Wizard Rebellion (Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles Book 5) Page 31

  It has to work. The lives of my children depend on it.

  Keka watched the timer as it counted down to the exact moment when he was to start the teleport sequence. When the timer hit zero, he moved a lever to the max position. The soot-stained and battered teleport pad hummed as it began glowing. He’d faithfully followed the instructions he’d been given to repair the damaged equipment. Whether his repairs had been sufficient, he’d soon see.

  It’ll work, he thought as he crossed his antennae even tighter.

  Three indistinct blurs appeared above the teleport pad. As he watched, the blurs became brighter and more distinct. One of the blurs was much shorter than the other two. The blurs came into focus.

  Keka slid the lever to the off position.

  Standing on the teleport platform was a small boy and two teenage girls. One of the girls had long, silver hair. The silver-haired girl’s eyes fascinated Keka. They resembled molten silver. He was drawn to them as if they held all the answers, if he only knew the questions.

  “Keka!” yelled the small boy as he jumped off the platform and began running with his arms outstretched.

  The hypnotic spell of the silver eyes was broken by the boy’s cry. “Brachia,” Keka said as he stepped forward and lifted his adopted son into the air. “My how you’ve grown. I’ve missed you so much.”

  Dren was more dignified as she stepped off the platform, but once she was wrapped in Keka’s appendages, he heard sobs and saw tears running down her cheeks.

  “We’ve missed you too, Keka,” said Dren.

  The three remained wrapped in their embrace for a full minute. Finally, Keka stepped back and looked over at the silver-haired girl.

  “You’ve brought her,” Keka said. “Good. We’ve got much to do. The fate of three galaxies depends on us.”

  Chapter 36 – Back From the Dead

  ____________________

  The shuttle landed in a ravine several hundred meters from the cave of the Oracle so as not to draw unnecessary attention to the spot. Once the ship was down, the rear ramp lowered. Three of the ship’s occupants exited.

  Richard checked his passive scan for a full two thousand meter radius scan. Nothing dangerous registered. He sensed Myers send out a couple of active scans to supplement his passive scan.

  “Must be nice to have enough Power to waste on active scans,” Richard said in his shared space.

  “Now, Rick,” said Nickelo. “Don’t be jealous. At least he’s on your side.”

  Richard wasn’t as sure of that fact as his battle computer seemed to be. While Myers and he’d fought as a team against the orc and Dragar invaders, Richard wasn’t convinced of his brother’s motives. He’d sensed the burning desire of his brother whenever mention was made of the DNA gas. He had a feeling his brother would do anything to acquire a bottle for his lover, the empress.

  Myers spoke over the team’s com-link so Matthew and his gnome gunner, Marstis, could hear. “Close her up, Matt, until we get back. At the slightest danger, I want the two of you to head back to base.”

  “We won’t abandon you guys here,” said Matthew. “We’re not cowards.”

  Richard took his brother’s side in the argument before it escalated. “It’s not being cowardly. Myers and I are wizard scouts. We can take care of ourselves as well as Emerald. This fighter, on the other hand, is too important to risk. The stealth spell Master Garis put around it only does so much. If a Dragar ship gets too close, you’ll be discovered.”

  “But—”

  “No buts, Matthew,” said Myers. “We’re the wizard scouts. That’s an order.”

  Richard doubted making it an order mattered much to the headstrong teenager, but was pretty sure the empress’s son would do as they asked. If for no other reason than that he knew it was the right thing to do. The fighter-shuttle was too important to their plans. They needed it if the rebellion was to become a reality.

  Although Matthew didn’t reply, he did raise the rear ramp in preparation for departing in a hurry if necessary.

  Richard took that as a good sign.

  Emerald hefted her axe and pointed in the direction of the cave. “Shall we?” Without waiting for them to answer, the dwarf took off at a fast pace.

