Galactic Empires
Page 19
Not at all, no. In fact, they made a point of avoiding mechanical shortcuts to real conversation.
Eventually, somebody would ask, "When did you feel closest?"
What did that mean? Close how?
"When was the day-the incident-when you felt as if you were a single brain shared by two independent bodies?"
There were thousands of stories worth repeating, each able to satisfy their audience. They had a few dozen favorites that had become minor legends among the passengers. But the best answer was never offered, not even to the closest, dearest friends. It happened on that particular evening as they sat in that perfect darkness, deep inside the unmapped Vermiculate, immersed in the most isolated corner yet discovered within the Great Ship. That proud and stern and eternal voice told them that it would do anything to protect the Union, and for that singular moment, Quee Lee and Peril were one irreducible soul.
That was when they finally believed the unlikely story.
Then they heard the unseen tongues licking at dry lips, and the two lovers held each other with strong arms, sharing a flurry of thoughts, speaking with nothing but the touch of fingers, the sound of breathing.
"There is a Union," they decided voicelessly together. "It is real."
And, in the next moment, it occurred to them that the Union's loyal servant did nothing that did not, in small ways or great, help its ageless cause.
Quee Lee pressed hard against her husband, and she shivered, and just before the voice spoke again, she pushed an obvious thought into her husband's skull:
"Our new friend is on a mission! Now!"
And, in the next instant, with thrilled horror, Perri replied, "It's telling us the story for a reason… we are the mission!"
* * *
XI
With a sense of deeply buried pain, or at least an old, much practiced anger, the voice continued once again.
"At last, I returned to the island. At last, I touched down in the Sunset Plaza, on an ellipse of crimson glass brick reserved for my shuttle and my immortal body. The plaza was flanked by tall apartment buildings buried beneath masses of vines-engineered greenery that thrived in the volcanic warmth, producing enough fruit and sweet nuts to feed the residents within. A thousand of my grandchildren quickly gathered around me, while thousands more sneaked looks from behind the curtains of their comfortable little homes. Every face made an effort to smile. Every head dipped in a show of respect-gestures that I had never demanded from my subjects, that arose naturally long ago on their own. Only one important face was missing. But the brave traitors anticipated my first question. Several knelt before me, palms to the sky, and they explained that I had been gone longer than anticipated, and my arrival had proved quite sudden, but yes, my mistress was as happy as anyone could be. In fact, she was waiting for me at the palace, rapidly making herself ready for my pleasures.
"The avenue was lined with pruned trees thriving inside big copper pots and rows of intricate geometric sculptures cut from the black native stone. The smallest citizens barely noticed my passing. They were the ants and fat beetles that I had reinvented for the purpose of little jobs, and, unburdened by the demands of awe, they continued cutting down the weeds and disposing of trash. But a crew of enhanced crabs was pulling superconductive cables under the pavement, and when I passed nearby, they paused long enough to salute me with their elegant pincers.
"The grandchildren continued to stare, all working to appear nothing but worshipful, to shine with joy, and a few of them even managing to convince themselves that they were being honest.
" 'You were gone too long,' several complained, at different moments, but always with the same worried, slightly put-upon tone. And then one or two remarked, 'We feared you were lost, that some horrid disaster had claimed you.'
"If hope lay inside those voices, it was kept hidden.
"Then, at the mouth of an alleyway, I noticed a very young grandchild standing in the shadows, waiting for something. Not for me, it seemed… but in his stance and attitude, I could see anticipation.
"I paused and asked his name, even though I had already found his face in the public files. He introduced himself, and, with a charming little smile, mentioned that he had no memory of me. I had left for my errand among the stars while he was still just a toddler.
"He was barely more than that now. I smiled, telling him that it was my pleasure to meet him.
"He mentioned that I looked exactly as he expected me to look, except that I wasn't tall enough, and then his gaze drifted off toward the island's slumbering volcano.
" 'What are you waiting for?' I inquired.
" 'For you,' he replied. But before there was any misunderstanding, he added, 'I'm waiting for you to pass, and then I can go about my business.'
" 'Which is?'
" 'To walk down to the Sunset Plaza and watch the night come,' he explained.
" 'You like the setting sun, do you?'
"The young eyes smiled, and the mouth, too. Then a smart little voice said, 'Yes,' and nothing else.
"The bodies surrounding us began to relax.
"With a fond hand, I stroked the boy's thick black hair and kissed him on the nose, and then continued with my triumphant stroll to the palace.
"No one was invited to follow me inside, and no one asked to join me. My shadow passed first through the iron gates and beneath the brass arches and into the grand hall. The air was scented with spice and smoke. The floor and walls and high ceiling were tiled in a fractal pattern, cultured sapphires and diamonds lending accents to an example of mathematical beauty that I have always appreciated. My throne stood at the end of the hall—the oldest object in the palace, gold flourishes and silk laid over my adoptive father's original chair.
"My shadow hesitated, and so did I.
"My grandchildren stood in a crowd outside, waiting for me to vanish.
