by K R Sanford
“Let me see if I can assimilate what Legion said,” replied Chris. “Qualia, is an organic self-organizing value in the individual and the group. Sometimes, qualia can have a life of its own that is specific to the social landscape. Qualia can also be a vehicle that tests and reviews products. You can ask yourself, is it any better than last year’s model or is it worse? Are the features helpful or did we miss communicate something? Maybe we need to work on the quality of our communication, as well as, the quality of our attraction in deep space. Can we treat ourselves cosmetically to buy us some time? I recall the many brown-outs and black-outs ordered to hide from night bombing raids.”
“This is good thinking, Chris,” said Legion. “You have a great understanding of the consciousness of the Corsi Star System. And, it appears you have a workable grasp of what our universe faces. Hold please. Go to viewer.”
The viewing screen expanded to its full sixty foot length. The visual of deep space was as unnerving as it was captivating. The clarity outside stretched far beyond the Milky Way Galaxy. The visual of the celestial objects gave a welcome recognition. There was a Zen, here and now, quality. And yet, from their purest place is an inescapable death for those caught unawares. And, by their cold forbidding distance was the curious muse as to their order in nature.
The Eagle floated into the peaceful eye of the cosmic wormhole. The whirling and trapping of thunderous clouds disrupted the fabric of spacetime. Ripping a hole in spacetime for a new astronomic event was disturbing to the crew.
The light was intense and appeared from no readable point or direction. “We’re at the mouth of the wormhole,” said Commander Majors. “The effects are being compiled.”
Marco smiled then pointed at the viewer. “It’s a little late for playing the devil’s advocate, Commander. If that’s where Legion said to take this convoy, then that’s where we’re going.”
As the viewer displayed a black haze in the middle of the wormhole, the Eagle sailed deeper into the riff. Marco set the bridge under red light. Commander Ryan leaned back in his chair speaking to Vito about the controls of the helm. The Emperor was in the red velvet chair at the game table interacting with Devin and Balrug. The rest of the reunion watched as they took twists and turns through unknown parts of the galaxy.
Space can be endless days of total boredom with ten seconds of terror thrown in for good measure,” said Ryan.
Clorissa touched Grantham’s shoulder to direct him to Ryan’s comment. “Oh, I can’t say I’m bored at the moment, Ryan. Even though I find space travel uneventful at times. Right now, the thought of Kiterage maneuvering an ambush at Legion’s temple makes my blood boil.”
“Fascinating,” said Ryan. “I recall the last adventure through the wormhole those many years ago. You told Clorissa and me about your childhood. You talked of the first days with the Amedans. It was a touching and heroic story, quite an emotional beginning.”
“That’s when I first fell in love with this big Marillian,” said Clorissa.
“Oh,” said Shanna. “This is so romantic.”
Pawdell looked into Shanna’s eyes and nodded with a goofy smile.
The viewer flashed a blinding white light. The crew put on their eye gear. Another series of flashes erupted. “The lightning rod is getting a work out,” said Vito.
“Maintain speed, steady at log eleven,” said Marco.
“What was your speed when you were going through here last time?” asked Vito.
“Oh,” replied Marco. “We were sublight, just creeping along. We got hit with those flashes. They were like hell fire, monsters, lightning bolts; then lightning bolts with faces. I didn’t know about the heavy lightning rod at the time.”
“You’re alright now, Marco,” said Legion. “We’ll be out of here in no time. Relax and enjoy the light show.”
“It’s okay Dad,” said Shanna.
“I know, sweetie,” replied Marco. He sat up in his chair and eyeballed the spectacle of swirling lights over the viewer. The Eagle rocked and rolled through the haphazard maze. The wormhole twisted energy fields and distorted three into four dimensional shapes. He picked up the ships log and began recording data.
