by Karl Morgan
After dressing, he sat on the bed and thought about Darlene and the kids. Bill and Cybil were back in classes by now and would be studying hard. Darlene should be arriving on Nanda soon on her mission to help Odo. He was very worried about Odo Pak. Dave was convinced Odo’s actions really ended the mock trial before the Conclave on Earth Prime. Odo had also taught him so much about the Source. It would only be fair now if Dave could somehow protect Odo in his time of weakness. There was so much to do now and here he was taking a few days off on Gallicea. Perhaps he should have declined the visit. He turned on his side and drifted off to sleep.
“Dave?” a soft female voice whispered in his ear. “Dave, wake up!” As he started to awaken, it struck him that a woman was talking to him, but he was alone on Gallicea with a group of men. He jumped out of bed and looked around frantically, but saw nothing. Then he saw a flash of light in the periphery of his vision and then a blob of energy began to resolve itself into the shape of Nok, the tekkan engineer. “Hi Dave,” she said. “It’s wonderful to see you again.”
“Nok, what are you doing here?” he asked.
“I felt you reaching out for help, so I came,” she smiled. “You worry too much, Dave Brewster. You need to relax a little.”
“I thought I was,” he replied. “I was sleeping and you woke me up.”
“It was not a restful sleep, Dave,” she said. “Everything is happening as it is meant to. You just need to stay true to yourself and allow events to occur. You are thinking it was a mistake to be here, but this is all part of the plan. Odo’s condition is part of the plan too, as is the conflict brewing in the neighboring galaxy.”
Dave frowned and sat heavily back on the bed. “Well, it’s not a very good plan if you ask me. So I’m supposed to sit here while Odo dies and Nan and the Lagamar system are ravaged by war?”
She sat next to him and put her head on his shoulder. He could feel the energy of her life force moving through him. “I wouldn’t be so judgmental if I were you, Dave.” She turned her head and kissed his cheek. “It doesn’t matter whether we like the flow of the Source or not. It will not change for us. We must align ourselves to it. Your life will be better if you just go with it.”
“I think that’s easier to say than to do, Nok,” he laughed. “After all, you go around making stars and traversing the multiverse. I’m here with a galaxy of problems to deal with.”
Nok laughed out loud. “You sure like to carry the universe on your shoulders. That’s not your job, or did you forget that as well?”
“My job is to be happy and to love my family and friends,” he replied. “I haven’t forgotten, but sometimes it seems I can’t help anyone.”
“Your goal is not to fix their problems, Dave,” she sighed as she held his arm. “Your job is to love them.” She kissed his cheek again and stood up. “Well, Dave, I’ve got to get going. By the way, I probably won’t see you for a while.”
“Why do you say that?” he asked.
“I’m joining you in the physical universe again!” she beamed. “I’m being born to a family on Tak-Makla in just a few minutes. I’m so excited.”
“I’m very happy for you, Nok,” he said as he stood and hugged her, “but won’t you miss the star creation and freedom?”
“Not really. I mean it was fun for a while, but I really miss the closeness and intimacy of the physical world. We are all of one mind in the Source, but the excitement of living, learning and the challenges of everyday are missing for me now. But not for long,” she smiled. “Perhaps you will meet me again on Tak-Makla, and I hope we will recognize one another again. My hope is to be a trader this time. Spending my life in the Hive was great, but I really want to travel the universe, buying and selling exotic goods. That would be really exciting. But we’ll see what happens. I love you, Dave.” She kissed his lips and he closed his eyes. After a second, he was alone in the room again.
A tone sounded on the door and Fa-a-Di’s voice boomed over the intercom, “Dave, we’re getting ready to go to the Shrine! Get ready and we’ll meet you outside in fifteen minutes!”
A few minutes later, the three Galliceans were flying away from the Ka-la-a. Dave was back in Fa-a-Di’s harness and Jake was flying ten feet below him. “Brother, what is this Shrine? You haven’t mentioned that to me yet.”