  Myers and Richard caught up easy enough. Before long, all three of them were back in the cave. Richard sensed the presence of the gas which was the Oracle. Two other figures in black leather-looking jumpsuits were in the room as well. The figures’ suits looked strangely similar to an inactivated battle suit. The two figures were both wearing black helmets with red visors down and were armed with plasma rifles. The barrels of the weapons were pointed at the ground.

  Richard thought the command to seal his battle suit. The bottom of his helmet rose to meet the lower part of his visor. He clicked the safety on his M63 to the auto position but refrained from aiming the weapon at the two figures.

  While the two armored figures weren’t registering on his passive scan, Richard did recognize their armor and weapons. They were wearing older-model Empire M4 battle suits and carrying outdated M42 plasma rifles. Richard knew the M4 and M42 had been taken out of service decades earlier. He’d seen them in a military museum on Risors. While they’d once been standard wizard scout issue, they’d been replaced with the more modern M6 battle suits along with the M63.

  The four wizard scouts stood looking at each other. None of them moved or said anything. Even the dwarf lowered her battle-axe to a non-threatening position and remained quiet.

  “Nick,” Richard thought. “What’s going on?”

  “I’m not sure,” said Nickelo. “However, I’ve got my suspicions. Just take it one step at a time and make sure you don’t upset the applecart.”

  By the shape of one of the wizard scout’s battle suits, Richard assumed the scout was a female. The female scout’s battle helmet changed shape into half mode. As the red visor was raised out of sight, he got a full view of the female’s face. The male wizard scout also switched his helmet into half mode revealing his face as well.

  Richard sucked in a large gulp of air.

  “Well,” said the female. “Someone’s got to be the first to trust the other. It might as well be us. I’m Wizard Scout Janice Deluth, and this is my husband, Wizard Scout Thomas Jacobs.”

  Shock froze Richard’s mind for a moment. “Mo—”

  Myers’s left fist swung out and caught Richard in the stomach.

  Richard had sealed his suit but not activated armor mode since the other wizard scouts’ suits were still inactivated. Consequently, Myers’s blow penetrated the leather-like material enough to cut off his intended word.

  Richard heard a swish as Myers switched his battle helmet into half mode as well.

  “Uh,” said Myers recovering a lot quicker than Richard. “I’m Wizard Scout Gaston Myers, and this is Wizard Scout Shepard.” He pointed at the dwarf. “This is Emerald.”

  Janice Deluth smiled at Emerald.

  Richard thought his mother had a nice smile.

  “Yes. I recognized your frequency when you were approaching the cave. We’ve met before. I’m glad to see you made it out alive.”

  Emerald nodded. “I remember you as well. It’s been a long time. Are you here to help us?”

  Wizard Scout Thomas Jacobs smiled and stepped forward with his hand outstretched. “Well, we’re not here for a relaxing vacation.”

  He shook Myers and Emerald’s hands. When he turned to Richard, he grinned. “Now, what were you trying to say before your friend so rudely interrupted you?”

  Richard switched his helmet into half mode as he took the proffered hand. “Nothing.” When he saw a look of disbelief in his father’s eyes, he added, “It was an inside joke. You wouldn’t get it.”

  Thomas shrugged his shoulders and grinned again. “I usually don’t go around calling someone I just met a liar, but…you’re a piss-poor liar. I’ll let it slide this time. We’ve got work to do.”

  “Nick,” Richard said. “What’s go
ing on? My mother and father are dead.”

  “Yes, they are,” agreed Nickelo. “At least in your time, they are. But we’re in the past. Your mother went on thirty time-commando missions. Your father went on twelve. I calculate a one hundred percent probability this is one of those missions.”

  “But they’re dead,” Richard insisted.

  “So?” Nickelo asked. “You’ll be dead too one day, but if someone goes into the past, they’re still liable to meet you when you were alive. Just deal with it.”

  Richard looked over at his brother. “Myers seems to be taking it well.”

  “Oh, don’t be so sure,” replied Nickelo. “I’m not connected to the tele-network, but I can sense a lot of activity going on in Wanda’s CPU.”

