Flight of the Maita Supercollection 3: Solving Galactic Problems Collector's Edition (162 page)

(Author’s note:
the golems were given their own notation instead of quotation marks
in the first chronicle where they were used so that will be
continued here also. + ... + = Yes and – ...– = No.)

The floaters
the crew used were gravitic disks of various sizes and were used
for any number of purposes such as for the golem heads to ride on.
Thing, not being well-designed for moving about on smooth surfaces,
had its own personal floater with hundreds of devices built in. A
sort of skirt was draped over the floater to hang to the ground,
making a body for Thing. It could appear to have its "head" leave
the body to sit on Z's or Tom's shoulder. The floater had speakers
for communication, too, and was in constant contact with Maita
through a special gravitics or radio band.

When they were
above Tlorg Maita suggested they land under cover of darkness after
it mined the gold and silica to make a castle like the old one.
They would land on the cliff above the town called Teeme where they
had placed the castle before. A floater was sent to assess the
area, returning after they determined the cliff was still the same
as before though Teeme was much larger. There was even a road to
the east to a town called Fethren.

"It looks
rather peaceful," Z said. "We have to be sure we don't disrupt
anything, Maita."

*We won't.
These people are used to demons in their stories even if none have
been around for a couple of centuries. Boss, Extrx and Maybe as
well as the golems will be remembered in stories and you did
promise to someday return.*

[ I think maybe
there are still demons. The Plutons would visit. Maybe the Fromes
and the Targs. You said a Frome came to Tab. ]

*Yes, I think
they've perfected a way to open the portals at regular times.*

The demons are
simply beings from Tlorg. Each world exists on many different
dimensional planes, a number of which may be survivable by beings
from others. The Plutons experience little difficulty except for
the need of the added sulfur, the Targ, another race, is
frightening in aspect (If you aren't used to them) and has no
difficulty.

The Fromes are
very much like what would be called "Harpies" on Earth, and have
small difficulty as their plane has a dimension or two that aren't
stressed the same was as N (Our plane) space, but find Tlorg not
uncomfortable.

The Tlorgians,
a very small percentage of them, have a psy ability which allows
them to open the portals with training.

[ And if we
were wrong on one of our old basic predictions. ]

"What's that?"
Ehrak asked.

[ We predicted
their psy ability was a recessive gene and would die out. ]

"I hope it
didn't," Z replied. "What little contact we had with the Fromes
taught me a lot. I liked them."

*Well, they ARE
people. They're not really different from anyone else. They have
the same dreams and hopes any of you organics do. We land tonight.
I have the castle almost prepared. I wish we'd thought of doing it
this way before. We spun that whole damned castle right there with
one lousy crane!*

"I can't wait
for this!" Ehrak said. "I hope the fountain's still there! That was
one of Tom's best memories of Tlorg!"

"It's still
there," Z assured him. "I checked first thing. I hope we can do the
same kinds of things we did before. It was great fun."

[ We not only
can, we must. It'll be expected. ]

*I've made one
other thing. Remember the clamshell?*

[ That
ostentatious obscenity?! ]

"It'll be
expected of us!" Z smirked, mimicking Thing and swinging it around
in a circle by its tentacles. It pulled in to wrap around him.

[ And I expect
this to be fun! ]

Castle
Teeme

"The town's
rather pretty isn't it?" Z asked, leaning over the rampart of the
castle Maita had placed during the night to watch the dawn light
slowly brighten the town of Teeme below. Maita was inside and
beneath the castle, of course, making up the "basement." Z, Ehrak,
Thing on its floater and the two-headed golem were watching as the
dawnfires were being lit below and the windows were beginning to
show inside lights.

–
Rather
pretty?– No, the acid-tongued golem head, snarled. –It's a
disgusting garbage dump like all those period things you airheaded
ass! A bunch of savages awakening to a new day of
sordidity!–

+Now, No!+ Yes,
the nice golem head, replied. +You should try not to be so
negative! The sun is shining, the air is fresh and cool, the breeze
is balmy, it's a new and wonderful day! Be happy with the good
things in life!+

–
Ahhh,
shut up you leadbrained rockslug!– No cried. –If the damned
mountain caved in and we ended up under it you'd want to study the
rocks!

