Part 19 (1/2)
Meanwhile, the outside pickups revealed that the Thek which had been positioned near cruiser and transport were now grouped at the far end of the landing grid. Sa.s.sinak studied the screen for a few moments, and turned away, baffled. What were they doing?
She ate breakfast and changed into a dress uniform without expressing any such confusion to the crew, though their bafflement was apparent to her. Halfway through a gla.s.s of porssfruit juice, something tickled her memory about Thek.
She'd seen something like this ... it came back in a rush. The dead world, the time she had gone down with a landing party, and the Thek had come. First a few had cl.u.s.tered like that, and then others had come and clumped into some kind of structure. She'd forgotten about it for years, because of that mess with Achael, but . . . ”cathedral” was what someone had termed it, the special conference mode of the Thek. To which she was bidden.
Despite herself, Sa.s.sinak s.h.i.+vered, remembering that folk involved in a Thek conference often found themselves extremely obedient servants of its determinations. She promptly initiated a Discipline procedure so that she would remember all that transpired during that unique experience. Then grinned to herself. This could make a riveting recital the next time she needed something to enliven a dull evening at the Sector HQ Officers' Club.
While she and most of the other ”invited” guests went willingly through the one opening left by Theks fitting themselves into the immense structure. Captain Cruss did not. His boots dug grooves in the ground to show his unwillingness but inexorably he was brought into the cathedral and the last Thek clunked into place. Oddly enough, a curious ambient light provided illumination. Sa.s.sinak caught Aygar's contemptuous look and turned away, only then noticing the collection of porous shards, a dull dark charcoal grey rather than the usual Thek obsidian, but patently a nearly disa.s.sembled Thek.
”Your core evidently bore strange fruit,” she said to Kai, keeping her voice low. ”And if that is indeed a very ancient Thek, we ephemerals will have to revise some favorite theories . . . and some good jokes.”
”Commander,” Cruss cried, his heavy voice reverberating so loudly the others winced, ”I demand an explanation of the outrageous treatment to which I have been subjected.”
”Don't be stupid, Cruss,” Sa.s.sinak said, pivoting to him. ”You know perfectly well the Thek are a law unto themselves. And you are now subject to that law, and about to sample its justice.”
”We have verified.” The words, intoned in a non-directional voice, opened the conference. ”Ireta is for Thek as it has been for hundreds of millions of years. It will remain Thek. For these reasons ...”
With no apparent pa.s.sage of time, Sa.s.sinak found herself leaning against Aygar. She needed to: she felt every second of her age in the steamy Iretan midday with its blazing sun beating down on them. Aygar clung to her for a moment more, obviously experiencing a similar disorientation. In the touch of his strong hands, she sensed that his earlier contempt for her had lessened. When he came out of his current shock, she expected he'd be a much more pleasant fellow.
Someone groaned. Sa.s.sinak blinked her eyes clear and saw Varian holding Kai upright. Cruss crouched on the ground in such an att.i.tude of dejection that she could almost pity him. Almost, not quite.
In the meantime, she had had her orders. She had to get her marines, Weft and human, off that transport before Cruss woke up and lifted it off-world. Innocent or not, anyone on board at lift-off would have only one destination. That, the Thek had made quite clear. Trying to shake off the after-effects of that extraordinary experience and access the Discipline-retained memories, she let Ford and Lunzie shepherd them into the pinnace for the short hop back to the cruiser. But she couldn't organize her thoughts beyond responding to the implanted instructions.
Once in her quarters she gave the necessary orders and then paused to catch her breath. The Thek had somehow compressed the very air inside their cathedral, enervating to the humans, and what she'd really have liked was a long quiet stretch of solitary meditation, to regain her own sense of s.p.a.ce.
Half-bemused, and half-annoyed, she noticed that Lunzie was not so patient. Her Great-great-great prodded Ford into finding her liquor cabinet, poured drinks for everyone, and offered a toast ”To the survivors!”
Sa.s.sinak drank, thinking to herself that Lunzie must have enjoyed that Sverulan brandy as much as it deserved, to be so eager to find more. Prior to the conference, Lunzie had buffered Kai and Varian and now she snapped them out of it. They burst into speech, and stopped as their voices clashed.
Sa.s.sinak chuckled. ”Cruss took quite a beating.” Gingerly she touched her temples where a ma.s.sive head-ache was gathering. ”We all did.”
”Despite our clear consciences and pure hearts,” Varian added with a sly grin at Lunzie. Sa.s.sinak depressed the comunit b.u.t.ton. ”Pendelman, request Lieutenant Commander Dupaynil to join us. And didn't we just get exactly the information we needed. Cruss spilled his guts. Not that I blame him.”
”Then you know who's behind the piracy?” Lunzie asked, excited.
”Oh, yes. I'll wait until Dupaynil gets here. Kai and Varian have been covered with glory, too. Which is only fair.”
Kai took up the narrative then, explaining that they had rescued a Thek who had been trapped for eons and buried so deeply it had been unable to summon help. Originally Ireta had been earmarked as a feeding ground with its rich transuranics so satisfying to Thek appet.i.tes, hence the cores. The Thek Ger had been guardian, to make certain young Thek did not strip the planet of its riches and leave it a barren husk.
”The Thek are the Others,” Lunzie gasped.
”That is the inescapable conclusion,” Sa.s.sinak agreed. ”Thek are nothing if not logical. We were also exposed to quite a hunk of Thek history. I'll joggle the rest out of my head later. The relevant fact is that it became apparent to the Thek after a millennium of gorging that, if they couldn't curtail their appet.i.tes, they ran the risk of eating themselves out of the galaxy.”
”No wonder they had an affinity for dinosaurs,” Fordeliton exclaimed with a whoop of laughter.