"Suddenly a great damp shape emerged from a back door, walking on long mechanical legs. The creature was a leviathan whose ancestors had swum in the local sea. I had made him small while changing his lungs and flesh to where he could thrive indoors, adeptly serving me with whatever little duty that I might require.
"With a high-pitched warble, he welcomed me home.
"Whatever plots were lurking about, I sensed that he was not involved and almost certainly unaware of them.
"I asked if I had been missed.
" 'Always,' he replied with a quick series of clicks.
" 'Where is she now?' I inquired.
" 'In your quarters, lord.'
" 'And has she been faithful to me?'
" 'No,' the creature replied, without hesitation. 'I have seen her use her hands and several plastic devices. And once, the edge of a large pillow.'
" 'Thank you for your honesty,' I said. And good evening to you.'
"No shadow led the way now. Alone, I climbed a long flight of dimly lit steps and entered a narrow hallway that only seemed endless… an illusion lined with tall doors meant to impress and confuse the rare visitor. I walked a short distance and opened what seemed to be a random door. There was only one bedroom inside the palace, and it never occupied the same position twice. I entered through a random wall, and my lover flinched in surprise, starting to pull the sheets over her naked body before realizing that it was me, only me.
"Together, we celebrated my return.
"I had been absent even longer than I had anticipated. The young creature that I had left in this bed was noticeably older. A few white hairs and a hundred little erosions marked the natural decline of a creature not born immortal and never told to expect such blessings. But she was just as fierce a lover as always, and maybe more so. She insisted on satisfying herself by various means, and whenever my attentions seemed to waver, she would offer encouragements or measured complaints.
" 'What kind of god are you?' she teased me once, in the dark. 'Are you going to let this old lady beat you at your game?'
" 'I am tempted to lose, yes,' I confessed.
"In a whisper, she mentioned, 'Your journey must have
been considerable.'
" 'My task was difficult,' I replied.
" 'We have continued with our work.' She said, 'Our work,' to make certain that I would hear the loyalty in those words. Then, after a pause, she added, 'But of course you kept track of our progress.' "
" 'Always,' I said.
" 'Have we missed any goals?'
" 'Never.'
" 'Are you proud of us?'
" 'Along the narrowest tangents, yes. Yes, I am very proud.'
"She refused to be surprised by my measured answer. And what worry she let show was small and easily controlled. The creature was exceptionally bright, after all. And she was wise in rare, precious ways. Extraordinary dangers were lurking about, and she realized that there was no way to keep me from seeing pieces of her scheme.
"Silently, she dropped her face to my face and kissed me.
"Then I placed my hand against her little throat, feeling her breath and the flinching of soft muscles, and I eased her back up into a sitting position. Then with a flat, cool tone, I said, 'It was sensible, holding to the work schedule. And I was most impressed with the methods you used, how you managed to fool my security systems.'
"Perhaps her plan was to claim innocence. 'I didn't try to fool anything,' she might have said. 'I don't know what you're accusing me of.' Denial might have given the plotters precious time. But it might have angered me, which would have brought my wrath down on them even sooner than they had planned.
"So instead of lying, my lover decided on poise. She shrugged her shoulders, asking, 'What do you know?'
" 'That the good machine being built inside our mountain is almost finished. But your lieutenants have surreptitiously slipped other devices into its workings. You devised some very clever, extremely powerful bombs that you hope will obliterate the purpose of my coming to this world.'
"Most souls would have tensed, hearing those words. Many would have panicked. But for my lover, that moment brought relief. Her duplicity was laid bare, and the simple fact that she was alive meant that perhaps she still retained some little chance of success here.
"I felt her throat relax against my hand.
"Then with great seriousness, I added, 'I also know you hope to murder me. Tonight, if possible. You have an array of weapons hiding here, and you have modified any piece of machinery that might injure me. I can even see dangers inside you, darling. Your body fat has been laced with acids that can be set free with a thought… turning you into a burning puddle that falls over my writhing, helpless body'
"She stared down at me.
"In her gaze, I could see her asking herself if this was the moment for suicide. But why would I lie beneath her if I felt at all at risk?
"With a reasonable tone, she asked, 'Can we kill you?'
" 'If I was foolish and a little blind, perhaps. But I am not, and I am not.'
"She nodded, accepting that verdict.
"And then she tensed through the shoulders and along her back, and with a voice that was small and furious, she asked, 'But why shouldn't we try to kill you? When your work is finished, you intend to murder all of us. Isn't that so?'
"I didn't respond immediately.
" 'You told me as much,' she claimed. 'When you sang about your secret Union and your need for nameless places… you practically confessed that when you were finished with this place, you wouldn't leave any witnesses behind.'
" 'You don't understand,' I warned her.
"Then I dropped my hand, the fingers and broad palm stroking her body down to the point where her legs joined together. 'You are a special, special soul,' I told her. 'My work would have been finished in another few years, and my plan was to take you with me. Out to the stars, out into the rich cold darkness.'
"The shock rolled across her features.
"Quietly, almost angrily, she said, 'No, you're lying.'
