The Caverns of Mare Cetus (7 page)

   "Good God!" exclaimed Isis. "What have we just been talking about?" She turned to Ramon. "You're proof of every point we've been making."

   "You'd better be joking," said Arielle, her eyebrows slanting in anger.

   "I never joke about exploring caverns or caves," he said, flashing Arielle a mischievous grin. "Let me tell you a story about this cavern I once had the chance to explore…"

   Arielle's face turned instantly red. "Ramon. Shut up!" She hit him in the shoulder, laughter from the others filling the air.

   Ramon winked at Hunter. "Our exploration activities must be divulged."

   Her eyes blazing with fury, she hit him again—hard.

   "Ouch!" yelled Ramon as he pulled away from her. He rubbed his shoulder, then grinned. "You're right, dulzura. I should know we're not deep enough yet for any cavern tales. Besides, we'd be embarrassing Renata because she'd have nothing to say." He blatantly stared at Renata's lap. "Even if one could get in that cavern, they'd never get out. What more can one say?"

   A mortified hush fell over the others as every astonished eye became instantly fixed on Renata.

   She smiled back at them, but it appeared forced. She set her plate on the ground. "I think I'm finished. Ramon, thank you so much for your enlightening conversation on cavern exploration." She stood up. "You'll have to excuse me, though, I have other things to attend to."

   "Don't run off, princess," said Ramon. "Why don't you educate us on how one should explore a dry virgin ice cavern?"

   She looked toward Hunter, as if expecting him to come to her defense.

   "Uh, uh," stammered Hunter as his brain seemed to suddenly go into a deep freeze. He knew he needed to stand up to Ramon—had to do it—here—now—or this incident would only escalate, but for some reason he could only stare back at Renata as if there wasn't a thought in his head.

   "You're quite the cavern explorer, Hunter," she said. "Why don't you answer Ramon?" She turned and started walking away.

   Ramon laughed. "It appears even the great Hunter loses his nerve when it comes to exploring ice caverns."

   As Hunter watched Renata walk farther along the bank of the spring, he couldn't figure out what was keeping him from reacting. It was as if he was under the influence of some kind of brain-numbing drug, but it certainly wasn't the wine.

   "Goddamnit, Hunter," said Isis. "Would you get off your ass already and do something."

   At once he began calling out to Renata, but she didn't respond. He turned to Ramon. "What the hell is wrong with you? That's harassment. Not only could I throw your ass off this mission, this could get you fired. You're damned lucky we go way back. If the Iob was here, she'd have your balls for this."

   "Hey. I appreciate your candor, amigo de amigos." He looked down. "But I think right now she's too busy having her own caverns explored." Chuckling now, he glanced at Arielle who appeared stunned, her eyes fixed on Renata.

   "That was really shitty," said Isis. "Renata may be a bitch, but she didn't deserve that." She reached over Arielle's lap and threw what was left in her cup into Ramon's face. "You're an asshole, you know that?"

   Still chuckling, he wiped the wine off his face with his fingers. "Yeah, I know…"

   "What the hell is wrong with you?" shouted Arielle like a teapot coming to a boil. "How could you do that to her?"

   "Hey, if she can't take a little joke."

   "You call that a joke? You've got to be kidding. You have absolutely crossed the line this time." Arielle pushed Ramon away with her hands, then got to her feet. "Rene!" she cried. "I'm sorry! Come back! Please!"

