by S. H. Jucha
A joyous outpouring of celebratory noise followed Bryan’s announcement. Pyreans and Jatouche were hugging, and the Crocian was clasping forearms.
“We’ve established that this is a representation from the console to Aurelia’s query about where we are,” Jacob said, “And we believe the yellow-ringed stars signify dome locations. But how do we orient ourselves to this map?”
Jacob’s question dampened enthusiasm again, as the explorers examined the extensive display. The field held tens of thousands of bright stars, and many more dim ones. In contrast, the highlighted ones were a mere few hundred.
“We need orientation,” Nelson said softly. Jessie eyed him, and Nelson answered, “I was a navigator before I made first mate.”
“Our navigation apps,” Jessie exclaimed, and the two men disappeared down the ramp, as fast as they could.
“If they return with their comm units, I’m going to be upset,” Olivia exclaimed. “We were told to leave our personal things behind. Am I the only one who complied?” She looked around, and the Pyreans navel-gazed or winced under her glare. “Thanks, everyone,” she said in frustration.
As Olivia expected, Jessie and Nelson returned with their comm units, whose screens projected their navigation apps.
“This isn’t going to be easy,” Nelson said. “We have the one viewpoint, which is from Crimsa, Pyre’s star. It’ll require that we continually rotate our viewpoints though an entire sphere’s orientation to align with some small portion of this display.”
“But we know that we’re on this map,” Harbour argued. “Triton has an active dome. So we must be up here somewhere.”
“It will take patience,” Mangoth said, eyeing the dense star map.
“We have to cut down the field somehow. Search it quadrant by quadrant,” Bryan said. “Otherwise, we’ll be looking all over the place, and we’ll have to hand off the process so that our eyes and brains can recuperate.
It was Jaktook’s turn to run from the ramp and disappear below. He returned with a small device, which he set on a platform. “This is a survey tool,” he explained. “I thought we might have needed it at the alpha dome to record the new construction. It projects a beam and records the pattern, giving engineers an accurate concept of scale.”
Jaktook pointed it at the bottom edge of the dome’s image, overlapping one of the highlighted stars. He reduced its intensity and adjusted its shape until it formed a square. Then he tapped on its tiny panel and produced a crosshatch pattern.
“Excellent,” Mangoth said. “We can assign the grid’s starting point and the direction the survey must take. Each individual must supply the location of the next grid to their replacement.”
“I can make it easier,” Jaktook said, and tiny symbols appeared in the upper right hand corner of each grid.
Pete walked close to the projection to view the symbols. “These don’t mean anything to us,” Pete complained.
“Understandable, Pete,” Jaktook replied. “These are Jatouche characters. But you can better indicate the grid you completed by finger-drawing the symbol.”
Pete agreed that was a better idea than trying to count off squares across and up the block to convey the next grid.
“Is this where we want to start?” Jacob asked. He meant it simply as an alternative point to Jaktook’s indiscriminate setup of his device.
The group looked at Jacob, considered his request, and turned to gaze at Aurelia.
“What?” the young empath asked in surprise.
“I believe we think of you as our lucky piece,” Jessie said, “and your choice of a starting point might prove more fortunate than any one of ours.”
“No, no,” Aurelia objected. “All I did was solve a puzzle. This …” she said, swinging her arms at the huge star field, “isn’t a puzzle. It’s a humongous undertaking, and I’m not going to be responsible for starting us off in the wrong quadrant.”
“Then I propose we accept Jaktook’s starting point,” Harbour said. “It does include a ringed star. Who knows? That could be where we’re located.”
* * * *
Harbour was wrong about the ringed star being their location. They searched the first block without success. When it came time to shift the pattern, an earnest discussion broke out, but it was quickly settled by Nelson’s logic.
“Jaktook has told me that his tool can track the previous positions of the grids and align as necessary,” Nelson stated. “We know that Crimsa has a dome. If we’re to continue to assume that these ringed-stars represent domes, which is logical, then one of them must be Crimsa. I say we swing the grid pattern around the dome’s base to that star.” He pointed at a yellow-ringed star nearly halfway around the circumference of the base.
