Log 1 Matter | Antimatter (52 page)

“Really?” Her voice held a moment’s
excitement, which quickly died away. “I agree.”

He took a gamble since he’d screwed things up
anyway. “You’ve been partially vetted but it didn’t really work
with you. We didn’t have much success with Marc and the others
either.”

She smiled grimly. “I vetted them.” She
flicked some toggles. “I know, we’re family. But—I’ve been somewhat
shoved aside.”

“Why?”

“Because I started digging into our ‘Three
Empires and Grands’. They didn’t like it.”

“And you found links with the Kavakar?”

Her eyes widened. “So you already know
something. Yes, I found links. I had to … err … hide out for some
time in the CU. It’s rather roomy so I’m not really
complaining.”

Jamie stood, wondering if he could track
Aven’s movements better now she’d be close. “I’m going to use this
back section like a command room. Keep on this course. We’ll be met
by Simon.” He decided to allow her to think he didn’t suspect her
of anything but being an Aether.

“The Warlord?”

“The very one. The Aryan Government and
Military have been notified of the kidnapping. Aside from them we
need to keep this quiet.”

She nodded. “Or panic will set in as genocide
may trigger antimatter.”

Jamie began preparations. He had vet Aven,
after he first met them all, with the other sHes on the cliff. He
had nothing to do with Ersen or Sacha’s real parents over the
years. But he was right; it was hard to vet Aether. But with Marc
and Aven especially, they couldn’t track past a certain point. He
trusted his instinct but then questioned his feelings with Vinicus
and Zarti.

He lifted his Voice. “Diane, I have it here
that Ara was abducted from Zarti’s ranger.”

“Yes, but there is no proof they were a part
of it.”

Jamie saw Aven’s head turn slightly towards
him.

“Hang on, Diane.” He muted the Voice.
“Aven?”

“They’re Vakar.”

“Who?” he asked patiently, aware Aven was
struggling.

“Vinicus and Zarti. Ziana isn’t, she’s on
board looking after Ara, sorry, was looking after her. That’s when
I stopped scanning to focus on the other rangers moving in. It was
so close to the planet I sent an anon signal to the Cradle
Warlords.”

Jamie checked and was able to confirm that.
He unmuted the Voice. “Diane, what’s our ETA?”

“Simon says two hours.”

“Aven, you can still track those
rangers?”

She sighed. “No, after I made the call I was
cut off by the CU itself. That’s when I realized the Vakar are …
inside the CU too.”

“Fuck!” They had to get control of the
Cardinal Unit.

He saw her head bop up and down. “I did get
one final signal through that went from one of the Vakar rangers
towards the Core, where the Bellus meet.”

Jamie’s mind was awhirl.

“Jamie?”

“Sorry, Diane. See you soon.”

Aven had some other ideas though. “You should
let Simon handle that side of the kidnapping.”

“And do what?”

“What you are good at, after we get you to
the Cardinal Unit. We could meet with the Principals first
though.”

“The signal you found. Yes, set it up?”

She didn’t even hesitate. “I’ll try.” She
toggled some switches, inputting the Bellus message coordinates.
“This is Aven, offspring of the Superlunary sHe Pen and Terance,
requiring assistance of the Principals. Respond.”

Jamie left her to it while data was now
coming in from Simon’s war-ranger. They were questioning Vinicus
and Zarti. Jamie flicked Simon a special signal. His Voice
beeped.

“I’m questioning.” The voice was brusque but
Simon knew it had to be important.

“Vin and Zarti are Vakar. I’m diverting to
meet with the Bellus.”

There was silence. “Don’t delay too
long.”

The call ended.

Jamie knew Simon was worried about his
treatment.

Aven was now talking to someone.

Jamie studied what they knew of the Vakar.
Aven ended her call and looked back to where he was sitting.

“We’ve got a meeting with the Khan
himself.”

One of Ara’s best friends while growing up
was Tekko, the Khan’s son, placed so that Dark Matter Beings had a
part in Ara’s life.

“The Bellus is on the way… Jamie?”

Jamie couldn’t respond. His body was
trembling and jerking in pain. Somewhere in his muddled mind, he
saw Ara stand in front of a portal. Ahead of her was Viper, smiling
and holding out his hand. Viper was saying, “You’ve made the right
decision.”

