Prophecy (38 page)

In that state of half-asleep, half-awake, Thomas drew her snugly against his body. A soft sigh escaped her lips and she burrowed closer as if, in his strong embrace, she could feel protected from the world.

She came to him in the middle of the night looking like she did when they first met: dark, silky auburn hair he threaded through his fingers; laughing hazel eyes full of intelligence and desire; and soft skin, warm and yielding. Words were unnecessary, their passion hot and tireless. His mind refused to dwell on this transformation. He was just going to enjoy the moment for what it was.

But he knew the time had come to face reality. As if on cue she pulled slightly away, smiling gently at the look of sadness in his eyes.

“You’re leaving.” It wasn’t a question. When she didn’t respond he said, “Will you ever come back? And when?”

“Yes, my love, I’m leaving and I’m planning on coming back. But my ‘when’ might not be the same as yours. It’s hard to explain but a standard twenty-four hour day does not equate in space.”

Mariah had told him about her experience with the Min’yel’os, her meeting with Galaxaril and the SOS that kept assaulting her consciousness. His fear for her well-being was still touching.

“I’m so happy you’ll be in this house, Thomas,” she said. “You’ve told me that the lighting is perfect for your photography. I also happen to know that you love the view and the illusion of solitude this hill gives you. And when I do come back, I’ll know where you are!”

She made him promise that he would get on with his life. It was important he understand that when she returned, she might be very different and what was between them now might not exist. Trying to lighten the mood even though his heart felt like a spike had been driven through it, he promised he wouldn’t “turn away any qualified applicants,” but she knew he would not actively seek out anyone. At least not for a while. She let it go, sure that he would eventually tire of being alone.

Thomas refused to say goodbye. His eyes bright with unshed tears, he kissed her tenderly before he drifted into a dreamless, psychically-induced sleep.

Michael was thrilled. She looked just like the Mariah he first met, the woman who had come seeking his guidance and an explanation of her supernatural experience. She came to him while he slept, but this was not a dream.

The mist from the Victoria Falls was invigorating. How she managed to transport him here was a wonder.

It’s difficult for me to tell you how I brought you here. It’s something to do with your signature energy, what I drew from you when we Joined during the
Findings
. Being a scientist and a man of God, you might be able to equate this energy with spirituality; it would surely make for an interesting debate.

Her thoughts filled his head. As a method of communication, it was ideal here; it would be hard to talk over the noise of the falls thundering to the river below. The accompanying sensations of deep affection and serenity were breathtaking. Just another aspect of her evolution.

She gazed out over the falls, her sending a musing almost to herself
. The energy Emmanuel infused in me the first time and the feelings I experienced was a direct result of the
dicit
in his body. Had he stopped there, I might have just been a high functioning psychic, no more. But when he transported that heavy duty dose of
dicit
via the bioinoculator the cooperative process began.

Are they alive in the definition of sentiency
?Speaking through thought was strange to Michael, but he liked the intimacy this type of communicating engendered.

Yes. But not in the way we think of a living being. Our symbiotic relationship is quite different from what science conceptualizes as mutual dependency. They’re not a separate entity and we haven’t become codependent. To put it simply they are an integral part of my spiritual, mental, and physical framing. I don’t hear voices in my head yet I have thoughts they give me. My IQ is not any higher, yet I suddenly have knowledge of things I have no reason to know. The
dicit
teach me, protect me, using both psychic and physical energy because that’s what they appear to be ... energy combined with intelligence in a pure natural form along with racial memory that seems to keep steering me in the direction of their choosing.

Michael’s eyes narrowed thoughtfully as he attempted to assimilate this information.

Have you thought of the possibility that if the Shen’dalah seeded the universe with this entity, maybe the
dicit
found a being in another galaxy they’ve helped become this Man’asorai? There could be lots of you throughout the universe.

