The visitor did not react to the shocked faces, he did not move, as some reverted to their natural forms. Alycia, the oldest, wondered how Narth would see them. Would he see them as flaming demons or whatever the Narth saw when they thought of demonic creatures, or did he have the senses to see them for what they really were? It appeared he knew much more about the Netherworld than she thought.
The Narth kept speaking. "To many it appears Narth knows all and is omnipotent. It is not so; one needs to learn and observe events and conditions one has never seen before and are alien and unexplainable. Narth is older than many but not older than all. Narth is a life form and like all life forms, we do experience death. It does not, however, come to Narth unexpected or frequently, and the last such terminal event occurred three galactic revolutions ago. One is expressing this to equalize the conditions of this meeting. One has come to declare that Narth has rectified one’s view and no longer wishes to exterminate your existence. One has meditated long and concluded this concept was in error. Your presence here is not against the Rule, but perhaps part of it.
The Netherworld witches that still were in human form had forgotten to breathe. None of them expected such a declaration of the Narth! It was in a way, even more shocking than the first part of his address.
Now he pulled his hands out of the voluminous sleeves of his robe and made the same move as the oldest had done. "Narth has joined the Union and decided to be more involved. Narth has concluded it was a positive decision. Now the Coven has joined this multi-culture. One has seen many universes and observed many cultures and dominions rise and fall, this one is unique and unprecedented in its form and one sees great potential. One has come to welcome you and one has come to declare that Narth objects to Coven no more."
The oldest approached the Narth she was sure was the Narth Supreme, bowed again and then held out her hand. "It is a human gesture and custom, but we find the symbolism of joining hands more adequate than words or even Psionic exchanges."
The Narth took her hand. "The human culture is rich in such symbolic gestures that exceed verbal exchange."
She said, "Especially those of Terran descent."
"Indeed. One has also come because of a human that shares ties to Narth and Coven."
"We hope he is the One that will face the Dark One and make the decision, but we rely on a vague prophecy. We believe he is the father or perhaps ancestor of the One. The White One has not appeared in Eric's life."
"The truth must be kept from Eric, he must make the decision unbiased without thinking or hesitation, but he is the One!"
"The decision will then be made in his lifetime?"
"Narth is as unable to predict the future as you are. Eric chose a very dangerous profession and it has been observed he is often in the center of events where conflict and violence appear to be prominent elements. He is mortal and if he dies before the time has come, the decision will not be made and the balance of the Rule will cease and one side will gain dominance."
The Old Witch shivered. "All the universes depend on the Rule and the cycle!"
The Narth nodded. "If the balance fails, the cycle will end and not Narth, and not the Elders of the Universe, know what that means."
One of the other Coven sisters overcame her awe and asked, "If Eric dies before the time he faces the Dark One, will he rise and destroy all life?"
The Narth responded, "No, Eric is the Dark One! His decision will be that if he gives in and follows the path the Dark One has begun before he was temporarily defeated, or if he rejects the lure of nearly-omnipotent power he will thus defeat the Dark One forever."
"Should Eric then not be destroyed before?"
"No, because then the Dark One incarnates without having to make the decision. As you know yourself, the future is fluid and determined by events, but these events must happen and neither the Narth, nor the Coven, nor any force we are aware of, can stop these events from occurring."
The Coven Sisters nodded. They understood and felt the Narth spoke true.
The Narth added, "One event that has not been predicted or was foreseen is the fact that Eric shared the Hughavh with Narth and is now on his way to become Narth. Narth and the Great White One speculate that this could lead to Eric deciding for the third way!"
Alycia still held the hand of the Narth and said, "The Coven will join the Narth in any decision. What is it you recommend we do?"
"Continue the way it was begun. Let Eric find his way and let Narth and Coven be his source of stability and counsel. Eric meeting you was another such event. He saw and learned that creatures of darkness and chaos can make the decision to join the side of order and light. He will remember that it is not the origin of a being that decides which path to follow!"
Alycia and the others of the Coven felt as if a light had been turned on. "Indeed it makes sense, we felt that it was important he comes here and joins us, but we did not know why."
"Now that what needed to be said has been said, the reason for one's visit has ended."
"Then let us add a reason. Stay as an honored guest and partake in a ritual of the Coven and sample of the buffet of our specialties."
"One is intrigued and fascinated by the prospect."
INTERLUDE: LARTHOP
Larthop learned about the escape of the girl and was furious. He thought it was betrayal, or sheer stupidity and carelessness. Someone had failed to carry out his instructions. That did not explain how she escaped the curse of Califerm. Damage control had to be done. Having federal police and perhaps even Fleet NAVINT snooping around and finding out what else was going on was very dangerous at this stage of his plans. In all this, he heard about the involvement of the Three Wise Men. That cemented his suspicion that it was not about that Neo Viking kid, but about the old man. His rise to prominence had been fast and unusual. Being the representative of such an unimportant world usually meant sitting on the sidelines, conversing and being friends with other reps of unimportant worlds. Granted, the previous representative of Nilfeheim managed to gain some importance, but it took him many decades and he became a voice in the Financial and Trade Council. This Egill, however, was in constant contact with the First among the Saresii and the Narth. The Saresii had been an important voice even when they were members of the old, first Galactic Council, long before the Union existed and then, of course, the Narth. He doubted there was even one member of the Assembly who did not listen when the Narth spoke. Now, these three were called the Three Wise Men and were approached daily for advice and opinion.
