Artifice
Page 14
“The same as yours,” Gramab replied. She spoke to Julien, but after she’d responded, her eyes shifted to Alex.
When Julien asked Gramab the question, she’d noticed no change in the digital entity’s expression. It wasn’t so for the leader, Alex. The reason for Commander Sargut’s waving and pointing of digits dawned on her. The explanation seemed improbable, but it was the only creditable answer.
Julien had explained to her that only the two Omnian digital entities could speak the Chistorlan language. He didn’t say that Alex couldn’t understand it. But it was obvious to her that Alex had understood her comment and communicated his response silently to Julien. Mind-to-mind transfer, Gramab thought with incredulity.
Gramab had no more reason to focus on Julien. She chose to demonstrate her new discovery. Staring up at Alex, she said, “We need help, but in what form does your help come?”
“That depends on your plan,” Alex countered. “If it’s viable, you’ll have our resources. You witnessed our commitment to our plan, which is to neutralize Artifice, when our fleet destroyed the battleships it sent to eliminate your planet.” Alex had spoken this time, recognizing Gramab had realized that, for the most part, Julien’s questions originated from him.
Gramab acknowledged that the Omnians’ battle with the invading fleet had awed her. However, until now, she hadn’t been sure of the reason for their efforts. That the leader brought so few of his kind below and was accompanied by another race, told her that these were the potential allies that the Chistorlans had been hoping to acquire.
“We should speak privately, Alex Racine of the Omnians,” Gramab stated.
“I would like that,” Alex replied to the invitation, “but there are two things to be done first. I’d like an introduction to the two members of your culture who facilitated our meeting.”
Gramab approved of the request that Julien relayed for the leader. Credit to a Chistorlan female was important, and the alien leader desired to give that.
“This is Astronomy Scientist Lipsit doma Draga,” Gramab said, touching the scientist’s shoulder.
“Thank you for your clever efforts,” Alex replied gallantly, and Lipsit croaked her pleasure to Julien’s remark.
“With her was Observatory Head Miftra ona Grata,” Gramab added.
This was a tremendous moment of pride for Miftra, and he hurried to Gramab’s side.
Alex sought a manner to thank the tiny male for his contributions. He wanted to convey to Chistorlan males that they had nothing to fear from the Omnians or the Toralians. He bent on one knee and extended his arm.
“This is the manner in which Omnians greet one another,” Alex said. “They touch hands to communicate to one another that they are equal.”
Miftra heard the translation, but he was loath to approach the imposing alien leader that close. A gentle squeeze on his shoulder from Gramab reminded him that this was a historic first contact. He took tentative steps until he was close to Alex. The alien’s hand was many times larger than his own. It was held with the inner portion exposed. Gramab laid his hand over Alex’s, and a single alien digit closed gently on top. The pressure was released, and he heard from Julien, “Alex Racine thanks Observatory Head Miftra ona Grata for honoring him with his trust.”
The actions and words had their effect. Miftra’s fearful expression disappeared. He dipped his head, as he would to his monarch and resumed his place beside her.
Not to be left out of the bargain, Lipsit approached Alex, as he stood, and held out her arm. Alex smiled and, oh so carefully, shook her hand.
In Gramab’s mind, the pale Omnians were becoming less visually disagreeable with every passing moment. “You mentioned two conditions before we meet,” she reminded Alex.
“Yes, Monarch, we’re going to need better access than we’ve been offered,” Alex said. “Can you get us an entrance to your tunnels that our traveler can access?”
When Lipsit heard Julien speak, she updated Gramab on the Omnian ship she saw.
For the first time, Alex saw evidence of the monarch reverting to the role of a simple female. Her demeanor portrayed an apologetic expression, as he’d witnessed from Lipsit. However, the moment passed, and Gramab quickly resumed her mantle. She issued orders to a console operator.
The SADEs followed an operator to the console. He pulled up a diagram of the Chistorlans’ extensive network of tunnels. He rapidly explained the meaning of various aspects of the diagrams.
“We’re looking at hundreds of kilometers of tunnels, with about twelve percent of them offering maglev transport,” Julien explained to Alex.
“The dear sentients have been busy,” Miranda remarked.
The operator continued to detail the diagram as he slid to the left of the display. One wide tunnel ended at a pair of parallel, squiggly lines.
“There’s a tunnel that meets a natural cave mouth,” Julien remarked over his shoulder. “According to this male, the cave is quite wide, and it faces a major waterway. There is dry ground between the cave and the waterway, during this portion of the annual season.”
“Can you locate it, Julien?” Alex asked.
Julien slipped off the pack he’d carried. It contained emergency water and food rations for Alex, and his portable holo-vid. The holo-vid was the one device that had enabled many of Alex’s first contacts. Julien strapped the tool on his forearm, powered it up, and accessed the telemetry of Franz’s traveler, when it had descended to the planet’s surface.
When the holo-vid lit and displayed a broad expanse of green foliage, brown and gray escarpments, and waterways ranging in color from browns to blues, the Chistorlans croaked their surprise.
It’d been generations since Chistorlans had seen an aerial view of their planet, but they recognized the source of Julien’s display, nonetheless. Females and males crowded around the holo-vid. The males’ timidness momentarily disappeared, as they sought to get a closer view.
Miftra was caught on the outside of the throng. He was the observatory head, and yet, he was missing a critical moment related to his profession.
Miranda saw Miftra hopping on his short, but stout, legs, and she sought to help him by offering to lift him on her arm. Miftra hesitated, but his desire to see the display overcame his concerns, and he quickly took a seat on her forearm.
Chistorlan males gawked in awe, when they saw Miftra’s perch, and the tiny male swelled with pride. But better than the admiration of other males, Miftra had a perfect view of the holo-vid display. He watched Julien shift the imagery and work to match his display to the waterway’s formation on the console’s monitor.
