Saga of Shadows 1: The Dark Between the Stars (85 page)

“No!” Seth cried.

Pannebaker was still out in his inspection pod. “What do you want me to do, Chief?”

Iswander looked at Elisa, then at Seth. “Bring the compy back and put him in quarantine with the woman.”

Pannebaker sped off to pick up DD.

Once inside the newly evacuated module, Orli removed her helmet and heaved great breaths. She wore an astonished, disbelieving look—and Garrison immediately saw on the screen that her face was free of the discolorations and blemishes that had been so prominent before. Stripping out of her environment suit, Orli looked drained but strangely rejuvenated. Her shipclothes were drenched with perspiration.

Inside the admin module, Aelin beamed. “I told you. The blood of the cosmos purged the disease and left her fresh and whole.”

During the next day, DD nursed her back to health. Orli was ravenous, and made a remarkable recovery.

While in quarantine, she also spent a great deal of time face-to-face on the comm with Garrison. They talked about their lives, the chain of events that had brought them to this wasteland on the outskirts of an unnamed star system. Orli regaled him with her adventures growing up, and Garrison talked about the Retroamers and the impossible dream of rebuilding Rendezvous.

Meanwhile, Iswander increased his ekti-extraction operations to a frenzy, worried that the shadow cloud might reappear at any time. His workers had already drained two-thirds of the bloaters, filling numerous surplus silos with stardrive fuel to be sold through their new arrangement with Kett Shipping. Meanwhile, the cluster floated closer to the bright white star.

After the regular crew, including Elisa, went back to work, Garrison had more time alone with Orli, face-to-face on the screen. Iswander still didn’t want to risk direct exposure. She talked about Matthew and how her life path had not gone the direction she expected. Hesitantly, Garrison talked about Elisa and said the same thing. And they talked about nothing at all.

He wanted to know Orli. He had so many questions for her,
about
her. Despite her ordeal, she appeared strengthened by it. She seemed lost—not aimless, but searching—and glad to have him to talk to.

Garrison realized he was in a similar situation. Ever since the Shana Rei’s inexplicable withdrawal from the bloater field, followed by Orli’s unexpected arrival in the plague ship, he had set aside the questions of where he and Seth should go—or
if
they should go.

When at last even the most skeptical doctor agreed that Orli was cured, that all symptoms were gone, that her blood tests were negative, and that she and the compy posed no further threat, Garrison was allowed to go into the module. He had Seth remain outside, and safe, for now.

It was their first meeting in person, although Garrison felt as if he had known her for a long time. Inside the quiet module, he came forward and gave Orli a hug. Oddly, he felt closer to her than he’d felt to Elisa in a long time.

Aelin joined them, eager to share his experience. Orli seemed energetic and alert now, but she did not have the intense euphoria that the green priest exhibited after his exposure. “The conduit of telink allowed me to receive so much more,” he said, sounding disappointed. “All the glory and wonder were not available to you. I knew it wouldn’t be the same, and I’m sorry for you.”

Orli did not seem disturbed, however. “I’m
alive,
thanks to you. I never expected that to happen. That’s all I could ask for.”

Her attention, though, was on Garrison. “I thought about what you said—about the importance of my work with the compies. The Spiral Arm has plenty of traders and spaceship pilots, but not everyone can do what I do. I should have focused my efforts and skills on doing what I do best . . .
my
skills, not just as a shadow of Matthew’s.”

DD piped up, “That is my opinion as well. Most of the compies we distributed from Relleker have been transferred to a new colony on Ikbir.”

“Never heard of the place,” Garrison said. “What’s it like?”

Orli flushed. “I have no idea.”

He laughed. “Sounds like a well-considered plan then.”

“We could go there,” DD said. “I am sure they’d be glad to have her. Orli Covitz is a very useful person. And she can continue her work there.”

Now she frowned. “I don’t know how I’d get there, though. I seem to have lost my ship.”

DD swiveled his head. “You gave me instructions to destroy the
Proud Mary,
Orli. Perhaps you don’t recall—”

“I remember, DD. Just trying to solve a problem.”

