“The same place where we’re supposed to find out what happened to the globe-world, correct?” I pressed.
“The one and the same,” Magnus said.
I was still finding it hard to believe the two were related but kept my distrust to myself. “I’m going to obtain the globe-world from Regnig. Mary, Jules, and I will visit Karo, then head to Bazarn… if that’s okay with you.” I hadn’t run the plan by Magnus, and he was, after all, the captain of the starship.
Magnus squinted at me for a moment but nodded. “That’s perfect. We’re on a course for Utib Three now,” he said, and Suma switched the screen to show our trajectory through space. “We’ll arrive in nine months and twelve days.”
“Space… no wonder the Keppe ordered three-year missions at minimum,” Slate said. “We’ve been spoiled by the use of the portals.”
“Too bad we can’t bring spaceships through the crystal Shandras,” I said. They were effective and amazing, but also limited.
“Yes, it is too bad, but could you imagine if a fleet of enemy vessels could appear through a portal into your planet? It’s probably better this way,” Magnus said.
“You could still bring an army, especially on a planet that isn’t even aware they have a portal tucked away in a mountain range,” Loweck said with a frown.
“Good point. Dean, do you mind if we ask the Gatekeepers on board to update us? I feel so disconnected from their venture,” Magnus said.
“Sure.” I crossed the room and tapped a message into a console on the wall. I sent it to Loo-six and her partner in crime, Weemsa, the two Gatekeepers we’d rescued from the Misters over a year ago.
We drank coffee and chatted about the next nine months while we waited, which wasn’t long. The two Gatekeepers entered the meeting room, wearing their matching white uniforms. Sarlun would be proud of them.
Weemsa was tall, at least seven feet high, but the ceilings on board were built for beings of his stature, especially with the Keppe on board. Loo-six smiled at us, her green face pulling tight at the gesture.
“Greetings, Captain,” she said to Magnus, and he motioned for them to have a seat across the table. “Hello, Dean Parker.”
“Sorry I haven’t had much time to talk with you and the rest of the Gatekeepers,” I told them. “How are things going?”
Weemsa stretched his long arms out on the table, reaching for a cup of coffee. He talked while he poured. “They’re remarkably well, Dean. We’ve been working through the Crystal Map, and here’s what we’ve found so far.” He plugged a drive into the tabletop console, and a hologram appeared in the center of the table. Suma dimmed the lights, and we stared at the sharp blue lights emitting from the projection.
“Here we have the Map in its entirety. This is a vast area, billions of light years. It would take you thousands of years to traverse using our regular hyperdrive engines.” Weemsa highlighted one planet near the lower right edge, and one by the upper left. “As you can see, these are the worlds we have on record and cataloged.” Out of the thousands of new worlds uncovered when Jules had fixed the web of portals once powered by the Theos, fewer than two hundred lit up.
“There are so many dangers when going to a new world, and we’re trying to mitigate the risk as well as we can,” Loo-six told us.
“How are you doing this?” Slate asked.
“We go in pairs, as always, wear armored EVAs, and scope the planet from the portal entrance before stepping foot onto the world. We’ve utilized the new drones Chief Engineer LeBlanc gave us, and they’re working very well. We’re able to rotate around each world within twenty-four hours, scanning and recording images so we can add to our database and decide later which planet we’d like to further examine.”
“For now you’re only arriving, scanning, recording, and leaving, then?” I asked.
“That’s correct. That’s what Sarlun has asked of us,” Weemsa replied.
“How many of the new map locations have you explored so far?” Suma asked.
The new sites were highlighted in yellow, and at least twenty were glowing that color.
“We’ve marked five of these as thriving with life, some clearly intelligent.” Loo-six tapped the console, and she pointed to the screen on the wall. A video feed of a world from a hovering drone’s point of view appeared. “This is what we’re calling Thirteen, for lack of a better designation system. We’ve assigned each new planet a numerical value, and are using them until we have a better basis for naming them.”
