"I admit, the Cluster is no more than an instrument. It feels no love, no hate. To understand God, I feel I must understand his tools."
Ellis chuckled lightly. “To understand a carpenter, you must understand a hammer?"
"That's the idea.” Clyde moved closer to Ellis. At first, the commander tensed but then he relaxed, as he noted no menace in the evangelist's approach. McClintlock lay his hand gently on the commander's shoulder. “If the Cluster isn't an instrument of God, what is it?"
"Simply an alien we've never encountered before,” said Ellis, almost reverently.
"Why haven't we met it before?” Clyde's voice held a slight hush.
"It's possible they don't even come from our galaxy. They could be intergalactic travelers from distant reaches of the universe, trying to understand us.” Ellis sighed.
"The real question,” said McClintlock, removing his hand from Ellis’ shoulder, “is which of us is living in the fantasy world?"
With that, the two men walked side by side back to G'Liat's compound where dinner was waiting. That night, Ellis trimmed his beard in anticipation of an interview. G'Liat had booked a commercial flight back to Earth, where the three hoped to get a job on a mapping vessel.
* * * *
On Sufiro, Suki Firebrandt Ellis placed her suitcase on Manuel Raton's bed and started packing her bags for the return to Earth. Manuel Raton stepped up behind her and put his arms around her waist. “I'm gonna miss you,” he said sadly.
Fire smiled and turned. “Why not come with me?"
"I hate Earth!” said Manuel, indignant.
Fire snorted. “You haven't been on Earth since you were practically in diapers. Don't give me that.” She took Manuel's hands.
"I'm the Sheriff of New Granada. I can't just up and leave,” said Manuel, shrugging and turning his feet on the carpet.
"I'm Director of the Maria Mitchell Association and I left for a time. Call it a vacation,” reasoned Fire.
"But who'll mind the store while I'm gone?"
"What about Ed Swan, your deputy?” Fire squeezed Manuel's hands and returned to the job of packing.
After a few minutes, Manuel flopped a suitcase on the bed across from Fire's. Silently, he began packing it full of clothes. “Do you think you'll solve the mystery of the origin of the Titans?"
"No,” said Fire. “The mystery has been debated for over eight hundred years. You think I'm going to find the answers?"
"If anyone can do it, it's you,” said Manuel with a wink.
* * * *
Three days later, Ellis, McClintlock, and G'Liat found themselves in the bustling streets of Tokyo. Tokyo of the thirtieth century filled most of the islands of Japan. While many of the other, ancient cities still maintained their names they were little more than suburbs of the mammoth island-city. The three travelers made their way from the spaceport toward the offices of the TransGalactic Mapping Corps via a combination of rail and foot. The TransGalactic Mapping Corps was one of many companies that collected data for the Gaean Mapping Service. Clyde McClintlock, used to the rolling hills and open spaces of Sufiro, was in awe of the city around him. G'Liat simply felt a sensation akin to claustrophobia.
On the trip from Rd'dyggia, they decided it was safest to avoid the North American continent where McClintlock's followers were most numerous. Although Clyde wanted to see his followers and give them encouragement, even he agreed that doing so would slow them down considerably. In fact, Ellis persuaded McClintlock to take on a new persona to avoid such trouble. On the trip to Earth, G'Liat dyed the evangelist's hair black.
Even stronger than Clyde McClintlock's desire, Ellis wanted to see old Coffin and the family home. He wanted to take the boat out and visit with Richard. Like McClintlock, though, Ellis knew that to do so would only hamper the search. Ellis wondered what the stoic G'Liat thought of leaving Rd'dyggia behind.
The home of the TransGalactic Mapping Corps was a skyscraper in the Shikoku Sector. The trio stepped through the front door of the massive glass and plastic structure. The receptionist, sitting behind a simple wooden desk, was a hulking giant of a man. Based on his age, Ellis presumed he must be a retired Sumo wrestler.
"Welcome to TransGalactic Mapping, how may I help you gentlemen?” asked the receptionist.
"We would like to sign up for a mapping expedition,” stated Ellis, bluntly.
