Enjoy this free ebook! Write me and tell me what you thought of this book (at Steve2 "at" allreaders.com)! Feel free to save this at any time in your hard drive by clicking on "file" in the upper left hand corner than "save as" so you can finish reading it at your leisure. Rise of the Standard Imperium By Steven Gordon Prologue: Legacy of a Dirty War The Alliance had been saved, but at what cost? Humanity had succeeded in pushing out the Insect invaders, but the Insects had left a parting gift--they had used an ancient Monumental weapon to render most Alliance worlds powerless, quite literally. A fine mist spread out over Alliance worlds, preventing any power sources more advanced than fire from being used. Formerly advanced societies were reduced to stone age subsistence in an instant. Interplanetary travel virtually ceased as whole populations were once again imprisoned on whatever planet they happened to be on when the energy mist hit. On August, the capital of the Alliance, superspy Clifford Croft refused to give up. He spends years chasing a memory of a very horrible experience he'd just as soon forget. But something in that memory was vitally important--it was the key to restoring power on August and the other Alliance worlds. Once Croft figured out what that something was, he was still stuck--literally. He had no means of getting off August to find the solution; and with communications down, he didn't even have the means to tell people off-planet what he had discovered. The surviving remnants of the fleet, under the command of War Admiral Norman North, started dropping long range care packages to August and other worlds under the control of the mist. Not all the planets of the Alliance were under the domination of the mist; the few that had escaped being dusted were producing the materials for the care packages. The packages were few in number and contained emergency essentials such as medicines. They couldn't even help but the smallest fraction of the population; and yet North felt they were essential, to show the people trapped by the energy mists that they hadn't been forgotten, that someone was there trying to help them. The care packages were sent down by one-way rockets whose engines quit the minute they hit the energy mist. Long range visual observation verified that the packages parachuted to safety in their designated areas. But long range observation also produced something unexpected. On August, on the west coast of Aridor, hundreds of feet of lumber had been laid out and ignited near one of the package delivery sites. Under intense magnification, the burning wood spelled out the letters CAPCR. But no one knew what those letters meant. Part I: Secrets of the Deadly Monumental Ship Chapter 1 What is CAPCR? Clifford Croft studied the contents of the care package- medicines, some food, and equipment. His scientist friend Levi Esherkol sifted through the package with him, looking for anything interesting. "Do you know what this means?" said General Arkik, the senior soldier in their Aridor settlement. "It means that they narrowly missed landing this on our heads by only a quarter mile," Croft grunted. "It means that there are ships and planets out there that aren't affected by the energy draining mist," said Arkik. "Maybe they've even found a way to defeat the energy mist." "Wait, there's a message," said Croft, sifting through the box. "On paper, how quaint." He read it quickly. "It seems our friend the War Admiral has survived. He wants us to know that most of the planets are in the same condition as August." "Does he mention anything about finding a solution to the energy mist?" said Arkik. "No," said Croft. "But I know the solution." Arkik looked surprised. "You do?" "Unfortunately, it involves getting off this planet," said Croft. "Or at least communicating off-planet," said Levi. "Something we tried unsuccessfully to do in Sarney Sarittenden," said Croft. Sarney was the capital of August. For some reason they hadn't been able to determine, the palace was the only place on the planet that still had internal power. But they had been unable to send off a message, due to the energy draining mist that surrounded August. Croft grew thoughtful for a moment. Levi immediately noticed his expression. "Eh?" Levi asked. "You know, there just might be a way to send a message," said Croft. "There's a good chance that they'll take long distance photos of the landing site of their care package, right?" "Yes," said Levi. "Maybe we can give them something to see," said Croft. "Is there any way we can create some sort of visual signal?" "Visual?" said Arkik. "What kind of visual signal?" "It would have to be big," said Croft. "Even our most advanced optical sensors will be viewing us from millions of miles away, out of range of the energy mist." He paused again. "A bonfire," he said promptly. "A fire?" said Arkik. "How would that send a message?" "Yes," said Levi. "Wood, shaped as letters." "It would have to be big," said Croft. "Several hundred of feet of wood for each letter, if it were to have a chance to be noticed. And where would we put it?" "Beach," said Levi promptly. "Long stretch of inland beach just few hundred feet south of here." "We'd have to keep the fire burning for several days, and even then there's no guarantee they would see it," said Croft. "It would also be a tremendous effort to move all that wood there. How many words do you think we could spell out?" Levi whistled. A small type 212(b) mutant Pomeranian trotted into the room. "Quick!" he said. "Make computations." Levi started feeding Quick information about the size and burn rate of wood, and the number of settlers available and assumptions of how much wood they could carry and how far. "And what is answer?" said Levi, in his old EastEuro accent. "Arf arf arf arf arf," said Quick. "Five," said Levi. "Five words?" said Croft. "Five letters," said Levi. "Five letters?" said Croft. "How are we supposed to get a message across in five letters?" "Keep in mind limited size of beach from shore to inland, and limits on availability of local wood and peoples to move them," said Levi. "Five is best we can hope for. Will be big enough job as it is, each letter will have to be at least 200 feet long." "Great," said Croft. "Now how do we convey that we know how to solve the problem of the energy draining mist in only five letters? " "CAPCR," said War Admiral Norman North, sitting in his office on the Command Carrier Glory. He peered at the fuzzy lettering again from the long distance recon image. "Are we sure that's what it says? The second C might be a G." "All our analysts agree that is what it says," said Captain Stacy Wren, the skipper of the Glory. "Then what does it mean?" said the War Admiral. "Your guess is as good as mine," said Wren. "Five letters," said Croft. "We want to convey the idea that we know the solution to the problem, in five letters or less. But what letters? Cure?" "If we say cure, they may think we are asking for cure," said Levi. "How about the word 'mist'?" said Croft. "Same problem," said Levi. "Also not enough to convey that we know answer to problem. Must be able to tell them where to find solution." "The Laklan Nebula," said Croft, feeling a shiver even as he named it. "How about Lakla," said Levi. "You think they would figure out that we're talking about the Laklan Nebula?" said Croft. He considered, and then shook his head. "It's a big nebula. They could search for years without finding it. I need to be able to convey more specific information about it." "Can't do, in five letters." "Then we'll have to think of something else," said Croft. "I've run CAPCR through the astronomical database," said Wren. "There is no match or partial match to any known planet, star, or moon." "What about a dictionary search?" said the War Admiral. "Maybe it's an abbreviation for a word." "I've already checked that out as well," said Wren. "There are no matches." "How about Croft?" said Croft. "That's five letters," he said. "Very nice," said Levi. "But how that help us?" "Not very much," Croft sighed. "As we know the solution involves the Monumentals. But simply saying the word Monumental won't help us either." "No, will not," said Levi. "Maybe we're going about this the wrong way," said the War Admiral. "How do you mean?" said Wren. "Before we figure out what the message says, we need to narrow down our options by figuring out what kind of message it is," said the War Admiral. "And what kind could it be?" said Wren. "A plea for help?" said the War Admiral. "But if so, what kind of help do they expect?" He frowned. "Have you tried matches to the scientific database?" said the War Admiral. "The scientific database?" said Wren. "Why would there be a match there?" "Maybe they're suffering from a disease and need a specific kind of medicine," said the War Admiral. "I'll check," said Wren. "Maybe we're going about this the wrong way," said Croft. "How do you mean?" said Arkik. "Before we figure out the exact message to send, we have to figure out the kind of message to send," said Croft. "We know what kind to send," said Arkik. "We're trying to alert them to the solution to this energy draining mist." "But that's not specific enough," said Croft. "Are we trying to convey that general concept, a space of coordinates or something else?' "Too few letters to give detailed coordinates," said Levi. "And general concept not sufficient." "Then we have to think of another way of expressing our message," said Croft. "There's no match to the scientific database," said Wren. The War Admiral looked distantly out his window. "Not a location," he muttered. "Not a word. Not a scientific property. What does that leave?" "Names," said Croft. "We'll use names." "Names?" said Levi. "Whose? How that help?" Croft explained. Levi shook his head. "They never figure it out." "Don't discount the War Admiral so quickly," said Croft. "In any event, do you have a better idea?" They considered the matter some more, but could come up with nothing better. "In that case, let's start gathering the wood," said Croft. "A name," said the War Admiral. "Try to match it up against the database of names." Wren complied, toggling information into the computer. "Assuming it's an abbreviation or partial name, we get over 70,000 matches." "No, it can't be that obscure," said the War Admiral, eyeing the name. "CAPCR... CAPCR.... Who do we know who is on August?" He paused, answering his own question. "Levi Esherkol. Possibly Clifford Croft... Croft...." "What?" said Wren. "Those last two letters are CR. That's the first two letters of Clifford Croft's last name." "That could easily be a coincidence," said Wren. "We don't even know if Croft is still alive. He was supposed to have been retrieved by a Trobadore B, but the fighter was never heard from again and was presumed lost when the energy mist hit." "I'm gambling he's still alive," said the War Admiral. "If he is and if CR does stand for Croft, what does CAP stand for?" said Wren. "This is preposterous!" said Mayor Wellington Goodmon. He was the ostensible leader of their Gateway community on Aridor. "Why is it that politicians always associate hard work with the impossible?" Croft asked. "The costs of manpower alone would be staggering." "You may stagger a bit at first, but you'll get used to hauling logs soon enough," said Croft. "I?" said Goodmon. "I hope you're not suggesting that I get involved in physical labor." "Everyone will," said Croft grimly. "It is urgent that we get a message to the outside world, and this is the only way. Or have you forgotten about the Insects?" The Insects. Once thought to have been driven off of August, Croft had discovered a colony of mutated Insects on the east coast. They were on the move, and could reach their Gateway community on the west coast in a matter of months; or maybe weeks. "Of course I haven't forgotten about them," said Goodmon. "But how does the cryptic word CAPCR help us?" "It will help them find a solution to the energy mist problem. Once that's cleared up, the War Admiral can send down troops with high energy weapons who can save us from the Insects," said Croft. "There are still other alternatives," said Goodmon. "We don't know for sure that the Insects are coming." "They are." "We could migrate back to Concord," said Goodmon. "Gangs, not enough food." "We could move farther south along the coastline here on Aridor." "Just delaying the inevitable," said Croft. "You have to stay put in one place long enough to plant 30 day potatoes, and eventually they will find you. No, our best bet is to get outside help, and in order to do so we have to do them." "Very well," sighed Goodmon. "Perhaps I can supervise the work." "We already have a supervisor," said Croft. "Quick!" A small type 212(b) mutant Pomeranian entered the room. "Arf!' "Escort the Mayor to the work detail. Make sure he's given work suitable for his importance and rank." "Arf arf!" said the small dog, arching his head upwards to make eye contact with Goodmon. "You can't seriously be thinking of putting this... animal in charge," said Goodmon. "Why not?" said Croft. "We've done it before." "Arf arf!" said Quick. Then he pulled on Goodmon's pants leg. "Hey!" said Goodmon. "All right, I'm going." "So what is Cap?" said the War Admiral. "I'm still not convinced that CAPCR is two words," said Wren. "That would make it more complex." "Perhaps they're trying to convey a complex thought," said the War Admiral. "Cap... Cap... Cap..." His mind flashed back to the near final battle with the Insects. He and his crew were captives on the captured Glory, which was rigged with bombs and about to explode. But at the last minute Croft had boarded the ship to rescue him, along with- A Capybara. The Capybara alien. Many years ago, an alien had arrived on August and made peaceful contact. The alien was reserved and highly intelligent, and looked very much like a Capybara, a large furry rodent with a large rectangular snout. This Capybara came to be known as "The Professor". At first North thought it was the Professor who had accompanied Croft onto the Glory. But actually, as Croft had explained to him later, there was actually a whole race of Capybaras, and the one who came with Croft was not the Professor. A Capybara, and Croft. It made sense. They had worked together before. Now, what did the message mean? "Keep hauling that wood," Croft barked, as the settlers laboriously dragged the logs into position. Most of the settlers hadn't appreciated Croft's sense of urgency, as they didn't understand either the purpose or the content of the message being sent. "Got first letter in place," said Levi, pointing to the lines of wood on the beach that stretched back several hundred feet. "It's so big, how can we be sure it's a C?" said Croft, trying to peer at it. "Can get view from Sandy Beach Hill." "I already tried, but it's too far away to see this area clearly," said Croft. "Not for Quick," said Levi. "I suppose you enhanced his vision too," said Croft. "And why not?" said Levi. "Croft was working with a Capybara to overthrow the Insects," said the War Admiral. He was meeting with his inner circle, which included Admiral Roger Dulin, Admiral Myster Harkness and Captain