Nopileos: A novel from the X-Universe: (X4: Foundations Edition 2018) (X Series)

by Helge T. Kautz

  A short time later, the animal was removed and hung up; the two Split left the hut and departed on the other side. Nopileos heard them chat between themselves for a while, which was not, in his opinion, typical for Split. The warrior folk of the long lost planet Hodie were not known in the Community for their marked communicativeness! The voices slowly softened and finally grew silent. Nopileos, much bolder than in any stazura before, didn’t wait too long this time before venturing from his hiding place to look around. On the countertop, a few newly added spots glistened wet and fresh; in addition, the two Split had pushed the meat strips forward on the long threads and added the fresh meat on the end. Nopileos guessed that they had removed some already dried strips from the front and taken them away. Everything pretty well thought through and effective. It was a curious feeling to observe the Split, who were generally only known as cold-hearted warriors who despised all other members of the Community, in trivial—if not exactly civilized—everyday life.

  “Tsshh!” Nopileos said as his stomach interrupted his reflections. The strung-up supplies here looked more appetizing from sezura to sezura, almost like deliciously prepared ngusi salamander. It required conscious effort to dispel these thoughts. The Split might safely eat animal protein from this planet; the obvious guess was that much of the local flora and fauna had been released into the wild by themselves over the course of countless decazuras. But a Teladi shouldn’t eat anything if he wanted to avoid problems. This consideration brought him crashing back to his primary goal: he had to find the Nyana’s Fortune, and very soon! He could endure a total of two or three wozuras without food before worse symptoms than a stomach growl set in. And that marked out the time frame that remained to him.

  Nopileos stepped out into the clearing. Was he wrong or was it getting dark again? His sense of time had almost completely left him since the moment he collided with Cho’s interceptor some tazuras ago. He listened to the still rain-fresh forest, but could hear nothing. No voices, no animals, hardly any cracking or wind sounds. As he began to step slowly and carefully along the path, darkness broke as quickly as usual across the Nif-Nach forest. His sensitive Teladi eyes were able to follow the path without difficulty despite the absence of the moons, and he continued on straight for mizuras, toward the interior of the island.

  Soon the path changed. At first it widened until it finally offered four or five times as much space as at the beginning. The next thing that changed was the texture of the ground: where it had hitherto consisted of only hard-packed clay, Nopileos’s bare, clawed feet felt only smooth stone that stretched the entire length of the path. Eventually, the astonished saurian offspring reached a spot where carved palisades grew in the air from of both sides of the path. Someone had erected tree trunks higher than a Teladi on both sides of the path, and used them to mark off the path from the forest. All this no longer seemed makeshift at all; the Split had settled here, as it seemed, permanently and domestically. Did their Patriarch know about this? Certainly not!

  The Teladi walked along the path in amazement and unselfconsciously, as though he had completely forgotten by whom it had been laid. Only when the path widened again and the palisades on both sides diverged did he realized his mistake. The moment the trail had turned into a paved road, he should have struck for the protective cover of the forest undergrowth. Did he just hear a rustle? No, that must’ve been a figment of his overstretched imagination! He turned around to return to the path and continue his march on the other side of the palisade fence.

  But now a faint gleam of light fell over what he recognized in disbelief as a small village. Slowly, almost hesitantly, two of the three moons rose as full disks across the horizon of distant treetops.

  In the middle of the gesture, Nopileos roared “Iaaaachhhhh!” as he was struck painfully in the throat by a long, wooden stick. He fell backwards on the ground and looked up hastily.

  “Khiu ch’t, t’Telaadii! Wyu t’Rhonkar!” hissed a giant Split through his lips, which were pressed into a thin line. He the pointed end of a long, wooden spear under Nopileos’s noise and looked round triumphantly. He was not alone. All around the Teladi who was laying on the ground and panting in fear, stood some twenty Split of every gender, height, and age. Some also wore spears or other primitive weapons, which were leveled at Nopileos. Others held nothing in their hands, but they all had one thing in common: they were grinning.