“Let me answer that one,” De-o-Pa said. “Dave, the Shrine is near the site of the final battle where Fa-u-Bay defeated the army of Za-a-Za. The battle occurred in the air, so there was no Ka-la-a to catch the bodies of the vanquished, whose flesh has now been recycled through the Dar-Fa a million times over. Now a small powered island sits there with a temple to commemorate the event. It reminds us of our last civil war and that we must insure good always conquers evil. No other place in Greater Gallia is more revered. That temple signifies our rejection of war and desire for peace.”
“It is not far from the small Dar-Fa on this planet, so it is also constantly showered with dust from deep in the planet,” Fa-a-Di added. “To us, that dust comes from those dead heroes and it is another honor to have it fall on you.”
“Thank you, Fa-a-Di,” De-o-Pa said. “That is not a traditional belief though. I believe it is more aimed to our warriors. We should be arriving there shortly.” They continued to fly southward through rapidly moving walls of gas.
The Shrine appeared just as a heavy rain began to pour on them. Through the driving droplets, Dave could see thousands of Galliceans flying around the Shrine. Every minute or so, a group of ten would land on the Shrine and be blessed by two priests waiting there. Then the group would walk up the few steps into the temple. After a minute they would emerge from the opposite side and fly away. Dave’s group took their position at the end of the long line and continued to circle the Shrine and watch others fulfilling their duty to visit this place.
“Fa-a-Di, we can move to the front if you like,” De-o-Pa said. “You are an important visitor after all.”
“That’s okay,” he replied. “Today I am just another Gallicean doing my duty. Besides I have told Dave many times that I would fly with him on Gallia with a group of thousands of people. This is his first chance to see such a sight.”
“It is amazing, brother,” Dave said. “The difference is color and wing shape and design is unbelievable.”
“That is what this place is about, brother,” Fa-a-Di replied. “Before Fa-u-Bay, many chose to segregate themselves from others due to wing shape or any other minute difference. Seeing so many together is indeed wondrous.”
It took almost two hours before they approached the front of the line. Thousands more flew behind them awaiting their turns. The rain had stopped and the Shrine was illuminated in bright sunshine. They flew down toward the platform and landed near the two priests along with seven other Galliceans. “High Commissioner, it is an honor to host you. I am Iba-ali-Na, a humble priest. Bless you for fulfilling this sacred obligation,” the nearest priest said.
“Thank you, Deacon,” Fa-a-Di replied. “Please meet my brothers, Dave Brewster of Earth and Jake Benomafolays of No-Makla.”
“Welcome dear friends, Bless you for accompanying your friends,” Iba-ali-Na said.
The group walked forward and ascended the steps to the temple. Dave looked around from the security of the harness and saw the hundreds of Galliceans circling them. In the temple, he could see the previous group exit and head down the steps to the exit platform. Jake was sitting on Fa-a-Di’s shoulder as they entered and moved up to the ten small benches, where each Gallicean sat to contemplate. To Dave’s left was a marble statue of Fa-u-Bay, looking resplendent in pure white. A glass window behind the statue made the statue appear clothed in light. To the right was a statue of Za-a-Za. The statue was made of a dark gray stone. Two small windows behind the statue cast a pale light which made him look even more sinister than if he had been alive and standing there. The hilts of two daggers were imbedded in his chest.
After half a minute, the group rose and strode out of the temple an
d down the few steps to the exit platform. The group of Galliceans smiled at each other and hugged to celebrate their experience. Then they took off and flew away. “How are you doing, brother?” Dave asked.
“Pretty well, all things considered,” Fa-a-Di said. “Thank you for being here. You and Jake really lighten my mood. But now it’s time for whisky and dinner, I think.” He shouted to De-o-Nu, “Hey, last one back to the lodge has to cook dinner!” Fa-a-Di flapped his wings as hard as he could and quickly left the other two behind.
“That’s not fair, brother,” De-o-Nu shouted back. “You know my brother and I are much larger and can’t fly as fast.”
“I guess you cook then friend,” Fa-a-Di laughed.
“I don’t mind, brother,” De-o-Nu laughed back. “You are a lousy cook anyway!”
