The Human Chronicles Saga : Boxset #2 (The Human Chronicles Saga Boxsets)

by T. R. Harris

  The moment of silence that followed spoke volumes. Adam was getting through to them, slowly but surely. He looked to the scientist, Molison Jons.

  “You’re a scientist, is that right? You study, create and build, and yet all your genius is being wasted as it is now. Just like every advanced being, you want to contribute, to make a difference. How many things do you have kicking around in your head right now that could make a real impact on the galaxy?”

  “It is not my choice, Adam Cain. I cannot advocate for something purely from a singular point of view. All the Klin must be taken into consideration.”

  Adam grit his teeth. “Look, Humanity didn’t ask to be part of your campaign against the Juireans. We had no choice and billions of us died as a result. And when you manipulated the Juireans into attacking Earth, my wife—my mate—and my daughter were both killed, burned to death only minutes before I arrived to save them. I saw their smoldering bodies, I smelled their burnt flesh. So more than most, I harbor the deepest hatred for the Klin, yet I’m willing to let that go for the good of all. Don’t you think it’s about time the damn Klin grow up and stop acting like spoiled brats?”

  He saw the three Klin recoil as the translation reached them. Adam continued: “Sure, the Juireans attacked your world and stole your place in history. But that was four thousand years ago. And all that your burning hatred and obsession with revenge has done is kept you prisoners to your hatred. It’s been the Klin who have suffered the most through the millennia. And if you ask me, most of it has been self-inflicted. I know the Juireans. They may be humorless egomaniacs, but they are pragmatic. I’m sure that at some time in the last four thousand friggin years your two races could have come to some arrangement. But you wouldn’t let it happen. Your pride wouldn’t let it happen. And look where you are now, down to a couple of colony ships, hiding like rats in a sewer.”

  He shook his head and continued. “Honestly, we—the Humans and the Juireans and everyone else—will probably survive this threat, even without the help of the Klin. And when we do we will all share a special bond that the Klin will not be a part of. So do what you please; you always have. But as I said before, grow up and start acting like a part of this galaxy instead of the spoiled smart kids who feel like you’re above it all.”

  Adam was frustrated. He hadn’t expected the presentation to take such a negative direction, but he was at his wits end. They were probably going to kill him anyway, even if they agree to help, so what did he have to lose?

  Everyone turned suddenly when a slow clapping was heard coming from a side room to the Pleabaen’s chambers. Adam’s face took on a sour expression when the pale alien Panur walked into the room, uninvited and unguarded. What he was doing here, Adam had no idea.

  “Brilliant, passionate speech, Mr. Cain. Bravo. And best of all, I believed it. You sold me.”

  “Panur, this is highly irregular,” the Pleabaen said through clenched jaws. “These are my private chambers. How you got in here, I do not know, but I will definitely have to do something about that.”

  “Forgive me, Pleabaen, but when the rumors began circulating throughout the station that the infamous Adam Cain was aboard I had to see for myself.”

  “So how are you enjoying your stay with the Kiln, Panur? Anything exciting happening?”

  “As you Humans would say, hell no! Although I have found Molison Jons to be somewhat entertaining, the rest of the colony is a dull and depressing disappointment. Forgive me my bluntness, my Klin friends.”

  “I do not know what you expect?” Senior Fellow Zimfelous said. “The Klin are who they are and we always will be.”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of.” Panur smiled and turned to Adam. “Now, as the three of you contemplate the brilliant and inspired words spoken by my good friend Adam Cain, please let me steal him away from you for a while. We have some catching up to do.”

  Adam jumped to his feet even as the Pleabaen opened his mouth to protest. “He is our prisoner.”

  Panur shook his head. “No, Pleabaen, it’s you—the Klin—who are the prisoners here. Now come with me Adam. They will know where to find you when it’s time for your execution.”

  They walked out through the main door to Kreasu’s chambers, catching the two guards standing duty outside by surprise. “Your Pleabaen wishes to speak with you. Now go.”

