Hellhole

by Kevin J. Anderson

  Given the turmoil across the DZ caused by the sudden arrival of the trailblazers, he was sure that some frantic messages had already leaked out to the Constellation, but that was impossible to prevent. Even now, Michella couldn’t possibly have more than a vague idea of what he had actually done to her. Whenever possible, his own well-placed troublemakers would dispatch conflicting reports to foster confusion. The Diadem would receive such wildly unreliable information that she would probably disbelieve what she heard . . .

  Sophie had arranged for a podium and loudspeakers at the center of town near her main warehouse. The General’s speech would be transmitted to the small independent settlements, mining and industrial complexes, and even the wandering topographical prospectors. Although turbulence and electrical discharges often hampered long-range transmissions, everyone would know sooner or later, anyway.

  Sophie followed him to the stage, whispering encouragement. Before Adolphus could ascend the steps, she kissed him on the lips, long and hard. He did not break away, didn’t want to, though his ears were burning when he heard wolf-whistles from the crowd. Struggling to keep his dignity, he stepped up to the podium.

  The people fell silent, anxious to listen. “When I was exiled to Hallholme, I made certain promises to Diadem Michella and the Constellation. I have lived my life as an honorable man. I keep my vows. But when the foundation of those promises falls apart, then how valid are those vows? Listen to the truth about Diadem Michella’s ‘honor.’” The last word was spoken like an insult.

  He reminded them how Commodore Hallholme had achieved victory over the militarily and morally superior rebellion fleet by using dishonorable tactics. He cited all the reasons why the Deep Zone no longer needed to depend on the Constellation government. And then he played the recording that Governor Goler had sent, exposing the truth of the Ridgetop Recovery.

  As the crowd listened to the revelations in stunned silence, he added, “Sonjeera and the Crown Jewels are a useless appendage. As of today, we have a complete stringline network that links the fifty-four worlds – independent Deep Zone worlds. And with open trade and self-determination, our colonies can supply all of their own material needs. Without the Constellation to bleed us dry, we shall profit and prosper.”

  He drew a breath. This was it. “Today, we cut ourselves off from the Constellation until such time as they come to terms with us and choose to treat the Deep Zone Union as equal partners rather than underlings.” Adolphus added another archaic reference, hoping that at some point in the future, historians would make the connection. “Let this be a shot heard ‘round the galaxy.’”

  Planning ahead, he had prepared diplomatic mail drones, each of which contained a copy of his speech. Now he dispatched them to the other DZ planetary capitals. Just to make it official, he sent a courtesy copy to Diadem Michella on Sonjeera.

  89

  Within an hour after Adolphus’s declaration arrived at Sonjeera, the Council of Lords assembled for an emergency session. Trying to maintain her regal composure, Diadem Michella raced to the central government building, accompanied by a troupe of guards and advisers, including Ishop Heer. Crowded with her into the motor carriage, they offered conflicting counsel, and her head clamored with frantic thoughts. She was thunderstruck by what the General had done. Damn him!

  Though she hadn’t yet decided what she would say from the Star Throne, she did not dare delay. Any Council member who happened to be on Sonjeera would attend the debate; others could join the discussion later. The Diadem refused to postpone the meeting by even an hour so that Enva Tazaar, daughter and heir of the murdered Azio Tazaar, could arrive on the next stringline vessel.

  As far as Michella was concerned, all stringline travel was now suspect. The bloodthirsty Adolphus might well have sabotaged all of the operations. Oh, how he would love it if powerful nobles were killed in tragic transportation accidents! The depth of the man’s plan was only now becoming apparent.

  The recent deaths of so many important noblemen had raised eyebrows throughout the Crown Jewels. Other than the Paternos-Tazaar feud, there seemed no rhyme or reason, no connection among the various victims, weak and powerful families alike, talented schemers or innocuous rulers who could barely hold a continent together. It made no sense, but they couldn’t all be accidents. The Diadem began to wonder now if every one of those deaths could be blamed on General Adolphus as part of a plot to overthrow the rightful Constellation government.

