The Rift Rider (13 page)

Lade folded his
arms. When he spoke there was a hint of bitterness in his voice. "Nobody
could know the truth. Krest was a traitor and yet he had found a way to tear a
hole between our Universe and the Divide." He shook his head. "No, it
was better to use his death as a warning to all silvers. Turn traitor and
you'll suffer more pain than you can imagine. It worked too. No silver has
since."

"Unfortunately,"
Doctor Sree continued, "most of Krest's data was lost in the explosion. He
was a very secretive man and kept much of his findings to himself. I should
know, I worked with him for the five years leading up to his death.

"But on the
other hand, we now had concrete evidence that the Divide existed and that with
the right tools we could access its immense power. It took me twenty years, but
finally I pieced together his theories and developed the rift engine. You see
its energy from the Divide that powers the engine and allows us to travel at
such great speeds. The rift engine tears a rift in the fabric and sucks out the
energy.

"And that
brings us to here and the alien." He turned to Lade. "And the anomaly
I found."

"Go
on," Lade said.

"At first I
didn't notice it because it occurred in the same location as our experiments. I
almost missed it. But the drones didn't. They discovered that a much larger
rift was torn in the fabric after our experiments. This rift stayed open for
two full minutes. That's four hundred times longer than our rifts managed. It
was through this rift that the alien passed into our galaxy. He opened it,
halted the flow of energy, and crossed through."

"But we
caught him in a turen ship," Lade said. "Not an alien one. And we
found no alien artefacts, nothing hinting at a more technologically advanced
species. How would he be able cross over without his own version of the rift
engine?"

"It was our
rift engines that pulled him over," Doctor Sree said.
 
"I'm sure of it. We must have
pulled him over. It's too much of a coincidence. Our experiments and his
arrival must be linked."

"But there
was someone waiting for him with a ship," Lade said. "It could have
been them who brought him over."

Doctor Sree
shook his head. "Impossible. I'm the only person in the galaxy who knows
how to activate the rift engines. Besides, the ship was a basic smuggler. It
would not have been able to support a rift engine."

"Then what
was it doing there?" Lade asked.

"Waiting
for him, as you said," the scientist said. "I believe the pilot was a
robundee pathfinder. The boy came through the Divide. That's roller territory
and where there are rollers, there are pathfinders. The rollers must have told
the robundee to meet him when he crossed over."

"But what
has the alien got to do with the rollers?"

"I don't
know," the scientist said.

"I don't
like it, Sir," Ko said, turning to Lade. "If the robundee know about
the alien, then so do the terrorists. They'll use him against us."

Lade stroked his
chin. His eyes clouded over in thought. Finally, he spoke. "It's true,
Executive. The alien is a threat, but he's an even greater opportunity. He has
the power to open rifts." He turned to Doctor Sree. "Could he take a
ship and its crew through the Divide?"

"No,"
the scientist said. "Our experiments have shown that no conscious being
can survive the Divide. The boy must be uniquely hardwired to survive it. But
we can still use him. With him on board we would have no need to travel out to
the Wrake Pass to charge a rift engine. He could open a rift anywhere. And
that's not all-" He paused, holding the two silvers in suspense. "He
could keep the rift open indefinitely, filling the rift engine with as much
energy as we need."

"How fast
could we travel?" Lade said.

"I
hypothesize that a minute's worth of divide energy could take our largest
destroyer to light speed."

 
The chief's eyes glistened. "At that
speed we could reach Poklawi in days. With a single destroyer we could destroy
their defences, send down an occupying force and return to Seenthee. All in
less than a month."

Chief Lade
nodded, thoughts dancing behind his eyes. "The Corporation would have no
choice but to elect me CEO. And that would be just the start." He smiled at
both the scientist and Executive Ko, the prospect of ultimate power defrosting
his icy exterior. "As CEO, with you two at my side, we could search out
other Poklawis, conquer their inhabitants and set up a chain of turen colonies
across the Universe. Our names would live forever in turen history."

