“I’m trying to figure out where a galactic playgirl fits into all of this,” he said, “scattering hearts across the cosmos.”
“That might have been a fair comment about me once,” she admitted, “but not anymore. Not since I met you.”
He looked at her skeptically.
As she continued to speak to him, he said little in response. In his sparse words and demeanor he appeared to be trying to maintain his emotional distance from her, but in his eyes she detected his difficulty doing that. Periodically, he locked gazes with her, and seemed to soften. Then he would stiffen and pull away.
From a personal standpoint, these were good signs to her. It was only a matter of time.
* * * * *
When the technicians and soldiers wrapped up their work for the day, two black-robed figures took advantage of a lapse in security. Slipping through the airlock, they sneaked aboard the disabled podship. In a shadowy corner of the passenger compartment, Noah pressed a hand against the interior wall, touching the rough, leathery skin of the sentient spacecraft. It felt unusually cool, but he sensed life.
The faint pulse quickened, and he withdrew his hand. But as he did so, he still felt the pulse.
“Follow me to the navigation chamber,” he said. But he did not move physically.
Closing his eyes, Noah watched while Tesh became small and ran behind his own ghostlike form as it entered a passageway that led to the core of the podship. He was making her think he had to be in physical contact with the ship before being able to get into the navigation chamber, still not revealing his earlier remote entry.
At the end of the passage, he hesitated, then seeped through the wall of the central chamber, leaving her behind. Seconds passed, and he sensed her impatience growing.
Then he released the seal on the entrance and let her in.…
* * * * *
Outside, Anton Glavine approached the podship, but was noticed by a Red Beret guard who had just gone on duty. “Stay back,” the soldier commanded tersely. “This vessel is out of service.”
Obediently, Anton backed up. “Sorry,” he said. “I thought this was my ship.”
“Read the destination boards and pay attention to berth numbers, you idiot.”
“Yes sir.” Anton blended back into the walking, milling traffic.
* * * * *
In the soft green glow of the navigation chamber, at the nerve center of the podship, Noah concentrated the power of his mind, and felt the ship pulse into motion.
Just inside the enclosure, Tesh stood motionless, not challenging him.
Under Noah’s direction, the vessel proceeded slowly through the docking bay. From the walkway, Red Beret soldiers fired puissant rifles at the craft, but to no effect. Some of the uniformed men scrambled into a pursuit ship and fired up the engine, making a flash of orange in the exhaust tubes.
But the podship surged away from the orbital station and leapt onto the podways with surprising vigor, then accelerated out into the frigid void, leaving the Red Berets far behind.
From the passenger compartment, Noah shared the joy of the creature.
And he felt the podship still under his control, turning this way and that along the cosmic filigree. Presently, he brought the vessel to a complete halt in outer space, and as he did so he sensed the creature come to a new awareness, watching warily with its visual sensors, looking for the approach of other podships.
Noah commanded the sentient vessel to disengage, and it floated free of the cosmic web, into the vacuum of space. He felt the creature grow calmer.
Keeping his eyes closed, Noah gazed telepathically into the boundless galaxy. He was startled to behold a sea of shimmering suns in much better focus than before.
“It’s so clear this time. I can’t believe it.”
His mind soared, and he began to see other podships speeding along the pale green webbing. As before, he could only probe one of the sentient vessels at a time, so he telescoped in on several in succession. Again he saw their passengers and heard them speaking, but in much sharper visual and auditory clarity than previously. Now he could hold the links more strongly, as if his mind had suddenly grown talons and he was digging them in deeply. But the conversations were innocuous, and of no interest to him.
Instead, he let the podship connections go, and zoomed in on one of the red-and-gold merchant schooners he had seen earlier, the one that had gone into geostationary orbit over the Mutati world of Ilbao. Inside the vessel, he again saw the Mutati pilot, and once more Noah scanned the interior of the hull, where the peculiar array of gleaming alloy tubes remained.
