The Light-Field (33 page)

‘You have another telepath?' Kassa was thrilled to learn this, but apprehensive as well.

‘Yes, we do … he'll be our navigator and co-pilot.' Dr Gervaise smiled as Lucian buzzed Amie in reception and asked her to send Leal Polson in.

Kassa stood to meet the new arrival and it was too strange when the fellow Kale had been speaking with came walking through the door.

Hello?
he thought, as his eyes fixed on Kassa. He was wondering why he'd been asked to wait around.

Hello yourself.
Kassa thought back, and when Leal registered a shocked smile, Kassa couldn't help but be excited.

Interesting
. Leal grinned, inclining his head to one side, his blue eyes twinkling like sun on the sea. Airman Polson looked much more space program standard issue — his shaved strawberry blond hair was a dead giveaway.
This could get me in a lot of trouble.

Kassa chuckled.
Makes you wonder what our pick up range is?

We must test that sometime?

Yes, we must.

‘Are you guys going to say anything out loud?' Lucian joked. ‘So we can all join in?'

Leal and Kassa both broke into an embarrassed laugh when they realised what they were doing.

‘Sorry, Captain,' Leal apologised. ‘It's just so novel to have two-way telepathy.' He expressed Kassa's thoughts exactly.

Lucian did the honours. ‘Leal Polson, meet Dr Kassa Madri.'

An absolute pleasure to make your acquaintance, Dr Madri.
Leal nodded his head to her, and she returned the gesture — also a little wary to shake hands just yet.

A rare treat, indeed, Airman Polson.

Please call me Leal.

‘Thank heavens you're coming to lunch,' Lucian looked to his wife, ‘or I can imagine the conversation might get a little dull.'

All present were amused.

‘But before we go there,' Taren invited Kassa and Leal to be seated, ‘I have a short future history lesson for you both, and a gift.'

When Dr Gervaise opened her clenched hands to reveal a piece of flat grey shale rock in each, imbued by a rainbow gaseous glow, Kassa's eyes opened wide in wonder. ‘Five years from now we discover a planet, Oceane, and on that planet we encounter a strange gaseous anomaly …'

 

‘Any questions?' Taren finished up her now standard recruitment lecture.

Kassa and Leal were absolutely gobsmacked for quite a few moments as they processed the information.

‘So you didn't just perceive the future, you lived through it, wound up in another universe, and went back in time to return to this universe and start the project over?' Leal summed up his understanding. When both Taren and Lucian nodded in accord, Leal whistled to emphasise the enormity of what they had done. ‘So we have all —' his sights darted over to Kassa and back, ‘— worked together before?'

‘Many times,' Taren concurred, considering other lifetimes they'd spent together in other universes also.

That explains Kale's vision.
Leal and Kassa thought at once, and looked to each other horrified and tickled.
You saw that?
They locked thoughts again.
Yes!
They replied and burst out laughing.

‘What's so funny?' Taren asked, as they fell about the lounge, waving off an explanation.

‘Something tells me they've had enough enlightenment for one day,' Lucian commented, and clapped his hands together to conclude. ‘Time for lunch.'

 

It was supremely satisfying to see the old crew coming together, and catching up with Zeven and his family was a long awaited pleasure.

It was odd to see Zeven in the role of devoted husband and father, but here he was married to Aurora, proudly showing off their daughter and boasting of her talents.

‘At first we though Ray had PK, like me, because she started zapping herself all over the place and I had to keep going and getting her,' Zeven explained over some cool drinks on the veranda. ‘But for some strange reason she could go somewhere else, but she couldn't return.'

‘But then when Ray was with me,' Aurora cut in, ‘she kept telling me about what Daddy was doing, and she never popped off anywhere, so I suspected she had my Power.'

‘So,' Taren was curious, ‘she has many Powers?'

Zeven shook his head. ‘We figured out she doesn't have any Power of her own. Ray adopts the Power of the psychic she is closest to.'

‘Whoa.' Taren was amazed. ‘That renders her immune to psychic attack even without our Juju.'