Mariah turned to him and grinned.
The Shen’dalah knew the Man’asorai would come from their line of descent, the Anorasians many times removed and I’m once removed in the Anorasians’ line of descent. What are the odds that another race, progeny of the Shen’dalah, has a secret colony where dicit grows and they have spawned another psychic through all the chance transmutations I’ve gone through? Remember my metamorphosis is much more than just energy and psychic ability
.

But you could be right
. She allowed him a moment to digest this. Suddenly he looked at her in wonder.

How did Hesad and Galaxaril ‘see’ the Shen’dalah and hear the
Netsor’ah?

Good one. I believe that Shel’Zibs are related just like Emmanuel and I. Not only are they incredibly strong psychics, they’re more in tune with their spirit than most. Part of Hesad’s abilities came from a combination of the bio-engineered
dicit
plus an injection of the real stuff from Izorach that was sent to him on Touranim. Galaxaril’s abilities come from millennia of exhaustive practice plus an obsession to break the Min’yel’os’ stranglehold on his race.

I believe their vision of the Shen’dalah was a dicit-induced episode. Both were able to tap into that part of their fundamental nature in which the entity resides, but they never knew that. Remember they saw and heard nearly the same thing. I think it’s a testimony to the Shen’dalah’s ability to provide each race with a likeness of themselves that is acceptable. Furthermore I believe the spirit of the prophecy is within the
dicit.

Michael’s eyes widened. His heart beat accelerated with a rush of excitement as Mariah continued
. But Hesad and Galaxaril were not the only two Anorasians to see this vision of the Shen’dalah. We know at least one member of the Synadracus had the same experience before he became part of the Min’yel’os. So he, too, is a Shel’Zib. Erroneously interpreting the content of the
message, ten of the Synadracus agreed to have their bodies cryogenically frozen and their minds assimilated into a computer, all to prevent
Netsor’ah
from happening.

What about the Kana Gidrol and your experience in Ethiopia? More of the Shen’dalah’s inducements?

For a moment he thought she was not going to answer as the silence lengthened between them. He sensed her bewilderment.

I have no explanation, Michael. Not who he is or where he comes from. I asked everyone I could. It seems I’m the only one who’s experienced him.
Her lopsided grin made him smile and Michael felt warmth in his heart. Of all the things he would miss, her grin would have to be at the top of the list.

Mariah’s expression changed and Michael knew what was coming before she spoke
.

Sorry to end our visit so soon but I have to take you back. I have more stops before I leave.

He nodded. Even though he expected this his heart ached with regret and loss. But the scientist in him had to ask one more question.

Mariah, I have a request: may I see what you look like now
?

She gazed into his eyes for several seconds, unaware that her blue protective sheath had been glowing brightly as it fed on the energy produced by the water plunging into the narrow gorge.

Coming to a decision, she nodded. He became nearly blinded by the pure whiteness of the light that engulfed her body. Or what he supposed was her body.

He could see her face in the scintillation although it appeared to be covered in gossamer filaments. She was smiling serenely at him, the halo around her head the most vivid part of all. He knew that ancient humans must have had dicit-induced visions, seeing this sight and believing it to be God or angels. Could she be transformed permanently by the dicit into pure energy?

Maybe, but for now I’m still solid. But time will tell.

Give my love to everyone. I’ll be back as soon as I can.

The sweat stung Gabriel Winters’ eyes as he waved his arms, trying to prevent the shot he knew was coming. She feigned to the left; too late he knew it for the ruse it was. His body, trapped into completing the motion it had begun, would not let him recover in time. She danced to the right, dodging his futile attempt to grab the ball. Springing up from a dead stop she made the basket with a picture perfect overhand from twenty feet out.

Bent over, his hands on his knees, he wheezed stentoriously as he gulped air. His white shirt with the Cubs emblem faded to near extinction and his blue Nike basketball shorts were soaked like he had wandered through the fountain in front of the CIA building in Langley. In that position all he could see were her bare feet—that and the basketball hitting the cement in a measured cadence:
thunk
...
thunk
...
thunk
. Suddenly the ball picked up speed:
thunk.thunk.thunk
; and faster yet:
thnnnnkthnnnkkthnnnk
—until it was moving so fast it seemed to hang motionless before his eyes.

