The crowd drew a quick gasp, turning to see who had spoken. An obviously agitated man stepped forward, long yellow hair streaming from both sides of his bald pink scalp. A long walrus mustache dangled down on either side of his mouth, giving him an absurd appearance. His robes bore a bold X-shaped crest denoting his proud n.o.ble family. Zod recognized him.
With a quiet hand signal, the Commissioner held back an angry Nam-Ek; the Sapphire Guards remained alert, ready to act. Zod spoke brightly, feigning welcome. "Gil-Ex, you have finally decided to leave your soft cushions and delicate banquet barges in Orvai! We can always use more help, even from one of the pampered older n.o.bles. Join us at our real work. We can train you to do something practical for a change." Some members of the audience chuckled. "I only wish Shor-Em and Tyr-Us would also come to help, rather than complaining from their distant manor houses."
The mustached man scowled, and his pink scalp turned red. "I didn"t come to join your efforts, Zod. I came to talk sense into the rest of these people." He looked around. "I want them to see what you"re doing to our proud heritage. They don"t want to live under a dictatorship!"
Listening to the undertone of murmurs from the crowd, Zod knew the people were on his side. He had trained them well, demonstrated his capabilities. And more and more joined him every day, though he knew that an annoying resistance kept growing like noxious weeds in towns and settlements where he didn"t have sufficient control. Yet.
"Gil-Ex, these people can see quite well what I"ve been doing. That"s why they are helping me. Open your eyes and look at what we"ve accomplished already! We work together as a team to make Krypton strong instead of frightened and weak. The old Council kept us defenseless. None of these good people wants that again, no matter what ineffective form of government you hope they will accept."
Gil-Ex sniffed. "True Kryptonians can see through your lies, Zod. They remember what is right and true about our civilization, and they won"t let it be lost." He turned to the rest of the crowd, raising one k.n.o.bby fist. "All of you, join me! You must reject the tyranny of Zod and his unjust seizure of power."
Koll-Em called out with withering scorn, "We"re quite familiar with what the likes of you considered "right and true about our civilization." No thank you!"
From his a.s.signed position in the crowd, Da-Es shouted out. "We know what dreams Commissioner Zod has for us. We prefer to follow dreams rather than delusions."
"Have you actually been been to the crater of Kandor, Gil-Ex?" bellowed muscular Mon-Ra from another part of the crowd. "Have you witnessed firsthand how much destruction our outside enemies can bring against us? Have you bothered?" to the crater of Kandor, Gil-Ex?" bellowed muscular Mon-Ra from another part of the crowd. "Have you witnessed firsthand how much destruction our outside enemies can bring against us? Have you bothered?"
Gil-Ex sidestepped the question. "We all know what happened there. I have no need to see for myself. I doubt my heart could bear it-"
"What"s the matter? Afraid to get your hands dirty?" jeered Koll-Em. "You complain about Zod, but what have you you done to protect us?" called Ran-Ar, another Ring member. done to protect us?" called Ran-Ar, another Ring member.
The Ring of Strength continued to rile up the audience, and the crowd"s mood turned ugly. It took Gil-Ex several moments to realize that he had chosen the wrong venue for his speech. Zod allowed the anger to simmer until it reached the point where he thought he might lose control. He didn"t want them to turn into a mob against this one man, because such extreme reactions might provide the other dissidents with ammunition against him. Worst of all, it could make Gil-Ex into a martyr.
"Please, calm yourselves! This place is the Square of Hope. Here we cherish all that was best about Krypton-including the right to free speech, even when a person states something so patently absurd. Gil-Ex, these people do not support your opinion. I am disheartened by your stubborn refusal to recognize my good intentions. I cannot understand what I"ve done that causes you to object so vehemently, but I will hear you out. Maybe we can come to a meeting of minds." He extended his hand, sounding so cordial. "Come, we will talk in my tent."
Gil-Ex saw that he had no choice but to agree.