Forgetting the perch’s precariousness, Miftra leaned forward for a better view. Miranda adjusted her arm position and grasped a piece of Miftra’s coveralls to pin him in place. Such was Miftra’s focus on Julien’s efforts that he didn’t notice.
Miftra desperately wanted one of the fantastical devices for the observatory, but he recognized that he had no idea how it was fed data. However, to him, the giant Omnians had become gifts that he could relish for the rest of his life.
Julien located the Chistorlans’ waterway. The diagram was an accurate representation of the planet’s geography. For the edification of the crowd, he overlaid the Chistorlan diagram on his aerial view, shifting position and expanding imagery until they matched. His efforts produced a smattering of croaks and slapping of hands on meaty thighs.
Julien swiveled his forearm close to Miftra. He signaled the Chistorlan diagram to drop off the image. Then, with his free hand, he reached into the display and rotated it slightly.
Miftra looked at Julien, who nodded his approval. Then the little male extended a single digit into the projection. When nothing happened, he moved it left to right, and the imagery moved with
it. Emboldened, he reached out with both hands and spread them aside within the display. Suddenly, he was looking at nothing but water. Intuiting the problem, he reversed his action, until his view was from high above.
Miftra continued to manipulate the imagery, searching across the planet’s surface for new uplift locations, examining waterways, and generally enjoying the moment. The monarch’s croak brought reality crashing in. Miftra withdrew his hands and offered his monarch an apologetic croak. He signaled to be set down, and Miranda obliged. Mortified, Miftra chose to hide behind Miranda’s substantial avatar, gripping a piece of her leg’s clothing.
The Omnians couldn’t help but laugh at Miftra’s exuberance that had carried him away, but they did so cautiously, lest it be misinterpreted. Even the Toralians, who recognized the burning desires of a true scientist, wheezed briefly at the poor male’s situation.
“We need to access this place,” Alex said, pointing to the holo-vid, which Julien had reset and now displayed the cave mouth. “Ships will land, and we’ll make some temporary accommodations for moving Omnians and Toralians around.”
On hearing the translation, years of cautiousness warned Gramab. Events were moving too fast for her, but she was determined to demonstrate the same level of commitment the Omnians already had. Her fervent wish was that she wasn’t opening her citizens up to the subtle encroachment of another race. Then again, her people had no weapons with which to repel invaders. It was too late to worry about that.
“Lipsit, lead them to the cave mouth,” Gramab ordered. “When Alex Racine of the Omnians is ready, bring Tittra ona Hagra and him to meet with me. And take our besotted observatory head with you. Miftra won’t be of much use to us for the foreseeable future.”
Miranda glanced behind her at Miftra, who still clutched her clothing. The little male opened his mouth, and his eyes widened.
An odd helmet with a small light appeared on Julien’s head, which shocked the Chistorlans and Taralum. However, Sargut and Suntred had seen Julien’s demonstration before.
“I give,” Alex said, eyeing the headpiece.
“It’s a cave spelunking helmet,” Julien replied.
Without access to the Freedom’s significant database, Alex had no idea what spelunking meant. In addition, he knew Julien was waiting for him to ask, and Alex had no intention of giving him the satisfaction.
Lipsit and Miftra accessed a car, and the Toralians climbed aboard Miranda’s arms. Julien led the entourage, guided by the Chistorlan data, while he whistled a lively tune.
Alex hurried to catch up with the entourage, which was leaving him behind. Part of Alex wanted to immerse himself in the Omnians’ losses and dwell on the pain, but his comrades were unwilling to allow him to do that. He acknowledged their efforts were taking the right course, but he felt he was betraying those he lost. One thing was certain, he would soon have an opportunity to connect to his partner, Renée, and she wouldn’t allow him to wallow in depression.
-14-
River Wash
Alex blinked, as the midday star blinded him. They’d exited a Chistorlan tunnel to enter a large, natural, cavernous opening. Inside, it was taller and wider than a Freedom’s bay, which meant it could easily accommodate a traveler. The light seeping into the tunnel helped Alex’s eyes adjust, but the glare of the star was fierce, when he left the cave’s shadow.
Miranda’s avatar carried the more powerful comm signal. She accessed a freighter’s sister and gleaned updated data on the fleet.
“Alex, the freighters have taken up positions over where we originally landed,” Miranda relayed. “They are preparing to undertake repairs on the fleet’s Tridents. Franz’s traveler is aboard Sugatar’s battleship. The travelers that were loaded with Freedom’s evacuees are en route to the city-ship. They’re expected to rendezvous within half a day. The fleet is escorting the Freedom on its return to this planet. Three freighters are sailing to the battle site. They will collect Trident parts and search for bodies within the wreckage.”
“Connect me to a freighter captain, Miranda,” Alex requested.
We’ll cart ourselves around? Tindleson mentally repeated in confusion.
Alex was happy to hear that Alphons had survived the battle. The New Terran had been with the fleet since it was assembled. Alphons was a Trident captain, when the fleet tracked down a Nua’ll sphere. It was the man’s dedication to duty and personal convictions that prevented him from following a foolish commodore, who sailed his ship and crew to their deaths.
Mickey was another one of Alex’s irrepressible friends. Despite the Omnians’ impediments and losses, they kept pushing toward the final goal, the safety of human worlds, and they prevented him from dwelling on the negative.
Alex closed the comm and glanced at Miranda, who had handled the link through the sisters to Mickey. She winked at him, and asked, “Who next?”
“Tatia, please,” Alex requested.
Alex could hear the sadness in her thought. It reminded him that he needed to do the same thing for her that Julien, Miranda, and Mickey were doing for him.
Alex sent.