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  “Champion,” a Merovingian said. “Helga and her people are here.”

  Dag drew his blaster and motioned to his guard team, twenty of the best warriors. They followed the messenger, and found Helga inside the chamber, surrounded by ten of his Merovingians.

  “Here are our weapons,” Helga said, pointing at the floor. A host of rifles, guns and grenades lay there.

  Dag eyed the woman. She was tall, for a woman, but her head didn’t reach as high as his shoulders. Of course, he was the tallest of the Merovingians, and the heaviest—and strongest, too, for that matter.

  Helga’s people wore spacesuits with bubble helmets. All their helmets were set back, exposing their heads. There were a mere fifteen of them.

  “Where is—?”

  Helga turned around and snapped her fingers. Two men dragged a dead Surbus and unceremoniously dumped him onto the floor.

  Dag came forward, squatted and grabbed the chin, lifting it, looking into the dead man’s eyes. It was Surbus all right. He let the head thud onto the floor and stood. “Come with me,” he told Helga. “Watch them,” he told the guard chief.

  Dag took Helga into a small side room, a cafeteria, by the looks of it. He pointed at a chair.

  She sat, watching him, puzzled, it seemed.

  Dag dragged a chair near, sitting in it so their knees touched.

  “I killed Surbus for you,” Helga said.

  She had harsh features and thick red hair. Her eyes were like lasers. She was a hard-hearted woman. She’d stabbed her leader from behind and seemed unaffected by it.

  “You worried I’ll try to stab you next?” she asked in an abrupt tone.

  “No. I’d break you in two if you tried.”

  She eyed him and nodded. “You look tough, are tough. I gave you your victory, right? Why are you angry with me? Would you have liked to see more of your people die?”

  “I’m asking the questions.”

  “So ask,” Helga said.

  “Why did you kill Surbus?”

  Helga nodded, and she relaxed the slightest bit. “He was going to get us all killed. He had his chance. Star Watch is delaying, though. Surbus couldn’t figure out why until Captain Maddox hailed him from the null region.”

  “Maddox is here?”

  “I don’t know about on the planet,” Helga said. “But he’s in the null region like I told you before.”

  “Surbus said he killed Maddox.”

  “Surbus lied, although he tried to kill him. In my opinion, Maddox is still out there.”

  “Is that why you stabbed Surbus?”

  “Look, tough guy, is that really troubling you?”

  “Yes,” Dag said.

  Helga’s features changed, and a haggard appearance entered her eyes. “You don’t know what it’s like living down here. It’s…okay for a few days. I mean, the nullity out there grinds you down. But after a week, it’s hell. After a month, you’re ready to scratch your eyes out to leave. The planet is supposed to protect us, and it obviously does—” She shook her head. “After Olmstead, and after moving the null region, it started driving all of us bonkers. That was when Surbus came up with his brilliant plan. It wasn’t bad, especially if Star Watch had fallen for it faster, or maybe if the Queen Bitch hadn’t sent you boys so quickly.”

  “Watch your mouth,” Dag said. “She is the Queen. She is royalty.”

  “Sure, sure. You’re in love with her,” Helga sneered.

  Dag reached out and slapped the woman across the face. It wasn’t a gentle slap, but a brutal example of his strength.

  Helga flew back out of her chair, landing on the floor. She arose slowly, with a red welt on her one cheek. She ran her fingers through her hair, glaring at him. Finally, she nodded, set up her chair and sat back down.

  “I got the message loud and clear,” Helga said. “I will not speak ill of the Queen.”

  Dag did not respond.

  Helga eyed him anew, and there was fear in her, but it didn’t dampen all her spirit. “Well, what’s next for me, for us?”

  “Do you know how to run the controls?”

  “Not as good as Phelps. He’s the brainiac around here. Surbus killed a few too many of the smart ones because they balked at his plan. Phelps could have played his hand better because of that, but he lacked the balls for it. If you want, I can tell Phelps to cooperate fully.”

  “You stabbed Surbus because you hate this place?”

