The gnome was, however, still alive. His short arms wildly whirled around and by means of his mental powers he still managed to break and overturn some statues. The entire temple complex was shaken to its foundation. Cracks formed in the walls and ceiling of the dome, but the Kokradian was no longer able to focus his mental energy. Terrible screams accompanied his end.
Herimos and Ramir sought shelter in a wall niche and watched the gruesome spectacle in silence. Then suddenly it became silent around them.
»What happened?« asked Ramir exhausted.
»We have found the Jamal-Comb!« replied Herimos pleased and pointed upward. »Shanthier had hidden it in the old star map. All we need to do is to get it down from up there.«
»Will you also burn, like this ... terrible being?« asked Ramir, looking at the charred body of his alleged mentor, but the Herimos calmed him.
»I’ve already touched a Jamal-Comb such as this one before and still have my furry skin.«
Nevertheless, Herimos seemed pondering.
»The combs show under mental presence some interaction, as far as we know, but this effect is new. Perhaps, the violent reaction was caused by the amalgamated degenerate technology with a being with strong mental powers.«
»Degenerated technology?« Ramir asked perplexed. »I don’t understand.«
The scientist waved his hand, pushed the fragments of the goddess aside and examined the Kokradian carefully. The alien lay strangely twisted on the ground, his snout wide open, displaying his fearsome teeth. Even if one could never be absolutely sure when dealing with other species’ unknown anatomy, Herimos recognized at a glance that the Kokradian was dead. The body was disfigured beyond recognition and charred from the inside out.
»This strong reaction is frightening and at the same time remarkable,« growled Herimos softly. »The Jamal-Comb and its powers are much stronger than the degenerated technology. This is a very appropriate safety mechanism.«
Ramir had very little interest in the Kokradian’s fate. Although, the unexpected appearance of the gnome had frightened him, he was confused.
»Do you still hear the voices in your head?« Herimos asked while pondering how he could remove the comb from the star map. It was far out of reach for him.
»Ramir listened inwardly. »No, I can’t hear anything, no voices!«
»That could mean that there was only one of them on India, but we can’t be sure,« Herimos suggested.
Ramir took Herimos by the arm who twitched slightly from the touch. However, the touch was weak; he could shake off his hand effortlessly. Herimos looked into Ramir’s eyes.
»I know what you want. You want to clench your thirst for knowledge and now demand that I fulfill my promise?«
»You gave me your word!« insisted Ramir. »This is the right place for a revelation!«
Herimos smiled thinly. It seemed to Ramir that Herimos suddenly looked at him with new eyes. Despite his harsh facial expression, Herimos displayed a sudden pity. He struggled with himself. Then his face brightened. He put his arm on Ramir’s shoulder and smiled at him.
»Our little adventure was a dream,« Herimos just said to him.
»What?« Ramir asked almost in anger. »A dream?«
There was no doubt, Ramir was very disappointed.
»You want to cheat me?«
Herimos took a step back.
»I was never here. There are no secrets, I could share with you. You’ll wake up in the arms of your wife, one day command a battleship and forget about me soon.«
»You don’t want to tell me?« Ramir shouted at him angrily. »What are you hiding from me?«
»I’m not hiding anything, young friend.«
The Herimos’ voice suddenly seemed to come from a great distance, it faded more and more until Ramir could barely hear it. Herimos’ contours blurred before his eyes and the temple hall transformed back into a place of peace, as if no fight had ever taken place at this location. The goddess Synthia turned gracefully beneath the ancient star map, pulling her holographic veils along with her.
»That’s not possible,« muttered Ramir and was suddenly very sleepy. »I now know that something is wrong with my world! I won’t forget you! Herimos ...?«
Time is running out
The painful groans of the scientist could be heard for over an hour. Vasina of Atlantika, Toiber Arkroid and Lai Pi circled the recovery tank and watched anxiously, how automatically operating medical probes, removed countless fragments of degenerated technology from his body, destroying them immediately in the process. Herimos was enveloped by a protection field that sealed him from the outer world. He was still under quarantine.
»How do you feel, my friend?« Pi asked and watched speechless and wide-eyed, how a tentacle-like probe, removed a ten-centimeter-long fragment from Herimos’ chest and immediately destroyed it by means of a high-powered energy field.
Herimos clenched his teeth. Despite the advanced medical treatment, it still was without doubt a painful endeavor.
»Well, how does one feel if you’re confronted with this horrific technology that tried to drill through your body to infect it? I can imagine more pleasant things. After this experience, I would even voluntarily throw myself into a nest of bone-marrow-slurpers which are nearing their fertility flight,« he replied moaning.
Pi knit his eyebrows and watched the operation worriedly on a holographic terminal.
»Without the nanopod-body-armor, which the ZyClonians provided you with, the mission would have been much more difficult. It’s almost a twist of fate that the degenerated technology is incompatible with your genes, Herimos,« Vasina said. Her words were supposed to cheer him up, but Herimos just grimaced under pain.
