Part 59 (1/2)

”You've been right so far,” Martin said.

”Don't hold it against me,” Ariel said.

He shook his head. ”Never.”

”He's taken our rights away,” she said, rather irrelevantly, Martin thought.

Super acceleration ceased two hours later. Martin had barely regained his wits when the s.h.i.+p's voice said, ”First attack repelled. We are being followed.”

”What in h.e.l.l has happened?” Martin asked, trying to kick-start his brain by shaking his head, stretching his body in the directionless weightless meaningless walled-in cubicle.

Another voice, Hans caught in the middle of a triumphant yell. Ariel gave a small shriek like a doomed rabbit.

”We're doing it, Martin! Trojan Horse Trojan Horse has gotten the h.e.l.l away and split up. We haven't forgotten you. We're keeping track of you. But you're being followed.” has gotten the h.e.l.l away and split up. We haven't forgotten you. We're keeping track of you. But you're being followed.”

The cubicle lacked screen or star sphere. ”Show us something, tell us what's going on!” Martin cried.

The s.h.i.+p tried to speak, but Hans interrupted. ”We've gone black, made our moves. Sorry about not telling you.” As casual as that. Sorry about not telling you. Sorry about not telling you.

”What the h.e.l.l is happening, Hans?”

Ariel pushed herself into a corner as if to stay out of his way.

”Trojan Horse broke up and split. Something's following you. It sure isn't bothering to hide, and it's right on your a.s.s. You and two others are all they've managed to tail. I'd say they're using you to try to find something bigger. If you don't lead them to us-and you won't, my friend-you're dust.” broke up and split. Something's following you. It sure isn't bothering to hide, and it's right on your a.s.s. You and two others are all they've managed to tail. I'd say they're using you to try to find something bigger. If you don't lead them to us-and you won't, my friend-you're dust.”

”We have broken this vessel into ten units and accelerated them in different directions outward from Leviathan,” the s.h.i.+p's voice said, almost irrelevantly at this point.

We are still more valuable as clues to where the big s.h.i.+ps are. They know us. They know our psychology; they figured it out right away, that we wouldn't deliberately sacrifice ourselves, that at some point a rescue would be attempted.

”Hold on a moment,” Hans said.

Ariel reached out a hand and Martin took it. ”He's going to sacrifice us,” she said.

”Show me something,” Martin told the s.h.i.+p, whatever kind of s.h.i.+p it was, whatever size. ”Show me the outside. What's following us.”

A small screen appeared against one wall. A white sphere filled the screen, pocked by glowing blue dots.

”Harpal has your tagalong's coordinates,” Hans said. ”We'll get it. You should see this, Martin. It is in-credible! in-credible!”

The white sphere blistered like a plastic ball hit by a torch. The blisters spread open and the sphere diminished. Curls of darkness blanked the whirling stars, streaming from the sphere, reaching toward them.

”Super acceleration,” the s.h.i.+p's voice said. Fields seized again, and Martin screamed. The scream was forbidden and died as a hollow glurp in his throat.

He heard and saw again an unknown time later.

Harpal's voice in his ears. ”We got your dog, Martin. Thought you should know.”

They have Gauge on Greyhound. Greyhound. My dog is waiting for me? No- My dog is waiting for me? No- ”We noached it straight to h.e.l.l,” Harpal said. ”It's a beautiful streamer of plasma about fifty thousand klicks long. Christ, these weapons are unbelievable! unbelievable!”

The craft following them had vanished. In its place wafted a wide, striated shower of glowing debris, each piece fanning out in a straight line, vapors like rays of sun through clouds.

Martin still held Ariel's hand. Slowly, she opened her eyes and looked at him with an expression of intense grief.

”You're safe for the time being,” Harpal said. ”You're really rocketing. Can't talk now. They haven't pinned us yet, but they're trying, wow are they trying...”

Silence, long minutes, before Martin realized the noach message had ended.

Martin let go of Ariel's hand.

”They're doing it, aren't they?” she said.

Martin nodded. ”They divided Trojan Horse Trojan Horse.”

”Who?”

”I didn't give any order. The moms. The s.h.i.+p itself.”

”We're out of the action. Hans screwed you over double,” she said.

Martin shook his head. ”What?”

”By not letting you do the Job with him. And by cutting all of us out of the decision.” She turned away. ”Will they pick us up?”

”I don't know.”

Magnified images: a rocky planet, Lawn, sparkling fire snaking over its surface. Greater magnification: strange superheated forests burning like carpets of magnesium, ribbons of shredded land rising as if cut from paper, something moving over the surface, dark and immense, not a shadow, more like a finger drawing chaos in the rock.

Another: Big City, the finger moving yet again. G.o.d's finger taking vengeance. G.o.d's finger taking vengeance.

Much smaller in the screen, another rocky world, not immediately familiar to Martin, this one dying in a particularly violent display, throwing chunks of itself into darkness as if being chewed apart by immense beasts.

”Blinker,” the s.h.i.+p's voice said. ”It will consume itself. Nothing living or ordered will survive.”

”How?” Martin asked. ”How can we do this?”

”Remote manipulation of forces within atomic nuclei,” the s.h.i.+p's voice said. ”Blinker is particularly vulnerable, as a noach station of immense power. Greyhound Greyhound has found the main weakness, and exploited it.” has found the main weakness, and exploited it.”

”How much can Greyhound Greyhound destroy?” Martin asked. destroy?” Martin asked.

”Uncertain. Defenses are not fully deployed.”

Sleep appeared, surrounded by immense seeds with brushy tops, much like those released from Puffball, reminding Martin of immune response in humans, although on an astronomical scale. ”Explain.”