The Assembly Mirror was the oldest news media agency reporting daily of what happened at the Assembly and it now featured a column called the Wise Man Digest. If one believed the claims of the Mirror it was among the most popular features and read by almost 40% of the adult Union population. Larthop was aboard a cruise liner on its way to a world called Tink. It was far down in the outer reaches of Core Ward sector. Most of this sector was unexplored, but only about two years ago, the Tinkehel had joined the Union and from there it was not far to Koken.
He sat in one of the plush bar lounges of the cruise ship with a real French cognac on the side table next to him. He did not wear his robe, preferring an expensive but inconspicuous business suit. Even with a cruise ship, it was a long trip and the ship would stop at several Klack worlds, at Archa and then make the long trip to Tink. He used the time to educate himself and to hold conference regarding his assets and agents.
He learned that the Three Wise Men had arrived in a fast Saresii ship at Perryton and from a contact he learned they had left for Nilfeheim. Maybe it was possible to intercept them and capture them in space. Former Admiral Swybar had both the means and a fast ship. His agents had deleted and destroyed any real documents at the Temple on Perryton and placed forged documents in their place. When making the Temple an independent sect and not part of the Church of Darkness, it helped greatly that the girl, or someone else with her, had killed all those who could have been interrogated to tell otherwise.
It cost him a considerable fortune in bribes and fees to fabricate a new history for the dead men. They were now members of a small crime syndicate using religion as a cover for Califerm smuggling. Documents were well hidden but findable, explaining the reason for abducting the girl – that she was a witness to dealings. It would lead to a few arrests; some local Perryton gangsters had been sold out and connected to the affair, without even knowing it yet.
But what mattered was that there was no traceable connection to his church, and the feds had plenty to investigate and arrest and hang. It would fade away and be forgotten soon if everything worked as he had planned and put in motion.
He leaned back and took a sip of the smooth liquor he loved so much: Carlos Primeros, directly from Spain, Earth. For weapons and fine liquor no one could beat the crazy Terrans in these areas.
Across the lobby was a group of horrifying-looking Archa gathered around a large table. He noticed the server bringing them what looked like bowls of ice-cream. There was much leg waving and high-pitched voices as it was served.
While he was certain no one followed him, it always paid to know who was around you. A little to the left were two humans, most likely Terrans as they smoked and one of them had sunglasses shoved into his hair. From the looks of it, and the open thoughts he received, they were environmental specialists on their way to Tink.
Larthop avoided using active Psionics to probe the other traveler's minds, if there was someone else around with such abilities he could end up being charged with illegal mind reading. A group of three humanoid, but not human, men arrived from the IST and one of them stopped and stared at the big view ports. It was obvious he hadn't travelled much before. He was close enough for Larthop to say, "It never fails to amaze me, either."
The man wore a white suit and had skin that reminded him of pale wax. "It is beyond description. Not so long ago I lived in a dirt mound, hiding in the woods, living like an animal in the mud. Now I am on my way back home, after being in the most incredible place in the universe."
His eyes glowed. "I was on Pluribus, representing our planet. I am Qualnat of the Tinkehel."
"I am Joh Haneel and I am a writer. I write articles for Planet and Life magazine and I am on my way to Tink to write an article about it, and then to see if there are any other planets in the area. This is new territory for the Union, after all."
"I am the elected representative of Tink and I would like to invite you to be our guest. I can show you whatever you would like to see. There is also Koken, not far from Tink. It is the planet of origin of the Kermac and there is much to see and write about as well."
"Oh, that sounds intriguing as well. Can anyone go there?"
"I think they let only scientists and scholars go there, but a writer is a type of scholar. While I show you Tink, I am sure I can convince my brother, who is part of the excavation team, to get you an invitation."
Larthop could not believe his luck and used gentle Psionic suggestions to make the Tinkehel think of him as a really good friend. He did not notice the woman who entered the Lounge shortly after the Tinkehel.
Chapter 3: Battle Stations
Three days had passed since the Admiral had made me Acting Captain. I had spent the entire time, so far, sitting in the Captain's office poring over the technical specs of the Devastator and past log entries. The Devastator became a nightmare. She was so big. The elongated elliptical disc-shaped main hull had a huge box-shaped segment at the aft. It was there where the conventional engines, the reactors and the engineering were. But there were also alien engines and an energy source called White Hole Pulsar Energy Syphon. All its details were classified, beyond even my level.
