Jinx on a Terran Inheritance (60 page)

Floyt watched the stars. "What happened?"

"Happened? Bad luck; human entropy; behavioral dynamics. What goes up; how the mighty … My grandfather was letting things fall apart even while he was putting everything he had into laying the keel of that tub. My father—that's just a downhill story and at the bottom is dying of undertow addiction.

Listen, that's not the important part, not anymore."

"I know, Alacrity."

"It's
not
! The White Ship; sweet Freya! If anything can open up the secrets of the Precursors, it's that bloody ship. And she'll be mine, Ho. No more losing; that's over. Now I know how to get her back, and more important, I know I
will
get her back."

Floyt became circumspect, fearing what was to come. "Know? You can't know for sure, Alacrity."

"Oh, yes I can. Remember the causality harp?"

"Of course. Are you and Heart enemies now?"

"Competitors. She has her plans for the White Ship, I have mine and I can't change that."

He held up a copy of the memory wafer he'd taken from Dincrist on Rialto. "I copied it back in the
Stray.
It came right into my hands. Doesn't that prove something? The harp was right."

Floyt examined it. "What about the harp?"

"That was what I was asking it, Ho! About me and the White Ship; my affinity for it—my destiny, if you want to get dramatic. You saw what the answer was yourself. You're in for a share, if you want it."

"That's awfully generous, Alacrity. Thank you."

"Forget it. Stick with me. You hungry? I'll see if I can get us something to eat." He looked around for a summoning signaller.

Floyt gazed into limitlessness with no appetite, thinking about the causality harp. He wondered if he owed Alacrity brutal honesty, because after Alacrity had fed in his query, Floyt, bringing up the rear all unawares, had changed things. He'd passed the screen that read WORKING and stopped at the one displaying NEXT TEST RUN SUBJECT:. From that angle, Floyt couldn't see what Alacrity was up to file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/harry%20kruis...aley%20-%20Jinx%20on%20a%20Terran%20Inheritance.htm (318 of 320)19-2-2006 17:12:31

[Fitzhugh 2]-JINX ON A TERRAN INHERITANCE

on the gantry; accessor that he was, the Earther quickly figured out how to ask the system about
Astraea
Imprimatur.
The harp had acknowledged that they were linked to it—that Alacrity was in particular—

with that overwhelming sound and light display.

Moments later, helping Alacrity to the lift, Floyt noticed that the indicator over the original screen, the one Alacrity had programmed with his White Ship query, was red again, that
that
screen was displaying WORKING. Looking back, Floyt realized that Redlock must have made the change, to find out what Alacrity had been doing.

More to the point, the White Ship query had to be the one that made the harp go dim and quiet at the end.
That
was the answer to Alacrity's question, and his hope of taking back the White Ship: a negative.

"What made your father turn to undertow?" Floyt asked suddenly, still watching the stars.

"Hmm?" Alacrity was shuffling the cards again, having summoned the crewchief. He suddenly looked very young, and mournful. "People just give up hope, you know? And after that, what difference does anything make? I tell you, there's nothing worse than that."

Floyt sat back, compelling himself to relax muscle by muscle. "It's too bad your father didn't live to see you there at the causality harp."

"Well, yeah; that's—thanks, Ho. But no more looking back. Um, listen, how much money do you have left? It cost me just about all I had to bribe the Lunies."

"Are you serious? You gave them all your novaseeds?"

"No, no no! Only the two I had left. Most of them I gave to Victoria. I knew Heart wouldn't take them, and I knew they were going to need them."

He still felt a disbelief that he'd lost her; the delphianisms of the causality harp had given no forewarning of love or, much more importantly, the loss of love.
But when I've got the White Ship, I'll find her.

Somehow, I'll make her love me again …

"Alacrity, I gave my daughter just about everything I had, except for what's left of the Daimyo's blood money, which is back in our quarters. I didn't know I was going to be travelling again so soon."

A penurious silence settled over them. "There're Inheritors who owe me a favor, supposedly," Floyt said at last. "And I
do
own a starship that's out there somewhere, after all."

"Well, maybe we're still liquid in a galactic sense, Ho, but we've got a little short-term cash problem, here."

"So?"

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[Fitzhugh 2]-JINX ON A TERRAN INHERITANCE

Alacrity showed him the mechanic's grip. "So: you hold the cards
this
way, see, and you … "

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brian Daley is the author of eight previous novels of science fiction and fantasy, the most recent being
Requiem for a Ruler of Worlds
He also scripted the National Public Radio serial adaptations of
Star
Wars
and
The Empire Strikes Back.
His whereabouts are subject to change without notice, but he favors Manhattan.

ISBN 0-586-20678-7

First Edition: December 1985

Scan Notes:

[19 oct 2003—scanned by TheOilman]

[27 oct 2003—proofed by Escaped Chicken Spirits (ECS)]

[03 aug 2005—re-proofed by fltgoon]

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