by Jim Hines
Isaac raised his hands. “Is this because the ansible was in use in the book? You weren’t just creating the ansible, you were trying to create the conversation as well? A connection to fictional characters.”
Jeneta’s smile grew. “Nope. You’re thinking too literally. The ansible is about communication and connection. Just like the other spells they tried to hijack to get free.”
“Enough,” said her father, but he was grinning. “You’re having far too much fun making everyone guess. Tell us what these things are, or I’ll never buy another jar of Nutella again.”
“That’s cruel.” She turned to Isaac. “You loaned me your copy of Contact last year. Do you remember the line about the size of the universe and the possibility of alien life?”
“Of course. ‘If it’s just us, seems like an awful waste of space.’”
Her cheeks hurt from smiling as she waited for him to make the connection.
Isaac’s gasp a moment later was everything she could have hoped. He sat down hard, like his legs had given out. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
“We cast a spell to enable us to communicate with anyone, anywhere in the galaxy and beyond.”
Her father shook his head in disbelief. “These things you’ve been seeing, they’re aliens?”
“I think they’re from the alien equivalent of SETI, the Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence. They’ve been listening for signs of life elsewhere in the universe. They heard our spell—tasted it, really. That’s how their magic works. Their whole world is water. They can secrete…it’s like tiny magical potions.” She laughed. “Isaac, they spit magic!”
“Can you contact them again?” asked Isaac. “Safely?”
“I think so.” Her grin faded slightly. “They were trying to respond. Creating the ansible was us making the call. The mental contact I felt on stage was them answering. When I broke the spell, a few of them got trapped between their world and ours. I still don’t understand exactly how it happened. I don’t think they do, either. It’s something they want to talk about with us. All I know is I won’t make that mistake again.”
“And you were able to communicate?” asked her father. “You understood their language?”
“We understood…intentions, I guess. Images and emotions. It’s going to take longer to learn to communicate specific concepts and details, but I have a few ideas on that.”
Her phone buzzed. She glanced at the text message on the screen.
Greg: Kiyoko says you’re back. Thank you!!!
Jeneta grinned up at Kiyoko. “Thanks for letting them know.”
Kiyoko shrugged. “One of the advantages to being in thirty-one places at once.”
Dr. Shah sat back and said, “From what I can see, you’re completely fine. We should get you to the hospital for a check-up to be sure, though. And I’ll want to talk to you to process everything that’s happened. The emotional scars from Meridiana are still there, but something tells me you’ll be able to work through them.”
“What now?” asked her father.
Isaac looked at Jeneta, a mischievous smile on his face. “I know you don’t love the spotlight, but I think you’re going to have to get used to it. This is going to be one hell of a press conference.”
“Bring it on,” she said. “I’m not afraid. But let’s not invite anyone from JP Multinational, okay?”
For the first time, she noticed the secondary ansible unit sitting to one side on the stage. Isaac must have finished creating it while Jeneta was busy talking to aliens. Once someone fixed the hatch on the Venture, they should be able to get to Mars after all.
But Mars was only the beginning.
Bibliography
Titles marked with an asterisk (*) were made up for this book.
Brice, Charles. Mars 2020.*
Colfer, Eoin. Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian.
Frost, Robert. “Mending Wall.”
Keats, John. “To Sleep.”
Kuronuma, Shunro. All of One.*
McClain, Gene. New Destiny.*
Pierce, Tamora. In the Hand of the Goddess.
Poe, Edgar Allan. “Spirits of the Dead.”
Sagan, Carl. Contact.
About the Author
Jim C. Hines is best known as a fantasy novelist and the guy who did those gender-flipped SF/F cover poses. His first novel was Goblin Quest, the tale of a nearsighted goblin runt and his pet fire-spider. Actor and author Wil Wheaton described the book as “too f***ing cool for words,” which is pretty much the Best Blurb Ever. After completing the goblin trilogy, Jim went on to write the princess series, four books often described as a blend of Grimm’s Fairy Tales with Charlie’s Angels. He’s also the author of the Magic ex Libris books, which follow the adventures of a magic-wielding librarian from northern Michigan, as well as the Fable: Legends tie-in Blood of Heroes. He's turned now to humorous science fiction with Terminal Alliance, book one in the Janitors of the Post-Apocalypse trilogy.
Jim has written more than fifty published short stories. His first professional story sale was the award-winning “Blade of the Bunny,” which took first place in the 1998 Writers of the Future competition and was published in Writers of the Future XV.
Jim is an active blogger about topics ranging from sexism and harassment to zombie-themed Christmas carols, and won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 2012.
He has an undergraduate degree in psychology and a Masters in English. He lives with his wife and two children, who have always shown remarkable tolerance for his bizarre and obsessive writing habits. (The cats, on the other hand, have no tolerance whatsoever, and routinely walk across his desk when he’s trying to work.)
Also by Jim C. Hines
Jig the Goblin
Goblin Quest
Goblin Hero
Goblin War
The Princess Series
The Stepsister Scheme
The Mermaid’s Madness
Red Hood’s Revenge
The Snow Queen’s Shadow
Magic ex Libris
Libriomancer
Codex Born
Unbound
Revisionary
Chupacabra’s Song (Short Story)
Imprinted (Novelette)
Janitors of the Post-Apocalypse
Terminal Alliance
Terminal Uprising (Forthcoming)
Other
Fable Legends: Blood of Heroes
Rise of the Spider Goddess: An Annotated Novel