Zeven raised both brows. ‘Pretty much, watch this. Hey, Ray!' Zeven called to her. As she turned about he sent a bolt of force in her direction, and Taren panicked as the girl was near the railing. The force, however, rebounded back at Zeven and sent him flying through the open door behind him and into the lounge room.

‘Damn it, Zeven.' Taren was relieved by the outcome, as he picked himself up off the floor, chuckling.

‘She's going to give the bad boys a hell of time when she gets older.'

Ray smiled proudly at her father's praise.

 

Lucian was also pleased to see Zeven married off and enjoying family life, as he'd ceased flirting with Taren at every given opportunity.

The professor had never met Mythric Zeon before today, but he had seen him appear with Taren in her lounge room once, many years ago. He'd also met another incarnation of him in the universe parallel; in that evolutionary scheme he had been his son. Needless to say, Lucian took an instant liking to the man. In this life they were a similar age and for an ex-MSS agent, Mythric was clearly very intelligent and knew his own mind. At his core, Mythric was royalty. No matter how he tried to downplay it, he couldn't — he was a gentleman in every sense.

Lucian, who could see the spirits of the dead, couldn't fail to notice the beautiful ghost of a woman lingering around the one time Duke of Vidor. She was very poised and clearly well-bred, but her white dress was splattered with blood that was concentrated on her torso. As she'd clearly met with a tragic end, Lucian kept the observation to himself; he didn't wish to stir up any hurt this evening.

After dinner, Zeven and Taren went for a walk. Aurora was getting Ray ready for bed, so Lucian and Mythric got to talking about the future of AMIE.

‘As your strategist,' Mythric said, ‘and with the goal of keeping Oceane a secret, I've got wind of information that will be of some interest to you.'

Lucian was all ears. ‘Pray tell.'

‘A friend of ours was conscripted by the inter-system gateway network, a few years back, to try to fix the defunct gateway located in Oceane's system,' Mythric informed him.

‘That's right …' Lucian remembered, and was very surprised that landmark event had slipped their minds. ‘They did get that gateway back up and running about now.'

‘I was thinking,' Mythric offered, ‘if we stopped that gateway from being activated, then that's going to considerably lessen the chances of Oceane being discovered.'

Lucian loved Mythric's nerve — it was very ambitious. ‘And how would you suggest we go about that?'

‘Pilfer the technicians they've sent to open the gate,' he said. ‘They belong with us, or so Zeven says.'

‘Who are they?' Lucian couldn't think of any crew they'd forgotten.

‘Kalayna Zuri and Telmo Dacre,' Mythric revealed.

The names made Lucian smile and he nodded to concede they were indeed Zagriata. ‘We may have to recruit them a little sooner than expected.' As Kalayna and Telmo were the youngest of them, they were avoiding getting them involved in their clandestine operations before it was absolutely necessary. ‘Still, we can't risk launching any missions until we have AMIE in space. While she's docked, we're too easy to find.'

‘Can't argue with that,' Mythric concurred.

‘Goodnight, BA.' Ray came running over to give him a kiss.

‘Goodnight, gorgeous.' Mythric scooped her up, smothered her neck in kisses until she squealed and then put her back down again.
When she landed, Ray was unsteady on her feet a second and grabbed hold of Lucian's knees to steady herself.

‘Goodnight, captain,' she said proudly, as Lucian ruffled her hair. She looked back to BA, stunned, and then smiled with delight.

‘What is it?' Mythric wondered, as she was looking slightly above where he was sitting and he couldn't see anything there.

Ray gave a little wave. ‘Night, Grandma,' she said and returned to her mother inside.

Mythric was speechless a moment, and then figured it out. ‘That's your talent, isn't it, seeing the dead?' He almost choked on the question; he'd thought Satomi's ghost would have given up on him long ago in disgust. ‘Can you see anyone around me?'

Lucian nodded and raised both brows. ‘There is a woman,' he acknowledged and as soon as he did the beautiful ghost began speaking at Lucian in a foreign language. ‘She is speaking another dialect … sounds Phemorian.'

‘Oh my giddy aunt.' He stood and turned about. ‘Where?'

Lucian directed him to just behind where he'd been sitting. ‘She's smiling at you, but I can't understand what she's saying.'