»This was the Progonaut way to say thank you for your unselfish service,« joked Arkroid and winked briefly. »The procedure will take a while. Why don’t you tell us what you’ve experienced down there? We’re still in orbit around India, albeit at a safe distance.«
»This world is Hell,« Herimos groaned. »The degenerated technology is everywhere and has overgrown every inch of the planet. The Temple of Synthia, although decayed as all other buildings in the capital, was the only place where this ulcer could not spread. After I watched the infected Kokradian die before my eyes, I knew why. The Jamal-Combs are incompatible to the parasitic technology.«
»What about the Progonauts of India?« Vasina asked with a trembling voice.
»It’s depressing for me to describe it. The population is alive, but is caught in a constant dream on a dying world,« Herimos said in a sad voice. »The Progonauts walk across the surface of their infested planet and live their lives as if nothing had happened. They believe that they live in their glorious past. Their eyes are open, but their senses are blinded. They do not see the devastation around them. They don’t perceive the ongoing decay of their world. The own physical condition, or of other Progonauts, doesn’t affect them. This perception disorder is caused by the degenerated technology. Most Progonauts are in a kind of lethargy and are hardly responsive. They seem to me like machines and not like thinking beings. Nevertheless, a few Progonauts still have a residual consciousness, which, however, can only sporadically break through the surface. Just as in this case, I was able to exploit Ramir’s inner doubt and by means of the nanobot interface gain access to the degenerated technology and Ramir’s life and thoughts. I could therefore reach him, because his mind was in a temporary imbalance. This was a unique opportunity. At a later stage, the degenerated technology would definitely have taken over his body again, perhaps within a short time.«
Vasina closed her eyes for a moment.
»Is it possible to save the population and reverse the infection or cure them as in your case?«
Herimos looked at her with sad eyes.
»There’s no hope for this world and its inhabitants, no escape. All life down there is infected. The biotechnological linkage between the Progonaut genes and the degenerated technology is profound and no longer reversible. Anyone
who dares to land on the planet will pay dearly and be violently assimilated and enslaved. The spores of the degenerated technology can be found everywhere. In the air, in the contaminated oceans, in the houses ... There is no safe place on India. The population has little in common with the original Progonauts. The bodies of all individuals are through and through infected by the parasitic technology. The infection prevents aging of their bodies. Probably every Progonaut has already dreamed through multiple, virtual life cycles. They grow up; go about their studies to then fly with a ship into space. These cycles, however, take place only in their imaginations, and they seem to be caught in an endless loop. Many of them are already thousands of years old, which can be observed without examination. Without the degenerated technology, they would collapse and die on the spot. There are barely functioning old-technologies on India. The planet is covered with ruins and crumbling buildings. The roads are clogged with broken-down vehicles. Only a few of them are roadworthy, most are defective. However, everything appears normal in the eyes of the Progonauts on India. Although, the Progonaut technology is very robust and some of it still active, the decline is unstoppable and inevitable. The former industrial plants and robot factories no longer work and are defunct. It’s a complete mystery to me, what purpose this virtual life could have. There are no spaceships, no ambitions to leave the degenerated technology behind. India is a closed system, a microcosm in which the former population still believes to live in Shanthier’s times.«
Vasina put her hand to her mouth, muffling her scream of horror. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she saw the projection of the planet.
While Nautilus displayed India so as it really was, a radio-active world, veiled by dirty yellow clouds, the infected Progonauts on the surface possibly lived through a sunny summer day.
»This is a cruel and perverted torture!« sobbed Vasina. »Why didn’t you tell Ramir the truth?«
Herimos breathed heavily and swallowed several times. The fate of the young Ramir touched him.
»I wanted to do it first, but I came to the conclusion that it was completely pointless. I could not save, carry, and or detach Ramir from the network-like system of degenerated technology. I wanted him to complete this short adventure without a burden. After I left the planet via the ZyClonian micro-portal and the connection was lost, Ramir fell right back into his old life.
The degenerated technology dominates him and I could let his senses see the truth only for a brief moment, thus give his mind a chance to develop. Would I go back now, he could not see or recognize me. Nevertheless, I am grateful to him because he helped me locate the Jamal-Comb. I still needed to use my plasma weapon to cut a fragment from the dome. That didn’t matter much as the dome was almost destroyed anyway by the on-going decay. I was finally able to free the comb from the debris. I carry it with me.«
Arkroid drew a heavy sigh.
»We’re extremely grateful to you that you have taken on this dangerous mission. You’re the only one on board who’s immune to the infection. However, your mission wasn’t taken for granted.«
»The question remains, what is the purpose of this life in India?« Pi verbalized his thoughts. »Infest all life forms on the planet to simulate a normal life in the end? That seems absurd to me.«
»We know too little about the degenerated technology to understand why it’s used this way,« Vasina replied thoughtfully.
»I used to think also that this infection is a kind of weapon of the invaders to make their victims obedient. After my mission to India, I’ve changed my mind. I’m now of the opinion that the degenerated technology has a consciousness, maybe it’s an artificial intelligence, as much as Nautilus. I think this technology wants to connect with organic life forms to comprehend their way of life,« Herimos announced.
