The Blue Gem, page 13
Lest you think that Suh-Joh enjoyed uninterrupted success in her activities on Hool during this time, let me, Kot-Nih, share with you a closely guarded secret. As you know, Suh-Joh had scholars continually searching through the ancient archives, seeking knowledge to prepare for the eventual meeting with the Others. It was during these searches that one of her scholars discovered something of immense value.…
“Oh, blessed Hive-Mother, I seek a meeting with you at your earliest convenience,” Lil-Tih requested over a communication link. Since the topic was not mentioned, it was clear she had found something important, too important to discuss via insecure means of communication.
“I shall send a shuttle for you,” Suh-Joh said. “Go to the landing area immediately.”
Before the Mother-of-the-Sky settled below the mountains, Lil-Tih appeared before Suh-Joh. She abased herself. “Oh blessed Hive-Mother—”
“Please, forgo the honorific. The hall is sealed.” Suh-Joh waved her forelimb. The hall, light reflecting brightly off the yellow sandstone walls, was empty. No attendants, no Chosen-Male warriors. “Tell me what you have found.”
“It is a technology for making hormones. The hormones of life, juvenile hormones.”
“Are you sure?” Suh-Joh realized it was a secret desired by every Hive-Mother—and the Disobedient. In fact, she realized, it was technology that could completely revolutionize their society. “Does anyone else know about this?”
“Mother-forbid.” Lil-Tih abased herself again. “I removed the record from the archives and replaced it with one that discusses the research and enumerates its failures.” She raised her head to glance at Suh-Joh. “I hope you forgive me for this deception.”
“I think I understand.” Suh-Joh stared at her scholar. “Can you set up a facility to make these hormones?”
Lil-Tih rose as though proud of what she had found. “Of course. It is a biological process. The equipment required to purify the hormones are enzyme-keyed membranes.” It was known technology.
“Work with Son-Nih.” Suh-Joh hesitated. “I will have him provide you a safe place to work, in an area where none but my most trusted Chosen-Male warriors go. Make those hormones and I will give you your wish.”
“My wish?” Lil-Tih rose higher. “What is it I wish?”
“You have always wanted to be ripened, to be a Hive-Mother,” Suh-Joh said. “I will do that for you, even if I have to spill blood to get a hive for you.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
When I, Kot-Nih, first read of this, I envied Lil-Tih. But later, I felt sorry for her. Apparently, it took many tries before Lil-Tih and Son-Nih produced a synthetic version of the hormone that warded off aging. It took time to prove it worked. Son-Nih was among the first to receive it, soon followed by Suh-Joh and her two scholars.
It wasn’t long before the results of these activities caught the attention of the old priest who had been Suh-Joh’s first advisor. Perhaps it was Son-Nih’s new lease on life—maybe jealousy; perhaps the old priest believed his ultimate loyalty lay with the priests at the Shrine-of-the-Mother. Whatever the reason, he passed word on about the strange rejuvenations to the priests at the Shrine-of-the-Mother.
“You are summoned to a council of inquiry by the priests at the Shrine-of-the-Mother,” the messenger said. “You are to bring your counselor, Son-Nih, along with your scholars, Lil-Tih and Sad-Loh.”
“What is this about?” Suh-Joh asked. She rose from her resting-rock to her full height. “Why am I summoned?”
“I am but a messenger. I do not know.” The wizened priest lacked one limb and had scars from the battles of his youth as a Chosen-Male warrior. He bore no signs of being a cohort leader, nor having any great intelligence. He flexed stiffly with just a hint of abasement before leaving.
In preparation, Suh-Joh alerted the cohort leaders of her Chosen-Male warriors to prepare shuttles for travel should there be trouble. That done, she went to the Shrine-of-the-Mother.
“Hoo-Lii.” Suh-Joh abased herself before the semi-circle of priests gathered in the alcove that lay off the valley and was used for the Council of Hive-Mothers’ meeting. “I am here, to submit myself to your summons and answer your questions.” Dense clouds filled the sky, making the interior of the alcove dim and shadowy.