‘She never was much good at speaking the universal language,' Mythric warranted; the fondness he still felt for her was written all over his face.

The smile slipped from the beautiful ghost's face and she began speaking at Lucian, seeming desperate to make him understand her.

‘I don't understand,' he appealed to her and then to Mythric. ‘We'll need a translator.'

‘Where are we going to find a Phemorian who will translate the ramblings of their long-dead, banished and shamed princess?'

‘I've got two on staff that would fit the bill.' Lucian stood to calm Mythric and stunned him with the ease of the solution. ‘You remember Jazmay, surely?'

‘The shape-shifter.' Mythric cast his mind back five years and then
looked to the ghost he could not see nor hear. ‘I need to ask why she has not moved on?'

‘Many who die in tragic circumstances cannot rest in peace,' Lucian explained.

‘It is obvious to you then, that Satomi died a distressing death?' clearly, Mythric still felt guilty for not being able to save her and Lucian empathised completely, as there was a strong family resemblance between Taren and her deceased aunt.

‘Her attire gives that impression, not her expression,' Lucian said. ‘Before I mentioned I could see her, she appeared quite at peace watching the family.'

Mythric's tension eased. ‘But, if she is not at peace for whatever reason, you'll help me discover what it is?'

Lucian placed a hand on his shoulder to reassure him. ‘You're all family,' he stated with a fair serve of sentiment. Swithin had been his only family for a large part of his life, so now that his kindred were multiplying rapidly, the professor couldn't have been happier. ‘I want to see you all happy, whatever that takes.'

‘I appreciate that,' Mythric replied with a forced smile. ‘Still, true happiness has been a bit of a myth to me in this life … maybe next time around.' He resolved to be more cheery. ‘Finding my son has certainly proved to brighten things up a little, though. No children for you yet?'

‘No!' Lucian was taken aback by the query and couldn't help but sound a little disappointed. ‘No. Taren won't even consider it before D-day five years from now. She claims a child will only make her vulnerable.'

‘Unless you end up with one like Ray?' Mythric suggested.

‘That's what I think!' Lucian threw his hands up in the air.

Mythric was amused by the captain's frustration. ‘But once the boss makes up her mind,' he shook his head in knowing and sympathy, ‘there's no changing it.'

‘Don't I know it,' Lucian concurred. ‘But then I know Taren well enough to realise that time will probably prove her right.'

Mythric warranted he was right. ‘We didn't call her the Timekeeper for no good reason.'

 

The next morning Taren and Lucian took all their newest crew members on a tour of AMIE. Zeven knew exactly where he was going and as soon as they entered the vessel's mid-decks he made a beeline for Module C.

He'd spoken to Taren, during their stroll the night before, about his eagerness to rekindle his friendship with Ringbalin. Even though they'd never met in this time line, Zeven missed his best buddy from the good old days.

In just six months, Ringbalin had transformed Module C from an empty metal shell into a space that felt, looked and smelt completely organic.

‘Wow!' Thurayya exclaimed, poised ready to run off down through the pathways in the garden. ‘This is even better than the pool!'

‘Ray, honey, wait for Mummy.' Aurora headed after the girl.

‘So where is he?' Zeven was walking around, sticking his head in doors. He came to a stop outside the nursery window and was delighted by what he saw. He waved over the rest of his party to come see.

Kassa, Leal, Taren, Lucian and Mythric joined Zeven at the nursery window, to observe Ringbalin leaning over a tray of potted flowers that were wilting. As he held his hands over each pot, the plant within rose up and was restored to full health.

‘Well, we're certainly not going to go hungry,' Leal commented, amazed by the display.

‘The man of flowers,' Mythric uttered, more overawed than any of them.

‘Have you met Ringbalin before?' Taren was curious about the comment.

Mythric shook his head. ‘Maiara told me about a child who made flowers bloom everywhere he went. I suspect Kale and I may owe this man a great debt.'

‘Really?' This was news to Zeven.

Everyone was quietly intrigued and allowed Mythric to lead the way into the nursery.

‘Quanah?' Mythric used the name Maiara had called her child of flowers by, and Ringbalin's head shot up in recognition.