It showed a civilization below, hundreds of beings in the streets. The land was desert-like, dunes stretching far beyond the city, but a large lake glimmered in the sunlight beside a castle and walled metropolis. It wasn’t futuristic; instead, it seemed to be built of rocks and stones, much like our ancient Egypt.
“We estimate over fifty thousand of the locals live within this walled complex, which appears to be over ten kilometers in length, and half that in width,” Loo-six said.
“Why the walls?” Slate asked. “Enemies nearby?”
“We think,” Weemsa started, and waited for his partner to find the right section of the footage, “that they’re protecting themselves from these.” The image zoomed, and from far away it appeared to be a herd of elephants. As they neared, they had a startling resemblance to horned dinosaurs.
“Dinosaurs!” Slate exclaimed.
“I wouldn’t get too excited about it,” Suma said. “If they built hundred-foot walls to protect themselves from the beasts, I wouldn’t want to see them in action.”
“Still… it’s kind of cool,” Slate said quietly.
“Especially from an aerial view, watched on board a starship,” Magnus said.
“This is some really great stuff. No injuries or anything to report?” I asked.
Weemsa shook his head. “Nothing like that yet. We’re trying to be diligent.”
Sarlun had reiterated how vital it was to be safe, especially after those groups had vanished on the other side of the portals when they were failing. We’d lost two of them because of the shapeshifter, and we couldn’t let that happen again.
“I’m impressed with what you’ve been able to accomplish,” I told them, and they both sat up higher in their seats. “I’ll be using the portal for the first time. Anything I should know?”
“Business as usual. I’d been feeling… I don’t know how to explain it… something before. A hunger, or a longing, as I traveled through them, but that’s gone,” Loo-six said. Weemsa cleared his throat, and she continued, pointing a thumb at him with her short arm. “He doesn’t believe me.”
I smiled. “Weemsa, I understand your trepidation, but I’ve seen too many things while traveling through the portals to dismiss her explanation.” I didn’t tell them that I’d been paused in a vast white purgatory, while a twenty-year-older version of myself spouted vague warnings at me. Because I hardly believed them myself.
“Thank you, Dean. See?” She slapped Weemsa on the arm. “I told you.”
I had an idea. “Can you guys send me copies of all the footage you’re compiling?”
“I’ll ping you the access codes. You can receive notifications any time we’ve uploaded a new world’s information. Suma too?” Loo-six asked, and Suma nodded.
“That would be wonderful,” the Shimmali woman said.
“Thanks for the update,” Magnus said. “Keep doing what you’re doing, and let me or the crew know if there’s anything else you need.”
“Thank you, Captain. We’re grateful for your time.” Loo-six appeared to understand they were being dismissed, and she pulled the drive then yanked Weemsa away from the table, grinning at me as they exited.
Slate rubbed his chin. “I wonder what else they’re going to find out there. It’s exciting to see.”
“Can you imagine how many worlds we’ll explore? Do you remember when we were home, arguing about whether or not intelligent life existed outside of Earth? It’s so hard to believe we’re here now, aboard a starship, d
iscussing the thousands of potentially life-sustaining worlds,” I said.
“Also… dinosaurs,” Slate added.
“And those are just the ones with portal destinations on them. Imagine how many more there are among the stars,” Magnus said, staring toward the now-blank screen on the wall.
“I grew up with the knowledge of numerous lifeforms. It must be strange to come to the information so late in your existence,” Suma said.
“Who are you calling ‘late in your existence’?” Slate asked, and I threw a sugar cube at him, hitting him in the chest.
“My people didn’t know about life on other worlds until we were invaded and destroyed. Our paths mirror the humans’ in more ways than one,” Loweck said. Other than the fact she had orange skin, she appeared quite human. Her eyes were slightly larger, and her nails were thick and green, but that was where the variances appeared to end.
Slate reached over and took her hand. She’d been rescued after her family and town had been attacked, and they’d fitted her with robotic parts to keep her alive. Later, she’d joined the crew of an Udoon ship, which unluckily was destroyed outside of the Rescaps’ world. Her story was tragic, but she appeared happy enough now with Slate at her side, and the title of Lieutenant Loweck, Chief of Security, aboard the great Horizon starship.
