Regeneration (Czerneda) (82 page)

“What do you mean—we’re in orbit?” The
Impeci
’s pilot, Bhar, had regained consciousness only to doubt he truly had. They’d made him comfortable in the dart’s open hatch. “That’s impossible,” he insisted. “The gate’s inside Venus’ orbit. It takes almost a week to get to Earth.”

“Apparently things have changed,” Mac told him. She felt somewhat vindicated by this evidence the transects were not as foolproof as she’d been told. It brought the technology down to the level of a malfunctioning lev; something to be fixed.

The tactical display came to life outside the dart, a larger version of what might be generated by an imp. Earth was to one side, a breathtaking swirl of white over blue.

But like the others, Mac kept looking to the other side, where a rotating spiral of silver ships—
Sinzi ships
—dominated the polar sky.

“We are here.” Enlarging the display, Fy put her fingertip on a pair of dots. They were within a cloud of similar dots exiting the base of the spiral.

“All That Are Dhryn,” Her Glory rumbled.

Nik’s eyes were fixed on the image, his hands clenched into fists. “I knew it,” he accused. “The Sinzi will sacrifice Earth for the IU!”

“We participate in the promise—”

“Stop saying that!” Mac shouted at Fy. “This is our world. Our home! Don’t you realize what you’re doing to us? Why did you bring the Dhryn?”

“We did nothing but come to Sol and move the Naralax in congruence with Earth.”

“Why?” Nik repeated, his voice no quieter than Mac’s.

Fy’s fingers were trembling. “Surely it is obvious—”

“What’s obvious is you’ve betrayed us!” Her own hand shaking, Mac brushed tears from her cheeks. “I trusted you. We all did!”

“Wait,” this sharply, from Her Glory. “Look.”

The cloud of Dhryn was dispersing before their eyes; they weren’t heading for the planet below.

Even as that relief hit, Mac gasped as she saw where they were going. “They—they aren’t—”

Fy seemed to relax. “Yes. You see? As anticipated.”

All that remained of the Dhryn turned to close on the spiral of Sinzi vessels.

“The Ro must have Called the Progenitors to eliminate the real threat to their plans,” observed Her Glory. “We are too late.”

“We’re still in this,” Nik said urgently. “Deruym Ma Nas. Tell the Progenitor—we must break away from the other Dhryn ships, now.” The Dhryn looked startled, but ran for the nearest com panel—at least, Mac assumed that’s what it was. “Fy,” Nik continued, “show me system-wide tactical. Where are the Human ships?”

The display twinned under the Sinzi’s direction, the second half showing from Earth inward. “Your fleet is gathered where the Naralax used to be,” Fy said unnecessarily. “With a substantial number of Trisulian vessels. Together they approach your world. They will not reach it for another four days at maximum.” A growing list of text appeared. Mac didn’t try to read it. “Interesting. A substantial number of nongovernment newspackets are entering the gate from your world. I do not recognize the type.”

“Media drones,” Bhar volunteered. “I don’t believe it.”

“There’s got to be something we can do.” Nik yanked out his com and began spouting code and numbers into the device.

Mac was staring at Fy. “This won’t accomplish anything,” she objected. “You’ll only die first. The Ro will use our worlds.”

“The Sinzi go!” She glanced around at Bhar’s hoarse cry. “They’re running from the Dhryn.”

They all looked. Sure enough, though a few Sinzi ships appeared to be holding position—
perhaps to control the transect gate
—the rest were now leaving the spiral. The result was like a flower opening.

“You call that running?” Mac wanted to reach into the display and shove the tiny lights out of danger. The Progenitors were gaining every second. “Can’t they go faster?

“If they wish,” Fy said calmly.

If she was being pursued by giant ships filled with feeders she’d wish a great deal harder,
Mac thought, wondering what the Sinzi were up to—
and why it had to be in her corner of the universe
.

“If . . .” Nik closed his hand over his com. “You want the Dhryn to follow.” Flat, sure,
that dangerous tone
. “Your people are bait. For what?”

“We promised to keep Anchen safe from the Ro, and to help Mac return home.”

“How?” Mac burst out. “By dying?” The Progenitor ships in the display became haloed with a bright glitter. “Those are feeders.”
She probably hadn’t needed to point that out,
Mac realized, given there were five sitting on the deck behind them.

The first Sinzi ships disappeared within that glitter. Mac reached out blindly, finding warmth with one hand. It wasn’t Human.

Mac turned and stared into that alien face, those golden eyes. Only, for an instant, it wasn’t alien at all, the grief in those eyes so real and familiar it was all she could do not to say his name and weep.

“The Progenitor has broken away as you suggested, Vessel,” Deruym Ma Nas told Nik. From his tone, the Dhryn was thoroughly confused by the entire process.
Lucky.

“Where’s She going?” Mac asked, trying to find their dot among the many.
Away from the rest would be a positive step.

The archivist sat down, as if exhausted by the trot to the com panel.
Which he could be,
Mac realized. “Our mission has not changed. The Progenitor hunts the Ro contamination,” he told them. “It will be on the planet.”

Nik’s eyes caught and held Mac’s. “Earth,” he said.