Wren. "Understood," said Dulin. "But why would he send a message juxtaposing his name with that of the Capybaras?' "They are a highly advanced race," said the War Admiral. "Perhaps they have the means to defeat this energy mist." "Something doesn't make sense," said Wren. "If Croft wanted to point us in the direction of the Capybaras, why didn't he simply use the letters to spell out "Capyb", which would've gotten us to this conclusion much more quickly?" "Yes, we have to deal with the CR part of the message," said the War Admiral. "I'm sure it has some meaning." "Hurry, hurry," said Croft, encouraging the work teams as they lay out the logs. The last letter was being put into place. "What's the urgency?" Arkik had asked. "The package drop was two days ago. We don't know how long or how often they will conduct long distance observation of this area," said Croft. The last letter was put into place a few hours later, and small twigs and branches were spread over the logs to help them ignite more easily. "How are we doing?" said Croft anxiously. "Waiting for final confirmation," said Levi. They stood, and waited, and waited. "What's taking so long?" said Croft. "Wait," said Levi. "Must know if lettering in proper position. Be no use if letters cannot be read." They waited several more minutes. Then, they saw a small figure running towards them on the beach. "Quick!" said Levi. "Arf, arf!" said Quick. "What does that mean?" said Croft anxiously. "Is ok." "Light the wood!" said Croft. As torches were pulled out of a waiting campfire and thrown onto the lettering, Croft said, "I hope we have enough wood to last." "And that they understand message," said Levi. As it so happened, a long range photographic imaging survey picked up the burning wood the very next day. "I'm assuming that the purpose of the message is to give us a clue how to defeat this energy mist," said the War Admiral. "How can Croft know that?" said Wren. "And if he knows how to defeat it, why doesn't he just do it?" "Croft isn't alone," said the War Admiral. "He has Levi Esherkol with him, one of our most brilliant scientists. And even if he has worked out a method to defeat the energy mist, he may need outside help to do it. Remember, electronics don't work down there." "So you think Croft is saying he needs the Capybara to help him clear the energy mists," said Captain Dulin. "It would appear so," said the War Admiral. "My impression is that they're both needed; though what part Croft plays in all this is unclear." "So what is he asking for?" said Dulin. "Isn't it obvious?" said Harkness. "He wants us to rescue him and link him up with his rat buddy." "Capybara," corrected the War Admiral. "I call'm as I see 'm," said Harkness. "It looks like a giant rat to me." "But surely Croft must realize that we can't get him off of August," said Wren. The War Admiral was silent. "War Admiral?" "Maybe we can't get him off August," said the War Admiral slowly. "But maybe we can get the Capybara to August." "On a one way rocket?" said Wren. "I suppose it could work, though it could be a bumpy ride. But if we've misinterpreted, we'll just be stranding the Capybara there with him." "There's another more basic issue we're missing," said Harkness. "Does anyone even know where the rat creature is to be found?" After Alliance space had been liberated from the Insects, the one known as the Meddler Capybara had departed for points unknown. The War Admiral had been trying to seek him out, figuring that he might be able to help them with the energy mist problem. But patrols he had sent out hadn't been able to locate the Capybara on any of the few worlds still untouched by the mist. The Capybara could be anywhere. It was, after all, a big galaxy. But now the stakes had changed. It was essential they locate this Capybara. And if anyone could, the War Admiral knew just the person for the job. "I think I know someone who can help," said the War Admiral. He turned to Wren. "Set up a holocomm with James Starr." James Starr. The name sparked instant recognition across the Alliance. He was only the most famous explorer in the Alliance. He had single-handedly uncovered more Monumental artifacts and monuments than any other explorer, searching the galaxy in his small scoutship. Although he was well known, what was little known was the key part he played in the overthrow of the Insects. It was James Starr who had located components that helped the Alliance build a particle cannon to send ships across the galaxy. Most importantly, it was James Starr who had located information enabling them to build new energy weapons that could penetrate the Insect shields. But his role in all these things was not widely known, even among leaders of the resistance such as Clifford Croft and the War Admiral. Starr had instead worked closely with the aliens who had assisted them in rebuilding their forces. And one of those aliens was the Meddler Capybara. If anyone could find the Meddler Capybara, it was Starr. Starr sat in the cockpit of his ship, the Sky Racer, idly watching the stars as he plotted a new course. For the past few years he had been searching Monumental ruins to find something that would help them defeat this energy mist. But so far, he had found nothing. "Jim, you have a message," came a very pleasant sounding feminine voice. "Who?" said Starr. He didn't often get calls out here. "It's War Admiral Norman North," said the voice. The owner of the voice, a young woman with long straight black hair, came into the cockpit. "What do you think he wants?" "Let's see," said Starr. He activated the comm. The fuzzy holo of the War Admiral appeared. "War Admiral," said Starr. "This is an unexpected pleasure." Because of the distances involved, there was a brief time delay as Starr conversed with the War Admiral. "James," said the War Admiral. "I need your help on a mission of vital importance." "I'm already on an important mission," said Starr. "What's more important than solving the problem of this energy mist?" Again a time lag. "That's what I'm talking about," said the War Admiral. "I think our mutual friend Clifford Croft has found a solution." "Great, let's hear it." Lag. "He's trapped on August. He needs to see the Capybara. Do you know where he is?" Starr thought quickly. He had generally kept in touch with the Meddler Capybara has they had searched for a solution to the energy mists, but hadn't heard from him in several weeks. "Maybe." Small lag. "We need him back on August immediately." "But August is under quarantine, how will he get in?" "By rocket," said North. "I'll explain when you find him. Report back as soon as possible." "Acknowledged," Starr sighed. "Starr out." He terminated the connection. He looked over at the young woman. Her name was Dori. She looked like a human, but she not only wasn't human, but she hadn't even been built by humans. Dori was a highly advanced robot, more advanced than anything the Alliance could produce. She had a fully developed set of emotions, which Starr constantly challeged, as he didn't believe that robots could feel. But she claimed she could. "What do you think?" he asked her. "I can't imagine what Croft, trapped on August, can possibly have found," said Dori. "At the same time, the War Admiral's message did sound urgent." "Humans always sound urgent," said a new voice. A being who only looked vaguely human entered the cockpit. "An overstatement if I ever heard one, 200L," said Starr. 200L was a robot who was humanoid in form, but could obviously be seen for a machine. The materials that made up his face and body wouldn't full anybody up close. Unlike Dori, he hadn't been programmed with emotions, and considered emotions a crutch. 200L responded, "I have observed that humans often have trouble knowing what to prioritize." "But the War Admiral isn't one of those," said Starr. "And neither is Croft. Perhaps Croft's discovered the true nature of Sarney Sarittenden," said Starr. "Unlikely," said Dori. "He's a spy, not a scientist." "Well, we'd better get started," said Starr. Dori settled into the copilot's seat. "Where to?" "The Meddler said he was going on a short vacation," said Starr. "That could be anywhere," said Dori. "Not just anywhere," said Starr. "Prepare to set course." The Sky Racer changed course and accelerated. In a few days it approached an unnamed planet circling an unremarkable system of binary stars. "Do you really think he's here?" said Dori. "It's very possible," said Starr. "If so, then where?" she said. "It's a big planet." "Scan for the highest concentrations of peanuts," said Starr. They located it and landed there. The ship landed in a large field of peanuts next to a lake bordered by a sandy beach. "Look," said Dori, pointing down. There were webbed foot tracks in the sand. They followed the tracks to the lake. They saw a dark blob on top of a rock. As they got closer they saw it was a medium sized furry animal, stretched out on the rock. Its webbed paws were splayed out to absorb the sunlight, its whiskers on its rectangular snout twitching slightly in the gentle wind. Its eyes were closed. As they walked up to it, the creature, its eyes still closed, said, "Did you have to land in the (tweatle tweatle) field of peanuts?" "There's still enough there for 20 Capybaras," said Starr. The Meddler Capybara opened his eyes. He stretched slowly as he sat up. Suddenly, a dark bow tie appeared at the base of his neck. "Isn't that a bit of an affectation?" said Starr. "Did you come all this way to (tweatle tweatle) insult me, James?" said the Capybara, giving a wide yawn. "You're needed," said Starr. "I'm always needed," said the Meddler Capybara. He lay back down on the rock and closed his eyes. "Go away," he added. Starr cleared his throat. "It's about the energy mist." "We've been spending the past few years searching for a cure, without a luck," said the Meddler. "All I want is a (tweatle tweatle) little vacation." "The War Admiral wants to talk to you." The Meddler Capybara snorted. "All right then, Clifford Croft wants to see you." The Meddler Capybara's eyes immediately opened. "I believe he's trapped on August. How can you know that?" "Croft is resourceful," said Starr. "And he's asked specifically for you." "Oh really?" said the Meddler. His ears perked up. "All right," he said, stretching again on the rock. But this better be good." As they walked back to the Racer, the Meddler Capybara said, "How did you find me?" "You told me you were going on vacation." "But I didn't say where." "We were together when we came across this planet a few months ago, remember?" said Starr. "When you saw the sensor readings on the peanut content, you licked your lips and salivated. It wasn't hard to guess." "I don't salivate," the Meddler Capybara corrected him. Back on the ship they established holocontact with the War Admiral and he explained the situation. "We don't know precisely what he's found, but he needs to see you." "He may not have found anything," said the Meddler. Lag. "I think it's worth the trip," said the War Admiral. "On one of your rickety little one-way rockets? I don't think so," said the Meddler. Lag. "That's the only way to get down there," said the War Admiral. "Actually, it isn't," said the Meddler Capybara. "It's been ten days," said Levi, sitting down on the beach next to Croft. The burned out remains of the wood could be seen. The fire burned out seven days ago, despite their best efforts. "Maybe we try again." Croft shook his head. "We should give it a few more days. It may take them some time to find him." "Do you really think they find Capybara? You really think he come here?" said Levi. Suddenly they heard a new sound behind them. "Tweatle Tweatle." "You sure took your time," said Croft, now grinning widely as he turned around. The Meddler Capybara gave him a wry look. Chapter 2: Some Explanations from a Capybara "I don't (tweatle tweatle) believe it," said the Meddler Capybara. Levi, Croft, and the Meddler Capybara sat on the beach near Gateway. The Meddler Capybara was hearing Croft's claims for the first time. "What specific part of my story strains my credibility?" said Croft. "Let me see if I (tweatle tweatle) understand this," said the Meddler. "You say there's a Monumental ship, somewhere in space." "In the Laklan Nebula." "In the Laklan Nebula," said the Meddler. "And somewhere on this ship, there is a room with this (tweatle tweatle) energy draining mist, and you specifically saw energy operating in this (tweatle tweatle) room." "Yes," said Croft. "How did you know that the room was filled with (tweatle tweatle) energy draining mist if power in fact was functional?" said the Meddler. "Because there were clear zones in the room where energy functioned and didn't function, and these zones could be turned on and off like a light switch." "And how exactly was the energy draining mist (tweatle tweatle) neutralized?" "You think I know?" said Croft. "I was hoping that you'd be able to figure it out. In fact, with all your knowledge and access to Monumental technology, I'm surprised you haven't figured it out already. You have a whole planet filled with machines-" "My access to what you call (tweatle tweatle) Monumental technology is quite limited," said the Meddler. "And I'm sure it won't surprise you to learn that I'm not exactly welcome on what you call my home planet." "But surely you must have come across other Monumental artifacts- " "Many," said the Meddler Capybara. "But none that seem to deal with this aspect of Monumental technology. While you've been (tweatle tweatle) tanning yourself here, young Clifford, I've been spending the past few years searching for a solution to your energy problem." "That's great," said Croft. "Don't get me wrong, though, but we really could have used you when Queen Zsst was blowing up our planets." "You cannot rely on my being available to protect your species in all parts of the galaxy every minute of every day," said the Meddler Capybara. "That's the danger of my involvement; that your race will become (tweatle tweatle) flabby and overreliant on mine. As it so happens I was called away." "Called away by what?" said Croft. "Just away," said the Meddler. "However important your problems are to you, young Clifford, they are not the beginning and end of all my (tweatle)." "Sorry," said Croft, chastened. There was an awkward pause for a moment. Then the Meddler Capybara shifted his whiskers and said, "Don't mention it. I'm feeling a bit out of sorts myself. A rough ride." "How did you get here?" Croft asked. The Meddler Capybara was silent. "I assumed you used the transport thing in Sarney Sarittenden," said Croft. The Meddler raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I know all about that," said Croft. "Not enough to use it yourself, though," said the Meddler. "Our problem wasn't using it," said Croft. He looked embarrassed. "You... you couldn't even find the room?" The Meddler Capybara gave a small laugh. "Oh, I'm (tweatle tweatle) sorry Clifford, I wasn't laughing at you." "Then who were you laughing at?" said Croft. "Your species," said the Meddler Capybara comfortingly. "Well if you know how to use the technology so well, why did it give you a bumpy ride?" said Croft. "It didn't," said