Despite his tendency to be frustrating to deal with and stingy with information, Halferne did not fail to deliver on his promise of VIP accommodations to Thurin. Jaysn accepted his second Stinger of the evening from the trio’s personal bartender, who never seemed to sleep, had previously committed every obscure drink Jaysn could think of to memory, and always seemed to know the best way to prepare it.
“Tell me, Jaysn,” Solvig said from a lounge chair next to a swimming pool fed by a waterfall under a transplas dome that showed Luten’s star Anor filtered just enough that they could see the unmistakable dot of Thurin orbiting just over a day away. “You’re from Thurin. What do I need to see while I’m there?”
Jaysn thought for a moment. “Well, obviously, we’re the intellectual center of the settled worlds. As an off-worlder, you’ll want to stay in the university zones, but there are over two dozen museums and one of the largest collections of—“
“I was thinking something with a bit of local flavor. I’ve been to all of the local museums already.”
Jaysn was taken aback, even moreso than when she finally told him to call her Anita, which he had carefully avoided after Umar Amin’s warning about her taciturn nature towards men who did not intellectually stimulate her. “Well, he offered. There are some excellent restaurants down in the settlers’ quarter, but if you want the best food, you need to visit the market district. It’s down by the starport, so it tends to be a bit seedy. Most upstanding residents wouldn’t be caught dead there, but I know a local woman who has the best sidewalk bistro with an unmatched view of the sea and the stars, where you can see ships from dozens of worlds arriving and departing, each on its own adventure. It’s a good place to feel rooted, but not pinned down, not to mention her cooking is to die for.
Solvig closed her eyes and smiled. “You’ll have to take me there after the press conference. Your treat, though. I didn’t hold out for double pay.”
Though he got the distinct impression her invitation was not intended to be romantic, Jaysn wasn’t about to turn it down. “Deal,” he said. “Have you worked out what you’re going to tell them when they start asking about the technology you witnessed?”
Solvig winced. “No. Honestly, I don’t know how, but at the time, I had a firm grasp of it all. I could have told you how to build a pattern printer that could make solid gas walls. I had the molecular formula for the compound that the elevator lattice was made of. It was so simple.” She paused and looked at Thurin for a moment, then shrugged. “I probably should have written it down or dictated it to Dr. Novik or something.”
“Well, your hands were busy guiding light bees, and Lev was even busier at the time.”
Solvig continued to stare at Thurin. “Yeah, I forgot about that. I guess you’re right. Well, anyway, I’ve got a pretty good reconstruction of the actual events, though I can’t remember a few tidbits about the tech. I keep thinking I wish I knew why they built the simulation in the first place.”
“Anita, you told us. They were trying to hide from an enemy race that was bent on removing all trace of their existence.” Jaysn was genuinely growing concerned.
“Did I?” She laughed slightly. “I don’t remember that either. But, since you do, then maybe you can fill them in if the question comes up.”
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“Yeah, she said. I’ll just be glad when all this is over, and I can get back home. One of my colleagues recorded a docuexperience on some new ruins they found underneath Bayon. I promised to peer review it.”
Jaysn arched his eyebrows. “After all we’ve seen and done? You’ve got at least a dozen books you need to start writing. I can’t believe you’d rather relive someone else’s virtual memories of stumbling around an old Cambodian temple.”
Solvig smirked. “I know, it doesn’t make sense. It just somehow … I don’t know … feels more real. It has … edges to it.”
#
Jaysn stopped in front of the door to Cari Clarc’s stateroom. Like Solvig, she’d been strangely distracted the past few days, only coming out of her quarters when required to compare notes and work on what details they would and would not be giving Ravenhold and the assembled press. Halferne hadn’t given specific instructions, but given what Jaysn suspected he already knew about the disk, he would quickly spot any deceptions or omissions, intended or not.