To Garrison, going with Orli to a Confederation colony sounded like a much better idea than staying at the ekti-extraction operations or even going back to the LOC—better for him, and better for Seth to be in a place where there were colonist children his age. Or maybe the boy would go back to Academ. And of course there would be DD. The boy had grown quite fond of the Friendly compy in a very short time.

And Orli would be there too.

He said, “I could give you and DD a lift in the
Prodigal Son
.” On the comm, he asked, “Seth, would you like to go to Ikbir, at least to have a look around?” The boy couldn’t agree quickly enough.

Now all they had to do was convince Elisa.

In the admin module, Elisa was preparing the manifest for a large shipment of ekti to the Ulio transfer station. She planned to be gone for several weeks, negotiating to buy salvage vessels that could be shipped out to the bloater cluster and reconfigured as pumping and filtering barges. She simply assumed Garrison would take care of their son whenever she went away.

But he had to focus on what was best for the boy, not let himself be buffeted by Elisa’s capricious priorities. He announced, “Seth and I are going to check out a colony called Ikbir, maybe settle there if it looks good. I’ll leave the coordinates, and you’ll be able to contact me anytime you like.”

Elisa’s eyes flashed. “I didn’t agree to that. My son is staying here where he’s safe.”

“Safe?” Garrison said.

Even Lee Iswander gave her a sidelong look. “Perhaps it’s best if he takes the boy to a stable settlement, Ms. Enturi—this family squabble needs to end.”

She visibly fought to contain her anger. “Custody is not just a squabble, sir.”

“Indeed not, but I’m thinking of everyone’s best interests. What if I were to expand your duties here? Your responsibility to Iswander Industries would require your time and attention . . . but if you prefer, I can give you a less stressful job, so you have more spare time to manage your personal life. Mr. Pannebaker is my alternate choice.”

Elisa’s face hardened. She looked at Seth and Garrison, as if she were being pulled by an intense gravitational force, but it took her little time to make up her mind. “You can count on me, sir. You’ve always known my reliability and my dedication to Iswander Industries.” She glanced back at Garrison, as if she didn’t even see Seth standing there. “He’s still my son.”

“He’s still
our
son.”

They were interrupted when Aelin entered the admin module, looking ecstatic. He spread his arms and tilted his chin. “Can you feel it? It’ll happen soon now!”

One of Iswander’s techs frowned at her readings, refreshed the screen, then stared out at the bloater cluster. The nodules were pulling away from the extraction operations. “The cluster is accelerating, Mr. Iswander.”

The drifting bloaters had been picking up speed as they approached the nearby star, but the industrial operations had kept pace. Now, though, the remnants of the cluster—still hundreds of bloaters, despite the wreckage the ekti operations had deposited in their wake—drew ahead and left the complex behind.

The green priest closed his eyes, lifted his hands palms up, splayed his fingers. “Can you
feel
it? Something beautiful is happening!”

Flashes sparked through the bloater nuclei like fireworks, a random pattern that increased in intensity and speed as the bloaters plunged toward the star.

“All those flashes—it’s like they’re communicating,” Garrison said.

Orli stood beside him, watching intently. “Or a chain reaction.”

Inside the admin module, monitoring screens switched to higher magnification as the bloaters drew farther and farther away. The huge nodules shifted, flattened, and then swelled. Their elastic shapes contracted in the middle and began to spread out. Still swelling and stretching, the nodules
fissioned
, each sphere dividing into two bloaters.

Orli’s voice was husky with awe. “It’s like mitosis—cells dividing.”

Each new sphere inflated to the size of the original nodule, until there were twice as many of them. The bloaters continued to shimmer, flashing signals, pulsing, squirming, swelling.

Within an hour, before the Iswander operations managed to catch up with them, the bloaters fissioned once more, restoring the numbers in the strange cluster to more than they were before.

Tears streamed down Aelin’s face. “And they’re not finished yet!”

The metamorphosis continued. The newborn bloaters squashed and expanded, becoming disklike and elongated until broad fleshy wings with membranous surfaces extended from their body cores, making the nodules look like huge space mantas.

The broad wings gathered the bright light of the nearby star, absorbing energy, and they swooped forward, accelerating until they circled the white sun. The transformed bloaters reveled in their new forms like butterflies emerging from a chrysalis. Their body cores sparkled, as if their flickering conversation had increased in intensity.

