Above the Stars of El
by Justin StanchfieldFlesh gathered upon bone, blood coursing though newly-created veins. Usher writhed in pain, the discommunication from his greater-self already a fact, the vastness of his true mind sundered, leaving him alone with his questions and his rage.
"Why are you doing this?" his mind cried out to walls around him.
Surely you know. The echo whispered in his nerves. Your children are coming. You should be there to meet them when they arrive.
"I have no children!"
Can you be so unkind? You have children everywhere. It is your purpose.
"Then leave them alone." A pleading note wrapped Ushers words, a last attempt to sway the immutable mind he served. He was a tool. A thing to be used up and cast aside, no better than the creatures rushing toward him through the frigid depths of the solar system. He tried to focus his thoughts. "Please. For God's sake, leave them alone."
For God's sake? The silent voice seemed to laugh. Now that is an interesting turn of phrase.
Another searing bolt shot through him as the birth pangs neared their climax. Usher gasped, his nose and mouth sticky with the sour cloud of particles. His back arched until he thought his spine might snap, but the forces that brought him once again to life moved blithely onward, unconcerned with his pain. Usher screamed, then fell silent as blackness swept mercifully over him, the limits of his new, frail body breached.
Outside, little more than a speck against the unblinking stars, another ship drew close, only vaguely aware of the Leviathan awaiting its arrival.
Usher stood quietly at the ledge of the receiving node, staring out at the void, waiting for the shuttle that had broken free from the main ship to arrive. Memories of earlier visits flashed through his mind, a record of interference that stretched over millennia. Behind him, the walls faded to a milky opalescence, only to solidify again into a vast panorama of yellowed summer grass beneath a storm-laced sky. Lightning flashed, and the node shook with thunder a heartbeat later. Usher sighed. If he could have sent these unsuspecting fools a warning, or better still, whisked them off to some other portion of their reality, he would have. But that, he knew all too well, was forbidden. They had their destiny to meet.
So did he.
He moved with an athlete's easy balance, his body far stronger than first glance might suggest. His hair was long and dark, perfectly straight, his skin a rich olive brown. Dark eyes followed the little ship as it drifted toward him, strobes painting the angular hull with bold strokes of red and green. A burst of white vapor shot out from the small nozzles near the front of the craft as they surrendered momentum.
"Go back," he whispered. "Go back before it's too late."
Usher, the voice in his mind warned. Behave. Play your part.
"And if I refuse?"
The voice said nothing. They both knew any threat he made was only that, mere smoke on the wind. In the end, as always, he would comply. What choice did he have? He stepped closer to the ledge until the toes of his sandaled feet dangled over the abyss. A faint breeze rustled the charcoal gray robe he had selected, the materiel finer than any silk. He reached up and threw back the cowl that framed his face. A black sash tied the gauzy fabric around his waist, the only ornamentation he wore, the understatement a subtle message in itself. He had no need to impress with finery. Gold and gems might once have wooed these creatures, but now, he sensed, they were hungry for more than baubles.
A man's voice, amplified and bearing the unmistakable crackle of radio transmission, interrupted the stillness. "Unidentified vessel, this is International Spaceship Pacifica. We come in peace. Repeat, we come in peace."
"Be welcome," Usher said. A faint smile creased his lips. He could imagine how shocked the little crew would be to hear his reply out loud, as if he sat beside them in the cabin of the crude vehicle. Until now he had remained silent, ignoring their endless stream of messages, letting the tension build. "Spaceship Pacifica, be advised, I am ready for docking. Please dampen your engines before I bring you aboard."
The last was mere showmanship. He could easily have reached inside the metal walls of the craft and simply brought the crew to him, but he sensed bringing their entire ship into the node would be more effective. How well he understood these people. And why not? Despite his earlier protestations, they were his children. Ten thousand generations might have passed since his last visit, but the basic template remained unchanged. He would have seen to that on his last visit.
"Unidentified vessel," the man's voice continued. "We weren't certain you were receiving our transmissions."
"I read you loud and clear," Usher replied in perfect, unaccented English. Let them wonder how he knew their languages. "Be aware there will be a slight discontinuity prior to docking. This is unavoidable."
Before the shuttles pilot could respond, Usher closed his eyes and concentrated on the vessel, his mind bridging the gap. Around him, the ledge expanded, telescoping outward until the node now took in the little ship. An acrid stench of partially bunt fuel and hot metal filled the air, the scent of the ship itself. Usher wrinkled his nose in distaste. Such primitive technology. How brave these creatures were to venture outward in such flimsy means, so willing to sacrifice their own short lives for the cause of their dreams. Yet, hadn't he chosen their ancestors for curiosity and courage?
