"How do you intend to answer?"
"I don't. Neither does Blane."
"What do you mean?"
"I thought it was obvious: Blane and I aren't going back."
For a moment, all Harry could do was stare open-mouthed. Blane interrupted before Harry could gather himself to speak again.
"We're out," Blane announced, "back in system Sol."
"Already?" Kathleen asked in amazement.
Bart nodded. "We're being hailed on the Corporation channels. They want to know who we are."
"Tell them," said Fagen. Blane identified himself and requested that the Corporation space station prepare to receive an incoming mission crew.
"Where will you go? What will you do?" asked Harry.
"Among the stars, Harry. I can't afford to let the Corporation take this ship. Humanity is not prepared for this kind of technology. Especially when it's controlled by greed. There are too many helpless species out there. Hell, in the face of humanity, they're all helpless."
"What are you going to do with Kathleen and me?"
"Why, we're going to let you out. Blane and I have brought you home." Fagen unzipped his jumper and pulled out a slim box of computer disks. He handed it to Harry. This is all the mission data, excluding data about this ship. You'll be rich and not a little famous, I might add."
Harry felt uneasy. At first, he didn't know why. It dawned on him that he was jealous of Fagen. Blane and the mission commander were going back out, and they were going wherever they chose to go, without directions imposed by the Corporation.
Kathleen asked, "Are you ever coming back?"
Fagen shrugged.
Kathleen turned to Blane. "Are you going along with all this, Bart?"
"Are you kidding? I'm in digital heaven. I'm not moving."
Fagen stood and announced it was time for Kathleen and Harry to go.
"How?" asked Kathleen. "If you dock at the Corporation station, they'll confiscate the ship."
"We're not planning on docking," answered Fagen.
"Then how are we going to get there?"
"Let us worry about that."
Harry surprised himself by asking, "What if we'd rather stay?"
Fagen was right and Harry knew it. After Kathleen wished Bart a tearful farewell, they followed the commander to the shuttle bay where they found an escape pod. Harry looked through the open seam and saw that the space inside was large enough to comfortably hold both Kathleen and himself.
Kathleen said, "I really don't like these small spaces."
"Don't worry," said Fagen, "Harry will be with you. Soma state will commence as soon as you're settled. You'll be asleep in minutes. By the time your nap's over, you'll be home."
Harry wondered if it was another ruse. Maybe Fagen did intend to kill them. If that was the case, the commander had gone to a lot of trouble to explain his intentions. No, Harry decided, Fagen was sincere.
Before he climbed inside, Fagen called after him. Harry turned and faced the man for the last time. Fagen extended his hand. "No hard feelings?"
Harry slowly took the proffered hand and shook it. "Where will you go?"
"Not back to Mia Culpa, that's for sure. We'll search for the Bedoran's home planet. We know it's somewhere in the Canopus system."
"Why?"
Fagen looked surprised. "Yes," he said, "I forgot to tell you. We have them all aboard, in stasis, of course. I want to return them to their original home."
Fagen pulled something else from his trouser pocket. He held it in the palm of his hand as he showed it to Harry. It was the Bedoran's magic crystal.
"What is it?" asked Harry.
"An energy source the likes of which none of us have seen. I took it from one of our captives. It's my intention to find out how it works; to go to the source if I have to."
Harry didn't know what to say. Fagen was full of surprises.
Kathleen climbed into the cocoon and Harry followed, nodding to Fagen as he slipped inside. The pod sensed their presence and the interior expanded as they situated themselves on contour-forming cushioning. The opening sealed itself as Harry watched. He reached out and felt the cool, solid, reformed surface. A faint light shined from the walls. He would have liked to have investigated further but found himself growing drowsy, so he held Kathleen and kissed her just before seeing she was already asleep. As he nodded off, Harry's last thought was the certainty that someday, somewhere among the stars, he and Fagen would cross paths again.
THE END
About the Author
Thomas C. Stone is a lifelong writer and journalist with a penchant for fast-moving, speculative fiction. Stone’s topics cover first contact, new energy sources, quantum reality, and self-aware computers, as well as an always entertaining take on how characters react to their circumstances.
Table of Contents
Other Books By The Author
Copyright
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Chapter 38
Chapter 39
Chapter 40
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
About the Author