  She wanted to kill him herself.

  An hour earlier, Ishop Heer had come running into her palace chambers, his face pale and his pale green eyes wide, to tell her about the message drone. “I should have known, Eminence!” Perspiring heavily, he described everything he knew about the illegal stringline network that now branched out from Hallholme to every other Deep Zone planet. “Such a plan must have been a long time in development. The General is a monster.”

  Michella had understood that all along. She should have ignored popular opinion and executed the traitor a decade ago. That one act of compassion might be coming back to destroy her and the whole Constellation, as well. She should never have listened to Selik Riomini’s suggestion. Now she and her military leaders would have to deal with staggering logistical problems in securing fifty-four intransigent planets at the same time. Presumably, all of the DZ worlds were weak, but it would be a challenge and annoyance to determine where to focus her assets. And now all of those worlds were connected. It defied belief.

  The General’s trailblazer ships had arrived on all of the frontier worlds without any forewarning. Planetary administrators throughout the DZ suddenly had an extensive transportation and commerce network that didn’t depend on the Constellation at all. Yes, Michella could issue a proclamation threatening harsh reprisals against anyone who used the illegal system, but the frontier colonies would not be eager to let go of such a remarkable boon.

  Damn him!

  When her carriage stopped in Heart Square, she rushed toward the huge Council headquarters as her entourage hurried to keep up. Today there were no well-placed crowds of adoring citizens to cheer her arrival, but she couldn’t concern herself about that. Right now, she had to deal with this debacle.

  Ishop Heer remained at her side, wisely keeping his silence. How could her trusted aide have been so easily fooled? During his two recent trips to planet Hallholme, he’d noticed no evidence of such a gigantic operation. Ishop was not prone to letting her down, but she did not like to be disappointed . . . did not like it at all.

  Storming up the marblene steps, she was so intent on imagining painful deaths to inflict on General Tiber Adolphus that she didn’t see Lord Bolton Crais standing at the doorway until he came right up to her. “Eminence! This is a horrible crisis. I just heard.”

  “We’ve all just heard, Bolton.”

  He appeared befuddled, wringing his hands. “We must do something. I’ll offer whatever help I can to rescue Keana. We have to break her free from the clutches of that horrible religious cult and get her off of Hallholme.”

  Michella paused in her step. “That’s yesterday’s crisis, Bolton. I have far more important concerns right now than the actions of my foolish daughter.”

  He looked so earnest and so powerless – a soft-hearted, soft-headed fool, without an ambitious bone in his body. In the past, she had found his mannerisms endearing, but now he just seemed to be in her way. In all the years Michella had known him, Bolton Crais had been a sexless, unromantic man, more interested in hobbies such as bird-watching than in satisfying his own wife. She could understand why Keana had looked elsewhere for passion and romance. If only her idiot daughter had shown more common sense and discretion – and if only she’d chosen a lover whose holdings had not included a planet that the Riominis wanted . . .

  Still, Michella’s alliance with the Crais family was key to maintaining her influence as to who her successor would be. Politically, she couldn’t simply get rid of the man. Now, however, it looked as if Keana had gotten rid
of herself, and in the middle of a revolt, no one could guarantee her daughter’s safety.

  “But, Diadem – she’s my wife. We can’t just give up on her. You must care about your daughter?” Bolton Crais looked as foolish and naïve as Keana did.

  Trying to soften her voice, Michella said, “We will save her if we can, but by the time I get through with Hallholme, the planet may be worse off than it was after the asteroid impact.” She brushed past, seeing his dismayed expression out of the corner of her eye, but her mind had already moved on to other things.

  “Eminence, it will take us some time to gather the Army of the Constellation and send it to Hallholme for a proper response,” Ishop said in a quiet voice. “All the nobles would have to pitch in.”

