Aurora Saga Books 1-3, page 89
Kalri turned back to Rakeal and said, ‘Kalrea also hated them, but she understood why you wanted to change your appearance. I think she would have told you if she had let you meet her.’
‘She talked to you about that?’ Rakeal said inquisitively.
Kalri nodded. ‘She was always sad when she talked about your visit to Linud, and really wished she had met you, but she didn’t want to put you in any danger,’ Kalri said. ‘You see, she had a lover, and she didn’t want him to know about you.’
‘A lover!’ Rakeal said in astonishment. ‘Now I didn’t know that. Who was he?’
‘She never told me his name, but she did tell me he was an immortal Xangol.’
Everyone was stunned.
‘I don’t believe it,’ Cherip said. ‘A Xangol!’
‘Are you sure?’ Rakeal asked her.
‘Yes,’ Kalri said.
‘You’re not making this up, are you young lady?’ Cherip asked sternly.
Kalri looked annoyed. ‘Mum! Kalrea really told me.’
‘I believe you,’ Rakeal said, ‘and so does your mother. It’s just a bit of a surprise to us, that’s all.’
So Kalrea had a lover, Seth thought. I wonder why that wasn’t in the data.
‘She also told me that you would come here one day, probably in my lifetime,’ Kalri said. ‘Have you come to get her memories?’
‘What do you mean?’ Rakeal said.
‘Kalrea said the Aurora still has all her memories, even if she has gone to heaven.’
‘See, I told you your mother would leave something for you,’ Seth said.
‘Kalrea died here in this house,’ Kalri said, ‘in the spare room you’ll be in tonight.’
‘Kalri!’ Cherip said. ‘I’m sure Rakeal didn’t want to know that.’
‘It’s ok, ‘Rakeal said, raising an open hand to calm Cherip’s annoyance of Kalri’s bluntness. ‘I’m glad she died in a place where she felt safe and with people who she loved.’
Cherip said sadly. ‘She wasn’t afraid to die you know; instead, she saw it as a release. As you know, she had a long and eventful life.’
‘I’m surprised Kalrea didn’t survive inside the body of the drone, knowing now that you exist,’ Trinol said.
‘My mind is in my body, unlike my mother’s, which was on board the Aurora. The drone was just that, a body she could control remotely, even if it did have her essence and could function for periods of time without the link with the Aurora. When her mind on board the Aurora failed, the drone was the only part of her personality left, but it was only a matter of time before it had to synchronize back to the Aurora. Kalrea’s mind was dead though, so there was nothing to synchronize with,’ Rakeal wiped her eyes. ‘And the last piece of her just stopped.’
Seeing Rakeal was tearful, Seth took hold of her hand to comfort her.
‘I hope you don’t mind, but I’d like to get some rest now,’ Rakeal said sadly.
‘Of course, I’ll show you to your room,’ Cherip replied.
‘We both had a very eventful day,’ Seth said. ‘If you don’t mind, I think I’ll turn in as well.’
Cherip showed Rakeal and Seth to their bedroom.
‘Are you going to the Aurora tomorrow?’ Cherip asked Rakeal.
‘Yes,’ she replied. ‘Fiorina has given me the coordinates of where it is. I’m now hoping Kalri is right, that Kalrea’s memories are there.’
‘Have a pleasant night’s sleep,’ Cherip said.
‘You too,’ she replied.
Cherip pressed a button on the wall alongside the door and it slid shut.
In the center of the large bedroom there was an ornate bed, which was facing a curved glass wall overlooking the garden.
‘How are you coping?’ Seth asked. ‘You looked very emotional back there.’
‘I’m fine now, but listening to them talking about my mother like she was part of their family isn’t easy for me. I’m sorry I finished our evening early,’ Rakeal said apologetically. ‘You could have stayed up with Cherip and Trinol, I would have been all right.’
‘What on my own. No way! Did you see their faces when I told them I’m a thief... I mean, was a thief. And then to top that, Kalri asked me if I’d taken anything from the house. I think Trinol will be counting the cutlery later.’
Rakeal managed a smile, seeing the funny side of Seth’s comment.