“There are things out of the past which we welcome.” An old stooped priest at the center of a line of priests waved a mandible. It was the head priest. “And there are those which we do not. Our concern is to protect the Way-of-the-Mother. Anything which would change the Way and destabilize our society, is forbidden.”
At the word forbidden, Suh-Joh felt a cold spine of fear touch her. That word was always associated with the opprobrium of obscene and perverse, which in many cases had led to someone’s death.
“I understand. As a humble follower of the Way-of-the-Mother, I seek your guidance in these matters.” What, she thought, is this about?
“We see that your counselor and scholars appear to have a benefit reserved solely for Hive-Mothers. They seem younger than when they were here last. What is the reason for this?”
Spirit-of-the-Mother preserve me, they know, Suh-Joh thought. Do I tell them the truth? Or do I attempt to deceive them? Truth, for it does not spin an entangling web.
“Most honored guardians of the Way.” Suh-Joh flexed again in abasement. “I have found a way to make the juvenile hormone which confers the gift of life upon myself and my trusted assistants. It came from something we found in the archives beneath the Shrine-of-the-Mother.” She held her position.
“This we already know,” the head priest said. “We also know the record was replaced with something other than the original, by her. It was one of our most closely guarded secrets.” He pointed to Lil-Tih. “Why is that?”
Suh-Joh hesitated. The truth, even if it seems like cowardice. “The information was found by my scholar, Lil-Tih, who has served me faithfully and well. If the information was replaced, I accept responsibility for that.”
“I see. Yet you were never seen in the archives from whence this information came. Nor were your tracks found in the computers. Nor was your aroma detected near the records.”
The head priest swiveled his head to look at his fellow priests. “The Way-of-the-Mother cannot survive if all have access to the gift of life. The unchosen will want to live and refuse to serve. Warriors would resent dying in battle for those who will live on. It would again bring the scourge of Disobedience. That, we know, would be destructive to our society. We cannot allow this to happen.”
“The Hive-Mothers garner the juvenile hormone—”
“That is different.” The head priest rose on his hind limbs. “If I knew I could live forever, why would I risk my life in battle?” His scars testified to his experience.
“I understand.” Suh-Joh felt the icy spine of fear dig ever deeper and sensed the worst was yet to come. “I accept your guidance.” Mercy is all I can ask. If they condemn me as one who uses forbidden technology, I am dead. My bloodline will be gone and my Hive reduced to bare rock.
“What is your wish? What must I do to preserve the Way-of-the-Mother?” Suh-Joh asked.
The head priest moved uneasily on his resting-rock and leaned his head toward Suh-Joh. “I am disappointed you should stray and become as a Disobedient. You have supported the Shrine-of-the-Mother for many years, and yet, you do this.” He rattled his skeleton. “Death or exile is the penalty for disobedience.”
The cold spine of fear changed into a giant mandible gnawing at the center of her being.
The room grew still, no one moved.
“Until now, there have been few who have followed the Way with your devotion.” His breathing flaps opened as though sniffing out a new course. “Since you did not seek to profit from this technology.” He uttered the word as though speaking a profanity. “Nor caused any other to stray away from the Way, death may be too severe a penalty.”
Suh-Joh allowed herself to exhale.
“Exile.” The old priest paused. “It would be a suitable sentence.” He hesitated and sighed. “We had thought of Chud-Loo, but it has become a frozen wasteland and exile there is the same as a death sentence.” He moved as though seeking a more comfortable position. “The Hives on Kamah have bred without restraint and filled all habitable areas. They war among themselves and refuse to accept more exiles, especially Hive-Mothers.
“I believe.” The head priest hesitated. “We must find another path, one that will bring you back to the Way.”
“Honored guardian, guide me, please.” Suh-Joh crouched lower to the ground and flexed every vulnerable connection wide open between the armored plates of her exoskeleton to show her willingness to accept punishment.