the Meddler. "I said I had a bumpy ride, but it wasn't from the gateway. It was from the trip across your ocean." "Across?" said Croft. "Yes, how did you get across the ocean?" "I borrowed a boat from a band of ruffians," said the Meddler Capybara. "Borrowed?" said Croft. "Did they give their permission?" "No," said the Meddler Capybara. "In fact, I got the impression they were quite unhappy with me. I think they were trying to cause me physical harm." "You think?" "I didn't really pay them much attention," said the Meddler. "So how did you row?" "I didn't; I used their primitive sailing device." Croft suddenly had an image of the Meddler Capybara, standing up all alone in a sailboat on the ocean, pulling a rope between his teeth to adjust the sail. "So that's what upset your stomach," said Croft. "Yes," said the Meddler. "But let us return to your story-" "No, let us return to yours," said Croft. "I understand you don't have access to all the Monumental technology your fellow Capybaras do; but surely you must have enough knowledge in your brain to find a solution to this problem. After all, you are a Capybara." The Meddler Capybara sighed and self-consciously adjusted his bow tie. "Clifford, Clifford. You still don't understand. I'm a specialist. My specialty was semi-sentient species. I know no more about (tweatle tweatle) Monumental particle theory than you do about your primitive human particle theories." "Oh," said Croft, obviously disappointed. "But let us return to your story," said the Meddler Capybara. "You make it sound like it's made-up," said Croft. "I find it hard to believe that there's an unexplored Monumental ship out there, just waiting for to be discovered," said the Meddler Capybara. "If there were, why would your government not have plundered it by now?" "The League doesn't plunder," said Croft. "Sorry," said the Meddler. "Would 'explore' be a more (tweatle tweatle) politically acceptable term?" "All right, call it what you want," Croft sighed. "The reason this ship hasn't been found again is because it's in the Laklan Nebula. The League tried searching for it, but couldn't locate it. Particles in the Nebula obscured our sensors. It's a big Nebula." "What makes you think we'll have any better luck?" "I would hope that you have better sensors now than our League did several hundred years ago," said Croft. "Probably true," said the Meddler. He wiggled his whiskers again. "But there is something else you're not telling me. If you discovered this ship once, why didn't you explore it then, or (tweatle tweatle) tow it out of the Nebula?" Croft sighed, and looked away. He watched the waves pound on the beach. "Clifford?" said the Meddler. "Is very hard for him," said Levi, speaking for the first time. "Very traumatic." "What was?" said the Meddler. "The Thing," said Croft slowly, still looking away. "What thing?" said the Meddler. "The thing that killed nearly the entire crew of a ship, one by one," said Croft. He trembled, though it was a warm day. "It was... horrible. I was lucky to get away with my life." "Can you describe this in (tweatle tweatle) further detail?" said the Meddler. "Have not time," said Levi. "Must rush to get there." "What is the hurry?" said the Meddler. "Your planets have been under the energy mist for years. What difference will a few hours, or a day make?" At that moment a small form ran towards them. It was a beige Pomeranian. It skidded to a halt a few feet away from the Meddler Capybara, started sniffing suspiciously. "Quick! No, is a friend," said Levi. The Meddler Capybara curiously lowered his snout so that it almost touched Quick's. They sniffed each other for a few seconds without saying anything. Then Quick took a few steps back and said, "Arf, arf arf!" The Meddler Capybara eyed him curiously. "Arf, aaaaarf arf!" said Quick. Levi said, "He say-" "I understood him," said the Meddler Capybara calmly. "Arf arf arf arf," said the Meddler. "Arf?" said Quick, raising his foxlike ears. "Arf!" said the Meddler. Quick wagged his tail horizontally and stuck out his tongue. The Meddler and Quick started talking in dog language. They would've been at it for some time if Croft hadn't softly tapped the Meddler on the back. "Uh... need subtitles," said Croft. "Oh, sorry," said the Meddler. "I forgot about you." He turned to Quick. "Arf!" "Arf arf!" said Quick, sticking out his tongue again. "So?" said Croft. "Ah, Quick was just explaining your problem with the mutated Insects," said the Meddler Capybara. "It sounds like they will be here in a month or two." "If not sooner," said Croft. "That's why we need to cancel this energy mist so we can use energy weapons to defend ourselves." "Have you thought of evacuating to the other continent?" said the Meddler. "Not enough food, too many gangs," said Croft. "I see," said the Meddler thoughtfully. He was silent for a moment. "What are you thinking?" said Croft. "Oh?" said the Meddler. "Sorry, I was just thinking about Quick. We had a very nice chat. He's delightfully analytical. Most refreshing." "Perhaps we can arrange for you two to get a room once this crisis is over," said Croft. "But now we have to-" "Go," said the Meddler. "I understand. You're right, and now I understand the (tweatle tweatle) urgency of it, the quicker the better too. Come along, young Clifford," said the Meddler, trotting up the shoreline. "Just a minute," said Croft. "I have to say goodbye to Levi." "Well, all right, but make it (tweatle tweatle) quick," said the Meddler. Quick's ears perked up. "No, not you," said the Meddler. He turned to Croft. "I'll meet you at my boat. It's just a few hundred feet north of here." He started trotting, Quick at his side as they talked in dog language. Levi shook his head. "Stranger things I have not seen in a long time." "That's the Meddler Capybara for you," said Croft. "Oh, I know of Capybara," said Levi. "Just did not think that a Capybara and a Pomeranian could be such quick friends." "Listen Levi, we don't have much time," said Croft. "I want you to relay a message to General Arkik. I have no idea if we'll get back in time, or even if we'll get back at all." "You want I come with you?" said Levi. "No," said Croft. "It's too dangerous." "But need my help. Been in danger before." "Not like this," said Croft. "I'll have the Meddler Capybara along. That should be enough." "You not think you coming back," said the Meddler. "I don't know, Levi," said Croft. "I don't see any way of killing the thing. And it's back there, waiting for us. I don't want you dying too." "But you going." "I have to; it's our only chance," said Croft. Levi put an arm on Croft. "You very brave." "Thanks," said Croft, blushing. "Listen, I want you to go to Arkik and help him prepare for the Insect attack. Create some defenses ringing the campsite, but the bulk of your defenses should be placed at Mount Montalk. If you can hold out anywhere, it will be there." Levi looked up at the tall mountain almost overlooking Gateway. "Cannot hold out there forever." "No, but maybe you can hold out long enough," said Croft. He extended his hand. "I'll try to get back as quickly as I can." Levi shook it. "You never let us down, Croft." "I hope this won't be the first time," said Croft, nodding. He turned, and started walking quickly away, following a trail of webbed foot tracks and small dog prints. When he got to the boat, he arrived just in time to see the Meddler and Quick making their goodbyes. The Meddler sat in a small sailboat. "Arf arf," said Quick, walking away. He stuck out his tongue as he passed Croft; Croft did the same in return. "Really quite a sentient creature," said the Meddler, as Croft got into the boat. "I'm really surprised to learn he was created by one of your race." "There's a lot of surprises for everyone today," said Croft. They both sat in the boat. "Well?" said Croft. "What?" said the Meddler. "Shouldn't we be moving?" "Yes," said the Meddler. "I was waiting for you to get out and give us a push." Sighing Croft got out of the boat and did just that. As the boat pushed off the beach, his feet splashed into the water as he ran to climb into the boat. The Meddler grabbed the rope controlling the sail with his teeth. "Are you sure you know how to use that?" The Meddler Capybara gave him a pitying look. "So how do we get there?" said Croft. "I presume we'll use the gateway to get us off planet." "You presume correctly," said the Meddler. "But how did you know of the (tweatle tweatle) gateway?" "You were very careful to knock me out each time you transported me," said Croft. "But the last time I took a little hidden video with a small holocam." "Very clever, Clifford," said the Meddler. "Why all the secrecy?" "We don't want just anyone using the gateways." "No semi-sentient riff-raff, you mean," said Croft. "Really, Clifford, you really must work on your (tweatle tweatle) inferiority complex." "I don't know why it always manifests itself around you," said Croft. "But getting back to the primary subject, how do we get to the Monumental ship? We'll need a ship of our own." "I have a ship," said the Meddler. "James Starr is waiting for us." "Starr? The Sky Racer?" said Croft. "Does he still have the Sky Racer? Does he still have that cute girl robot and that annoying primitive robot?" "Yes to all your questions," said the Meddler. "Since we have some quality time together, you wouldn't mind filling me in on what happened since I got stranded here," said Croft. "Where would you like me to begin?" "Begin with why this planet still exists. I thought Queen Zsst was going to blow it up." "I wasn't there at the time," said the Meddler. "But after the fact, that was my understanding as well." "So... did the War Admiral stop her?" Croft cringed, waiting for the worst. "Queen Zsst commanded a mighty Monumental warship, which tossed your fleet around like minor toys," said the Meddler. "Great imagery." "Thank you," said the Meddler. "I understand that your War Admiral made a last stand in the Glory, intending to self-destruct the ship when the Monumental ship came close. His ship was the only thing remaining between the Monumental ship and August." "You say he intended to... did Zsst destroy the Glory?" said Croft. "No," said the Meddler. "At the last minute, the Monumental ship turned around... and left." "And left," said Croft. "You mean, went and attacked somewhere else?" "No," said the Meddler. "It simply... left." "Blew up?" "No." "Disappeared?" "No." "Vaporized?" "It could be seen changing course and heading away. It hasn't been seen since," said the Meddler. "Why would Queen Zsst turn aside at the last minute?" "That is one of the great mysteries," said the Meddler. "Do you have any ideas why?" Croft asked. "A few," said the Meddler. "But none that I think you are ready to hear, young Clifford." Changing the subject, he said, "After the Queen's ship, the War Admiral's fleet picked up the pieces. Most of your planets are under the influence of the energy draining mist, but a few managed to escape it. Those few planets and what remains of the fleet are all that remains of your Alliance." Croft listened to the news in stunned silence. He had guessed most of it, but it was still shocking to have confirmation. "It is not as bad as you may think, young Clifford," said the Meddler. "The people on those planets are not dead, merely isolated. Your War Admiral survives, and lives to lead another day. All is not yet lost." "You make it sound so great," said Croft bitterly. "Perhaps we should thank the Monumental for their great energy draining weapons." "Perhaps you should," said the Meddler. "Have you ever considered the purpose behind the energy draining mist?" "The purpose is obvious, to throw planets back into the stone age," said Croft. The Meddler Capybara sighed. "Clifford, you must look at the bigger picture. Surely you know that those you call the Monumental had the ability to destroy planets, yes?" "Yes," said Croft. "Then why would they create weapons that would merely drain planets of their power?" "I don't know, for their amusement?" The Meddler looked disappointed. "Think, Clifford, think." Croft looked at the waves as the sun set and the sky darkened. "I don't know." "The Monumental had the ability to destroy planets but created a weapon that only drained power, effectively preventing space travel. Don't you see, Clifford, that this was a method of protection for races that were too violent." "The Monumental were afraid of some races?" "Perhaps, or more likely they were afraid that some races were not playing well with others. For those that went 'out of bounds', they used the energy weapon to isolate them, to prevent them from hurting other races on other planets." "So you're saying that this energy draining mist was like... prison?" The Meddler nodded vigorously. "But it's a pretty harsh prison where electricity can't be used." "Yes, it is harsh not to be able to use electricity. But compare that to the alternative of annihilation." "So you're saying the Monumental were gentle because they believed in life imprisonment over the death penalty." "The presence of this weapon seems to support that philosophy." "Well it's a good thing the bugs could only lay their hands on kinder and gentler weapons, then," said Croft very ironically. There was silence for a moment as the water lapped around them. Then the Meddler said, "Bitterness doesn't become you, Clifford." Croft stared at the shadow of the Capybara's snout and said nothing. They arrived at Sarney at night. They didn't see anyone, though whether this was due to chance or the Capybara's doing Croft had no way of knowing. They entered the underground and snuck their way into the Palace. Then they walked in the dimly lit corridors. "How is it that power can function here?" Croft asked. The Capybara looked pityingly at him. "You should get that look patented," said Croft. They reached a hallway where the Capybara stopped. "I know we're here," said Croft. "Then why didn't you open the door?" said the Capybara. "What door?" The Capybara went over to one portion of the wall and appeared to sniff. Then he stuck out a webbed paw and the wall slid back. "I tried touching the wall!" said Croft. "How did you do that?" The Capybara said nothing but entered the room. Croft found himself inside a room filled with machinery. The wall behind them slid shut. "I will do you the courtesy of not rendering you unconscious, since you have already seen this," said the Capybara, rapidly manipulating a control panel. "You're too kind," said Croft. Suddenly, a side of the wall lit up, and Croft saw another room beyond it. "Step through, Clifford." "What?" "Step through." Croft tentatively stepped forward... and found himself in another room, similar to the one they had just left. The Capybara appeared by him. Turning around he saw the image of the first room fade, and then disappear. "Where are we?" Croft asked. "In human terms, we are an almost unimaginable distance from our previous location," said the Meddler. "And in Capybara terms?" "It's the equivalent of a small walk in the park. Come along, Clifford." The Meddler Capybara led him through a series of rooms, many of them filled with alien control panels. Finally they came to a