“Slow us down Nori, hurry!” Thomas snapped suddenly, realizing abruptly that they were practically on top of a nearby solar system. Based on the amount of star shine he was seeing in the nebulae, they were very close to a standard, stable star. The radiation statistics on his laptop agreed with the assessment, as did the results from his latest gravitational survey.
“I thought we were invisible,” she retorted somewhat irritably, nonetheless following his command and easing back on the shuttle’s thrusters. “We’re going to lose the convoy.”
“That’s okay. And we are invisible, but the shuttle is leaving a detectable fuel trail and we’re right in the center of a radiant nebula,” he offered, eyes watching the forward cockpit with a renewed enthusiasm that had been missing for several days. “If this is indeed a foothold system, then we’re going to encounter additional ships… probably a significant number of them. The last thing we need right now is for someone to see us leaving a dust trail as we rocket through Caucus central.”
Gil Gibson glanced up from his co-pilot’s seat. “Are you sure there’s a yellow star in there?” He asked cautiously, his own eyes also locked on the forward windows. “This is the thickest I’ve seen the nebulae.”
“That’s because we’re right on top of a large gravity well,” nodded Thomas with a beaming smile. “I’ve seen enough of Julie Markham’s astronomy photos to recognize the distinct signature of a yellow star when I see one. With the content of these dust clouds and the colors they’re producing… there’s not a lot of doubt remaining in my mind.” Furiously, he began enlarging a three dimensional map of the immediate vicinity, using the touch screen to mark transit points with bright blue in preparation for a detailed scouting mission.
“How long will it take to conduct a comprehensive search of this area?” asked Nori inquisitively. “We may have found a yellow star out here all by itself in this long deserted territory, but that doesn’t necessarily mean there is anything significant to be found. And if we waste a lot of time trying to search an entire solar system, then we’re wasting resources that might better be used…”
“It’s not going to take long at all,” Thomas promised her confidently. “I’m going to use my implant to contact President Kaufield. Once he hears from us, he’ll use the Pathfinder to send Glen and the Corona right to us. With two shuttles and a host of Canary probes to work with, we’ll have this entire star system mapped and ready for analysis in only a few hours.” He continued to watch the gaseous haze of brightly colored dust filtering gently past the cockpit windows, their presence feeling to him like the arrival of an old friend. “I think we just found our foothold, Noriana.”
Aboard the Pathfinder…
Adam sat quietly in a chair, his face held firmly in both hands, doing his best to rub the fatigue out of his eyes. President Kaufield stood directly across from him, next to Noah, trying to grasp the basic concepts of what his friend was trying to tell him. He was more than a little perplexed regarding the latest news. “You’re telling us that you saw someone who should not have been aboard your ship, someone who avoided security, an old man who – for all intents and purposes – left absolutely no trace of his presence there? Is that what you’re trying to tell us?” He glanced toward Noah apprehensively. “Someone else must have seen him.”
Raising his head and staring blankly ahead, Adam shrugged indifferently. “That’s why I came over here as soon as he vanished. I was hoping that you guys had monitored the entire conversation via my brain implant. Unfortunately, the disconnection that I felt on my end of the link appears to have prevented that.”
“We didn’t see any sign of even a minor problem,” noted Kaufield, thoughtfully rubbing his chin before placing his hands firmly on his hips. “From our vantage point, it appeared as though you simply went to sleep for the duration of this conversation.” His gaze drifted to Noah with obvious interest and he raised a cautious eyebrow. “Your people aren’t responsible for this visit, I take it?”
For the first time since Kaufield had known him, Noah replied with a simple, “I don’t know.” He waved both hands helplessly, feeling as lost as the other two. “It’s kind of an odd feeling, actually, being on this side of things. Usually we are the ones who approach travelers and leave them with an unresolved mystery or two.”
“I know,” replied Kaufield steadily. “Ten years ago, you sent us the mystery transmission that turned out to be a map of our universe bubble and the surrounding ones. It helped us to more quickly identify the Poseidon gravity river and track the flow right back to the Proteus galaxy.” He took a moment to think about the matter carefully, refilling a large mug with hot coffee as he did so. “The fact that another third party may be involved in this – someone even your people can’t track – is more than a little bit disconcerting.”
“Did he tell you who he was, where he was from?” inquired Noah softly.
“He didn’t even want to tell me his name,” Adam growled in response. “When I pressed him, he told me to refer to him as David. Then, after he gave me this,” he continued, removing the antique silver watch from a pocket in his tunic and handing it to Kaufield. “That’s how I know for certain that I didn’t hallucinate this entire affair – because he left me proof so that I would know that he was really there and not joking in regards to our interfering in the politics of the Wasteland. He joked almost casually that, if anyone asked, I should tell them that I was visited by the Watchmaker.”
“So he essentially told you that he believes in Intelligent Design, suggested that everyone should, and also cautioned you about being too eager to kill Kuth soldiers.”
