ARC: Under Nameless Stars (9 page)

TEN

A glimpse of a translucent dome with aquamarine zebra striping was visible over the heads of the partygoers. Zenn saw then that the strange, undulating movement of the approaching creature was because it wasn’t walking on legs but was instead hovering several feet off the floor.

The Cepheian’s face reminded Zenn of a blowfish, with two pale eyes, no nose and a permanently pursed-lipped expression on the tiny mouthpart, all crowded into a small area beneath the bulging, dome-shaped mantle above it. The body resembled nothing so much as a huge jellyfish: a five-foot-wide half sphere of see-through tissue, with multiple pastel-colored organs and gas sacs visible within. Hanging down from the dome’s circumference were dozens of delicate, string-like gripping appendages and, most extraordinary of all, four ovoid globes of transparent skin. Suspended in each sphere was a single, diminutive consort – the water-breathing males of the species.

A chorus of high-pitched Transvox voices emanated from the males.

“Excuse us.” “Coming through.” “Tight squeeze.” “Make room here, feh?”

Floating in their individual compartments of nutrient-rich fluid, the males looked like foot-long brine shrimp, each one waving four spindly arms tipped with feathery filaments that were once hands but had long since lost that function. Their blood-red eyes blinked as the males pressed up against the membranes of their spheres, straining to make out the surroundings beyond.

As Zenn had only recently learned in Otha’s comparative physiology class, this kind of bizarre female/male symbiosis was a rare, but not unheard-of, survival technique. It was a kind of sexual dimorphism where the larger female animal carried her male counterparts along with her. It had been documented in a number of deep-sea fish on Earth as well as several marine creatures in the under-ice oceans of Jupiter’s moon Europa. The Cepheian’s gas giant homeworld of Eta Cephei, with its vast, sparsely populated cloud realms, was in some ways similar to the barren underwater deserts of the Earth and Europa. In these environments, locating a mate in all that empty water or air could be a life-or-death proposition. Still, it was an amazing thing to consider – solving the problem of how find a breeding partner by having your would-be husbands literally attached at the hip.

“Do you know what that is?” Jules whispered in Zenn’s ear as the Cepheian wafted its way toward their table. “I’ll wager you do not.”

“Jules,” Zenn whispered back. “It’s a Cepheian drifter. And I’m not sure they’d appreciate us betting on what they are.”

“Sorry. You’re right,” Jules said. “And I see now I would have lost my wager. Thank you for your frankness.”

It was, however, the first drifter Zenn had ever seen outside of a v-film, and she had to

admit it was a most remarkable sight.

“Ambassador Noom,” the Captain addressed the hovering creature when it reached the front of the platform, “you’ll be here on my right.”

The Cepheian’s self-generated mix of methane, hydrogen sulfide and other lighter-than-air gases filled its large balloon-like mantle and acted as both a lifting agent and propellant. The mechanism was much like the gas bladders that lined the undersides of the wings that bore giant Kiran sunkillers aloft. Zenn’s nose crinkled at the rotten-egg aroma that descended over the table as the drifter drew closer.

The Cepheian rose up over the platform and settled lightly on the back of the chair next to the Captain. Zenn saw then it wasn’t a chair but a specially constructed perch like a tall, sculpted “T” rising from a weighted base. Several of the Cepheian’s gripping tendrils wrapped themselves around the upper crossbar, anchoring the body in place like a large, tethered balloon.

“Grab there.” “No, there.” “Too close.” “Squashed here, feh.”

The agitated males all spoke more or less at once, making it difficult to understand them. It occurred to Zenn that carrying your multiple mates around with you all the time was clearly a mixed biological blessing. Apparently the female was of a like mind. She reached a tendril up to the Transvox unit attached to her side and dialed down the volume on the translator. The consorts continued to complain and mutter, but at a much lower level.

“This is Ambassador Noom Surishta Voikunoybo,” the Captain said to Zenn and Jules. “She and her staff are en route back to Eta Cephei. The ambassador has just come from a rather historic visit to Earth.” The Captain sat, then addressed the Cepheian. “I understand congratulations are in order, Ambassador. I believe you’ve achieved a breakthrough of sorts.”

“Of sorts, yes, Captain,” the ambassador replied, her pleasing, velvety voice at odds with her – their? – exotic appearance. Unlike her consorts, she didn’t use a Transvox, and Zenn was impressed at her lack of accent. If you couldn’t see who was speaking, you might well mistake her for a native Earther. “This was only an initial contact, of course,” she went on. “But I can honestly describe our talks as both wide-ranging and constructive.”