Jamie cried out,
“No, Ara! Don’t! I’m
coming!”

He blacked out.

Cardinal Unit 9

Blinking in the bright light, Jamie came to.
After several moments he experienced a strange lethargy that he
identified as meaning he was back to being a normal Avatara again.
He’d lost all his superpowers. His head was splitting until a sharp
pain in his arm was followed by all the pain floating away. Relief
flooded him. He was too tired to even shoo the bot away.

Looking around he saw a rather white,
clinical looking room and spotted Aven on some kind of medical bed.
“Aven?”

“Aven is undergoing treatment.”

He croaked at the bot, “For what?”

“Your body emitted a spike of matter and
energy; Aven absorbed it to ensure the sables were not
destabilized.”

He rubbed his head. Jamie hadn’t accounted
for extra degradation for his deep cover operation. He was going to
be in trouble for this, disciplined. He managed to get up. “Will
she be alright?”

“She is stabilizing.”

Jamie found his clothes. “Has Ara been
found?”

“Negative. We had to refabricate your
clothes.”

“Ah, thank you.”

“You are welcome.” The bot rolled away and
began to work at a bench with several holo images floating over the
surface. Jamie couldn’t make sense of what it was doing.

After an hour, Jamie was frustrated.

Simon had nothing to report. No one was
talking. No one knew where Ara was. Only Aven might be able to use
the CU to track her.

Jamie talked to Simon via Voice. “You have to
press Vin or Zarti.”

“If I press it will tell them we know who
they are. I feel it’s too early to play that out yet.”

“And at the cost of what? Ara’s life!” Jamie
was furious.

“Find another way, Jamie.” Simon relented
then. “If we hear nothing in twenty-four hours, I’ll press
them.”

It was a compromise that Jamie had to
accept.

He paced around Aven who was still lying on
the medic bed. He had dimmed the light to try to make himself
sleepy but it didn’t work. A soft groan and he moved to Aven.

“Aven?”

“I beg your pardon?” Her voice was croaky. He
held up some water.

He almost laughed at her politeness.
“Here.”

She sipped it. “Any success finding in
Ara?”

“No. No one knows what is going on. Aven, is
Ara connected to the Maya?”

“I would have to say yes, surely. Help me
up.”

Jamie didn’t argue and helped her to sit,
biting back his impatience. Aven wasn’t what she seemed. She looked
at him. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

He flushed a little.

“Ah, Marc painted me as the devil?”

“Not really. I am grateful to you for helping
me. But you do hate Ara.”

“That’s true but not enough to continue doing
the things I have been doing to her.”

The confession relieved him. “And now?”

“Well, I don’t love her if that’s what you
want to know.”

Jamie gave her a cold look but steadied her
as she stood upright, holding her head.

She said slowly, slurring her words a little,
“I’ve been meddling with Ara since she was placed into the baby
biosuit. Trickster came when it was too late. Since then I’ve been
working with the Snakes. I know you know who they are.”

It dawned on Jamie that Aven knew of the
Snakes before they arrived in Iota. But his primary mission was now
Ara. “I want to know what changed your mind but will you help me
find Ara?”

Aven’s black eyes closed momentarily. She
opened them and nodded. “Let’s go.” But she stopped at a panel
inside the medical room. “I need more water.”

Jamie went over and ordered two waters. He
turned and saw Aven slip into a smaller room.

“I’m not escaping,” she croaked.
“Toilet.”

After she went, Jamie did too. When he came
out, she had finished her water and walked painfully to the door
with a small black bag in hand. Jamie stared as a cart rolled up
outside the open door of the medical center.

Aven climbed in. “Come on. It’ll take thirty
minutes to drive, much longer to walk, and I need a chance to
recover.”

He was already sitting before she finished
her sentence.

They trundled up and along ramp ways. Aven
injected herself with something. “Just vitamins and minerals.”

“What happened to you?”

“I don’t know. I can’t remember after you
collapsed and spiked. But there was something I picked up from the
Three Principals that I needed to tell you. It’s right … there. I
can feel the memory but something is blocking it.”

“Something like the Maya?”

