Sentients Of Orion: Transformation Space Part 21

'Hold hands, she ordered. She grasped Thaless fingers, her own cool and dry against his. He reached out for Fariss, and she engulfed his hand with her huge grip. The woman inched into the dark shrubbery along the side of the house.

They stopped and started a few times, b.u.mping into each other. Branches brushed their legs, and the ground became uneven.

Finally, she stopped and let go of Thaless hand to kneel down in front of a large shadowy object.

Thales could hear rather than see her push the bushes aside from it: the soft crack of the breaking twigs, her even softer cursing. And then faint sc.r.a.ping noises as she turned some type of pump handle.

Fariss was still holding his hand. Her grip tightened when lights flooded the yard. She pulled Thales down into the cover of the bushes in the time it took him to comprehend what had happened.

Voices drifted around the side to them, clear and curt. 'Weve not seen your runaways here, Politic. The voice sounded honest and anxious-an older man.

The woman had done the right thing by not taking them into the house.

'Stand aside while we inspect your yard, said the robe in reply.

'Mind the garden, said the homeowner. 'We supply the Sophos offices with lilies. Wouldnt do to damage them.

'Wheres your wife? asked the robe, ignoring the mans warning.

'Shes at work. Wont be home till the dinners cleaned up.

'Work?

'The Mount Clement clinic.

'Scrubber?

The man didnt answer immediately. 'Galley supervisor, he said eventually.

Thales felt a tug on his arm, then the womans mouth close to his ear. 'Get... down... in here. Her words were so faint he barely heard them.

He pulled his hand from Farisss and reached forward. The soil crumbled away and he felt a smooth edge of catoplasma.

'Hurry, she whispered again.

Thales contorted his body round and slipped his legs over the edge as the Robes left the veranda. His feet dangled for a moment before connecting with a ledge, and beneath it another ledge-a rough stairway of some kind built into the catoplasma, leading to an underground chamber.

He climbed down as quickly as he could, not wanting Fariss to be left in the open. Within moments, her large feet were following him. As soon as her head was below the catoplasma lip, the opening closed, and they lost all light.

They both landed in a tumble on the dry floor. Neither of them spoke as they disentangled their limbs from each other and listened.

Silence from above.

'OK, hon? whispered Fariss eventually.

Her concern had its usual anaesthetising effect. Somehow, it meant more to him than any of Renes slightly patronising attentions ever had.

'What is this? she asked.

'Underground water tank, I think, he said. 'All the houses had them in my hometown as well. They pipe the catoplasma into the ground and blow it out so it forms a bubble. It sets hard, and then they siphon rainwater in.

'They safe?

'Ive never been inside one before. He thought about it for a moment; remembered his father making him wait a distance from the house when theirs had been installed. 'I suppose so. The problem is the displacement. When they expand the catoplasma they run other pipes to suck the soil out. Usually the catoplasma moulds to the terrain. But sometimes theres a fault or a subsidence, and the whole thing shifts. Ive heard of them cracking under significant uneven pressure.

'Significant pressure, eh? Lets hope we dont get none of that.

'What do we do now?

Fariss reached for him and pulled him against her. 'Wait, Id say. At least for a while.

He moved closer and relaxed against her hard body. She smelled sweaty and stale, and wonderful.

Her hands slipped inside his robe, stroking his skin. He lay pa.s.sively in her arms. Fear and exhaustion and claustrophobia seeped away.

BALBAO.

They were taken to a cabin high in the ships structure. Despite the residual head and body ache from imperfect shift, Balbao took in as much of the surroundings as he could. This was a battleship, fully serviceable and worn from recent business, not something dragged from retirement because of the invasion. He noticed little signs-the well-lubed hatches and the working shelf locks.

Because of his observations, he had less of a surprise than the tyros when the captain turned out to be Lasper Farr, Commander of the Stain Wars.

Not all the tyros. He amended that thought. Ra of Lostol showed little reaction, and Labile Connit looked unhappy rather than shocked.