The next day, after Gil-Ex was gone-though no one had seen him leave-Zod issued a happy p.r.o.nouncement. "The two of us spoke far into the night, and Gil-Ex finally realized his misunderstanding. Since he had isolated himself from the true effects of our tragedy, he was sadly ignorant of our planet"s need. He had listened to lies and distortions from power-hungry men trying to cast doubt on our great work." Zod feigned a smile. Pa.s.sion and sincerity oozed from him with every word. "When he realized that his own well-intentioned comments may have hindered the recovery of Krypton, Gil-Ex was in tears."
Zod"s listeners absorbed this dramatic and unsettling turnabout. They had followed the Commissioner to an empty, ruined city and had sworn their allegiance to him and his grand plans for Krypton. Because they themselves were wholeheartedly convinced, it wasn"t unreasonable to believe that Gil-Ex had changed his mind, too. Some workers accepted the explanation with more caution than others did, but all of them gave Zod the benefit of the doubt.
The Commissioner put on his most sincere expression. "I had hoped Gil-Ex would become my ally, but I accept his decision to withdraw from public life. He wants the rest of us to continue without the shadow of his previous accusations." He bowed his head, barely able to hide his satisfied smile.
Over the next few days, other outspoken dissidents disappeared from isolated towns and villages, each leaving behind a heartfelt note of explanation. Some admitted shame, and many urged the people of Krypton to follow Zod.
He knew that even among his own followers a few might not believe the convenient stories. Outside, some people were bound to express their suspicions, claim evidence of conspiracies...and his own people would make such comments sound ridiculous. There would always be complaints, but complaints could be dealt with.
And so the Commissioner moved forward with fewer roadblocks. The construction of Kryptonopolis continued.
CHAPTER 49.
After a rushed two days, Jor-El returned from the arctic carrying seed crystal chips he had cut from the key spires of Yar-El"s wondrous palace of solitude. From his laboratory at the lonely estate he took the catalysts he needed, metallic powders and liquid impurities that would be drawn into the lattice as the great towers grew. Jor-El returned from the arctic carrying seed crystal chips he had cut from the key spires of Yar-El"s wondrous palace of solitude. From his laboratory at the lonely estate he took the catalysts he needed, metallic powders and liquid impurities that would be drawn into the lattice as the great towers grew.
The manor house, the research building, the mysterious tower that still held Donodon"s s.p.a.ceship-all were quiet and empty. As he surveyed the grounds, an eerie sense of deja vu reminded him of the abandoned ruins of Xan City. Jor-El felt very alone without Lara....
While he was there, he received a message from Argo City. Zor-El appeared flushed, both exuberant and angry. "I have the data, Jor-El. The acc.u.mulated readings are exactly what I expected, exactly exactly what I saw before. The core buildup is progressing with astonishing speed, and a planetary explosion is imminent, possibly in less than a year!" what I saw before. The core buildup is progressing with astonishing speed, and a planetary explosion is imminent, possibly in less than a year!"
"Unless we do something," Jor-El said. He remembered how easily the Commissioner had approved his plans for the listening outpost. I trust you to do what is best for Krypton, Jor-El. I trust you to do what is best for Krypton, Jor-El. "I will make Zod listen. Don"t worry, Zor-El. We will take the necessary action." "I will make Zod listen. Don"t worry, Zor-El. We will take the necessary action."
Back in Kryptonopolis, he found Lara happily working with a crew of artisans to install the panels of an intricate frieze along the lintel of a government building. He watched her un.o.btrusively for a moment, his heart full of love for her. When she noticed him, Lara ran forward, wiping a smear of paint from her cheek. She excitedly told him how Aethyr and Zod had asked her to partic.i.p.ate in the resurrection of the capital city. She felt it was a job to which she was immensely well suited.