“First, you must destroy the means of making the synthetic gift of life.” The head priest rose onto his two hind limbs and swiveled toward the silent Lil-Tih. “Including the one who found the path to the knowledge of how it is made.”
Lil-Tih collapsed to the ground, breathing flaps wide open. “No, no, I beg you. I have hurt no one. I have only brought life to those who would do more for Hool than any other.”
“This is the one?” asked the head priest.
“This is Lil-Tih, my good and valued scholar who has done much to help me defend the Way-of-the-Mother. Please, I beg you, spare her.” Suh-Joh’s words squeaked out at their highest pitch.
“She does not see the death and destruction that will come if others learn there is the gift of life on demand. All will seek it; many would die to get it. It will pervert those who follow the Way. It would bring back times like our darkest days.” The head priest exhaled heavily. “It would corrupt us, even me, and those who sit here at the Shrine.” He settled heavily onto his resting stone. “Therefore, Suh-Joh, you must kill her.” His voice carried finality.
“Me?” Suh-Joh raised her head.
“Now.” Every spine on the old priest’s body was erect.
“Spirit-of-the-Mother, forgive me, for I have sinned.” Suh-Joh leapt onto Lil-Tih and deployed her klut-shi. “Lil-Tih,” she whispered, “I am truly sorry.” Her rage rose, angered at the demand placed upon her and her venom boiled forth.
She killed Lil-Tih as quickly as she knew how. I have sinned, she thought. And now I have murdered a dear and loyal servant. I am unworthy.
“That is but the first step,” the head priest said. “You must leave Hool.” He settled low on his resting-rock. “You must seek out another world upon which to live.”
“Most honored guardian, I beg you,” Suh-Joh said. “We have searched far and wide. Even with our Ear-to-the-Universe, the transfer points to star systems are difficult to find. In those visited, none possess planets which are habitable.”
“That is your problem. Find one. You have the normal lifetime of an unchosen one to remove yourself. If you are not gone by then, you must ripen your successor. In addition, you are forbidden to ripen any more of your hive.”
Fear and hope filled Suh-Joh.
“Leave now,” the head priest said. “Return in one cycle of the Children-of-the-Sky, and report what you done to remove the threat to the Way.” The head priest rose stiffly and shuffled into a narrow passage in the rock. The other priests, followed, humming the refrain from the prayer “Cycle of Life.”
Chapter Thirty
It is not known what Suh-Joh resolved; however, I, Kot-Nih, believe she must have kept some of the gift of life and used it to prolong the lives of Sad-Loh, her other scholar, and Son-Nih, her counselor. They slipped from sight, yet the records later revealed they continued to advise Suh-Joh. It was easy for her to hide them; she had vast underground holdings and space construction facilities in the asteroid belt. Apparently, that is what she did.
The other clue is that Suh-Joh aged far less than the other Hive-Mothers. Perhaps it was genetics, or it was her regime of moderate consumption. Perhaps she secretly ripened large numbers of males. Or …
However, when Suh-Joh returned to the priestly council of inquiry at the Shrine-of-the-Mother, she brought records of the destruction of the facility where they had made the gift of life. In addition, the priests demanded she ripen Hive-Mothers for two of the four hives under her control and give one-half of her resources to the Shrine-of-the-Mother. They also forbade her to station any of her shuttlecraft on the surface of Hool. It was clear the priests wanted to reduce Suh-Joh’s power.
The priests required she appear before them every year for continuing inquiry into her activities and to remind her of the time remaining until she departed Hool. It seemed that not only did they mistrust her, but also they resented the fact there was a gift of life. For it had tempted them, too.
Chapter Thirty-One
In 5,227th year of the Mother, Sad-Loh the scholar scurried quickly into Suh-Joh’s great hall, puffing and panting through her breathing flaps. “Blessed Hive-Mother Suh-Joh.”
As Suh-Joh rose, the plates of her exoskeleton rattled against her resting-rock. Light from the overhead shafts filled the great hall with the orange glow of dawn. “Yes?”