Meanwhile, the wormhole revealed a small black dot at the center of the Eagle’s trajectory. Marco leaned forward in his chair and watched as the dot grew to an orifice at the end of the wormhole. Without warning, the Eagle thrust free from the phenomenon. They sailed into an open sea of space. There were no stars, no planets and no detection of energy of any kind. The Eagle was alone in this vast yawn of the universe.
Marco leaned back in his command chair anticipating an event worth sharing. He looked with amusement at seeing everyone entrenched in each other’s business. He decided; he would stay exactly where he was, in the comforts of his own thought. He would share the moment all right. He would share it with himself and wait to see how long it took for others to notice they were free of the wormhole.
The Emperor was the first to notice Marco’s ruse. He went back listening to Devin without so-much as a flinch. Marco thought the Emperor knew exactly when they left the wormhole. He would know before they entered the thing. Marco, thinking himself silly under the light of the Emperor, gave up his ruse of one-ups-men. He said, “Who’s ready for refreshments?” He tapped an icon on his command chair and the order went to the cafeteria.
The Emperor raised his hand. “I have something different, Captain. We are ready to make an announcement. We have gone over the evidence, or lack thereof, about the saboteur. We are not ready to name a suspect, yet, but we do have a profile. The Amedans would like to give you that profile after refreshments. Since the wormhole can be a stressful event, this is a good idea.”
Marco reached for another sensor and pushed his finger against the activation strip. The familiar sound of warm air blew down from the overhead vents. He slunk back in his chair. He rubbed his eyes and watched the cafeteria staff set refreshments on the game table. He reset the viewer to focus the magnification for infinite range. He looked up. His eyes grew narrow and his heart began to pound.
Marco sat transfixed at the solitary light in the distance. He strained his eyes into the dark cosmic sea. He watched with the same state of wonder as he did those fifteen years ago. The Eagle advanced at log eleven. He recalled the same massive golden coils of the serpent. He remembered the coils holding the multifaceted golden gem. Like a lighthouse in a vast sea, the serpent held the translucent stone as if showing its prize to the universe. Its immortal coils rested on an invisible field of dazzling stardust. The stardust revolved under the Emperor’s edifice on a torus flux.
Marco took a couple deep breaths then smiled at the six Amedans suspended above the game table. They glowed with a faint blue hue. “Lao, how do the Amedans make it through stressful flights, Lao?”
“Oh, thank you for your question, Captain Miller.” He replied extra polite for the Amedan High Ruler.
“I’m glad you are all onboard,” rejoined Marco. “I would like to hear your ways of coping and how you help each other achieve your goals out here in space.”
“No mystery, Captain,” he continued in a tranquil tone. “We encourage each other to compete for the group cohesion. Every Amedan works to challenge their self as the strongest link for the interest of the group.”
“No mystery?” said Marco.
“No, Captain,” said Lao. “Demystifying a mystery makes clear what direction you can go. And what timing is needed to complete the mission.”
“And the mission?” replied Marco.
“Our goal here, Captain is to bring the fleet back under the control of the Emperor. In that way we will advance our mission to power the new multiverse, no mystery, Captain.
“This is big,” said Marco.
“Yes,” said Lao.
Marco, hesitant of Lao’s motive replied, “They are either with us or against us?”
Lao laughed, “We are not medieval, Marco. They can retire with General Hodges or they may wait un
til they get reassigned.”
“And, the profile of the Saboteur?” asked Marco.
“Right,” said Lao. We are ready for that, with your permission.”
“I have no objections,” said Marco, looking around the bridge at the expectant faces.
“Our subject is a classic psychopathy,” said Lao. “Let’s look at this in detail. I have asked Ensign Chew to orchestrate a simulation of personality traits for us to look at. Go ahead Miss Chew.”
Ensign Chew, sitting at the head of the game table replied. “Our subject is a psychopath personified from the traits of the group conscience.
