When the Stars Fade (The Gray Wars) (54 page)

             
Mara scribbled down notes in her small tablet. The stylus traced glowing yellow lines on the screen. Ray marveled at the intricate script. It was unlike any written language h
e’
d ever seen, a fantastic collage of spirals and geometric shapes. She must have noticed him staring, because she suddenly stopped and looked up.

             
“Is something wrong, doctor
?”
Her voice was light compared to the rest of the Nangolani in the room. She smiled, taking the time to form the expression correctly.

             
Ray stammered
.“
No. No,
I’
m sorry. I was just
,”
he struggled to find his words
.“
I was admiring your penmanship
.
”

             
Mara looked down at the device in her hand. She frowned
.“I’
m not holding a pen
.
”

             
“Your use of a stylus then
.
”

             
She laughed
.“
Your people seem incapable of holding a single thought for more than a few minutes. You realize we have at least another sixty-four hours left to watch
?
”

             
“Sixty-four hours and nineteen minutes
,”
Ray said
.“I’
m used to boredom. I was an observatory babysitter for two years
.
”

             
“Then should
n’
t you want to speed up the process
?
”             

             
He sighed
.“
Does
n’
t matter how fast we go. We keep getting more data. And the more they give us, the more questions w
e’
re going to be able to ask
.
”

             
“And the more questions
,”
a voice said
,“
the longer it will take to find all the answers
.
”

             
Ray looked up at Director Chavez. The tall, gaunt man placed a hand on each scientist
s’
shoulder. He noticeably jerked his fingers when they touched the alie
n’
s skin. Mara, for her part, did
n’
t show any reaction.

             
“Sorry, director
,”
Ray said
.“
We were just talking
.
”

             
“Raymond, you were brought on this project to help us learn more about our enemy
.”
Chavez paced around their table
.“
We have so much to learn about the Boxti before w
e’
ll be ready to truly fight them. As it is, w
e’
re still finding out new and exciting things about the Grays
.”
He stressed the last word, his throat tight, as he looked at the alien
.“
Needless to say, we have our work cut out for us. I need you to stay on task. Save the talking for after your shift ends
.
”             

             
Ra
y’
s face grew red
.“
Yes, sir
.
”

             
“Good sport. Now, let me know if you find anything useful
.”
Chavez looked at Mara, a flash of distaste passing over his face. He turned toward the far end of the room and strode off, greeting the other groups as he passed.

             
Ray faced Mara
.“I’
m sorry, he should
n’
t have said that
.
”

             
“I
t’
s fine
,”
she said, waving her hand
.“
It takes more than being called a color to offend me
.
”

             
“Even so, i
t’
s not right of him
.
”

             
She put a small hand on his wrist
.“
Ray, yo
u’
re a very sensitive man. And I do appreciate the gesture. But honestly, If I do
n’
t concentrate I often miss what people are saying. If the
y’
re using some sort of subliminal hate speech, it never enters my head
.”
She grinned
.“
I guess
I’
m lucky in that respect
.
”

             
“So it does
n’
t bother you
?
”

             
“Not as much as it worries me
.”
She looked at Chavez as he exited the room
.“
I do
n’
t understand the trust issues your people have with mine. I
t’
s been months, and w
e’
ve been nothing but cooperative
.
”

             
Ray shrugged
.“
W
e’
re human. I
t’
s part of our nature to be curious. Makes it hard for us to take anything at face value
.”
He wiped his face with his hands
.“
Jesus, this is boring
.
”

             
Mara pushed her tablet over toward him. She had drawn a fairly accurate caricature of Chavez. The directo
r’
s face was pinched in the middle, making him look like an angry mole. Ray laughed.

