Araminta-two lifted an eyebrow at Tomansio. "So?"
"Okay, that was pretty convincing. A multiple of two. Who"d have guessed?"
"Not you," Araminta-two said.
"Let"s hope I"m not alone."
Oscar grinned again. "I was right. She didn"t betray us."
"Oscar, I love you dearly," Tomansio said. "But if you don"t shut up about that, I will shove you headfirst into-"
Oscar chuckled. "Yeah, yeah." The smartcore showed him two capsules arriving in the warehouse. Beckia and Cheriton came sprinting out. It took the edge off his humor slightly. He ordered the smartcore to launch as soon as the other two were in the airlock.
Tomansio gave him a startled look as the Elvin"s Payback Elvin"s Payback punched clean through the warehouse roof and accelerated vertically at twenty gees. The internal gravity countered some of the force, but they all had to sit down quickly on the couches extruded by the cabin floor. punched clean through the warehouse roof and accelerated vertically at twenty gees. The internal gravity countered some of the force, but they all had to sit down quickly on the couches extruded by the cabin floor.
"A little drastic," Tomansio mused.
"Tactically smart. Up here we can run if we have to."
"You"re the boss."
Beckia and Cheriton emerged from the airlock and gave Araminta-two incredulous looks as they lumbered over to their acceleration couches.
Oscar"s initial jubilation was draining away. Viotia s.p.a.ceflight control was directing a lot of queries and warnings at them, but nothing appeared to be in pursuit. s.p.a.ce above the planet was relatively clear; none of the starships the sensors could detect were threatening. "All right," he said to Araminta-two. "What the f.u.c.k is going on?"
"I was running out of options," Araminta-two replied. "Becoming the Dreamer is a diversion." His confidence faltered for a moment. "I hope. That"s where you come in."
"I wasn"t lying," Oscar said. "We"re here to help in any way we can."
"Why? I know who you are. I checked. But I"d like to know who"s backing you."
"Fair enough; it was ANA, but now we"re just hanging on by ourselves. Hoping for something to turn up. And ... you did."
"What do you need?" Tomansio asked. "Are you going to crash the Pilgrimage fleet into the boundary or something?"
Araminta-two"s dignified face produced a sad smile, making him look even older. "There are twenty-four million people on those starships. Idiots, yes, but still people. There is no way I will slaughter them as an example to the rest of the galaxy not to go in. No, if they arrive at the Void boundary before we can stop them, then I"ll have to get the Skylord to open the way for them. So you see, I really need help."
"Name it," Oscar said.
"Bradley suggested I find Ozzie. He said Ozzie is a real genius, and if anyone can come up with a solution, it will be us in combination."
Oscar"s skin chilled right down. "Bradley?" he asked lightly. The others gave him a curious look; it must have been because of what his emotions revealed.
"Bradley Johansson," Araminta-two said. "I met him on the Silfen paths."
"Bradley Johansson is alive?"
"Bradley is a Silfen now."
"Holy c.r.a.p."
"Do you speak the truth of this?" Tomansio demanded almost in anger.
Araminta-two faced him down. "I speak the truth." He turned back to Oscar. "Bradley told me you and he fought together in the Starflyer War. He said I could trust you, Oscar. And you did help me back at Bodant Park."
"Bradley a Silfen," Oscar said in wonder. "How about that. We both survived the Planet"s Revenge in our own ways."
"He lives," an incredulous Beckia murmured. "The greatest of us all, our founder, humanity"s liberator. He lives! Do you realize what-" She broke off, too overwhelmed to speak.
"I don"t wish to disappoint," Araminta-two said. "But he"s not coming to help. I"m afraid the best he could do was send me."
"And he wanted you and Ozzie to team up?" Oscar queried.
"Yes. Um, he was also worried about the Ilanthe-thing and what it is now. Even the Silfen are concerned about that, as much as they are about anything."
"n.o.body knows much about Ilanthe," Oscar said. "So let"s concentrate on what we can achieve." He opened a secure link to Paula.
"Take her to Ozzie," Paula said as soon as he"d finished explaining.
"Really?"
"Bradley is right. The Dreamer and Ozzie together would make a formidable combination."
"All right, then."
"And ... Araminta really met Bradley?"
"Yeah, so she says. Something, huh?"
"Indeed."
"So where"s Ozzie these days?"
"The Spike."
"No s.h.i.t, Paula. That"s seven thousand light-years away."
