Babylon 5 16 - Techno-Mages 01 - Casting Shadows (Cavelos, Jeanne)

by Casting Shadows (Cavelos, Jeanne)

  Galen pulled it out of the record, sent it to Isabelle. Even if she could find some pattern in the extended transmission, it couldn't be decoded without other examples for comparison. So he searched further. Going through all the material they had recorded thus far, he found eighteen of the transmissions, all short, all in the same narrow band. In all cases, the Drakh was within three feet of a probe when that probe picked up the signal.

  When the Drakh was farther away, the probes picked up no hint of the signal. That made life more difficult. Galen was eager to acquire more samples, so he directly accessed the probes in the building to find out what they were recording now. But none of them responded to his signal. They had been either deactivated or destroyed.

  Tilar could have helped with that Burell's door opened, and she came out, riding in her yellow armchair. Galen jumped up.

  "Smell!"

  The chair rotated in a slow circle.

  "How do I look?"

  "Very well."

  The chair looked solid. Yet Burell hadn't resumed her full-body illusion. She was conserving her energy. Galen turned to Isabelle. She seemed busy at work, her fingers moving in spurts, her shoulders making tiny movements as if she were threading her way through the signal. Yet a smile had appeared on her face.

  "Don't try to get her attention when she's like that," Burell said.

  "She's impossible."

  "I heard that," Isabelle responded.

  Galen returned his attention to Burell. Though her appearance was unchanged, she seemed stronger, sitting upright in the chair, holding her head erect. Apparently the additional organelles had brought her some benefit and allowed her to access at least some of her tech. He wondered how long it would last.

  "You two are miracle workers," Burell said.

  "I haven't felt like this in months."

  As she went into the kitchen and started coffee, Galen checked the clock. It was 4 A.M. They were all on odd schedules.

  Galen followed her into the kitchen, filling her in on all that had happened. The presence of a Shadow on Zafran 8 shocked her. But Tilar's offer to cure her outraged Burell.

  "How dare he tempt Isabelle with my health. That bastard."

  A short laugh escaped Galen.

  "That was Isabelle's reaction."

  Burell's uneven green eyes fixed on him.

  "I raised her to do good, Galen, even if that good sometimes clashes with the views of the Circle. She is the most precious thing in my life."

  Galen felt as if the conversation had taken a sudden turn. It wasn't last night they were talking about; it was the future.

  "I know."

  She is precious to nice too, he thought, but couldn't say the words aloud.

  "I've got it!" Isabelle cried.

  She shot up from the chair, arms upraised.

  "I'm brilliant! I'm brilliant!"

  She bounced over to them, stopping on the opposite side of the counter. She slammed her hand down.

  "Eureka!"

  She gave them a huge grin.

  "You couldn't," Galen said.

  "I did! I've figured it out - well, except for a couple of things, but I know this will work. I know how to understand the transmissions.

  Those probe recordings you sent me helped me figure it out. They were missing some of the harmonics - the probes didn't record the transmissions fully. That helped me start breaking the signal down into different components.

  The only full transmission we have is the one we were in the room to record. My sensors were able to pick up the whole thing, I guess. Or at least enough to work with. I was even able to decode part of it. I realized that the Drakh's words, after he was tranquilized, must have come from the Shadow. So I searched for correspondences between the words he spoke and the signal, and I found them in part of the transmission. It's a voice speaking, saying those same words to the Drakh that the Drakh said to us.

  There are other parts of the transmission going on simultaneously. I haven't figured those out yet."

  Galen felt a smile form on his face.

  "You're brilliant."

  Isabelle smiled in return, that mysterious, lips - pressed - together smile that seemed meant only for him. She came around the counter and hugged Burell.

  "I'm so glad you're feeling better"

  They held each other, and Galen remembered her quick embrace of him earlier. He wished he had put his arms around her. She released Burell and poured herself a cup of coffee.

  "Now we need more transmissions to decode. We need to find out what they're planning."

  It was basic to all mage strategy to know more than one's opponent.

  "Now is the time they're likely talking about us," Galen said.

  "If they have any plans involving the mages, they may come out."

  "To go back to a place after you have once been discovered," Burell said, "is never wise. In fact, if I were the Circle - which of course I'm not - I would have already ordered you two to leave the, system, at least until things calm down."

  Isabelle ran a hand down Burell's head.

  "I'm not going anywhere."

  Galen knew Burell was, right: going back to the Drakh's building was not wise. But there were so many unanswered questions, and who knew when they would have this opportunity again? The Circle could stop the investigation; the Drakh could move his operation elsewhere, now that it had been discovered. It would take time to locate another Shadow and meanwhile what might the Shadows do?

  They had said the mages were already divided. Perhaps he and Isabelle could learn what that meant, could discover the source of Tilar's chrysalis. The Drakh had said it was only a matter of weeks before their provocations began. If he and Isabelle could uncover the Shadows' plan, perhaps they could stop the war before it starved. Besides, the Circle had not yet declared their task completed, so wasn't it their responsibility to continue?

  "They've destroyed all our probes," Galen said.

  "We can't see what's going on in there."

  "The probes won't record the complete transmissions anyway," Isabelle said.