"So would every other reprobate out on the streets of the city,” said the receptionist. Ellis sighed, looking down at the clothes provided by Arepno. They were neat enough, but somewhat casual for the norm in Tokyo. The receptionist put out his hands. “If you hand me your résumés, I'll make sure they are forwarded to the appropriate office."
Ellis started to hold out the disk, but G'Liat caught the commander's hand. “We wish to present our applications to Ms. Meiji in person."
"I don't think so,” said the receptionist as he stood. Ellis had horrible visions of the bouncer he had encountered the last time he was on Earth.
"Tell Ms. Meiji, that G'Liat of Rd'dyggia wishes to speak with her.” With that, G'Liat presented the receptionist with a card. Ellis recognized the writing on the card as Rd'dyggian. The receptionist stared at it for a moment, then nodded to the warrior. He left without a word.
McClintlock stared at G'Liat for several moments. “What was written on the card?"
"Let it suffice to say that having been to Earth a few times, I've developed a handful of connections.” G'Liat turned and found an uncomfortable plastic seat.
Ellis followed. To him, the seats were not as uncomfortable as they were to someone of the Rd'dyggian's bulk. “Awfully convenient that you have a friend working for the mapping corps."
"Not a friend, exactly,” said G'Liat with a faraway look. “In fact, I've never even met Ms. Meiji. Let's just say, we've heard of each other."
Ellis pursed his lips and folded his arms. He desperately wanted to retrieve his pipe, or better yet, a cigar. However, in Tokyo, the tobacco ban was enforced more heavily than any other place on the planet. In fact, G'Liat had insisted that Ellis leave his tobacco on Rd'dyggia. Ellis had wondered about the request at the time, since most people didn't care about possession. Now, as he sat in an office building in Tokyo, he began to understand. He grew nervous about the pipe and tobacco hidden in his duffel at the hotel.
The receptionist returned after what seemed an hour. He wore a vaguely surprised expression. “Ms. Meiji will see you now,” he announced.
The trio followed the receptionist through a hall to a lift, which took them up through the structure. The lift came to a stop on a floor near the top of the building. They were led out into an expansive room littered with waist-high pedestals. Over each pedestal floated stars and grid lines. The holographic projections were the aids used by every human-built star vessel in the galaxy to navigate.
Standing near the center of the room was a well-dressed, slender woman. She came forward, extending her hand to G'Liat. “It's good to meet you, at last,” she said with a voice that sounded far too timid. The receptionist bowed slightly and departed through the lift.
"May I present Ms. Meiji,” said G'Liat. “Senior mathematician for TransGalactic."
Ellis and McClintlock each shook Meiji's hand. She led them through a veritable maze of holo-maps to comfortable leather chairs in front of a simple wooden desk. “What can I do for you?” she asked without ceremony.
"I've come to ask a favor.” G'Liat's Rd'dyggian accent became more pronounced.
"Rd'dyggians don't usually need to ask humans for favors. We'll have to see if this is a favor I can grant.” Her face remained nearly expressionless.
"You can, at least, tell us whether or not my request is possible,” said the warrior, imitating a smile. The mathematician nodded ascent. “We would like to sign aboard one of your mapping vessels."
"That should not be too difficult,” said Meiji. “We are preparing to send out the Ogilby Fleet in about six weeks. We are still looking to fill several key posi
tions.” She held out her slender hand. “Let me see your résumés."
Ellis handed the wafer-like disk to the woman. She eyed the old disk skeptically for a moment, then took it away, undoubtedly to a reader somewhere else in the office. Coming back a few minutes later, she viewed the disk contents using the holo terminal on her desk. “Lieutenant John Mark Ellis,” she said slowly. “I see you commanded a destroyer. Why should I hire you for a mapping mission?"
"I'm looking forward to new challenges,” piped Ellis. “I admit, a mapping vessel is quite different from a military ship, but I'm sure I can learn."
"You've been in a command position,” said Meiji, leaning slightly forward. “We likely as not, have no such openings, how do you feel about taking the back seat to someone."
"After commanding a ship, it won't be easy,” admitted Ellis. Internally, he debated whether or not he should push for a command position. From the background, it would be extremely difficult to hunt the Cluster. Still, it was better to get into a position where he might encounter the Cluster than not. Certainly it was better than being first officer in the military where his decisions and independent thoughts would, at best, be tolerated. “I took orders a lot longer than I gave them. I can adjust and I want to learn."