  The guards disappeared into the chambers.

  Mutant and Human began a slow walk down the corridor. “You tell me what you know and then I will tell you what I have learned.”

  “Are we still working on meeting the goals of the negotiation?”

  “Of course; we had an agreement.”

  “Okay then. We destroyed a second array, this one of Sol-Kor—I mean, of your design.” Panur smiled and nodded his approval. Adam continued: “We suspect there are more under construction or completed. Is this true?”

  “I’m afraid so. It’s standard practice when entering a new universe. Is there anything else?”

  “Vosmin was about to take me, Sherri and Riyad through the portal to your universe when Riyad allowed us to escape. Vosmin’s ship made it through just as the array was destroyed.”

  “And what became of Mr. Tarazi?”

  “He’s on your side now, with Vosmin.”

  “How unfortunate.”

  “I need to get to him, to bring him back. Do you believe they’ll keep him alive long enough until I can figure a way of doing this?”

  “They will surely keep him alive. His race is a curiosity and he is too small for a single meal—which is a point I wish to correct.”

  “What’s that?”

  “An average-sized brain can feed approximately five Sol-Kor. Also, they do not feed as often as you do. If they feed once a week, that will suffice. Also, they do consume other flesh; it’s just that brain matter is about eighty percent of their diet. I have been speaking with the Klin who believe the Sol-Kor must harvest hundreds of planets per day to survive. That is greatly inflated. It’s more like ten worlds a day.”

  “Ten worlds! Complete, living worlds with billions of living creatures. And you think that’s right?”

  “I never thought of it like that. My own world was consumed, and at the time I did feel remorse. But I had never felt a part of the race to begin with. You must also understand that most worlds in the universe—any universe—are made up of primitive beings, inhabiting trees and grass lands. That’s why when more advanced strains are found they are so coveted. Your galaxy here, in this universe, is the richest find the Sol-Kor have every discovered. They will not give up, even in spite of the efforts of the Humans…or the Klin. Now you mentioned your desire to get Mr. Tarazi back from the Sol-Kor.”

  “That’s right. Is there anything you can do to help? Correction: anything you’re willing to do, because I know you could if you wanted.”

  “Perhaps. Perhaps not.”

  “Stop messing around, Panur. Are you trying to negotiate again? The first time was kinda fun. Now this is serious. This involves the life of my best friend.”

  “I thought Sherri Valentine was your best friend?”

  “That’s different. Now what do you want in return for helping me?”

  Panur looked up at the ceiling as they walked, as if thinking on the question. “I wish to go to Earth.”

  “Earth? Why?”

  “I have never experienced a race such as yours. I wish to study your kind. I wish to go unannounced and incognito, as you say.”

  “So I’m supposed to let someone like you loose on my homeworld? Look at it from my point of view, that would be kinda stupid, wouldn’t it?”

  “I already know the location of the planet; I learned it from the databanks of the Klin.”

  “Then why are you asking me? If you want to go, I’m sure no one could stop you.”

  “It is your homeworld, Adam Cain. I will do it no harm, yet I feel compelled to get your blessing.”

  “And after you’ve studied us, what then?”

>   “It will all go to help me make my decision.”

  “What decision?”

  “Whether I stay here or return to the Colony.”

  “I thought you’d already made your decision?”

  Panur laughed and stopped his walk. Several Klin had been following, just out of earshot. Now they stopped, too. “If I had to base my decision on my time with the Klin, I would be back with the Queen already. In fact, I’m grateful for your intervention. You have renewed my interest in your universe.”

  “And if after all this you decide to go back to the Sol-Kor, will you work for us or against us?”

  Again he laughed. “You truly do not understand me, Adam Cain. I have never worked for or against any other race, only for myself. As long as I can stay entertained I am happy. But to answer your question, I will not do anything out of my way to harm—or to help—the Humans if I return to the Colony. It will be what it is, that’s all.”