“I’m in agreement,” Jaktook said. “These are the only two stars that fit our requirements within the pattern’s projection height. When we finish with the second star, I’ll raise the projection up the height of the block and rotate it until we include another ringed-star. We’ll continue around the display without missing one of the objects of our search.”
No one had a better idea. So, Jaktook programmed his device and swung the tool around. He compensated the beam’s size for the change in distance and aligned it with the dome’s bottom.
“I do love advanced technology,” Bryan whispered.
“Do you celebrate personal events in your lifetime?” Jaktook asked Bryan quietly.
“Some people celebrate the day of their birth,” Bryan replied.
“And when does this day occur for you?” Jaktook asked.
Bryan winked conspiratorially at the Jatouche, and said, “Today.”
Jaktook flashed his teeth and then chuckled. “How opportune!” he riposted.
The days passed. Jaktook’s surveyor tool marched around the dome shifting around and up to the next yellow-ringed star.
The navigation apps had been copied to every comm unit, and the Jatouche and the Crocian were taught to manipulate them, although Mangoth, with his heavy clawed hands, found it difficult.
At any one time, two individuals worked on the square of the grid containing the ringed star. It helped to guarantee a mistake wasn’t made in trying to match Crimsa’s view of neighboring stars.
Pallets were laid on a platform to make the searchers more comfortable.
Over half the yellow-highlighted stars had been searched, when Kractik blinked in surprise. She’d rotated the navigation view of Crimsa through most of the angles and had nearly missed the subtle similarities to the grid square she was viewing.
“Tracy, two hundred and twenty-eight degrees rotation, one hundred and fourteen degrees declination,” Kractik whispered urgently. She didn’t want to get the others excited if she was in error.
“It’s similar, but the alignment isn’t quite exact,” Tracy said. She’d struggled with the application, but she’d kept quiet. The thought of lying around for days on end, while others were occupied with the search, was unthinkable to her.
“My comm unit is at arm’s length, and I’m at twenty-eight percent magnification,” Kractik whispered.
Tracy adjusted her comm unit’s image scale, crawled over to Kractik, eyed the Jatouche’s shorter arm, and held her device at the same length. Then the young Pyrean let out a shriek and hugged Kractik.
“We found it,” Tracy yelled, which brought the others running. “Well, to be honest, Kractik found it, and I’ve confirmed it.”
Immediately, Jessie and Nelson activated their comm units, and Kractik read off the orientation.
“Squat down over here,” Tracy said, indicating the pallets. She added details about the magnification and the short-arm’s length to hold their devices.
“Good job, you two,” Jessie congratulated. “That’s Crimsa’s star.”
“Agreed,” Nelson added.
“Now that we know where we are,” Devon asked, “how do we use this star map to navigate to where we want to go? Which, by the way, is where?”
“I’
ve been saving this piece of information,” Mangoth said. “You might have noticed that the colored rings have tiny filaments in the upright position.”
“I saw those,” Olivia said. “There are four of them on our star. Do they indicate gates?”
“They do,” Mangoth agreed. “And I know this because I’ve found only one of the ringed-stars with six filaments, and I’ve been searching the display the entire time it’s been present. We head there.” Mangoth had stretched out a thick, scaled arm and pointed at a star nearly opposite Crimsa on the dome’s display.
“Why there?” Jessie asked.
“Because that is the one dome that I can guarantee is an alliance member. It’s my home world. The Crocians have six gates,” Mangoth announced proudly.
“If we do as Mangoth suggests, “Jaktook said, “we should encounter an alliance member before then and can be directed to Rissness.”
“That was my thought,” Mangoth said, his massive snout nodding in agreement.