This time, the tubes looked far more sinister. Able to probe deeper into the tubes themselves, he saw even more tubes inside. These were smaller, filled with dry chemical powders that were interspersed with unknown, solid elements and liquid-filled capsules, all connected to multiple warheads and trigger devices.
The schooners were not listening posts at all. They were warships, mobile bombs.
Agitated, Noah stretched his mental power and searched the other Mutati worlds where he had seen the strange vessels. Previously, there had been ten. Now he saw hundreds of them around the Mutati Kingdom, each orbiting a different planet. Expanding his search radius, he found more of the schooners in other star systems. In all cases, the vessels were near pod stations.
Another even more disturbing pattern became apparent to him: Mutati warships were surrounding the Merchant Prince Alliance.
In a frenzy, Noah zoomed one by one to the Earth, Mars, and Plevin Four debris fields, where worlds had exploded under mysterious circumstances. It was all becoming clear to him. The Mutatis intended to stage a huge attack against every Human-ruled planet, striking from all directions!
A woman’s voice came to him from afar. Tesh. “Terrible weapons!” she exclaimed.
“You can see this?” Noah asked.
“I’ve been with you all the way, by touching the nerve center of the podship.”
With his voice drifting across the cosmos, Noah told her how he had seen only a few of the schooners earlier, and how there were many more now. “They’re getting ready to do something big,” he said. “Each ship seems to have enough explosive power to destroy a planet, taking everything in the vicinity with it … podships and pod stations have been wiped out, too.”
“That’s why you examined the three debris fields,” she said.
“Exactly. Those planets may have been destroyed in a weapons testing program. But why are you seeing this with me? Previously, I was able to take a mental journey through the galaxy on my own. And why is my vision so much clearer now?”
“I’m not sure, but maybe I’m boosting your power. During my career piloting podships, I have occasionally had paranormal experiences caused by my mental linkages to the creatures. From what we call sectoid chambers—and which you have been referring to as navigation chambers—we Parvii pilots gaze out at the galaxy through the eyes of the creatures. Usually, we see visions of deep space, the galactic webbing on which we travel and the like. But occasionally the podships seem to peer into alternate dimensions for brief moments, and we are taken along with them.”
“What do they see?”
“Woldn teaches it could be the future, the present, or even the past, since Timeweb is linked to time and space.” She paused. “Eons ago, Tulyans such as Eshaz held dominion over podships, before we took control of the sentient vessels away from them. Some Tulyans of today are known to have timeseeing abilities, but not all of them, only a few. Woldn theorizes that this power is linked to the abilities of the podships themselves, and that the capacity of the Tulyans to peer into time is weakening … from the lack of connection to their ancient allies.”
“Regarding the Mutati war schooners, are we seeing them in the future or in the present?” Noah asked. “I assume it’s not the past.”
“They are in the present,” she said flatly.
“How do you know that?”
“I am trai
ned to know,” she said. “There are certain indicators, which I am not at liberty to discuss with you.”
“I’m supposed to trust you, but you keep secrets from me?”
“If I could reveal them, I would.”
“They are Parvii secrets, then, not personal ones?”
“That is correct. But I do not have all the answers, not even close. It is most unusual—unheard of—how we are sharing the Timeweb experience. Perhaps it is because we are working together now, while previously we were at counter purposes. Perhaps I am boosting your power, and you are doing the same for me. We are in turn mutually enhanced by our connection to the podship itself, since we are looking through the eyes of the spacefaring creature.”
She went on to explain that the multiple eyes of the big, whale-like creatures were concealed in its mottled exterior skin, and didn’t look like eyes. But they were, nonetheless.
The two of them grew silent for awhile. As Noah and Tesh focused, the faintly green strands of the web appeared to them, only slightly visible and dancing ever so faintly in cosmic winds.
“We are seeing what is not visible to the naked eye,” Tesh said. “An alternate dimension. Legend holds that it is one of many layers of Timeweb, that it goes deeper and deeper, beyond anything a Parvii has ever seen or experienced.”
