The IX (45 page)

Her emotions were laced with disgust and fear, an acidity that singed his receptors.
Must we meet in such a place, Lega’trix? The discordance of dynamic vitality threatens to desiccate my threshold.

You know it is necessary, Tribunus, for how else could I have devised a means to penetrate their barriers? The more I learn of the correlation between our matrixes and the iron, the more refined I can make the process, and the swifter our objectives can be achieved.

But does the proximity of so much bane-metal not unnerve you?

It disciplines me, young Kresh. Focuses my mind. And as I work to reduce the quantity I need to maintain optimum integrity, it reminds me of what is at stake. And really, who would suspect that rebellion would be fomented here; in the very place our codex could be unmade? Now tell me, did you succeed in your mission?

I did, Great One. As you suspected, Imperator Vetis and the fools who are swayed by his bravado reacted as you predicted. They are rousing the children of the Trianium as we speak. Soon, the rest of his cabal will arrive to invest the infants with power.

And who stands with our mighty liege?

Of the Unium? Lega’trexii Geryan, Jahi, Zuul, and Zagam. Of the Duarium, Tribuni Cayyem, Set, Urium, Desh, and Roth.

So, Lega’trexii Saffir, Buer, Foroon, Caym, and To’pesh are with us after all?

Almost, My Lord. To’pesh and Foroon are still undecided.

Angule bristled, agitated by the cowardice displayed by their newest High Circle members. Gripping Raum within a compulsive matrix, he commanded:
Dismiss them from our plans entirely. Unsure of themselves, they play politics at the expense of our future, and cannot be trusted. On no account can they be befriended by any who stand within our covenant. Understood?

Of course, Lega’trix.

Suppressing his delight at the taste of conflict, Angule took a moment to reestablish serenity.
And what of the enlightened Duarium? Are any among our most recent arrivals infected by a similar reticence?

Thankfully, no. Tribuni Limun, N’Omicron, and Vual, together with Praefactors Mamone’sh and Orias, are all with us . . . of that I have no doubt.

The Prime Catalyct of the Unium weighed his options carefully. He came to a decision:
Tell our faction to prepare and stand ready. For now, Vetis must think we are all in accord. We will force the issue, but at a time and place of my choosing. Now go, quickly. The hour of release approaches.

As you command, Great One.

So relieved was she by the thought of leaving that Raum all but fled the Gulf. After she had gone, Angule returned to his musings.

Strange, that so great a fate should fall to ones so frail.

CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

As the sun began to set behind the Garnet Mountains, a squadron of brave solar beams persisted in navigating the buttress of intervening summits and valleys. The unblemished vista of endless blue liquidity became infused by a wispy gauze of milk-cream mist. A steady evolution of aquamarine to palest yellow, as if pure honey had been poured along the horizon to sweeten the bitterness of impending night.

Jayden Cole closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. Standing in the open window to her suite, situated in one of the tallest towers of the city, this was her favorite time of the day. She reveled in the sting of the westerly breeze in her nostrils, flowing as it did at this time of year from the distant massif. It always made her feel as if those far-off peaks were blowing her a kiss, and she savored the feather-light exhalation that transformed her exposed skin into a living tapestry of goose bumps.

She noticed the light caressing her eyelids grow dimmer. Drinking in the panoramic scene once more, she rested her hand against her stomach and studied the sky as it blushed through burnt umber, peach, and lilac contrasts. It appeared to her as if a child of the gods were at play with crayons in the heavens.

How often we take for granted the simple pleasures set before us each day . . . until it’s too late.

Smiling, she glanced behind her at the source of her quandary. Mac lay spread-eagled across the width of her bed; his finely-formed butt and chiseled body a testament to hard living.

I didn’t plan for this. I honestly didn’t.

Although she’d only known him a short period of time, she felt sure he was the kind of man she could one day come to love and respect. He was kind, patient, considerate, gentle, and always willing to listen. A trait most men found difficult to even contemplate. He always made her feel as if her opinion counted, and that was a very special and rare gift.

