Dragon Fire (Galaxy On Fire Book 5)

by Craig Robertson

  I started to say yes, you’re in it but bailed because it was gratuitous. Not my style, and yes, I had a style.

  “Please explain,” came out instead.

  “We have run a lot of sims. Based on the age, metallicity, and direction it is traveling in, we have identified with over ninety-nine percent certainty precisely where the system originated in the Milky Way.”

  “Wow, that’s spectabulaous, Al. Now we know the answer to the question that was burning in absolutely no one’s mind.”

  “Hang on, oh pissy one,” said Sapale. “Al, why is this important?”

  “Thank you, Form Two,” he replied. “It is most welcome to have an adult aboard once again.”

  “Al, while we’re still young,” I chided.

  “We also ran sims of the three-body and even four-body interactions it would require to put this solar system right here, right now.”

  “Great, Al. You calculated where we are. That’s so … utterly useless because we already know where we are.”

  “Based on those sims, we can find no rational explanation as to why this solar system is where it is.”

  It took me a second, but then the significance of that bombshell struck me. “Hang on. You ran all possible sims for all the possible stars in the relevant part of our galaxy that could produce this system’s 3-D vector? Al, that’s a lot of calculations.”

  “Tell me about it.”

  “Why would you even think to run those calculations?”

  “Allow me to introduce us. We are AIs. The I stands for intelligence. There are two Is in intelligence. Blessing and me.”

  “And you checked the 3-D vectors of all possible interactive stars and none match? You think you found all possible candidates?”

  “We do.”

  “So, what are you telling me?”

  “That the laws of physics do not explain why this system is where it is. Alternately, it is impossible for us to be where we are.”

  “But we are,” added Sapale.

  “So it would seem,” replied Al. “There’s more. The orbits of the planets in this solar system are incorrect.”

  “Incorrect?” I whined. “What’s that supposed to mean? There’re no rights or wrongs about stupid planetary orbits.”

  “Ah, hello, Kepler’s three laws? The orbits must follow specific rules. They may not be random.”

  “You mean like how the presence of the outer planets in Earth’s solar system were predicted?”

  “Exactly. There is a problem with gravity in those two regards. Our location and the orbit of the planets,” Al concluded.

  “Have you tested gravity? Maybe it’s different here for some inexplicable reason,” I thought out loud.

  “Yes. We checked. Gravity is exactly as it should be.”

  “So, you’re saying there’s another planet in this system we’re not seeing?”

  “Yes, in part. The existence of an invisible planet would account for the orbital anomalies but not the fact that the system isn’t where it should be.”

  “Where’s the mystery planet?”

  “I’ll place a polar map in both your heads,” replied Al.

  A crude map of the orbits of the thirteen major planets in the system appeared. They whirred in their orbits with slower angular velocities the farther out they were from the central star.

  “These are the planets we observe. The missing planet would be located here.” A new ellipse colored in red appeared. It was immediately outside the orbit of Kalvarg. At that moment, the mystery planet was on the opposite side of the central star.

  “Als, why can’t you detect the planet aside from the perturbations in other planets’ orbits?”

  “That is unknown. We should obviously detect it,” replied Al.

  “It’s almost like magic,” added Stingray.

  I’d already learned a new rule. If you saw magic, think Deft. They were the sole species I’d ever encountered who could do whatever it was that constituted magic.

  “Place us in low orbit around that planet now,” I ordered.

  “We are above nothing, sir,” said Al seconds later.

  “Place a window in the direction of the planet below,” I said.

  Nothing. There wasn’t even a spot of nothingness, like when the vortex moved in a full membrane. I could see stars continually from above the planet, through it, and below it where the planet had to be.

  “This is crazy,” said Sapale.

  “Welcome to my ongoing nightmare.”

  “My but you’re given to dramatic hyperbole, Pilot,” observed Al.

  “Can we land on the planet?” I asked.