“Can we now hope starships of the Accord will once again be welcomed in Earth orbit?”

“Time will tell, Captain. If future meetings are as productive, it’s certainly a possibility.”

“Providing,” the Captain said, “the Ghost Shepherds leave us one or two ships to get around in.”

“Captain Oolo–” Noom’s tone was reprimanding “–as you well know, the Indra problem is of unknown origin. Suggesting otherwise only leads to wild speculation. Ghost Shepherds! Seriously, what next? Tales of Indra ships whisked away by goblins?”

“Ghost Shepherds,” Jules said. “I have heard this name. They are thought to be spirit-beings of some form, yes?”

The ambassador swiveled to face Jules. “It is a religious belief among the Procyoni who attend the Indra. The Indra starship grooms and their sacrists believe the Shepherds are an ancient supernatural race who first harnessed the power of the Indra. Ghost Shepherds are alleged to keep their stonehorses stabled in a distant, uncharted star system so remote no other sentient being has ever set eyes upon it. This fact, these Procyoni say, explains why no one has ever actually seen a Ghost Shepherd. Very convenient, wouldn’t you agree?”

“But, it is true that the appearance of the first Indra ship remains a peculiar and unresolved mystery, is it not?” Jules said. “That first vast ship was discovered simply floating about at the very boundary of mapped space all those years ago. And it was found empty of all life except for its great Indra, so it could not be said who built it. Or who left it for the Procyoni to find. Perhaps it was left by these haunting Shepherds.”

“Yes,” Noom said. “The Procyoni stumbling upon that first ship so close to their homeworld was a nice bit of fortune, I will admit
.
”

That’s an understatement,
Zenn thought. Finding the first, derelict Indra ship within sublight distance of Procyon was the only reason interstellar flight existed at all. Up until that moment, no science known to human or Asent had been able to unlock the riddle of how to travel between the stars. The distances were simply too vast, the power requirements too huge, the technological obstacles too baffling. But after the Procyoni discovered the astounding ability of that single Indra, they were then able to take their first tentative steps into space beyond their star. The following discovery of the Indra herd feeding off the dark matter whirlpools circling a nearby globular cluster meant more Indra ships could be built, and they soon were. But it was that first colossal stroke of fate, that first abandoned Indra vessel, that led to the Procyoni making First Contact with Earth. That single ship became the seed of the fleet that now knitted together the planets and civilizations of the Local Systems Accord. It was almost enough to make one believe in ghostly aliens and supernatural doings… if one wer inclined in that direction.

“And there are more suitably mystical facts,” Noom went on, clearly enjoying herself. “According to the sacred books of the Procyoni, every now and then the Shepherds return to round up their far-flung Indra herds and drive them home again. This is in order to bring their stonehorses back to their hidden breeding grounds, to produce more Indra. And if the Shepherds should not perform this epic task, so the texts tell us, the Indra will be offended and refuse to grant the Procyoni or other Asents the power of star travel. A pretty fairytale. But only that.” The Cepheian paused, then looked from Jules and Zenn to the Captain.

“Oh, forgive me, Ambassador,” the Captain said, gesturing at his guests. “This is Jules Vancouver, of Earth.”

“Pleased to meet you, Ambassador Noom… voykin…” Jules stammered to a halt.

“Omma Tsantis Iph Sharor Tus Florim Shardahla Noom Surishta Voiykenoiboh Noomdrass-Liquissi,” the Cepheian said. “But please, you must call us Noom.”

“We’re Noom Noomdrass.” “All Noomdrass.” “Liquissi as well.” “Liquissi family of Noomdrass, feh?” the male consorts babbled softly.

“And this is Miss Zora Bodine,” the Captain said. “A Ciscan exovet, recently come aboard from Mars.”

“
Novice
exovet, actually,” Zenn said. “I’m still in training.”

“A novice exoveterinarian?” Noom rose a few inches into the air to make eye contact with Zenn. “A Ciscan.” “Creature physician.” “From Mars.” “The famous cloister, feh?”

“A Ciscan cloister novice,” Noom said. “That would be the Arsia Valley Chapter, correct?”

“Yes, the Arsia Ciscans,” Zenn admitted. She was surprised the Cepheian’s knowledge extended to a tiny, almost defunct exovet training facility on a backwater planet in a marginal star system. “You’ve heard of our cloister, then?”