–
You
make me sick!–

+Now, No! Be
positive in your outlook! The mountain is safe and solid and the
view is magnificent!+

–
Shove
it in your.... You ain't got one. Why can't you, for one lousy
time, look around you and see what's really there? Why can't
you....–

"Maita,
please!" Z cried. "They work fine! Shut them up!"

–
Stick
it in your stupid ear, Heatbrain! Try using your head for something
more than a vacuum reservoir!–

Thing made a
pass over the golem with a tentacle. [ You want heat? ]

The head began
to glow red-hot. –YAHHRG!– it cried.

+Now, No. You
should certainly know by now that one doesn't mention heat or cold
around Maybe. That temperature will tend to dull your finish! You
keep on doing the same things over and over! Be nice!+

Z caught on.
They were to get into character and to stay in it unless they were
alone in the ship. This kind of horseplay wouldn't stop and he was
Boss, the head wizard, so he must act like Boss.

"You two knock
it off!" he ordered. He would have to remember that only Boss could
ever shut the golems up unless Maybe did something like the heat
trick.

"Extrx, let's
get the flying clamshell out so we can go into town. See the row of
buildings with blue-trimmed windows? That's Net's Inn. There's the
fountain in front of the castle. When we left the castle was being
used as the court. It had that big open room and most of the people
could fit in there.

"I think we've
been seen."

People were
gathering outside of their homes and pointing up at the shining
castle. Maita sent the large floater out with its fiberglass
clamshell covering. The top would open to reveal them inside, feet
toward the edge, reclining on big velvet cushions. There was a
round table in the center with a place for Maybe to sit and with
fine wines in jeweled goblets and sweetcakes on solid gold
plates.

*We're about to
have our first company,* Maita said through the floater that made
up Thing's "body."

A large black
birdlike creature was coming up toward them circling on a
convection. As it got closer they could see its orange beak and
long claws. Ehrak was extremely nervous.

"That's a
Frome, one of their demons," Z explained. "You'll probably learn to
like them. They have really weird senses of humor."

[ This is the
only planet in the galaxy where beings from different planes
intermingle! I can see the gene is still active that allows these
people to open the portals. I wonder if there are any other forms
of demons here? ]

–
Certainly, Puttybrain! What in the hell do you think WE
are?–

+Now, No, You
should try to....+

"You two stop
it!" Z ordered as the huge bird landed on the rampart rail.

"Are zhu Boss?"
the Frome cried excitedly. "And Extrx? And Maybe? And zhe golems?
Zhu are back?"

"We said we'd
return someday," Z replied. "Welcome to our humble abode."

"Zhu could haf
pud zum zhewels along zhe balustrade," the Frome replied lightly.
"Iss zhust zhe perfect douch uf underzhdademend!

"I am Fale,
reprezhendadive uf Makd, owner uf Ned's Inn!"

[ Is there a
sorcerer here in Teeme, Fale? ]

"Iss nod a
zorzerer," Fale replied. "Iss vizard! Iss grade grade grandzun uf
Kene, Zun uf Ned!

"Zhdory iss
Maybe vunce med Kene."

[ Yes, at
Southpoint, when those otherworlders were there. Kene made them
leave Tlorg. They were evil. ]

"Zhdory iss dat
Kene killed all uf dem," Fale said. "Zhen zhu dook zhere spazshzip
away."

[ That's very
true. The result was that the rest of them stayed away. They were
from an evil race in the empire on this plane. ]

"Are there
other demons of other kinds here?" Ehrak asked.

"Zhes, zhere
are many uf zhe Targ and zum uf zhe Pludons," Fale replied. "Nod in
Teeme, zho. Iss Pludon in Fethren. Iss Frome in many zidies. Fromes
carry newz and mezzagez. Targ iss mozdly in Loozda. Zhey helb King
Dihn with zhe zhipping. No birates addack a zhip with a Targ on
id!

"Zhu are
invided do Ned's Inn for dawnmeal!"

"We'll be right
down, Fale," Z replied. "Do they still make the sweetcakes like
Fane used to make? And the stew?"

"Zhes," Fale
answered. "Bud now zhere iss no boison in zhe zweetcagz!"

