out, with a look of disbelief on her face.

  Jane’s heart sped up. Darcy had heard of Kai’Memna?

  “I don’t know how successful he is, generally. We’ve been hearing about his attempts at recruitment for a while. But at our last stop… Well, it was weird that you chose then to contact me. It freaked me out. And that’s part of why I was hesitant. We were really out in the beyond, dropping some people off so they could get home—people like me, who’d been taken—and Kai’Memna’s ship was there too and he was doing his thing, but he was also looking for information about you. It makes sense after hearing your message. But it’s weird. He’s definitely got some kind of grudge against all of you. Do’Vela seemed to think he’s unhinged.”

  She shook her head. “Do’Vela got an earful. Luckily she’s very loyal to me and my co-captain, Hain. We take good care of her and she’s not interested in his preaching. I don’t know why he’s allowed to roam free with the things he says, but maybe it’s because most people don’t treat their kuboderans very well. And that’s problematic, you know? It’s… well… I can see why it’s happening. If you’ve seen the news feeds, you’ll have noticed there’s been a few kuboderan mutinies recently that I don’t think the authorities have linked together. I’m guessing they’re all tied to that individual.”

  Jane felt sick. That was the first she’d heard of this. She would have to bring this up with Yliriu.

  “But here’s the most important thing I have to say to you today. Kai’Memna alluded to the fact that your crew split itself on two ships—that while you remained at Terac and were still untouchable, the other ship would be vulnerable. It might have just been smack talk. It was cryptic and that’s all I know, but I just heard this a couple of hours ago. I checked the news feeds after I got your message and it seems that what he’s saying is true.”

  Jane froze. She held her breath, listening. She heard Ajaya suck in a breath.

  “We’re just finishing up here. I can be mobile again in less than an hour. My ship is disguised. It’s actually pretty badass. I can lend support. We gotta protect our own. But to start, you need to get a message to your other ship to warn them. Just let me know if I can help. I guess that’s it. I’ll wait here for your reply. I’m out.”

  Jane stood up. Sat back down again. Stood up and paced, thinking.

  Ajaya silently watched her walk up and down the bridge.

  She couldn’t send a message. They were already out of range of the USR communication networks. The thought that Kai’Memna would track them down was terrifying.

  “Do you think he could find them that easily?” Jane asked Brai.

  Brai had been silent, but she’d felt his growing concern and horror as he’d watched the video through her eyes. “With sufficient motivation, I do not believe it would be any more difficult to discover the current location of the Oblignatus than it was for me to find the Vermachten.”

  She went back to the console and tapped out the sequence to start recording another message with trembling fingers. Now Brai was shoring her up, helping her stay calm.

  “Darcy, my heart goes out to you. You’ve been through a horrible ordeal and I respect and admire what you’re doing now. I will help you any way I can through my contacts here at Terac, starting immediately. My navigator, Brai, has already begun to do research and will assist me going forward. When I saw you on the media, I never dreamed…”

  Jane swallowed hard, trying to be brave, trying to find the right words. Darcy had offered assistance and Jane had no choice but to take it. She had to warn Ron and Alan so they could get somewhere safe before Kai’Memna caught them unawares. “I’m going to have to appeal to you for your help. I have no way of contacting the Oblignatus. They’re beyond the galactic comm network. I…”

  She glanced up at the ceiling to keep her composure. “I cannot leave here, for diplomatic reasons. There’s a lot at stake. Earth needs me to stay here. I can provide more details about that at a later time The crew of the Oblignatus is in danger. Kai’Memna is a very real threat. Please, could you carry a message to them to warn them? Sending coordinates along with this message.”

  She stopped there and tapped send. She was desperate, but she didn’t want to sound that way.

  Jane collapsed in a seat. Ajaya stared bleakly back at her.

  It seemed like it took forever for Darcy to reply. Neither of them felt like talking anymore. They just sat there, waiting. Jane couldn’t stop imagining all the terrible ways that Alan and Ron and the rest of her friends could die if Kai’Memna got there first.

  Then Darcy’s reply finally came. “Yes. Absolutely I will. Immediately. I’ll help any way I can. But you better send me a message to give to them because they’re going to think it’s pretty weird when I show up to tell them to get the hell out of Dodge.”

  Jane recorded two more messages. One to thank Darcy. The other for Ron and Alan and the rest of the crew of the Oblignatus. Minutes later, she got a text reply. “Got it. Leaving now. Try not to worry. I’ll be in touch as soon as I can.”

  33

  ALAN REGRETTED LEAVING the Speroancora almost immediately.

  The trip to Old Pliga itself was s
hort because of the wormhole drive. They got to the planet and yada yada all the ash in the atmosphere had cleared up during the intervening years and the Tree had come out of dormancy just fine as Huna had predicted. In fact, it seemed to be thriving all over the habitable parts of the planet. That was the good news. They might be able to make this shit, take it back to Earth, and be goddamn heroes.

  So they went down in shuttles and found that both the planet and the crystalline treehouses there were remarkably similar to the ones they’d just left on New Pliga, except they were spookily empty. Huna set himself up at a one of the flat bioterminals and began to reconfigure a single Tree node for a change in genetic processing in preparation for growing a test crop of pods.

  That was when Alan realized his mistake: this wasn’t a one-shot thing. This was going to take a really long time—maybe the entire two standard years. They wouldn’t be heading back to Terac anytime soon.

  He hadn’t really thought about how long these might take to grow. They were plants, right? Water, air, and sun. How long could it take? Sure, the hull plating had taken months to grow, but these were tiny particles, right?

  Particles.

  Versus humongous sheets of polymer.

  Seemed like particles might be faster.

  Eh. That would be a nope. Huna admitted, with his limited understanding of time scales, that it would not be significantly faster at all.

  Crap.

  To Huna’s credit, he was starting to understand the passage of time. He paid close attention to human and sectilian biorhythms, though he couldn’t share them. He marked the passage of days, watched the clock, and announced the hour like a little kid. But since this was all very new to him, he couldn’t predict how long anything would take.

  So the twiddling of thumbs was going to be happening no matter where Alan was. This was all made a bit worse because Old Pliga was just out of reach of the USR relay network. If they wanted to send messages to the Spero, they’d have to jump out of the system and then back again, which was a pain in the ass to say the least. Not that he was composing flowery love notes or anything. Well, not really.