“I think so. A bit of irony there for me.”
She glanced over at Jamie. “I’m not winning you over am I?”

“Not yet.” Jamie tapped his fingers on his
leg and told her about what he’d learned.

She moaned. “We have more puzzles!”

Jamie stared at another strange archway
etched into a white wall; everything was white in the CU that he’d
seen so far. “What are those?”

“Transportals I think.”

“To inside the CU?”

“I haven’t found the files yet. But they
could be to other stations. I noticed some of the coordinates are
similar to our interstation terminals.”

“If only one could take me direct to Ara.” He
felt silly after saying that.

She glanced at him. “Maybe it can.”

He stared at her but she kept driving. “Tell
me now why you’ve changed your mind.”

“Because you love Marc, that’s why.”

Jamie looked ahead, confused by her words.
“Try again and don’t say Marc loves me.”

She grimaced. “I can’t work for the other
side. They aren’t the enemy though. Things are complicated.”

Jamie stared straight ahead seeing doors and
panels and passages as they zipped by.

She sighed. “I need Ara to do something so I
can get out. I recently discovered that without her I’m stuck in …
um … Aryan Society.”

“That sounds more honest.” He looked at her.
“Marc’s doing?”

Aven cursed. “Yes. But Ersen and Sacha too.
They have been working with the Principals to put me on notice
saying that my interference with the Cardinal Unit is affecting the
Three Empire and Grands agreement with Aryans. The SHEs have a way
of making Aether comply.” She shivered in some remembered
horror.

“And?”

“And?”

“What does Ara have to do?”

“Remember who she is.”

Jamie shook his head. “Don’t you know?”

“It’s complicated. But no.”

“Aven, explain complicated.”

She glanced at him, and looked again. “Jamie,
there’s a war on, an unconventional war, with no rules. Powerful
beings are using the Lacuna to resolve it.”

“That doesn’t sound so complicated.” He’d
heard the Snakes use the expression “Lacuna” before. In Aryan
language it meant “void” but in his culture it meant “site”.

“It is when you know the Lacuna is why
there’s a war in the first place, and millions of powerful beings
are trapped inside and want to get out and go home and free their
ruler. The nature of this conflict will be enduring, high, and
universal.”

Jamie frowned. “A little more detail on the
home bit and free their ruler bit.”

“Home is outside the Lacuna and the ruler is
currently locked up by a Safeguard.”

The Safeguard again. He remembered the image
Trickster had shown him. Nyx had made that, what had he called it?
A perpetual in motion, fluid-metal wheel labyrinth that kept the
Chaos Entity from emerging. Too many people knew bits and pieces
and weren’t sharing. Too many thought lies were truths while others
were using lies as truth. Jamie felt as if he were drowning, the
lies filled his lungs until he could no longer breathe and he
wasn’t even sure if he wanted to cough it out. The more he heard
the more he questioned his role. This was getting way out of hand.
He didn’t sign up for this, not in any capacity. But he couldn’t
help himself. “And the war is between the powerful beings and
who?”

“More powerful beings.”

Jamie groaned. “Do they have names?”

“Chaos and Vitalian.”

He tried to keep his body relaxed. “Why are
you telling me, you’re scared of more than the SHE I take it?”

‘It’s the level of corruption, Jamie. What
happens when powerful beings are corrupted? There are millions of
them.” Her voice was faint with dread. It was her whimper that
convinced him.

“I need to think.”

In twenty minutes she was looking much
better.

“Vitamins my arse.” He shook his head at her,
wishing he had whatever it was that perked her up. “Do you have
more of that?” Aven flashed him a grin that reminded him painfully
of Marc.

“Sorry.” She turned off into a large,
apparently empty room. She stopped the cart and climbed out but
popped out into the wide passage for the moment. Grinning, she ran
back into the room. She pulled Jamie onto a spot on the floor and
activated some kind of podium that rose from the floor. “Stand
closer.”

He stepped in close to her and almost fell
off as it rose quickly into the air. The whole room dimmed and
doors swished closed, blocking off the passage light.

“Put your hand on the GELpad and think about
Ara. Did she make an exergon link with you?”

“Yes, but as a baby. I rarely used it.” He
couldn’t if he was to keep his relationship professional and
distant.