Lara had expressed her doubts about the Commissioner"s intentions, but Zod seemed to have won her over by giving her this grand project. Much the same way, he realized, as Zod had ingratiated himself to Jor-El by allowing him free rein to conduct the research he had always wanted to do. Tempting Jor-El with unfettered science and Lara with a history-making art project. He could see that the Commissioner was a very effective manipulator, but the man was also sincere in his pa.s.sion. He and Lara had not seen any more altruism from any of the outspoken city leaders.
Taking the dark bag that contained the seed crystal chips he had harvested, he met with Commissioner Zod and three members of the Ring of Strength inside the government palace. On blueprint films, Jor-El described the structures he could create with the materials he"d found, and how much of the landscape they would dominate. "Once I trigger the accelerated process, the chain reaction of crystal growth will occur without any further guidance from me. I need to get it right the first time."
The Commissioner"s eyes had a bright gleam. "I am anxious to get started."
Jor-El shook his head. "We"ve got to wait until nightfall to do our preparations. The seed crystals must remain covered until everything is ready. Once they"re exposed to light, the chain reaction begins."
Zod glanced up at the deepening sky color through the tentlike fabric that covered the damaged ceiling. "Rao will set soon. Tomorrow, Kryptonopolis will no longer be my dream, but a shining reality."
In the dark of the night Jor-El set out his seed crystals at the four corners of the Square of Hope and atop Lookout Hill at the outskirts of the ancient city. He positioned each brittle seed carefully, measured, checked, and double-checked. Zod, Aethyr, and Nam-Ek accompanied him, watching every step of the process, their excitement tangible in the cooling night air.
An hour before midnight, Jor-El added the catalysts and liquid impurities, checked the angles and positioning yet again, and stepped back, satisfied. "Tomorrow," he told them, "be here exactly at sunrise."
The next day, when he and Lara arrived in the Square of Hope in the predawn darkness, Zod was already there, pacing impatiently. Nam-Ek stood motionless, as big as a statue; aloof, Aethyr lounged on a new stone bench. No-Ton and Koll-Em also joined them, rubbing their sleepy eyes.
The colors presaging sunrise flooded across the eastern sky. "Any minute now," Jor-El said. The air was thick with antic.i.p.ation.
The roiling red fringe of Rao rose above the horizon, spilling crimson light across the landscape. When the first rays struck the seed crystals, the reaction was instantaneous. At the four corners of the Square of Hope the first crystals began to sparkle. Energized by the sunlight, they drank in the catalyst powders like dry sponges absorbing a flood.
A hexagonal spire shot upward, four times the size of the original crystal, and it kept growing, thickening. It spread out subsidiary crystal branches that followed the design Jor-El had programmed into the base lattice. The extraordinary rush of growth made a thunderous cracking and popping sound. Perfectly symmetrical with the upreaching spire, the crystal"s anchor root plunged downward, drawing more material from the rocks and soil. Stone paving tiles at the square"s perimeter buckled and broke.
At all four corners of the square, shining spires seemed to be competing with one another as they raced toward the sky, rapidly dwarfing the other structures in Kryptonopolis. On Lookout Hill outside the city, a fifth gleaming tower rose higher and higher.
Commissioner Zod"s face showed deep satisfaction. Nam-Ek reacted with childish glee as the components continued to erupt and unfold like a puzzle made of diamonds and emeralds. By the time Rao had risen fully, the red giant shone down upon an entirely new city.
"This does indeed rival Kandor!" Zod clasped the scientist"s shoulders. "You have done everything I expected-and more. I knew you would not let me down. Krypton owes you a debt greater than I can ever repay."
Jor-El seized the moment. He had been considering how to bring up the matter. "Then it"s now my turn to ask you a favor, Commissioner. It is vitally important to our planet"s survival."
Zod"s eyes took on a calculating look; then his expression shifted again. "You have never asked for any kind of boon before. If it is within my power to grant..."
"As you know, my brother discovered dangerous instabilities in the core of our planet. The Council refused to take any action until Zor-El provided them with extensive data."