“In a way,” Adam confirmed with a sharp nod. “He has this very odd way of conveying a simple point… it takes about twenty minutes actually. If I understood him correctly, this David believes that something very big is coming our way very soon, something on the near horizon that will require decisions from us that will impact… well, the term he used was billions of lives. He urged me to avoid killing wherever and whenever possible and verbally chastened me for killing virtually all of the Kuth that I’ve met so far. He failed to tell me what the alternative to those actions would be – think of how many people those alien creatures would have killed had I not stopped them when I did.”
Scratching the top of his head, Kaufield studied Adam closely. “Why do you think he chose you?”
“Most probably because I seem to be at the center of everything,” the elder Roh told him in response. “If you need someone to make a tough call in a crunch, it’s probably going to be the person who has been living in the Wasteland for several weeks now – the person who knows the most about what’s going on here.”
“I would agree with that analysis,” nodded Kaufield firmly, turning toward Noah thoughtfully. “How many races have your people encountered who could pull this type of thing off?” he asked pensively. “Who has the know-how to do an end around even the communications link from your implant technology?”
There was a prolonged pause, during which time Noah cleared his throat several times. “I honestly don’t know of any species fitting that description,” he replied after a time. “If there are other aliens out there who possess abilities far beyond ours, something that is certainly possible but we have no proof of, then they have chosen to remain anonymous. Prior to this incident, no one has ever revealed themselves to us.” He chuckled lightly, appreciating the irony of the situation. “I’m beginning to get a good idea what you must have felt like ten years ago when I so suddenly appeared to you when the Pathfinder first approached the Wasteland. To my knowledge, this is the first time that our own tactics have been successfully used against us.”
“They weren’t used against us,” countered Adam warily. “David was very clear that he was simply warning us not to give in to the urge to kill. He told me to ask Thomas about his artificially intelligent software program if I had additional questions – pointing out that it is much more difficult to create life than to end
it.”
“But he left the ultimate decision up to you… up to us?”
Adam sincerely took a moment to think about that. “I believe so,” he admitted finally. “There was nothing in his manner that seemed as though he was talking down to me or issuing orders of any sort. I think he was worried that my continued presence here in the war zone would impact me emotionally over the long run… especially if the killing continues. He also seemed to be worried about humanity in general, because most of us have traditionally prided ourselves on finding alternatives to war and historically worked to use force as a deterrent… as a last resort.” He threw up his hands before reaching for his own coffee mug. “I swear… through most of the conversation I was totally convinced that I was hallucinating – this is exactly the kind of thing that used to happen when that virus we stumbled on to ten years ago begins to kick in. Can it possibly linger in our systems and then reappear when it’s triggered by stress or something similar? That’s what I believed to be happening to me until my mental link to you was restored and I was standing there, in the corridor, holding a pocket watch.”
“Dr. Simmons doesn’t believe that the virus is still in your system… or that it could do that even if it was.”
Noah was studying the watch closely, opening its cover and even testing the winding mechanism. “It’s actually a pretty good watch,” he stated with just a hint of mischief in his tone. Then his expression changed as he noticed additional details. “There is a map of some kind on the inside of the cover,” he pointed out, holding the object out so that both the President and Adam could get a better look at it. “I don’t recognize the configuration off the top of my head, but I’ll have our astronomers look into it. We’ve got a lot more of the universe charted than your people do. Perhaps they can identify it.”
“Are there big decisions coming?” asked Adam thoughtfully. “David was right about that, wasn’t he?”
“Quite possibly,” Kaufield confirmed with a wry smile. “Thomas and your wife are on the Ranger, and they believe they located a stable, yellow star here at the center of the Wasteland… a star that’s not supposed to be here. Supposedly they were all destroyed by the quashing weapons long ago.” He exhaled slowly. “I sent Glen and the Corona to their location so that they can assist with mapping the solar system. Depending on what we find there, we could certainly be facing some rather big decisions.”
“If the Kuth or the Yakiir wanted a secret sanctuary, they would certainly spread the rumor that all of the territory here at the center of the Wasteland is worthless,” decided Noah. “When the war initially began, all of the newly destroyed stars that spread residual debris everywhere, along with their ability to manipulate the various clans, would have made it easy for them to protect a central star system. The war was a lot more chaotic in the beginning, obviously, but after a few centuries they very definitely began pushing the clan wars outward, constantly expanding the Wasteland’s perimeter.”
“Which is also serving to provide them with a very large ‘safe zone’ around this particular star system,” Adam observed. “We’re the only ones with invisible shuttles. Everyone else who tries to explore at this depth would run into Yakiir patrols, detection satellites concealed within the dust clouds, mine fields and who knows what else. It’s pretty obvious why we’re the only ones who have come here in quite some time to see what might be lurking here. For one thing, it’s not such a long journey for us.” He sighed and glanced up toward Kaufield, still reflecting on recent events. “What about David?”