“Legends,” Noah said. At his impetus, the image shifted, and he gazed at a miniature Tesh where she still stood inside what she called the sectoid chamber. He zoomed in on her tiny features, saw the classic loveliness of her face, the seductive green eyes.
“There are many ancient legends,” she said. “Perhaps one of them involves what is happening to the galaxy now. If we survive this, I will ask Woldn. He knows all of the old stories.”
“We must return to Canopa and tell the Doge what we have seen,” Noah said. “Sadly, there are bigger enemies than Lorenzo or my sister. I fear a plot against all of humanity.”
The eyes of the miniature woman widened. “Are you crazy? Lorenzo will kill us.”
“I intend to go along. Remember, I am somewhat difficult to kill.”
“Alone? You’d leave me in control of this podship?”
“Yes. Contemplating the worst, I’ve also left Subi Danvar in charge of the Guardians … he understands the possibility that I might never return.”
“Don’t say that!”
“At a time like this, I need to be realistic. My Guardians are important, even critical, but I must give the Mutati threat an even higher priority.” He paused, and added, “You may take the helm now. Just drop me off at the pod station.”
“I hope you know what you’re doing,” she said.
Without responding, Noah relinquished his mental hold on the craft. He watched Tesh move into position in the sectoid chamber, and heard her utter the ancient benedictios of her people, like magic words.
The sentient spacecraft lifted onto the webbing, then came around like a galactic sailboat and pointed back the way they had come, toward Canopa.
With his mind separated from Tesh, Noah wondered if she had penetrated his thoughts moments ago, the inner workings of his mind, especially his intentions. He had been unable to read her thoughts at all, even though they had shared images of the cosmic web, and information from it. He hoped she could not read his mind, because if she could, she would not be pleased with what he intended to do. Noah had omitted certain key details from the plan he had related to her.
With the Merchant Prince Alliance surrounded by Mutati warships, Noah’s ability to remote control podships was not enough. He could only pilot one of the sentient vessels at a time in that manner, while the shapeshifters were poised to load their superweapons into different podships and strike from hundreds of directions at once. To counter that, Noah had to take drastic action.
His podship sped toward Canopa. He just watched, anticipating that he could take control of the vessel away from the Parvii woman again if necessary, even if he was not physically on board it. But it occurred to him now, as it had before, that she might have new ways to block him, more than she had shown him before.
Noah had never felt entirely comfortable with Tesh, and didn’t think he ever would. She and her people harbored secrets that went far beyond the brief time that he had been formulating his own.
Chapter Eighty-Six
Our universe is in chaos.
—From Eshaz’s timeseer report to the Parviis
To avoid attention, Tesh brought the podship into one of the secondary docking bays of the Canopa pod station, where fewer vessels went and the walkways were not so crowded. As they connected to a berth, Noah saw no sign of the Doge’s Red Berets.
Wearing a khaki tunic and dark, billowing trousers, Noah disembarked and passed through an airlock to the sealed walkway. He waited for Tesh to leave, then strolled to the other side of the pod station, making no attempt to conceal himself. Instead, he marched right up to one of the red-uniformed officers, identified himself, and demanded to see the Doge.
Within seconds, Noah was surrounded by uniformed men. They searched him for weapons and bound his wrists behind his body with electronic cuffs.
As they completed the arrest, Noah was startled to see the Doge Lorenzo del Velli emerge from an unmarked grid-copter just down the platform, leading an entourage that included the blonde Princess Meghina and a Hibbil attaché.
Just then, Francella Watanabe stepped onto the walkway from another vessel, and walked briskly to join the royal entourage. Suddenly she saw her twin brother, and stopped dead in her tracks.
* * * * *
No one noticed the young man in the dark blue cape who stood off to one side, gazing about furtively.