  “That and I no longer believed we were going to get away with it. His idea was a long shot, but if it had worked, we’d all have been wealthy beyond belief. Although, in truth, only a handful of us would have ever spent the money. You could feel the greed affecting all of us.” She shrugged. “It’s better to follow the Queen. She knows what she’s doing and has a better chance of winning.”

  “Can you or Phelps shut down the planet’s auto-defenses?”

  “I don’t know. You’d have to ask him. Why?”

  Dag raised an admonitory finger. “You saved my Merovingians. I don’t applaud treachery, but it was useful to the Queen in this instance. You will remain at my side while I’m on the planet. You will warn me when it is appropriate. I will in turn tell the Queen of your sacrifice for her.”

  “It wasn’t treachery. Surbus was the traitor to the Queen. He just dragged us along with him. What I did was an act of loyalty, really. But thanks anyway. You won’t regret it, I promise.”

  Dag opened his mouth to ask more, but he thought that was enough for now. Helga was the ultimate mercenary. She loved money, clearly, but she could count the odds. Surbus had driven her into a corner. Killing her old leader must have seemed like the only way out. To then act so swiftly—Helga was a dangerous woman. Dag had a feeling the Queen would like her.

  Dag stood.

  Helga jumped to her feet.

  “Come,” he said. “You will show me Phelps, and I will put some questions to him.”

  ***

  Phelps turned out to be a scrawny runt of a man. He hunched his shoulders, needed to cut his long, scraggly hair and had the shiftiest eyes that Dag had ever seen.

  The runt stood before Dag, Rock and Helga. They were in the main control room, a spacious area with countless panels and screens sized for aliens considerably larger than humans. Phelps kept twining his fingers and shuffling his feet.

  “If you lie to me,” Dag said. “I’ll beat you. If you lie again, I’ll start breaking fingers.”

  Phelps shook his head. “Shit, man, I’m not going to lie to you. I want to leave this hellhole. I’m sick of this place. Tell me what to do, and I’ll do it.”

  “Can you shut down the planet’s auto-defenses?”

  Phelps’s eyes widened. He started nodding a second later. “I think I can. It will mean shutting down most of what I can control.”

  “You’re the one who moved the null region from 82 G. Eridani to here?” Dag asked.

  “That was me all right,” Phelps said.

  “How many people do you need to help you?”

  “The whole team would be best,” Phelps said.

  Dag rubbed his jaw, nodding shortly. He turned to Rock. “Bring the rest of them in here. Leave out the Koniggratz people.” He turned back to Phelps. “You’d better be right. I want the defenses down pronto.”

  Phelps nodded like a whipped cur desperate to please his master.

  “Are you bringing more people into the null?” Helga asked.

  “No questions from you,” Dag said. He turned to go, stopped and then looked at Helga. A premonition struck him. Had she attacked Surbus for the reasons she’d stated earlier, or had she made secret communications with Star Watch while aboard the Koniggratz and covertly switched sides?

  “Please,” Helga said. “What have I done wrong?”

  Dag drew a knife and stuck it in her throat. She gurgled, while Phelps screamed with terror. Helga slid off the knife and thumped onto the floor.

  Everyone in the room stared at Dag.

  “She was
a Star Watch spy,” he said, squatting, wiping the blade clean against her jacket. He stood, sheathing the knife. “She would have betrayed us at the worst possible moment. I wasn’t going to allow that.”

  No one said anything.

  It bothered Dag that he’d made an oath to Helga, but if he was right about her being a spy—he clapped his hands together. Phelps jumped. “Let’s get to it. We shut down the defenses. Then, I can call the Queen and tell her we’re ready for her arrival.”

  -59-

  The shuttle hatch opened, and Maddox led the way into the Ring Accelerator hangar bay. Ludendorff came next, with Meta behind to watch him.

  There was gravity, perhaps one-third Earth normal. None of their sensors had picked it up before. They knew, because they didn’t float, but could sail with the lightest jump. Each of them wore a photon suit, with extra oxygen tanks attached. Maddox had his blaster rifle. Ludendorff wore a belt with tools and scanners. Meta brought along an antigravity sled, pushing it ahead of her. The sled bore heavier equipment, what Ludendorff had said he might need.