"I know. But face it, what else have we got? We"re that desperate now."
"Okay." The Elvin"s Payback Elvin"s Payback had finished its initial acceleration. It was curving into a wide elliptical orbit above Viotia. Oscar grinned at Araminta-two. "Ozzie"s in the Spike. It"ll take five days to get there." had finished its initial acceleration. It was curving into a wide elliptical orbit above Viotia. Oscar grinned at Araminta-two. "Ozzie"s in the Spike. It"ll take five days to get there."
"Then let"s go."
"Great." He gave a relieved smile.
"A word of caution," Paula said, which brought Oscar back down fast.
"Yeah?"
"I believe someone called Aaron has possibly taken Inigo to the Spike for exactly the same reason you"re going, to link up with Ozzie."
"Oh, c.r.a.p." He glanced around to see the team members all giving him a vaguely accusatory stare. "Inigo? They found Inigo?"
"Yes. Which I"m hoping is good. If you can bring together the First and Second Dreamers along with Ozzie, that may really give us the kind of edge we"re going to need to-"
"Take out the Void? Blow up the Pilgrimage fleet? Eliminate Ilanthe?"
"I"d settle for any one of those right now."
"So who is this Aaron character, and who is he working for?"
"I"m sorry, I don"t know. But logically he belongs to a faction inimical to Pilgrimage. And be careful. He can be very trigger-happy, and he"s known to be somewhat aggressive with it. Your team should be able to protect Araminta from him if he turns hostile."
"Okay. What about you, Paula? What are you doing?"
"Working on a couple of leads, as always."
Feeling slightly let down by her reply, Oscar ordered the smartcore to go FTL and take them to the Spike. Then he and the others started questioning Araminta-two in earnest.
"What will you do now?" the SI asked Troblum as the Mellanie"s Redemption Mellanie"s Redemption tracked Oscar"s starship going FTL. It suddenly vanished from his exovision. None of the sensors could track it when it was stealthed. tracked Oscar"s starship going FTL. It suddenly vanished from his exovision. None of the sensors could track it when it was stealthed.
"I don"t know," he said unsteadily. The conversation between Oscar and Paula that the SI had intercepted had left him badly shaken. Both Dreamers and Ozzie coming together to solve the problem was cause for some tentative hope. "I can"t make a difference."
"You know more about the Sol barrier than any other individual. They might need that."
"I don"t know." It was too big, too much, and getting horribly personal again. But it was a huge unexpected relief to solve the Araminta puzzle. She hadn"t betrayed anyone; she was doing what she could. And ... Araminta, Inigo, Oscar, and Ozzie together. That"s going to be history And ... Araminta, Inigo, Oscar, and Ozzie together. That"s going to be history.
Catriona came over and sat on his lap. She was wearing a thin lacy top and tight jeans. The feel of her resting there, human scent and musky perfume, her perfect form centimeters from his eyes. It was comforting somehow.
"We should go," she told him softly.
"Yes." Even that made him feel good.
Sensors showed Paula the Elvin"s Payback Elvin"s Payback flashing into hypers.p.a.ce and activating its stealth. She could track it of course, though few other ships in the galaxy could. flashing into hypers.p.a.ce and activating its stealth. She could track it of course, though few other ships in the galaxy could.
After a minute, the ship hanging in suspension a hundred thousand kilometers above Viotia also pushed back fully into hypers.p.a.ce and followed Oscar at ultradrive speed. Its stealth wasn"t as good as that of the ANA ship, but its drive seemed more than capable, and the real giveaway was the ma.s.s, which was identical to that of the Mellanie"s Redemption Mellanie"s Redemption, which Paula had last seen departing Sholapur at their hyperdrive speed.
"And then there was one," Paula muttered.
The remaining stealthed ship started to move. Its drive signature was one the Alexis Denken Alexis Denken was also familiar with from Sholapur, as was the much superior stealth effect. Paula ordered the smartcore to follow the other three starships to the Spike, then opened a secure link to the was also familiar with from Sholapur, as was the much superior stealth effect. Paula ordered the smartcore to follow the other three starships to the Spike, then opened a secure link to the High Angel High Angel.
"h.e.l.lo, Paula," Qatux said.
"So you can"t break through the Sol barrier?"
"No. Our trip here was largely symbolic, a statement of Raiel support for the rest of the Commonwealth."
"I don"t expect empty political gestures from you."