He straightened, a scowl plastered on his face.
Show off
he sent, smarting from the thrashing he had taken as his breathing finally returned to normal. He was delighted that she looked like the Mariah he’d first met at the showing of the Sophie Celeste Duval
Finding
.

With her head thrown back and her mouth open she seemed to be laughing at him. He heard no sound; he just felt her laughter in his head.

Come on tough guy, best two out of three
, she sent, her eyes twinkling with smug satisfaction.

You play with an unfair advantage, lady, and I’m not fool enough to believe I have a chance. Besides I’m out of shape for this kind of physical exertion so I’ll just concede
. Almost afraid to ask the next question, he said,
Uh, by the way, how the hell did we get here? And when did I change into these shorts and t-shirt
?

Okay you got me. I
am
showing off. Your body is still sitting behind your desk back at work and you’re still wearing your G-man suit. But your mind is in Chicago playing b-ball with me near the housing development where you grew up
.

Winters took a deep breath exhaling slowly. He was secretly glad to see her, had missed her, although he would never admit it to her. The smirk on her face told him she probably knew anyway.

And then they were sitting side by side on the brick wall that overlooked the basketball court like a couple of good buddies.
Maybe that’s what we are; pals
, he thought smiling at the idea. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her turn to look at him and he couldn’t resist facing her.

She was still smiling but this time it was one of genuine happiness. His mind filled rapidly with fleeting images: the Intezelin torpedo annihilating the
Prehendere
; her first psychic encounter with the new Prime Commander and the melted panel array; the burst of energy from
the Ja’endarc
and her subsequent destruction of it; and the explosion of the orb inside the Sho’revra. He was astonished to see the Min’yel’os emerge from their cryo-coffins, but it was nothing in comparison to the trip he took with her while she repaired Galaxaril’s mind.

You’ve been a busy girl since you left here
.

What can I say; a Man’asorai’s job is never done.

That caused him to chuckle and shake his head. In the next instant she sent him the SOS that plagued her mind. His smile evaporated. He felt pain and fear entwining around each other in his head—and something so breathtakingly evil that a shudder passed through his body.

She removed it. He tensed as she sent softly,
What do you make of that, Gabriel
? He was startled and just a little pleased that she shared this with him simply for the sake of soliciting his opinion.

Mind-blowing. Horrible, yet intriguing. Very intriguing. I assume you don’t have any idea where it’s coming from or who’s sending it
.

I’d be very careful if I were you. It could be a decoy, something to draw you in. The Prophecy, as I understand it, talks about a super-intelligent evil being and it just might be sending the SOS as a lure
.

She nodded like she had expected that answer.
Spoken like a true CIA man. But it’s extremely important that I find it and deal with it. The dicit is not giving me more. Either that’s all it knows or it’s just not communicating
.

Anyway I wanted to stop by and tell you I’m leaving
.

Gabriel would never know what possessed him in the next instant. He wanted to blame her for putting ideas in his head.

Take me with you
. Her eyes widened, almost as startled as he. Then she scowled, staring into his eyes for several seconds. Before she could say anything he continued, warming to the idea even though it was ludicrous.

I’m tired of being behind a desk, never getting out in the field, never feeling that rush of adrenaline when you’ve escaped detection and completed your assignment. I was so damned envious of Al-Ibrahim that I almost requested a demotion just so I could return to being a field operative
.

I have nothing here; no wife, no children. Just distant relatives. I know there’s a possibility that I won’t come back but that’s what makes it so exhilarating. And I think I can help. You’re not a paranoid military type, suspicious and cautious to a fault while using clandestine operations. Galaxaril is a strategist; between the two of us I’m willing to bet we can out maneuver any aliens we’ll be encountering
.

That was probably the longest speech Mariah had ever heard him make. After several agonizing seconds in which he found himself holding his breath, that lopsided grin, her trademark besides the M&M’s, became plastered on her face.