Strange New Worlds 2016 (4 page)

She was close enough to touch the crystal when it felt like she was broadsided by
a Rigellian ox. Her body went skidding across the rock floor. Once she stopped and
was able to stagger up into a kneeling position, the room went spinning again with
another impact that sent pain shooting everywhere in her body. She was thrown through
the rock veneer and into the dreary environment outside the cavern room.

This time, instead of trying to get back up, she remained splayed out on the ground,
her battered body unwilling to move. She’d be lucky if all her bones and organs were
intact. She looked down her body, toward the cliff face, and saw Portal. He was carrying
a halberd in his right hand. She pulled the phaser from the loop on her belt and,
aiming as best she could through the pain-induced haze around her head, pulled the
trigger. The blue beam screamed toward its target but then peeled off at an impossible
angle. It ended up striking one of the tall, singing crystals, whose luminescence
increased as it absorbed the phaser’s energy.

“Eve, what’s going on?” Harry’s voice crackled over the communicator. “Who are you
shooting at?”

“Portal,” she coughed out hoarsely. “Aren’t you detecting him?”

“I’m only detecting one life sign,” said Harry. “Yours.” Eve’s blood ran cold. So
was he a ghost? Or was he another hologram? She only knew there was nothing fake about
the bruises and cuts all over her body or the axe blade glistening under the lightning
flashes.

“
WHY HAVE YOU RETURNED
?” demanded Portal, speaking with the godlike resonance that seemed to come from every
direction.

“I can’t leave you with the Genesis plans,” she said. “They’re too dangerous.”

“Only dangerous to enemies of the Empire. Are you an enemy of the Empire?”

“No. Your empire has been dead for six hundred thousand years. So are its enemies.”

Portal’s face became a mask of rage. “Liar! The Empire is forever.”

“Eve,” Harry said again, “there’s someone else coming out of the cliff. It’s definitely
human. Oh my God, I think it’s—” The communicator went dead.

Taking the halberd between both hands, Portal began walking toward Eve with a menacing
step. A second figure came up behind him, emerging from the cavern room just as Harry
had reported. The figure rushed toward Portal, waving her hands and screaming, “Portal,
wait! Stop.” The long black hair that trailed behind her as she ran was a phantom
from Eve’s distant past. Once the woman’s face came into view, Eve knew beyond any
doubt that the two of them had shared the same life a lifetime ago.

“Ruth,” Eve whispered.

“I left Herm a few months ago. Just couldn’t take it anymore,” explained Ruth Bonaventure.
Eve was sitting on a surprisingly plush couch inside one of the back rooms she couldn’t
see into earlier. She was drinking a cup of hot tea, letting its warmth soothe her
aching body.

“I’m sorry,” Eve said. Even in her current beaten state, she was sincere. Ruth looked
every bit as broken and beaten down as Eve felt. Her exotic beauty was still there,
but time and circumstance had hardened it.

“Don’t be. It’s not your fault. I’m the one who stayed with him for twenty years.
As bad as he was, I guess he was better than the backwater farming planet I came from
and all the flea-ridden ports and stations Harry used to drag us to. At least Herm
was rich.” Ruth cradled her teacup between two hands, sitting on the opposite side
of the couch. Her legs were folded up underneath her.

“When did Herm change?”

Ruth laughed a joyless laugh. “Oh, sweetie. He never changed. He was always that way,
even back when he and Ben were working together on Rigel XII. It got worse whenever
the Venus drug would wear off and we couldn’t get a replacement shipment in time.
Once the Federation really cracked down on the drug, the supply dried up completely.
The drug disappeared. That’s when things got really bad. I wonder how many other women
suffered. Unintended consequences, I suppose.” Ruth took a sip from the cup. “How
did you and Ben keep the supply going?”

“We didn’t. We talked about it, discussed what we were really looking for in a relationship,
and never wanted it again.” Eve at once regretted her words. She should’ve found a
more tactful way around the question.

“I guess some of us are luckier than others.” Ruth gave a wan smile, but her eyes
betrayed deep pain.