‘So this is where my mother spent her last hours,’ Rakeal remarked, while circling the bed.
There was an open doorway leading into a small ensuite. Seth peered inside, and then said, ‘I could do with a wash, but anyone outside in the garden can see right inside the bedroom. There must be a way to cover the window.’
Rakeal stared at the window and then concentrated. ‘There, how’s that?’ she said, when the window became opaque and a colorful piece of graffiti-like art, in the form of various trees, appeared on its surface. She smiled when she read the name on the glass wall. It spelt “Kalrea”.
‘Thank you, that’s definitely much more private,’ Seth said. ‘Now all I need to do is work out this shower. It’s definitely not a steam one.’
Rakeal put her head in through the doorway. ‘I’ve never seen one like that before either.’ She concentrated for a moment. ‘It’s a simple water shower.’ As she spoke, warm water started to be forced out of many holes in the ceiling and rear of the cubical. ‘It looks big enough for two. Do you mind if I’ll join you.’
‘No, not at all.’
Chapter Twenty-Four
Seth stared up into darkness towards the bedroom ceiling from the comfort of the bed. Rakeal was lying beside him.
‘So you didn’t know your mother had a lover?’ Seth remarked to her quietly.
‘No, it was a complete surprise. Both of them must have kept that a secret because I never found anything to suggest she had become close to anyone and definitely not a lover. I knew she had a lot of Xangol friends, but that’s all they appeared to be, just friends.’
‘I wonder who he is. Kalrea only died two years ago, so he may still be alive. We could try to find him,’ Seth said.
‘I suppose we could, but I wonder why he wasn’t with her when she died,’ Rakeal said.
‘Well, we know Kalrea would never have brought a Xangol to Kalzor, but that does beg the question, why did she come back here, and not stay with him? Could it have been because of the Aurora? The ship wouldn’t have been safe anywhere else.’
‘You’re right about the Aurora, but she could have taken a shuttle and left here to go back to him. It doesn’t make sense.’
‘Maybe they had a falling out, an argument,’ Seth said.
‘No, I can’t believe that would have stopped her being with him in the last days of her life. Seth, something’s not right.’
Rakeal put her arm around Seth and cuddled up against him.
‘Thank you,’ she said quietly.
‘What for?’
‘For not freaking out when you found out I’m not flesh and blood like you.’
‘It was a bit of a shock; after all, I thought you were a Xangol. I even thought your mother must be an immortal Xangol because you didn’t want to tell me about her. I got that wrong.’
‘I love you, Seth,’ Rakeal said.
‘I love you too,’ Seth replied. ‘Can I ask you a strange question?’
‘Of course. What is it?’
‘In the living room you said you wanted to get some rest, but I was wondering, if you don’t need to eat, do you really need to sleep?’
‘I can stay awake indefinitely; however, I do enjoy deactivating myself for a while. I suppose it’s the closest thing to your sleep. It gives me a chance to think without any external senses interfering.’
‘Do you dream?’
‘Dream?’ Rakeal said bewildered. ‘I’m not sure. No one’s ever asked me that before. I do sometimes imagine strange things and re-live events in different ways; but, as to calling them dreams, I think it’s me processing what I’ve experienced.’
‘They sound like dreams to me,’ Seth said. ‘And another thing, I’ve been wondering about your name?’
‘Have you? Why?’
‘Well, back on the Lusica I worked out it is an anagram of Kalrea.’
‘I wondered if anyone would figure that one out.’
‘So it’s not a coincidence, then,’ he replied. ‘Kalrea wanted your name to be an anagram of hers.’
‘No, it wasn’t Kalrea’s idea, it was mine. My adopted parents call me Abiena, but when I found out who I really was, I decided to change it to Rakeal. I thought it was a nice gesture to use the letters from my mother’s name. If I had known I was going to be working for Asoray, then I wouldn’t have done that. It was a big risk, but no one got suspicious. In fact, I’m surprise you managed to discover it.’
Seth put his hand over Rakeal’s and said, ‘I like your name.’