  Chapter 9

  The Federation of the Argon is doubtless one of the greatest democracies that ever was—but it is not complete! Because only through complementarity can a true Community of Planets arise. It is precisely that which the Free League contributes to the Federation!

  Testimonials 146:17, Christiane Hatikvah,

  Book of Truth

  The two tazuras’ flight time between sector Seizewell and Ringo Moon seemed bearable to Elena. Even if she had been more or less outwitted by Borons and Teladi, she intended to do her job as well as she could manage, because Nopileos’s life might depend on it. She would need a lot of information for that. She therefore spent the greater part of her flight time by combing through the databanks of the AP Nikkonofune’s ship computer. Which, however, yielded far less than she would have liked. Namely, the data on the Split and it’s jungle planet Nif-Nakh was rather diffuse: rich in platitudes and poor on details. Ferd Harling would certainly be able to contribute more useful information. Ferd, who had marketed detailed star charts from Earth and from which had brought them both an inconsiderable fortune, was an infobroker with his own company. They met some time ago at a Teladi trading station. Elena, who at that time was not able to divulge her origin of Earth, had quickly come to appreciate the Argon. Sure, he was curious: that was his job! But he knew exactly when he needed to postpone the questions until later.

  Ringo Moon was an earthlike world that, as one of four habitable satellites, orbited a large, Neptune-like gas planet that radiated more heat than it received from its sun. The AP Nikkonofune was headed into a high orbit around this gas giant, named Sgt. Pepper. Niji slowly adjusted the ship’s orbit to the movement of the advancing moon, while deep down, blue swathes of gas formed broad spiral patterns that were barely distinguishable against the dark blue background of the giant planet. Elena watched the sea of gas for a moment, fascinated, until the large planet gradually wandered out of sight and disappeared behind the bulky stern of her ship. Instead, another celestial body approached now, its appearance a little reminiscent of the view of Earth from orbit; but the clear, cyan atmosphere was too glaring to sustain that illusion for long.

  “Landing on Ringo Moon is in 90 sezuras. Target port is Gorki Range. Should I request supplies and fuel?”

  Elena started from her thoughts. Landing in less than a mizura? She glanced over the instruments. In fact, the AP Nikkonofune was just leaving behind the troposphere of the celestial body and was already in the final stage of the approach for landing.

  “Thanks, Niji. Yes, please top up the supplies and resources,” she finally replied.

  “I must point out that the prices of the Gorki Range Spaceport are 34 percent higher than the average trade at other systems.”

  “Cutthroats, these Ringos!” Elena grinned, but of course she wasn’t serious. The system of the four worlds was so far away from the usual trade routes that everything that could not be produced on its own had to be imported at high prices. Some also rumored that the Teladi merchant fleet deliberately supplied certain planetary systems less often in order to obtain higher prices! Elena trusted that the profit-hungry trade saurians would do just such a thing. “It’s all right, Niji,” she said. “We can afford it.” Her lips twisted in an ironic smile. The high prices would ultimately fall back on the Teladi Company, which was contributing to half of her expenses!

  A short time later, the AP Nikkonofune touched down and—after a rather relaxed and informal customs check—Elena entered the floor of Ring’s Moon. Ferd Harling, tall and slender, welcomed her with a warm hug in the arrive area of the l
anding field, which was not covered in the warm season and offered a view of the sky. Sgt. Pepper was pale blue and vast in the sky; for Elena, who had only once before been on Ringo Moon, it was still an overwhelming sight. Ferd was in high spirits and in an excellent mood, but that wasn’t surprising. One would be completely justified in describing Ferd as good-natured. While he flew Elena in the aircar to his small ranch in the nearby highlands, he reported the current sales figures of the star charts and the—for the Teladi—still extremely valuable position of Ianamus Zura. On the other hand, he also unselfconsciously sprinkled in personal matters liberally: he and Sanja had extended their marriage contract for the third time two wozuras ago. His son Erki had taken this as an opportunity to ask him for permission to likewise enter into a marriage contract with his girlfriend Mona. “I really tried to talk him out of that. But Erki can be pretty wrong-headed sometimes,” Ferd said. Elena, who remembered Erki as a little, smart-alecky troublemaker, had no doubt about that.

