by Tony Corden
“Indeed, why would it be otherwise? No one in this world will know you until you make yourself known. I am required to ask for your permission to deduct a fee of 100 virtual credits from your account. May I?”
“You may.”
“Do you agree to the terms and conditions?”
Leah had Gèng check if there was anything substantially different and was told that it mirrored almost every other document, except with an added clause, specific to Atherleah, which explained that Gèng was permitted a role in the world.
Leah said, “Gèng, my guide has checked it, and I accept the terms and conditions as stated.”
“Then two tasks remain. Every person who joins the world is given one Rune from the lowest step to begin their journey. I will give you the description of five Runes, and you may choose the one you wish.”
“Orometua, please choose for me. I know nothing of your world and nothing of the Runes.”
“I will choose but first answer me this; why do you enter my world if you know nothing of it?”
“Because I love my mother and being here today is part of my journey to bring her safely home to my family.”
“Then I give you the Rune ‘Mata’. This is the Rune for Sight. May it help you find what you are searching for.”
“Thank you.”
“Finally, your gifts. Each person is given a set of travellers’ clothing which shows their current affinities. This I will not explain as it is something you must learn from another. As you leave this room, you will be clothed in the gift. You are free to purchase other clothing, clothing of better quality, or clothing which masks your affinity. Also, each one who searches for the Runes of Destiny is given a book which will keep a record of their journey. In it, you will find your four Runes. In the city where your journey begins you should find a teacher to instruct you in the use of Runes. Do you have a town you wish to start in?”
“I choose to start in Futhark’s Ascent.”
“So shall it be. When you exit this room, you will enter a room with your clothing, the book and a second door. When you are ready, exit through the other door; it leads to Futhark’s Ascent.”
Leah gave a small bow, and Matamua disappeared. A door appeared in the wall in front of Leah and without a word she stepped forward and walked through. Inside the room was a low bench, on top of which was a pair of black linen trousers with a matching shirt, black leather boots and a belt. A black canvas backpack lay beside the bench, and a thick woollen cloak hung on a coat rack near a second door. The cloak did not continue the black theme but was covered with a pattern of interlocking colours. Most were muted darker shades, though several lighter colours dotted the material. When Leah went to put it on, she noticed that the inner lining was a light graphite colour and the cloak made to be worn with either pattern on the outside. Leah dressed quickly, keeping the colours on the outside. She left through the second door.
She exited into the grassed inner courtyard of a large building which formed enclosed the courtyard. Through an arched break in the building, she could see a busy street. The courtyard was empty, and Leah headed out to the street. Gèng said, “It is almost eleven. John says that neither he nor Amy have found anything suspicious at the Inn. He relayed a map for me.”
As she looked up and down the street, Leah realised that whatever was meant by affinity, hers was different. She couldn’t see black anywhere. Colours of every shade were worn, but most people maintained a single shade throughout their wardrobe. Occasionally someone wore two and once Leah saw a woman with three distinct colours. On the street, she turned left and began moving slowly through the busy centre of the town.
To her dismay, people soon noticed her outfit and they began to step aside and leave the path clear. They didn’t look afraid or anxious, but they did stare; many of them would lift their arms and cross them, touching palms to opposite shoulders. After a moment or two, they would bring the hands down and continue on their journey.
It took only a few minutes to find the Tahi Atu Inn. The main room was large but mostly empty. She could see John at one end nursing a large drink, he was watching the rear entrance and within striking distance of anyone who entered through it. He was dressed predominantly in dark blue although his cloak had flecks of yellow throughout. Amy was near the front entrance, her cloak purple with a subtle, white pinstripe. Several others were scattered around the room. Leah made her way towards a table near the middle of the room and towards one side where she could have her back to the wall.
A serving girl in bright orange made her way towards Leah but at a word from the Innkeeper continued to wipe down tables. The Innkeeper made his way to her; he was dressed in olive green with white flecks. He came to her table and said, “Piahi, welcome to my establishment. How may I serve?”
