Eric Olafson, Midshipman 41

Part 41: INTERLUDE: KOKEN

It was easier than he thought. Larthop was on Koken. The place crawled with scientists, Xeno archeologists and scholars. The Union had found the planet of origin of the Kermac. Back when they were split into five societies and sub species. The Ker and the Mac united and tried to eradicate the others. One of those species were the Blue and forced into exile.

The Blue, after a trip that lasted generations eventually reached the Andromeda galaxy became a thriving and somewhat mysterious society with a high tech standard. When the Union reached Andromeda via the Bridge, the Blue joined the Union.

Larthop had read and uploaded as much as he could about that subject, as there were many Blue scientists now on Koken. Larthop knew they were Psionic gifted, at least as talented as their distant modern Cousins the Kermac. However there was surprisingly little info about what Psionic powers they had. He was not concerned of course and kept a dual mind shield one that was easy to bypass and read and there he kept his writer identity. If someone would probe all they saw was a harmless eager writer for a well-known magazine.

The eager and friendly Tinkehel had kept his word and needed very little persuasion.

Koken for over a million years, a quite grave like world, bereft of the sentient civilizations it brought forth was now as busy as a Klack world during a sugar water sale. Not far of the ruins of Esscas the old capital City of the Ker a new town had sprung up, mostly stacked living modules, but as always with scientists came technicians, engineers, laborers and shop keepers. He wondered what his special friends the Kermac would say if they could see that.

Security was reasonably tight coming here but, now on the surface, there was virtually none.

No one paid any attention to him, he had rented a little multi-purpose flyer and followed the directions he had received from the Shadow of the Brotherhood and on a mountain plateau about thirty klicks away from the ruins and the center of attention he found the spot were rumble had been moved recently. As he went closer he found the badly decomposed bodies of at least eighty Plato slaves. They all had been shot. There were no insects and almost no rainfall on this side of Koken but the remains were not ancient but could not be older than perhaps a year or two. Someone had been here recently and it wasn’t the Union. He felt cheated and feared the Kermac had been here and taken the disc he needed, but he came that far so he would follow the directions of the Shadow to the end, maybe he could find clues who took the disc if it wasn’t there no more.

For a moment he felt as if he was watched, but the rocky and dusty plateau was bare of life as far as he could see. He had to use his Telekinetic powers to remove a few big boulders that blocked the entrance to a tunnel. Here at the entrance he found the remains of two Hythagh. The talented and industrious civilization of Engineers that was one of the core Thrall species of the Kermac. Their uniforms and their equipment dirty but their tools showed virtually no decay. Both Hythagh were still armed with Kermac Line blasters, but their necks twisted in an unnatural way. This is how Kermac used their Telekinetic powers to kill. There was no doubt now, Kermac had been here only recently.

He turned on the light he had brought along and followed the long corridor. The ceiling height dropped the further he went, and then he came across three elaborate decorated chairs with pillows and blanket. Each chair had carrying handles. It was easy to piece together what happened. Three Kermac were carried by slaves until the ceiling became too low and they had to walk.

After he had walked for at least two klicks, he came across yet another body. This one was mummified and to his astonishment a Kermac. Judging by the robes and the elaborate get up, this was not just any Kermac but a one of the Wizards! He had been killed by a small weapon beam hitting him between the eyes. Did they fight over what they found coming out?

Larthop studied the arcane and the mystic arts all his life and was not easily spooked or scared, but again he could not help himself feeing being watched. His mental powers did not detect anything, but the feeling was strong.

Without even knowing he had pulled his own little blaster, wishing he had taken one of the stronger line blasters. Of course most of his arcane and mystic research had led to a dead end and shown him that it was nothing more than superstition, smoke and mirrors, but not all of it and perhaps the strong Psionic mind of a Kermac had left an imprint on the area before he died.

He went on and finally reached a massive double door of a dark gray metal and they stood wide open. Larthop was glad as he was not sure if he could have moved them.

As he stepped through a booming telepathic voice shocked him to his core. It was so strong and so immense it had shattered all his defenses.” The master was defeated with the price of a Universe and he who must never be woken is no longer asleep! The Rule has been broken!”

The message was repeated and he realized it was a recording. He had heard that a Saran inventor had managed to record a short telepathic message onto a device and replay it, but according to the reports it was so weak you could only detect like a whisper. Larthop was sure this recording was not of Kermac technology but of much older origin. Before him were three perfectly round shafts, he estimated them to be about forty meters across. On the far side of the dome shaped hall was another open door.

He looked down the shafts and it appeared they went on forever.

The instructions of the Shadow ended here. He did not know if he had to go down one of these shafts. He took a Polo Coin out of his pocket and dropped it down the middle shaft. The coin plunked onto an invisible shield was sealing the middle shaft, but the same test revealed that the other two were open. He decided to see what was behind the other open door before he decided what to do about the shafts.

Again the Psionic message boomed and he whirled around to see if someone else had come, but there was no one.

Behind the second door was another big chamber with a large round platform about 150 meters across with two talon shaped towering monoliths on each side. He counted twenty dead beings he recognized from recordings to be Siurca, the tailed monkey like species that originated from this planets moon and protected this world until they made the mistake and destroy a Union Explorer.

Some of them were killed by a very strong thermic weapon, and most of their bodies were burned to molecular ashes, others were cut in half by something very sharp. It seemed these chambers were the site of much death and killing and only very recently. His heart sank as he saw what looked like a control column had been cut.

His mind reached out and tried to move the piece and place it back, it was heavy. Very heavy more than he could move with his mind, that small piece must weigh several hundred tons. He was exhausted and leaned against one of the talon shaped monoliths. There was a faint click and hidden alcoves opened all around the chambers walls. Each alcove was about one meter deep, perhaps two wide and no more than a meter high. Each alcove held a glass like sphere, but the one right in front of him a twenty centimeter disk shimmering like a soap bubble.

He had found it!

He held his breath and took the disc. It was feather light and thin as a hair but it felt as not even a Petharian could break it.

What now? He had the disc and expected some sort of instructions, but there was nothing, but as he stared on the disc it changed and he held an image of the Milky Way Galaxy. And as he stared the view magnified to what he knew was the Cygnus Arm in the down ward center and there a little star began to blink. There was the Cave of Things!

How was he supposed to reach a planet 90,000 light years away?

He sighed. He would find a way, but he needed to equip an expedition and make a trip of over a year.

Larthop almost jumped out of his skin as a blonde woman in black leather like cat suit suddenly stood nearby and said.” Maybe I can help you to get there faster, Mr. Larthop. I am Cherubim.”

Part 42 »