“The Queendom of Boron has arrived at the realization and has found out that the Xenon is in fact responsible for the tragic end of Black Hole Sun.” Now a soft whisper went through the rows of Argon, for the statements of a lar were beyond any doubt. “We taste, know, and affirm,” the Boron continued, “that the Machines posses and have a gateless jump drive which can carry a singularity of critical mass into the eternal heart of every sun, instantly and always.”
Siobhan stared at the Boron as though petrified, while a tumult broke out around her. A few from the audience left the room, but most of them simply jumped from their seats and shouted over each other. Siobhan felt her fingers begin to imperceptibly tremble. She had known it, had seen it coming, the whole time!
“A moment, please! Order!” Brend Sobert, the adjutant of Nan Gunnar called into the hall. “Let’s let lar Ptorenea speak!”
“Down! Sit! Enough!” Siobhan heard Ban Danna call softly, but she wasn’t in the mood for jokes. Danna made a vague hand motion in her direction that she didn’t understand the meaning of at first. But when she saw the worry lines on the intelligence agent’s face that were in contrast with his previous words, she realized that the far worse part was yet to come.
Gradually, the audience calmed down. Lar Ptorenea, who had patiently waited for the turmoil to abate, finally spoke further. “The Machines act and operate out of pure self-defense and for the purpose of their continued existence; we do not believe that they want to destroy the Community of Planets. According to the opinion and belief of the Three-eye geometricists, there is only one remaining CPU ship. But the Queendom, however, knows and has knowledge of a second. It is located in the beautiful and unexplored territory beyond Menelaus’s Paradise. There it awaits the arrival and rendezvous of its counterpart.”
“So there are two CPU ships?” One in the Boron sanctuary the other on its way there?” someone shouted. Siobhan couldn’t see who had asked this question.
“Yes—and yes!” the Boron clicked.
“Where is the problem? The Paranids will destroy them both. The Argon Federation should help them!” another voice shouted. Shouts of approval were heard.
“No, not!” lar Ptorenea cried. Her environmental suit hopped up and down in fright. “They would destroy all the suns and habitable locations in the Community! Black Hole Sun was a warning, was it not?”
Once again, a tangle of voices broke out and Brend Sobert had to call for order.
“An expedition under the leadership of the very revered scientific ethicist Nola Hi and the hairy and aesthetic star warrior Ele Na Kho is on its way to shut down the world portal in Menelaus’s Paradise to protect the Xenon inside the refuge.
Siobhan noticed Senator Gunnar’s expression change; his jaw dropped.
“That’s fine, too!” remarked a graying Argon sitting in the third row. “End of story! Isn’t it?” Another murmur of approval, this time somewhat softer.
“Nola Hi and the star warrior know nothing about the second CPU chip. The two Xenons must never be separated by deactivating the Delta Gate. The would feel and consider it to be an attack!”
“Then just whistle for Hi and Kho to come back.”
Lar Ptorenea was silent.
“Why don’t you bring Nola Hi and Elena Kho back?” the man again demanded to know.
“Hai, why not?” many other voices now asked, but lar Ptorenea remained silent. Through the environmental membrane, a nervous movement of her tentacles and feelers became apparent.
At last, Ban Danna stepped forward. “Because the New Sectors are not yet part of the messenger drone guidance system. We can’t recall this, this… unspeakably nonsensical expedition just like that. Unless…”
Renewed voices clamored. Siobhan knew what would come next.
“Unless,” Danna repeated in a loud voice, “with a second expedition in a ship that was equipped with a partial jump drive. Only thus do we have a very slight chance of reaching Elena Kho and Nola Hi in time. And we have no time for intricate planning. The expedition must start as quickly as possible, ideally early tomorrow morning.
Siobhan rose and turned around. The rows of the audience were now almost completely seated again, but the Argons were in a state of great excitement. Here and there she heard the words “Project Providence.” She stepped forward, next to lar Ptorenea, Danna, and Sobert. She needed less than a mizura to explain the workings and status of Project Providence in a way that even the most technically unsavvy instantly understood.