Another rectangular, narrow hull segment was placed in the middle of the elliptical disc, wrapped around it like an equatorial ring. The ship’s main batteries and weapon systems were mounted in or on that hull extension. One hundred Exo Load Translocator turrets, topside and 100 keelside. Thousands of smaller cannons, projectors, sniper turrets and TL Gatling Cannons could be extended and brought to bear. That was far from the end of the Devastator offensive weapon list: Planet Terminator Missile Launchers, Loki and the supersized Warhammer Torpedo Tubes pointing in every conceivable direction. Twelve Revolving Launch Tubes sat on each side for Wolfcraft fighters. The Devi carried 200 Squadrons! 500 Thor Gun Boats, a fleet of 50 1,000m Super Cruisers. This was only the start of the list of auxiliary craft this behemoth could launch. While studying the specs, I learned that the bow section of the elliptical main hull could split into three pie-shaped autonomous, operating, and heavily armed Super battleships. According to the log, it had been done only four times since the Devi was a Union ship.
One thing was certain; she carried the right name. Her shielding and armor were equally impressive. With all her size, she was faster than most battleships, only slightly slower than the newest Attikan-based designs.
Raw specs looked simple on the readout before me but the numbers and the details made my head spin. To all this came a crew of 64,000, plus 10,000 Marines. Crew management alone was a mammoth task. The daily log entries of the command section alone were hundreds of pages long.
I felt like a silver flicker hatchling swimming above a tri eight tyranno, trying to find a start. This was way out of my league. What kind of test was this? What unexpected situation could possibly compare with this? I also, still, could hear his warning. If I gave up or botched it, I would never become a Captain. That he had a lot to say in those matters was beyond doubt.
The whole situation seemed so surreal to me that I wondered whether I had been shot by the Marines after all and this was some sort of after death dream.
The door chime announced a visitor and I told the Computronic to open the door. Harris came in and said, "Captain, you have been up for three days now. You look like a walking corpse! You must find some rest. I vacated my quarters, they are yours."
"No need Mr. Harris, this is a temporary thing and I don't want to inconvenience you more than I already have. I will use the couch here in the Captain's office. It can be converted to a bed."
"Very well Sir, but find some sleep."
"There is so much I have to read and digest and I haven't even scratched the surface, not that I know even where to start."
"Don't lose yourself in details for now. That comes much later and that's what a long career, experience and Command School is for. For now, I would suggest you stay on top of the big picture and leave the details to others. You are the Captain and you can delegate. You have a senior staff and that is what they are here for."
"Thank you Mr. Harris. I will lie down in a minute. Please have me woken no later than 08:00 hrs."
"That won't be enough sleep, Sir."
"It will have to do!"
"Very well then, good night Sir."
I felt a bit groggy as the Computronic woke me. "Sir, it is 08:00 hrs and you wished to be woken."
"Thank you!"
It wasn't a dream; I was really here and even a cold shower didn't change reality. When I came out of the auto-dresser I noticed I had Captain’s gold on my sleeves. I glanced at myself in a mirror and deep down, past all the confusion and fear of failure, I felt pride.
I stepped on the bridge and a Marine barked, "Captain on the bridge."
Harris was nowhere to be seen, but every duty station was occupied by high-ranking officers and Senior Enlisted. A Lt. Commander, humanoid and female rose from the command seat and said, "Good morning, Captain. Re-supply and crew transfers are on schedule. Maintenance operations will be completed at 11:00 hrs tomorrow."
"Thank you. I’ll take the Con now."
A dark-skinned human sitting at the communications station turned from his instruments. "Don't worry, kid. We run the show. The best thing to do is to give one of us the Con and go back into your office and everything will be fine!"
"Lieutenant, are you addressing me?" I asked.
"Of course! You're the kid around here. The old man did that once or twice b
efore. It never works out, one Ensign ran crying off the bridge and the other had to be removed by force because he became insane with delusions of power. It's just friendly advice. This is way over your head."
"I tried to overlook your first remarks, Lieutenant. But I cannot let you get away with this sort of talk on my bridge."
"Your bridge, kid? You're a snot-nosed little want-to-be officer who happened to run into the big man who likes to play games. Get a hold …"
I interrupted him. "Computronic, file this verbal interchange I had with Lt. Carrows. Stamp it as evidence and alert Security on the bridge."
"Yes Captain," responded the machine.
Like on every Union ship bridge, any word spoken was recorded and added to the log entries.
To the Lt. I said, "You are to vacate this station and you are confined to quarters until further notice and charges are finalized. I did not ask for this, but by Odin, I will not tolerate any insubordination. You are free to file a complaint with Fleet Command. You are free to challenge me off-duty, but now get off my bridge or I will have you dragged to the brig, your choice!"
Two Marines appeared at my side.
Carrows got up. "You won't be Captain forever and I’ll get you for this!"
"It seems you won't be a Lieutenant for much longer if you keep piling charges. Threatening a superior officer is the most serious of them all."
"Superior Officer?"
"Marines, remove him and place him under arrest."
The Marines escorted the man out.
I took a deep breath, walked up the ramp and addressed the rest. "Anyone else share the opinion or views of Lt. Carrows?"
There was silence.
So I said, "Yes, I was a Midshipman only three days ago. Yes, it is a temporary assignment, but an assignment it is and I will complete it until recalled, removed or re-assigned.
"Each of you, I am sure, has earned the privilege to be on the senior staff of the most famous battleship there is. To be here you worked hard and accumulated lots of experience.
Eric Olafson Series Boxed Set: Books 1 - 7 Page 17