Chapter Three

Novia Cetus

Second planet in orbit around Tau Ceti

Equatorial diameter: 13,002 km
Sidereal rotation period : 28h 6m 38s

Mean distance from Tau Ceti: 104.22 million km (0.7 AU)
Period of revolution around sun: 199.9999 Novian solar days/year
(235.255 Earth days)
Mass (Earth = 1): 1.02

Number of satellites: 3 (Pulchra Novia, Uxor Novia, Muliebris Novia)

1 AU = Distance of Earth from the Sun.

Seething with anger and embarrassment, Renata continued to hurry away from the group, entering a narrow side passage that led out of the chamber.
Renata Stone, Second in Command—an ice cavern?
Ramon was evil, pure evil
.
And as for Hunter, he might as well have given him a gun and painted a target on her chest.
Here, Ramon, shoot
her here, right through the heart.
She was so furious she wanted to bite off her fingers. It wasn't Ramon's audacity that angered her so much—it was Hunter's betrayal, fed through his suddenly impotent authority. What was with him? She had never seen something like this happen to someone before—without Hunter standing up for them. Where was the respect he had always shown her? What had she done to cause his utter disregard for her feelings? As tears began to trickle from her deep brown eyes, she tried in vain to hold them back. At once they were pouring out, streaming over her high-cheekbones as if she was standing in a rainstorm. Her head lowered as she rounded a corner, she nearly bumped into Garrett, who was heading back toward the campsite. Devon was right behind him.

   "Whoa!" he said, stepping back. "What's the hurry?"

   Renata hastily swept her tears away with her fingers.

   "Why the tears?" He placed a hand on her shoulder.

   "Dust in my eyes." She lowered her gaze.

   "Seems like you've been in a dust storm then. What's wrong?"

   "Nothing."

   "How come I don't believe that?" He took his hand off her shoulder. "Where are you headed?"

   "Anyplace," she said, her voice choked. "Anyplace away from here." She looked up.

   "Ramon," said Garrett. His brow furrowed; hardened anger spread through his face.

   "I'm going for a walk. That's all. See what I can find."

   "Want some company?"

   "No. I just need to get away for awhile."

   "Is there something I can do for you?" asked Devon as she placed a consoling hand on Renata's shoulder.

   Renata looked at her with scorn. "I
don't
think so."

   Devon removed her hand. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean…"

   Renata scratched her shoulder. "Look. I just have to clear my head, okay?"

   "You know how I feel about this place…" Garrett's voice faded. "But you're a big girl. Just play it smart, okay?"

   "Of course I will," she said as her eyes became fixed on Devon.

   Devon's eyes darted several times between the ground and Renata's face. "Are you sure you don't want me to go with you?"

   "No," said Renata. "I'll be fine." She scratched her shoulder again, then began kneading it with her fingers.

   "I'd feel better if you took this." Garrett pulled an electra from his pocket. "I always carry a backup."

   "I really don't need that," she said, but Garrett's eyes seemed to be begging her to take it. She reluctantly took the electra and placed it in her jacket pocket. "Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. I promise."

   "And don't worry about that idiot. We'll take care of him. I promise."

   She gave him a halfhearted smile, taking notice of Devon, whose eyes seemed to be looking through her, as if Devon was deep in thought. Renata turned and headed toward a side passage.

   "Remember to use your brains, Rene," Garrett's voice rang out as she entered the passage.

   As Renata continued along the straight, narrow passage for a while, her thoughts were consumed by painful embarrassment and gloomy contemplation. "Too bad scheming and revenge aren't your strong points," she mumbled when she finally took notice of the passage walls, which were made up of thick layers of grungy gray limestone that sandwiched thin, wavy pockets of cream-colored gypsum. She stopped, took a gander at a lens-shaped pocket of gypsum, then began walking again, scrutinizing each step as she avoided sporadic groups of sharp, angular rocks that were protruding from beneath the mud-choked floor. After she had gone a distance more, the passage widened and ran into a broad elliptical spring.

   She sat by the edge of the spring and moved her hand over the misty grayish-green water, gauging its temperature. After running a quick Vimap scan on the spring's properties—it was as hot as bathwater, about seven meters deep and basically just water—she sat silently for a while, dancing her fingers through the water. Then she gave her shoulder a hard massage, trying to dislodge what now felt like a numbing sensation. At once she let go of her shoulder and anxiously looked back into the passage, fearing Ramon's loathsome face would pop out from behind the rocks and shatter her peaceful refuge. It didn't. She turned back to the serenity of the spring and stared at her reflection in the pool but was disturbed by the dark circles beneath her eyes. She waggled her fingers in the water, distorting her unbecoming image.