He rang the chime, and the door opened five seconds later. Clarc was sitting cross-legged on one of the overstuffed couches. A holo of a late-middle-aged man sat in the chair across from her. He was mostly gray, dressed in an unremarkable worker’s tunic, and had mischievous eyes that seemed somehow familiar.
“Jaysn, hi,” Clarc said, standing up. “I forgot we were going to meet to compare notes.” She gestured toward the seated holo. “Dr. Jaysn Katsaraos, this is Syn. Thomas Clarc,” she stopped for a minute, testing the words in her head first, “my father.” There was neither bitterness nor sorrow in her voice, just an uneasy clarity that Jaysn felt with her.
“Jaysn,” the holo said, also standing and bowing slightly. “Cari has been telling me a lot about you. It sounds like you two have had quite an adventure together. I’m very sorry to hear about the loss of your friends.”
“Thank you, sir,” Jaysn said, adding, “and it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Well, I should leave you two to compare notes. I look forward to the press conference,” the holo said, then winked out.
Clarc instantly went into business mode, pulling up a holo and sitting back on the couch. She gestured for Jaysn to have a seat. Every fiber of his being wanted to ask why she had called a man she had not spoken to in over a decade and who, last he checked, felt nothing but betrayal at. He decided not to pry, and having witnessed Clarc’s temper more than once, he sat down and let it stand.
“I’ve compiled all of my notes on the light sculpture along with the early observations we made on the humanoids. I have to admit, though, even though I wrote it down right after we boarded, if I hadn’t, I’m not sure I’d recall all of the details now. I mean, I remember chasing after Amin and Wolff because I was afraid they’d panic the humanoids and draw more serpents, and I remember the three of us being separated from you. I don’t remember where we hooked back up, however.”
“The valley,” Jaysn prompted. “You followed the path the humanoids took out of the village. We were following the same path backward.”
Clarc snapped a finger. “That’s right. It was right after Tamana blew up the obelisk.”
“Right before she blew up the obelisk. Right after Amin was killed.”
Clarc went distant for a moment. “Yeah, I think you’re right. I wrote it down wrong.” She made a gesture, and some of the text in front of her altered. “You know it’s funny. It was so sharp, but then, when I woke up the next morning, it was like it was starting to fade, the way a dream does.”
“Solvig is having the same problem,” Jaysn offered.
“Aren’t you?”
“I suppose so,” Jaysn lied. “Fortunately, I didn’t have all that tech dumped in my head, or all that first-hand experience in the humanoids’ village. You guys are going to get the bulk of the questions. I’ll fill in where I can, though. I’ve made plenty of notes.”
“Well, good,” Clarc said. “So, have you given thought to what you’re going to do after we get through the obligatory debrief and press conference?”
“None,” Jaysn admitted. “I assumed the three of us would be collaborating on a publication or possibly hitting the lecture circuit together. I just wasn’t going to bring it up until we were out from under our current contract.”
“I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to build a career on my colleague’s graves. I know I’m probably turning down a lot of money, but frankly, the only thing I could do with it in good conscience is try to find a way to sue Ravenhold or punish Halferne for what happened to Amin, Wolff, Tamana, and Novik.” She grew strangely quiet. “On second thought, call me in six months after the demand has picked up, and I’ve cooled down. Maybe we can collaborate on something.”
Jaysn stood up. “Fair enough. I’ll see you in the morning then. Joining us for one last breakfast?”
“Thanks, but I still prefer to eat in my quarters. I’ll catch you at the debriefing.”
Jaysn smiled, excused himself, and headed back to his quarters.
He hated lying to Solvig and Clarc. He remembered everything. They did not. He hated that. It meant they would only remember the lesson. He would remember the faces. He would grieve Amin, Wolff, Tamana, and Novik alone.
It wasn’t fair. Even if it wasn’t planned or part of a design, it wasn’t fair.
It took him twenty minutes, two private relays, and one cashed-in favor from an old friend for Jaysn to finally get hold of a researcher that he was confident wasn’t on the payroll of Ravenhold, SDEC, or the starliner, which, for all he knew, was secretly monitored by one or both.
