Part 23 (1/2)
As night fell after a long day, Jor-El and Lara ate a quiet dinner on the small, flat rooftop of their designated quarters in Kryptonopolis. Even here in the city, Jor-El loved to sit under the stars and stare up into s.p.a.ce, letting his imagination roam free. For a while he could forget the close scrutiny he and Lara had been receiving from Zod's security. Out in the shadowy streets, he suspected someone was surrept.i.tiously keeping track of him. long day, Jor-El and Lara ate a quiet dinner on the small, flat rooftop of their designated quarters in Kryptonopolis. Even here in the city, Jor-El loved to sit under the stars and stare up into s.p.a.ce, letting his imagination roam free. For a while he could forget the close scrutiny he and Lara had been receiving from Zod's security. Out in the shadowy streets, he suspected someone was surrept.i.tiously keeping track of him.
Now, near the horizon after sunset, they watched a silvery arc of cosmic mist, the periodic comet called Loth-Ur's Hammer, which returned to Krypton only once every three centuries. The event was marked on public calendars, and at any other time, the arrival of Loth-Ur's Hammer would have drawn far more attention, inspiring artists and astronomers, providing an excuse for celebrations and cultural events. The Priests of Rao might even have called it an omen. With the continuing political turmoil, though, the comet sparked very little popular interest.
In ancient times, Jax-Ur had named the comet after his cruel father. According to legend, the gauzy apparition had crossed the sky during the warlord's seizure of power; now the comet had returned, just as Commissioner Zod seemed to be following in the footsteps of Jax-Ur. The obvious parallels troubled Jor-El.
”I think Zod actually reveres the old warlord, though he tries not to let it show,” Lara said. ”Look at this.” On her sketchpad she called up archived engravings from the ancient records of Jax-Ur's court historians. In the middle of a great plaza called Execution Square stood a statue of the stern warlord looming over his subjects. ”See any similarities?”
Jor-El stared at it. Even the position of the figure's arms, the expression on the face, and some trappings of the carved uniform were identical to Zod's newly erected statue. ”It can't be a coincidence. And he has Jax-Ur's nova javelins, too.” He shook his head and tried to enjoy the clear night, but his eyes strayed from the misty comet to the spangled remnants of the shattered moon. Nova javelins had done that.... But Zod insisted the weapons were to be used only for the defense of Krypton.
”The Commissioner is a brilliant man, but one moment he impresses me with his willingness to support new science or the way he handles a situation, and the next moment he bewilders me with one of his unconventional announcements. Zod wants to think he's the best thing to happen to Krypton, but he may be the worst.”
”We'd better decide soon.” Lara put a hand on her rounded belly. ”Not only do we have the future of Krypton to worry about, but we're about to have a baby.”
Jor-El stroked her stomach, and she placed her hand over his. He felt something move beneath his fingers. Lara pressed his hand down. ”Did you feel that? It was the baby. It kicked.” She winced. ”Another one!”
”Our child is a strong one already.” Jor-El felt such a sense of wonder that he promptly set aside all his other concerns, his political worries, and his suspicions. For the moment, that love was stronger than his doubts about Zod. He and Lara were going to be parents!
Keeping the baby's health paramount, Lara had been eating well and taking care of herself. Not content just to accept the advice of doctors, she kept herself well informed about the progression of her pregnancy. She wanted nothing to go wrong.
Jor-El had doted on her and pampered her. Every day he did his best to prepare the foods she craved, though he couldn't remember the last time he had done any cooking before her pregnancy. He allowed himself to enjoy these times with her and realized that he was happier now than he could ever remember being before.
In his younger years, Jor-El had thought that only scientific pursuits could give his life true satisfaction-the thrill of discovering new things, developing new ideas. But his feelings toward Lara, and his paternal instinct to love, protect, and teach this baby surprised him with their intensity. He promised himself that he would create the brightest possible future for his child. On Lara's beautiful face he saw an expression of complete fulfillment. Her smile seemed almost too big for her face, and he realized that his own smile was just as broad.