Doctor Sree
allowed himself a smile. The thrill of fame and glory ran through him. As the
CEO's right hand man, he would show all those silvers. No more could they look
down on him as an inferior subspecies. He was struck with such a wave of
excitement that he almost punched the air.

Lade looked at
Ko and said, "But first we need the boy."

"My
informers have placed him in the palace of Lady Ori, a monarch residing in the
far north of the planet. I have organised a team of operatives. They're ready
to leave at my command. I shall find him and return with him no later than
tomorrow night."

"Very
good" Lade said. "Go now. And remember Executive, we need him
alive."

Ko nodded,
"Do I have permission to maim him?"

"Of course,
Executive. But nothing permanent."

Ko's jaw shook
for a second. Her eyes flashed green. Doctor Sree shuddered, thankful for the chief's
protection.

Charlie floated
in a sea of white. All around him rollers weaved and rolled, waves of blue,
red, gold and green crashing and reforming. He glowed just as brightly. His
skin, flesh and bone had gone, replaced by a pulsing green energy. Within it a
billion stars burned hot white, swirling and streaming. He was an emerald man
carved into the whiteness.

He felt charged.
Power flowed around him, through him and in him. Either the rollers snaking
around him had shrunk to his size or he had expanded to theirs. He had no idea
which, for he had nothing solid to refer to. There was only the glowing white Universe,
the rollers and his pulsating green form.

He smiled and,
basking in the energy, felt a sense of belonging he had never experienced
before.

Then through the
light came a rough, wet sensation. Charlie scanned the whiteness, confused as
to where this unpleasantly physical feeling had come from.
 
All around him, the light flickered. And
then in the blink of an eye, it vanished and Charlie was lying on Lady Ori's
bed, looking up at the beastly faces of Debel and Ius, furiously lapping at his
nose and brow, crushing him under their weight.

He grimaced, and
pushed them away, moaning for the world he had so cruelly been taken from. The
desert stalkers sat up either side of him, their tongues wagging, expectant eyes
staring at him. He sighed, reached into his pyjama pockets, pulled out a few
pieces of meat, and threw them onto the floor beside the bed. The beasts leapt
off him, and began fighting over the scraps.

The two guards
sat either side of the bed, stopped cleaning the rifles balanced across their
laps and glared at him. "Arsehole," muttered one of them.

Charlie winced.
He forgot the concubines ate better than the mercenaries. The succulent meat
the beasts were devouring was a once a year treat for the guards.
 
Charlie had insulted them by throwing it
to the pets. He pursed his lips and raised his palms in the air, as if to say
what else he could do.

The pair of
guards exchanged meaningful looks, shook their heads in disdain and went back
to polishing their guns. They would sit their keeping watch over him until Lady
Ori arrived.

Which, Charlie
thought, will be any minute. The beasts' arrival was a sure sign of that. She
always sent them to bed a few minutes before her. Charlie got up, and ignoring
the guards, headed for the bathroom. It was a rule that all concubines receive
her ladyship freshly showered and covered in cologne.

He stepped out
of the three hundred and sixty degree shower, and stood in front of the mirror.
Warm air blew down upon him. He reached for the cologne disperser, activated it
and stretched his arms above him as a thin layer of sweet smelling liquid
coated his bare body.

Outside, he
heard the bedroom door open, and Lady Ori's stern commands to the guards. She
talked to them much more harshly than to her concubine. Better hurry, Charlie
told himself. Her ladyship did not do waiting.

He grabbed the
bathroom door handle. But instead of feeling the cool metal against his palm,
he slipped straight through it. He stumbled, but managed to stop himself
slamming shoulder first into the door.

What the hell,
Charlie thought. He straightened, glancing down at his right arm at the same
time. What he saw sent a cold shiver up his spine. The whole part of his arm
from fingertip to elbow was glowing. It shimmered the same electric green he
had seen in his dream. He closed his eyes, squeezing them shut tight. Then he
opened them.