“We have a lot to be thankful for. All of us,” Magnus said. “Dean, things are running way smoother now that Mary has joined our team, and I don’t expect much to go wrong while you’re off seeing Karo and Regnig. Bring the globe, and we’ll figure this task out. In the meantime, I’ve asked that Slate and Loweck run our crew through a full fitness regiment over the next nine months.
“We’ve also developed an education program donated by Sarlun and the Shimmali people, which will teach our entire crew more about the universe around us.”
This was all new to me, and I applauded his forward thinking. “Great ideas. I told you you’d make a better captain than me,” I told him, and he laughed.
“I can’t wait to move these people into shape. I’ve seen too many of them taking the easy way out: eating too many donuts in the courtyard after their shifts are over,” Slate said, cracking his knuckles.
“Just remember, you have to work with these people, Slate. Make sure you’re on their side while you help them, okay?” I pushed my coffee cup away. It was time to go.
Loweck stood up. “Thanks, Dean. That’s what I’ve been telling him, but maybe if it comes from you, he’ll finally listen.”
“Hey, I’m the commander. I don’t need to be their friend,” he said, but I knew he didn’t really believe that. He loved getting along with everyone, and seemed to realize it. “But… maybe you’re right, Dean… and Loweck.”
“Good. When do you leave?” Magnus asked as we headed for the meeting room’s exit.
“Right now. They’re waiting for me,” I said.
In the hallway, we went separate directions, and Suma stayed behind. “I’ll have the Map lined up by the time you return.”
“Thanks, Suma. Hopefully, it works,” I told her.
“Say hi to Ableen and Karo for me,” Suma said, and I watched her exit towards the hall. A door opened near the science wing, and Silo, her boyfriend, emerged. I stood and watched them interact for a few seconds, and saw the way her snout wagged as they talked. I was happy to see her flourishing aboard the Horizon.
I checked the time, hurried past the corridors filled with busy crew members, and down the elevator. It was time to use a portal from the center of the starship.
Fourteen
The guards let us enter without delay, and we arrived in the ship’s portal room. It was still strange to see it here, where it shouldn’t belong. It was the first ever portal, to our knowledge, that wasn’t affixed to a planet, and even though everyone had been telling us how safe it was, I couldn’t shake the niggling doubt that it was risky to use.
Mary didn’t seem to hold any of these feelings, and she strode right up to the glowing green crystal. The glass walls illuminated hundreds of symbols, and Jules tugged on my sleeve as I set our bags to the floor. Maggie was with us, and she walked the perimeter of the room, checking it out for signs of other dogs, presumably.
“Papa,” Jules said calmly.
“Yes, little one?” I asked.
“Are we going to help?” she asked.
I looked down at her, those piercing green eyes matching the color of the large crystal. “Help what?”
“You know,” she said, and suddenly, I did.
“Dean, I think she’s talking about that symbol again.” Mary was at the table, scrolling through the icons. She landed on the one Jules had been drawing for us, the one with four angled lines and the oval.
“Jules, we’re not going there. Not yet. I don’t know enough about it.” I’d been so busy. All I’d done was check the Gatekeeper logs and saw that no one had visited the world. It was unmarked, and I wasn’t about to bring my family there into a potentially dangerous scenario. I didn’t know which place it mirrored on the Crystal Map, but once Suma finished her project, I might be able to decipher it.
“But… Papa, I thought we helped people,” she said, pouting.
“We do, honey, but not yet, okay?” Mary told her.
“Okay, Mom. Can we see the babies?” Jules asked.
She’d been really into babies lately, especially with her own little sibling coming. “We are going to go see them now,” I told Jules, and she beamed, forgetting about helping the people of a faraway planet for the time being. I was relieved for now. Her ability to even comprehend that someone so far away needed our assistance was unsettling.
Mary kept telling me we needed to embrace her gifts, but I wasn’t there yet. I could only see the danger, the exploitation potential if everyone knew she alone had fixed the portal network. Jules would be an attractive being to exploit, and I wouldn’t let that happen.