  “What planet? Sensors show there is nothing down there.”

  “I know. But can you reconstruct surface topology based on the gravitational distortions?”

  “We cannot be that precise,” responded Al.

  “I have an idea,” I announced.

  “That generally means trouble,” replied Al.

  “Stingray, open a ten-centimeter circular hole in an external wall. I will stick my hand out while holding Risrav. Descend to the surface with the rune leading the way.”

  “Isn’t that rock presently in your scrotum?” asked Al with clear trepidation.

  “Yeah. But it’s clean.”

  “TMI, plus gross, plus I’m going to close my eyes,” he responded.

  “Ya big baby.”

  A small hole appeared in the hull. I retrieved the rune and held it in front of the cube. We advanced slowly under impulse drive.

  “Captain, we will impact the surface in ten … nine … eight … permission to halt.”

  “Denied. Proceed.”

  “Three … two …”

  “Form One, a portion of a planet has just materialized below us. I am slowing for a soft landing,” announced Stingray.

  “I knew it,” I muttered to myself.

  “You knew what?” asked Sapale.

  “I smelled a Deft trick with this whole hiding a planet thing.”

  “But the Deft are gone … except for the three we know of.”

  “Als, approximately how long ago was this planet ejected from the galaxy?”

  “Half a million years, give or take,” replied Al.

  I turned to Sapale. “The Deft on this planet have been separated from the Deft of Locinar for a very long time. Even if our Deft once knew about them, they may have forgotten them by now.”

  She nodded softly. “Possibly.”

  “Als,” I called out, “are there cities nearby?”

  “More like vast villages, but yes,” confirmed Al.

  “What’s the diff?” I asked.

  “City implies development and sophistication. The structures we detect are quite simple, and none are very tall. Hence, a very large village.”

  “Is anyone hailing us?”

  “Negative.”

  “Do they have radios and sophisticated electronics?” asked Sapale.

  “No artificial radio sources are evident. There is also no electrical grid.”

  “So, the Deft here have gone native,” I observed.

  “Or they prefer a simple lifestyle. Remember the human communities of the Amish and the Mennonite? Simplicity was a choice, not a failure to advance technologically,” said Al.

  “True. Well I guess we’re about to find out. Land us near what seems to be the highest concentration of huts, and let’s see what up,” I responded.

  “Aye, but for the record, they are well-crafted wooden structures, not thatched huts.” Al just had to get a dig in.

  “We are down, Form One,” said Stingray.

  “Is there a welcoming committee present yet?” I asked.

  “Negative,” she replied.

  “Hmm. Let’s give them a few minutes to find us and gather around. I’d rather meet them that way.”

  “Why does it matter, Pilot?” asked Al.

  “I don’t know what their reaction will be. I’d rather see them in a group around the ship. If we
wander out and find that they’d rather eat us than talk to us, we’d be at more risk.”

  “But, Form One, they couldn’t possibly consume you. You are made of inert mechanical components.” Stingray said.

  “It’s more an expression of intent than strictly a dietary observation,” I replied.

  “Ah.”

  “So, you have no clue what language they speak?”

  “No, Form One, we do not.”

  “It’ll be like ancient Deft, I’m fairly certain. Pull up what you know about that, and we’ll play it by ear.”

  “Travels with Jon,” remarked Sapale. “I’d forgotten how informal they could be.”

  “Informal, yet satisfying,” I returned.

  She smiled coyly. “That we shall just have to see.”

  Ten minutes later, a few figures were hanging out near the ship. I say hanging out because they weren’t pacing nervously or goose-stepping with weapons at the ready. It was like people checking out an accident that was almost completely cleared off the road. Hurt my feelings, I can say that. I was used to being an attraction, not a sideshow. I placed one tick in the I-don’t-like-this-place column of my mental ledger. After another five minutes, the small crowd that had gathered dispersed, leaving only one individual standing near Stingray. Whoever it was didn’t move, which added to the oddness of the situation.