Anton Glavine had a lot on his mind, much more than the personal safety of Tesh Kori. Over the years he had seen Lorenzo del Velli at public appearances, without knowing that this powerful man was his own father. Anton had seen holo-images of his mother as well, Francella Watanabe, and had also been completely unaware of his own connection with her. At the moment, he stood only a few meters away from both of them.
His heart pounded as he watched his parents approach the prisoner.…
* * * * *
“I am going to say something that sounds unbelievable,” Noah said, “but I ask you to hear me out.” He looked at the Doge as he spoke, then at his scowling sister.
“He’s a madman, sir,” one of the soldiers said, keeping hold of Noah by the arm. “A raving maniac. Shall I take him away?”
Lorenzo the Magnificent held up a hand. “Just a moment.” And to Noah, he said, “You have two minutes.”
“I can see far into the galaxy,” Noah said, “into the very heart of the cosmos. Danger lurks out there … Mutatis lying in wait in vessels that look like merchant prince schooners, planning some kind of an attack. They have terrible planet-buster weapons. That’s how they destroyed Earth, Mars, and Plevin Four.”
“Your words fall short of proof,” Lorenzo said. The muscles on his face tightened, smoothing over some of the wrinkles.
“The entire galaxy is interconnected,” Noah said, “in ways I never imagined. Somehow it allows me to travel mentally through deep space.” Leaning close to the Doge, he exclaimed, “I can pilot podships!”
The soldier jerked Noah back and slapped him hard across the face. “See what I mean, Sire? A complete lunatic.”
Flashing his gaze at Francella, Noah said, “Do you think I’m a madman, too, dear sister?”
As if thinking he had a weapon concealed somewhere and that he could still get to it, she slipped behind one of the Red Berets, and peered around the man at her handcuffed brother.
“I have bad news for you, Francella,” Noah said. “I was near death and received a special healing treatment that changed me … it made me immortal.”
With that, the Doge and Francella laughed, as did the uniformed men with them.
“I think he’s rather cute,” Princess Meghina said, stepping forward and passing a hand through Noah’s curly, reddish h
air. “I’ll bet I could kill him with love.”
Narrowing his eyes, Noah smiled and said, “I’d have to be crazy to take you up on that offer, Princess. I hear your husband is quite a jealous man.”
“Sometimes he is, and sometimes he isn’t.” She tossed her long blonde hair over one shoulder, and shot a bittersweet smile at the Doge.
Noah knew something about the dynamics here. Meghina and Francella despised one another, and were in competition for the affections of Lorenzo. The Princess was legally married to him and had born his daughters, but she was a famous courtesan, the lover of many noblemen. He had only married her for political reasons, to join the assets of two great houses. Reportedly his true affections were for Francella, but Noah couldn’t understand how anyone could love her. Even Lorenzo deserved better.
“How about a little lie detector test?” Francella asked. With a sudden movement, she grabbed a puissant handgun from the holster of an officer and pointed it at her brother. The bright yellow energy chamber on top of the barrel glowed as she activated it, showing it was ready to fire.
“Go ahead and shoot,” Noah said.
A soldier ripped open Noah’s tunic, revealing that he wore no body armor.
“Mother, don’t!” someone shouted. All eyes turned toward the young man in the blue cape and liripipe hat, who had gone unnoticed until now. He raised his hands in a halting gesture.
Two soldiers tackled him, knocking him to the deck.
Francella hesitated, and looked closely at Anton.
Noah could only imagine what his loathsome sister was thinking. She had never gazed upon her son before, not even when he was a newborn. But she might be noticing something familiar in him now, wondering if he could be the one she had left with foster parents. For a fleeting moment, Noah thought he detected a mother’s love on Francella’s face. Then she turned to stone, and ordered the soldiers to place Anton under arrest.
Coolly, Francella looked back at Noah.
“I don’t think you should shoot him,” Princess Meghina said, stepping between the brother and sister. “After all, he is a nobleman’s son, and deserves a fair trial.”
The Timeweb Chronicles: Timeweb Trilogy Omnibus Page 45