But this was no
dream. His arm still flickered, shining as brightly as a Las Vegas casino.

He held it up
before his disbelieving eyes and examined it. As in his dream, the greenness
was more than a simple glow. It consisted of millions upon millions of tiny
stars, each sparking vibrantly. As he looked deeper into his arm, he saw the
stars flow and stream and spin, arranging themselves into temporary constellations
before dispersing once more. The infiniteness and chaos of it reminded Charlie
of the rivers of energy he had seen on his ride inside the roller. A sensation
of vertigo made him turn his eyes away.

"Charlie
Scott" Lady Ori called from outside the bathroom door. Her voice, holding
a mixture of annoyance and sternness, was the voice of teacher reprimanding a
student for failing to hand in their homework in on time. "Get out of that
bathroom immediately. You have a job to do."

"Coming,
your Ladyship," he said, trying to keep the panic out of his voice.

He could open
and close the phantom limb and even wiggle his fingers, making them shimmer
beautifully. But when he tried to grab hold with his left hand, he passed
straight through it.

"Charlie
Scott, need I remind you what happens to concubines foolish enough to
disappoint me?"

 
"Shit, shit, shit," Charlie
muttered, frantically flicking his hand in the air like he did when he had pins
and needles.

"Coming,"
he said, and grabbed a pyjama robe from the shelf Lady Ori kept for her
concubines. He draped it over his shoulders like a cape, slipped his right arm
underneath, and stepped outside, sweating cologne furiously.

"What took
you so long?" Lady Ori said. She was already half naked and lying on the
bed, the desert stalkers curled up beside her.

He had to think
quickly. "I was warming up, your Ladyship." While saying this, he
twisted his hips from side to side in a hopefully convincing manner and prayed
for his arm to stop shimmering. "The position Waw taught me today requires
considerable dexterity."

Lady Ori raised
an eyebrow and smiled, sleazily. She said, "Oh," drawing the single
syllable out seductively. She got off the bed and withdrew her clothes and
jewellery, everything except for the golden bracelet.

A shake of her head
brought her hair cascading down over her curves. She reached forward and placed
a hand on Charlie's crotch.

He swallowed
hard. Usually, the sight of his mistress's body and the sound of her honey-dipped
voice sent his blood racing with sexual desire. But now all he could think of
was the arm silently radiating under his robe. He had no idea how he would
explain it to her ladyship. She liked the exotic, but flaming green arms he
feared were a step too far.

She leaned
forward, still gripping his rather distracted private parts in her hand, and
planted a trail of kisses starting on his neck and finishing on his lips.
Charlie returned the kiss, flexing his right hand madly beneath the robe.

"Enough of
the foreplay," she said, grabbing a handful of his robe. She tore it of
him, and pulled him down onto the bed.

Charlie landed
with his arms either side of her. When he saw his arm back, pink and solid, he
moaned in relief.

 
Lady Ori misinterpreted it, said,
"That's right."

Charlie spun onto
his back, and pulled her on top of him. He grabbed her buttocks and noticed the
palace bracelet still on his wrist. They had reappeared with the rest of him.

 
"So what's this move that's so hard
to perform?" She placed a heavy weight on the word 'hard'.

"Waw called
it the reverse jockey," he said, turning her roughly away from him, so
that she sat with her back towards him. "I hope it pleases you."

And then he got
to work, before anything else started flashing green.

"Wake up,
Charlie. Wake up. You're in danger
.
"
Bei's terse calls pulled Charlie out of a deep, dreamless sleep. It took a
moment to remember where he was and who the voice in his ear belonged to.

He snuck over to
the bathroom, cautiously opened the door, slipped inside and sat on the
shell-shaped, cushioned toilet. He mouthed the words silently, "I'm
up." The ear shell picked up the words and instantly re-laid them to Bei.