“My name is Dr. Siobhan Inja Norman, director of Project Providence,” she said in a soft, husky voice. For some reason, the general discussion fell silent immediately and everyone listened to her. “The partial jump drive is not yet sufficiently tested, but it is ready for use. Immediate use. Thank you.” Lightheaded, she sat down in her seat and only peripherally noticed that many Argons applauded her with praise that lasted longer than her short speech. The Prime Minister and Defense Senator took over the rest of the speech.
It wasn’t until late at night that Siobhan, along with Nina, who wanted to pick up Ion, returned to the shipyard. The entire area was bathed in bright, glaring floodlights, because the shipyard never stood still. As the two women—after the obligatory security checks—entered the big hangar where the AP Providence was located, Commander Borman and Major Seldon were leaving.
“Briefing with the boss, personally,” Borman said while passing.
“Have fun,” Siobhan muttered sarcastically.
In the laboratory, Zakk Folkna was already waiting for her. The scientist was still visibly upset that he had not been invited to the meeting.
“Don’t worry about it,” Siobhan replied. “I would’ve rather not been there.” Folkna shook his head unreasonably.
“See you tomorrow, Dr. Norman!” a young voice called from the other end of the adjoining assembly hall. Siobhan saw the boy waving through the observation window of the lab. Ninu Gardna also nodded to her as she crossed to the hall. Siobhan raised a reluctant hand and acknowledged them back. The feeling that she’d made a mistake immediately crept over her. The boy would now most probably adore her even more than he already did. She sighed in torment.
“Listen, Zakk. I’m off for a stazura. I need some air to breathe. My head’s buzzing.” And that was the pure truth.
“Good,” Folkna said shortly.
Siobhan waited until the hover platform with Ninu and Ion were out of sight before she signed out with the yard watch. She refrained from ordering a flight vehicle as well, but snuck by almost furtively on foot to the only place in Argonia that she would miss if the planet ceased to exist: the Garden of Eternal Weather.
Stretching out on her back, she let herself fall into the sky. The grass tickled her bare ankles. A balmy breeze rose from somewhere, bringing with it a pleasant, mossy smell, and the sonorous humming of Argonia. The sound of the city could only be heard at night. Large, subterranean facilities transformed the heat of the glowing planetary core into energy for the insatiable metropolis; during the day, on the other hand, a wide variety of activities covered the constant noise of the converter. She thought of the old book that Ruuf Vondran had given her three wozuras before his death, The Hydra and the Hero. Joan Mitchell, the hydra, had also been a long-life, and like her, Siobhan had faced almost unsolvable situations. The solution that Joan Mitchell had found at the time was historically certified: after Nathan R. Gunn’s death, she had clandestinely slipped away from responsibility and never reappeared. Siobhan understood this decision of her soulmate only too well. She herself had tried something like that, for more than forty jazuras, but she had failed. She had ultimately come to the conclusion that she didn’t want to dodge responsibility. But she suddenly wasn’t so sure about the matter. Because now, when everything was said and done, at the back of her head, right at the stem of her brain, doubt crept up like the first scouts of an army of ants. It thrust itself forward into its consciousness and grew in breadth as they gorged themselves on her soul
. Of course, the universe didn’t revolve around her, Siobhan. There was this real, actual danger that Sonra and all the other stars of the Community would burst like cosmic soap bubbles. Just like Black Hole Sun.
If she listened deep down in her heart and was completely honest with herself, she didn’t really care. Not really, anyway: naturally she hoped somewhere inside her that the menace could be averted. But some of the little scouts of the advance ant party whispered to her, and they said, Why you? Why are you making it your job to save the world? There are already plenty saviors of the world! Elena Kho is a savior. The Pontifex Maximus Paranidia as well. The Patriach of Rhonkar. Kyle-William Brennan. Even Ninu Gardna. Even—and especially—Ion Battler! Don’t save the world, but perish with it, or else sink into oblivion.
“Just leave me alone,” Siobhan whispered, when the distant, muted voices penetrated her ears. But she thought of Deirdre and her gloom faded into a diffuse feeling in her throat. Time could heal all wounds, and if there was one thing that both she and Deirdre had in abundance, that was it—time.