"But I was speaking the truth.
"With a fond, slightly paternal voice, I asked, 'How do you think I was brought into the Union? No one is born into this noble service. The rank and responsibilities are earned only on exceptionally rare occasions. In my case, another servant visited my home world and built several marvels before retreating back into the darkness with his treasures, including the man lying beneath you now.'
" 'No,' she whispered.
"And then, in pain, she said, 'Maybe. But this changes nothing. I wouldn't abandon my world, and I certainly won't let you to blow up this volcano and make it as though this place never was.'
" 'Is that what you think will happen?' I asked. 'That I would slaughter you and yours for no reason but my convenience?'
"She hesitated. Then with a figurative acid on her tongue, she asked, 'What do you mean?'
" 'Unless provoked, I will not murder.'
"By the light of the moon, my lover looked into my face. And then the beginnings of an explanation occurred to her. 'You won't murder, but you might take back all of your gifts. Our minds. The genetic manipulations. Wipe clean the ideas and concepts you brought down here to serve your damned Union.'
"I interrupted her by throwing my palm across her mouth.
"Then I yanked her close, and said, 'Yes. That was my kind, responsible plan. You would come with me, and my magical device would come with us, and the other grandchildren would wake that following morning to discover… nothing. Nothing but a shared dream of a magical civilization… a public memory that would turn to legend in another day, and, in another ten generations, vanish into a muddled, impossible story.'
"She lay against me, her heart beating against what passed for my ribs.
" 'I am sorry,' she told me.
"Into my ear, she said, 'Really, we haven't done anything wrong. Not yet. I can give commands, and every weapon will be put away, and you won't have to worry about any of us lifting so much as a lard knife against you.'
" 'That is not enough,' I replied.
" 'And you can kill me,' she promised. Then she repeated her offer, sounding as if she was begging. 'Kill me, and maybe the other adults. But leave our children. They don't know anything.'
" 'Like the boy I spoke to? The child waiting between the plaza and the palace?'
"She hesitated.
" 'At this moment,' I said, 'that tiny fellow is sitting beside the water, bare toes in the surf. And do you know what he is watching with all of his interest, every shred of passion? He watches the sky.'
"She did not move.
" 'The sky,' I repeated. 'And in particular, this night's very bright stars.'
"The woman could not breathe.
" 'You are a crafty soul, my dear. My darling.' I told her, 'I am extremely impressed by the thoroughness and audacity of your plan. Threatening the machine as well as my own immortal self… well, those are the tactics that anyone would expect. But you also dispatched a team of technicians to the mainland. You convinced the worshipful souls living there that they should help you. Since then, our people and theirs have been living in a distant valley, secretly fabricating an amazing machine of their own.
" 'A radio beacon, as it happens.
" 'To the best of your ability, you have been marking my passage across the heavens. You guessed that I was subverting a set of prying eyes, and you were correct. Your hope was to broadcast a huge, important signal. You wanted to be noticed. By the probe, perhaps. Or if you missed that mark, then at least there would exist a loud intelligent scream that would race its way through the heart of our galaxy.
" 'Your secret hope was to accomplish what I would never allow.
" 'You wanted to name your world, and to name it in exactly the way that would make the universe take note of your presence.
" 'You were right, my sweet darling. That would
have been your only genuine hope of salvation.
" 'But just this morning, I visited that far valley and your secret beacon, and I destroyed the dishes and power plant, and I have slaughtered everyone in my reach, but left the local communication system intact. During these last hours, every time you spoke to your fellow rebels, you were actually speaking to me.' "
Finally, the voice paused.
In the perfect darkness, a deep useless breath was taken.
Then the entity was speaking again, quietly admitting, "I gave my lover one last freedom. She could be the last to die, or first. She chose to be first, and she did that herself, releasing the acids inside her body. But I was already standing at a safe distance from our bed, my back to the carnage. Hearing the screams and smelling the blistered flesh, I kept my eyes averted, reminding myself that the worst of this awful night was finally finished."
* * *
XII
The two humans clung to each other.
In the same moment, in a rough chorus, they asked, "What happened? What did you do? What about the other people? What?"
A tight slow creak was audible, old leather or old bones moving.
From a point markedly closer than before, a mouth opened and breathed and then breathed again.
"I did exactly what I promised." The voice seemed to be within arm's reach. "However imperfectly, I have always strived to serve my cause, and that includes punishing those who dare rise up against me. I had no choice but to gather the worst of the offenders on the Sunset Plaza, and, with the rest of the grandchildren watching, I removed them from the living world. Then I ordered the low animals to clean the bricks of blood and pink tissues, and the dead bones were ground up and piled high on the nearest beach. And within five years, those who had survived my justice had managed to make up for lost time. Within ten years, my work was finished, and I carved away the gray summit of the volcano and pulled from the hot workroom a single machine encased in the finest hyperfiber-a wonder of genius and competence that made my stay on that world worth any cost."
The voice drifted even closer and, feeling the intrusion, Quee Lee instinctively leaned away.