Exodus, p.3
Exodus, page 3
Makaio-Yalbo extended his own hand, holding it vertical so their neural induction pads could touch to exchange the traditional self-perceptual greeting directly between their minds. He received a brief flash of sensation, as if his body had suddenly dried in a tingling wind, while he effused a soothing warmth. Outside the induction pad, his hand experienced the coolness of Olomo’s fingers. Heresy citizens had a low body temperature, necessary to stop the large brains inside their inflated skulls from overheating.
Olomo’s four eyes blinked simultaneously. “Fire and ice,” he said equably. “A fitting conjunction.”
Makaio-Yalbo inclined his head as much as his bloodstone-shrouded neck would allow. “We represent balance in a discordant universe.”
“Of course. Please.” Olomo gestured with an upper and lower arm, welcoming them into the big hemispherical cabin. It was a garden modeled in ancient Hellenic style, ringed by tall palms, while stone troughs held a multitude of lavish ferns. Big colorful fish slipped through the water in a number of pools. Makaio-Yalbo could hear the distinct sounds of bees somewhere. It made sense; there were enough bright flowers dripping from extensive vine webs to give the air a sweet tang.
Makaio-Yalbo’s rider personality analyzed it all dispassionately, aware how much his usual self would be admiring such an extravagance.
“You are very gracious, agreeing to accept my invitation,” Olomo said as they sat on a bench that was covered in a thick layer of emerald-and-white moss.
“I am privileged to receive such a request. And I confess to curiosity.”
“I apologize for naming such an obscure location, but there are certain individuals I do not wish to notice our partnership.”
“I believe most of my contemporaries amid the Crown Dominion are aware that the Heresy and Wynid regard each other favorably.”
“Yes. However, there are specifics involved here that are best avoided. I wish to emphasize the importance of this particular topic.”
Despite the rider balancing his thoughts, Makaio-Yalbo was suddenly very interested what the meeting was about. For an archon of Olomo’s stature, this was the equivalent of screaming: Help. “If there’s any assistance we can quietly offer the Heresy, I will be more than willing to consider it.”
“There is an issue that would be detrimental to both our dominions which has come to our attention.”
“I’m listening.”
“The Heresy has always been intrigued by the formation of the HeSea. A helium macroplanet is a rare entity, especially in the Centauri Cluster—and thus presumably the rest of the galaxy. That one exists and then somehow goes nova is extraordinary. In fact, unbelievable. Which is why we are pleased you granted our research teams access. For which I once again thank you for your assistance.”
“Not at all. The Crown Dominion shares the Heresy’s interest. It is our long-held belief that the nova was not a natural astronomical event.”
“Quite. Those who fought in the Malakbel Formation War against the Pouli are believed to have developed strangelets. Such a thing could conceivably trigger a gas macroplanet nova. The Heresy would be interested to know if the theory is true, and if there are any strangelets still in existence.”
“As would the Crown Dominion. Did your researchers find evidence of this?”
“No.”
“Ah.”
“However, one of our ships on a long-range flight around the periphery of the Pillar of Zeus did discover evidence of even earlier Elohim activities.”
“Such as?”
“Planetary engineering.”
“The Elohim created every Eden world in the Centauri Cluster,” Makaio-Yalbo said. “There are millions of them. They are the bounty of our civilization, and we are eternally grateful to the Elohim for their gift. Planetary engineering is hardly uncommon.”
“I will be more specific. In order for the Elohim to create multiple habitable planets in the Cluster’s star systems, the planets have to orbit in the life band: a specific zone where the star’s output sustains terrestrial life, neither too hot nor too cold. This was not the case when the Elohim arose and began their great work of the Dawn Era; planets do not naturally align themselves so conveniently for terrestrial biology. So the Elohim used their Archimedes Engines to move our worlds into place so they could terraform them.”
“Are you saying the Elohim are creating a new habitable system in the Poseidon Nebula? I thought that era was well and truly over.”
“Not a new one, no; we believe this particular activity dates back to the Remnant Era. Our research ship observed and analyzed an anomalous pattern within the gas and dust of the Poseidon Nebula. I say pattern, but what it actually found was a line of distortion. A track through the clouds, if you like, caused by a planet-sized object flying through it. This track was faint and broken in many places, but its existence is incontrovertible. The ship followed the course, and that’s where things got interesting.”
“How so?”
“The planet is a gas giant. As is the ancient right of discovery, we named it Dolod. Its track was aligned on JK67b.”
Makaio-Yalbo’s rider permitted him to raise an eyebrow at the rim of his bloodstone. “That’s where the Gomatu Celestials are building their megastructure, a Dyson sphere, is it not?”
“Indeed it is. Which would make sense as a destination for Dolod. They need all the mass they can acquire to construct such an artifact. Perhaps the Elohim agreed to help. Who knows? However, seven thousand years ago, Dolod passed close to one of the brown dwarf stars skirting the Pillar of Zeus, and its Archimedes Engine performed a significant course alteration.”