As they were lying there, slowly dozing, Seth said. ‘Rakeal, back on the Lusica when Viere broke into your room, you weren’t in any danger, were you? You could have stopped him anytime you wanted.’
‘Yes, I could have, but then where would it have left me. I would have been discovered. Therefore I decided not to defend myself and to endure a very unwanted experience. Luckily for me a shinning knight came to my rescue.’
‘Hardly a rescue. I didn’t even know how to fire my railgun. You could have ended up having to save me instead.’
‘Oh, it was a very sweet thing to do, even if a very foolish one. No one had ever tried to protect me before like you did. That’s when I knew you really liked me; you cared what happened to me.’
‘But I’m a thief.’
‘You were a thief, yes, which I know many would frown at, but I know everyone has their faults. I could see past that, and to me you appeared a kind and gentle man.’
Rakeal caressed his chest with her hand, but he could sense from the way she was touching him that her mind was elsewhere and said, ‘Have I done something to upset you? If it’s what I said about your mother, then I’m sorry, I didn’t-’
‘No, it’s not that. Seth... It’s the Aurora. It knows I’m here.’
‘Really?’
‘I can hear it calling out to me. As soon as we neared Kalzor, I started to get data messages inside my head. It must be the interface Kalrea used with the drones.’
‘A data connection?’
‘Yes, but it concerns me.’
‘Why? It’s probably a redundant link that you’ll never need.’
‘I know, but I can’t block the messages. It’s like I have a voice in my head, constantly nagging at me.’
‘Kalrea would never harm you,’ Seth said.
‘I know, but she’s no longer around. The Aurora’s systems are obviously still working without her. What if they have an effect on me?’
She sounds a bit anxious, Seth thought, and so, to try and reassure her, said, ‘Maybe you’ll be able to turn it off when we get on board the Aurora.’
‘I hope so. It’s enough to drive anyone mad. The voices are there even when I’m asleep.
Seth felt saddened and worried for her. He turned towards her, placing his arm underneath his head. He stroked the side of her face and hair with his free hand. He wanted to offer support, but he could not comprehend what she might be experiencing.
Tomorrow we go to the Aurora. Perhaps there you will be able to deal with those messages.
Chapter Twenty-Five
‘Sand. All I can see is sand,’ Seth remarked, as they continued to drive west, away from the town into an area known as the Kilom desert.
‘We’re almost there,’ Rakeal informed him. ‘According to the levi-cart’s navigation system, the Aurora is now less than half a kilometer away.’
‘The ship is huge, so how come I still can’t see it.’
Rakeal brought the levi-cart to a stop.
‘We’re here.’
I still can’t see anything, Seth thought to himself.
‘The Aurora should be about one-hundred meters away somewhere over there,’ Rakeal said, pointing towards a large sand hill. ‘It must be buried beneath it.’
‘How are we going to get to it then?’
‘No idea,’ Rakeal replied. ‘I suggest we go and take a look, but we may need to ask Fiorina for help to dig it out.’
When the door to the levi-cart opened, Seth was hit by the intense temperature outside, and upon stepping out, he soon felt the heat from the sand radiating through the soles of his shoes.
‘Thew! I’m not sure I’d want to stay in this heat too long today,’ he remarked.
‘Hopefully we won’t have to. Come on, we need to work our way over to that sand hill.’
It was hard work traipsing over the many sand dunes that lay between the levi-cart and the base of the sand hill, so Seth was breathing heavily by the time they arrived.
‘It’s been completely... buried,’ Seth said, trying to regain his composure.
‘We need to check all the way around,’ Rakeal replied. ‘The wind may have covered this side, but other parts are still exposed. This way!’
‘Just give me... a minute to catch... my breath,’ Seth said, peering around at the desert of sand. ‘Well, I have to say... the Aurora is very well hidden.’
‘Yes, and I’m sure its internal emitters have been configured to match the sand as well, so anyone trying to scan for it would be disappointed,’ Rakeal replied.
‘You mean it’s invisible to the scanners?’
‘Absolutely.’
Slowly, they trudged around the base of the sand hill. Rakeal was right because a patch of black appeared, like an ink stain on the surface of the sand.