"If there is any way we can influence the Living Dream from their Pilgrimage, we are obliged to enact it."
"They"ve just launched."
"I know. Paula, if you would like to come with us when this galaxy falls, I will be happy to take you."
"I know the purpose of the High Angel High Angel is supposed to be to save life from this galaxy, but something is happening, Qatux, something my instinct tells me is crucial. So I"m going to need a favor. A very big favor." is supposed to be to save life from this galaxy, but something is happening, Qatux, something my instinct tells me is crucial. So I"m going to need a favor. A very big favor."
The lake measured over ten kilometers across, its sh.o.r.eline made up of attractive sweeping coves. Two-thirds of the surrounding land was smothered by a thick wild forest, with vegetation scrambling down over the stones that lined the rippling water. The remaining third was an alien city whose globes and spikes dominated the skyline. Deserted for millennia, its iron structures were a similar construction to those of Octoron"s little human township. But this metropolis was put together on a much grander scale, perhaps a little too imposing. Humans living in the chamber had never attempted to settle there.
Ozzie"s old capsule skimmed above the thin towers and dropped down toward the huge semicircular harbor bay on the other side. There were several small islands dotted across the water. They were heading for the largest, which had a wide sandy beach guarded by rocky prominences on either side. Behind the beach itself the land was a cl.u.s.ter of long dunes before the ground started to slope up into the island"s central mountain. A simple whitewashed stone house stood alone, poised between the dunes and the forested slope. It was surrounded on three sides by a veranda that had a leafy canopy of thick vines draped over an ancient, sagging wooden frame. Tall sash windows had wooden shutters on the outside, giving the place the appearance of a farmhouse in rural Provence.
The capsule touched down in front of the solitary building. Aaron scanned it briefly. Another human was lurking behind the wide slatted doors that opened from the lounge to the veranda decking. She had biononics, but they weren"t weapons-configured. There were some additional enrichments that he didn"t recognize, but their low power usage argued against their posing any kind of threat. The house itself had a few technological items: a culinary unit, a medical capsule, two very sophisticated replicators, a fleet of old-fashioned maidbots, and five smartcores larger than he"d encountered before. In short, the perfect retreat for someone like Ozzie.
"Okay, we can go out," Aaron said.
Ozzie gave him a long look. "You sure?"
"Yes."
"Well, okay, but be careful of the mutant squids in the lake."
"I appreciate that this intrusion is unwelcome; we"ll be gone as soon as we can." Though Aaron couldn"t be sure of that. Ideas were starting to form in the back of his mind in antic.i.p.ation of Inigo regaining consciousness. He gave the sleeping messiah a quick look. It wouldn"t be long before he was awake.
"And remember never to leave the house at night," Ozzie said with an innocent tone that nonetheless mocked.
"Why?"
"Vampires."
Aaron bit back on his response. He wasn"t quite sure how much of Ozzie"s att.i.tude was driven by irritation at having his hermit life violated. If it was genuine, things might get unpleasant. Aaron hoped not.
Ozzie walked out of the capsule, leaving Aaron to deal with the two unconscious people sprawled on the curving leather couch at the back of the pa.s.senger section. "Greatly done," he muttered, and picked Inigo up, fumbling him into a traditional fireman"s lift. For a long moment he was tempted to shoot another sedative (or ten) into Corrie-Lyn, but Inigo wouldn"t be happy about that. Having two bolshie living legends with overblown egos p.i.s.sed with him would be a definite disadvantage.
Aaron carried Inigo over the dunes and up the gray wooden steps to the veranda. He dumped the inert body onto a sunlounger and went back for Corrie-Lyn.
Ozzie was nowhere to be seen by the time he got back to the veranda. A quick low-level field scan showed him upstairs in the house"s biggest bedroom with the woman. Aaron abruptly canceled the scan, trying to quash his feeling of dismay at Ozzie"s att.i.tude and behavior. He hadn"t expected quite this much irrational stubbornness.
Inigo groaned and stirred. His biononics a.s.sisted a quick rise to full awareness. He sat up and looked around the shaded veranda, then took a moment to stare at the vista of the ancient alien city facing him across the bay.
"We made it, then?"
"We made it."
Inigo gazed over at Corrie-Lyn on the next sunlounger. "How is she?"
"Stable. She should wake up in half an hour or so. Your biononics give you an advantage."
Inigo nodded slowly. "You kept your word. Thank you."