Void's Psionics (37 page)

“
Oh shit.” Steven got away
from the road leading deeper into the city. “So if we were to walk
straight down the road…”

“
You really don’t want me to
answer that. Visor and Satellite only survived as they weren’t seen
as a threat to the city’s defenses.” Oliver said. “You guys
ready?”

“
What about making a hole to
the surface? Jake and mine council are eager to come see this
place.”
Wondered Sparky.

“
Well it would not be a
great idea. If I pump out that much power it’ll violate the city
and I’ll be hit. I got lucky when their armor disguised them as
boulders and I flew us all away. Any more than that and Nova tells
me I’m in deep trouble. They’ll lead us safely through the gauntlet
so Renee and I can deactivate the systems.”

“
Then we must proceed. My
mate is anxious to reunite.”

“
Behave yourself.”
She playfully scolded from afar.

“
Nova, please guide us
safely to the castle of your former mistress.” The Liger gave an
affirmative grunt and led the way with the others spread around the
Hunters, Solarians and a Drake being ridden in the rear.

Nova gave impressions he missed people and
that once this city was loud, thriving and a lovely place to raise
and give his cubs to worthy children to grow up with who wanted to
be warriors. It had been silent for too long, but still he and the
others stood watch as loyal sentinels. Their joy to belong to a
master again was what they had so longed for.

Turns, bends and pathways were almost
confusing, but each time they did turn Stone dropped a transmitter
and cut an arrow in walls to double up which directions they had to
take in event that the defenses couldn’t be dropped. Some areas
were of yards that had run wild with underground plants that
thrived in the moist rich city. Water was a main scene, but was
made to highlight how the winds breezed majestically in artful
dances throughout the city.

Casual walking took close to four hours
before at last arriving at the front door to the centrally placed
towering pyramid that nearly reached the highest point in the domed
interior. The space to enter was large and sealed by none other
than a nano-wall. “What does it say?” Visor asked about the
writings on the onyx wall.

Renee unfocused her eyes and
translated as best possible “
The castle is
closed. Please return at a later time unless there is an emergency.
If you are of sufficient rank return with your Match to gain
temporary access. The Queen holds court for all citizens each
morning, if an arbiter determines she must see you. Any deliveries
must be placed in the sorter to the left. The Queen is sorry for
any inconvenience.
”

“
Then it seems like we’re
up.” Oliver said.

Renee dismounted and absorbed the gauntlet to
expose her hand just like Oliver. The cool hard surface reacted
just like the Solarian battleship’s nano-wall. Soft blue light
surrounded their palms like a shadow, but this time no words
greeted them. There was a chime sound that was pleasant.

Without waiting or being told, Nova walked
through the wall first and the others followed. Oliver shrugged and
stepped right in, taking Renee’s hand.

Inside was a grand hall that had been left
relatively untouched. Aside from a light sheen of dust to tell not
even the Ligers had been inside since the wall closed, the room was
rather inviting. Soft music played as dancing streams of water
whipped around from careful jets of wind so the eyes could visually
see how air moved. The air was old and stale, but not entirely
unpleasant. Far away sat a throne and banquette table along with
stone pallets Nova expressed were was where they laid beside their
master long ago. Four pillars showed they doubled as winding
staircases much like the nursery on Havannah, going up through to
upper levels. Precisely placed were lifelike statues made of pure
white marble of pointy eared men and women in scantily clad attire
in positions that gave the viewer a sense of dancing freely in the
air.

“
Well it seems Alleia the AI
we met wasn’t
under
dressed at all.” Renee commented dryly. “It seems like men and
women alike here saw their bodies as beautiful and clothes were
only a way to decorate it. I can practically see their perky
nipples and vaginas by the thin wisps of cloth and the bulge on the
men hide nothing to the imagination. But I don’t feel bad. The
women are as big boned as me and not fat. Not like human twigs.
These statues are quite beautiful too.”

“
When things settle I hope
to see you wearing something similar… to her.” Oliver pointed and
it made the other men chuckle.

“
Nice choice, Olly.
She
is
sexy. Hmmm…
sure. I’ll do it if you wear what…
he
is.”

“
Done.” He laughed, but
stopped as he held his chest as the pain told him laughing wasn’t a
smart plan.

“
So where do we go?” Visor
wondered, standing tall on his partner’s arm.

“
Nova tells me we need to go
straight to the top floor, but he knows a shortcut.”

“
By all means. Shortcut
away.” Steven chuckled.

Moving deeper they recorded it all and came
closer to the throne of the Queen, made of platinum and wide enough
to sit three people. Nova led them behind the throne and had
everyone group close together before his azure collar shot out a
tendril that connected to a tiny port in the back of the throne.
There wasn’t even a flash and suddenly they were in a much smaller
area.

They were teleported.

In the middle of the room sat another large
sphere that glowed brightly within. Six rifle drones lifted from
recesses as another AI of a well built man in colorful and wispy
pants, naked from the waist up said “De cleto, reish Mantiv, Reten.
Cloen kappal.” His speech was hardly welcoming.

“
Easy.” Oliver held a hands
up in surrender and found the connecter for his brain-hacker to
connect and lifted his right hand. From the Valek shot a
tendril.

“
Language updated. State
your reason for violating royal decorum, Generals, or be killed.
You haven’t the access permitted to enter this room.”

“
I come by taking Queen
Fru’s Ligers as my Pride. His collar allowed us to come here as the
Queen has died as has all my people to the full extent of my
knowledge.”