  “Who?” Richard asked.

  “Wanda,” said Nickelo. “She’s Myers’s battle computer. From all accounts, she’s an easy-going battle computer who cares for her wizard scout. I calculate she’s working overtime keeping Myers acting nonchalant. I calculate he’s as shook up as you.”

  “So,” said the voice of the Oracle. “All the variables except one are in play. You’ll need to have everything ready when she arrives with the bottles of DNA gas.”

  With great effort, Richard did his best to overcome his shock at seeing his parents alive. He had other things to worry about at the moment.

  “When who gets here?” Richard asked.

  “An ally,” replied the Oracle.

  Suddenly, the air in the center of the room shimmered. When it ended, a small girl stood where the shimmering had been.

  “A hologram,” Nickelo told Richard.

  “You’re a hologram,” Richard said.

  “Yes, I am,” agreed the Oracle. “The future version of myself had Brachia and Dren teleport a holograph projector here along with a data disk and some other equipment. Thomas and Janice were kind enough to set the equipment up for me.”

  The Oracle’s words gave Richard his second shock of the day. “Dren and Brachia? Are you in contact with them? Are they here?”

  The hologram of the young girl smiled. “Negative, wizard scout. The data from my future self indicated you’d be concerned about their welfare. They’re safe. They’ve spent the last three years building a combination teleport and time-displacer in support of the algorithm. My future self said that unlike you, they’re very logical variables.”

  “Three years?” Richard repeated. “That can’t be right. It’s only been a year and a half since they went back in time.”

  The small girl smiled again. “Would anyone else care to explain?”

  Richard’s mother, Janice, cleared her throat. “I’ll take a stab at it if you don’t mind, Wizard Scout Shepard.”

  “Rick. Call me Rick.”

  Richard was amazed at the difference between the parents he’d known in the future and the wizard scouts standing before him now. The commandant and councilwoman he’d known had looked young physically. However, he’d sensed they were tired and old on the inside. These versions of his parents were young and vibrant both inside and out. Their Power reserves were large and full of untapped energy. He sensed that both of their reserves were even larger than Myers’s.

  “All right, Rick,” said Janice. “Since you’re here, you’re obviously a time-commando like us. If you don’t mind my asking, how old are you?”

  Richard was pretty sure his mother wasn’t asking for his physical age. He had no doubt she wanted to know the amount of time that had passed since his baseline had been set. Every wizard scout had a timeline as part of their shared space. He could tell to the nanosecond how much time had passed since that fateful day in the DNA center on Velos.

  “My baseline was set 127 years ago,” Richard said. “My physical age was twenty-six at the time. However, I don’t remember most of those years. Some of my missions for ‘the One’ are just bits and pieces while other missions are complete blanks. To tell the truth, I still think and feel like I’m twenty-six.”

  Janice laughed. So did Thomas.

  Richard thought both his parents had nice laughs.

  “It’s nice to know it’s not just us,” said his mother. “My baseline was set 342 years ago, and Thomas’s had his DNA baseline set 146 years ago. Like you, our memories of many of those years are sketchy.”

  “Why?” Richard asked.

  Janice smiled and gave a wink. “You’d have to ask ‘the One’ about that.” Unexpectedly, his mother said, “You’re kind of cute; did you know that?”

  Richard blushed. “Uh…”

  His father stepped next to Janice and glared at Richard. “I thought you were going to explain time differences, Janice. I didn’t hear you mention anything about flirting with strangers.”

  Janice laughed again. “Oh, Thomas, you’re so predictable. I think that’s why I love you so much. Now, don’t get jealous on me. I was just paying Rick a compliment. Besides, he reminds me of you a little.”

  “Well,” said Thomas, “I don’t like this small talk. We’ve got things to do.” Richard’s father looked at him. “Time in the future has nothing to do with time in the past. Janice and I might be gone twenty minutes in the future, but our stay in the past could span years. Understand?”

  Richard had a feeling his father’s words were intended to do more than answer his original question. His father was also marking his territory. Richard decided to beat a hasty retreat.