“I am new to Futhark’s Ascent and hope to rest for an hour before deciding my next task. What would you suggest to accompany my thoughts?”
“If I may, I suggest a platter of bread and cheese with some beer. I suggest some of the aged yellow cheese and a darker ale, or maybe a light whiter cheese with some of the lighter beer?”
“The dark ale and yellow cheese, and also a glass of water.”
“As you wish, Piahi Atherleah.”
As he left the table, Leah said, “Gèng, do you have any idea what Piahi means?”
“I have found no reference to it. How long will you wait before leaving for Quickdraw?”
“If I hear nothing by twenty-five past then I’ll change worlds.”
The beer came, and Leah sat and waited. New customers began to drift into the Inn’s common room, but none sat near Leah. At a quarter past eleven Gèng said, “You have a message. It says, ‘Meeting changed; we will meet in the world called Runes of Destiny, go to the starter city of Futhark’s Ascent. Meet in the middle of the main bridge over the river at 11.30.’”
“Is there an address to reply to?”
“No.”
“Send the following reply to Meredith. ‘That is too dangerous for me. Tell your husband I expect a safe venue.’”
It was several minutes before Gèng said, “Another message from the untraceable account. It says, ‘You are safe nowhere! Meet in the central lounge at The Red Cord.’”
“Send, ‘Sorry, that just isn’t my scene. I’ll tell you what; I’m halfway through my beer at the Tahi Atu Inn. You come past any time that suits you. I have to be somewhere at twelve real-time but can fit you in before that.’”
“Is it a good idea to antagonise them?”
“Probably not, but I want them rattled.”
Eleven thirty came and went without a reply. Leah had ordered some fruit and coffee. The time dilation worked against Leah this time as the next eighteen minutes seemed like forever. At eleven thirty-six real-time the doors of the common room swung wide, and Nathan and Meredith walked in. Nathan wore a white cotton shirt with dark purple trousers. His cloak was white with a lavender tinge. Meredith was all dark red and burnt orange. They walked over and stared down at Leah.
She said, “Nate, I hope you don’t mind me calling you Nate, it is just that I feel I already know so much about you. Your followers all speak of your charming personality. And Meredith, I wish I could say it was good to see you but that would be a lie. It’s all I can do to keep the cheese and beer down. Please sit down.”
Nathan sat, but Meredith remained standing. The Innkeeper scurried over and said, “Patoira Nathan, Patoima Meredith, you honour my Inn. How may I serve?”
Meredith said, “Get lost. We need our privacy so do not disturb us.”
The Innkeeper nodded and moved back to the bar.
Leah said, “Charming as ever. So, Nathan, you wanted to meet? All you had to do was ask.”
He stared at her for a moment then said, “Your mother is safe at the moment. This stunt almost cost her life. I sent word to have her chipped. You want her back then return what you took. What system is it in? My wife will send ships to collect it. When it is return
ed, then you’ll be told where your mother is.”
“That isn’t acceptable. The exchange of ship for my mother happens at the same time.”
“This isn’t a negotiation. Now, if you want to see her alive, you will tell me where the ship is. Trust me when I say that she means nothing to me. Just like that she will be gone forever. Then I’ll take your brother to replace her, and we’ll do this again.”
“I know she means nothing to you. I doubt you still feel the emptiness that fills your soul. But understand this, your wife’s ship means nothing to me. I have no qualms about wiping the data you want by flying the ship into a sun. In fact, all I have to do is sit here as the clock ticks on. So you see, this is a negotiation.”
“Then we will sit. Once it is destroyed, I will have your mother’s body deposited on the steps of your apartment, and this whole episode will be over.”
Nathan called the Innkeeper over and ordered a shot of whisky. Meredith stared at him for a moment and then sat. She smiled and said, “And I will destroy you.”