  “Ferd, we all did stupid things at that age. And a marriage contract isn’t forever,” she replied diplomatically.

  Ferd rocked his head doubtfully as he pulled the flight yolk toward him slightly. The flying car jumped into the middle of the gigantic disk of Sgt. Pepper, which hung just above the horizon. Under the car, the first foothills of a volcanic promontory swept by. Ferd’s estate was in a verdant valley surrounded by rugged rock formations, and was bordered by only two neighboring properties.

  “Elena,” Ferd said, “I could only extract a little information from the nebulous hints of the CEO and your message. You need a fast ship, and a reliable crew, that much I know. Experience in handling Split and Paranids is desired. I’ve allowed myself to do a little preliminary work, but we have to separate a bit of chaff from the wheat, I’m afraid. Unfortunately, the good Melissa Banks is currently unavailable; she would really have been my first choice.”

  “Ferd, you can’t forget that I’m still a newcomer. Who is Melissa Banks?”

  “Oh! Of course. Please excuse me! I keep forgetting again. You seem as confident as though you knew nothing but the Community.” The broker modeled an artificially contrite face.

  Elena laughed. She put her hand on Ferd’s arm. “Don’t worry about it, Ferd. The Earth is very far, but that doesn’t make it just a province. You also learn a certain amount of confidence there…”

  Ferd nodded, grinning. “Earth. Sure.” Now on the horizon the steep mountain flank appeared behind which, as Elena knew, Ferd’s range lay. In a few moments, the wide, friendly valley would open up before them. “So, Banks jumps with the Split like no one else, she even mastered their sign language. Even the Teladi eat out of her hand. And two jazuras ago, she disproved Lord Captain Nidmankeltett’s fourth axiom. The Pontifex immediately ordered the poor guy back to Paranid Prime. It’s a shame that she can’t be gotten a hold of at the moment. But don’t worry, we’ll still find a fitting and seasoned crew.”

  Elena nodded. “That I’m sure of. Are you actually privy to exactly what that is, Ferd?”

  The infobroker frowned and threw a glance at Elena with a raised eyebrow as he slowly drifted the aircar out of the traffic lane. “Of course I had to try to find out on my own initiative. I found out a considerable amount, but it’s possible I’ve missed a few details.”

  “Well, it’s about a mission to the planet Nif-Nakh. A more or less unofficial one,” Elena said.

  Ferd glanced at her from the side. “That is the government planet of the Split,” he stated matter-of-factly. She nodded. “Hm. Elena, it’s almost impossible to land unnoticed on a Split planet with a spaceship. Especially if it’s the seat of the Patriarch.”

  “I know,” she replied. “That’s why I want to split the mission into two parts: one official, and one less official.”

  Ferd lowered the car gently down onto the roof of his bungalow. “And have you already worked out what the official part should look like?”

  Elena stripped off her shoulder belts. “I haven’t the faintest idea. That’s the entire point!” she replied. Ferd waited for her to get out of the hovering car and come around to him.

  “I might have ideas for that,” he said. “But let me research a couple of things real fast. Take a look around in the meantime!” With these words, he disappeared into the house without waiting for Elena’s answer.

  Nearly an inzura passed, during which Ferd didn’t show himself; Finally, Elena’s patience came to an end. She followed Ferd into the house and found the infobroker in his study, brooding over data screens.

  “Ferd?”

  He looked up. His brow was creased deeply in concentration and he looked at her with narrowed eyes. “Nif-Nakh, you said, Elena?” Elena nodded.

  “This is a very unfavorable time. Something is brewing there.” He indicated the video field. “It says here that the Patriarch of Chin is concentrating his naval units. The message is—”

  “—nine mizuras old,” Elena finished his sentence. She also read the message underneath, which had come in eight mizuras ago. “Paranid Prime is also assembling units. I didn’t realize Somancklitansvt would get started so quickly.”