T
HE TELEMATICS AREA of the Atrium was silent, except for technicians’ low voices as they relayed information. Above them all, beyond the curve of atmosphere, Sinzi ran. Sinzi died. And when the rest of the Dhryn were finished, everyone knew they’d turn to follow the Progenitor already on course for Earth.

Hollans turned to his aide. “Dee, do we have anything in range?”

Dee grimaced. “Nothing bigger than a docking shuttle. Unless you want to throw shipping crates at them.” She checked the ’screen hovering by her ear. “The Sinzi—at least they’re buying us time, sir. Evacuations are underway from every continent. How much damage we take depends on where that first Dhryn strikes.”

They’d prepared for this—the way a desperate parent realizes she can carry only one child to safety through the fire and must let go of those other small fingers.

“She hasn’t said a word?”

Hollans looked over at the Sinzi-ra. Her great topaz eyes gazed at the display, her fingers quiet in their complex weaving, her gown impeccable. A dark red ring winked among the silver on her third left finger. He’d come to notice such things. “No,” he answered. “But that doesn’t mean silence.”

Dee took a message and grabbed Hollans’ arm even as she replied into her headset. Then, “Sir! It’s Nik. Trojanowski!” Pure triumph. “He’s back!”

“Patch him through. Now.”

“Here.”

“What’s going on?” The familiar voice filled the area, drawing everyone’s attention.

To the point.
Definitely Trojanowski.
“The Sinzi are being pursued by the Dhryn. Where are you?”

“On the Progenitor Ship heading for Earth. Don’t shoot. She’s our contact and free of Ro influence. She’s after the Ro. Says there’s one on Earth.”

“We have no—” Hollans stopped as Anchen came up to him. “The Sinzi-ra is here,” he said.

“Greetings, Nikolai,” as if her kind wasn’t in peril. “How is Mac?”

“Here and worried.” Quick and sharp. “Sinzi-ra, what are your people doing?”

“What they must,” she replied placidly. “Do you require assistance?”

A pause Hollans sympathized with, then a brisk: “Is Dr. Mamani still following the Ro device? We believe it’s some kind of a mobile station—where a Ro interacts with real space. Vulnerable. If we can get to it, stop the Ro, that should stop the Dhryn.”

Hollans made an urgent gesture to his aide. “We’re sending you Dr. Mamani’s current position now,” he told Nik. “A force will meet you there.”

“Have them stand by,” came the surprising response.

“For what? You may have noticed time isn’t something we have in great supply, Mr. Trojanowski.”

“There’s a threat, sir. We believe there’s a Ro failsafe on the device. We’ll need the Sinzi’s help to disable it. Sinzi-ra Myriam, Fy, is on board. She’ll pass along the details.”

A threat—to Earth.
Hollans relinquished his place at the com with a bow to Anchen.

To his aide, “Continue evacuation protocols.”

 

 

 

M
AC HAD LISTENED carefully to Nik’s plan. It had been as reasonable as anything else she’d heard lately. been as reasonable as anything else she’d heard

Which was why she was jamming her right foot into an evacsuit. The smell curling up from inside reminded her of dead salmon, which, under the circumstances, seemed almost pleasant.
Almost.

“Tell me again why you’re going instead of me, Dr. Connor.”

Mac squinted at Bhar. The pilot was on his feet.
And leaning on the edge of the stairs to stay that way.
“Because I could push you down,” she observed pleasantly.

“You’re a civilian!”

“That’s what I keep telling everyone,” she agreed, pulling the wretched garment over her shoulders. “They never listen.”

Nik, already in the other suit, sealed his visor. “Ready?” His voice came out with a tinny undertone, reminding her of Svehla in his scuba gear.

“Yes,” she said, doing her best with the unfamiliar fasteners as she moved.

“Bhar?”

“On my way, sir. Good hunting.”

Mac hadn’t asked about the
Impeci,
what it would be like. She didn’t care.
They’d only be inside as long as it took to drop from orbit to Emily’s last known position.

Fy was coming with them, as were the Dhryn. All the Dhryn. The Progenitor—both of them—were insistent. Mac eyed the five feeder pods now limpeted to the upper hull.
Probably should call ahead for walnuts.

Among the elements Nik was coordinating as Sinzi died and they rushed to Earth?

The remaining Humans would trust themselves to the Imrya’s skills with the Sinzi communication system and Earthgov’s ability to track them. Fy had preset the dart to soft land on Earth. Mac wished them luck.

The
Impeci
—more specifically Her Successor—would find and destroy the Ro while the Progenitor waited in orbit.
She’d liked the plan.

She wanted to like the plan, too,
Mac told herself wearily. She nodded good-bye to Bhar and waved to the others.

Mac entered the contaminated ship after Nik, catching up to him in the wide opening that led to the ship’s internal corridors. The
Impeci
seemed entirely harmless and ordinary; she could have been inside any overnight transit lev.
If she ignored the radiation warning that scrolled underfoot, its arrows pointing the way to safety.

“Nik. Wait.” Her voice echoed inside the visor. He pointed to the com control by her chin. Mac pushed it on, fumbling in her haste. “Nik,” she repeated. “We can’t leave yet. The Progenitor. She’s—We can’t trust Her.”