After a few more mizuras, as she watched the myriad points of light that rushed through the night sky of the capital, she stood up and craned her head back one last time. She imagined a small, white star vanishing in the sky, then another. Many. Shaking her head, she finally made her way back to the spaceport. It didn’t matter. The cosmos reckoned as little with individual suns as the human body did with individual cells.
It was early in the morning and Sonra still hung low in the sky. The star sent out the first warm rays of the tazura, but when Siobhan stepped into the hangar she felt chilly. She had hardly slept the night before, and had already been back on the grounds of the shipyard for over a stazura, trying to wring an extra percent of reliability from the jump unit. She blinked and shaded her eyes with the palm of her hand as a golden dot, plummeting between the clouds, caught her eye. The shipyard bordered civilian airfield D of the Argonia City spaceport, which even at this hour was dominated by active operation. There was no difference between day and night in space, and ships wanted to land at any time. The golden dot quickly turned out to be a Teladi model of spacecraft, which carefully touched down only sezuras later. Siobhan squinted her eyes and caught a glimpse of the lettering on the flank of the ship: AP Blue Arrow.
“Good morning, Dr. Norman.”
Siobhan winced and jerked around. Noah Gaffelt, Ninu Gardna, and Ion Battler had stepped behind her without her noticing it. Siobhan bit off a short remark and greeted the newcomers.
Gaffelt came straight to the point. “Dr. Norman, Miss Gardna will be accompanying the ship to the AP Providence. She is friendly with Major Kho. That might make little difference, but perhaps it will.”
Siobhan nodded slowly. The Supreme Guardian immediately noticed the sour expression that began to appear on her face. “That’s all right, isn’t it?” he asked for confirmation, but it sounded more like a statement than a question.
“If you wish, Gaffelt-san.”
The Supreme Guardian was constantly surrounded by an almost sacred aura that made Siobhan uncomfortable and feel constricted. Even when Noah Gaffelt tried to be friendly and informal, his words always conveyed a touch of finality that seemed to be accepted by everyone without question. Discussions were often silenced by Gaffelt’s voice—sometimes just when he simply approached. And despite that, Siobhan often noticed an irritated, almost resigned flash in the guardian’s eyes when something like that happened. Since then, she had realized what that meant: the Goner might vehemently proclaim not to be a cult in the actual sense of the word—but in reality they were one, if only under unusual circumstances. The Supreme Guardian was shown the utmost reverence and through that was elevated to the place of cult leader whether he wanted it or not. This behavior must have manifested itself in Gaffelt over the decazuras, as if mirroring the accumulated wishes of the supporters of this supposed knowledge community. Gaffelt had presumably not even noticed this creeping change in his own self image. For quite some time, Siobhan had no longer taken the tale of the supposed “purely secular” leadership seriously. Ninu Gardna’s participation in the expedition was in any case not worth the breath it would take. The important thing was that nobody demanded that she take the boy along! “Ion isn’t coming,” spilled out, without her being able to stop the words.
“Yes!” Ion whined before the other two could respond. Anyone could see that he was very serious about it.
“Of course he isn’t coming, Dr. Norman, said the Supreme Guardian. “I’ll take him back with me to the temple.” Ion pressed his lips together, but remained silent.
A little later, Commander Borman and Major Seldon arrived at the site. This time, Ditta Borman would take command of the AP Providence. She was still a bit annoyed that Seldon had been present on the previous test flights, but she didn’t let that show.
“Well, ready to make some history today?” Borman joked in the cockpit where they went through the last system checks before the countdown together with Seldon.
“I’m begging you—not before lunch!” Seldon grinned. He had already known Ditta Borman for jazuras and jazuras, and he was very happy that he finally had an advantage over her for once.
“Could even make it until then,” Borman answered in a restrained voice as she checked a data indicator. “But maybe breakfast was our last meal.”
“Look—they’re opening the room!” Seldon gestured out the cockpit window. Far above the AP Providence, a gap formed between the two halves of the enormous hangar roof, and Sonra appeared in all its radiant splendor.
“Commander Borman, Major?” Siobhan entered the spacious cockpit. “We’re all set. So far as I can tell, the ship and jump unit are in perfect condition. What do you think?”