As Lara relaxed in her chair next to him, humming an old folk song, his attention wandered back to the pale smear of the comet's tail. Jor-El had never been able to switch off his a.n.a.lytical mind, his ever-curious observations. He had been so preoccupied with emergencies that he had never gotten around to studying this astronomical marvel in detail. Even so, evening after evening in Kryptonopolis he had taken a few moments to look at the majestic comet on its ancient path.
Tonight, though, he realized that what had been the smooth and graceful arc of a wispy tail now had strange knots and kinks. Even with his naked eyes, he could see that some areas in the head of the comet appeared brighter, as if jets had exploded from its frozen surface.
”Jor-El, I know that look on your face, so don't even try to keep secrets from me.”
”I need to contact the telescope listening post before Loth-Ur's Hammer drops below the horizon. There's something I'd like to check.” He and Lara left the open rooftop, climbed down the stairs, and went out into the brightly lit streets. She matched his brisk pace, wanting to find out what had piqued his interest so.
Though he would rather have been at the telescope array himself, or at least at the observatory monitoring center on his estate, he could get the information he needed from a substation building here. Using his codes to control the receivers remotely, he could realign the twenty-three receiver dishes in Zod's distant early-warning system in order to get the best images possible.
With Lara looking over his shoulder, Jor-El worked swiftly, entirely focused on the combined images from the telescopes. ”I'm not an expert on cometary behavior, but this seems most unusual.” He back-calculated the comet's path from the archive of images over the past several weeks, and then he plotted variances in its expected orbit.
From the largest optical magnifiers, he found a high-resolution image of Loth-Ur's Hammer. The silently tumbling comet was made of black ice laced with rocky inclusions and pockets of gas. White plumes volatilized out, erupting in unexpected jets of fine dust and frozen gases.
”Those are impressive explosions,” Lara said.
”Yes...yes, they are.” Jor-El summoned up the data recorded by the rest of the telescope cl.u.s.ter. The distant early-warning system had not been designed to look for anything like this, but Jor-El could sift through the recordings to find what he needed to know.
Because Krypton's swollen red sun was larger and more furious than at any other point in its history, the turbulent solar radiation had had a dramatic effect on the comet as it swung around Rao. The resulting explosions in the thawing iceball had s.h.i.+fted its rotation and changed its...o...b..t.
Jor-El felt his heart sink as he went over his calculations again and again. ”Just when I thought we were safe...”
”Jor-El, you're scaring me.”
”You should be scared.” He stared back at the now-ominous image of the immense comet. ”Loth-Ur's Hammer has changed course. The comet is hurtling directly toward us, and if my estimates are correct, in four months it's going to smash into Krypton.”
CHAPTER 61.
Under a clear, star-filled night sky, Alura and Charys went out to install new light crystals on the Eloquin Bridge, the southernmost of the five graceful spans connecting Argo City to the mainland. The two women worked their way along the bridge, embedding clear white gems that glowed with inner fires. They had volunteered for the task because it was a way they could aid the new Society of Vigilance. The improved lighting would make it easier for volunteers to keep watch after dark. sky, Alura and Charys went out to install new light crystals on the Eloquin Bridge, the southernmost of the five graceful spans connecting Argo City to the mainland. The two women worked their way along the bridge, embedding clear white gems that glowed with inner fires. They had volunteered for the task because it was a way they could aid the new Society of Vigilance. The improved lighting would make it easier for volunteers to keep watch after dark.
Overhead, the intact moons had risen, and the remnants of Koron sparkled like frozen fireworks. The long arc of Loth-Ur's Hammer had already dipped below the western horizon. Alura and Charys were alone on the bridge, since few travelers pa.s.sed back and forth this late at night. The Society of Vigilance patrolled the city now at all hours to make certain Zod's fanatics caused no trouble.