Satisfied, he grabbed his untouched glass of wine and opened the interface. The holo of a plain-looking woman materialized in the middle of the room. “Good evening, Dr. Katsaros. My name is Syn. Nina Leitner. How can I be of assistance this evening?”
Jaysn sat back and took the first sip of wine. “Ravenhold Sovereign,” he began. “A Marbellan holding company of some sort, I believe.”
“Yes,” the holo replied almost instantly. “Established fifty-seven years ago. Extensive ties in shipping, logistics, food, and medical transportation to embryonic colony worlds that haven’t yet stabilized manufacturing and agriculture. They’ve won numerous—“
“Model citizens, I’m sure,” Jaysn cut her off. “Any interest in Phrame-like, immersive environments? Mass storage?”
“One of their primary investors, a French historical preservation society called Alibron, owns several large subterranean archives and datacenters. There is no indication that they have had any intention of expanding their capabilities in the last decade, however.”
“Who are the principals at Alibron?”
“Dr. Kavya Chandra of Procyon, Dr. Sergey Sidrov of Manitou, Dr. Abil Halferne of Mycion—“
“Stop!” Jaysn shouted. “Gotcha! Give me a bio on Abil Halferne.”
“Abil Halferne. Born: Mycion colony, 109 years ago. Sixteen advanced degrees, including medicine, biophysics, neuroscience, cybernetics, and xenobiology. Died twenty-three years ago, in the Banpei research station disaster, Cantium system. Later served for 5 years as an advisor to Supreme Chancellor Prevo, Nakano City, Nototsia. Died three years ago, London Metroplex, Earth–”
“Ugh, I knew I shouldn’t have tried to go around channels,” Jaysn moaned, downing the remainder of his glass.
“What seems to be the problem?” Nina’s holo asked?
“How can he die, come back fifteen years later on Notosia, a lost system, I might add, die again seven years later on Earth, and then be eating dinner in a Ravenhold corporate transport four nights ago?”
There was a pause as a dazzling display of telemetry whirled around Nina. “It is puzzling, but the data does check out.”
Jaysn flopped onto the couch and put his feet up on the coffee table. “Show me Halferne.”
Several holos of the man appeared in a row around her, each marked with a timestamp. The first series was clearly the same man, spanning over a century, showing him aging from youth to an elderly, balding man with salt-and-pepper hair. True to the record, there were pictures of him in a lab coat on a research station approximately thirty years earlier, and vids of him standing with Supreme Chancellor Prevo on Notosia. The last three images, however, were of the much younger, fair-haired man who had been eating dinner in the hangar when Jaysn and the others returned from the disk.
“These aren’t even the same man, Nina.”
“I assure you, they are. Dr. Halferne has been on the boards of both Alibron and Ravenhold for over a decade. Corporate credentials are confirmed.”
Jaysn poured the last of the bottle into his glass; it was disappointingly only half full. There was a story here – a conspiracy – he could feel it. How could two companies allow a complete stranger to walk in and assume the identity of one of their top board members? How could a man die at least two different times?
He couldn’t wait to tell Clarc. She would go ballistic as soon as she got hold of this. He considered for a moment how he would proceed to tear this mystery open and expose the man and his companies.
The datapad on the coffee table beeped twice. He leaned forward and grabbed it. It was confirmation that his payment had arrived early, even before the debriefing and the press conference. He stared at the new balance, and the mystery didn’t seem as important.
“Nina,” he said, leaving the wine and lying back on the couch. “New line of research. Let’s look at beach-front properties.”
“Earth? Caribbean?” Nina asked without hesitation.
Jaysn winced. “Mediterranean.”
“Costa del Sol is a popular choice.”
Jaysn smiled, remembering a particularly interesting seminar he attended there, and the even better Moscatel he discovered afterward. “Show me listings in Marbella.”