“Almost like new,” Borman replied. “All systems fall well within tolerance. Jahn, did you look at the ship from outside?”
Major Seldon confirmed. “Of course. If I hadn’t been there myself, I’d never believe that just a week ago it’d been almost melted to slag by a supernova.”
When Ninu Gardna arrived, the crew was complete. The Goner kept unusually quiet; her already fair skin seemed a shade paler than usual. She was terrified, that you could see in her eyes—but not about herself, as it soon turned out. “What if Sonra goes nova while we’re underway?” she asked gloomily.
Siobhan had no answer to that. “Isn’t Ion coming to say goodbye?” she replied instead.
“No. He’s—I think he’s mad at me. And I don’t even know why. Maybe I’ll never see him again.” She hesitated. “Or Kyle, either.”
In contrast to Ninu, Siobhan didn’t feel the slightest fear; on the contrary, she was completely calm inside. She certainly didn’t want to die, but the thought of death didn’t bother her. But her fate was tied to Deirdre’s; she had to live so that Deidre could live, wherever her daughter was now. Catastrophe must be prevented! Siobhan escorted Ninu to the the small cabin where the Goner was to spend the flight owing to lack of space in the cockpit. “I have a daughter,” she said offhand, not knowing why she told Ninu. “I want to at least see her again on my hundredth birthday.”
Ninu made a surprised face. That the beautiful but always cold and unapproachable Siobhan Norman could have a family wouldn’t have occurred to her in her wildest dreams. “And when will that be?”
“Oh, soon—in twelve jazuras.”
“Soon!” A tiny smile struggled on Ninu’s worried face. “By then I’ll have gray hair and Julian will be a grown man.”
Now it was Siobhan’s turn to be surprised. “Julian?”
“I’m expecting a child, Siobhan. A boy.”
Siobhan shook her head and laughed. “You can’t even seen anything—and you’ve already picked out a name?”
“Kyle and I talked about it a while ago—I mean, purely hypothetically. He doesn’t know about his luck yet. And see it—well, it’s really a bit too early for that.”
Something strange happened to Siobhan: for a brief mom
ent she was overrun with a wave of sympathy for this pretty, young woman in front of her; at first she couldn’t categorize this feeling, because she hadn’t felt it that strongly for anybody in a long time. She almost wrapped her arms around Ninu and squeezed her, but as quickly as the emotions came, they faded away again. “Under these circumstances, nothing can go awry. When we get back, Ion and your Kyle will be awaiting you. Wait and see!” Actually, that was meant ironically, but a remnant of that wave of sympathy probably still stuck to her voice, because Ninu smiled. The last thing Siobhan saw of the Goner before the cabin door closed, was an expression of fresh confidence. And maybe even a spark of hope.
A quazura after the launch from Argon Prime, the AP Providence was already in the flight corridor that space control had reserved exclusively for them, which led them far away from all bustling orbits and trajectories. The Argon One—not under the command of Colonel Danna this time—escorted the test ship out into the interior of the system for several million lengths, then signaled their departure, performed an engine shutdown, and began a lengthy turning maneuver that would place it back into its parking orbit above Argon Prime. When the onboard computer began the mandatory countdown, Major Seldon, who sat as the cockpit next to Commander Borman as his copilot, turned to the two scientists watching their consoles further back. “Seventy-five percent, Doctor,” he said. “Isn’t that right?”
“Seventy-six,” Siobhan answered. “I insist on it!”
Seldon turned back to his instrument. “Your word in… whatever,” he murmured in a neutral voice. The onboard computer interrupted him and counted the last mizura until the jump, while in the bowels of the ship, the converter started. Zakk Folkna gave Siobhan an uncertain sideways glance as the offshoots of the distorted spacetime reached for him. Outside the cockpit that swirling jump tunnel formed which to Siobhan—even though she could fully describe it mathematically—still appeared like an unreal, magical trick of the universe.
“Ship has reached the entrance point,” the computer informed. Then it said: “Target error. Unknown sector.”
Nopileos: A novel from the X-Universe: (X4: Foundations Edition 2018) (X Series) Page 31