Chapter 16
“Now what do we do, Lord Valoo?” Vard Kalak asked as he poured whisky into two glasses of ice. He took the glasses from the cabinet and sat across the desk from the ambassador. “The Supreme General would chop off our heads if we suggested normalizing relations with the Predaxians, and I wouldn’t blame him.”
Ont was sitting at the desk with his head in his hands. After a minute, he looked up and smiled at the glass of whisky. He picked it up and took a sip. “Ah, that is just what I needed, Vard.” He stood and began to pace around the office. “Somehow we need to confirm their story about the defeat of the Alliance, but frankly, I don’t have a clue how to do that. What did you tell the agents?”
“I told Major Zua the Vilu introduced us to two Predaxians. When we saw them, we stomped out of the office and came to get them,” Vard answered.
“Good, that story is almost true, and I’m glad you didn’t try to hide this from them,” Ont replied “although this turn of events might mean the end of our journey. The only good thing is they were Predaxians and not Paxran. Our heads would roll for certain then.”
Vard pulled the security shield device from his pocket and pressed the button. “None of this was our fault, old friend. We had no way of knowing the Predaxians would be here. But now, it’s very important our next moves be well planned. I’m counting on Zua reporting the incident quickly. You should report it as well. Then we’ll let General Porto make the big decisions.”
“I know,” Ont sighed. “I have a scheduled call to the general in a few minutes. I’m not really certain what to say though. We can’t keep running from every other maklan we find. If Valamar was telling the truth, then we need not fear the Alliance anyway.”
“Thank goodness our telepathy screens have been activated. If not, one of them could be here now controlling us and we wouldn’t even know it,” Vard continued.
“Assuming the screens work,” Ont interrupted. “We have never had the opportunity to test them before. I am still confused why those Predaxians are here, so far from home. Why this little planet out of the entire galaxy? There must be thousands of worlds between here and Predax, and they are here. It doesn’t make sense.” A tone sounded on the ambassador’s control panel. “That must be General Porto. Please refill my glass before you leave, and remember to keep close to the agents. The more trust they have in you, the better for your future, dear Vard.”
Commander Kalak poured into both glasses and left the room. Ont pressed the contact, and the faces of Generals Ulon Porto, Udu Bora and Ava Liko were staring back at him. “My dear friends, I was not expecting all three of you. What a pleasant surprise!”
“Save the pleasantries, Ont and get on with your report,” Ulon said. “We have many more such meetings today.”
“Of course, Supreme General,” Ont replied. “We had our first meeting with the leader of this planet today. The Premier, It Ka-la was very pleasant and interested in establishing diplomatic and trade agreements.”
“Excellent work, Ont,” Ulon smiled. “What are the next steps?”
“Well, there was a problem, sir. I was very surprised how much the Vilu knew about our society, including the location of our planets,” Ont said. He could tell the look of distress and anger on the others. “When I pressed him how he knew so much, he invited two others to join the meeting. Those others were Predaxians.” Ont was not surprised the three generals seemed unfazed by the news. Clearly the agents had done their jobs well.
“And what was your reaction?” Ulon asked.
“I threatened to leave the meeting immediately,” Ont said. “But then the Predaxians offered some free information I was certain you would want to have.”
Now the three generals were noticeably irate. The sound was muted but he could see them talking to one another for some time. When they looked back at him, Ulon said, “Okay, what was the information?”
“Of course, I can’t validate its authenticity, but they told me how a Hive functions,” Ont said calmly.
“Really,” Ulon gasped. “Is this some kind of joke, Ont?”
“Of course not, Supreme General,” Ont gushed. “I was as surprised then as you are now. I had Vard Kalak with me to take notes and he is putting together the full analysis which we will send later today. As I said, I don’t know if it is true, but it is what we were told.”
“And the Predaxians want nothing from us?” Udu asked. “There must be a catch or this has to be a red herring.” He looked at the others in the room and they nodded their agreement.