‘There! I can see part of the hull,’ Rakeal said excitedly.
She ran towards it to get a better look. Seth followed much more slowly behind her.
I can’t believe she just ran on soft sand. I’m knackered.
When Seth reached Rakeal, she was peering down into a large depression in the sand which appeared to lead to a tunnel running beneath the ship.
‘It looks freshly excavated,’ she remarked. ‘There’s still a pile of sand dumped near the ship. And I can see fresh marks in the sand.’
‘Who did that?’ he asked in-between long drawn out breaths.
‘It must have been done by the Aurora’s maintenance robots, or to give them their proper name, micnorit nuronic construction drones.’
‘In that case... it looks like... the Aurora is expecting us. It seems to have prepared that tunnel for us.’ Seth peered up at the Aurora towering above him. ‘Rakeal, what part... of the ship am I seeing?’
‘That’s definitely the starboard event-horizon drive,’ Rakeal replied, indicating with her head towards a bit of ship just recognizable under the sand. ‘However, I’m not sure what those smaller circular openings are,’ she added, pointing to them.
Two round holes were clearly visible in the front of the ship, whereas the edge of a third was just visible. They were identical and over ten meters in diameter.
‘I’ve not seen those in any of the images of the Aurora,’ Rakeal said.
‘What do you think they are?’
Rakeal answered, ‘Well, I’d put money on them being some kind of defense or weapon system.’
‘But I thought the Aurora was a science ship. The only weapons I read about were the convert drives which fire dark matter spheres.’
‘Yes, which means the ship has been modified by Kalrea,’ Rakeal said. ‘I think we’re meant to go down there, underneath the ship.’
Seth followed Rakeal down a steep bank leading to the entrance of the tunnel, occasionally putting his hands down to steady himself. Once at the bottom, they found themselves beneath the Aurora, its belly forming the roof of the tunnel.
That’s beautiful, he thought, while observing the hull.
The matt black surface of the ship shimmered, giving the appearance that the hull was not solid, and there were meandering blue lines visible beneath its surface.
Seth reached up and put his hand against it. It was soft and very cold to the touch. He pushed his hand firmly against it and watched as the surface flexed.
‘That’s incredible,’ he said. ‘I can’t believe that’s a hull of a spaceship. It doesn’t feel robust enough.’
Rakeal smiled. ‘It’s called a Plyane hull, named after the Qinant physicist who invented it, Ka Glia Plyane. It’s an organic metal called Regenite. It’s stronger than it appears; stronger than any known material in this galaxy.’
‘What are the blue lines? They seem to be pulsing like if they were alive.’
‘Regenite is a very unstable material, which if not cooled, would self-combust. The blue lines have oil, called Riolih, flowing through them, which keeps the temperature at a safe level.’
‘The hull may be strong, but safe, that’s debatable,’ Seth said.
‘Well, the Aurora is still here, isn’t it? You’ve seen the data. It’s been in many seemingly hopeless battles, yet it always prevailed. It’s not the most feared ship in the galaxy for nothing, and even after two-thousand years, there’s still no ship that can match it for speed, destructive power or invincibility.’
‘Professor Pliblin’s Lusica was deceptively impressive. If ships start to get energy shields and weapons to match, the Aurora’s supremacy could be challenged.’
‘I’m sure one day it will, but that could be centuries away yet.’
‘It’s very dark in there,’ Seth said, peering into the space under the ship.
‘There’s an entrance to the Aurora over there,’ Rakeal said, pointing into the darkness in the distance.
‘You can see in the dark?’ Seth said in surprise.
‘Here, take my hand.’
I wish I could see in the dark. I wonder what else she can do?
Rakeal led Seth into the darkness, but occasionally he glanced back towards the mouth of the tunnel, where the only light was, for reassurance. Twenty meters in, Seth heard a faint whining noise emanating from the depths of the darkness.
‘What’s making that noise?’ he said nervously, noticing it was getting louder, like something was approaching them. He felt a bit vulnerable, and gripped Rakeal’s hand.