But what to do? Should I allow myself to fall for him, knowing we might only have a few days left, or keep things as they are? He carries such a weight on his shoulders, I don’t want to distract him . . . and yet, he deserves to know.

He stirred. Somewhere deep inside, he must have sensed he was alone on the bed, for he came awake with a start. Catching sight of her, partially silhouetted against the sunset, he smiled, relaxed, and extended his arms. “C’mon, beautiful, you can’t just stand there in your birthday suit and expect me to do nothing.”

Oh, Mac. I hope fate gives us a chance. All three of us.

*

The door at the rear of the raised gallery opened. Caught in the glare of the brightly lit chamber, Saul Cameron stalled, blinking away his discomfort while he allowed his eyes to adjust. He immediately became aware of a crisscross of chatter from the main floor below. It cut off almost instantly once he was spotted, and the already electric atmosphere ramped up to a whole new level.

Arrangements had been made to ensure those leaders and section heads that couldn’t be here in person would be linked through by a real-time feed. He was glad to see that several large screens had been set up around the outer edge of the auditorium to facilitate this. They crackled to life as he took his seat, and more than a dozen sentinels assumed their stations at various points around the room.

Saul had also insisted that his discourse be broadcast live. He wanted to minimize the risk of disruptive rumors harming morale whilst ensuring every department had an appropriate heads-up of any imminent changes.

Out of habit, he glanced around the huge, U-shaped command tier, looking to exchange greetings with his closest friends and advisors. But, of course, they weren’t up here today, and without his staff about him the area felt vast and lonely. The clock in the ceiling console blinked onto 12:00, and a soft chime announced it was midday.

Placing an activation crystal into its receptacle, he waited for his notes to load onto the holo-screen and prepared to deliver his verdict.

Here goes nothing
.

“Thank you all for coming. I know many of you were unable to sleep last night, worrying about what would transpire today. I also understand how opinion has become divided over the past week, due to . . . unforeseen and unexpected interventions from the most remarkable of sources. One of my responsibilities as commander is to keep us all together, bonded into one big happy family. That’s vital, now more than ever, and especially in this place. You know the saying,
“United we stand, divided we fall.”
Well, I’m not going to let what we’ve worked so hard to achieve be discarded by the wayside. That’s why I made a promise to deliver my decision today, and explain the reasoning behind it.

“None of us had any choice about being brought here. The specifics of the
why
and
how
were entirely beyond our control. But death’s like that. It’s entirely random, and doesn’t extend the courtesy of asking permission before it comes knocking on your door. And the simple fact of the matter is—we’re dead to the folks back home. Never forget that.

“The transference to Arden wasn’t without conditions, either. The Architect was tasked to choose the best possible candidates to assume a sacred trust. A duty; to care for the dormant seeds of a ruined civilization in the hope of re-genesis at some time in the future. That’s one hell of a responsibility. But we stood up to the challenge, didn’t we?”

A multitude of heads nodded in agreement, for in this, Saul knew they were united.

He continued, “How we failed in the past, and how we’re managing now—especially since the arrival of the ninth—are some of the aspects I considered. Obviously, in recent months, new doors of opportunity have been opened to us, affording us all sorts of benefits we’ve never had the luxury of enjoying before. It’s been no easy task, because along with the mundane, everyday strides forward we’ve made, there have been other elements I had to take into account. Strange, unexplainable things that stretch the bounds of reason. It put a lot of pressure on me, I can tell you, and the urge to drain my decanter was always there. But you’ll be glad to know I managed to abstain.”

A swell of laughter broke out, especially among those who knew Saul and his habits well.

“However, it saddens me to tell you I can’t say the same for Mohammed.” He smiled. “
He
is sleeping off a case of bathmat tongue as I speak.”

The outburst grew louder, and spread to the furthest corners of the hall.

Relieved his gamble at humor had paid off, Saul risked a smile in return and raised his hand for order.