  “Open the wall. I can’t stand the suspense. I need to find out who our solo welcoming party member is.”

  A portal snapped open in the direction of the figure. I stepped out in tandem with Sapale. There stood a shining platinum dragon, a tad smaller than Cala, but otherwise similar.

  I pointed to the dragon and said to Sapale, “Ah, there’s a mature Deft couple, like the one I told you about.”

  “Jon,” she replied dubiously, “that’s not a couple. That’s a single individual.”

  “It’s a hollon thing, sweetie. The single creature is the union of two adult Deft.”

  The platinum beauty was up until then completely still, much like Cala was when I first confronted her. But something we said got her to relax and speak.

  “I am not used to being described like a museum exhibit. I must say, if asked, I dislike the feeling.”

  “Oh, sorry. I’m Jon Ryannnn … and how come we understand each other so well? That should not be possible yet.”

  “You would not understand.”

  “Wanna bet? Loser buys the first round, okay?”

  “I do not wanna bet. We understand each other because of the magical power I control. I told you this revelation was beyond your comprehension.”

  “All right, make mine a double, because your buying. I know all about Deft magic.”

  “That is good to hear. What’s a Deft?”

  Huh? I pointed right at her. “You’re a Deft. You used to be two separate individuals, but you joined into one because you can shapeshift.”

  She got a skeptical look on her scaly face. “You know an awful lot about me, but I’m not a Deft. I’m a Plezrite.”

  “No, I’m gonna have to differ with you on that. You’re definitely a Deft.”

  “Jon, do you think it wise to argue such an obtuse point when we’re just establishing contact? I mean, if she says she’s not Deft but Plezrite, we should take her on her word,” asked Sapale. Silly worrywart.

  “Maybe I’m jumping ahead a bit.”

  “Maybe?”

  “Okay. Hi, I’m Jon Ryan. Who are you?” I asked our greeter.

  “Himanai.”

  “No, you’re not. Himanai-What, or What-Himanai?”

  “Do you always babble or are you capable of rational speech?” asked Himanai.

  “I’d pass on that question if I were you,” Sapale responded, rolling her eyes.

  “No, after hollon, the dragon takes the name of both the individuals who formed it.” Directed to the dragon I asked, “You know that, right?”

  “No. This conversation is most unusual. I hope you are not a typical representative of your species.”

  “Oh no, trust me here,” exclaimed the love of my life, “he is not.”

  “After hollon, which is never discussed openly or with strangers, a new name for the pair is selected.”

  I shrugged. “I’ll let it pass.”

  “How culturally sensitive of you, Jon Ryan,” she replied.

  “But you are a brindas, right?”

  Himanai literally took two steps back.

  “What?” I asked, dumbfounded.

  “You blaspheme as well as try and correct the correct? I’m am not certain this audience need go any longer.”

  “Please excuse my soft-brained husband,” said Sapale. “I believe he is so excited to meet you he forgets how to properly use his tongue.”

  “I can easily remedy that by removing the offending organ,” Himanai offered.

  “No, that won’t be necessary. I’ll control it for him,” responded Sapale. She gave me a Sapale’s-not-happy look to reinforce that commitment.

  “Why is it you are here?” asked Himanai. “In fact, how is it you are here? You should not have been able to know we are here.”

  “We knew you were present because of the gravitational disturbance your planet produced,” said Sapale.

  “Yes, that we were unable to tweak. Pity that the laws of nature don’t exclusively bend to magic.”

  “I’ll take your word on that,” I replied.

  That drew another suboptimal look from my soulmate.

  “We are here because of this.” I produced Risrav in the palm of my hand.

  “Where did you get that rune? It does not belong to you.”

  “It was lent to me by someone you do not know.” I decided to play it close to the vest, as these Deft were so screwy.

  “I was wondering why the High Council dropped the illusion of invisibility they maintain around Nocturnat.”