  “I know that full well. We haven’t been on a wartime footing for years, and most of my troops couldn’t pass a real service physical. The majority of our ships have been on stand-down in parking orbits. It was just too damned expensive to send them out to the Deep Zone for practice maneuvers.” She paused. “Ah, there may be a bright spot after all! I just sent Territorial Governor Goler all those decommissioned warships. Maybe he can use them to crack down on the General.”

  Ishop cleared his throat as he held one of the ornate doors open for the Diadem. “Yes, uh, Eminence . . . about Governor Goler.”

  She paused before moving inside. “Yes? What about him?”

  “There was another surprise in the message packet that Adolphus sent. A testament recorded by Governor Goler, in which he revealed the full story of the atrocities committed during the Ridgetop Recovery.”

  “Atrocities?” She tried to remember the matter, then frowned. “Why would Goler say that? And how did he find out about it in the first place? I thought we had cleaned up the whole mess before he took his assignment on Ridgetop.”

  As they marched down the corridor, guards and bureaucrats snapped to attention, startled by her swift passage. “Apparently one of the original colonists survived, and Governor Goler learned the truth from her.” He twitched as he walked. “Hasn’t Escobar Hallholme’s report reached you?”

  “What report?”

  “The last tribute shipment from Ridgetop contained only worthless rocks instead of goldenwood. The governor is thumbing his nose at us.”

  Michella froze. “Are you saying Goler has sided with Adolphus? After all I’ve done for his career? Blast the man to hell! It seems another Ridgetop Recovery may soon be in order. What would he have to gain by revealing this?”

  “There are certain ramifications, Eminence.” Ishop swallowed. “By revealing the massacre on Ridgetop, Governor Goler has no doubt touched off a fire across the Deep Zone. Any DZ populations who may have been wavering about General Adolphus now see how bloodthirsty and inhuman your troops were to a defenseless squatter colony.”

  “Bloodthirsty and inhuman! It was necessary, a simple administrative matter. Let’s not blow this out of proportion.”

  Ishop walked briskly beside her. “The colonies will see it differently, Eminence. The Ridgetop survivor was quite graphic and extensive in her descriptions, and Governor Goler offered incontrovertible evidence.”

  The Diadem would have found it amusing if she weren’t so furious. “Evidence can be fabricated. I will issue an immediate statement that this is a false report. Censure Governor Goler.”

  “I’m sorry, Eminence, but nobody will believe it. And . . .” He hesitated.

  She barely kept her fury in check. “And . . . what? What else could you possibly have to tell me, Ishop?”

  “And along with this revelation, Eminence, is the accusation that your official story of General Adolphus and his rebellion has been similarly distorted and sanitized. Adolphus still has plenty of sympathizers even in the core of the Constellation. This raises uncomfortable questions even among the Crown Jewel planets.”

  “Then quash those questions! It shouldn’t be difficult . . . or do I need a new special aide?”

  A disturbing and frightening flash of anger crossed his face before he quickly quelled it. “I will do my best, Eminence.”

  The Council members had their own spies, and the shocking news spread rapidly throughout the city. The cavernous chamber was abuzz with agitated conversation.

  Because the information was fresh and unconfirmed, hearsay reigned. Michella herself had not listened to the entire contents of Adolphus’s speech. Over the next few days, her analysts could study every line in great detail – but not now. She’d heard enough, and she had made up her mind about Tiber Adolphus long ago.

  Though Michella kept her gaze straight ahead, her vision encompassed all the people scrambling to take their seats, anxious to hear what she had to say. They wanted real leadership. As she glanced from side to side and saw all of the empty seats, Michella feared that she might not have a quorum, but she would not allow the Council members to bicker and vote and delay the necessary immediate action. She had made her decision for the good of the Constellation, and they would all have to abide by it.

  She walked up the steps to the dais, spun about, and dropped onto the ornate throne with a stiff violence that revealed only a fraction of her anger.

  A hush fell throughout the chamber. At no other time in her entire reign had Michella held their attention so completely. “Ladies and gentlemen, members of the Council. From this moment forward, the Constellation is at war.”