Once peace was restored, he said, “Although I’ve lightened the mood a little by sharing a joke with you, I assure you, I didn’t treat the issue before me with the same frivolity. Despite what some here might think, I listened to what everyone had to say. I’ve been up all night, running through mission reports with the sentinels and the Architect’s avatars to obtain as full a picture as possible. We scrutinized the ancient histories, and pored over past clashes with the Horde from every conceivable angle. I also took into account some of the more . . . unusual encounters a number of you have experienced. I felt it only fair to be as accurate as possible in weighing the risks against the rewards, and the dangers against our long-term hopes for survival.

“In the end, I realized I didn’t really have a choice at all. I never did. Because of my position, I have to err on the side of caution at all times. You could say, I’m not allowed to have a personal opinion. In the same regard, being popular is not my priority, either. Your welfare and safety is. And when it comes down to it, I’ve been forced into a no-win situation, because even though I’m trying to safeguard your future, I’ve had to make a choice that will upset a lot of people. For that, I’m sorry. But when it boils down to it,
we
come first. Arden, despite all she’s done for us in extending an opportunity of life, comes second. And the Horde? Well, they don’t even enter the equation. Again, I apologize if that sounds harsh, but we were granted a reprieve from death that I don’t intend to squander on flights of fancy or what-might-have-been. So, to my answer . . .”

The mood within the room intensified. Without realizing it, most people held their breath, and Saul could see many of them hunch forward on their seats in anticipation.

Stay positive, Saul. Stay strong.
“We have a huge range of weaponry and technology at our disposal. Until now, it’s been mostly redundant because it’s ineffective against the Horde. That would change if they were no longer a problem. Thankfully, due to the safe arrival of the first shipment from the Shilette Abyss, we are abundantly provisioned with iron. More than enough for what I have in mind.
And what is that?

“Our settlements throughout the region of the Forest of Tar’e-esh will be abandoned immediately and selected stores and equipment will be relocated to Rhomane over the next month. Personnel will be assigned to new departments. Some here, others up at the astrometrics facility at Boleni Heights, which will be held a little longer to allow us to put the next stage of my proposal into action. You are now on notice, people. We’re leaving!

“Don’t worry, Ephraim,” Saul added, flashing his scientific advisor a brief smile, “Earth is not an option. As you and others have correctly highlighted, we cannot take the chance of inducing a butterfly effect, or any form of paradox for that matter. Multiple universe theories aside, the mere fact we never met ourselves in the past doesn’t guarantee we won’t screw things up if we’re not very careful. So, although we can’t go home, we
can
use the
Promulus
,
Tarion Star
, and once we get our hands on her, the
Arch of Winter
.

“Don’t forget, we also have access to the entire sum of the Architect’s memory, too. That database will be downloaded and utilized to see us to a new home, wherever that may be. Now let me assure you. From what I’ve seen, the archive is extensive, and there are a lot of choices out there. Quite a few of the Ardenese outposts remained untouched during the Fall, because they were evacuated prior to Horde infestation. With the help of the Architect, I’ve selected a number of possible candidates, and will hold an appropriate meeting within the next few days to determine a prioritized wish-list. Obviously, it will mean we have to start all over again. But we’ve done that before. This time we will have the resources of the cruiser to assist us, and of course, whatever other Tec we can fit into the hangar. Then, once we arrive at our selected destination, we will utilize the full manifest of the planet’s redundant infrastructure. It’s not going to be easy. But at least we will be free of the constant threat of death, for it is my intention to destroy all remaining ships from orbit. Now, I know some of the Horde might survive that attack, but I don’t really care. We’ll be long gone. They’ll be stuck here, forever.”

Standing, Saul concluded, “That just about sums everything up. This verdict has been recorded and will be available for download within the next five minutes. As you appreciate, I won’t be taking questions at this time, but you can pass on any queries or concerns you have via your appropriate command representative. Thank you.”