door which opened as they approached. Sunlight streamed from the outside and as they stepped out Croft was surprised to find that it was morning, wherever they were. They were on a grassy field. Turning around, Croft saw that he had just exited from a Monumental monument. The point they had exited from was no longer visible. Croft saw something flash in the distance. The Meddler started walking to it. As they got closer, Croft recognized an old type 22 Scoutship hull. It was the Sky Racer! They boarded the ship and were greeted by the crew. "Welcome aboard, Clifford," said Dori, giving him a hug. "It's been a long time." "It is curious how you feel the need to emulate the human custom of making physical contact," said 200L. "It's good to see you too, 200L," said Croft. Starr stepped out of the pilot section. "Croft!" "It's been a while," said Croft. "I'm sorry we have to meet under these circumstances," said Starr. "You don't know how bad these circumstances really are," said Croft. "Was life on August brutal?" said Starr. "Yes, brutal," said Croft. "But that's not what I'm talking about. If you knew what you were walking into, you wouldn't want to go." "Perhaps we can cover that later once we get started," said the Meddler. "James, you should set a course for the Laklan Nebula, top speed." "All right," said Starr curiously. "I'll also be providing some calibrations for your sensors," said the Meddler. "What are we looking for?" Dori asked. "A Monumental ship," said the Meddler. "It sounds exciting," said Dori. "It's anything but," said Croft. "Once you know what's on that ship, you won't want to set a foot onboard." "What's gotten into you, Croft?" said Dori. "I've never known you to be scared of anything." Croft shivered. "It's a long story." "It will take nearly two days to get to the Nebula, even in the Racer," said Dori. "We have time." Chapter 3 The Beginning of the Story "The story begins during the fourth, and last, great war with the Slurians. As you may recall, the Slurians banded together with a number of our enemies to attack us, and we, the Alliance, were losing ground. A number of our scientists were working on a way to deal with their numerical advantage. They thought they had discovered a way in a new kind of missile, code named the A-1." "The A-1?" said Dori. "I'm very familiar with Alliance history, and I've never heard about anything called an A-1 missile being used in the conflict." "You're jumping ahead," said Croft. "The missiles were developed in secrecy on London II. They had more destructive payloads and advanced AI, far beyond anything we had at the time. The problem was that London II was rapidly getting closer to our front lines as the Slurians advanced. The missiles had just been tested once and were deemed a success; we had to get this technology back into Alliance hands before London II was overrun." "The problem was that we didn't have any fleets strong enough to escort the scientists and the prototypes in the area. We could have provided a cruiser or two for an escort, but that would've done little more than draw attention to what we were doing. So instead it was decided that the technology would be taken off the planet surreptitiously. An unarmed merchant ship was crewed with navy officers and loaded with the prototypes and the lead scientists who worked on the project. All information in the London II database was wiped in case the planet fell. All information about the missiles, as well as the missiles itself, were on this merchant ship, the Tidy Sea." "That still sounds like a rather risky venture," said Starr. "If the ship were unarmed, a Slurian tugboat could've hulled the ship." "It was a risk; the hope was that the ship would be undiscovered," said Croft. "The war was going badly and there weren't any other options. The ship took off from London II with a skeleton crew (to preserve security), the scientists, some missile prototypes, and a handful of security officers. The ship started on an indirect course back to August." He paused, licking his lips. "Evidently the course wasn't indirect enough. The ship was intercepted just a few days out from London II, by a Slurian cruiser." "Was it a coincidence?" Dori asked. Croft held up a restraining hand. "The ship wasn't totally unprotected; a deep space cruiser was shadowing it, several hours behind. The Tidy Sea turned back towards the Alliance Cruiser, with the Slurians in full pursuit. But the Slurians intercepted the Tidy Sea first. They ordered the ship to surrender, which shows enough, I think, that they knew there was special cargo aboard. The Captain, a naval officer named..." Croft closed his eyes as if remembering.... "Carton..., Captain Carton stalled for time. The Slurians only allowed him to stall for so long, and then opened fire." He paused. "At that point, the Alliance backup cruiser arrived. The Slurians and the Alliance got into a firefight. They were pretty evenly matched; but then other Slurian ships showed up on the sensor scopes. The Tidy Sea knew this might be the only chance to get away. The ship was damaged, but the chief engineer could keep things going... and they decided to hide in the Laklan Nebula. That was possibly the worst decision they ever made. For most of them, it was their last." "But they were pursued by the Slurians!" said Dori. "What other choice did they have?" "There are worse fates than being captured by the Slurians," said Croft quietly. "As you'll see." "And what were you doing through all this?" Starr asked. "You were on the Tidy Sea, I presume?" "I haven't clarified that," said Croft. "Please let me tell the story in my way." "All right," said Starr. "The drive gave out shortly after we entered the nebula. Actually, it's been so long... it wasn't the drive, it was the power generator. The power generator was damaged, and finally stopped functioning. The ship moved along on batteries. The only good news was that the mist of the Nebula obscured our sensors, and did the same for the Slurians too. It was presumed that the Alliance backup cruiser had been destroyed, or driven off; either way, the Slurians, who seemed to know the important cargo the ship carried, were sure to be following. The Chief Engineer... Ubert Branner," and Croft winced again as he recalled another name, "said that the generator was impossible to repair without spare parts. The ship could limp along on batteries for a few days and then the ship would be drained, without enough even for life support." "At that point the Captain decided to cut drive and simply drift. His plan was to wait a few days until the Slurian pursuit had left, and then to use the remaining battery power to carry the ship out of the Nebula and broadcast an SOS. Unfortunately for the Tidy Sea, cutting the drive didn't cut the ship's velocity; the ship continued to float deeper into the Nebula." "And that's when it was picked up on the scopes. The sensors weren't entirely foiled, you understand; they were simply limited to very short distances. And somehow, out of the billions of cubic miles of Nebula, that tiny ship came across... it." "It?" said Starr. Croft winced again, as if he were remembering it firsthand. "A Monumental ship, just lying there, dead in space. A big one. Forty miles long, maybe four miles wide. And more. Other ships, alien ships, all docked together, one by one, all linked to the Monumental ship." "How odd," said Dori. "Was it some kind of meeting in space?" "We scanned; there was no signs of energy on any of the ships, except the Monumental ship, which we couldn't scan. In fact, we could detect no signs of life or movement on any of those ships. It was like a graveyard of spaceships," said Croft. "What happened then?" Starr asked. "If they had been smart, they would've gotten out of there," said Croft. He sighed. "But some of them were excited about the discovery of a Monumental ship. Branner, the Chief Engineer, thought that even if all those ships were abandoned, they could scavenge the parts they needed to repair the generator. What none of them thought very much about was why those ships were abandoned. None of them realized the tremendous danger they were in." Croft wet his lips. "Most of the ships docked together were alien, ships that had never been seen in the Alliance. But one of them was familiar, an old League destroyer. Captain Carton decided to dock with it." "Carton wasn't a complete fool; he was unnerved by the presence of all these seemly empty ships, and he doubted that all their crews had simply walked away. But he didn't have any marines; the small ship, as I've said, had only a skeleton staff. There were 16 naval officers and crewmen, two of whom had been killed during the Slurian attack, so that left 14. There were eight of the scientists who worked on the A-1 missiles. And then there were five special security officers, charged with guarding the secrets of the A-1. The head of this small security force was a man named.... Major Von," said Croft, again remembering the name as if from long ago. "That meant 27 men and women. Only 27! The crew of the destroyer that was docked there must have had a crew several times that size. Some of the alien ships must have had even larger crews but they were all empty too." "But Carton worked with what he had and he consulted Major Von. They agreed to send a five person team in, two naval regulars and two security specialists. Captain Carton would lead the team. They were all armed with blaster pistols and blaster rifles--not that either would help them in the slightest. Not in the slightest," said Croft bitterly, wincing again. "The destroyer was dusty, and dark, but at least the air was breathable. Mobile lights were needed to see where one was going. The place was a mess, with equipment strewn about everywhere. They stayed together, keeping in constant radio contact with the ship. They slowly walked from one section of the destroyer to another. The ship looked like it had been in battle. Perhaps it too had been attacked, and, damaged, had decided to dock with the other ships to scavenge parts and make repairs." "But where was the crew? There was no sign of the crew at all. The boarding party made their way to the bridge, which, like the rest of the ship, was a mess. But they managed to get battery power working, and feeble background lights came on. It's really a tribute to League engineering, really, that power could still be functioning for so long; for as the crew was to learn, that ship had been there for nearly 100 years. " "Captain Carton attempted to check for the ship's log. He was able to tap into the ship's computer and find out something of what had happened. The ship had been attacked. It had stumbled on the Monumental ship and docked to try to find parts to repair the ship with. And then... static. There were no other records. None! If the crew had been overcome, they had been overcome too quickly to document what had happened. The only other thing they noticed was a cryptic message, handwritten in wild lettering on the wall above the library console." "It read: 'Appreciate Beauty Above All Else.'" "As the crew explored more of the ship, they found those words, again and again, scrawled on different walls of the ship. Sometimes the lettering would be larger, sometime smaller, but always the same words, over and over, as if a madman had been obsessed with the thought." "What do you make of this?" said Carton to the senior security officer, Lieutenant Julie Branch. "It looks like someone went mad," said Branch. "Maybe they got stuck here and went crazy." "But we've seen no other signs of insanity," said Carton. "No other messages. The handwriting is always the same. This looks like the work of one man." "Sir," said one of the crewmen, "I think we've got something here." He was shining his light torch on the ground. Carton squatted down. "What is it?" There was a hard residue of something on the ground. "Scanning," said the officer, using a hand scanner. Another officer, panning with his light torch, said, "I see a number of residue traces on the ground." "Oh my," said the officer doing the scanning. "What is it?" said Carton. The officer wordlessly showed Carton the scan results. His face went white. "What is it?" Branch asked. "Human remains," said Carton. They found hard little residues all over the ship, now that they knew what to look for. "What could do this?" said Branch. "It's like somebody grinded up their bodies into a pulp." "I don't know," said Carton grimly. He activated his comm. "Major Von!" "Captain?" Carton reported what they had found. "That does not look very encouraging," said Major Von. "I can't say I'm very happy either," said Carton. "But I think we should press on to the Monumental ship. Whatever killed the crew could be long gone." "Or could be there waiting for you," said Von. "We need components to repair the generator," said Carton. "What about the destroyer's engine room?" One of the navy men shook his head. "We checked. Engineering is a mess." "We can try to limp out of the nebula on battery power," said Von. "That chancy at best," said Carton. "And even if we make it, we'd have to be rescued before our life support gave out. And that also assumes that the Slurians have left." Ron's face looked grim, but he nodded. "Be careful." "We will," said Carton. "Sir," said one of the naval officers, Ensign Kenner. "When I said the destroyer's engineering section was a mess, I meant it. But it wasn't battle damage." "What?" said Carton. "You saw it. The place was stripped from the inside. It's as if someone on this ship systematically destroyed their only chance of escape." "Why would they destroy their own engine room?" Carton asked. "Perhaps someone else did," said Branch. "Or something else." "The same something that can turn human bodies into pulp?" said Carton. Branch looked worried in the dim light. "All right, we've got a job to do," said Carton. The destroyer was docked with an alien ship which in turn was docked with the Monumental ship. They found their way to the docking port and entered the alien ship, their weapons raised. There was much that was unfamiliar to them but they also found a familiar pattern--everything shut down, equipment strewn about everywhere, and those terrible residues could be seen everywhere. Carton and the others said nothing but they were all probably thinking the same thing. They made their way through the unfamiliar ship to the other docking port. Although they didn't know the layout of the alien ship, they knew in what direction the other docking port was, and used their sensors to guide them. When they arrived at the docking port they saw an eerie green light across the way. That must be the Monumental ship. Carton opened communications with Major Von, back on the Tidy Sea. "We're about to go into the Monumental ship now," said Carton. "If you don't hear from us within an hour, break off and take your chances heading out on battery power." "Understood," said Von. And then, "Good luck, Captain." Carton nodded, breaking the connection. *********************************************************************** ******* "They were very brave men," said Dori. "One thing I do not understand," said 200L. "How do you know what