”We get to preserve them now,” Varian said, rather proudly.
Kai grinned shyly. ”Ireta is restricted, of course, as far as transuranics go but I, and my 'ilk,' as they put it, have the right to mine anything up to the transuranics for ... is it as long as 'we' live? I'm not sure if the limit is just for my lifetime.”
”No,” said Lunzie. ”By ilk, the Thek probably mean the ARCT-10, for as long as it survives. You deserve it, Kai. You really do.”
”Curiously enough,” Sa.s.sinak said into the respectful pause that followed, ”the Thek did appreciate the fact that you all have lost irreplaceable time. Thek justice is unusual.”
Thek had lumped all humans - the timelagged, the survivors, and the descendants - in one group as survivors. They could remain or leave as they chose.
”I wonder if some of the Iretans might consider enlisting in the Fleet,” Sa.s.sinak mused, thinking of Aygar. ”Wefts are excellent guards but Ireta produced some superb physical types. Ford, do see if we can recruit a few.”
”And the surviving member of the original heavyworlder contingent?” Lunzie asked.
”Mutiny cannot be excused, nor the mutineer exonerated,” Sa.s.sinak answered, her expression stem. ”He is to be taken back to Sector Headquarters to stand trial. The Thek were as adamant on that score as I am.”
”And Cruss is being sent back?” Ford asked.
Sa.s.sinak steepled her fingers, permitting herself a satisfied smile. ”Not only sent back but earthed for good. Neither he, his crew, nor any of the pa.s.sengers will ever leave their planet. Nor will that transport lift again.”
”The Thek do nothing by halves, do they?”
”They have been exercised, if you can imagine a Thek agitated,” Sa.s.sinak went on, getting to the real meat of the cathedral's findings, ”about the planetary piracies and patiently waiting for us to do something constructive about the problem. The intended rape of Ireta has forced them, with deep regret, to interfere.” Just then, Dupaynil entered. ”On cue, for I have good news for you. Commander. Names, only one of which was familiar to me.” She beckoned the Intelligence officer to take a seat as she leaned forward to type information on the terminal. ”Parehandri is so conveniently placed for this sort of operation ...”
”Inspector General Parehandri?” Fordeliton exclaimed shocked.
”The same.” Lunzie chuckled cynically. ”It makes sense to have a conspirator placed high in Exploratory, Evaluation, and Colonization. He'd know exactly which planetary plums were ready to be plucked.”
Kai and Varian regarded her with stunned expressions.
”Who else, Sa.s.sinak?” Lunzie asked.
She looked up from the visual display with a smug smile. ”The Sek of Formalhaut, Aidkisaga IX, is a Federation Councillor of Internal Affairs.” She noticed Lunzie's startled reaction but went on when she saw Lunzie close her lips tightly. ”One now understands just how his private fortune was accrued. Lutpostig appears to be the Governor of Diplo, a heavyworlder planet. How convenient! Paraden, it will not surprise you to discover, owns the company which supplied the grounded transport s.h.i.+p.”
”We could never have counted on uncovering duplicity at that level. Commander,” .was Dupaynil's quiet a.s.sessment. He frowned slightly. ”It strikes me as highly unusual for a man at Cruss' level to know such names.”
”He didn't,” Sa.s.sinak replied equably. ”He was only vaguely aware that Commissioner Paraden was involved. The Thek extrapolated from what he could tell them of recruitment procedures, suppliers, and what they evidently extracted from the transport's data banks.”
”But how can we use the information they obtained?” Dupaynil asked.
”With great caution, equal duplicity and superior cunning. Commander, and undoubtedly some long and ardent discussions with the Sector Intelligence Bureau. Fortunately, for my hypersuspicious nature, I've known Admiral Coromell for years and trust him implicitly ...”
”You know Admiral Coromell?” Lunzie asked, amazed.
”We are in the same fleet, dear ancestress. And knowing where to look for one's culprits is more than half the battle, even those so highly placed.” Sa.s.sinak saw her thoughtful look and went on briskly. ”I have been given sailing orders, too. So, Fordeliton, brush up on your eloquence and see whom you can recruit from among the Iretans. Kai, Varian, Lunzie, I'll have Borander return you to your camp with any supplies you might need to tide you over until the ARCT-10 arrives. Just one more thing ...” and she swiveled her chair about, turning to the rank of cabinets behind her and opening one with a thumblock. She heard Lunzie's sigh of satisfaction as the squatty little brandy bottles came into view.
”Clean gla.s.ses. Ford - I've a toast to propose.” And when all stood with their gla.s.ses ready, she expanded Lunzie's brief presentation: ”To the brave, ingenious, and honored survivors of this planet . . . including the dinosaurs.”
That got a smile from all of them, and a chuckle as the smooth brandy slid down. Revived by the brandy's kick, Kai and Varian rose, eager to get back to their camp. The Thek decision had given them both a lot to look forward to, and plenty of work.
”Kai, Varian, you go on without me,” Lunzie said, surprising the co-leaders but not Sa.s.sinak. ”I'd like a little while longer with this relative of mine.” She turned to Sa.s.sinak, a bit shy and stiff suddenly.
In the flurry of parting, Sa.s.sinak rather hoped she knew what might be coming. After all, Varian would have her animals to study; Kai would have his minerals to mine . . . what would Lunzie have? Nothing. She'd be picked up by the ARCT-10; she'd try to find a recertification course to bring her up to date in medicine, and then she'd hire out for something else. Not the sort of life Sa.s.sinak would want. Even if she'd been a doctor.
”Let's eat here,” she said, as Kai and Varian, escorted by Ford, went off down the corridor. ”It's an awkward time for them in the messhall, right between s.h.i.+fts.”