  Their helmet lamps washed over the great hangar bay, with the outer shuttle lights also providing illumination.

  “I want to see the script again,” Ludendorff said.

  “Sure,” Maddox said, heading that way.

  Soon, the three of them stood before the huge curving script. It made no sense to Maddox, but it seemed vaguely familiar just the same.

  “Well?” Maddox asked five minutes later.

  “I can almost decipher it,” Ludendorff said. “It’s on the tip of my tongue, like an almost-familiar actor in a movie. You know you’ve seen him before, but you can’t quite place him. The script tantalizes me. I despise this. Why can’t I remember how to read it?”

  “Maybe it’s the nullity seeping through your suit making it harder to think,” Meta said.

  “That could be,” Ludendorff said. “I’m almost ready to take a stim, but I hesitate. Wait…something over here.” The professor sidestepped ten meters, staring at a new portion of script. “I…can…the Hormagaunt,” he said with glee. “This is a warning about the Hormagaunt.”

  “You’re sure?” Maddox asked. “You said it wasn’t Builder script before.”

  “I wasn’t wearing my photon gloves then. That must have dulled my mind. Oh, yes, I’m quite sure I understand this. See the high curve over there?”

  “I can’t read Builder script, no matter what type,” Maddox said. “So, just go ahead and tell me.”

  “You’re a Philistine, my boy. It shows most in times like this.”

  “What’s a Philistine?” Meta asked.

  “A brute disdainful of intellectual or artistic values,” Ludendorff said. “Goliath was a Philistine.”

  “You’re talking about the Bible giant?” Meta asked.

  “Correct,” Ludendorff said. “The one young David slew with a rock from his sling.”

  “We’re getting way off track,” Maddox said. “You said the script warns of the Hormagaunt. Does it give any specifics?”

  Ludendorff pointed a gloved finger. “The loops there, that’s a Builder death sign. The Hormagaunt is death. If I didn’t know better, I would think this is graffiti. I presume a Builder or Builder servant wrote this as an ancient warning.” Ludendorff turned to Maddox. “You cannot release the Hormagaunt into the universe. The graffiti is plain concerning the danger. This is like finding a skull and crossbones in some ancient human tunnel. It’s a warning to beware, to stay away.”

  “So, now we know,” Maddox said.

  “No!” Ludendorff said, stepping to the captain and clutching one of the suited arms. “You must forget your plan about releasing the Hormagaunt. That would be a worse disaster than letting Meyers acquire the mobile null region. That was your plan, was it not?”

  “I will free the Hormagaunt,” Maddox said loudly.

  “I don’t know if I can be party to that,” Ludendorff said. “Not after Alpha Centauri.”

  Maddox did not reply.

  “I built the super weapon that allowed you to attack the Ska.”

  “He remembers, Professor,” Meta said. “What about it?”

  “That was partly my fault, all those deaths. I do not want to be responsible for trillions upon trillions of people dying.”

  “Which is what happens if Meyers regains control of the null region,” Maddox said.

  “I think you’re wrong. I think we’re finding that the nullity of this place breaks people down, and in a rather rapid fashion.”

  “Suppose Meyers starts equipping her people with photon suits,” Maddox said.

  “Yes. That would give her more time,” Ludendorff said. “But in the end, the nullity is too powerful. I believe the nullity ate at Surbus’s loyalty to her. He wanted away from here.”

  “You found a weakness in the weapon,” Maddox said. “I like that. We can use the knowledge later.”

  “You’re dodging the point, my boy. We must forget about freeing the Hormagaunt.”

  “And leave everyone aboard Victory to die?” asked Maddox.

  “Sometimes, the cost for saving humanity is very high,” Ludendorff said.

  “I keep my bargains,” Maddox said, “but I haven’t forgotten that ultimately I defend humanity from all aliens.”

  “Noble sentiments, yes,” Ludendorff said. “But you’re only one man.”