We will be profiling the embodiment of psychopathy as a group entity. It is a systemic malignancy. There are compound psychopathic traits sustained by individual recognition from a corporate culture. Although the leaders of the group can change, the dynamics of the group stays the same, immutable. And, the way to beat a malignancy of this kind is with a bigger psychopath. Then replace the corporate culture with a functional or healthy system if it is not too late.”
Ensign Chew adjusted the notes on her screen and continued. “First is the lack of empathy. With this trait, it is important to note, some can turn on and turn off empathy at will.
Second, is their sense of superiority, and not far behind is their sense of entitlement. This refers to their grandiosity. They see themselves better than others with the belief others are inferior. They are manipulative and irresponsible. They display a superficiality and vanity. They are compulsive liars, and they act out with anti-social behavior.
Psychopathic leaders have the ability to tap into the group collective unconscious. They resonate with the fears and resentments of the group. They gather information on the group to perfect their own destiny as leader. Once actions get carried out through the leader, the malignancy then shows its face. This causes a downward spiral to the integrity and trust of the group."
“Does the group have a name?” asked Hector.
“Yes,” replied Ensign Chew, “The Interstellar Forces.”
“Thank you,” said Hector.
“Okay,” said the Emperor, “Short and sweet today, Lao?”
“We are ready to talk about strategy,” replied Lao.
“My Lord,” said Ensign Chew, “We are within one hundred miles of the Temple.”
“Very good, Ensign Chew,” he said. “Lao, we are going to untether. Have Major Stiller and Captain Walters brought to the bridge with his security team, and no one else, Lao. Then order the ships to line up behind us single file at the entrance of the Temple.”
“Very good, My Lord, at once,” said Lao. He fixed himself to communications where the console came alive with multi-colored lights.
Chapter 9
____________________________________________
THE TEMPLE
Sweet are the uses of adversity; which, like the toad, ugly and venomous,
wears yet a precious jewel in his head.
William Shakespeare
From fifty miles out, Temple Starbase appeared fixed and solitary. The starbase glowed internal through the honeycomb body. The architecture was as dazzling as its golden radiance. The radiance spoke of the infinite and opulent nature of its immortal owner. The superstructure, resembling coils of a serpent, had a life of its own. A greenish gold gem held fast within its sunken center. The transparent dome formed over the top of the gem. The dome rose several miles above the gem’s table surface. At one side was a square opening with a triangle cap, a feature well-defined at fifty miles out.
The column of four approached the Temple. With military precision the ships surrounded the starbase. The Eagle held position in front of the entrance and waited.
“Sir, our readings show no life-forms,” said Ensign Chew. “Our sensors show power restored recently with life-support for humans.”
“Very good, Miss Chew,” replied Marco. “The last time I was here the Temple turned on by itself. Legion, or ah, My Lord, I have been curious about the coils shaped like a serpent. What’s going on there?”
The Emperor, pleased to lecture on The Temple replied. “Marco, this is a simple stellarator. It is a component for confining plasma with a magnetic field force. Its use is to sustain safe operation of our fusion reactor.”
“Our sensors don’t pick up a magnetic field, My Lord
“Your sensors will not see the field cancellation because of the shield wrap. The shield wraps around a magnetic mirror. This is why your sensors will not pick up a magnetic field. The mirrors are a true mirror.
You were curious about the coils shaped like a serpent. Marco, the twisting path of the stellarator cancels out instabilities in the plasma.
Lucky for us there is no radiation leak. If there was a leak, you would have seen it from the eye of the wormhole.
I wanted to make the coils big enough to drive large starships through and onto the runway. I need a place for upgrades, that’s why the transparent dome.
We can accommodate most starships here. The starbase runway is five point seven five miles in diameter. Larger ships can tether on the perimeter with a tractor when it is necessary. This starbase is also mobile. She is capable of moving to any space-station or planet.”
“Interesting: Why a starbase of this sophistication way out here, My Lord?” asked Marco.
“We are going to build a bridge, Captain,” he replied.
“My Lord, Colonel Stiller and Captain Walters are here.”