The energy barrier had just disappeared and Herimos was released from quarantine. Carefully, he straightened up and got out of the decontamination tank.
»I removed all traces of degenerated technology. Herimos is restored and back to normal,« Nautilus announced with a happy undertone.
Herimos rubbed his chest and growled in pain.
»I believe you only when I feel like it. I’m lucky that the degenerated technology didn’t embed itself to form neuronal interfaces, otherwise I would’ve certainly gone to the Gardens of Heroes with a nice afterglow when touching the Jamal-Comb,« Herimos remarked sarcastically.
Herimos handed Vasina the Jamal-Comb, which shone brightly when brought together with the other four. The entire room was bathed in a bright, blue light.
»Now we have all five of them together,« concluded Herimos. »So, what happens next?«
Herimos looked at Toiber Arkroid.
Arkroid seemed to be lost in thought and finally said, »We need to return to the Solar System as quickly as possible. Time is running out!«
Did you dream something nice
As Ramir awoke, he looked into the face of his wife. Skinna gave him a warm smile and stroked him gently through the hair.
»Did you sleep well?«
Ramir wiped the sleep from his eyes and pressed a kiss on her lips before he said, »So deep as seldom before.«
»What’s your schedule for today?« Skinna asked and looked at her husband with pleasure who lounged in bed, not quite ready yet get up.
»We could stay a little longer in bed today. I’ll make up for it easily by midday. I’m ahead of all the others anyway.
Skinna dropped her gown and slipped under the blanket.
»We haven’t done this for quite some time,« she whispered in his ear.
»Well, then it’s about time,« Ramir replied and cuddled her, »don’t you think?«
»Absolutely,« she laughed and kissed him again. Then she seemed pondering for a moment and asked him, »Did you dream something nice?«
Ramir looked surprised.
»Strange, that you ask me that. I really dreamt something.«
»Really?« she asked interested. »I hope, I played a part in it!«
Ramir grinned.
»You know how it is with dreams. After waking up you still think of them, but if you don’t write them down immediately, then they’re lost.«
»You forgot already?« she asked regretfully.
Ramir thought for a second, and then shook his head.
»Unfortunately, but if it was something important then I’ll certainly remember it again.«
Skinna snuggled up to him.
»I’ll give you something you can dream about to all eternity ...«
30 - The Great Tremor
Written by Thomas Rabenstein
Fly us home
The team was captivated by the bright aura. Pulsating lights enveloped the five Jamal-Combs and lit up the command central. Toiber Arkroid closed his sensitive eyes.
The five golden combs felt cold and metallic to the touch, they drew energy from an unknown source, which partially revealed itself through photon energy.
The visible spectrum was, however, not the only band in which the combs were radiating. Shortly after Herimos had returned from the planet India, Nautilus registered dangerous interferences. An analysis of the occurring failures showed clearly that the Jamal-Combs radiated strongly within the tachyon band, affecting the faster-than-light propulsion system as well as the sensors.
»I do not feel well,« said the Nautilus to the crew. »The radiation had increased already massively after the fourth comb was recovered. Since the fifth comb came on board, I can feel them physically.«
Nautilus understands the entire ship as its body, Toiber Arkroid thought. The vessel’s compartments, the floors, even the seats, are energy-matter projections. The creators of the Techno-Clerics have made an exceptional design.
I take it as a compliment, Arkroid suddenly heard the ship’s voice in his head using the mental bridge. As commander of the ship, he was always linked to Nautilus using a neuronal link.
Arkroid smiled. Then he said, »Of course, I’m worried if the combs mess wi
th your functions, but we must quickly return to the Solar System and cannot afford any further delays.«
As an immediate reaction, a small and inconspicuous box appeared next to Vasina, which Nautilus had formed of pure energy. The expedition members were already familiar with such processes. The ship of the Techno-Clerics was the most adaptable spacecraft in the known universe.
Using energy-matter transformation, the ship was not only capable of creating furnishings or hull shapes, but it could also create technical equipment, which appeared out of nowhere.
Sometimes, it seems to me like magic, Arkroid thought impressed.
Believe me, Arkroid, Nautilus replied, for some galactic people, who still live in the pre-tachyon age, even faster-than-light space travel is magic or is considered a myth.
Tell me about it, Arkroid thought and winked at Pi as the copilot could also follow the mental communication between Arkroid and the ship.
»What is this box?« Paafnas asked and took a closer look. The encasement seemed innocent and didn’t reveal anything about its role.
»This is a tachyon safe. Please, put the Jamal-Combs inside this box until we arrive in the Solar System, otherwise, I cannot guarantee a safe and timely passage. The radiation interferes with my navigation and the tachyon field which will keep us on the center track.«
Vasina looked at the box skeptically.
»Uh … this box will prevent the interferences?«
»This little box is an enclosure which can shield the various tachyon bands that are affected by the Jamal-Combs,« said Kuster~Laap. »Naad and Nood have just confirmed this.«
Arkroid nodded and bowed forward.
»There remains the question from where the combs draw their energy and why they interact with one another in such a way.«
NEBULAR Collection 6 - The Great Tremor: Episodes 27 - 30 Page 31