"The
Corporation have sent a team in to get you."

"What?"

"They're
crossing through the desert as we speak. They'll be with you in ten minutes."

"Is this
some trick to get me to complete the mission?"

"I'm
watching them now through my binoculars. It's a Corporation hover. Your friend
with the charming face is sat in the front seat."

A chill came
over Charlie. She had found him. "What should I do?"

"Get the
data and get out. I'll wait for you outside the palace wall."

"There
isn't time."

"We need
that data Charlie. The lives of millions depend on it."

"That's too
much pressure," Charlie said. But it was no use. Bei had ended the
conversation.

Charlie took a
deep breath. It was now or never. He reached inside his mouth, pinched the fake
tooth and pulled. The data tooth came away easily.

He wiped the
chip against his robe, removing the saliva, and a piece of vegetable he had
failed to notice earlier. Then he crept into the bedroom, the tooth tucked in
his palm.

Lady Ori slept
naked, the bed sheets bunched up at her feet. She lay on her side with her head
resting on her hands. Her breasts rested on top of each other, squeezed
together like two lumps of clay. Charlie stood there momentarily transfixed. He
shook his head and told himself to get a grip. Now was not the time.

As carefully as
possible, he climbed onto the bed, leaned over the sleeping woman, grabbed the
computing device from the bedside table and returned to his side of the bed.

Propped up by
pillows, he held the device up in front of him. In the dull light of the room,
it shone darkly. To activate it he needed one of Lady Ori's hands.

He looked down
at his sleeping mistress. Her hands lay buried under a mass of hair. There was
no way Charlie could pull them out without waking her. He had to be smart. What
would Bei do? he asked himself.

Then he
remembered a game he and his foster kid roommates had played during his year in
Gloucester. It involved shoplifted shaving foam, a sleeping victim and
tickling. Charlie reached towards Lady Ori's face and, slowly, tickled her
nose. At first she just moaned. But after the fourth tickle, she rolled onto
her back, and still sleeping, scratched at her nose. Once satisfied, she let
her hand drop beside her. It lay palm up, at her side.

Charlie held the
device over the hand and lowered it until its smooth blue-black surface touched
her skin. The device activated instantly. Charlie pulled it away and fearing
its flashing lights might have awoken Lady Ori, slid it under his pillow. He
took ten deep breaths and when Lady Ori failed to awaken, he drew it out.

He removed the
data tooth from his palm and hovered it above the device, unsure of the exact
location to attach it to. The slab had nothing resembling a USB drive. He moved
it over the device, until finally it connected, magnet like, to its top edge.

Flashing symbols
and words fell down the screen in a torrent. Thanks to Brother Yojim's implant
it took Charlie barely a few seconds to decipher them. It seemed the device had
immediately uploaded the data and was asking Charlie whether he needed it
unencrypted. He tapped out a yes and the device initiated the process.

Five minutes
later, Charlie was still waiting for the device to finish. His heart thumped so
fast he had trouble breathing and it felt as if a couple of African drummers
had climbed into his ear canals. The silky fabric of his pyjama robes dripped
with sweat. He tried breathing deeply, but his pulse continued to race. Come
on, he pleaded, for the second time that night.

Charlie
stiffened. From behind the bedroom door, came the sound of heavy footsteps. The
crack of light shining under the door showed the shadow of a guard waiting.

Charlie looked
at the device. He had no idea how long the process had left. He started counted
his breaths to give his terrified mind something to do.

Charlie reached eleven
and still the shadow had not knocked on the door. The guard must be working up
his courage to wake Lady Ori up, he thought. She hated being disturbed at night
and was quick to punish those who woke her without good cause.

 
The scent and noise of a foreign presence
aroused the desert stalkers from their slumber. They sniffed the air and
growled. Charlie knew it was only a matter of seconds before the messenger outside
or the beasts inside roused Lady Ori.