Ehrak saw the
“poison” reference in Tom's memories and laughed. A sorcerer had
put poison in the cakes to try to kill the group off on their first
visit. Maita detected it and gave them a neutralizer, they ate the
cakes, pronounced them good and greatly strengthened their position
as a result.

The Frome
laughed too, then launched itself to inform the people at the inn
the wizard and demons would come for dawnmeal.

The group got
into the clamshell for the ride. There was a sumptuous feast
waiting for them when they arrived as well as many of the
townspeople asking hundreds of questions of them. They spent
several hours trying to answer as many as they could.

Makt, the owner
of Net's Inn, sent for Burl, the wizard, who was as excited as any
of them and who asked the most questions. Thing and Z were most
careful of their answers. They could see how very intelligent Burl
was.

Ehrak simply
said he had stayed on his own plane to raise a family and that very
little had happened.

"The time
passage on Zeena, my home world, is much different than it is
here," he explained. "It has been but twelve years on Zeena. Boss
says it has been more than two hundred here."

"Yes," Burl
replied. "Kene noted how the different planal nexus points have
varying time schemes. The Frome world is sometimes slower and
sometimes faster. The weeks and days are of different lengths, but
it balances over the year. Something to do with the sun."

"The Pluton,
Wruk, tried to explain planal mechanics as well as he knew them to
Kene, who had written much about it in his notes. The notes were
passed from wizard to wizard in the family. The gene for the psy
power seemed to be far more than a minor recessive in this
family.

[ Kene told me
at Southpoint that he was aware of his psy ability and that most of
his magic was a result of that power. I see you've inherited the
ability. Are there many who can open the planal portals for the
demons to come to Tlorg? ]

"We've
simplified the process somewhat, but it still needs the psy," Burl
replied. "The Fromes and Targs are easy. We have several points on
each of their worlds where we have a scheduled time of crossing. We
can't see or hear very well on Frome and there's a dimensional
stress factor that makes the foods there useless to us as we can't
absorb them so we don't often go there.

"Kene surmised
that because the Frome can handle our foods well they must have an
extra dimensional angle that blocks our systems from using the
compounds in that plane. We'd also slowly die for lack of usable
air, though that IS slower.

"We can't go to
Targ. I've viewed it through the portal orifice many times, but
there is large a dimensional stress difference that makes the plane
deadly to us. It's a strange place because we only see in black and
white there and the Targ have the same problem here, but everything
else is okay for them. Kene theorized the dimensional stress angle
there makes each atom of air has what he described as 'sharp
points' that rupture our lungs. NOT having sharp points here means
they don't suffer the same danger.

"Hades is
something of a problem because we cough all the time. The sulfur
dioxide chokes us. Kurk, the Pluton at Forthern, says the pollution
from their industry is so bad everyone chokes, which is why he
prefers this world. The Pluton women don't like Tlorg and won't
stay long but, as the famous Wruk told my ancestor, there are many
Plutons who can do well without family ties.

"Fale flew to
Fethren to tell the people you're here. I'm sure King Dihn will
want to meet you. They say he's the image of King Lear. He does
much resemble the paintings. The Fromes will spread the word over
the entire kingdom in one day!"

–
Hey,
Lizardbreath! If you can stop with the damned weather report for
long enough, how're our courts doing? Have you managed to screw
them up to where they're worse than Countess Toot the Ugly
now?–

+Now, No! We
are the guests of these people! Be nice!+

–
AHH,
shove it in your nose, Pushface!–

"You two shut
up!" Z ordered. "No asked a question we'd like to know about,
though. How are the courts doing?"

Burl grinned at
the golems. "The form of the courts, without the comedy routine, is
now used throughout the kingdom. There were a lot of laws proposed
in the time of King Pan and of Queen Kilt, but the guidelines you
set and the warnings from Boss and Extrx were followed exactly.
You'll find they work very well, indeed. The most constant assault
on the system is by the lawyers, who want more power in the courts.
They want to make a law that a person must be a lawyer for ten
years before he can become a judge, but King Pan settled that
point. No matter how many times they bring it up they're told a
lawyer can't become a judge because that would give complete
control of our society to those kinds.