Eternity's End (19 page)

Legroeder wasn't sure he wanted to know.

"By blaming the Narseil for the loss of
Impris
, the leaders of the Centrist Worlds were able to justify excluding my people from the colonizing effort that everyone assumed would follow at the end of the war. And by doing
that
, they unwittingly strengthened the position of the Kyber worlds—the very people they were fighting. Such was the price of the peace."

"I don't see—" Morgan began, but was silenced by a sharp glance from El'ken.

"That was the end of collaborative rigging between the Narseil and the Centrist Worlds. It left my people impoverished from the collapse of trade, and the Centrist Worlds a parody of their former power and vision. And history was written to perpetuate the lie." El'ken's voice grew even sharper. "Who knows what technologies went undeveloped, what areas of knowledge untapped, because of the breakup of that alliance—particularly
rigging knowledge
, which not only might have taken us to new star clusters, but might also have helped to explain such mysteries as the disappearance of
Impris
herself? Who knows! And yet, look at the Kyber worlds, which supposedly lost the war. Their expansionism was restricted, for a time. But they have not remained idle—no."

"But we hardly even hear about most of the Kyber worlds anymore," Harriet said.

"Perhaps not. But they haven't gone away. They've changed some of their names, to be sure. And they work in other ways now. But they are not idle." El'ken laced his long, green fingers together and gazed down at his folded hands, in contemplative silence.

He looked up again. "It was a shrewd maneuver by the Kyber leaders. They would have lost the war anyway, had they continued to fight. But by breaking the Narseil-Centrist alliance, they crippled the growth of the Centrist Worlds' power and influence, even while appearing to cede victory to them."

"You mean, by undercutting the Centrists' joint explorations with the Narseil?"

"Of course," said El'ken. "But it wasn't
just
a matter of lost technology. The collaboration had served as a catalyst, inspiring new efforts. Now, with that gone and the real costs of the war hitting home, many of the Centrist Worlds became insular, more concerned with their own economies than with huge investments in exploration, which might not pay dividends for decades. Many, like Faber Eridani, went through their own post-war upheavals, further undermining the preservation of truth. You can read my own writings on the subject, if you wish to know more about it." El'ken's eyes again seemed to focus elsewhere. "Among my people, bitterness lingered long after the war's end. For many years, the Narseil drew away from humanity."

"But there's commerce now," said Harriet.

"Yes—
now
. But not nearly what we once had. Tell me—how were you greeted, when you arrived here?"

"Like dogmeat," Legroeder said.

"Not with great friendliness," El'ken conceded. "Yes, commerce has been renewed, haltingly. But how much has been lost between the cultures as a result of the betrayal? How much trust? Intellectual exchange? How much fruit of cooperation? What knowledge might have been gained if we had explored the Cluster of a Thousand Suns? It is incalculable."

El'ken abruptly stood up. Breathing huskily, he returned to his mist unit, where he stood facing the pool. Legroeder watched Harriet making notes in her compad. When El'ken seemed in no hurry to return, Legroeder got up and walked to the edge of the cavern dome and peered out into space. It all seemed so changeless out there. But he knew it was not. Though it was invisible to the eye, the expanse of interstellar space was laced together by the powerful currents of the Flux.
Impris
is out there somewhere, he thought. The Flying Dutchman of the Flux... marooned in eternity.

El'ken returned at that moment, picking up as though he had never paused. "It is my belief that descendants of the Kyber are using
Impris
even now, for their own purposes."

"Meaning—?"

"Do you have to ask? You, of all people?"

Legroeder's voice caught. He had never, in seven years with the pirates, been privy to information about
Impris
. But he'd heard rumors—as had McGinnis. And he had his own capture as evidence. "I know what
I
think. I want to know what you think."

"Fair enough. But first, let me ask—do you know who the pirates of Golen Space really are?" The Narseil turned from one to another, his gaze probing. "Any of you?"

Harriet remained silent, though obviously troubled by the question.

"I can tell you who they are," Legroeder said savagely. "They're scumbags who prey on the innocent and practice slavery. You want their names? I could give you some, but it wouldn't do you any good. They're a long way away."