Charlie took
hold of the data tooth. Screw Bei, he thought. What good is his help if I'm
already dead? But just as he was about to remove it, the screen showed that the
unencrypting process had finished. The device asked Charlie if he wanted to
download it. With all his heart he tapped yes.

The guard
knocking the door, Ius and Debel barking, Lady Ori waking and Charlie pulling
his finger out of his mouth - all these things were virtually inseparable in
time. Charlie closed his eyes, and pretended to sleep, safe in the knowledge
the device rested back on the bedside table.

"Debel,
Ius," Lady Ori called, climbing out of bed. "Silence." The
beasts went quiet and took their place beside their mistress. She opened the
door and demanded the guard explain what he was doing calling on her at this
time of night.

"I deeply
apologise for waking you, Ma'am," he said, his head bowed low. "Four
Corporation employees have arrived. Their leader, a silver by the name of
Executive Ko, has requested an immediate audience with your Ladyship."

So Bei
was
telling the truth, Charlie thought.
He had quietly hoped that Bei had been tricking him into action.

"At this
time of night? Those silvers know nothing of decorum."

The guard said
nothing.

"Did they
say what this is about?"

"No, Ma'am.
They will only convey their message to you in person."

Lady Ori
grunted. "Have them meet me in my court in five minutes. Send two guards
up here to escort the concubine back to the harem."

The guard rushed
away, and Lady Ori slammed the door. "Damn those Corporation swine. They
think they can boss me around."

Charlie was not
sure if she were talking to herself or to him, so he said nothing.

"I see
you're up," she said, and added, "I won't be needing you in the
morning. Return to the harem when the guards arrive." Then she stormed
through a side door, and into her dressing room. Debel and Isu trotted out
behind her.

This is it,
Charlie thought, as the door swung shut behind the beasts. He threw off the
sheets and made straight for the door, blessing the carpeted floor muffling his
footsteps.

At this time of
night, the corridors were mostly empty. But Charlie took no risks. He crept
along the walls, keeping track of every nook, cranny and statue he passed.
Twice he heard footsteps approaching and had to sprint back to hide behind a
well-hung, heavily muscled statue. There he waited, thankful that Lady Ori
liked her effigies largely proportioned, while the guards passed by.

He slipped like
a burglar towards Lady Ori's court, and the palace garden beyond it. From there
the lift would take him to his parked rocket ride. In a few minutes, he had
almost reached the court.

With the
prospect of freedom tantalisingly close, he threw caution to the wind and
sprinted at full place around a corner. He ran straight into the first of three
guards approaching the turn from the other side.

 
The guard bounced off Charlie's shoulder,
smashing into his colleague behind him, knocking him off balance. The two men
tumbled to the floor in a heap. The third guard looked at Charlie, too stunned
to speak.

"Sorry,"
Charlie said, and bolted in the opposite direction. But then he stopped, cursing
his stupidity. The guards had walkie-talkies. They were probably already
calling Lady Ori. And once she activated his bracelets he was done for.

 
He spun on the spot and raced back.

The third guard
had his walkie-talkie in his hand, poised to speak into it. Behind him, the two
others climbed to their feet, muttering in annoyance. Charlie lined up the guard,
dropped his shoulder, and surged into him, hitting him hard and low. His
shoulder shuddered with the impact. Driving forwards, Charlie reached between
the guard's legs and grabbed the back of his shirt. Then with a roar, Charlie
straightened his legs, lifting the guard of his feet. He twisted and, turning
the body with his shoulder, drove the guard head first into the men behind him.

Charlie heaved
himself off the crumpled guard and onto his feet. The guards, squirming on the
floor, reached for the handguns clipped to their belts. Charlie stamped on
their arms before they could draw and kicked the weapons free.

He reached down,
and picked up one of the guns. But, it had been synched to the guard's
handprint. It was useless. He threw it down.