“What kind of course alteration?” Makaio-Yalbo asked wearily.
“It is now on its way into the Kelowan system. And given Kelowan is the capital of the Crown Dominion, I thought you might like to know.”
* * *
—
Finn made an involuntary gurgling sound as his pendulum motion gradually decreased. Despite the freezing air, every working muscle was tensed up, braced for another agonizing blow. Nothing happened for several seconds, and he let out a semi-hysterical guffaw. “Status?” he gasped.
“Situation uncertain,” the rescue module manager replied.
Finn looked up past his feet. The chute lines threaded their tangled way into the canopy of branches above. Relentless flashes of the orange strobe revealed folds of the chute snagged across several branches. He tipped his head back. The ground was about three meters below him: a thin layer of snow lay over flinty soil and scabby tufts of grass. If he fell now, his skull would probably crack open when he hit.
The sight made him hurriedly check the chute again. It seemed to be stuck fast in the tree.
“Are the chute lines extendable? Can you lower me down?”
“Negative. But I can activate my crash beacon.” The CI sounded hopeful.
“No. Do not activate crash beacon.” The last thing he needed was Liliana’s goons flying back to search for him. Maybe they’re already coming? The pilot must have seen that the rescue module had launched.
“Confirmed.”
“Okay. Er…” He took another look round. Panic, like the cold, was starting to grip him. “Do you have any manipulator arms?”
“Negative.”
“Can you detach from the chute?”
“Yes. Currently not recommended.”
“What about flying me? Can your ion engine support my weight if you disengage the chute?”
“Negative. My ion drive has a maximum thrust of seven kilograms.”
“Crap.” He looked along his body again. Maybe if the rescue module unlocked three of the harness straps, his center of gravity would shift, swinging him around so his legs would be dangling over the ground. Then when the final strap unlocked, he’d fall feet first. Maybe.
“Do you have a procedure to lower me to the ground from this position?”
“Negative. I have no methodology on file to assist in this situation.”
“Damnit.” Finn paused, desperately trying to think of a solution. Probably because he was hanging upside down, his head seemed to be unnaturally heavy. He could definitely hear his heart thumping. And the insidious cold was penetrating further and further into his body, but at least that was acting as an anesthetic for all the pain.
He had no idea how he was going to get out of this. It was ridiculous. He’d survived being entombed, then getting thrown out of an aircraft. Now the last three meters to the ground would likely kill him—if not from hanging here in the cold for any length of time, then the fall. “Okay, do you carry any sort of cutting implement?”
“Confirmed. I have a ten-centimeter powerblade in my survival pack. And there are two scalpels in the medikit.”
“Good.” If he was on the ground, and the rescue module was released from the chute line, he was sure he could wriggle over to it. Then somehow his fingers could scramble for the blades. Not that he could feel them moving much. And the cold was progressing…“Let’s do this.”
“Awaiting instruction.”
“I want you to unlock the harness strap closest to my hips.”
“Please confirm instruction.”
“The top harness strap. Unlock it.”
“Understood. I recommend I activate my crash beacon…”
“No. This is a clear order. You’re not—”
“Hello?”
Finn gasped, and every muscle went rigid. “Who’s there?” he croaked.
“Hello? Where are you? Oh.”
He strained, looking about to see a woman in a thick hooded coat peering cautiously around the trunk of a tree fifteen meters away. The orange strobe kept illuminating a heart-shaped face with a fringe of dark hair spilling out from the hood. It also showed her open-mouthed expression of incredulity.
“Please,” he said. “Help.”
“What the hell?”
“Please.”
“How did you…No, never mind.” She came around the tree, and Finn caught sight of the carbine she was carrying. It looked primitive, but he didn’t doubt it was effective. She walked over and stared up at him.
“Can you get me down?”
“Yes. I can. But I have a question. Don’t laugh.”
“I promise. Just…Please.”
“Okay.” She shouldered the carbine. “Are you human?”
“What?”
“Simple enough: Are you human?”
“Uh, yeah, I’m human. Well, a uranic.”
“Uranic?”
“I have neural interfaces, so I can connect with other uranics or with Celestial tech. They’re not as good as an Imperial Celestial’s, but apart from that I’m one hundred percent human.”
“Okay, that makes as much sense as anything around here.” She craned her neck, looking up at his predicament. “Your hands are tied.”
“And my feet. If you could cut the lokstrips off, I should be able to lower myself.”
“Should I ask why you’re tied up?”
“I…I was stupid. Crossed the wrong people. I won’t hurt you, I promise.”
She patted the carbine. “Just so we understand each other, I will use this if I have to.”
“You won’t have to. Please.”
“Right.” She took her gloves off and stuffed them in her pockets, then started climbing the tree.
It took her a minute, but she crawled along the branch until she was above him, then hung on to the chute lines to clamber down to him. She produced a sharp blade from a sheath on her belt. “Here goes.”
The knife cut clean through the lokstrip around his feet. Then she hung down and cut his wrists free.