Eve needed to change the subject. “How did you wind up here?”

“It’s ironic, really. Herm was obsessed with the Tkon Empire. He attended seminars
and conferences. He became an amateur historian on the subject. I would let him talk
to me about it for hours. Not because I was interested in it. Boring as hell, if you
ask me. It’s just that he was happiest when talking about the Tkon.

“A few months ago, when I decided I’d finally had enough, I stole one of his shuttles.
It was his favorite—outfitted with all the crap he used on his Tkon archaeological
digs.” There was a gleam of joy in her eyes as she admitted to the crime. “I guess
that’s how I ended up here, in space that once belonged to their Empire. I chose some
random coordinates in the navigation computer. I didn’t care where I was going. I
never meant to land here, but I was pulled down by all this ancient equipment.” Her
arm motioned toward the door and cavern beyond. “Those crystals out there drain energy
like nothing else. After I landed, it wasn’t long before Portal showed up.”

“He’s keeping you hostage, isn’t he?” Eve asked, keeping her voice as low as possible.

Ruth threw back her head and let out the loudest laugh Eve had ever heard. “Not at
all. Portal doesn’t know a wild pig from a Tellarite. He was asleep until I came along.
He still thinks the Tkon Empire is the big thing in the galaxy.”

Why was Ruth being so cavalier? Did she not know what was going on? Had Herm driven
her to the edge of sanity as well as the edge of the Federation?

“Do you know what Portal is planning?”

“Of course I do. Who do you think gave him the idea? You weren’t the only mining company
Carol Marcus approached. Herm just never had your foresight.”

Eve shook her head in disbelief. Lukewarm tea sloshed into her lap, and she realized
her hands were trembling. “Don’t you realize it could mean death for the Federation?”

“I’m counting on it,” Ruth said casually, taking another sip.

“But . . . why? Why would you want to destroy the crowning achievement of humanity
just to spite one man?”

Ruth’s gaze hardened into steel daggers. She jumped up from the couch and threw her
teacup against the far wall. It exploded in a cloud of tiny porcelain shards. Dark
fluid dripped down the rock wall and onto the floor. “This isn’t about Herm!” she
screamed. “He’s a little man who got lucky in life. He’s not worth another minute
of my time. It may have taken me over twenty years to learn that, but it’s the truth.
He’s nothing.”

The door whisked open. Portal walked through, still carrying the halberd and dragging
Harry by the arm. With a hard push, Portal sent his fat captive stumbling into the
room. The doors closed behind them.

“I decided he was better off in here than out there,” explained Portal.

“Speaking of men who are nothing,” cackled Ruth as Harry fell past her.

“Nice to see you again too, Ruthie,” replied Harry, rubbing his arm gingerly where
Portal had grabbed it.

“I’m not doing this because of Harry, either, if that’s what you’re thinking,” said
Ruth, looking at Eve. “I’m doing this because of the Federation, their hypocrisy.
Oh, they preach lofty ideals about doing away with money and replacing it with a philosophy
of self-improvement. And who can really argue? Poverty, hunger, and want on Earth
have been eliminated. The Federation provides all basic needs and so much more. Why,
everything you could possibly want is no more than a push of a button away. There’s
no need to compete for resources. War has been eliminated. Crime is so rare, it’s
barely worth mentioning. It’s heaven on Earth.

“But, you see, nothing is ever truly free. All of humanity’s accomplishments wouldn’t
be possible without those magic rocks you wear on your ears. And you of all people
know how difficult and dangerous it is to get them. I heard about what happened to
Ben. The same thing has happened to more dilithium miners than you can count. Eve,
have you ever wondered why you seem to be so wealthy in a society where no one is
supposed to be rich and no one is supposed to be poor? It’s because people willing
to do the work you do are the scarcest resource around. The Federation doesn’t want
to lose you, so they’ll let you openly defy the system. They’ll even look the other
way when you break the law.”

“That’s ridiculous,” said Eve.

