Chapter Eleven
Vector woke to someone kicking him painfully in his thigh. He opened his eyes and, despite his protesting muscles, jumped to his feet to stare into the face of the Night Herald.
"Is the Dawn Herald of Oroboro so pampered he cannot awaken with the nest?" the Night Herald smirked. "Or perhaps the Star Dance is too taxing for your delicate constitution."
"We were unaware that insults had become the new norm for the Kind. If so, please allow us to open our arsenal and find a suitable weapon, something sharp perhaps?" sniped Vector.
"Hmph," snorted the Night Herald. "Come, the queen insists on your presence for a private audience."
The Night Herald did an abrupt about face and Vector followed, adjusting his staff in its harness as he went and trying to figure out what that man had against him.
Vector was led down several curving corridors and was finally escorted into a small chamber where the queen sat with several attendants hovering about. She glanced at both men and shooed the Night Herald away as well as the attendants, Vector was left alone in her presence.
She motioned him forward and stopped him as he was about to kneel. "Stand, Dawn Herald, we have no need of repetitive displays. Come closer."
Vector did as he was bidden and stopped a few feet short of where she rested. "What other purpose do you have in coming here?" she asked.
"Several of the hives have joined an alliance with the empire, a faction of humans. We have found that their highly structured way of life much mirrors our own and, we seek to expand that alliance."
"Why?"
"The empire may be in need of assistance in the months or even years ahead and we have come seeking what aid you can provide."
"We have no desire to form any alliances with the humans other than what some of the other hives have already committed to. We understand that their worlds are on the brink of war and we will not risk ourselves to fight for a species that has tried to exterminate us at every turn.
"We remain separate and hidden for a purpose, our own purpose. Should we make ourselves known at all it will be for the good of the nest and only the nest."
"We understand and thank you for listening to us, however, our main concern is still the migration of Oroboro to this space to preserve the hive and remove them from harm's way."
"So you say. What of this 'other' you speak of that you seek?"
Thoughts of Rey'elle floated to the surface of his mind and the queen reached out and caught them like flies in amber. She chittered to herself as she delved deeper into Vector's thoughts and it took all of his strength not to clutch his head and scream. He stood, like stone, as beads of sweat broke out on his forehead and ran down his face.
Finally he felt her recede and she came forward and walked in a circle around him, stopping with her mandibles just inches from his face. "Why would you choose this humanity instead of losing yourself to the welcoming peace of the hive? Is our way not better?"
"Better for some, but there is a difference between duty and love. Our duty is first to the nest, but we love her beyond hope and will never stop searching."
"And your queen allows this weakness?"
"She does not think of it as weakness. She feels that it creates a greater bridge of understanding between hive and human, and we are stronger for it. It allows us to see reasons behind human behavior and actually protects the hive from things that would otherwise remain secret due to ignorance."
"An interesting concept but does not fit with our agenda. We will remain in solitude, it is safer for the Kind. When you return to human space, take them the message that we offer nothing to aid in their war. Leave us now."
Vector left the queen's chamber and meandered down the tunnels in the direction he thought he had come from. He stopped only once to enter a giver's chamber that housed membrosia and looked about seeing tiny orbs of wax but their contents were a dark, murky gray as opposed to the the usual milky white.
He picked up two orbs and tucked them into his waist pouch. None of the givers paid any attention as theft was not a concept of the hive mind, all resources were openly shared. He turned to leave the chamber and saw the Night Herald approaching him from one of the corridors to his left. For the first time, Vector noticed the lightsaber hanging from the man's belt.
"Lost, Dawn Herald?" the man asked. "You are more pathetic than a hatchling."
"We were just picking up a sample of black membrosia, we have never tried it before."
"We doubt you would have the strength to withstand its effects. You stink of humanity and your aura is all wrong. Follow us so that you do not come to harm in our labyrinths, the queen wants you safe…..for now."
Vector did not miss the thinly veiled threat in the man's voice but he remained silent and followed him out into the meeting chamber where the man gave a disgusted grunt and left him on his own.
The remainder of the two days waiting for the return of the scout ships was spent either communing with the other joiners or walking with Lianna. Most, except for Kolosolok and Horoh, no longer looked upon him with suspicion since he did not mention the empire and stuck mainly to concerns of the various hives.
He made sure to walk, at least once a day, around his ship, so that Lokin would know that he was still alive. He bathed with the other joiners in the hot springs within the caves, while killik attendants cleaned his armor. The Night Herald never bathed with them, either having some private place of his own, or, more likely, avoiding them or perhaps just him.
He joined the other hives each morning for the Hour of Revitalization and participated in the Twilight Song each evening, although it was not as beautiful as that which Oroboro sang. He was grateful that the Star Dance was not repeated.
Early afternoon, on the third day, the scouts had started to trickle in from their mission. The queen returned to the main chamber and called him over to stand in front of her.
"The scouts have discovered a world that might be ideal for Oroboro. There is a sentient species there, lizard like in appearance, they walk on two legs and use rough tools so should be no threat. The scouts call this planet Gravis 5.