  “I understand completely,” Richard said hoping his father knew he was also including the unspoken warning. Deciding to divert the conversation to another direction, Richard turned to the Oracle. “Are Dren and Brachia coming here? I promised I’d bring them home.”

  The Oracle smiled once more. “No. Their part of the algorithm is not in the past. They will be accompanying the other variable to the future to help get the bottles of DNA gas.”

  Myers took a step forward and pointed a finger at the hologram of the small girl. “That’s our mission. I should be the one getting the bottles. I’ve done all the research. I’ve studied the facility where they’re located. It’ll take at least six wizard scouts to retrieve the DNA gas.”

  “Ah,” said the Oracle. “Then you’ll be happy to know your efforts won’t go to waste. The instructions from my future self indicates you need to have your battle computer download the information you’ve acquired to Danny and Margery.”

  “Forget it,” said Myers. “That information’s top secret. If you really are part of ‘the One,’ I’m definitely not going to help you.”

  Although Richard had questions of his own about the Oracle’s request, his dislike for Myers just naturally made him take the opposite side. “Then get used to living in the past,” Richard said. “We don’t go home if we don’t finish the mission. We can’t do that if we don’t have the DNA gas. You’re here, and those bottles are in the future. Don’t be stubborn. I’ve tried to naysay ‘the One’ more times than I can count, and all it’s ever gotten me is more trouble. I hate ‘the One’ as much as you, but we’ve got to play along if we want to get back home.”

  Richard glanced at his father. He noticed Thomas’s face beginning to turn a little red. He had a feeling bad mouthing ‘the One’ wasn’t going over very well with the commandant. His father had always been totally committed to ‘the One.’ This version of his father seemed to be taking it even more personal than Richard would’ve thought. His father looked like he was getting very angry. The commandant he’d known had always been good at controlling his temper. Just before whatever was building up inside his father came out, his mother placed two of her fingers over her husband’s lips.

  “Allow me, sweetheart,” said Janice as she turned to face the Oracle. “I understand why you want the information loaded into Danny and Margery’s databanks, but it won’t work.” Waving her arm to indicate Myers and Richard, she said, “If these fine gentlemen are from forty-some years in our time in the future, the data would need to be encrypted and stored until it was required. It would be dangerous
to leave it in a format where our battle computers could access it before then. The risk of having one of them do something that would change those forty odd years would be too great.”

  “I don’t understand,” Richard admitted. “Why does the data need to be downloaded into their battle computers now? Can’t Myers just order his battle computer to provide the information in the future when it’s needed?”

  The Oracle smiled. “No. Wanda didn’t give it to Margery or Danny before she was placed in your dimensional pack. Unfortunately, this version of her won’t get back until after your mission is complete. Your battle computer won’t either. The information has to be given to someone who’ll return to the future before the information is required. Based upon the calculations of my future self, that means it must be given to Danny and Margery now.”

  Although she hadn’t been exposed much to technology or time travel, Emerald was apparently faster on the uptake than Richard.

  “Ah, I see,” said the dwarf. “Thomas and Janice here are from a time that’s forty years before Rick and Gaston? When this mission’s over, they’ll be returning to a future that’s forty years before the time when Rick and Gaston return?”

  “Exactly,” said Janice. “Assuming we get out of this mission alive. However, like I said, it’s a moot point. We can’t guarantee our battle computers can’t access the information. We’d need their security codes to do that, and they’re prohibited from giving the codes to us by the central computer.”

  Richard had an epiphany. “I’ll admit that’s true. But what if their core programming was somehow modified to give us the security codes before then? We could then use the security codes to protect the information until it was needed.”

  “Your theory’s sound, wizard scout,” said Margery over the external speaker of Thomas’s battle helmet. “However, there’s a problem with your logic. Modifying a battle computer’s programming would allow you to order the battle computer to give you their security code, but without the security code, the programming can’t be modified to allow you to give the order.”