“With Predaxians, there is always an ulterior motive, generals,” Ont replied. “However, they offered this information freely. But there was more. Apparently, the Vilu and some Predaxians hate the tekkans. The Predaxians said the tekkan Hive was a critical weapon in defeating the Alliance in a recent war. According to them, the Alliance is gone. I was hoping to find out if that is true as well. It could change our view of this galaxy.”
“How did you leave the negotiation, old friend?” Ava asked. “Are we still friendly?”
“Of course, dear Ava,” Ont said. “I explained this was a lot of information to internalize right away and I would have to report to my Supreme General for the next steps.”
“What should we do now, Ulon?” she asked the Supreme General.
“Honestly, I’m overwhelmed with information right now. I need to think about that. What do you think Ont?” Ulon answered.
“Clearly, we all need time to come to grips with this,” Ont began. “We can stay here and begin working on diplomatic and trade agreements. That can take as long as you like. I do think it is a good idea to be friends with the Vilu. There is probably much more they can teach us. While I do that, Vard will finish his report and send it to you. Perhaps the Science Ministry can review it to see if it’s even remotely realistic. If everything works out well, I will establish an embassy here with a few of my men. Then we will leave and attempt to verify the death of the Predaxian Alliance. Perhaps we will meet more friends along the way.”
“That is a very reasonable plan, General Valoo,” Ulon said. “Now I know why I selected you for this mission. Work on the agreements for a week or so. That will give us time to review the Hive report. But please keep an eye on the Predaxians. It seems too coincidental they would be on Vilu-Zan. There must be another subplot to this story, and you need to find out what it is, understood?”
“Of course, General Porto,” Ont smiled. “I’ve already asked Vard to test the telepathy screens. This is our first chance to try out that technology. He has also put ten officers in a secure site on board where they will monitor for non-Maklakar life-forms constantly. Even if they control my mind, they can’t hide their DNA.”
“A very sound solution,” Ulon replied. “We will call you in one week for an update.”
“Just one other thing, Supreme General,” Ont interjected. “You know I was not in favor of the attack on the Tak-Makla Hive.”
“Yes, I remember the discussion well, Ont. What is your point?” Ulon frowned.
“As you will read in Vard’s report, it was the Hive on Tak-Makla that gave them the power to defeat the Predaxians and find our location. Thanks to yo
ur grandson’s actions there, we have gained time and are safer. After I gave the premier his name, he immediately called for a national celebration in honor of Captain Awl Porto. I thought you’d like to know that.”
The general was visibly moved. He smiled and said, “Thank you old friend. You have honored me greatly and I will let Awl know. Take care. Oti-Makla out.”
Chapter 17
Dave was very pleased that De-o-Nu’s lodge had an excellent coffee system. He was back in his bubble pressure suit and grateful for the Society of Humanity faceplate that allowed him to sip the hot beverage without compromising the conditions inside the suit. There was a slight pressure in his head, no doubt due to the copious amount of Gallicean whisky the group had enjoyed the previous evening. Dave had tried to control his drinking as the local whisky was too strong for his human system. It had apparently paid off as he was the only one out of bed at this hour. He had slept very well, finally rid of that pressure suit. It had taken him a few minutes to get up onto the Gallicean size chair. Thankfully the Gallicean size coffee mug kept him from having to get down again for a refill. From his vantage point, he could see the sun rising over the horizon, peering through the walls of fast moving gas marking the next band only a few miles away. He heard the sound of a door opening and turned to see Fa-a-Di walking slowly out of his bedroom. “Good morning, brother,” he said.
“I hate this damned planet,” was all the Gallicean could say. He grabbed another mug and filled it with coffee and sat at the table. He took a drink of coffee and said, “Between my head and my nightmare, I’m ready to leave right now! I’ve done my duty here.”
“You’re the boss, Fa-a-Di,” Dave replied. “You’ll have to convince De-o-Nu and his brother though. They seem to love it here.”
“Fortunately, as High Commissioner and a member of the High Council, I still outrank him,” Fa-a-Di smiled. “Or you could just order him to leave. You are his new boss, Dave.”