   She took off her boots and socks, rolled up her slacks, and dangled her legs in the water. She sighed. It felt great. "That jerk," she muttered. She looked at her thin legs as she stretched them out just at the waterline. "You may not have Ari's body, but you're no damn ice cavern." As she began bobbing her legs in the water, she felt the urge to go for a swim, as crazy as that sounded, the spring seeming to get only more inviting as she savored its warmth against her skin. She pulled her legs up on the rocks and after glancing around the chamber, she removed her jacket and slacks. She unfastened the symotes from her jacket, turned off their sensors, and set them on the ground so they cast their light across the pool. It was then she noticed another passage leading away from the pool on its opposite end. She removed her bright yellow T-shirt and panties and placed all of her clothing in a neat pile next to the lamps.

   She slipped into the pool and began treading water. The glistening reflections in the water bringing back memories of an isolated lake resort on Novia, she swam lazily along the length of the pool several times, moving in and out of the light of the lamps.

   Still, she couldn't help but notice her eyes seemed continually drawn to the narrow passage on the far end of the spring, as if it was beckoning to her. She swam into the middle of the pool and stared into the murky opening, the light from the lamps barely penetrating it. As she searched the shadows, looking for something, anything, she tried to reason with the feelings she was getting. Though the passage appeared to be a clone of all the other passages she had seen so far, there was something intriguing about it. She swam closer and gazed into it, imagining it crying out to her.
Rene. Come to me. Cast your eyes
upon a history that has been eternally cloaked in darkness. Come now, or
forever miss your chance
. The seduction was overpowering.

   She swam to the bank, grabbed a lamp and her Vimap, then swam back to the opposite end. She climbed out of the water and stepped into the passage. Immediately the cool air collided with the thin veneer of water covering her body, sending a thousand glistening goose bumps cascading across her skin. She shivered, then looked down at her nudity.
What are you doing, Rene? You're going to freeze
your ass off. Go back and get your clothes. This is totally shameless, not
to mention—stupid. What would Hunter think if he found you doing this,
what would he say…
She glanced toward her clothing, then scoffed out loud. "No! Not this time. You're not going to win, Ramon. You want me to feel ashamed of my body—well, it's not going to happen. I'm in control of me—you aren't. To hell with you…"

   She started walking slowly into the passage, carefully examining its walls, but she found nothing unusual—only thin-bedded rocks— brown, lifeless, drab. Still, she couldn't overcome the feeling she had a reason for being there. Her pace quickening, she pressed forward a short distance. Something seemed to be luring her on.
Luring her?
Something? Ludicrous!
Abruptly she stopped. What in God's name
was
she doing? She was naked, totally naked, and completely alone in an unexplored passage. She didn't even have her com—it was still on her jacket.

   
This is insane,
she thought, then pictured Ramon's face—mocking her, calling her sexless, frigid, afraid. "I am not frigid," she said loudly as if retorting to Ramon. "And I am not afraid." She started forward again and rounded a corner, immediately noticing a sparkling in the wall on her left. She stopped. The featureless limestone had been transformed, magically, like a curtain opening at a play. The wall was filled with thousands of embedded, rounded, glistening greenishbrown pebbles. Many of the golf ball-sized pebbles were formed in long, parallel, horizontal chains, some grouped in spirals, and others in convoluted, snaking forms that resembled strings of beads glued on the wall. As she turned, she gaped. The entire passage had been metamorphosed into masses of pebbles, and as she searched through the maze of shapes surrounding her, she saw something new at every glance.