Zod nodded slowly, cautiously. "Yes, I was present when you and your brother made those claims. And the Council, as usual, chose to ignore problems rather than address them." His voice held a heavy undertone of caution.
"We"ve all experienced the increasingly severe quakes. More than one tidal wave has struck the coast, and ma.s.sive volcanic eruptions continue in the southern continent. The core pressure is still growing-and now I do have a full set of data. The situation is precisely as bad as I feared. Trust me, Commissioner. The evidence is indisputable."
He could see Zod trying to decide how to respond. "Even if I accept your warning, what can we do about it?"
Jor-El"s words came in a breathless rush. "I"ve been thinking about the old prototypes I submitted to your Commission. Do you remember an intense cutting laser I called a Rao beam? At the time I felt it would be useful for boring tunnels through mountains, for mining, and for construction. Your Commission decided it was too risky." He lowered his voice to a grumble. "As usual."
Zod tapped his fingers together, fully focused on Jor-El rather than on the still-growing crystal spires behind them. "I seem to recall it. But if the plans were confiscated, what will you do now? Start again from scratch?"
Jor-El gave him a wry smile. "Commissioner, just because you took my drawings and destroyed my prototypes doesn"t mean that the idea idea is destroyed." He tapped his temple. "Every invention I ever created, every design and every process is right here, in my head. I remember them all perfectly." is destroyed." He tapped his temple. "Every invention I ever created, every design and every process is right here, in my head. I remember them all perfectly."
Zod took a moment to process the startling revelation. "Intriguing." He nodded slowly to himself, then responded with a thin smile, as if he had suddenly decided on a different strategy for playing this game. "And could your Rao beam also be configured as a weapon? Something we could fire at attacking alien ships if they should come against us? It would help the defense of Krypton."
Jor-El considered. "I suppose. Once the Rao-beam generator is erected, installed, and calibrated, I see no reason why its target point couldn"t be shifted."
"And if I allow you to build this Rao beam, I presume you intend to drill some sort of shaft through the crust? Like a pressure-release valve?"
"That is the theory. The best drilling site may be the crater of Kandor, though the project will cause substantial damage to the area. There"s no way around it-"
"That doesn"t concern me. Kandor is already a no-man"s-land. Best to put it to some use," Zod said. "But I am more troubled by the fact that your own brother has been less than accepting of me. Perhaps if Zor-El issued a statement of wholehearted support for me from Argo City?"
Jor-El wanted to snap at the Commissioner for worrying more about personal politics than the fate of the whole world. "Then show him that you"re completely different from the weak Council. With your leadership, Commissioner, we can prevent a worldwide disaster. Aren"t you the man who swore to take any action necessary to protect us?"
Aethyr leaned close to the Commissioner with a strangely hungry look in her eyes. She said in a quiet, breathy voice, "Zod...the savior of Krypton."
He seemed to like the sound of that very much.
CHAPTER 50.
The visitor came to Argo City in secret. After crossing one of the bridges, he arrived in the middle of the night and made his way toward Zor-El"s villa. Under his dark hood, he refused to reveal his ident.i.ty, but insisted to the household sentry that the city leader would see him. City in secret. After crossing one of the bridges, he arrived in the middle of the night and made his way toward Zor-El"s villa. Under his dark hood, he refused to reveal his ident.i.ty, but insisted to the household sentry that the city leader would see him.
Zor-El dismissed the volunteer guards who had dutifully blocked the stranger"s entry. He frowned at the mysterious guest. "You can"t expect my guards to blithely let you enter as if you were an old friend."
The man came into the light and pulled back the hood. "But I am an old friend."
Zor-El was shocked to see the man"s haggard appearance, the haunted look in his reddened eyes, his sunken cheeks, as if he hadn"t slept or eaten well in days. "Tyr-Us! Why didn"t you inform me you were coming? What"s happened to you?"