  "We have to go there in person. We have to get close enough that our sensors can pick it up."

  "Close enough," Galen said, "is three feet."

  Isabelle's gaze met his, intent, and he could see her already trying to figure out a way to make it work.

  "If Tilar is there," Burell said, "he may be able to sense your presence."

  The sensors on a chrysalis weren't nearly as good as those on a mage, but if they were close, he might detect them.

  "If Tilar is there," Isabelle said, "he will regret it."

  Galen remembered Elric saying the Circle needed evidence beyond doubt. Elric believed they had gotten that, yet he had still seemed uncertain that the rest of the Circle would be convinced. Some might believe the Drakh's claim that he had been lying. They might doubt whether war was truly coming. They might even doubt that the Drakh's words had been forced into his mouth by a Shadow, which appeared only as static on their recording. If doubt remains an option, Elric had said, some will stubbornly cling to it.

  Galen had vowed not to fail the Circle, or Elric. He and Isabelle could secure absolute proof now, and perhaps gather intelligence that would help the mages fight the Shadows. With Isabelle's discovery, they had an incredible opportunity. Could they let it go?

  "We need a plan," Galen said.

  "And this time, a really good one."

  "That is the final piece of evidence gathered by Galen and Isabelle thus far," Elric said, dissolving the last image of the recordings.

  He stood before his chair in the great amphitheater.

  "My recommendations are as follows. Commend the two mages on their work and remove them from danger. Begin an investigation into the source of Tilar's chrysalis. And create an expanded intelligence-gathering network to follow the movements of the Shadows. If you have any questions, I would be happy to address them."

  Elric remained standing, looking over the others
in the semicircle. Ing-Radi, Kell, Blaylock, Herazade - they all were silent, shocked. They had discounted his suspicions about Morden. The shipping and bank records secured by Galen and Isabelle had made little impact. The statement by the Narn, G'Leel, and her description of a Shadow ship had moved some, though others had remained skeptical. And after viewing the recording of the Narn captain and the Drakh, Herazade had been eager to jump to the conclusion that

  "It is the Drakh behind all of this, not the Shadows."

  Yet the next recording, in which Galen and Isabelle questioned the Drakh, made that theory hard to sustain. It was clear to Elric that a Shadow had actually entered the room and taken control of the Drakh's body. He didn't know how else the events could be interpreted, though he assumed he would find out shortly.

  The confrontation with the static - filled shape had led directly to Tilar's appearance. Though Tilar had been careful not to name the Shadows, his comments about the "younger races" and a firestorm strongly suggested he was speaking for the Shadows.

  And then there was the most distressing piece of evidence: Tilar had a chrysalis. This fact had shaken them to the core. Even Kell.

  Now Elric waited impatiently. Nearly five hours had passed since his conversation with Galen and Isabelle. He'd been unable to gather the Circle any sooner. Every moment that passed increased the possibility of danger. At last, Blaylock stood a dark specter.

  "I commend Galen and Isabelle for their success in this difficult task. They have found definitive evidence that the Shadows have returned."

  His voice, usually so harsh end certain, was hesitant.

  "Before we take any other action, though, we must discover the source of Tilar's chrysalis."

  His voice picked up speed, strength.

  "To have a rogue - someone we have cast away-practicing technomancy is an outrage and an abomination. If each chrysalis is under our control and carefully accounted for, then how could such a thing happen?"

  "Yes," Herazade said, "how could this happen?"

  Kell extended a placating hand. Blaylock, reluctantly, sat.

  "I, too, am extremely disturbed by this development," Kell said.

  "The most disturbing part of it is that each chrysalis is accounted for. The chrysalis Tilar trained with, along with the implants he was meant to receive, were destroyed in the casting - away ceremony three years ago, in which we all participated. This year, we had twelve new chrysalises, for the twelve new chrysalis - stage apprentices. All twelve apprentices are still here; all were in training this morning, each with his own chrysalis."

  A new chrysalis was really the only possible answer. Each chrysalis developed in accordance with its user, taking on specific traits that made it incompatible with any other user. Older chrysalises, retained by the initiates and other mages, were far too specialized to be used by another. The further complication was that Tilar was Centauri, and so could use only a chrysalis designed for a Centauri...

  "What of Carvin?" Herazade asked.

  "What of her?"

  Elric said, angry that the name of Alwyn's fine student would come up, frustrated because he had known it would.

  "She is the only Centauri we have initiated in some years. She received her chrysalis at the same time Tilar's was taken from him. Perhaps, somehow, they made an agreement of some kind... "

  "That seems impossible," Kell said.

  "But we will check. We will check all initiates we will again check all chrysalis - stage apprentices. And when we find nothing, we will be faced with the same unacceptable answer."

  He sat back, his shoulders hunched, face tensed. He seemed weary, as if he had suffered a loss in a war he had long been fighting. Whatever he knew of the Shadows, Elric thought, and however he hoped to fight them, clearly this was not part of his plan. The rest fell into silence, as if afraid to give their thoughts the power of utterance. Elric felt as if he alone was dealing in reality, as if he alone realized what was at risk.