Leah said, “It’s always possible, I suppose. They do say that every dog has its day. So you being a bitch means that some day must be yours.”
The table underneath Nathan’s hands began to smoulder and smoke curled around his fingers. Leah said, “Control yourself, Nate, Meredith’s the out of control wacko. You are the cool and calm psychopath. So get a grip of your emotions, not the table.”
Then Leah spoke loud enough for the whole room to hear. “John, go blow up the Annoyance, will you? They don’t want it, and I don’t need it anymore.”
John rose from his chair and was out the rear entrance three steps later. Meredith looked startled for a moment and then a minute later said, “They missed him, he’s gone.”
Nathan said, “Your AI is receiving a message from my men, I suggest you view it.”
Gèng relayed the video of a man pulling back on her mother’s bald forehead. A knife was in his other hand and was resting against her throat. Leah could see tears in her mother’s eyes and her lips were moving. Leah knew her mother and was sure her mum was quoting some scripture.
Leah said, “As I said, Nate, it is always a negotiation. So is this another impasse or will you be reasonable? You have what I want, and I have what your wife wants. Until she gets it, you won’t have what you want, which is for her to stop being a whiny, nagging, pain-in-the-butt.”
Nathan turned to Meredith and said, “Which system do you want the ship brought to?”
Meredith looked at Leah and said, “Where are you?”
Leah smiled and said, “I’ll bring the ship to your operations in the Epsilon Serpentis System. It will take me three real days. The swap will be simultaneous. My mother is to be brought to the fountain in the centre of the Ipswich parklands, midday on Thursday.”
Nathan was thoughtful for a moment before replying, “Seventy-two hours from now, we will make a simultaneous exchange. You have picked the Epsilon Serpentis System. I will choose the place for the other exchange and tell you one hour before midday. Two more things and then you can go. One, if you fail to keep this agreement, then I will end her life without discussion. Two, never call me Nate again.”
“Or what? Nate! What will you do? At least the first threat you could carry out. The second is just words in the wind. For all you know, I talk about you all the time as Nate. Yep, Nate and Meri. As to the rest, you have a deal, midday on Thursday. Let’s not shake on it. Now, I’d best go. Otherwise, John will blow up the ship and then where would we be?”
Leah stood and went to the bar. She paid for a week’s stay at the Inn and then went to her room to log out. As soon as she arrived in the Tower, she collapsed to her knees and began to hyperventilate. Gèng came and put an arm around her and said, “Breathe slowly, Leah. You need to calm down. The Pod is detecting your distress here in the Tower and may log you out. You have only three minutes to get to Cosmos Online.”
Leah nodded and rose to her feet. She slowly calmed herself and said, “It’s just so hard Gèng. I believe I had to keep them off balance, but it was so hard not to break down every time he threatened her. He didn’t flinch. He truly didn’t care. How can I fight someone like that? At least Meredith has emotions.”
“The same way you face every other battle; with courage and planning. Now go, John is getting anxious; the transition icon has turned orange.”
Leah ran to the portal and stepped through just as the icon turned green. John said, “Aren’t you cutting it a little fine?”
“Nah, seconds to spare!”
The plan had been to transition into the Cosmos Online universe about a twenty light minutes from the star and then for the Banshee and the Annoyance to slow down over a day and a half before systematically searching the system. In Plankian Space they were travelling at 42,875c and even a fraction of a second would make a huge difference in final position, so Leah and Amy had set the transitions to be initiated by computer. The pilot needed to be present, but at those speeds, it was best left to the precision of the machine. Leah made a small adjustment and transitioned 0.02379 seconds later than planned.
The Annoyance was seventeen light minutes closer to the star and as it transitioned the computer made small adjustments to bring the Annoyance in a trajectory which would bring it close to the star and the Annoyance would use the gravity assist to change its direction without having to slow down. Leah had set Gèng to work on the calculation as soon as the Epsilon Serpentis System had been agreed upon. Each star in the Cosmos Online universe was moving in an orbit around the centre of the galaxy. Leah took this into account and planned to slide in front of the star and effect a 143-degree change in the direction. After the necessary rotational changes, the Annoyance began to accelerate at 4g.