Kractik stared at the Pyreans’ ringed star and said, “Crimsa has a single gate, which connects to Rissness, but we don’t know which of these ringed stars that would be. I would suppose it’s a nearby star, but we can’t be sure. I would suggest that we stay away from this area so that we don’t accidentally arrive at the Colony’s dome.”
“An excellent point, Kractik,” Harbour agreed.
“As to your questions, Devon,” Nelson said, “the method isn’t going to be pretty. We lay out our intended path toward the Crocian star in this display. We pick a gate in this dome and start our journey. When we arrive at the next dome, we query the console, and we see if we ended up at the star we wanted. If not, we go back and try another gate until we reach the correct star. We keep doing that until we reach an alliance member or encounter the wrong race.”
“There’s nothing simpler?” Devon asked. He eyed the knowledgeable individuals for confirmation — Mangoth, Jaktook, and Kractik. None of them offered an alternative method.
“When do we start?” Devon asked.
“Now,” Pete said, “I’m tired of this dome. I want to visit a different one.”
Despite Mangoth’s alien nature, he was the first to catch the joke and roared to the overhead.
Harbour waited for the laughter to die down. “There’ll be one addition to Nelson’s methods,” she said. “Aurelia will enter the query each time. It seems obvious the Messinants used a hand, digit, or what-have-you to write in the projection, and Aurelia imitates their style.”
“Agreed,” Jaktook said.
-29-
Homeward
Harbour and Jessie shuffled the teams. Having encountered few sentients in their journey to return to Rissness, Harbour had Jessie, Aurelia, and Nelson join her team in exchange for Devon, Pete, and Jacob.
Nelson’s prediction was accurate. Their journey wasn’t pretty. They rarely chose the correct gate the first time, which meant they had to reverse course and try again. However, they made progress, slowly but surely.
Their routine became a well-worn habit. They’d arrive in the new dome with weapons ready, but held at their sides. In an empty dome, Kractik and Aurelia would hurry excitedly to the console. After Kractik ensured the console was online, Aurelia would enter the query.
The dome would display the star map, and Jessie and Nelson would examine their navigation applications and recorded images from the beta dome’s display to track their progress. If they were successful, they would wait until the second team joined them, and they would choose the next gate. If they weren’t, they returned to the previous dome and selected another gate.
Jaktook monitored his chronometer to determine the timing to send his group after team one, when they didn’t return. It was always a nerve-racking period for him, having never been responsible for a group of humans.
Occasionally, the teams spotted evidence of habitation, but they didn’t encounter sentients. The items at various domes amounted to recording devices, a large telescope, a few crates, and, in each case, deck wedges opened. In those circumstances, the conclusion among the explorers was that young races had discovered the domes and had yet to comprehend a console’s operation.
The first time a recording device was seen, Kractik commented, “I believe we just educated a second race about the purpose of the domes.”
“I think our journey is going to deliver that lesson to a good many more races,” Harbour riposted.
With each hard-won successful step, the team grew closer to their target star, the home of the Crocians, and hope grew. Weeks earlier, evenings had been punctuated by quiet — a meal, small talk, and sleep. Now the explorers talked of returning home and the tales they’d tell.
Often, Harbour and Jessie spent some time on deck alone. The subjects ranged from the leadership problems of Pyre to what the Tsargit reward might mean. On the latter subject, Harbour was of the opinion that the reward would belong to the citizenry of Pyre, and Jessie argued against that idea.
“Harbour,” he said, “those gifts, whatever they might be, should be substantial, if I understand Mangoth correctly. And if they are, then that’s leverage. Or do you want to enrich the commandant and the dome council at stationers’ and spacers’ expense? The Jatouche and Tsargit rewards would be your opportunity to shift the status quo.”
“You’re referring to the Belle’s stolen documents,” Harbour replied.
“Absolutely,” Jessie exclaimed. “Earth and the original colonists signed on to a different concept of government than the one we have now. Their dreams were hijacked. This is the perfect time to return it to them.”
“We could become outcasts if the downsiders and the commandant banded against us and the stationers didn’t take sides, or worse, took our opponents’ sides,” Harbour warned.