“No, it isn’t,” replied Harry. “I hate to say it, but Ruthie is right. I tried to
sell you, Magda, and Ruth to some lithium miners, who were willing buyers. Human trafficking
is illegal everywhere in the Federation for both seller and buyer. Always has been.
Yet none of your husbands was ever punished.”

“It’s like Kirk said, we were far away from civilization,” insisted Eve.

“So was I,” said Harry. “That didn’t stop the Federation from tracking
me
down and sending
me
to prison. But, then, I don’t mine dilithium.”

“And the Federation didn’t lift a finger to help me, despite Herm’s abuse,” added
Ruth.

“The Federation?” Portal asked. “I learned of them in the data crystal Eve McHuron
provided. Are they enemies of the Empire? Because they made no mention of the Tkon
in any of their recordings.”

Ruth sighed and rolled her eyes. “Get a clue, Portal. It’s been at least six hundred
thousand years since you were last activated. I know you believe your Empire is forever,
but do the math: What do you think the odds are it’s still around?” She took a deep
breath, and her voice was softer when she spoke again. “How much longer until Genesis
is ready for launch?”

“A few minutes.”

“What? A few minutes?” Eve asked incredulously. “How could he possibly fix Genesis
so quickly?”

“Most of Genesis’s problems were self-inflicted. Protomatter had been deliberately
placed in the matrix,” explained Portal.

“You’d be surprised how much easier things are when you have all the knowledge of
an ancient, hyperadvanced civilization rolling around in your memory banks,” said
Ruth.

“Ruth, you can’t do this,” begged Eve.

“Watch me.”

Eve was at a loss for words. She glanced helplessly at Harry, her eyes begging him
to say something, anything that might make Ruth change her mind.

“I’m sorry, love,” Harry said. “Ruthie is absolutely right about the Federation. I’m
tired of answering to them. Let them burn, as far as I’m concerned.”

“Smartest thing you’ve ever said, Harry,” Ruth said. “I detest you a little less right
now.”

“I must prepare the launch,” said Portal, moving to take Harry with him.

“You don’t need to take him. I’m a big girl. Besides, he won’t give us any trouble.
He sees things our way.”

“As you wish. If you need me, you know how to summon me.” Portal turned and was gone
through the rockface door.

Eve collapsed onto the couch, doubled over at the waist, and buried her face in her
arms. How had it gotten this bad? Would she be responsible for the death of the Federation?
It would be easy to blame Harry, but it wouldn’t be right. When she was young, she
was taught to believe she had no value beyond what her beauty offered. That’s why
she’d taken the Venus drug. That’s why she’d allowed herself to be bought and sold
like chattel. Once she was able to leave that life behind, she vowed never to be that
trite, preening china doll again. She set out to acquire all she could. Unfortunately,
she’d taken it too far with Genesis. The moment she’d stolen Genesis for herself,
she’d risked the very universal Armageddon she was facing now. She was the cause of
all this. Harry was merely the means. Whatever happened from this point on, it would
be her fault.

Eve’s dark thoughts were interrupted by a loud hiss, like the sound a hypospray made.
Her head snapped up in time to see Ruth fall back into Harry, who laid her gently
on the floor.

“Just a little tranquilizer,” he explained. “Ruthie will be fine. I don’t know what
you have planned, but you better do it soon.”

Eve stared in disbelief. “So you didn’t mean what you said? It was all an act to gain
her trust?”

Harry laughed. “There’s more truth to what Ruthie said than most people are willing
to admit, but I’m not ready to destroy civilization over it.” Harry reached into the
vest Ruth was wearing and pulled out a type-2 phaser. “I believe this is yours.”

Eve took the pistol and went quickly through the door. Like last time, she stayed
within the shadows against the rock wall, and saw no sign of Portal. Unfortunately,
unlike last time, she had no plan. Her eyes darted around the room, looking for anything
that resembled a torpedo launcher. If she could find it, she could use her phaser
to disable or, better yet, destroy the Genesis device before it was launched.