  Adam frowned. “Well, Panur, I must say that was the most pitiful pile of bullshit I’ve ever heard. I suppose in your position you can afford to be as self-centered as you are, but I can’t. We aren’t one-of-a-kind and we don’t live forever. Every moment we spend alive is precious. Most of us try to fill it with purpose and not just entertainment. Now, I can’t stop you from going to Earth, and if my blessing will help get Riyad back, then you have it. But now I’m through playing games with you. I’ve had a pretty bad attitude for the past twenty years when it comes to alien bastards like you, so are you going to help me or not, you arrogant ass?”

  Panur turned his head and looked down the passageway at the scared and silent Klin. Even from this distance they’d heard Adam tirade. Now they were waiting to see what Panur would do to the Human.

  Panur looked back at Adam, and then in a gesture that surprised everyone, he dropped to one knee and bowed his head in Adam’s direction.

  “Adam Cain, I pledge my allegiance to you, from now and forever. I will do everything in my power to protect and serve, against all enemies, foreign and domestic.” He then rose to his feet and leaned in closer. “I didn’t overdo it, did I? It’s just that I’ve been studying Earth history in the Klin files.”

  Adam smirked and looked down the passageway at the gathered Klin. He smiled at them, a full tooth display that was often misconstrued by most aliens. They turned walked away rapidly, with some glancing over their shoulders as they went. “That should save your life, my friend,” Panur said. “Now let’s see what we can do about saving Mr. Tarazi’s.”

  210

  Sherri’s instincts had been correct, if even what she found at the end of journey made her blood run cold.

  Even from this distance, the scanners were picking up the gravity interference from a truly massive trans-dimensional portal, larger than anything they’d seen so far. And if that wasn’t frightening enough, now a fleet of over a thousand Sol-Kor beamships filled the space surrounding the planet where the array had been constructed.

  The tracking squad turned a hundred and eighty degrees out and engaged the deepest gravity-wells they could, heading back to the main Union fleet. To Sherri’s relief, the mainships didn’t follow. Instead they consolidated their positions even as more ships passed through the portal to join their ranks.

  The image on the screen of Admiral Andy Tobias was strangely calm. “A thousand? Are you sure?”

  “We have some pretty good scanning equipment aboard, Andy. Only took a second to get the count. And they’re still adding to it. I think they’re serious this time. All I see are the beamships.”

  “Probably want to solve their Human problem before they get back to the business of brain farming.”

  “What’s going on with you, Admiral? Are you medicated or something?”

  “That’s a hell of thing to say to a superior officer.”

  “I’m a civilian, dickhead,” Sherri replied. “But seriously, why aren’t you more upset, or sacred, or something?” And then her eyes grew wide. “You’ve found a way to beat their beams, haven’t you?”

  “To tell the truth, I just got word from Formil that they have, but we don’t have the time or the resources to retrofit the entire fleet before we engage.”

  “Okay, then you are on drugs.”

  “Not that. It’s just that we have a new secret weapon. And it’s tearing up the space/time continuum to get here in time.”

  “Stop toying with me, Andy. What’s going on?”

  “It’s your old friends the Que’l.”

  “What about them?”

  “You know those big, thick block heads of theirs? Well it seems the blue beams can’t penetrate them. So instead of just three or four people who can withstand a beam attack, we’ll soon have hundreds, and all piloting our ships and manning the weapons batteries.”

  Sherri’s shocked look quickly evolved into a display of wild joy. “And the fuckers won’t even know about it. I hope that’s how you’re going to play it, Admiral.”

  “Way ahead of you. I’m preparing the normal crews to be bedded down and safe from injury when the beams hit, with the Que’l ordered to hold fire until we can see the whites of their alien eyes. Then we’re going to blast ’em all to hell.”

  Sherri suddenly turned serious. “Please hurry, Andy. If you can take out the screening units, then maybe I can slip through the portal and go after Riyad before the battle’s over.”