"We give you leave to go survey this possible new home for the mother nest but you must accompany one of the scouts in our dartship. The human on your ship is not welcome there. Did you think we did not know?"
"He will not bring harm to the Kind, he is my companion and one of my crew."
"He will be safe until your return, but hear us well, Dawn Herald, should he ever land on this world again, his life is forfeit. You have our word on both pledges."
"As you command. May we have leave to visit our ship before we depart so that they do not become overly concerned?"
"You have our leave, but be quick about it, the scout waits."
"We give you our thanks," said Vector as he bowed at the waist and then turned to leave the chamber.
The trip to Gravis 5 was two and a half days from Finas Eth and the Killik who piloted the ship was poorly suited to conversation. Thankfully they had taken one of the larger dartships which was suited to carrying joiners and gave some concern to their biological needs.
Still, the interior was small and offered little in the way of accommodations for sleeping or stretching. Vector was thankful, also, that the dartship was capable of hyperspace flight or the trip would have taken a month or more. He reminded himself to check into the hive's acquisition and use of this technology at some point in the future.
He spied the new home of Oroboro as they exited the jump and could have sworn that he was gazing at Alderaan's twin. The green of grassy plains, the browns and grays of mountain ranges, the blue of lakes and rivers and the pure white of snowy caps gracing the polar regions. His queen would be pleased.
The ship dipped low over the plains and Vector could see crude villages here and there, the sentients that the Unu queen had mentioned. Their dwellings were little more than huts and they scattered as the ship buzzed over their heads finally landing at the foot of a great mountain.
Vector exited the ship, grateful for solid ground beneath his feet again and the ability to stretch his muscles as he walked toward the gaping maw of an entrance he saw just beyond the foothills and up a rocky path.
He entered and walked some distance into the cave noting crystal formations that stuck out of the walls and ceiling at odd angles. They emitted a faint glow that barely lit his way as he continued forward, testing the ground ahead, watching his steps.
He advanced carefully until his path opened up to a grandeur that he could scarcely believe. An immense cavern reflecting the light of phosphorescent lichen from walls lined with veins of mica, feldspar and gypsum. Great stalactites hung from the ceiling, some uniting with stalagmites to make giant columns of lichen covered stone. The Twilight Song would ring through this place like a clarion bell and the nest would be, once again, at home.
He felt the killik touch his arm and knew that it was time for him to leave this place, but he ingrained it all into his memory so that he could share with his queen and all of Oroboro. Reluctantly he retraced his steps and they entered the ship for the return trip to Finas Eth.
Lokin greeted him warmly when he walked through the Phantom's entrance and wanted Vector to regale him with tales of the meeting, the other killiks and the new planet. Vector gave Scorpio the order to take them back to Acosta Prime to refuel for the trip home to Alderaan then begged the doctor's patience while he showered and changed his attire.
Rey'elle's scent greeted him as he entered his room but was not as strong as he remembered so he went to her closet and opened the door, wrapping himself in the renewed smell before closing the door again to preserve this physical reminder of her. He had so little left, only her datapad and this.
He met Lokin in the small galley and utility area where the doctor was drinking a cup of freshly brewed caf. He declined the doctor's offer and got a glass of water before he sat down at the counter.
"Were you able to analyze the black membrosia we gave to you before we departed for the new homeworld?"
"It has quite a kick to it, that's for sure. One drop on my tongue and I felt like I had imbibed several bottles of Chadian Rum, it is certainly not for the faint of heart."
"Indeed not, doctor, and it is highly addictive. We ask that you refrain from trying it again."
"The scientific mind is always curious, my boy, but, some of the enzymes are nothing I have encountered before. It is possible that these may assist me in my work toward a cure, at least they are something well worth investigating. Now, tell me about your other encounters."
They sat for hours while Vector told Lokin of all he had seen, of those he encountered, the Star Dance, and the new world and it's many similarities to Alderaan. He did not have the strength of will to tell Lokin that the queen had forbade his return to unknown space and would save that bit of news until later. He did not want to dampen Lokin's spirit and it was enough that he carried the burden without laying it at the feet of his friend as well.
They were half a day from Acosta Prime when Vector woke from a dream of Rey'elle. She was lost in some grayness that swirled around her like dense fog, endlessly searching, she called his name and he still heard the echo of her voice long after the dream was gone. He slipped on a pair of trousers and went to the cockpit, but it was empty. He found Scorpio in her place in the engine room, monitoring frequencies, and letting her hands play over the various keyboards.
"Yes Vector?" she said as he entered.
"Do you still have the coordinates to the place where Marr's ship exploded?"
"Of course, they are in the navicomputer. Why do you ask?"
"Once we refuel, we need you to take us back to that place."
"Very well."
He went back to his room but found no rest so went to the cargo bay to work out with his staff instead.
The refuel at Acosta Prime completed and Scorpio made the jump toward their new destination. They would require a refuel at Ilum before they would be able to continue, then at least two more stops, it would be another long trip.
Vector walked into the med bay to tell Lokin of the change of plans.
"Why would you wish to return to that place? Haven't you suffered enough already? Why keep reopening old wounds?"