Over the past several days, anyone wearing a sapphire-blue armband emblazoned with Zod's family crest had been evicted from the city. Protesting as they left, groups of the Commissioner's adherents marched defiantly over the bridges out of Argo City, vowing that they would return once Zod had ”consolidated” all of Krypton. Alura was certain that by now the Commissioner had received word of what Zor-El had done, and she was just as certain that many of his followers remained in the city, posing as normal citizens until they could find a way to wreak havoc.
The two women worked their way along the Eloquin Bridge in silence, weighed down by heavy thoughts as they checked and installed illumination crystals. Finally Charys said with forced cheer, ”So I am finally going to be a grandmother. Jor-El and Lara didn't waste any time. I can't wait to spoil that little baby.”
Alura felt her mother-in-law's implied question hanging in the air. The darkness covered her blush. ”Zor-El and I have talked about having children, and we will someday. I've always wanted a little girl. We keep waiting for a better time.”
”There'll never be a perfect time if you always look for excuses.”
Awkwardly Alura tried to change the subject. ”Now that you're settled here, have you considered continuing your psychological studies? Weren't you writing a treatise on the anomalies in Krypton's population?”
Charys seated a palm-sized crystal in a connecting socket, and it glowed around her hand. ”I still make observations. Our entire society is a laboratory. My own Yar-El deviated from the norm, and both of my sons qualify as geniuses. I only hope you and Lara can anchor the two of them, because Krypton needs their brilliance. Especially now.” The older woman continued to muse. ”Even Commissioner Zod is an example of political genius. He has both the foresight and the fort.i.tude to be a great leader, but alas, like Yar-El, he has gone too far beyond the pale. A man like Zod is effective primarily in crisis situations. And so in order to hold on to his power, he has to create or maintain the state of emergency.”
”And that's what he's been doing,” Alura said.
The conversation stopped as a pair of shadowy men walked toward them across the bridge from the mainland. They carried no personal lights, which in itself seemed odd. Though crime was almost unknown in Argo City, Alura felt a s.h.i.+ver of fear. She had been edgy ever since her husband had cast out Zod's fanatics. Fortunately, the Society of Vigilance patrolled the bridge ramps to be sure no unwanted visitors crossed over during the night. Even so, Alura hesitated before installing another crystal, holding it in her hand.
Out of long habit, Charys nodded politely as the two men came closer. ”Good evening.”
One of the men said to Alura, without any pleasantries, ”I know you. You are the wife of Zor-El.”
”The other one is his mother,” said the second man. ”We'd better take them both.”
Before either woman could answer, the first man lunged for Alura, arms extended, as if he thought he could just grab her and carry her off. She swung the fist that held the illumination crystal and opened her fingers at the last moment. The sharp-edged jewel smashed his left cheek just under his eye, and the man reeled backward, cursing. Something dropped from his hand and clattered on the span of the bridge. A stunner!
Charys lashed out with surprising violence at the other man, thras.h.i.+ng and flailing her hands as she yelled at the top of her lungs, ”We're being attacked! Guards! Help!” The old woman startled her attacker by striking him hard in the nose with an openhanded blow, sending a gush of blood down his face. He roared and tried to throw himself on her.
Alura s.n.a.t.c.hed up the fallen stunner and pointed it at the man fighting Charys. She shot quickly, without aiming, and the sizzling beam caught his legs below the knees, making him crumple.
She could already hear people running to offer their a.s.sistance. Lights began to glow in the sleepy buildings of Argo City as volunteers were alerted.
The man facing Alura got to his feet and wiped blood from his cheek where the crystal had cut him. He glared at the two women, spun, and bolted as fast as he could back across the bridge toward the mainland.
As Vigilance guards arrived, Alura pointed into the darkness. ”One ran that way. See if you can capture him!”
Charys shook herself off, more indignant than injured. Alura turned to look at the man whose legs she had paralyzed. She was shocked to see that through sheer force of will, the fanatic had dragged himself to the edge of the bridge and used his arms to pull himself up onto the crossbars. ”Stop him!”