Everyone inside the admin module stared, struck dumb with wonder. The glorious creatures moved like a single flock, riding the solar wind. Picking up speed, they came back around and soared out past the Iswander extraction operations.

Then the bloaters flashed away, heading out into empty untracked space.

O
NE HUNDRED AND THIRTY
-
NINE

R
LINDA
K
ETT

On Theroc, the flood of sunlight rejuvenated the worldforest. As the trees strengthened, the green priests rejoiced. People bustled about the fungus-reef city, barely able to believe they had escaped the deadly impenetrable night.

Rlinda Kett met the new day with great joy, announcing that Arbor would be open for all customers. She was already planning great feasts to celebrate the bounty available from the thriving forest.

As day dawned again—a
real
dawn—and the atmosphere warmed, winds whipped up, stirring the worldtrees. Capricious rainstorms appeared as weather patterns readjusted, but even the rain seemed like a wonderful gift. Rlinda stood out on the open forest canopy next to her restaurant, while others ran for shelter. She just smiled and enjoyed the sparkle of raindrops on her skin.

Stepping back inside, dripping wet, she announced, “Mr. Wisskoff, we will be providing klee for all customers, fresh, hot, and free. It’s time to give back.” She slurped from her own cup of the rich beverage, felt the energy of ground worldtree seeds seep into her bloodstream.

“Free? Wonderful.” The maître d’ sniffed. “Perhaps I could simply open our pantries and refrigeration units, toss all of our food out into the meadows? Spread the bounty far and wide by flinging it from the branches?” His pinched face tightened at the very idea.

In the end, she allowed him to talk her into limiting the offer to “one day only.” The maître d’ brightened slightly. “While others are celebrating their salvation, I will celebrate you coming to your senses, ma’am. Briefly.”

Rlinda and Wisskoff took a portable dispenser and made their way to the main fungus-reef. A small ship had flown in from the Wild and landed on one of the canopy decks. Arita emerged from the landed vessel, accompanied by her aunt Sarein, who had lived as a veritable hermit for years. Although Sarein gave Rlinda a cool reception, because of their many interactions during the Elemental War, Arita ran forward to hug her. “Where’s Reyn? Is he here?”

Rlinda smiled. “Oh, he’s here, and safe—with an Ildiran girl he seems quite fond of.” She brushed aside the impatient Wisskoff, who didn’t seem happy to be wherever he was, at any time. “Follow us. They’re all meeting with your parents and General Keah.”

“And we are delighted to offer free cups of klee for everyone,” Wisskoff said without enthusiasm.

When they reached the fungus-reef’s main meeting chamber, Arita ran to her brother, who seemed shy as he introduced Osira’h. Arita warmed to her as soon as she noticed the attraction between Reyn and the Mage-Imperator’s daughter. “Oh! I’m very pleased to meet you.” Arita’s knowing grin embarrassed her brother.

Rlinda moved throughout the room, supposedly trying to be unobtrusive but not at all successful. During her many years as trade minister before moving on to Kett Shipping and her restaurants, she had formed a habit of keeping her eyes open and her finger on the pulse of society.

Sarein seemed out of place, but she took a seat at the table and waited for the meeting to continue, as if she were an integral part of the discussions. “Please don’t allow us to interrupt,” she said.

Several advisers and Confederation representatives were in the room along with General Keah, who wore her full dress uniform and was seated next to four Manta captains, whom she had handpicked after their performance during the nightshade crisis. Rlinda handed them all cups of steaming klee, whether they asked for one or not.

Keah put her elbows on the table, and continued. “As I was saying—first off, we need to get our butts in gear. Adar Zan’nh gave us the Solar Navy plans for sun bombs and laser missiles, but who knows when the Shana Rei will strike again?”

Peter said, “The factories at the Lunar Orbital Complex are ready for full-scale production. I received a report from Deputy Cain this morning. We should have sun bombs for CDF ships within the coming weeks.”

“Yes, Sire, but those are the standard-issue sun bombs. Ildirans being what they are, I’m sure the weapons were from old plans that hadn’t been changed in thousands of years. We can do better. The CDF will add some finesse, increase the intensity, and show the Ildirans how it’s done. It’s a matter of pride.”