“The Ear-of-the-Universe has detected a series of signals. Many.” The scholar exhaled vigorously. “They may be electromagnetic pulses from fusion explosions.”
Suh-Joh rose to her full height on her rear limbs. Her spines erected, and her breathing flaps flared. “Many?”
“Well, yes.” Sad-Loh’s voice conveyed doubt.
“Are you sure?” Suh-Joh’s tone was hard.
“Yes, well, no, what I mean is …” Aromas of uncertainty and fear surrounded Sad-Loh.
Suh-Joh beckoned to Sad-Loh. “Come closer and tell me just what you do mean.” She sank down on her resting-rock and flattened her spines. A soft fragrance wafted from her.
Sad-Loh crept forward and looked up. “The signals were very faint and in close sequence. They have all the characteristics of a series of fusion explosions.”
“A series?” Suh-Joh’s’ breathing flaps stilled.
“Yes.” The scholar’s voice quavered with uncertainty.
“Are you sure?” Suh-Joh’s voice was low, gentle.
“Yes,” Sad-Loh said. “You see, I have never before recorded a fusion explosion.” She hesitated. “We only know what the signal is like from data in the archives from fifty generations ago. These signals have an uncanny similarity to those recordings.” She rose on her hind limbs and spread her fore limbs widely. “I believe they are the same.”
Suh-Joh exhaled, loud and with force. “Where did they come from? How far is that from here?”
“I need to double check the data, but I believe they came from the Lin-Fed system. That’s the bright single star just beyond the triple-star system.” Sad-Loh brought her forelimbs together in a gesture of supplication.
“We have a monitoring system near that star.”
“Yes, it was installed after the first pulses were generated,” Sad-Loh said. “Due to the signal travel time they took to reach us, here on Hool, we missed them. Lin-Fed is almost twice the distance as to Chud-Loo. It is about the distance light travels in thirty-two years. These pulses revealed to the Ear-to-the-Universe there is also a transfer point within the Lin-Fed system.”
“What would we need to get there?”
She gestured toward the image on the wall of Suh-Joh’s ship, the Good-Child. “That could make the trip.”
“I see.” Suh-Joh looked up, toward the light shaft. She turned her gaze toward the scholar. “What do you think happened?”
“I’m not sure, because the number of fusion explosions puzzles me. That many fusion explosions would devastate a world of the size of Hool.” Sad-Loh quivered. “That planet must have civilized life, if it was the source of the fusion explosions. Either there was war between factions …” She looked down and shivered. “Or, they were attacked from the outside.”
“Their use is an obscenity. Either way, we know there are Others out there.” Suh-Joh’s spines rose momentarily. “Prepare a formal report with your observations and interpretations for me to take to the Council of Hive-Mothers. They must know about this, even those who doubt the existence of Others.”
Suh-Joh betrayed her nervousness by tickling her paat-kli, encouraging it to rasp more vigorously on her skin. Now more than ever, she knew the Others were out there, somewhere.
“Keep looking for the Others. We cannot assume they’ve destroyed themselves.”
Sad-Loh made the silent gesture of assent and left.
At first, the Council of Hive-Mothers was skeptical. They adjourned so their own scholars could review the data. When they reconvened, they were much subdued. At that time, the Council voted to support the search for the Others to expand the deep-space network of detectors.
Suh-Joh’s engineers increased the Ear-to-the-Universe’s sensitivity to look for more distant transfer points by installing more sensitive receptors. It was a long-planned change because they’d wanted the capability to hear the radiation created by hydrogen fusion drives, which would provide an early warning system to detect the ships of the Others.
After much debate, the Council authorized construction of a planetary defense system based upon fusion pumped lasers, much like the system on the ill-fated Chud-Loo. Once again, fusion weapons came into existence on Hool; this time guarded by a consortium of Chosen-Male warriors from each Hive. The Council took on the collective burden of supporting the detection system.