   She stepped back from the wall and was instantly astounded. As if she had been standing too close to a Rembrandt painting, seeing only globs of meaningless colors, she realized now the shapes weren't random but were repetitive. The spirals at each end of the dense, nearly perfectly horizontal layers were proportional in size to the vertical width of the layers and appeared to mark the ends of the horizontal beds. The horizontal groups became gradually less horizontal near the top and transitioned into convoluted groups above them, which in turn transitioned into another group of perfectly level pebbles above that. Every so often, places within the horizontal pebbles were filled in with limy sand, which obscured the rocks behind them. Though she wanted to deny it, it almost appeared as if each sandy area was a tiny refuge, protected by the safety of the structure surrounding them.

   "I have to record this for Ari." She slowly waved her Vimap over one wall, then turned around to record a panoramic view of the opposite wall. Holding the Vimap out, she began walking the length of the wall, pebbles stretching as far as her lamp would permit her to see. After about twenty steps, she found a narrow fissure leading away from the passage. She peered into it, seeing more of the glistening pebbles. She put the Vimap up to the opening and pressed a button, releasing a thin, silvery, snake-like probe and watched as it
slithered
into the opening. After a short while, she looked at her watch. She had been gone from the group for well over an hour.

   She pressed a button, recalling the snake. She continued to hold the Vimap up to the fissure while prying one of the pebbles loose from the wall with her other hand. After a moment, a soft chiming rang from the Vimap, indicating the snake was back inside, its information transferred to the Vimap's memory arrays.

   She took one last look at the awe-inspiring pebbles, then began to hurry toward the spring. When she reached it, she jumped in and swam across, climbing up on the bank.

   She leaned over to pick up her clothes…"Hey!" Her boots were gone! The pebble dropped from her hand. She grabbed her jacket and was shocked to discover her socks, pants, and underwear were missing as well. A chaotic rush of anxiety swirled into her lungs. "What the hell?" She nervously glanced around. "What's going on? They were right here, I know." Then it dawned on her.
Ramon!
He must have convinced the men to follow her. "All right," she bemoaned, her voice echoing through the passage. "What lousy creep took my clothes?" She waited motionless, the jacket clenched tightly against her trembling chest, her breathing sounding like a windstorm in the somber silence surrounding her. She pulled her knees toward her and anxiously flashed a symote along the walls, hoping to catch a glimpse of someone, but only barren gray rock stared back at her. She tried to pinpoint some homing identifiers with her Vimap, but she couldn't detect any.

   She looked at the screen in disgust, aware that anyone with a modest knowledge of Vimap capabilities could block out their homing transmissions. Anger overpowering her, her voice became strong, unwavering. "Okay, you jokesters! Enough fun already. You've seen what you came for. Now give me my clothes back…" Her voice thinned into uncertainty. "…okay?"

   She waited. By now she should have heard laughter and jokes, but the morbid silence had grown only thicker, more pervasive. Her heart seemed to flutter in her chest; sweat beaded on her forehead. An unsettling fear raced through her veins. Still, she knew there couldn't be any logical answer except the men, and that thought caused her to grow irate. "Come on, assholes! Give me my clothes back already!" Her quavering voice reverberated through the hall like she had set off a bomb.

   As disturbing visions of being
watched
sprang into her thoughts, she hastily put on her shirt and jacket. She snapped her jacket closed, but her trembling hands made it an arduous task. She picked up the pebble and slipped it into her pocket, suddenly feeling the reassurance of cold steel—the electra. She sighed in relief, then recanted it with a shudder. "Okay, assholes," she said, her voice breaking. "This is your last chance. I've had enough of your childish games. I have an electra. If you don't show, I'm going to use it."

   She waited, tensely, but much to her dismay, ubiquitous morguelike silence continued to permeate the dark, dismal passage. "I mean it! Speak or I'm going to fire." She aimed the pistol down the passage, supporting it with her trembling forearm. Still hoping at the last second she'd hear a voice, she began caressing the trigger with her finger. Only a fool would risk a pulse of an E-charge. The passage would afford little protection. Could she have completely underestimated them?