Lasper Farr, like all infamous 'esques, was less impressive in person than in myth. Balbao took in the lean, almost gaunt figure. Though he looked unimposing, something about him made Balbao entirely uncomfortable. It would be wrong, he thought, to underestimate him.

Farr looked along the line of them and offered Miranda a seat. His greeting cabin was spa.r.s.e and functional: a table and attached seats. He did not ask the rest of them to sit.

'Let me guess, he said. 'Dieter Seeward and Lawmon Jise. But who are you?

Balbao shifted under the penetrating gaze. 'Belle- Mondes Chief Astronomien. Balbao.

'Ahh, of course. So pleased you didnt disintegrate with your world, Balbao. Would be a shame to lose such an excellent scientist.

The Balol didnt believe for a moment that he meant what he said. Commander Farr, hed already decided, cared little for strangers.

But Balbao would not be intimidated. 'This is Ra of Lostol and Labile- 'Connit, finished Farr quietly. 'I know my own son, Chief Balbao. And Ra and I... have worked together on projects before.

Many glances were exchanged in the shocked silence that followed his statement-two revelations that almost made Balbao wish that hed perished on Belle-Monde. Had he been harbouring a member of Consilience? What mischief had Labile wrought? And Ra? Why had he been conspiring with Farr? His thoughts swirled in a way that made it difficult to extract answers.

Ra spoke first. 'Where is the device, Lasper? We must locate Sole.

Farrs face grew pinched with irritation. 'No thank you, Ra? No heartfelt grat.i.tude for the risk taken by me and my ship to keep you alive?

Ra stared at him steadily, his multicoloured insect eyes shining in the cabin light. 'It was not me you came to save, Lasper. It was your son.

'Dont underestimate your value to me, replied Farr, letting his lips curl into a small unreadable smile.

Ra relaxed a little.

Labile Connit, on the other hand, looked as Balbao felt: sick and tense, but not about to be trodden on. 'You are not my father, he insisted.

Farr regarded him steadily. 'You may not like it, Labile, but its the truth.

'Good Sole! exclaimed Miranda. 'What a pretty state of affairs. Im sure there is much to be caught up on, but firstly... thank you, Commander Farr. Can you tell us, are we quite safe now? Where are we?

Her brash interruption diverted Farrs attention.

'We managed to evade the Post-Species by using imperfect shift. We have taken casualties because of it. Not all the buffers withstood the untested vibration.

'A bold but necessary move, Commander, said Ra.

Farr was unimpressed by Ras declaration. 'Our only choice. The Post-Species have obliterated the systems they have reached. Those who heeded the alarms have closed their spheres. But I must thank you, Dieter Seeward. The virus you created was quite a success on Scolar, I believe. And because of that, their shift sphere is still open. We are on our way there now.

Every exposed piece of Mirandas flesh turned pink. 'We are going to Scolar?

All heads turned to her.

'Miranda? said Jise. 'What does the Commander mean?

Grim satisfaction settled on Lasper Farrs face. What did he know about Miranda Seeward, Balbao wondered, that even her colleague and lover Lawmon Jise did not?

'I would give you time to discuss your issues privately. Farr nodded at the guards.

They moved forward to escort Jise, Seeward, Ra and Balbao out of the room, leaving Connit.

Connit baulked, not wanting to be left with his father.

Ra, on the other hand, had no wish to leave the Commanders presence, and jerked from their grasp. 'Where is the device, Lasper?

Farrs lips pinched tight. 'Its gone. But you will make another for me soon.

'Gone? But Id need equipment, and- Two simple arm movements from Farr decreed they all leave his presence, and Ra was unable to finish.

Balbao marched between the guards, grateful to be away from Farr, but his relief faded quickly when he saw where they were to be left.

'We are not criminals, said Lawmon Jise to the guards. 'We are refugees whom your Commander chose to take aboard. How dare you treat us like this? The tyro was so outraged that he let go of Mirandas arm to push the guard.