happened with this boarding party? Were you a member of this boarding party? You have not said so." "That's true," said Croft. "I think you need to be patient, and all will be clear." "It is not logical to withhold pertinent information," said 200L. "Oh, I've found humans to be most illogical, don't let that (tweatle tweatle) trouble you," said the Meddler Capybara reassuringly. "I'm not a computer, or a machine, so you'll just have to let me tell the story in my way," said Croft. "As you wish," said 200L. *********************************************************************** ******* The air was still breathable, as it had been on the destroyer, and the alien ship. It still had that musty quality, though. As they walked across the tubeway to the Insect ship they saw the green light was actually caused by a slight luminescence in the ships' hull. The corridors were very wide, and tall, as if the beings who used them were much larger than human. The boarding party reached a crosswalks, and saw that the corridors--north, south, east, and west, ran as far as the eye could see. "This is big," Carton whispered. They started walking, mindful to keep their weapons raised. They passed rooms filled with inconceivably fantastic devices, or brimming with control panels, or completely empty. After a half hour of this Carton could quickly see that they were being overwhelmed. They didn't have the first clue how to use this technology. He signaled Von and ordered a hasty return to the ship "It's big. Really, really big," said Carton, when he was relaxed at last in the comfort of the Tidy Sea's small briefing room. "But no signs of any... resistance?" Von asked. "No sign of anyone," said Carton. "Of course, I have to admit that we explored less than 1% of the Monumental ship. Nor have we explored any of the other ships docked with the destroyer, except for a cursory examination of that alien ship." "Where you found the same thing, the residue of the bodies," said Von. "Yes," said Carton. "What do you think?" said Von. Carton paused. "Whatever did in all the crews of those ships may long gone or dead. We didn't find any signs of life, hostile or otherwise." "Then what do you suggest?" Von asked. "We need repairs to our generator," said Carton. Chief Engineer Branner gave a vigorous nod. "We're going to have a difficult time adapting the alien technology," said Carton. "We couldn't even figure out what any of that stuff is." "We don't have a lot of time," said Von. "We must get those A-1 missiles back to August. The Alliance is counting on us." "I know," said Carton. "I was just thinking of ways of making the work go faster. If we send over multiple teams into that ship-" "Isn't that rather risky?" said Lieutenant Branch. "Each day we wait increases the risk that we'll be found by the Slurians, or that the Slurians will win this war," said Carton. "I realize it's a risk, but a risk we have to take. That ship is so huge that it could take months for hundreds of people to explore it. We're not going to get anywhere by sending in a single team." "What do you suggest?" Von asked. "We send in multiple teams. We minimize the risk by sending people in teams of four. I figure we can send in six teams of four while still leaving three people on the ship." "You propose to send almost the entire crew over to that ship?" Branch asked. "Including the A-1 scientists? We're supposed to protect them, not expose them to danger!" "Lieutenant, this is a desperate situation," said Carton. "Your scientists will have a better idea how to understand and adapt Monumental technology than my officers will." "They're missile scientists, not specialists in the Monumentals." said Branch. "They're scientists, which makes them more of an asset in a mission like this than naval officers," said Carton. "We could walk right by an alien power generator and never even notice it. We need your help. The scientists will be split up into groups of two, and each group of two will be accompanied by two naval officers or security officers. Are we agreed?" Von reluctantly nodded. Chapter 4: The First Explorations The teams fanned out over the huge Monumental ship. Two of the teams were led by security officers--Major Von led one, and Lieutenant Branch led another. The other four teams were each led by a naval officer--Captain Carton, the first officer, Lieutenant Commander Filler, the Chief Engineer, Lieutenant Branner, and the weapons officer, Lieutenant Kelate. The rest of the teams were rounded out by the enlisted security personnel, lower ranking officers, and the A-1 scientists. Ensign Ken Kenner, the navigation officer, found himself in the party led by Lieutenant Branner. Two missile scientists accompanied them as they cautiously walked down the gloomy halls. "I get a bad feeling about this," said Kenner, as he eyed the corridor that seemed to go almost to infinity. "Shut up," Chief Engineer Branner suggested, gripping his blaster rifle even more tightly than Kenner gripped his blaster. The scientists also had blasters, though both were holstered. They walked in silence for some time, carefully checking their progress with hand scanners. But something in the walls seemed to absorb their scan, preventing them from scanning more than a limited area around them. As they came to an intersection, Branner paused to consider where to turn. There was a hazy green gloom in all directions. After a pause, he decided to turn right. "Why right?" Kenner asked. Branner shrugged. "Whoa," said Kenner. "If we're going to keep making turns, what's going to prevent us from getting lost?" "A good point," said Branner. He raised his blaster rifle and fired. The scientists jumped. Branner carved an arrow in the wall pointing right. "There," he said, looking satisfied. They started walking down the corridor. Behind them, the wall became illuminated, and the blaster burn gradually faded.... "What is all this?" said Lieutenant Kelate, the weapons officer. They were in a large room filled with consoles. The other naval officer and scientists fanned out. One of them, Karen Natasha, peered into an adjoining room and barely suppressed a gasp. The adjoining room was huge. It contained a metal platform set about a foot off the ground that spanned the length of the room. There were switches by the doorway. Natasha flicked one; there was a crackle from the platform.... "Now we're making progress," said Captain Carton. After walking through a series of empty rooms, they found themselves in a large room filled with scientific equipment and consoles. There were also peculiar looking devices hanging from the ceiling. "Can you make heads or tails of this?" Carton asked Lieutenant Nears, the science officer. "Let me see," said Nears. He stood by one of the consoles. Biting his lip, he pressed a button. There was a loud sound, like an explosion, and then they heard something whiz through the air. They looked around for a moment to try and figure out what it was, when they all started staring at Nears. There was a red stain spreading in his tunic. Looking down, Nears looked as surprised as the others to find a metal rod protruding from his chest. He slowly collapsed to the ground. It wasn't until they received a scratchy comm message to return to the ship immediately that they realized the truth of their situation. "I think we're lost," said Kenner. "We've been down this corridor before," said Branner. "Then where's the mark on the wall?" said Kenner. "I don't know," said Branner. "Maybe I do," said Kenner. He raised his blaster and fired. The wall was scorched. "So?" said Branner. "Wait," said Kenner. They waited for a moment. "So?" said Branner again. "Wait," said Kenner. Another moment passed. Then the wall gradually lit up, and the scorch mark started to fade. "That's why we're lost," said Kenner grimly. "A good piece of deduction," said Branner, looking impressed. "All right, we'll have to navigate by memory." "Do you really remember the way we came?" said one of the scientists, looking worried. "Sure," said Branner dryly. He looked at Kenner. "I'll bet you're glad now that you were assigned to us." The Tidy Sea had been staffed by robbing the crew of a League destroyer. All the naval officers had worked with each other before, except for Kenner. He had been a last minute replacement for another officer who had been reassigned. "Yes, I was really lucky," said Kenner dryly. "I've always wanted to see the Monumental up close." "Really?" said Branner, assuming Kenner was being sarcastic. "Actually, it's a hobby of mine," said Kenner. "I have a copy of Starr's 'Complete Imbecile's Guide to the Monumental' in my personal database." "You should have said something sooner!" said Branner. "When we get back, I want copies made for all the senior staff." ******************************************************************* "I think your ears are turning red," Dori observed. "It's just nice to know that my works are read far and wide," said Starr. "I never knew that you wrote for the complete Imbecile's Guide," said Dori. "I always thought that your publications were, ah," "More prestigious? Most of them are," said Starr. "But I got a special deal with the Complete Imbeciles publisher." "They paid you a lot of money to use your name," Croft translated. "Well, yes, but it wasn't only the money that attracted me," said Starr. "The study of the Monumental has always been somewhat highbrow; I was excited by the chance to make it accessible to the masses." "James, you're such a philanthropist." "I have a question," said 200L. "Sorry to change the subject, but I fail to understand how Croft could possibly know the contents of the conversation between Kenner and Branner. Unless he was one of the two scientists accompanying them, he wasn't there." "Are you programmed to have patience?" said Croft. "I am programmed to seek out data," said 200L. "Hm," said Croft. "Well, you'll have to wait, just like everyone else." ******************************************************************* They eventually found their way back to the ship by a combination of blind luck and yelling. When they started to get close to the docking area, they heard shouts in return. There were two naval officers there, waiting for them. "You're alive!" said one of them. "Why wouldn't we be?" said Branner, giving him an odd look. "You're more than 2 hours overdue," said the sentry. "We couldn't raise you on the comm." "We had some navigation troubles." "It sounds like you've been lucky," said the sentry. "We have three dead." "Three dead? How?" said Branner. The sentry looked around at the large, empty corridors. "Let's get back to the ship first." The sentry led them through the docked alien ship, through the abandoned destroyer, and back to the Tidy Sea. Sentries awaited them at the entrance to the ship and seemed relieved to see them. "Report to the conference room immediately." Most everyone was in the conference room, making for a very crowded room. The room had been build for a dozen, and with 22 in there it was quite filled. "Branner! Glad you made it," said Carton. "Why wouldn't we have? What happened to the others?" said Branner. "Let me repeat what happened," Carton said. "Lieutenant Nears was killed." "Killed? By who?" said Branner. "By himself, it looks like," said Carton. "We were in one of the alien control rooms, he touched a button, and a metal rod came flying through the air, impaling itself into him. He died almost instantly." "What? How could that happen?" Branner asked. "I don't know," said Carton. "Do you think it was some kind of security mechanism?" "Maybe," said Carton. "I can't imagine why the Monumental would design a console that would shoot metal bolts at the user." *********************************************************************** ******* "Do you have any idea what they were talking about?" Croft asked the Meddler Capybara. The Meddler self-consciously adjusted his bow tie. "Perhaps. It's hard to say without seeing the console, though." "What possible reason could the Monumental have to design a console which would shoot metal bolts at the user?" said Croft. "Do you think he triggered some kind of security mechanism?" "Unlikely," said the Meddler. "While some Monumental ships have what you call (tweatle tweatle) security mechanisms, most don't bother- -the fact that their technology is so difficult to understand makes them secure enough. In any event the Monumental would never use anything as crude as a metal bar as an attack mechanism." "So what was it?" "Hard to say," said the Meddler Capybara. "It could have been a lab that studied the movement of projectiles and how their flight path could be altered by changes in gravity, physics, or physical composition. It could have been an exercise room, where the purpose was to dodge or stop the bolts. Or it could have been (tweatle tweatle) something else." "You're saying that the Monumental let themselves be attacked by metal bolts as a form of exercise?" said Croft. The Meddler chuckled. "The ones you call the Monumental would not be harmed by a piece of metal, young Clifford." *********************************************************************** ******* "Then we lost Lieutenant Kelate and Corporal Ulo," said Carton. "What happened?" Branner asked. Carton turned to Natasha and nodded. She gulped and said, "We discovered a room with a large platform... when Kelate and Ulo stepped on it, they were electrocuted, instantly." "Did you try to cut the power?" said Branner. "I didn't know how!" said Natasha. "And it was all over in seconds." Carton turned to the other member of that team, a scientist named Larret. "Is that how you remember it?" "I just saw the tail end of it," said Larret. "Natasha called us into the other room, but I delayed to examine some consoles. When I heard them screaming I ran to the other room, but it was all over by then." "I called them over to look at some of the machinery in the room," said Natasha. "But then they grew fascinated by the platform. The room was huge, more than a thousand feet long, and the platform stretched the length of it. They took a few steps onto the platform to get a better view, and then it electrocuted them. I warned them to be careful, but...." She tried to choke back a sob. "That does it," said Lieutenant Branner. "We're poking around and we don't know what we're doing, and it's killing us." "We have to find components to repair the generator," said Captain Carton. "But our ignorance is killing us," Branner repeated. "We're not a trained team of Monumental archaeologists, we're naval officers, security specialists, and missile scientists. Even our top scientists would take years to figure out this technology." "I agree that the situation isn't encouraging, but what choice do we have?" said Carton. "I say we blast off with the remaining battery power and try to get out of the nebula," said Branner. "We have enough power, perhaps, to get to the edge of the nebula," said Carton. "But life support would not last more than a few days beyond that." "We can radio a call for help." "The Slurians may be closer and hear it first," said Carton. "But assuming they aren't, how long would it take a ship to reach us? We know we can't expect any help from London