“Rescue module: unlock top harness strap.”
“Confirmed.”
The strap parted. After the second strap was unlocked, Finn started to shift around as he’d predicted. He grabbed at the two dangling straps as the third was unlocked. His body shifted in an ungainly lurch. He wasn’t sure if his hands could hold on, but at least he was the right way up. “Unlock strap four.”
He was right, his hands had no strength. He fell to the ground, yelping like an animal at the pain of landing. The next thing he knew, the woman was kneeling beside him. Her expression turned to real concern as she took in the bloody lacerations and heavy bruising.
“Who did this to you?” she asked.
“My ex.”
“Really? Breakups are pretty rough around here, huh?”
“You have no idea. Rescue module: detach medikit and survival pack.”
The two items thudded to the ground.
“Can you—?” he began.
“Sure. But you need to tell me what to do.”
“I can do that. Uh, I’m Finn.”
“Eleanor. Ellie.”
“Ellie, thank you. You saved my life.”
“I did, didn’t I?”
He told her what to do, how to use the sprays, how to apply the groflesh patches. It was strange that she didn’t seem to be familiar with any of the kit’s contents. The survival pack had a thermosheet. Ellie wrapped him in the tissue-thin silver cloth, and he immediately felt warmer—or at least convinced himself he did. The biomonitor strip she stuck on his left forearm displayed his vitals, and just about every symbol was amber.
“We need to get you back to my camp,” she said. “It’s not far. We’ve got a fire going, and there’s food and water as well.”
Finn was instantly wary. “We? How many of you are camping out here?”
“Just me and my grandfather. Is that a problem?”
It might have been his imagination, but she suddenly seemed equally as mistrustful as he was. “No. Of course not. But…it’s going to be hard for me to walk.”
“Yeah.” She gave him a thoughtful look. “Back in a minute.”
He huddled up tight inside the thermosheet and watched her climb the tree again. She went up to the chute and started cutting off long strips.
Ten minutes later his feet were completely wrapped in the chute fabric; there was so much of it they were practically footballs. When he wobbled unsteadily upright, she used the remaining strips like belts to hold the thermosheet tightly around him.
“Let’s go,” she said briskly.
* * *
—
“For real?” Faraji exclaimed in delight. “A gas giant is flying into Kelowan?”
Makaio-Yalbo gave the boy a warning glance but didn’t admonish him for the breach of etiquette. Given the circumstances, it was understandable. Besides, he could tell Olomo had more to say; reading the body language of a Heresy Celestial wasn’t easy, but the smugness was a complete giveaway.
Olomo’s four eyes remained focused on Makaio-Yalbo. “Indeed, young man. Exciting, isn’t it?”
“Yes! But…” Faraji faltered. “Why didn’t we know? Why hasn’t the Crown Dominion Navy seen a gas giant flying into the system?”
Olomo turned to the boy and smiled benignly. “Because no one was looking for such a thing. The Poseidon Nebula that surrounds all the stars of your dominion generates a magnificent spectacle across the sky, but it also blocks all long-range visual observation of the universe. And Dolod is both cold and dark. The navy sensors in the Kelowan system that watch for malevolent ships approaching out of interstellar space are designed to look for the million-degree fusion plasma exhausts of any intruder decelerating in from relativistic speed. Not this.”
Makaio-Yalbo cleared his throat. “The Crown Dominion is most grateful to the Heresy for this information.”
“You are welcome. But that’s not the issue here.”
Makaio-Yalbo took a moment—one he knew Olomo would be enjoying. “Then please enlighten me—Oh. You said it was already heading into the Kelowan system. What is Dolod’s current position?”
“It has passed the outer cometary belt. It will achieve closest approach to the star in just over forty years’ time.”
It took Makaio-Yalbo’s rider’s full effort to stop him from swearing in Olomo’s face. “Is it going to hit any of the planets?”
“No.”
“I am relieved. However, none of this makes sense. The Kelowan system was arranged into its present configuration at least twenty thousand years ago. We have two orbital bands of habitable planets, asteroids with a wealth of minerals, gas giants…It is complete. There is no need for another gas giant to be added. In truth, I’ve never heard of the Elohim moving gas giants across interstellar space.”
“That’s because there aren’t many gas giants like Dolod. It’s even more rare than a helium macroplanet,” Olomo said.
“What is it?”
“Our ship’s long-range spectroscopy revealed an interesting composition: Dolod is an iron exotic,” Olomo said in triumph.
“Great Asteria!”
“Father?” Faraji said. “What’s an iron exotic?”
“It’s a variety of gas giant,” Makaio-Yalbo told him. “If you put it in an orbit close enough to a star, the dayside gets hot enough to vaporize iron. The nightside, then, is cool enough to make the iron condense and rain.”
“Which would give any dominion a considerable economic asset,” Olomo said. “It is easier and cheaper to collect iron rain in atmospheric harvester vessels than it is to dig out and refine the ore on a solid world.”