“Oh yes, we’re well aware of the Arsia Ciscans and their… good works.” Noom regarded Zenn with an odd expression. Was the Cepheian trying to imagine the face beneath the mermaid mask? Or was it, Zenn thought, just her own anxiety making it seem that way? “And what,” Noom said then, “do your Martian compatriots make of Earth’s new openness to contact with the rest of the Local Systems Accord?”

Zenn certainly had her own opinions about the Rift between Earth and Mars – and the Earther push to resume contact with their former colony on the Red Planet. But to debate the point here, on a raised dais at the center of several hundred people, dressed as a mermaid? Her face grew warm with color.

“I think most Martians are ready for contact again with Earth,” she said. “But I also think the Earther Authority needs to understand how we do things,” she added quickly. “You know, not impose their ways on Mars just because we do things differently or because we have alien patients at the cloister.”

“Frankly, Ambassador,” the Captain said, shaking out his napkin and placing it in his lap, “that’s what puzzles me about your mission. The Temp Exec Authority has no love for Cepheians or any other Alien Sentients in the Accord. Why would Earth push for resumed contact with Mars and the Asent planets now?”

“It’s the members of the Temp Exec Authority who wish to reopen trade with the other planets of the Accord. The extremists of the New Law faction are the only ones who wish to maintain the Rift and keep Earth cut off from outside contact,” the ambassador said.

The Captain pressed his point. “I think what worries some within the Accord is the motive of the Cepheians in these negotiations. It’s no secret that Eta Cephei wants to expand its trade networks. It needs more ships to do that. A deal between your species and the Earther Authority would make some in the LSA… deeply unhappy.”

“I assume you refer to Procyon,” the ambassador said, her voice gaining a slight flinty edge. “The Procyoni grooms have long held what can only be described as an inappropriate monopoly of Indra-drive ships and the profits that entails. But it seems self-evident that the open market is where issues of interstellar transport should be negotiated. All these rumors about Indra routes and secret dealings and such, this is simply the Procyoni stirring the pot, don’t you agree?”

“Even so…” The Captain refused to be put off. “The fact is, the Authority seems to have reached out specifically, quietly, to Eta Cephei, Ambassador. Not to the Accord as a whole. This is bound to raise questions, wouldn’t
you
agree?”
Any answer from the ambassador was prevented by the sight of a figure emerging from the crowd and approaching their table. It was one of the few passengers Zenn actually knew.

“Lieutenant, glad you could join us,” the Captain said, rising from his chair. “Everyone, this is Lieutenant Stav Travosk, official envoy of the Temp Exec Authority.”

The new arrival was the young soldier who’d been playing cards with Jules. Apparently, he’d decided his red-coated uniform was costume enough for the party. He ascended the stairs and stood behind the seat next to the ambassador.

“
Hello again,” the soldier said, acknowledging Jules.

“You two have met, I take it,” the Captain said.

“Yes. Earlier. And the little mermaid?”

“Miss Zora Bodine,” the Captain said. “From Mars.”

“I believe we met earlier as well. You were the one looking for Jules in the card room?”

“Yes. That’s right,” Zenn said. The soldier gave her a nod and brief smile.

“The lieutenant accompanied the ambassador on the shuttle from Earth,” the Captain said.

“Yes,” Noom said. “The Authority was most generous in sparing Lieutenant Travosk. He is a highly skilled science officer and someone who understands the value of Earth resuming contact with the worlds of the Local Systems Accord. He is, as well, a man determined to help end the Indra problem afflicting us all. One could describe it as a driving obsession with him. And well it should be.”

“Guilty as charged,” the soldier said. “But it’s not like I’m alone in wanting to see the disappearances solved. It simply can’t continue. And there are many on Earth like me, working day and night on the solution. We will put a stop to it.” The soldier’s eyes grew, if possible, even steelier as he spoke. “You have my word.”
“I can believe it, coming from you,” the ambassador said. “In any case, the Lieutenant has been an invaluable asset to us, both a formidable mind and faithful bodyguard during our visit.”

“A bodyguard?” Jules said, leaning forward to see the soldier better.

“On Earth?” the Captain said. “Was this necessary?”

“Simply a precaution,” Noom said. “You know, the New Law and others with… strong opinions about any treaties the Earth might attempt to enter into. An overabundance of concern, I’m sure.”