When this was done, Leah sat back and said, “John, it’ll be four and a half hours until the Annoyance is near to the star. Until then I’m going to increase the acceleration to 7g. I’m taking the ship almost to the limit of its specifications for radiation and heat shielding, because at the closest point we’ll be less than half million kilometres from the star’s corona.
"Part of me wants to be on board and watch the whole show, but I’m not going to stay on the ship as we aren’t in combat. The swing by will increase our velocity to almost five million meters per second and take almost two hours. Then another five hours at 4g to change direction. All that was to say I’m not needed back here for just over eleven hours as there is almost zero chance of combat. I’ve things to do in Dunyanin so I probably won’t be here.”
“Then I’ll get back to the search for your mum. Did you find out anything else?”
“He’s having an AI chip inserted, so I figure she'll have the full scans. I hope that doesn’t catch the trackers, but it’s possible. If you don’t locate any more then you know why. I’d be interested to know where she has the chip inserted. I doubt it'll be at the hospital so can you get Jimmy to find out who inserts black market PAI chips? If he has some names, then we have people to watch, and if we don’t get another trace, we have people to question.”
“I’ll get on it as soon as I log out. What do you want me to tell Michael?”
“Leave that to me. I’ll duck out and tell him.”
Both Leah and John logged out, and Leah immediately logged out to tell her dad what had happened.
CHAPTER SIX
December 11, 2073 - Part 3
As she exited the Pod, Gèng said, “Amy sent a message asking where you were. The Banshee can’t find you and won’t see your position for another ten minutes. She also says that Thad was angry with her for cutting it so fine. He wants to know where she was and isn’t taking it well that she won’t tell him.”
“Did he respond about a visit?”
“Not yet.”
“Then please send the following to Amy. ‘Hey, thanks for your help. I transitioned close to the primary and am using gravity assist to reposition for a quick run to Epsilon Serpentis. I’ll message Thad but don�
�t take any nonsense from him.’ End Message. Then send this to Thad, ‘Thad, I know I’ve been out of touch, and you have some justification for being upset with me. You have none to be upset with Amy. Gèng asked when I could visit to talk about things but no reply. The ball is in your court.’ End message”
Her father was waiting in the kitchen, and as she made herself another meal, he explained what had been decided about the guests. The committee had worked well, and nine of the ten extra pods had been filled. The committee had chosen someone for the final Pod, but when the time came, the boy had frozen. Kyle had spent some time with him and found out that he hadn’t been honest about how bad he was feeling. Mrs Sperry met with him and suggested he be watched very closely. She thought he might find a way to hurt himself.
When Leah heard that, she said, “Dad, I’ve just met with the Kodomans. How can people do such things to people? I was thinking the other day of that lady downstairs who struggled to care for her son. I felt terrible because I realised that I contributed to her struggles, in just a small way, by my inaction. How can people actively plan to hurt people? Dad, he had a knife held to mum’s throat, and it didn’t phase him a bit.”
She didn’t realise for a second that her dad hadn’t heard the news yet. His face went white, and he seemed to deflate right in front of her. She said, “I’m sorry dad, I shouldn’t have led with that. It’s OK, we reached an agreement. He will swap mum for the ship in three days. I chose the place for the ship handover; he will choose a place for the swap. I’ve tried to manipulate where but we’ll have to see if he bites. He has ordered that she have a chip implanted and I’ve asked John to follow up on that.”
“Was she hurt?”
“She had on different clothes. Her hair was gone, and I imagine she is more upset about that and the chip than she ever will be about the knife or the conditions he keeps her in.”
“Will he keep his word and exchange her?”