“Are we ready?” Mary asked, and I glanced at the table, seeing the symbol for the Theos home world. I grinned to myself as I remembered the protection they’d placed against that symbol to keep anyone away from their planet. I’d found a way around it, and that was when the guards from Bazarn Five had really started to dislike me. They still did. They were loyal to a fault, only not to me. To the Shandra.
“All set,” I said, grabbing Maggie’s leash, making sure she stayed in the vicinity of the portal’s reach.
Jules held my hand as the green light grew until we were basking in its glow, and when it receded, we were safe on the Theos world, in the very same room where Karo’s father had been set free before Jules had touched the stone and erupted the entire network to life.
We left the room behind, Mary and I with packs slung over our shoulders. Jules was holding a notebook, one she’d been scribbling drawings and practicing her letters in.
“It’s beautiful,” Mary said as we emerged onto the streets of crystal. Tall buildings rose from the ground, up into the clouds. The skies were covered today, no sunlight peeking through. I’d never seen the city like this, and it was odd to not witness the resulting prisms cast around the streets from the clear crystal reflecting the sun. “You remember the way to Karo’s?”
I nodded, but Jules was already in the lead, humming a tune I wasn’t familiar with. I glanced at Mary, who shrugged as if this was totally normal. Maggie pulled on the leash, sniffing the alien world. She stopped to pee on the side of the road.
The walk didn’t take long. This was only Mary’s second time here, the first since Ableen gave birth, and she was excited to see the bundles of joy. I’d already visited them once, when they were first born, and Mary and Jules had left me on Earth to reach Haven before me.
We arrived at their home, the same squat building as before, and I went to knock on the hard stone slab, when it slid open, my hand passing through air.
“Dean, what a surprise,” Ableen said. She held one of her children to her chest and hugged me cautiously. I unclipped Maggie’s tether, and
she bounded inside excitedly.
“Oh, Ableen, she’s beautiful,” Mary said, stroking the tiny gray-skinned baby’s forehead lightly with a thumb. The little girl’s hair was already longer than before, a pure white mane mirroring her parents.
“Ableen?” I heard Karo’s voice call from the next room.
“Karo, we have company,” Ableen said, and Karo emerged holding two of the babies, one in each arm. I glanced to the floor, where another was sleeping soundly in a hovering bed of light. Maggie was sitting beside the baby boy, as if guarding him.
“Dean! Mary! And sweet little Jules. Come in,” Karo said. He tapped the floor with his left foot, and two other beds of light appeared. He nestled one baby, then the other, onto the surfaces, and they happily accepted the comfortable positions.
The door closed behind us, and we set our things on the floor. The place was still clean, but I saw little toys and devices stacked on the tables and couches.
“How’s things?” I asked, one eyebrow raised.
Karo smiled, but I could see he was exhausted. “We couldn’t be happier.”
Jules tugged on Ableen’s dress. “Hi, Ableen. Can I see the baby?”
“Sure, Jules,” Ableen said. She crossed the room to sit on the couch, and Jules hopped up beside the Theos woman. “You have to be careful, okay?”
Jules sat still, holding her arms outstretched as Ableen passed the little girl over to her.
My daughter held the tiny Theos so carefully, and kept glancing over to her mother to see if she was doing a good job.
“You’re being so great with her, Jules,” Mary told her. “Make sure you keep her head upright.”
Jules did and smiled as she stared at the little baby. The Theos were a tall race, Karo seven feet tall and Ableen not much shorter. I’d been surprised to learn their children were born about half the size of humans.
Even now, a few months after they were born, they were still only around six pounds each. “Which one is this again?” I asked Ableen. “Noom?”
She nodded. “You’re right!”
“Good guess,” I admitted. I went to the now sleeping remaining three, and pointed at the feminine one. I always found judging the sexes of human babies difficult, but the Theos offspring were noticeably different. The males’ heads were slightly wider, their eyes deeper. “This one must be Paleen, and this one is Barl?” I asked about the middle boy.
New Horizon (The Survivors Book Nine) Page 11