“Thank you, Miss Chew. Ask them to step in, please,” he said.
“Please take a seat gentleman.” Hector directed them to the game table.
“We will begin our journey through the Labyrinth,” said Legion. “You may take us through, Marco.
Now, Captain Walters, you will experience altered states of consciousness as we drift through the Labyrinth. You will not be the same trickster as is your nature here now. Commander Ryan, tell us of your experience when you arrived on top.”
Ryan raised an eyebrow and spoke, “I never felt more at home. My mental capacities aligned with the natural force of the Universe. I knew what I needed to do. I knew how to operate the navigation system. I could see doorways to other spacetime planes. I could see the personal makeup and abilities of every member in our crew. I could see how to best enhance their capacities along with their lives onboard the ship.”
“That’s fine, Commander. I don’t mean to cut you off. Take a breath now. Your proximity to the Labyrinth is an inverse proportion to distance squared. Ryan, you can relax now. Take in the reinforcement of your destiny. The life-force knows you,” said Legion.
“Yes, it’s like playing with magnets inside your higher self,” said Ryan turning to Walters.
“The force field will give you a greater perspective, Captain Walters.” Legion said.
“You will feel more value within yourself.”
“What’s this all about?” asked Walters.
“You are going to get broken down and put back together,” replied Legion. “It’s your only option on this ship, son. I could turn you over to the Marillians for a life of servitude in the mines.”
“Aren’t I entitled to a hearing?” said Walters.
“Your guilt was already determined,” said Legion. “I am informing you of your sentence.”
“What do you want me to do?” replied Walters.
“There is nothing you can do.” If you try to leave, security will confine you to your quarters. After that, you will get taken from this place to serve a life sentence. You will work underground with the Marillians. There you will stay until the time of your death. Or, you can sit there and not move a muscle until you get told otherwise.”
“We are entering the Temple,” said Ensign Chew.
The starships entered through the rectangular passage. They sailed back and forth through the Labyrinth. As the ships traveled forward, they drifted through the maze of scaling.
“I still get a sensation of home when I travel through these passages,�
� said Clorissa. “It’s the sacred sensation. To know the power of the physical journey through the twists and turns are that of adversity. In here we get a counter intuitive reminder that our destiny.” She looked to the Emperor to invite his comment.
“I know the Ziltairian people well,” he said. “I know their many uses for the Labyrinth. Their insights are well observed. Tell us more of how it is on Ziltairia, Clorissa.”
Clorissa smiled and continued. “We walk through the Labyrinth as a meditation in the gardens of our cities. We use Labyrinths to prepare our minds and bodies for our spiritual activities. We walk a three dimensional Labyrinth in our hologram centers. In our Labyrinths, we approach the center knowing we are on a journey into the higher places of ourselves. So, we bring a gift, a puzzle, a problem, a word and even a friend. I have a friend who brings flowers and scatters them around the center. For me my journey is sensual and feeling, physical and poetic. I experience the walk through the twists and turns as one long movement inside my body and mind. Every part of me tingles and when I reach the center, I am like a new being. I express myself in rejuvenation and I’m ready to try new things.
Sometimes, I see a pink light. And, as I walk back out of the Labyrinth, I bring my pink light with me to see where I can be of service. I take my pink light and hold it up, feeling all the strength of my body, and I listen for the call of the Universe.”
“That’s fabulous. It’s a girl thing but it is fabulous,” said Marco.
“Now why is that a girl thing?” said Hector.
“Okay, okay, I’ll respond to that, Hector,” said Marco. “You come at me with your pink light and I will get disappointed, okay?”
“I don’t have a pink light, okay?” replied Hector.
The starships turned and turned again along the dead husk of the Emperor’s Temple. They drifted through the short and long curves. Without warning they flew out onto a platform of translucent gold. The four starships hovered over the platform. The stardust disk was visible far below the celestial Temple. They could see the rotation of a virtual universe at their feet.