"The same thing that will happen to all of us if we"re not careful." He looked over his shoulder toward the sentries as if they couldn"t be trusted, toward the night as if something dangerous were after him. "Please let me inside. I need shelter, just for a little while."
Zor-El hurried the man through the door as he snapped to his guards, "Make sure no one else enters my home. See that we"re not disturbed." Their master"s abrupt reaction seemed to frighten them more than anything else.
Alura saw the troubled expression on her husband"s face, and quickly led him and Tyr-Us into a withdrawing room filled with exotic plants. She lit several solar crystals.
Tyr-Us stood weak and shaking in the middle of the room. He touched the enormous flowers with fingers that trembled with wonder. "It rejuvenates me to know that something is flourishing on Krypton while our government festers and rots." He drew a deep breath and squeezed his eyes shut.
"Tell me everything, Tyr-Us. When did you leave Corril? So many other n.o.ble sons have abruptly stepped out of public view. When I"d heard nothing from you in weeks, I thought maybe you had joined them."
Tyr-Us"s eyes were wild. "I could have vanished, too! The Commissioner"s thugs have been following me. I saw dark figures in Corril walking down the metal streets, pretending to be visitors, but they all had those armbands Zod"s followers wear."
"I"ve seen them in Argo City as well. I don"t like them."
"Watch yourself, Zor-El-for they are certainly watching you. You should cast them out of your city before they cause further damage."
Zor-El was disturbed by the suggestion. "I can"t just arrest them and say that their views are forbidden, no matter how fanatical they may seem. That would turn me into a dictator as bad as you claim Zod is."
Alura picked a flower and pushed it into Tyr-Us"s face. "Smell this." Involuntarily, the shaken man drew a quick breath, and the stimulant perfume made him stand straighter. "Eat these." She held out two berries, one blue and one red.
"What do they do? Will they drug me?"
"No, they will strengthen you."
Eyes narrowed, Tyr-Us looked at the berries. "How do I know I can trust you? How do I know I can trust anyone today, even the two of you?"
Zor-El grabbed the man"s arm. "You know you can trust me because you know know me. What has changed you so much? You"re frightening us." me. What has changed you so much? You"re frightening us."
"You should be frightened! Do you know how many others have disappeared? Shor-Em has been attacked twice, but managed to drive off the a.s.sault. His guards were unable to capture or interrogate the ones who struck out at him. Fully fourteen of us who spoke out against Zod have "retired," and no one has heard from them again. Think of it, Zor-El. You know it makes no sense."
"Yes, I was surprised to hear that Gil-Ex had decided to support Zod. It made no sense after everything he"d been saying."
"You know he was a vain and self-righteous man. Do you think Gil-Ex would just quietly hide himself? Never. I am the son of Council Head Jul-Us, and I should have had a seat on the Council someday. So should you, Zor-El."
"I have Argo City."
"You won"t if Zod takes it away from you." Tyr-Us finally ate the two berries and sighed. He looked at Alura. "I"m sorry to have distrusted you."
Two staff members brought in a hurriedly prepared meal and a large pitcher of herbal tea that Alura brewed for its strengthening properties. Tyr-Us was startled by the unexpected servants and looked as if he might bolt, but Zor-El took the tray of food and quickly dismissed the helpers.
The haggard man sat down on a bench surrounded by lush herbs, shaking his head miserably. "The risk increases with every person who sees me. Just by being here, I increase the danger to you both."
"Tell me more after you"ve eaten." Zor-El nudged the plates closer.
Tyr-Us seemed queasy and apparently uninterested, but once he tasted the food, he ate so ravenously that Zor-El feared he might become sick.
"You haven"t supported Zod and his overthrow of the true Krypton government," Tyr-Us said between bites. "But you"ve been careful not to openly oppose him, either."
"Shor-Em thinks I should have done so long ago, but I had my own disaster here, remember. Argo City still has much rebuilding to do."
"If you had resoundingly supported our claims, you"d quite possibly be dead like all the others-like I am soon to be."