Meiji looked at the disk in her hand and her lip turned up slightly. “You are from Nantucket. Did you ever sail with a man named Samuel Coffin?"
Ellis’ eyes went wide. “I know Old Man Coffin very well. He was one of my favorite teachers."
Without expression, she continued scanning the disk. She looked at McClintlock. “You look familiar, Mr. McIntosh.” Clyde McClintlock shifted uncomfortably under her gaze. Meiji said nothing further. Undoubtedly, she had seen McClintlock's face on the news. Inwardly, Ellis congratulated himself on thinking up McClintlock's alias and phony background. If nothing else, it gave her pause when addressing the colonel. Also, McClintlock's white hair had been such a striking feature, the simple color change seemed extremely effective.
"I'm not sure where you would have seen me,” said McClintlock putting on his best Sufiro drawl. “I've been a cook in Nuevo Santa Fe for a number of years."
"Good cooks are hard to come by on mapping ships.” Meiji scowled. “The money isn't very good. Why would you want to sign aboard a space vessel?” The real beauty of the alibi, thought Ellis, was that Meiji could call Ellison Firebrandt, the commander's grandfather and he would happily confirm the story without question.
"I want to get out and see the stars.” McClintlock smiled his warm, trusting smile.
"Not much to see,” said Meiji. “There are few windows aboard interstellar space vessels, Mr. McIntosh."
"Suits me,” said McClintlock. “I might get space sick."
Meiji snorted almost indistinctly. Finally she looked at G'Liat. “I think you are a little over-qualified for any position."
"We should talk in private,” said G'Liat, deeply solemn. Meiji nodded. With that, she and the Rd'dyggian stood and left for another part of the office. McClintlock looked questioningly at Ellis. Ellis simply shrugged in response. At last, the warrior and the mathematician returned. The Rd'dyggian moved slowly and gracefully so Meiji would not have to move quickly to keep up.
"You three are quite a group.” Meiji put her hands behind her back. “Mr. Ellis, you will command the TMV Nicholas Sanson, flagship of the Ogilby fleet. I will get you signed up for the appropriate briefings. From your résumé, I see that you understand command. Also, Samuel Coffin is one of the best navigators I know. The fact that you studied with him has influenced my decision. However, you have a lot to learn about mapping vessels.” She turned on her heel and faced McClintlock. “Mr. McIntosh, you will be the cook on Sanson."
"What about G'Liat?” asked Ellis.
"Sanson maintains an official representative of the owners. G'Liat will be on her staff,” said Meiji. “All of this is pending the collection of several favors, but all of you have records strong enough to support this decision. That, and G'Liat's recommendation, make me feel that this is not too stupid."
"Thank you,” said G'Liat with a slight bow. With a motion, the warrior led the trio out of the office.
As they stepped out of the building, Ellis noticed it was twilight. Soon the stars would appear. Not long after, Ellis would return to his rightful place among them.
Part III
The Search in Space
At last, the great thunderbird spoke. “What do we do? I like these humans. They respect us and pray to us. When they dream of us, they gain some of our power. That power makes them relatives of ours in a way."
-From the Brule Sioux legend of the Great Thunderbird.
A TALL SHIP AND A STAR TO STEER HER BY
Suki Firebrandt Ellis and Manuel Raton chartered a small sailboat for the trip from Hyannis Port to Nantucket. As they came into port at the island, Manuel shook his head. “Will you look at that? It's almost exactly like Roanoke."
Fire nodded and smiled. She hadn't realized just how much she missed Nantucket until she saw the white and gray buildings superimposed on the greenery of the island. She pointed out a seagull hovering near one of the sails.
Manuel laughed. “Do you know how long it's been since I've seen a real bird? I almost forgot about them."
Old Man Coffin met Fire and Manuel at the pier. He helped them carry their belongings to the old Ellis house. As they unpacked, Coffin seemed to be in a dark mood. Fire took Coffin and Manuel to a restaurant in the village for lobster. As they ate, Coffin looked to Fire. “I'm glad you're back. I guess I'll need to pack my things and move back to the shack."
Fire's glass of wine stopped midway to her lips. She set it down slowly. “Why?"