 
The guards stared up at him, their eyes
flashing, their chins held high in defiance. Charlie raised his arms up for
balance. And then, as if taking three dropkicks in quick succession, he kicked
the raised chins hard and smooth, following through as he had been taught to as
a youngster.

It hurt like
hell, but when he was done, all three guards lay unconscious at his feet.

"You
there," called a voice from behind.

Charlie turned.

Square Head was
standing at the end of the corridor. He took one look at Charlie and another at
his defeated men. "Think you've got enough to take me, boy?" he said,
placing his rifle on the floor, and pulling a two-foot long metal truncheon
from behind his back.

Charlie sized
the big man up. In the last four years playing rugby in the valleys, he had
tackled his fair share eighteen-stone moustached monsters. Square Head, though,
looked to be pushing twenty-five stone and had a belly filled with pure muscle,
rather than Brains bitter and chips. And his tree trunk legs looked impossible
to uproot. Any attempt at a tackle, would leave Charlie broken shouldered and
unconscious. He was a good tackler, but not that good.

No, he thought,
clenching his fist tight, this was a job for the robundee blade. The implanted
metal slid out the back of his hand in one smooth and satisfying action.

The thought of
cutting someone, slicing through their flesh and leaving them mutilated, made Charlie
sick. But it was either that, or getting his face pulverised. I'll only wound
him, he promised himself, and jogged towards the guard.

As he got
closer, Charlie picked up the pace, hoping to use his speed to his advantage.
The adrenalin pulsing through him masked the mounting pain in his foot. He ran
with his blade hand out to his side samurai style. Seeing the metal out of the
corner of his eyes filled him much needed confidence.

Square Head
waddled towards him, grinning. His short legs hampered his speed and the big man
looked clumsy. But his clenched fist looked like cannon ball and his truncheon
was as fat as a man's calf.

Charlie made up
his mind to go for the weapon hand first, slicing off the guard's fingers and
rendering him impotent. Then, with the guard stunned from his disfigurement, he
would grab the weapon and knock him out with a hard blow to the back of the
neck. Simple. All he needed to do was get the big man off balance and,
fortunately, sending great lumps of men the wrong way was his forte. He had
spent every Saturday for the last four winters doing exactly that.

When he got
within five metres of his enemy, Charlie shimmied left and then right and then
left again, shaking his hips and rolling his shoulders like a bullfighting
ballerina. The sidestep worked like a charm, the sudden movement catching
Square Head off in two minds, making him check his run. In confusion, he swiped
with his truncheon, sailing through the air. The weapon swung harmlessly passed
Charlie's shoulder.

Charlie sized
the moment and lashed out with his blade.

He knew the
blade was sharp, but when it slipped through Square Head's arm he felt no
connection at all, not even a tremble. As he turned, following the arc of his
swing, he glanced at his blade, expecting to see it coated with blood. But
instead of blood, he saw a familiar bright green glow. To his exasperation, his
arm had once again become of a freakish green shadow limb. Not now, he thought,
of all times, not now.

Square Head
recovered and when he saw the glowing arm, hanging uselessly at Charlie's side,
he smiled. "Well, well, well," he said. "Very interesting."

Charlie clenched
his left fist and aimed a punch at the guard's smirking face. Square Head
caught the punch in a giant paw, and yanked hard. Charlie fell to his knees
before him. The brute eyed Charlie, grinning while he crushed his hand. His
eyes glittered. "I'll show you what happens to slaves that run."

He let go of
Charlie and wrapped both hands around the base of the club. He twisted his
body, ready to let swing with all his weight. Despite the obvious uselessness
of his right arm, Charlie lifted his hands over his face and brought his elbows
in to protect his chest. He took a deep breath, and braced for the pain.

Square Head
roared as he brought the truncheon down onto Charlie's shoulder. But instead of
smashing bone, the weapon passed straight through him. It ricocheted off the
corridor wall, and sent Square Head sprawling to the floor. Charlie looked down
in disbelief to find his whole body from neck to waist radiating green light.