“I’m not concerned at this point,” the Council President decided firmly. “It’s the same type of situation that took place ten years ago, when Noah chose to initially warn us as we drew closer to the Wasteland. Even with that warning, we still almost lost our ship because we were curious about the destruction of so many stars. We would be wise, on this occasion, not to completely emulate our behavior during the previous experience. We should be very cautious this time, but I don’t see why your encounter should keep us from moving forward.”
“What if David shows up again?”
“If he does, please tell him that Noah and I would like to speak with him too,” suggested Kaufield. “Of course, we will know considerably more when our shuttles get back. Let’s adjourn until then.”
Aboard the Ali Rinai…
As though Adam’s day wasn’t already unfolding strangely enough, he soon discovered that things would get even odder once he returned to the captured Yakiir warship. He had not yet felt it necessary to assign someone the disgusting task of cleaning up the traditional Captain’s cabin, so he continued to spend the bulk of his private time in the small cabin on the ship’s port side. The move was more strategic than anything on his part, since he was still uncertain as to whether there remained one or more traitors among the mixed crew. The only way to tell was to be patient, and if anyone tried to betray them once again to the Kuth after everything that had taken place, well… it was quite possible that this particular individual would be assigned the task of cleaning Admiral Deek’s remains off of the cabin wall. Should someone prove to be so dense as to continue to doubt the veracity of Adam’s claims regarding the Kuth, he felt obligated to offer that special person a much closer, personal look at the alien creatures and their strange biology.
He had barely returned to the small cabin that temporarily served as his new home when Thomas decided to check in using the shared implant link. And that was the official beginning of the strangest meeting he would ever participate in – a meeting that allowed everyone linked together to listen in and offer suggestions from wherever they currently happened to be. Some were on the shuttles searching the new star system while others remained back on the Pathfinder. Adam currently resided on the Ali Rinai whereas Julie Markham and Karen Simmons were back on Tranquility, an even more distant vantage point spanning millions of light years. Even so, the implant technology allowed all of them to connect with each other long enough to evaluate Thomas’ latest findings. Even the unexpected encounter with David couldn’t possibly match this, in Adam’s mind. Not without first learning more about the strange, elderly man, his mission, and his overall peculiar manner.
[“This star system is truly unbelievable, a real foothold for the Kuth unlike anything we ever expected to find!”] Thomas exclaimed mentally just as Adam sat down in an empty chair so that he could relax and listen. It was fun to listen to his brother, even while mentally linked, when he got this excited – new discoveries almost always inspired him in this manner.
[“I take it that you’ve found a planet in the habitable zone,”] replied President Kaufield almost immediately, referring to the short span of distance from a star where orbiting planets could sustain liquid water and thus support biological life as well. [“How many enemy ships are there?”]
[“Captain… Mr. President… I believe that everyone who is not currently fighting for the Yakiir is HERE,”] Thomas continued, his elation obvious. [“And it isn’t just a SINGLE planet in the habitable zone that we’re talking about.”] He paused for dramatic effect, a character trait that Adam had tried unsuccessfully for years to break him of. [“Try four hundred twenty-five planets, to be exact.”]
The news was staggering, and stellar scientist that she was, Dr. Julie Markham spoke up immediately. [“You’ve got to be kidding,”] she replied somewhat doubtfully. [“How have they managed to do that?”]
[“Obviously they haven’t simply been quashing stars completely at random throughout the centuries,”] Glen piped up next. [“It looks like they’ve stolen the most habitable worlds from a lot of the stars that have gone dark and parked them right here. Whether this is a permanent destination for them or a temporary one remains to be seen. I would imagine some of these planets are also from their own universe, brought over just like the one that Noah and his people confiscated after Adam’s quashing test.”]
[“But how do they balance everything out gravitationally?”] persisted Dr. Markham inquisitiv
ely. [“Does the system configuration look like that ‘Atomic Nightmare’ we found ten years ago…?”]
[“Hardly,”] said Noriana Roh with a slight mental chuckle. [“You should see the map… you CAN see the map if you adjust your implant visual receptors to match my authorization code. I’m looking at it right now. All of the planets are on a single plane, orbiting at slightly varying speeds that appear to be based on each planet’s total size and factoring in the length of its daily rotation. They’ve been carefully counterbalanced with each other, each of them prepositioned at various distances from each other in orbits ringing the sun. We’re uploading all of the raw data now, so it will be available at the conclusion of this meeting from the normal storage units back on Tranquility.”]
[“It looks exactly like someone has created a miniaturized version of the Proteus galaxy,”] added Thomas.
Eager to join in the conversation, Adam shook his head. [“It all makes sense now,”] he told the others triumphantly. [“The Kuth have been sitting safely in that system for the duration of the war, using their enormous foothold to bring ships, soldiers and supplies across the ‘bridge’ from their universe. They send the Yakiir out to attack other clans in force, and in the battles that follow at least some of those resources are captured and confiscated by others. They’ve had clans using quashing weapons against each other too, with convoys in the other universe just sitting there waiting for a portal to open on their side.”]
The Pathfinder Trilogy Page 71