  “Don’t you dare, not until you get back up. You have no idea what you’ll find on the other side.”

  “Then help me, Andy. I’m going through, with or without back up.”

  “Why the hell doesn’t anyone follow my orders anymore?”

  Sherri laughed. “I’ll wait as long as I can. Any word on Adam?”

  Now it was Andy’s turn to grow serious. “The Klin came and took him away. We couldn’t follow, and that was seventeen hours ago.”

  Sherri grew weak. She knew locating Adam and the hidden Klin colony would be even more difficult than finding Riyad in another universe. The Klin would remain hidden for as long as they wanted.

  Unfortunately, Adam Cain was on his own.

  211

  Fortunately, Adam Cain was no longer on his own. He had a new ally, and a powerful one at that. For some reason, the Klin in the colony ship stood in absolute fear and awe of the small, pale alien. Adam figured he must have done something to scare the hell out of them, because even the Pleabaen was now slobbering over the Human.

  “We have considered your proposal, Mr. Cain, and although we are uncomfortable with many aspects of it, we feel it is the wisest course of action for the Klin at this time.”

  “So it’s a yes?”

  Kreasu blinked. “Eh, yes.”

  “Good. Now go unlock my ship so I can make contact with my superiors. They’ll want to know this as soon as possible. I will also need your location.”

  “They are in section thirty-six, z-plane eleven-point-nine-one.”

  All eyes turned to Panur.

  “How did you know?” the Pleabaen asked.

  “I looked outside. It’s pretty obvious.”

  Adam shook his head, something he did quite often in the presence of the mutant. “I won’t even ask. Now how about Riyad? Can you build us another portal, a two-way one like we destroyed on planet-x?”

  “You want something that big? That would take far too long to construct.”

  “Then get us to one that’s completed.”

  “Why not a personal module? They’re much more compact and will take far less time to construct.”

  “What’s a personal module?”

  “It’s a single person transit portal.”

  “You have those?”

  “There are a few in my universe. Of course to make them work they need mates in different locations. They are used for both trans-dimensional, as well as inter-dimensional travel. Makes zipping from one galaxy to the next a breeze.”

  “So these things don’t dump out into space?”

  “Oh, no. They a
re planet-based. There is one at the military directorate, at the harvest registry…and one in the Queen’s chambers.”

  “Are you saying you could beam us right to the Queen’s bedroom?”

  “Her chambers, not her bedroom.”

  “Riyad will probably be somewhere near the Queen, so that’s perfect! How long will it take you to build one?”

  The Klin scientist Molison Jons was in the room with them, and his look of absolute shock was priceless. Panur looked at him. “I assume you have an advanced CW link station onboard?”

  Molison nodded.

  “Good, I will need access.”

  “So how long, Panur?” Adam asked.

  “Give me a day, maybe a day-and-half, considering the primitive equipment I have to work with. Will that do?”

  Adam stared at the pale alien for several seconds before answering. “Yeah, that will do just fine.”

  “Don’t get your hopes up, Adam,” Panur warned. “The Queen is the most-heavily guarded creature in the universe—in any universe. And since the Sol-Kor are not affected by my beam, the entire complex of buildings where she lives is bathed constantly in beam light. If Riyad is anywhere on the grounds, then your immunity to the beam means only you can go find him. I fear for your life if you go alone. It could involve some rather violent fighting if you’re discovered.”

  Now it was Adam’s turn to smile. “Relax, Panur, I won’t be going in alone. I just happen to know some pretty tough hombres I can call upon for help. And bashing heads is right up their alley.”

  212

  A day later an express gravity speeder from the Union fleet arrived at the Klin colony ship. Adam was in the arrival bay when the passengers began to disembark.

  Adam grasped the hand and forearm of the huge, square-headed Drunage captain. “You made good time, my friend,” he said.

  Dravis Hurr leaned over the much smaller Human. “We were actually in space headed to a match when your ship intercepted us. I was not aware vessels with such speed existed.”