“
One moment. I will verify
your claim.” The half naked man vanished and the enormous sphere
became too bright to look directly at. No one spoke as the guns
were still trained and moved fast to any slight movement and no one
wanted to test how fast they could fire. A minute later the bright
light dimmed and the man appeared. “My apologies, General. I have
scanned all known galaxies that retain power within my connected
network and have verified that only you and General Reten are the
last living peoples that first reached the stars. As there are no
Queens to refute this claim, I’m yours to command. We have never
met so you may call me Vladamin.”

“
Then Vladamin, please lower
the defenses throughout the city of wind.”

The droned dropped to the recess’ in the
floor. “Defenses are down, General.”

“
Thank you. Just so you
know, I’m called Oliver Void in this tongue and this is Renee Void,
my wife.”

“
Updated. Proceed with
inquiry.”

“
What do you have stored in
your memory?”

“
All significant memory was
previously transferred by Queen Fru 26,313 Earth Years, 88 days, 9
and 53 minutes ago at the request of your younger brother, the
Galactic King. This galaxy was the final and furthest to be
summoned for battle. Stored within are just the names and life
records collected from this galaxy’s nurseries of all Solarian
births and recorded deaths, the three hundred laws and one part of
five messages that must be pieced together by a mind of the
Slooitiesh caste. Lesser minds will break under the third part of
five I have stored.”

“
Am I of this
caste?”

“
Yes, General. Your records
exceed all known tests given. Your mind will be safe to be shown
for you, to my knowledge designed it. General Renee and the humans
recorded by Alleia within the transfer you’ve given me will not be
capable. Their minds cannot survive the strain. If you wish to view
it, they must leave.”

“
Before that, this connected
network you said you have… can you access the other four castles
from here? Can you use it to show me where they are located… or
possibly show me an updated place to narrow down where to look
next?”

“
Going in order of the
inquiries. The four other centralized castles that regulate the
colonies once lived in by my creators are still in operation so
yes, I can access them to communicate. Unfortunately they too had
all vital memory transferred to another location that cannot be
located from here. Transferred to my awareness so as to not
inundate another species in advanced technologies beyond their
grasp of comprehension should the war end badly, which it seems to
have. Many inventions you made, General, were transferred as well.
You were the inventor warrior all males strived to emulate. Only
your brother was equal in technical understanding to imagine the
possibilities. Your greatest invention being the manufacturing of
the Valek you currently wear.” Vladamin pointed to Oliver’s right
forearm. “That is but one of the many inventions I have within your
standard personnel files.

“
To the next inquiry, Yes,
my systems can locate the exact current coordinates to the precise
placement of the remaining four worlds of this galaxy. Would you
like to see them?”

“
Please.”

The AI lifted his hologram hand to show up in
the open area above their heads the current view of the Andromeda
galaxy with points flashing in five areas for several seconds
before the five places pulled away from the sparkling disc and
lined up in individual solar systems to narrow further to the
planet in question. From left to right was Zerika, the water planet
with much more landmass than what Alleia had stored, but was still
over ninety percent blue ocean. Third was Drakken Prime. Number
four turned out to be a frozen planet and five was a volcanic
hellhole that looked most ominous of all.

“
The world of life and
earth.” Vladamin gestured to Zerika. “Of life sustaining water.
Freedom of wind. Frozen resistance and lastly of primordial change.
The location of the castles to the best of my abilities are located
deep within. These are the precision based locations.”

The planets zoomed in further, showing
real-time images somehow. Drakken Prime zoomed through the mountain
they were beneath. The ice one was deep in an underground glacier.
The one of fire was showing a floating city inside a gigantic geode
among other enormous floating landmasses. The water world sunk deep
beneath the surface, all the way to the black core of it. And
Zerika’s nearly made Oliver slap his own forehead when he looked
upon the ruins he was curious about when hunting the Fire Wyrm.

“
That definitely helped. Now
about the message left behind. I’m ready.”

“
Then the room must be
clear.” The AI said adamantly.

“
Nova, please send them back
to the hall and return when I’m finished here.” There was a grunt
and another flash and Oliver was left alone and Renee was pissed.
Pissed, but understood why he diverted the subject after hearing
his people truly had vanished. It was a serious blow.

He truly was the last Solarian.

“
I’m ready,
Vladamin.”

“
Accessing data. Compiling
part three of five. Transfer successful. Access to temporary
security clearance upgrade, granted. Showing data.”

Fragments of floating golden words etched
itself into Oliver’s mind. It was like the time he spent aiding
Captain Dorgen in translating all known words that could be into
English. The words made no sense as they floated numbering millions
of fragments. His mind absorbed the flashing, broken symbols.
Everything was disjointed and entirely confusing. Being a fragment,
he didn’t pay much mind. The image sped across quickly, but he kept
up. For a piece of a puzzle there was an enormous quantity of
information.

“
Completed. What else may I
do for you?”

Oliver rubbed his chin and a side thought
slipped out. “Is it within your capabilities to clean the air? It
is toxic for humans. They are a curious race, but their own laws
will protect against misuse of ancient relics.”

“
Venting the atmosphere is
within my programming, but many technologies the humans have are
too advanced to be studied. They must not advance too quickly. If
you wish for them to come then I must irreparably destroy all
superior technologies they are not prepared for. Especially weapon
and teleportation. Is this acceptable? Your clearance permission
cannot override standard law two twenty eight on technology
advancement for new species.”

Oliver knew he needed to discuss it, but this
was a time he had no alternative. “Then please lockdown the city so
toxic air doesn’t return after you clean it. And disable the
technologies you see fit.”

“
Closing primary tunnel and
exchanging surface atmosphere from the city for human safety. Time
to full atmospheric completion, ten minutes. Advanced technologies
will be disabled in five seconds.”