"Well,” began Coffin, “seeing as you are back, I didn't think you'd want me kicking around the old house."
"Nonsense,” said Fire. Manuel turned to look at Fire. She kicked him in the ankle making him swallow a bit of lobster too quickly.
"Of course not,” sputtered Manuel. “You're welcome to stay."
The next day, Fire walked to the offices of the Maria Mitchell Association. She was met with gasps of surprise. “We were getting ready to put out a new job ad,” explained Dorothy Harriman, the observatory director. “We thought you'd decided to stay on Sufiro forever."
Fire sighed and bit her lower lip. “Go ahead and write that ad,” she said, almost sadly. “But, don't place it yet. I haven't decided whether or not I'm back permanently or not."
Harriman whistled. “So, you really like it out there on that frontier planet?"
"It's home,” explained Fire.
"So, why'd you come back?” Harriman rubbed liver-spotted hands together. Fire suspected that Harriman secretly coveted the Association Directorship.
"This is home, too.” Fire shrugged. She went to her office and turned on the computer and was confronted by more mail than she wanted to deal with. She was tempted to delete the entire list. Thinking better of it, she saved it aside and opened a holographic viewscreen to the Earth Library database. She began a search for books having to do with the Titans.
* * * *
Although John Mark Ellis knew the importance of stellar mapping vessels, he had never actually seen one until the day he was to take command of the TMV Nicholas Sanson. It was true that he had seen his share of holographic pics and vids, but nothing could compare to the view he had as he approached the ship aboard a TransGalactic shuttle from Earth. The military vessels he was familiar with were little more than functional black cylinders bristling with gun ports; a single glowing, blue Erdon-Quinn generator dominated the back of the ship. The ship Ellis saw through the view port was nothing like that. This new ship simply took his breath away.
During the previous six weeks, John Mark Ellis had spent time studying mapping vessels. As such, he knew that everything he saw had a purpose. Still, the almost feminine curves of this new ship aroused a sense of wonder within the captain. It seemed inappropriate to name the ship, “Nicholas.” The sh
ip was still a cylinder, but eight fan-like sensor arrays swept back toward the vessel's stern. Ellis couldn't help but think of sails when he saw the sensor arrays pivoting subtly, sensing the gravitational interactions of many stars. Each of those arrays controlled a seemingly petite EQ generator. The glow from each surrounded the ship like a halo. Military ships were built for powering their way through the fourth dimension to a new location. This ship was built for precision rather than power. It would feel its way along, charting the subtleties of gravity's ever-changing pathways, ultimately allowing all other ships to thrust their way through the void.
G'Liat and McClintlock were already aboard the Sanson. McClintlock had spent five of the past six weeks brushing up on his cooking skills. Fortunately, his military training had included some time in the mess hall, learning how to cook for large numbers of people. Growing up on Sufiro, he had learned how to make food taste good. He went aboard Sanson about a week before to get familiar with the kitchen.
G'Liat had been summoned aboard Sanson by the owner's representative almost immediately. Ellis felt uncomfortable that G'Liat had not been around to help plan for their voyage. The more he was alone, the more agitated Ellis became. One night, while on Earth, Ellis watched a news broadcast about a Zahari ship attacked by the Cluster. Seeing the image of the Cluster, the captain couldn't help but think of the numbing effect it had on his mind. Ellis sucked noisily on his pipe stem, hoping G'Liat would be able to teach him how to cope with the sight. The last thing he wanted was to be paralyzed the next time he saw the spheres. Whether the paralysis was due to fear or some hypnotic effect didn't seem to matter. Still, the captain realized that the training time had been necessary. To carry out their goal, commanding Sanson would have to be second nature.
"We're preparing to dock, sir,” announced the shuttle pilot.
Ellis nodded ascent, settled back in the chair and smiled to himself. He had a ship to command. In principle, he could take it wherever he wanted. With it, he would find the Cluster and find out what the visions in his mind were. He would find out why the Cluster killed and try to use that knowledge to stop it. No longer did he have to answer to an admiral. The captain was lost so deeply in thought he didn't feel the shuttle latch onto the ship. He jumped when the pilot tapped him on the shoulder. “You may disembark, now, sir,” she said.
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