Vector smiled at the endless string of questions. "The wounds are not old, they are as fresh today as when they first occurred. We have heard her voice again and we must return to the beginning to see if some direction opens to us."
"Bloody hell! Is this universe of yours trying to drive you insane?"
"The song has carried her voice to us twice now. These two tiny things, combined, are not enough to make one piece to the puzzle, let alone complete the picture, but we must try. To do otherwise would leave us forever in doubt that we had done everything possible. We do not ask for understanding, just acceptance."
"I accept it, Vector, but it seems to me that this universe of yours uses you ill, and it vexes me to see you caught in this cruel game."
"Finding her is no game and the universe is not cruel, it simply is."
They came out of hyperspace amid a widening area of debris and the memory dug into Vector with cruel claws but he pushed it aside and asked Lokin and Scorpio to meet him in the common room.
"We wish to direct this ship toward the remains of the Agrona and come to full stop then we want everything shut down, engines, life support, emergency lighting. We require absolute silence until it becomes necessary to once again engage all systems. It will become very cold in here so we suggest you wrap up tightly, doctor."
"And what of you?"
"We will remain naked for the duration, we do not want any noise, not even the rubbing of cloth. Should we become incapacitated, we look to you both to restore the systems. Is everything understood?"
"I understand this is crazy, but you have my word," said Lokin.
"Agreed," stated Scorpio.
Vector proceeded to the cargo bay to prepare himself by first urging the nest to absolute silence and warning them of the inevitable cold. He then removed all his clothing and knelt on the floor settling back on his haunches as he told Scorpio to begin the shutdown.
One by one the systems went offline until the ship was engulfed in a blackness so total and disorienting that only the physical contact of the floor beneath him offered any reassurance that he had not tumbled into some great abyss.
He slowed his breathing and his heart and opened himself to the song, going deeper than he had ever ventured before. He could feel the radiation settle on the ship's hull and subatomic particles pierce his skin in a thousand places. He could taste moonbeams as they danced on the salty waters of distant seas, rode the fire of comets and heard the first cries of new life, born of primordial goo on a hundred different worlds.
And then he heard it, a heartbeat, faint, beating so slowly that minutes seemed to pass between each flutter, he reached far in all directions searching for the origin when the ship lurched and shifted seeming to slide sideways in the endless black. It knocked him from his trance and the cold gripped him with talons of ice.
"Scorpio?" he called. "Doctor?"
"Finding my way to the cockpit, Vector, just hold on a minute," Lokin's voice responded.
Everything was bathed in a sickly green glow as the emergency lights came on and then Vector heard the sound of the life support generators as they came on line, followed by the whine of the sublights as they fired back to life.
He was shivering so violently from the cold he could hardly get his muscles to work and fell over on his side as he tried to get to his feet. He folded in upon himself forced into a fetal position as he lay upon the cold grating, his fingers curled into claws, his jaws clenched so tightly his teeth ached. He heard the sound of footsteps and barely felt a blanket cover his body as welcome warmth began to spread outward to embrace his skin.
"Give the thermal blanket some time to work, then we can talk," said Lokin as he knelt beside Vector's shuddering form making sure that he was completely covered, checking his pulse which was erratic, but strong.
Feeling finally started coming back to Vector's extremities and he flexed his fingers and feet to relieve the cramping then slowly unfolded his body and sat up.
"Dammit Vector, you were almost exposed too long," said Lokin as he reached down to help Vector to his feet.
"Where is Scorpio?" asked Vector as he started to get dressed.
"The bitch is gone," answered Lokin. "We are just lucky she closed the kriffing airlock before she blasted off."
"She took the escape pod?"
"Obviously, and it is hyperspace capable. Dammit to hell, I always suspected she knew something more than she was admitting about that Eternal Fleet and she used us to get exactly where she needed to be."
"And she does not need oxygen or food," added Vector.
"Correct. With that damned alien power core of hers she could probably power that pod for eternity. I would lay odds she is heading for this Zakuul place and we have no way of following her, she also disabled the tracking beacon."
"Do you think she might have left a message or directions?" Vector asked, a tinge of hope in his voice.
"I have already checked the navicomputer and it has nothing new, we can conduct a more thorough search as soon as we get some tea and food in you, but I wouldn't count on it. I am truly sorry, my boy."
Vectors emotions ripped across his mind. It was her heart he had heard, barely beating, barely discernable through the static of the song. He knew the tiny sigh each valve made as it opened and closed, the whoosh of her blood through each chamber. He had lain at her breast too many times to be mistaken about this, the universe would not lie about this.
His frustration built to a level he could not contain and he exploded like a bomb that had lain dormant for too long. The detonation surged through every nerve, he could not see, he could not hear, he moved like thunder, kicking and throwing crates, scattering boxes, spilling the contents of bags and finally slamming his fist into the wall again and again with inhuman cries as he felt bones crunch and skin split.
His anger spent, he ended with his forehead pressed against the cold metal, letting the mental and physical pain collide within his heart as the nest crooned softly, but he was too numb to hear.