  Maddox laughed. “You and I, we’re each one man. How many times have I heard you say that you’re the critical Methuselah Man, that without you, we’re all doomed?”

  “We’re talking about you, not me,” Ludendorff said primly. “You’re right, I am the Methuselah Man. I am the critical person in each endeavor.”

  “Please,” Meta said. “We’re bickering. Is that the nullity wearing us down at the worst possible moment?”

  Ludendorff pointed at the ancient graffiti. “The warning is clear. I’m merely passing it along to your husband, if he has the wit and moral courage to take it.”

  “Your warning is duly noted,” Maddox said in a tired voice. “Now, let’s find the control rooms. That’s why we came here. Any idea about where to look first, Professor?”

  “You’re going to heed the warning about the Hormagaunt?”

  “I’ll mull it over, how about that?” Maddox asked.

  “You’re stubborn. But for now…yes…let me see…” Ludendorff looked around the giant hangar bay. “The back hatches seem like the obvious beginning point. Let’s start there.”

  The Methuselah Man started for the rear hatches.

  Maddox made to follow, but Meta stopped him.

  “Private channel,” she said.

  Maddox clicked a switch with his tongue. “What is it?” he asked.

  “What are you going to do about the Hormagaunt?” Meta asked.

  “Exactly what I told it I’d do.”

  “You’re going to free it?”

  “Darling, do you trust me?”

  “With all my heart,” Meta said.

  “That should be enough for now.”

  Her visor aimed at his visor. “Yes,” she said, softly. “It is. But Maddox, I dearly hope you know what you’re doing.”

  He snorted. “That makes two of us. Now, come on. Let’s catch up before the ancient codger gets suspicious that we’re making plans without him.”

  -60-

  Dag watched Phelps and his team do their job. The entire command complex flashed with yellow lights first, and then red. Sirens began to blare. Giant screens flickered with life showing myriads of underground launch points and fusion cannon generators. One by one, those areas went from lit to dark.

  At last, Phelps conferred with several of his people before he meekly approached Dag.

  “Sir,” Phelps said, “as far as I understand the controls, the planetary defenses have shut down.”

  Dag nodded, and he clapped Phelps on a shoulder. “Can you operate the Inertialess Accelerator from here?”

  “Every time Surbus went through
to normal space, I opened the way from here,” Phelps said.

  “And you can tell where we are in normal space?”

  “If you mean where you’ll come out, I do, sir.”

  Dag nodded. “Can you send a message to the Queen?”

  “Uh…where is she, sir?”

  “Several light-years away.”

  “In the null, sir?” Phelps asked, surprised.

  “No, in normal space.”

  “Uh…how could I communicate with her from here then?”

  “That’s what I’m asking you. Is there a way to do it from here?”

  “Not that I know of,” Phelps said. “I mean, other than taking the Koniggratz through the ring and sending your message to the Queen while in the clear…”

  Dag glanced at Rock.

  “The Queen has the QX-Scanner,” Rock said. “I imagine she’d hear a message as fast as anyone if you sent it from the inner Oort cloud.”

  “How do you time opening the way for the Koniggratz to come back into the null region?” Dag asked the runt.

  “That’s just it, sir,” Phelps said. “We time it.”

  Dag took a deep breath as he rubbed his chin. He’d completed his task so far. He’d captured the planetary control room, thus effectively capturing the entire heavy planet. Now, he had to send word to the Queen that all was clear so she could come. But what if Star Watch picked up the message? Could Star Watch send more ships into the null region? Maddox was here. What was the man up to? Something against the Queen, that seemed obvious. Well, Surbus was dead. Helga was dead. Did any of the formerly independent people have anyone left with guts to act on their own? He would have to divide them and leave Merovingians down here to guard them. Should he remain, or should he captain the Koniggratz? Well, with Tobias dead, he didn’t have to worry about any of his men turning on him while he was away.

  Dag expanded his massive chest. The Queen had trusted him, and he had come through for her. He could try to follow Surbus’s lead… No! The Queen was going to win. Besides, he still wanted to hunt down Riker and pay the bastard back for his treachery. He dearly hoped Riker was with Maddox—