"So they are," said the Narseil. "But that's not what I meant. I meant, who are they as a people? Where do they come from?"

Legroeder shrugged. "All over the place. A lot of them start out as captives, and get converted, or tortured into cooperating—or—" he tapped his temple "—they get implants, and they don't have the strength to resist the way Robert McGinnis did."

"Indeed. But I'm talking about the core population. Do you not know? I'm talking about the Free Kyber—the descendants of the Kyber revolution."

Legroeder's mouth opened, but it took him a moment to find words. "Free Kyber? Are you saying that the
Kyber
worlds are the sponsors of the
pirates?
" He suddenly remembered Jakus saying something about the Kyber. Kyber implants.

"Some of them. Do you not know the term 'Free Kyber' from your period of captivity?"

Legroeder shook his head in bewilderment. "No—but I was in one outpost the whole time. I never learned much about the pirate movement as a whole." He did know that the early pirates had split off many decades ago from other spacefaring worlds, and gone to live in hidden fortresses lost in places reachable only through the Flux.

"Well, there is substantial evidence that several of the old Kyber worlds heavily support the present-day piracy movement." El'ken raised his hands. "Not all of them. There are doubtless many honest Kyber, and Kyber worlds that are no more a part of piracy than you or I. But others are not innocent."

Legroeder absorbed that silently. "And
Impris?
"

"Ah," said the Narseil. "At last we come back to
Impris
. I have long believed that the so-called Free Kyber—the pirates— have known exactly where
Impris
is. They knew where she was seven years ago, when they used her to entrap your ship,
City of the Angels
. And they no doubt have done the same with countless other victims."

Legroeder clenched his fists. "That's exactly what I've been trying to say!" He swung triumphantly to Harriet, then back to El'ken. "Can you help us prove it?"

"Not directly, no," El'ken answered.

Legroeder's heart sank.

"It is only a strong suspicion," El'ken continued. "The trouble is, none of the victims ever make it back to testify. Or they haven't, until now. You are unique, Rigger Legroeder."

Legroeder shut his eyes, thinking of Jakus Bark, who could have told the truth but didn't. Had others made it back—but under the pirates' thumbs, like Jakus? Or framed, as he was?

Harriet was tapping furiously on her compad. She looked up. "It's a very provocative assertion—if we can prove it. Academic El'ken, I'm afraid Legroeder is in a terribly difficult position. Not only has he violated his bail by coming here, but he's fled from possible prosecution for two murders he didn't commit— including, I fear, that of Robert McGinnis."

El'ken's eyes closed in sorrow. "I would very much like to see the killers of Robert McGinnis brought to justice."

"Well, I can assure you that Legroeder is innocent. I was with him the entire time. Academic—it is clear that there is a conspiracy on Faber Eridani to conceal the involvement of
Impris
in the
L.A
.'s capture. And it would seem that to unmask the conspiracy, we must first prove the continued existence of
Impris
."

El'ken touched his fingers to the front of his robe. "That is indeed the problem, isn't it?"

"We were hoping you'd be able to help us," Legroeder said.

El'ken's neck-sail fluttered. "Unfortunately, I do not know where
Impris
is."

"But I thought you said—"

"Let's just say that the Narseil Rigging Institute has been hard at work trying to answer questions related to her disappearance."

Legroeder waved his hands in frustration. "Such as?"

"Matters related to obscure conditions in the Flux, conditions that can interfere with a ship's movement in and out of certain interdimensional layers. I am no rigger, and cannot explain it to you. May I assume, however, that this line of research is of interest to you? If it is, perhaps you would like to stay here as my guest for a day or two, while I acquire some information for you."

"Thank you—yes. We would appreciate that very much."

"Excellent." El'ken gave a great, inhuman sigh. "In that case, my friends, I must ask you to excuse me. I am unused to so much company. If you could return first thing in the morning..."

Chapter 11

Decisions

"I think he knows more than he's saying," Morgan said, pouring herself some pale-violet Narseil wine and passing the bottle to Legroeder.

"Well, of course he does," Legroeder said. "The question is, why? Is he just teasing us? Or does he want something?" Harriet barely looked up from her notes, which she had been studying almost continuously since they'd been escorted to the dining room. Legroeder held out the wine bottle, but she ignored it.