“That’s a possibility,” Jessie agreed. “We’d have to have a plan and be careful executing it.”
“Talk to me, my Advisor,” Harbour said, grinning.
That had been Harbour and Jessie’s discussion on the last night of their intrepid exploration. The next morning, they reviewed their progress on the dome’s projection. When they were ready, Harbour’s team mounted the platform of the next gate to try, and Jaktook sent team one on its way.
The explorers’ arrival in the new dome was a spectacle for all. Instead of an empty dome or a singular group of aliens, the deck was a hub of activity of many species. Or it had been a hive of energetic motion until the sentients took note of the weapons in the hands of the arrivals and hesitated.
Jessie growled softly but sternly, “Weapons behind you. We’re safe.”
“An alliance dome,” Kractik whispered.
It was the medallions broadcasting the status of an envoy, an advisor, and a delegate that calmed the crowd. With tips of their heads or crowns to the exalted group, the sentients went about their business.
“Descend,” Harbour ordered to clear the gate for the second team.
When Jaktook’s team arrived, the Pyreans and he were overjoyed by the sight.
Jaktook flashed his teeth at Harbour, who was smiling at him.
“We made it,” Tracy said, tears forming in her eyes, which expressed every explorer’s sentiment.
A tall individual, with a coat of spotted fur, a short snout, and sharp canines, hurried from the console toward the group. She bowed her head to Harbour and Mangoth.
“There’s no need for alarm,” the sentient said, observing the armored suits and various odd and imposing tools the visitors carried. “I’m Shevena, the dome administrator, Envoy and Delegate. We were made aware of your explorations, but I’m surprised that you came by way of this gate. We know the sentients on the other end have not achieved space travel. Your arrival from that direction is quite unexpected.”
The explorers broke out into laughter, some weeping tears of joy.
“Your pardon, Shevena,” Harbour said. “This is the first alliance dome we’ve reached since we left Rissness, a third of an annual ago.”
<
br /> Shevena’s short jaw loosened, and she frowned, as she considered the possibilities. “Did you remain at a dome for an extended period of time?” she asked.
“You might say, Shevena, that we took the long way home,” Mangoth said enigmatically. “And now, we’d like to be sent along the shortest path to Rissness.”
“Immediately, Delegate Mangoth,” Shevena replied. “Gate two,” she added, indicating the platform. She returned swiftly to the console and spoke to the operator, who temporarily took gate two offline to accommodate the priority request. As soon as the first group mounted, the operator activated the gate and sent them on their way. In quick succession, the other explorers followed.
Fifteen journeys later, the blue light of the gate faded, and Harbour’s team gazed at another busy dome, but this one had Jatouche operators. Kractik and Aurelia slipped a hand into each of Harbour’s and squeezed.
“Let’s give the others a chance to enjoy this moment,” Harbour said. She continued to hold the hands of the young females, as she stepped off the platform.
The second team arrived and took a moment to take in the view. Then they broke into laughter and cheers.
“Come on,” Harbour said to her group. Then she walked slowly toward the ramp.
Word spread, and techs and soldiers came running to strip the explorers of their gear. The entire entourage made their way to the dome’s third level, taking over the same dorm room that they’d occupied months ago. They sorted out their personal gear and left for other rooms to use the facilities before returning to share a meal with their fellow journeyers.
When Jaktook had a private moment with Harbour, he asked, “Should I send a console operator to Triton to notify your associates of your safe return?”
Harbour thought and said, “No, Jaktook. We’ll be returning to Pyre soon.”
“Understood, Envoy,” Jaktook said. “I spoke briefly to Her Highness and told her that I expected you to leave for Triton soon. She said she commiserated with your desire to return home.”
“Tell Her Highness that she’s most considerate,” Harbour replied. “Most important, Jaktook, Her Highness will want to accept some level of guilt for the loss of an explorer. Tell her from me that she must not do that. Pyreans chose to go, and we knew the dangers.”