II. Filler, what's the next closest base?" Lieutenant Commander Filler considered. "I think it must be Errata. About 10 days out, at top speed." Carton moved closer to face Branner. "So you see, we really don't have any choice." He turned to face the others. "I won't deny that there are hazards. There may be further injuries or deaths. But we have to keep trying. That's our only choice." "Look at what happened to the other crews," said another officer, Ensign Janner. "They were turned into some kind of residue," said Carton. "None of our lost crewmen were turned into residue. Whatever happened to the previous crews was totally different." Some of the crew nodded. That, at least, was clear. "Let's try and get some rest," said Carton. "We'll start out again the first thing in the morning." The crew looked stunned and didn't move. Carton left the room. When he got into the corridor, he saw that Major Von and Lieutenant Branch were right behind him. They motioned that they wanted a word with him. They went to his quarters. "I'm not so sure that these deaths were accidental," said Major Von, once the door had slid shut behind them. "What do you mean?" Carton frowned. "We're not merely aboard for general security," said Von. "There's a very specific reason that we're here. Counterintelligence had picked up indications that the Slurians may have planted a spy among the crew." "Indications... may have... how concrete is all this?" Carton asked. "It wasn't concrete at all until we were attacked," said Von. "We now think that someone on board gave our location away to the Slurians." "How?" "A miniaturized transmitter," said Branch. "Have you tried searching for it?" Von shook his head. "It could be tiny. Or it could be a remote activated device planted anywhere on the ship. We considered doing a search, but at this point there's no sense in letting our adversary know that we're on to him. The Nebula blankets all transmissions." "But there's more," said Branch. "The spy's primary purpose would be to make sure that the A-1 missiles don't get to August. One way to do that is to signal the Slurians. Another way is to eliminate the crew." "You think Nears and the other officers were killed?" said Carton. "But I was with Nears. No one killed him." "Perhaps not," said Von. "But Natasha says that Lieutenant Kelate and Corporal Ulo were electrocuted by accident. What if it were on purpose." "You think Natasha-" "She's a Slurian," said Branch bluntly. "She defected from Sluria almost 10 years ago, and hasn't, until now, given us any reason to suspect her. But it's a possibility. The same goes for the other scientist on the scene, Larret." "Well, at least you've narrowed it down to two-" "Not necessarily," said Branch. "Were all members of your team in your sight at all times." "Yes," said Carton. He paused, "Well, sometimes we would peel off to explore adjacent rooms-" "Precisely," said Von. "It could be anyone." "Anyone?" said Carton. "Well, we know it's not one of our security officers," said Von. "But there are only four of us left now, out of a crew of 24." "And me?" said Carton. He gave a small smile. "You're taking a big risk of warning me." "You have a long and distinguished service record," said Von. "That doesn't eliminate the possibility of your being the spy, but it does reduce it." "Thanks," said Carton. "What do you want from me?" "Fewer but larger teams, so we can keep an eye on people," said Von. "Say, two teams of 10 and 10." "That will greatly slow down our search ability," said Carton. "But there is safety in numbers," said Von. *********************************************************************** *** "Again, I fail to understand," said 200L. "This was a private conversation between three people. How did you know what transpired?" "I think Croft was on board secretly, spying on the others with surveillance equipment," said Dori. "Or maybe he interviewed the survivors, assuming at least one of those three survived," said Starr. "No, young Clifford was much too traumatized to have merely interviewed the survivors after the fact," said the Meddler Capybara. "Or maybe I surmised what happened at certain points, even if I wasn't present," said Croft. "I do have half a brain, you know." "Do not be so hard on yourself, young Clifford; you are certainly no less intelligent than any other member of your species," said the Meddler. "You're so kind, Mr. Towel," said Croft. "Mr. Towel?" said Starr, looking confused. "A nickname, from the days when I was a resistance fighter on August," said Croft. A thought occurred to him. "Why, what do you usually refer to him as?" "Well, I... I guess I don't," Starr said. He looked at the Capybara. "You're just there." The Capybara twinkled his nose. *********************************************************************** *** When they returned to the briefing room, they saw that everyone was reading something on their datapads. "What are you reading?" Branch asked. "Copies of James Starr's 'Complete Imbecile's Guide to the Monumental'," said Lieutenant Branner. "That sounds like it could be incredibly useful!" said Branch. "Wait. Did this merchant ship really have the text in its database?" She turned to Carton. "Did you upgrade the ship's database before you left London II?" Carton shook his head. "There wasn't time." "It's Kenners' book," said Branner. "Really?" said Branch. "Just a hobby," said Kenner, giving a light smile. Branch said nothing but picked up a datapad, stared at the first page. "If you're reading this out of more than idle curiosity, you've probably found yourself a Monumental artifact. Congratulations! Do you know that 99.95% of explorers spend their lives looking for Monumental artifacts and never locate a single one? You should be very pleased with yourself. What follows below is a very basic guide to interpreting the Monumental artifacts. Several points must be made in advance, however." "First, even our top scientists have only figured out the function of a fraction of the small amount of Monumental artifacts we've uncovered. So, this guide will, by necessity, be quite limited, though it will hopefully start you off in the right direction." "Second, Monumental artifacts can be dangerous. In fact, death by accidental handling of Monumental artifacts is the leading source of death for archaeologists who specialize in the Monumentals. even greater than aging dysfunction or Splat syndrome. That's why we recommend that you leave the exploration of Monumental artifacts to TRAINED PROFESSIONALS. However, we realize that due to cost or practicality considerations trained professionals may not be available, so we provide this text, which leads to our next point." "Third, by purchasing this text you acknowledge the danger in exploring Monumental artifacts and agree to indemnify James Starr, Complete Imbeciles Publishing Ltd., and their officers, employees and assigns from any death, injury, dismemberment, internal or external combustion, defenistration, physical transformations, or unexpected monsterisms that result from using the information contained in this text." Space lawyers, Branch thought to herself. She flipped ahead to read some of the text. There was a lot of information to absorb. She read idly, while casting glances at the room. Chances are that someone in this room was the Slurian spy. She glanced at Natasha, who was reading intently. Larret appeared to be doing the same. Ensign Kenner was engaged in idle banter with some of the other scientists. He looked oddly relaxed. She returned to the text, only periodically looking up to see what the others were doing. Chapter 5 Awakening the Slumbering Menace Two teams headed out the next day, one lead by Captain Carton and Lieutenant Branch, and the other by Major Von and Half Commander Filler. The combining of the security personnel with the naval officers was purposeful. "Can you imagine how old this ship must be?" said Ensign Kenner. "Really old," said Lieutenant Branner. Both of them were on Captain Carton's team, exploring a different sector of the enormous Monumental ship. They kept track of where they were going by leaving a trail of nonessential pieces of the Tidy Sea behind them. They had started out by crossing into the abandoned destroyer, then into the docked alien ship, and from there into the Monumental ship. As they passed through the destroyer they couldn't help but see the cryptic message on the walls, 'Appreciate Beauty Above All Else.' That's what was occupying Ensign Kenner's thoughts at the moment. "Why would someone keep writing the same message over and over?" Kenner asked. "Someone went mad," said Sergeant Torse, one of the security officers. "They were stuck here and went mad." "Going mad doesn't dissolve your body into muck," said Kenner. "They were here for over 100 years. Perhaps their bodies dissolved over time," said Torse. "Normally, there would be skeletons," said Kenner. "Appreciate beauty above all else... Appreciate beauty above all else...." He looked at a gloomy corridor. "I don't see anything beautiful here." Actually, however, they did come across something wondrously beautiful, less than an hour later. They entered a bright, shining room with consoles simply hanging in the air. Just hanging there. Bright ribbons of different colored light streamed around the room. "What is this?" Carton asked. He turned to one of the scientists, a man named Bayah. "Does the Imbecile's Guide talk about anything like this?" Bayah shook his head. "The consoles are up in the air. How does anyone get access to them?" "Maybe the Monumental could fly," said one crewmember. "Or levitate," another said. Ensign Kenner walked slowly into the room. He moved until he was standing in a blue ribbon of light. Suddenly the room around him looked blue. He looked up at the consoles above him. How did the Monumental get up there? He tried jumping, but each jump only launched him a foot into the air. "We're wasting our time here," Carton decided. "We should try to find a room where everything is on the ground." He turned to go- "Wait," said Kenner. "If we can just figure out a way to get up-" At that moment, Kenner found himself lifting into the air on the blue ribbon. Carton looked openmouthed as Kenner stopped in midair. "How did you do that?" said Carton. "I'm not sure," said Kenner. "All I said was that I wanted to go up-" Suddenly, he was propelled a few more feet upwards. "Voice commands?" said Bayah. "It understands our language?" Kenner climbed a few more feet, but didn't say anything. He was now at one of the consoles. "How did you climb higher that time?" Carton asked. "You didn't say anything." "No, but I thought it," said Kenner. "There must be some sort of interface that interprets our thoughts." "Well don't touch anything," said Carton. "Wait for us to come up." "You can be sure I won't touch a thing," said Kenner, remembering what had happened to Nears. Several others, including Bayah, floated up and took a position at one of the floating consoles. They examined the consoles for close to an hour. "Any ideas," Carton asked. Bayah shook his head. "The Complete Imbecile's guide says that generally larger buttons are more important than smaller ones. But that doesn't tell me what any of these buttons do. If I press one, a bolt could come out and impale me." "We have to do something," said Carton quietly. Bayah looked up and matched stares with Carton. Slowly, he nodded. Reaching over, he put his hand over a button. Looking very nevously around, he pressed it, cringing. Nothing happened. They all waited a moment. Still nothing. Bayah took a breath and reached down and pressed another button. Suddenly, he was bathed in a light. "Oh!" he said, suddenly becoming rigid. "What's happening?" Carton asked anxiously. "I... I don't know," said Bayah. "I'm... seeing colors..." "I don't see any colors," said Carton. For all they could see, Bayah was bathed in a white light. "It's incredible, the array of colors." Reaching over, Bayah pressed another button. "Ooooh.... the color schemes are incredible. The sheer richness of the colors, the intensity." "It must be projecting directly into his mind," said Branner. Bayah experimented with a few more buttons, and soon found he could hear things the others couldn't. "Incredible music, simply incredible! I can't identify the instruments, but... I've never heard sounds so... mellifluous...." Several of the others took turns at the console, listening to the music and viewing the colorful images. The richness of the images and the music was like nothing they had ever seen or heard. "This is nice, but we need technical information," said Carton. "Maybe one of these other consoles provides other information." Taking a breath, he floated over to another console, and pushed a button. Carton was bathed in a white light, and- He experienced the rich colors again. All the consoles seemed to be keyed to color and sound. *************************************************************** "That seems like a rather simplistic sort of entertainment, for such an advanced race," said Croft, interrupting his own story. "Yes, I imagine it would appear that way to you," said the Meddler Capybara, his voice dripping with condescension. "And what does that mean?" "The humans only saw what their (tweatle tweatle) were capable of perceiving." "So... more advanced minds would be able to see higher forms of art," said Croft. "Exactly," said the Meddler. "You know, for someone who's on our side, you can be quite annoying," said Croft. "I have heard the same said about you, young Clifford," said the Meddler. "Will you please get back to the story? Dori asked. ***************************************************************** While Carton's team was exploring the consoles, Major Von's team was in another part of the giant ship. They came to the edge of a platform and could not help but gasp. They were on a platform the edge of the hull, and as far as the eye could see the hull was transparent, showing a huge sky of multicolor gasses. The vast openness made them feel as if they were in space, and some of them started to get dizzy. "Careful," Von snapped. For they were on a dark platform, and looking down below and in front of them they had an unobstructed view of miles and miles of ship. Different parts of the ship were lit in different ways, making it look like an enormous futuristic city. "It's so big," one of the scientists muttered. "And so quiet," said another. "We have to figure out a way to get down there," said Von. "I don't see any way," said Half Commander Filler. "Wait," said one of the naval officers. "I see a walkway of some sort." In the gloom they made out a thin strip right next to the area they were standing. A small ramp connected the two. Filler walked up the ramp and looked out onto the small strip. It wasn't more than three or four feet wide, but went on as long as the eye could see. Filler took a step onto the strip and said, "I suppose we could walk along this for a while-" when all of a sudden he gave a shout and his body started to speed forward across the strip. The others watched as he sped away, until he was a tiny dot. All was silent for a moment. Everyone looked at each other. What had just happened? Was