A cuff from the soldier sent him sprawling into the containment cell. The rest of the refugees entered in shocked quiet, at gunpoint. Even Miranda was silent as she hurried over to Jise.

The containment field engaged, and they found themselves in a spa.r.s.e s.p.a.ce furnished with narrow fold-down bunks and a fold-down module that served as both washroom and san. There was no privacy, and the cell was already inhabited.

Two of the oldest 'esques Balbao had ever seen sat together on a single bunk. One, a woman with an impossibly lined face and an oddly toned physique, stared openly at them. The other, a man almost as aged, gazed after the guards.

The woman got up and came over, hand outstretched. 'Call me Samuelle. This is Jeremiah Hob. Whatever youve all done to p.i.s.s Lasper off, Im real grateful.

Balbao and the others stared at her.

'See, hes plannin to kill us. Then he had to go off dodging Extros to catch up with you all. Were bettin hes had too much else on his mind to think about us, she explained.

The male 'esque, Hob, slid off his bunk and began unfolding the others. 'Too much tellin, Sammy. Let 'em catch their breath.

He hobbled over to Jise and offered him a hand. 'Lets get you up on a bed.

OLOSSs most vaunted lawmon accepted the gnarled hand, and was helped to a bunk. 'Thank you, sir, said Jise in a shaky voice. 'Please excuse our disarray; weve had rather a rough time of it.

'When youre ready, said Hob, 'wed like to hear about it, and about whats happening out there. Could be our stories might interest you too. Could be we can help each other.

Balbao was taken with the old fellows dignified manner, as, he could tell, was Jise.

'Take a bunk, Balbao suggested to the others.

Everyone did so, except Ra, who paced the length of the containment. The old woman, Sammy, watched him, clearly fascinated by the G.o.dheads strange appearance.

'Where in the name of Crux did you get those eyes? Thought Id seen everythin, but I aint seen nothing like them, she said.

Her comment was straightforward, bordering on simple, but Balbao didnt think that was a reflection of her mind. Her sharp eyes were busy a.s.sessing everything. What in Soles name, he wondered, could this ancient and seemingly harmless couple have done to enrage Lasper Farr?

He leaned back against the wall and lifted his legs onto the bunk. As if on cue, a dreadful fatigue washed over him. 'Is there anything to drink?

Hob got up and went to the washing module. He pressed a panel, and a tube filled with water slid out of a slot. He twisted the tube from the dispenser and tossed it to Balbao. 'Dont take too long to drink it. The tube dissolves after a while so it cant be used for anythin. Anyone else?

Everyone except Ra murmured their a.s.sent. Hob busied himself doling the water out while Balbao drank his. It tasted faintly musty, as though the recycler need recalibrating. By the time hed finished it, some of his distress had faded.

He got off his bunk and dispensed another. Settling back to drink it, he began to talk. Jise and Miranda still seemed to be too upset, and Labile Connit looked as if he might be in shock. Ra appeared angry above all.

'Commander Farr rescued us from our lifeship in the Mintaka system. We are now, so we are told, on our way to Scolar.

'Scolar? Why there? asked old Sammy.

'We went through imperfect shift, didnt we? said Hob.

'Yes. Imperfect shift. I believe that biozoons use it, but Ive never heard of an OLOSS ship managing it.

'This aint no OLOSS ship, said Hob.

Balbao nodded. 'Indeed. As for why we are going to Scolar... He shrugged. 'Perhaps its the only place left with the shift sphere still functioning.

'What? they both cried.

'The Extros invaded Mintaka, destroyed our research station and an entire planet.

'A planet? Hob and Sammy stared at each other, faces crinkled with incredulity.

'Balbao speaks truthfully, whispered Jise. 'We are only alive because Lasper Farr came looking for his son. He turned a bewildered stare on Labile Connit. 'Labile?

'Im not his son, Connit insisted from where he huddled on his bed.

The eyes upon him were unconvinced.