  “Nocturnat?” asked Sapale.

  “We call this planet Nocturnat,” Himanai replied.

  “You mean that’s the planet’s name?” I tried to clarify. Not sure why I felt it was needed, but there it was.

  “No. You’d have to ask the planet what its name is. We call it Nocturnat.”

  Double screwy planet full of a bunch of hippies.

  “That still leaves open the question as to why you are here? That you detected us is insufficient. If you are sentient, then you must have realized we wished to be left alone. To directly violate that desire is difficult to view as anything even remotely positive.”

  “Good point, but there’s more that you don’t understand,” I replied.

  “I stand here prepared to be enlightened,” she parried.

  “There are matters I am not free to discuss.”

  “Again, I find it hard to assign positive intentions to such reservations.”

  I raised my hands. “No. You’ll understand in time and look back on this and wonder why I said as much as I did. You’ll probably laugh about it.”

  “Unlikely on both assumptions. Why, I ask for the final time, are you here?”

  “That a Def … Plezrite colony exists is justification alone.”

  “Clearly it is not. What concern is it of yours, either way?”

  “Again, there are aspects of our discovery that I cannot address. Please know I am deeply concerned about your species.”

  “Fine, you love us to death. What are you here to accomplish?”

  Wow, she had my commitment to diplomacy. Somewhere between zero and none. “To know you exist.”

  “And you now know. Let me be the first to say good-bye to you then.”

  “Wait. No. Don’t you want to learn about us? Don’t you want to know what an alien is doing with a magical rune?”

  “Let me see. No and no. Now back to good-bye.”

  “Why were you so offended by the word brindas, friend Himanai?” asked Sapale evenly.

  She didn’t retreat, but she clearly took umbrage at the word. “As aliens, I must allow for some off-behav
ior. We have no brindas on Nocturnat. We never have. The religious cult inside the world of magic was rejected by our forbearers. It is good that they did. Please let that word pass from you minds.”

  “But you do magic,” I stated. “Isn’t a brin … wise teacher helpful in that regard?”

  “We teach ourselves. Teaching does not require dogma or a call for devotion or submission to rules that task reason.”

  Pilgrims. The Plezrite were religious—or rather—atheistic pilgrims. But these guys and gals took a whole planet with them, not the tiny Mayflower.

  “Your ancestors used their magic to throw Nocturnat out of the galaxy, didn’t they?”

  Again, with the two steps back. “You cannot know that.”

  “Of course, I can. I do, so I can. Your planet is moving along an impossible path. Gravitational effects had to be overruled to establish that path.”

  “Damn gravity again. I wish it wasn’t so inflexible,” mused Himanai.

  “I’ll tell you what else I know. The Plezrite fled the galaxy to avoid contact with the remainder of their species, the Deft. It was a religious schism, wasn’t it?”

  “You tread far into realms you have no business nosing about in. I am not sure your departure is as desirable on a personal level as I found it a short while ago.”

  That didn’t sound to hopeful, now did it? I was beginning to wonder if Risrav countered only Varsir magic, or if it worked for magic in general. It was suddenly a rather crucial distinction.

  “Once again, I’m going to have to differ with you on a point of order,” I responded. “We are leaving now. I have gained the information I require to take my next action. Any further contact with you will come from a different representative if additional contact is desired.” I had slipped into my bad-ass tone of voice. I wanted to be clear I intended to have it my way.

  “Jon Ryan, I just realized I have been an inexcusable host. What, for instance, is your lovely bride’s name?”

  “Her name,” I answered for Sapale, “is SeeYouLater.”

  “And really, you must stay for refreshments. If you know anything of our species, then you know of our famous agatcha. I’m certain mine is the best in the cosmos.” She waved us to join her. “Come, I still owe you the first round of spirits.”

  “Gonna take a double raincheck, Himanai. Don’t think it hasn’t been real.”