  "If an investigation into the chrysalis is our next step," Elric said, "let us declare Galen and Isabelle's t ask completed. They are in great danger on Zafran 8 and should be recalled to report in person and be questioned on their findings."

  "Yes," Ing-Radi said, distracted.

  "Let them be recalled."

  Herazade glanced her way with dissatisfaction. At last, Elric thought, they would hear Herazade's opinion on the evidence.

  "Could they not bring us information that more certainly establishes whether the Drakh or the Shadows are behind this current activity? I am not yet convinced that the Shadows have returned. I see a patch of static, and I see a Drakh speak who has supposedly been tranquilized. We know little of these Drakh. Their brain structure is peculiar, and the fact that a part of the brain seems to vibrate as if it is picking up a signal does not mean that it is, in fact, picking up a signal. Perhaps this section of the brain is activated in sleep. Perhaps the Drakh himself spoke, or his subconscious did so. Perhaps the tranquilizer was not appropriately designed for a Drakh. I am not ready to reach any conclusion without definitive proof."

  Blaylock had been tapping his hand through her entire speech. Yet when she finished, he said nothing. He had no doubts, but he would let Galen and Isabelle remain. A further test of Galen's control.

  "Let them be recalled," Kell said.

  "They have done well. And their position, now that they have been discovered, is untenable."

  Kell would protect his weapon and keep him close.

  "I will do so at once."

  Elric sat, instantly composing the message he had been waiting to send. The Circle commends you on your work and requests you return at once. Leave as quickly as possible. Bring Burell if you can. If not, let her stay. She will be safer without you than with you. Respond at once. He sent it to both Galen and Isabelle.

  While Elric waited impatiently for a response, the Circle finalized details of the chrysalis investigation, and agreed to meet again the next day. Sufficient time passed, but there was no response.

  The members of the Circle filed out, Blaylock casting a backward glance. The illusion of the grand amphitheater dissolved around Elric. He sat alone in a small tent chamber. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and began the election incantation. He had never pulled a mage into the incantation without first obtaining permission. But he had to find out why Galen and Isabelle had not responded.

  He again visualized himself traveling the vast distances, reaching Zafran 8, the spaceport, Burell's penthouse apartment. Galen's energy was not there, nor Isabelle's.

  He could look for them elsewhere on the planet, but it would take time. Within the apartment he sensed a weaker energy Burell's. She would know where they had gone. He plucked up her energy, drew it inside him.

  The circle of stones took on definition around him. He had no time for its comfort. Burell stood a few feet away. Her self - image was not the illusion of beauty she projected for others, nor the illness - ravaged truth she hid. It reflected what she had looked like several years ago, before the illness had taken her. She was beautiful, yes, but more than that, strong.

  The dark slanting lines of her brows, the brilliant green of her eyes reflected a will that would not be beaten, a curiosity that would not be satisfied, and a personality that demanded truth.

  Her spirit had not been crippled, and Elric was glad for that.

  "Elric. I think I was asleep. If you wanted to jump into my bed, you could have asked first."

  "I'm sorry" Elric said.

  "My concern for Galen and Isabelle has overruled my manners."

  She came toward him, a startled smile crossing her face as her legs responded. The sea breeze blew past them.

  "What of Galen and Isabelle?"

  "The Circle has recalled them. I sent them a message but have received no response. Where are they?"

  Burell's eyes narrowed.

  "Damn the Circle. Isabelle and Galen should have been recalled sooner. They went back to obtain more information f
rom the Drakh. Isabelle discovered..."

  "Can you go to them?"

  They were not reading his message. Even if they did, they would finish what they had begun. Galen was feeling unworthy, particularly after his last conversation with Elric. He wanted more evidence for the Circle.

  "Can you find them and convince them to leave at once? Or bring them away yourself?"

  Burell hesitated only a moment.

  "Yes. I can do that."

  Something in the steady control of her features told him how difficult this would be for her. He regretted asking, but knew of no other way. He took her hand, kissed it.

  "Thank you. My queen."

  As she smiled he dissolved the image, returned her energy to the place from which he had taken it. Then there was nothing for him to do but return to his body, to the lone chair in the empty room. And wait.

  Chapter 13

  They found the neighborhood still in darkness when they returned. They had forgotten to end their earlier blackout of the local power grid, and if any maintenance workers had come to solve the problem, it had proven beyond their abilities. The alarms in the Drakh's building would still be deactivated. They flew directly to a back window in the top story of the building. Galen was wearing Isabelle's scarf tied lightly and tucked into his robe, and he was glad for its extra warmth. The predawn darkness was dry and chill. Her shielded form glowed beside him.

  I wish you would use a shield, she wrote.

  I would if I could, really.

  I have a much better... repudiated her use of one.

  I wish I had the skill you have, he added.

  She turned toward the window, and he did as well. Galen scanned the interior for mage energy.

  I don't sense Mar Isabelle wrote.

  They had agreed that if he was there, they would turn back.

  Galen had brought his staff this time, and he took it in both hands. Vaguely warm, filled with potential, it felt like nothing so much as a sleeping snake. It was a snake he must learn to control, a snake that was part of him. Taking a calming breath, he visualized the equation to associate.