Filler safely somewhere else, or had he fallen off the narrow strip? No one was eager to step onto the strip and find out for themselves. They stayed there for several minutes, calling Filler's name. There was no response. Von took a deep breath. "I don't see what else we can do. Maybe we should-" Suddenly they heard something and saw a figure coming out of the gloom, fast. The naval officers raised their weapons. A lone figure sped down the strip towards them, and then slowed and came to a stop. Half Commander Filler stepped off the strip. "Am I glad to see you guys," he said simply. He told them how he had sped down the thin platform, but had jumped off a platform along side the strip. "There are a number of those along the strip, I think that's where people get on and off," said Filler. "How did you get back?" Von asked. "I simply got back on the strip again, stepping in the direction I came," said Filler. "Want to give it a try? I think it's reasonably safe, if you stand still while you're in motion. I think we can cover a lot more ground this way." Von considered, and then nodded. They took the strip deep into the Monumental ship, getting off on a strip a mile away. "That's amazing," said Filler. "We did all that distance in what, two minutes?" Von nodded. They found themselves in a different area of the ship. It seemed to be more brightly lit here, and more of the rooms had consoles in them. Von noticed a set of controls in one of the corridors which was unusual, as most of the consoles were in rooms. "What do you make of this?" he asked Natasha. She studied the controls. "I have no idea," she said honestly. "I suppose we can only find out by pressing something," said Von. "Do I have any volunteers?" They all knew what had happened to Nears. There were none. Von nodded. They would have to trust that random chance would be on their side. He reached out and pressed a button. Nothing happened. He looked for the largest button on the console, and pressed that. For a moment, nothing appeared to happen. Then they felt a slight rumble. They heard a small roar in the distance. The lights flickered for a moment, and then went out. The crew looked at each other and activated their hand flashes. After a few seconds, the lights came on again. Then they heard a thump, like something hitting a wall. Then they heard another thump, like something hitting a wall hard. And another one after that, louder, like metal was being bashed in. The thumping sound grew closer, and the light started to flicker at the very far end of the long corridor. The thumping sound grew closer, and the lights flickered closer to them. They started to feel a very distant wind that chilled their bones. The flickering of the light moved still closer to them. "I think... we should leave," said Filler. Von nodded. "Everyone move! Back to the strip!" They ran to the strip. The wind was blowing more strongly now. The thumping noise had stopped, but the flickering of the lights was only a few dozen feet away now. The first crewman leapt onto the strip, and headed off. The others quickly followed. Von was the last onto the strip, and he thought he saw a disturbance in the air from the area they had just left. He stepped onto the platform and it took him away. He was now grateful that the strip moved him so fast. In seconds he was speeding away from the area. "So let me get this straight," said Captain Carton, when they had met back on the Tidy Sea. "You got frightened because the lights flickered and you heard a noise?" "It wasn't like that," said Major Von, gulping. "I can't explain it. You had to be there." Carton studied the other members of Von's team. They all seem genuinely frightened. Whatever they had experienced, it obviously had been more than some sounds and flickering lights. "You said you pressed a button. Perhaps you activated some automated machinery," said Carton. "It didn't sound like machinery," said Von. "It sounded like...." "Like what?" "Like something alive," said Von. Carton considered. "Did any of you actually see anything pursuing you?" The crew shook their heads. "Then I think we have to go back." "Back?" said Von. "You've found a quick way to get to the interior of the ship," said Von. "Until and unless we discover that there's something hostile there, we've got to use that to explore the ship. We're still using up battery power to sustain life support; we can't afford to delay. We still haven't located their power generator section; but you say that area was more well-lit, so maybe you've gotten close." "Perhaps you'd like to lead the next expedition to that area," said Von. "We'll all go," said Carton. The meeting broke up into smaller groups. Kenner went up to Filler. "What exactly did you guys come across?" Filler sat glumly nursing a cup of gauche. "I don't know, Ken. All I know is that there's something waiting for us there, and I don't want to go back." "Sounds charming," said Kenner. He looked up, and caught Lieutenant Branch staring at him. He raised an eyebrow; she looked away. Chapter 6: The Monumental Reactor Core The next day they once again walked through the abandoned destroyer on their way to the Monumental ship. Once again Kenner couldn't help notice the 'Appreciate Beauty Above All Else' message repeated over and over. One thing he noticed this time; as they walked towards the alien ship that was docked with the destroyer, the message grew smaller and smaller. Was there some consistency, or purpose behind it? They made their way to the strip and headed off. This time they proceeded farther into the ship, past the area where Von's team had encountered... whatever it was they had encountered. Carton had them get off on a platform that was nearly a half mile deeper into the ship. "All right," he said. "My team will go to the area on the left of the strip. Major, take your team to the right." Von nodded. Kenner headed off with Von. There had been some unexplained shuffling of the team, but all of a sudden he had found himself on Von's team. Branch was there too. *********************************************************************** *************** "Let me guess. This Kenner is the Slurian spy," said Starr. Croft raised an eyebrow. "Well, he's a junior officer, and for a junior officer, you keep mentioning him," said Starr. "That's a logical assumption." "Yes, it is," 200L confirmed. "Thank you, 200L," said Starr. "Now, may I continue with the story?" said Croft *********************************************************************** *************** Carton's team heard it before they saw it; the loud sound of crackling. And as they got closer, they felt strong vibrations, and started to see flashes of light. When they finally got there, they couldn't help but gasp. They were in an enormous room, even by Monumental standards, perhaps 20 stories high, and a half mile both in width and length. The room was filled with what looked like large rods that were sputtering electric current, blue arcs that leapt from one rod to another. "I think we found their generator," Carton said softly. He watched the current dance around from pole to pole. There were walkways between the poles, but they didn't look very safe. He eyed the walkway along the edge of the room. That seemed reasonably safe. It seemed to lead to an area with consoles and machinery. That could be just what they were looking for! The team walked cautiously along the catwalk. As they turned a corner they saw row after row of humming machinery and consoles. "All right team," said Carton grimly. "It's time to get to work." "This is really dark," said Major Von. His hand flash barely penetrated more than two feet into the room. Very little more could be said. The room was totally, totally dark. "Maybe we should try to bypass it," said Lieutenant Branch. Von shook his head. "We're at a dead end; we'd have to go back the way we came." "Do you think there's a room beyond this one?" said Branch. "I don't see anything." "Let's take a short walk into it, cautiously," said Von. He took one step, and then another, and another. Suddenly, he felt an absence of floor under his foot, and hastily pulled back. "What-" he said, shining the flash down. There was a large, square dark hole in the floor. "Careful, people," said Von. There proved to be a number of holes in the floor. They looked like they had always been there, though why the Monumental would build a room with holes in the floor wasn't clear. They cautiously navigated the room, keeping their hand flashes down, and in a moment they reached the far side. Then, like a curtain being lifted, they saw a light. They once again found themselves in a corridor. "Is this the way we came?" said Natasha. "Perhaps we got turned around." "No, this is new," said Branch. "Look at all those exits off of the corridor." Along one side of the corridor were a number of dimly lit entrances. They entered one of them. The room was large, but was a deadend, not leading to any other rooms. But what specifically interested Kenner was that the front of the room had a large window showing the nebula, and a series of slightly familiar consoles. "I don't think this is just another room," said Kenner slowly. Branch looked at the controls, and then the window. "You think...." "A shuttle of some kind," said Kenner. "Or some kind of small, independent vessel. Check the doorway; can it be closed?" Branch went to the doorway, noticed a button. She pressed it, and a door hissed shut behind them. "Open it!" snapped Von. Branch pressed the button again. The door opened. "That was dangerous," said Von. "You could have sealed us in here." "This could be our ticket out of here," said Kenner. "If we can figure out how to fly this bird, we can escape." "We don't know what range this thing has," said Von. "It would also be a tight squeeze for two dozen crewmen. And what about the A-1 missiles?" "What about them?" said Kenner. "If we take this ship, we couldn't take the A-1 missile prototypes with us," said Von. "We could take the scientists, and the schematics," said Kenner. "I'd call that a tactical victory, given the circumstances." "We'll have to discuss this with the Captain," said Von. "How is it going?" said Carton. Chief Engineer Branner was studying one of the consoles intently. Without answering, he pressed a large button. Suddenly, the number and size of the currents leaping from rod to rod grew in intensity. The sounds of the power grew louder too, and the flashes started to blind them. Bolts of power started to flicker above them. "Shut it off, shut it off!" Carton yelled. Branner pressed the same button. The current grew even more intense. He pressed another button. Nothing happened. "Keep trying!" Carton yelled. He ducked as a power bolt whizzed above his head. Branner pressed another button. The intensity and size of the bolts started to diminish; he pressed the button again, and they diminished further. Carton allowed himself the luxury of exhaling. "I'm glad to see you're getting the hang of things." "One of these machines," said Branner, indicating the rows of machines, "May hold the parts we need. But it's going to take some time to try to figure them out." "Well, at least we've found the place to start," said Carton. "Get your men working." The crew branched out, each examining different rows of machinery. Two naval crewmembers, Ensign Janner and Crewman Moldar, were studying one machine when a wind blew by them. "Did you feel that?" Janner asked. "What?" said Moldar. He frowned. "I feel it now too. Like a wind. Maybe it's produced by these electrical currents." "The electrical currents are that way," said Janner, pointing in front of them. "The wind is pointing that way," he said, pointing back to a corridor that led deeper into the ship. They both looked at each other for a moment. "-Report," came the crackly voice over the comm. "Meet us at our position," Von could barely make out. "All right, let's pack things up here," said Von. "But we've barely gotten started on understanding these controls," said one of the scientists. "We can get back to this later. The Captain wants us to rendezvous with him. It sounds like he's found something big." "Did he say what?" said Natasha asked. "No," said Von. "Let's go." They started back towards the dark room. When they went inside, everything went completely black again. Only by pointing their hand flashes down could they see the dark holes in the floor. Von, who was in the front, was almost across the room when he heard a scream. "What was that?" he shouted. He heard voices from the others, but couldn't see them. "Get to the other side of the room, now!" he yelled. He made it to the other side and blinked in the light. One by one they made it across, until nine people stood there. Nine. "Who's missing?" said Von sharply. "Bayah," said Kenner quickly. "Did anyone see what happened to him?" said Von. But he could already guess the answer. No one could see more than a foot or two in front of them. "Who was right behind him?" Von asked. "I went in first." "I went in second," said Branch. There was a silence. Then Kenner cleared his throat and said, "I believe Bayah was behind you." "How do you know that?" said Branch. "Because I was behind Bayah," said Kenner. "But I didn't see him when I entered the room. The darkness is so complete there, that unless he was inches in front of me I wouldn't have seen him." Von made an instant decision. "Everyone wait here while Branch and I go inside and try to look for him. Nobody move until we return." Von and Branch clicked on their hand flashes and reentered the dark area. They could hear both of them calling out Bayah's name. Kenner and the others waited silently for several minutes as they heard Bayah's name repeated over and over. Von and Branch eventually returned, clicking off their hand flashes. Nothing needed to be said. Bayah was gone. "He must have fallen down," said one of the naval crewmen. "How far down do you think those holes go?" said Natasha. "There's no way to know," said Branch. "Our hand flashes don't penetrate more than two feet in that room." She was staring at Kenner as she spoke. He stared defiantly back at her. The impasse was only broken when Von said quietly, "Come on. We've got to meet up with the Captain." They made their way back to the accelerating strip, jumped across, and followed the trail left by Carton's team. Carton stood with his back to a corridor as he listened to a report from Branner. "-We'll need precision cutting equipment to get into these machines," said Branner. Suddenly, Carton felt a coldness against his back, as if a sudden wind were blowing. "Is that really necessary?" Carton said. "You might damage the machinery." Carton felt a wave of fear; but he didn't understand why. He felt as if he were being watched. "There's no choice," said Branner. "We can't figure out-" Carton drowned out Branner's voice as his fear mounted. "-blasters won't work because they can't cut as finely." Carton felt something cold, bitter behind him. His back was to it! He drew his blaster, spun around- The corridor was empty. "Sir?" said Branner, looking puzzled. Carton studied the scene for a moment. The corridor really was empty. The wind was gone. Carton slowly