  “You know why they are doing this, Elena?”

  She nodded. “Geometric expediency in the context of collective salvation. Does that tell you anything, Ferd?”

  “That is the title of the 46th Extra-Session Meeting of the ICSCS on Hewa. Though I haven’t viewed the minutes yet.”

  Elena recounted for the infobroker in quick strokes about the planned extermination campaign against the Xenon under the management of the Paranid.

  “Can you postpone your mission, Elena? Let’s say for three mazuras? By then the situation will calm down again. Right?”

  Elena shook her head violently; her half-length, black hair flew around her. “Absolutely not! There is a direct connection between the mobilizations and my mission.”

  Ferd looked at Elena for sezuras with a wrinkled nose and the corners of his mouth pressed unhappily. He scratched his temple with a crooked index finger. “Listen, I’m no strategist. But isn’t that a governmental matter?”

  “Yes and no,” Elena sighed after a while, then clarified the tricky situation to the infobroker, including the important details from the conversation with the CEO and Bala Gi.

  Stazuras later, Ferd’s wife Sanja arrived home in her glider. Everyone on Ringo moon had their own aircar, even Erki. Elena was happy about that, because it made it possible for Erki to be out of the house for practically the entire tazura, so she didn’t have to constantly be bothered by him. The only effective way to silence Erki without using harsh words was to convince him to take his guitar and perform. That was, however, an excellent alternative. As unbearable as the adolescent might be, he had mastered his instrument with a virtuosity even in his sleep, that forgave all his other little quibbles.

  Ferd pored through electronic archives and journals for half a day, and occasionally throwing out fragments of sentences into the room that Elena found difficult to arrange.

  She on the other hand had scoured through the comprehensive databanks for detailed information on Nif-Nakh and finally found it. After some time, the Argon infobroker then stumbled upon an old news message from the recent Xenon Conflict that made him curious.

  “Have you ever been on Nif-Nakh, Elena?” he asked in surprise, looking up from his data projection.

  Elena nodded. “Yes. I accompanied a diplomatic delegation from the Argon government. But the Patriarch has no sense for diplomacy.” She sadly looked to the side. “Two Argons lost their lives, but we were able to free all the others and escape from Nif-Nakh.”

  “To ensure the escape of the group, Agent Ban Danna took the pregnant wife of the Patriarch, Ghinn t’Whht, as a hostage,” Ferd quoted. “The Split woman was taken into protective custody by the military intelligence service and is awaiting a mutually agreed upon prisoner exchange.”

  Elena frowned thoughtfully. “This information should actually be class
ified.”

  “And it is,” Ferd said simply. Elena looked at him in amazement, but he didn’t elaborate. Instead, he leaned back in his chair. “Precisely that,” he said, and switched off the data terminal, whose video projection disappeared. “That is exactly what I was looking for.”

  Elena’s expression was probably a giant question mark, because the Argon laughed softly. “This Split, Ghinn t—however you say it—will be your official reason to visit Nif-Nakh again!”

  In the following stazuras, Elena and Ferd jointly devised a plan that, after reaching the jungle planet, allowed sending out a small squad, unnoticed, to search the jungle for the crashed ship. Of course, the undertaking was not only daring, but also hard to plan in advance. Nif-Nakh was over fifty percent covered by forests; where should one start the search, and what chances would a tiny, secretly operating squad have, and to make matters worse, while also operating under a limited window of time? But the uncertainties proved to be more predictable under closer inspection. After all, there was detailed information on the position and speed of the Nyana’s Fortune at the moment of collision, which the plummeting ship had transmitted to the CEO in her last messenger drone.

  Late in the morning on the next tazura, Elena, Ferd, Sanja, Erki, and his girlfriend Mona were sitting on the spacious garden terrace of the ranch at the overhanging, round table, and ate together. Elena and Ferd occasionally exchanged cryptic sentence fragments that the family members didn’t understand, but of course one was used to similar things from Ferd and his business partners.