  90

  It was time for Keana to join the other shadow-Xayans like herself. In her psyche, Uroa was eager to be among the reawakened personalities in the new alien city they had built. Using his telemancy, Uroa flew her there.

  To Keana, it felt like riding the crest of a wave across the barren landscape of Hellhole toward the burgeoning settlement. Uroa carried her across the skies and away from the mountains. The sensation of flying was both thrilling and terrifying, while inside her head Uroa tried to calm her, “You must trust and submit completely. Your panic causes me difficulties.”

  Though she and Uroa shared control of her body, at times the Xayan leader overstepped his bounds and Keana had to push back. But not now, while they were high above the landscape. She let him revel in his newfound freedom.

  They could easily have taken an overland vehicle to the red-forested valley near Slickwater Springs, but Uroa had insisted on flying, if only to demonstrate how exhilarating the synthesis with a Xayan personality could be. For the first time in her life, Keana truly felt powerful and completely liberated from her mother’s control.

  But as her body raced along, Keana couldn’t seem to take a breath, didn’t feel as if she even had a pulse. By submitting to him for a time, she became a mere passenger inside while Uroa used his alien abilities. Still, the potential of his telekinesis thrilled her, so long as she and Uroa could be partners, and strong together . . .

  After General Adolphus departed from the mountain vault to prepare for his bombshell declaration, Keana-Uroa had spent time with the four Originals in the deep chamber, studying and remembering all those preserved artifacts. She and her unseen alien partner had absorbed their new understanding of each other.

  Now, to foster the reawakened Xayan people, she would travel out to the settlement where all the converts, with their shared experiences, congregated to bond. Keana remembered how she and Louis had liked to retreat to her private, luxurious Cottage on the Pond of Birds . . .

  Eavesdropping on her reminiscences, Uroa spoke inside her head. “Your lover is dead, and you and I need a new beginning. Long ago, when Zairic offered his plan to save our race with slickwater, none of us knew how we would be awakened after the impact. Now that humans have revived us, we shadow-Xayans must re-learn how to achieve ala’ru.”

  Keana understood that no person could remain unaffected by the experience. Adopting another full life amazed and nearly overwhelmed her. The symbiotic alliance with Uroa had made her realize the parochial insignificance of the entire Constellation, and how petty her mother’s politics truly were. How could human power s
quabbles compare with the possibility of Xayan ascension?

  Although she could feel and understand Uroa’s exuberance, Keana also understood the human crisis that Xaya – Hallholme – now faced. This planet, the slickwater reservoirs, and the whole population must be protected. “After what General Adolphus has just done, we might soon face severe reprisals. It’s an immediate problem we’ll have to confront.”

  “Together,” Uroa said.

  “Together.”

  In a valley filled with wild and tangled Xayan growth, nearly a thousand shadow-Xayans had established their colony, a pale mirror of the ethereal, animated cities that had once covered this world. Though the inhabitants appeared human, the buildings themselves were unusual and freeform, morphing in subtle ways from one shape into another.

  Keana felt the excitement inside Uroa’s personality, a sense of memory akin to her wonder. As they landed gently in the center of the settlement, Keana caught the afterglow of his memories, gliding along in lush groves of the scarlet fronds, letting the fleshy plants stroke his sensitive, moist skin. Through his outer membrane, Uroa remembered flavors, the smells and sounds of the crimson forests, and the whispering of Xaya’s lushness.

  “My world is awakening,” he said, his voice quiet inside of her.

  And the shadow-Xayan city was even more magnificent. On the streets between the translucent, changing buildings, some people walked, while others levitated. Several converts leaped from atop tall structures, practicing their telemancy; some of them streaked away awkwardly, barely in control of their abilities.

  A narrow-faced man with long brown hair approached Keana-Uroa. She recognized Fernando-Zairic, the man who had convinced Keana to jump into the slickwater after Cristoph rejected her. They shook hands in a human greeting, while the two Xayan personalities linked for a brief telepathic exchange.