holstered his blaster. "Nothing. Sorry." At that moment Von's team came down the walkway. "Look what we found!" said Branner, gesturing with his arms. Then he noticed Von's expression. "What?" "We lost Bayah." "How?" Carton asked. "He apparently fell down a hole in a dark area," said Branch. "A dark area?" "Our hand flashes were barely effectual," said Von. "But what's beyond it is what's interesting. We think we've found a ship's boat." "A ship's boat?" "Or a shuttle of some sort," said Von. "Actually, several of them. If we can't fix the ship, maybe we can get out on one of those." "Good... good work," said Carton, processing the information rapidly. "But our primary efforts should go to getting our generator fixed. If we take this shuttle, we won't be able to take the A-1 prototypes, will we?" Von shook his head. "Actually, sir, now that we've found this place, only the engineering staff will be helpful," said Branner. "That is, if we can even decipher this machinery. If I were you, I'd send a few people to try to figure out how this ship's boat works, in case we're not successful." "You don't sound optimistic," said Carton. "I'm not," said Branner. "This is a radically different technology that we don't understand at all. The chances of being able to adapt it to our technology are slim at best." Carton nodded. "We'll knock off for the day. We have to go back anyway to get a laser torch. When we come back, we'll send a second team to the ship's boat. Are you of the opinion that this dark room can be navigated safely?" Von nodded. "If one walks very slowly and keeps the hand flash pointed down, yes." "All right, then let's get back." Kenner noted that Branch walked right behind him all the way back to the ship. Her hostility was obvious. They walked back to the entrance port, through the alien ship, and through the alien destroyer, once again seeing that cryptic message about beauty. What was that all about? When they got back to the ship Branch had a private meeting with Major Von. "I think it was Kenner," she said bluntly. "Wouldn't that be a little obvious?" Von asked. "After all, he did enter the room right behind her. Furthermore, any of the others who entered after Kenner could have gone ahead and pushed Bayah. That's assuming, of course, that Bayah was pushed." "I believe he was pushed," said Branch grimly. "So what do you want to do, throw Kenner in the brig?" said Von. "Wait, I forget, this is a merchant ship, it has no brig." "Sir, with respect, I don't find this amusing." "I think you're jumping to conclusions without evidence," said Von. "I am much less certain about what has happened than you. We are on a dangerous and unexplored Monumental ship. Each casualty we've suffered could have been the result of an accident." "What about the Slurian attack on the ship?" "That might indicate we have a traitor on board," said Von. "Or, it could indicate that someone on London II tipped them off." "Sir, how can you-" "I'm not saying we don't have a saboteur, but I am saying we have to have an open mind, and not make any accusations until we have proof. Now, how do you want to proceed?" "I want to search Kenner's locker," said Branch. "I think you'll have an opportunity to do so discretely at dinner tonight," said Von. "But remember, Lieutenant, have an open mind." "Sir." At dinner that night Branch snuck into the empty barracks section. Kenner shared quarters with the late Lieutenant Nears. She entered and started searching through his possessions. There were spare uniforms, boots... and not much else. No personal effects. Odd. The other thing she noticed was the datapad. She picked it up, turning it on. "-and so I said to the Half Commander, no sir, you can press the button," said Kenner. The other crewmen around him laughed. Out of the corner of his eye Kenner caught a glimpse of something flashing on his wrist comm. He casually lowered his arm below the table and a few seconds later looked down. There was a flashing orange light. Kenner raised an eyebrow. There was an password code on the pad, but Branch plugged in a program that had it deciphered in under a moment. Then she punched up the central directory, and took a deep breath- There were officer memos, letters from home, and some online texts. Perhaps some contained coded material? She quickly brought one up, started scanning it- "Maybe I can help." Branch spun around with her blaster up. Ensign Kenner stood there, looking very mildly. He looked down at the blaster. "Is that for me?" Kenner, like the rest of the crew, was armed, but his blaster was well holstered. Slowly, Branch lowered her blaster. Kenner cleared his throat. Branch looked puzzled. Kenner looked meaningfully at his datapad. Branch slowly handed it over. "Why do I think you suspect me of wrongdoing?" Kenner asked. "There's something odd about you, Kenner," said Branch. "Really? What would that be?" "I don't know," said Branch. "But for one thing, you don't strike me as a typical League Ensign. You look too old, for one thing." Kenner chuckled. "With the anti-aging drug, isn't chronological appearance a bit subjective? But if you must know, you're correct. Check my file and you'll see that I had a very fulfilling career before joining the League." "What kind of career?" Kenner paused. "A cook," he said suddenly. "I was a cook." "Interesting," said Branch. "That a cook would want to join the military." "Even the military needs to eat." "But you're not a cook on this ship, you're the navigator." "In an emergency I can cook too." "You're very good with a quick answer." "And you're very good with a quick question." Branch edged her way out towards the door, making sure her back was never to him. "I'll be watching you." "And loving every minute of it, I expect," said Kenner. After she left, Kenner paused, as if he were considering a course of action. Then he went to the datapad and pressed a series of buttons in rapid succession. Then he punched up a directory. A very different directory appeared from the one that Branch had been looking at..... The next day two smaller teams went out. Captain Carton and an engineering team led by Lieutenant Branner and three other engineers went back to the Monumental reactor area. Major Von, Lieutenant Branch, Ensign Kenner, Natasha, and two scientists named Larret and Warit went back to the shuttle area. As a precaution, they crossed the dark room two at a time, with each pair tied to each other. This was Lieutenant Branch's idea. She presented it as a safety precaution; but her real agenda was to make it difficult for a single person to push another down one of those holes. If one person tried to push another, the person's partner would be close enough to see it, unless the person untied himself, in which case that would be a giveaway as well. Not surprisingly, no one was lost crossing the dark area. "All right," said Von. "Let's get to work on figuring out how this shuttle works." Lieutenant Branner had heavy goggles on as he used the laser torch; two aisles away, another crewman was cutting open another piece of machinery. "Be careful," said Carton, over the noise of the torch. "You don't want to damage the machinery inside." "What?" said Branner. Carton raised his voice. "I said, you don't want to damage-" With a clang, the side of the machine opened up and fell on the deck, revealing the undamaged interior. Branner gave a grin. In moments the other team had opened up the other machine. It took only that long for Branner's grin to fade. "What's wrong?" said Carton. "I had hoped that this was generator machinery, given its proximity to those," said Branner, pointing to the giant rods in the distance that were spitting out blue bolts of energy. "And it's not?" said Carton. "Have a look," said Branner. Carton peered in the machine. He saw very brightly colored... somethings. He wasn't sure what he was looking at. "I don't even know what to call them," said Branner. "I have no idea what they do." "Can't you test them, by hooking them up to some of our equipment?" Branner grimaced. "Maybe... unlikely, but it's possible." "What about taking the whole generator to our ship." "That?" said Branner. "How would we carry it?" Carton said, "We could dissemble it." "If we dissemble it, I'm not sure we could reassemble it," said Branner. "I don't want to disappoint you, but I'm an engineer on a destroyer. This stuff is way way out of my league." Carton tried to contain his frustration. He kept silent for a moment, and then said, "All right. Try to figure out what specific components do." "I'll need to return to the ship to get some testing equipment." Carton sighed. That would mean nearly an hour to get back, some time to get the equipment, and nearly an hour to return. "Maybe we should all go back." "No, some of my people can get started by removing components for testing," said Branner. "I'll go back with one of my engineers." "All right," Carton nodded. "But try and be quick about it." He looked around. There was something he didn't like about this place. "It beats me," said Larret, looking at the shuttle's controls. "There are much fewer controls here than in other areas we've encountered," said Major Von. "I still can't know for sure how they work." "Why don't you try pressing something?" said Von. "This is a shuttle. What if I ignited the engines while we were still attached?" Larret said. "Oh," said Von. "There should be failsafes, shouldn't there?" "If this were a League ship? Of course," said Larret. He left the obvious unsaid. "The logical thing to do is for all of us to leave except for one who will try the different controls," said Natasha. "Sounds good," said Kenner. "I volunteer." "You seem quite eager to volunteer," said Branch. "I'm quite eager to leave," said Kenner. "I'll go," said Natasha. "It was my idea." Von nodded. "All right." "I will try to test the systems without activating the engines," said Natasha. They all went into the corridor, and closed the door behind them. There they stood, and waited. Branner and his assistant walked back to the ship. He was suddenly conscious of the fact that there was just the two of them, alone. They had never walked in the Monumental ship in such small numbers. For a moment he thought he felt a dim wind at his back, which raised the hairs on the back of his neck. He stopped, turning around, and the wind immediately died. "What?" said his assistant. Branner shook his head, and started forward again. "Let's walk faster." Carton felt uneasy the moment Branner left, and his uneasiness only grew over time. The two other engineers continued to work. Carton had this feeling... like he was being watched. Maybe it was the enormity of the Monumental ship. He was used to small, confined spaces. Here the reactor area was so big; there was plenty of space for anything to be hiding in the shadows. Carton heard rising voices in the next aisle of machinery. Suddenly, they grew to shouts and yells, and Carton entered the aisle just in time to see someone running in a distance. "Come back!" said one of the engineers, crewman Tenner, yelling after his fleeing companion. "What happened?" Carton barked. "It's Jenkins, sir," said Tenner. "He just ran off." Carton looked down the catwalk. It was empty now. Jenkins had left in a hurry. "What do you mean, he just ran off?" "He started mumbling something about being uncomfortable," said Tenner. "It's understandable, I felt it too. But then he started moaning that they were out to get him, that he was being hunted." "Hunted?" said Carton quickly. "By what?" "I don't know, sir. Then he yelled that he had to get out of here, and he just left." Carton drew his blaster. "Come with me," he said. They made their way down the catwalk. There was no sign of Jenkins. They went on a little farther, and then Carton stopped. It was as if Jenkins had disappeared into thin air. "He could be anywhere," said Carton. "Lieutenant Branner is expecting us back at the reactor area. Let's wait for him to return before we go running off." "But sir-" "We can't help Jenkins if we get lost as well," said Carton. "Now come on." "Nothings happening," Branch said. Kenner gave an irritating smile. "You mean, we don't notice anything happening." "Is there a difference?" Branch said. "If Natasha has figured out the ship's systems, that doesn't mean we'll feel the roar of the engines or get some other tangible sign." "It's been nearly an hour," said Von. "Let's go back inside." They pressed the button to open the door and reentered the shuttle. Natasha was where they left her, at a console studying buttons. "Not yet," she said, not looking up. "Have you even tried pushing any buttons?" Kenner asked. "A number of them," Natasha said. "There was no result." "The Complete Imbecile's guide says that sometimes pushing buttons in different combinations can produce different results," said Kenner. "I'm glad we have a complete imbecile to guide us," said Natasha, with only the hint of a Slurian accent. Kenner closed the door behind them. "Let me give it a try." Lieutenant Branner returned to find Carton and Tenner looking grim. "What's wrong? And where's Jenkins?" "You didn't see him on the way back?" Carton asked. Branner looked troubled. "No. Should I have?" "He went crazy," said Carton. "Stoked up on fear, and he just cracked. Ran off." Branner said, "Did you see... anything else?" "No," said Carton. "Do you want to look for him while I work on the generator?" Carton had been considering taking that course of action. He looked around. The ship was so big. "No," he decided. "He could be anywhere. We'll just have to hope he comes to his senses and returns." "Presuming, of course, that he hasn't gotten lost," said Branner. He bit his lip, and turned to his work. At dinner that night the mood was grim. Everyone wondered what had happened to Jenkins. "People have been known to snap under stress," said Half Commander Filler. "And we are under a ton of it here." "But why there, and why at that particular time?" said Ensign Janner. Filler shrugged. "It can happen at any time." "Do you think he's still alive?" "As we've seen there are a number of lethal hazards on this ship," said Captain Carton. "But I think that yes, he probably still is alive." "Does he have any food?" "No," said Carton. "Perhaps hunger will drive him to return to us." "Or make him crazier," said Kenner. He turned to Branner. "What progress did you make on the machinery?" Branner gave him a tired look. "None." "None?" "We cut the machines open, and started testing parts, but I can't make any sense of it." "So far," said Carton. "You've only been at it for less than a day." "Yeah," said Branner. He turned to Kenner. "What luck did you have with the shuttle? That should be easier, you're not cutting open equipment, simply using control panels." "You'd think that would be easier, wouldn't you?" said Kenner, looking at Natasha. She looked away. "It's going to take time," said Carton. "We have to be patient." No one was in the mood to be feeling patient that night. If the crew was jittery, they became even more so when they heard a thumping noise at the door separating the ship from the abandoned destroyer. Thump... thump.... Crewman Moldar was on guard, alone. He instantly jumped back and |