"What about this connection between the Kyber worlds and the pirates?" Legroeder said, pouring himself a refill. "I wonder if we could get evidence on what the pirates are doing with
Impris
by going to one of the Kyber worlds. Do you know anything about them?"

Harriet peered up from her compad and removed her glasses. "Not much. I've heard rumors on occasion that some of the old Kyber worlds are supplying some of the pirate outposts. But there's enough innate suspicion between the Kyber worlds and us—the wired and the unwired, you know—that it's hard to know what to believe."

"But if there's even a grain of truth to it—" Legroeder turned the wine glass slowly, studying the purplish liquid "—there are probably people on those worlds who have information."

"Meaning what—you want to take off to one of the Kyber worlds?" Morgan asked. "And make yourself an interstellar fugitive, instead of merely an interplanetary fugitive?"

"Well—I'm not saying that, exactly. But still—if you want to go fishing, you have to go where the fish are, right?" He took another sip of the tart wine, aware that the alcohol was layering a soft fuzz around his thoughts. Despite his confident words, he felt considerable uncertainty.

"Yeah, right," Morgan answered. "But this isn't a fishing expedition. This is your freedom and your career."

"Exactly. Which is why I'm considering it." Never mind that he had no idea how he would get to a Kyber world, or how he would gather information if he did go. "It all depends on what El'ken can tell us, I suppose. I don't want to go off half-cocked, but I'll do whatever I have to."

Morgan looked unconvinced.

"Here comes dinner," said Harriet, closing her compad. "Fortunately, we don't have to make any decisions this instant. Are you two going to hog all of that wine?"

After a dinner consisting of oversalted roast feasting bird and unidentifiable greens, plus a second bottle of wine, they left the tiny dining room. Morgan suggested that they walk around a bit to clear their heads. "Dear," said Harriet, "I'm not sure we're really invited to wander—"

"It'll be
fine
. Legroeder?"

He groaned at the thought of moving. Nevertheless, they followed Morgan through the winding stone corridors. Eventually they came to a domed area that appeared to be a common lounge. It was empty—except for the stars.

"It's glorious!" Morgan exclaimed, turning about under the dome. They were on the opposite side of the asteroid from El'ken's cavern, and here the display of stars was a spangle of light across blackness. The dust lanes of the Milky Way arced across the dome like a welcoming carpet of luminosity. Far off to one side, a bright blue dot floated, the distant world of Faber Eridani. A handful of moving points of light were visible: spacecraft maneuvering nearby. At the edge of the dome, the outer surface of the asteroid curved away like the dark slope of a volcano.

Legroeder walked along the edge rail, absorbed by the spacecraft activity. One ship, just near enough for its shape to be distinguishable, was approaching the asteroid. Another, much closer, flew up suddenly from below the horizon, startling him. It lifted away with glowing maneuvering inductors.

"Impressive," Morgan said, coming alongside him.

Legroeder suddenly stiffened. He pressed his hands to the crystal dome. "That's our ship!"

"What did you say?" Harriet asked.

"That's our goddamn ship!" Legroeder pointed, trying to project the flight path. "And that other ship out there is turning to meet it."

Harriet stood with her mouth open, as Morgan swore under her breath.

"Excussse me, please," said a voice behind them.

They turned, as one. A very tall Narseil approached them, holding out a slender envelope. "May I ask, which of you is Mrs. Mahoney? I have a message from your pilot." The Narseil handed her the envelope, gave a stiff bow, and walked from the room.

"What's this all about, I wonder," Harriet muttered, opening the envelope. "Oh, by God in Heaven."

"What? Mom, what is it?"

Harriet fumbled with her glasses and finally read the message aloud. " 'Mrs. Mahoney, greetings. We are sorry, but circumstances have forced us to leave Arco Iris. We have received word that a Spacing Authority cruiser, waiting outside diplomatic limits, carries warrants for your arrests. Our vessel will be impounded if we attempt to transport you. I am afraid we must leave you to find alternate transportation home. Apologies for the inconvenience. —Conex.' " Harriet crushed the message in her hand.