             
“Tha
t’
s really good. I did
n’
t know you could draw
.
”

             
She blushed, her cheeks turning a darker shade of gray
.“
W
e’
re not supposed to. I
t’
s against the teachings of the Ambra Dowan
.”
She quickly erased the display
.“
Emperor Anduin would
n’
t approve
.
”

             
Ray cocked his head to the side, admiring the alien scientist
.“
What is your religion like
?
”

             
Mara sighed, her brow pulled in a decidedly human expression
.“
While most Nangolani follow the Ambra Dowan, we try to keep our personal beliefs to ourselves. Every species has an opinion about faith and the gods and how it all fits together. In our collective experience, we found that religious debate never ends well
.
”

             
“Please
,”
Ray said
.“I’
m not much for church talk, but
I’
d love to learn more about you
.
”

             
She looked at him, her large eyes warm and hopeful
.“I’
ll tell you a story, but tha
t’
s all
.”
She collected herself, pushing her notes aside so she could illustrate the tale on her tablet
.“
Back in the Second Era, long before my birth, her Eminence Darna Wo walked the silver lakes of Na
i’
Lanei with a group of the smartest minds of her time. Scientists and doctors, emperors and scholars all walked alongside the Star Child and asked questions about the path of Guiding Light.

             
“Now most of the people who met Darna Wo treated her as royalty. In the first pages of her journal, she often wrote about the other worlds she had visited. In each case, emissaries would rush to bring her gifts, to welcome her to their homes. She was never treated ill or in any danger along her travels.

             
“But on this day, the pride of the Nangolani caused them to forgo manners in search of answers. They pestered her for hours, trying to trick her into admitting she was a fraud. Even though she had already proven so much to the people of our world, the leaders of that ancient civilization refused to believe that a higher power could exist. But Darna Wo, in her grace and patience, took each insult without pause. After enduring their pestering all morning, Darna Wo asked the King of the Ten Continents to deliver his final request before she would retire for the noon meal. The King was considered by many to the wisest leader to ever have lived. He thought for a long time before asking his question
:‘
How can you prove any of what you have taught
?
’

             
“Darna Wo answered immediately
.‘
Belief is a gamble you will always win. The path of the Guiding Light asks not for money or power. It asks that you treat others with respect, that you love your fellow, and that you seek peace and understanding above all. If you live your life this way, and in the end come to dust alone, have you lost anything? If you walk the righteous path and find light at the end, have
n’
t you gained all? So you see
,’
she said
.‘
It is not for me to prove to you, but for you to wager for yourself
.
’”

             
Ray let out a breath
.“
That was beautiful
.”
He checked over his shoulder, making sure no one was sneaking up on them
.“
I guess w
e’
re not too different in that either. Humans, at least in the last hundred or so years, have started to separate religion from everything else. It was
n’
t always like that. Some of the worst acts ever committed were in the name of one god or another. I think, once we started getting more and more people into space, they realized just how small and insignificant our planet really was
.
”

             
“Why do you think that mattered
?
”

             
“If there is a God, and he created all of this, then he could
n’
t possibly want you to kill each other over something as silly as how you organize your prayers. H
e’
d be too busy running the universe
.
”

             
“What do you believe
?”
she asked.

             
Ray shrugged
.“
I was raised Baptist, but our preacher was a little more forward thinking. I always remember something he told me a few years before I graduated. He said that using religion to build a box around knowledge keeps us ignorant and cruel. As the universe is ever expanding, so must our understanding of God continuously grow. The point of our lives is
n’
t to find God and pin him down. I
t’
s to find our path to him, and have the courage to walk it
.
”

             
“Thank you, Ray
.”
Mara brushed aside a lock of hair, pulling her scattered notes back together. Their eyes locked and, for a brief moment, lingered. Then Mara turned away quickly and switched her monitor to a new feed
.“
We should get back to work
.
”

-                           
IX                            -

              “And then you destroyed their world
.”
It was not a question, but an accusation. With each syllable, the words of the Cleric grew more and more intense. Their meeting was only just beginning, but was off to a terrible start. Standing at attention before the tribunal, Eruk djun Tolan put on a brave face.

             
They were aboard the M
a’
Ara
k’
s vessel, the flagship of the entire armada. Though his high commander was not present, Eruk still felt a sense of dread at being summoned before the Enclave. As a Cthanul, he was used to towering over the heads of his subordinates. Yet here, in the presence of the true Boxti, he could only stare up into the faces of his former conquerers.