Ah, the voice whispered in his mind. There is that pride we have been waiting for.
"Be still," Usher scolded under his breath. "Our guests are ready to disembark."
A grinding, mechanical din echoed across the chamber as the shuttle's thick outer door swung to the right. One after another, a trio of figures clambered down a short ladder to the ledge, their movements hampered by the bulky suits that covered them head to foot, their faces hidden behind dark visors. Usher waited until they all faced him, then strolled calmly to where they stood.
"Welcome," he said in a loud, melodic voice. He permitted himself a slight bow, then advanced within an arm's length of the trio. Graceful as a dancer, he crossed his hands on his chest, a gesture of goodwill. "Please, call me Usher."
The newcomers stood watching him, unsure what to do. It was so easy for him to read their thoughts, their emotions as palpable to him as rain on a summer afternoon. He sensed confusion, fear certainly, even awe. He pushed deeper into the swirling cloud of thoughts, deftly separating the personalities as he studied them. Two were males, he was certain of that. The third was more difficult to comprehend, the textures more subtle. He thought she was female, though she was every bit as bold and determined as her cohorts. But she was also more reserved, more cognizant of the risks they faced.
Good, Usher thought. He sensed a kindred spirit in her, the tearing interplay of desire and fear so like his own. Without warning, her mind grew wary and drew back, as if she had sensed his presence. Impressed, and more than a little surprised at such a complex reaction, Usher withdrew as well. One way or another, she would be the one to deal with.
"My children." He let his smile broaden, then lowered his hands. "Feel free to remove your protective gear. I assure you, the environment here is perfectly matched to your physiology."
The trio made no movement, standing as if they were statues or overgrown dolls waiting for some giant hand to animate them. Only the sound of their breath, augmented by pumps until they sounded more machine than animal, betrayed the fact that they were alive. Finally, the middle of the three stepped forward, then ponderously raised its hands to its face and pressed thumbs and fingers against the mirrored visor. With a snap, the faceplate swung upward into the helmet, revealing the face behind the mask.
Ah, Usher thought, pleased with himself that he had been correct about her being female. Blond hair peeked out from under a tight-fitting mesh cap, the fabric defining a heart-shaped face. Brilliant blue eyes met his, her gaze direct. He studied her. Young, though hardly a child. Strong. Confidence tempered by the natural wariness he had noted earlier. She had a firm mouth, a smallish nose, and pale skin utterly devoid of facial hair. A faint but unmistakable aroma drifted from her, the scent pleasantly warm, so reminiscent of the ancient savannah that had fostered her kind. Another scent added a more dangerous undertone. She was most decidedly fertile.
Irresistible, isn't she? the voice inside his head taunted. Usher struggled not to betray the storm of emotion the woman had unwittingly released within him, the urges buried deep within his artificially tempered genome. Unable to turn away, he watched her draw a deep breath, no doubt testing the air.
After a moment, she returned his smile, then said in a clear, somewhat dusky voice, "My name is Alissa Kline. This is Miguel Chaco, our co-pilot." She nodded to the figure on her left, and then to her right. "And this is Dr. Peter McGrath."
The men, forced by her lead, opened their own visors. Usher studied them.
"A pleasure, gentlemen," he said. The pilot, Chaco, was small and compact, dark like himself. Physically, Usher decided, he would be the most dangerous of the trio. The other man was older, his face broad, somewhat florid, pale gray eyes capped by thick brows. The reek of metabolized alcohol and other, more complex chemicals tainted the rivulets of sweat running from beneath the mesh cap he also wore. Still, his expression was one of quick, ruthless intelligence. A creature to be watched carefully, Usher told himself.
So like their progenitor, eh? the silent voice teased. Usher blinked, determined to drive the other mind away. The others noticed the brief distraction and stared at him. To put them at ease he said, "I'm sure you have a thousand questions, which I will gladly answer, but first I assume you would like to contact your comrades and assess them of the situation?"
"Yes, thank you," Chaco said. He stepped away from the others, out of Usher's earshot, and began speaking into his helmet microphone. The other man, McGrath, took a long, sweeping look at the storm-decked prairie that ranged outward from the ledge. A rustle of wind sent the tall grass swaying nearly flat to the ground, the scent of approaching rain thickening. McGrath took a deep breath, then grinned.
"Quite a display," he said.
"Thank you," Usher replied with forced humility. "I thought it somehow appropriate."
"Then you have encountered humans before?"
"Yes," Usher said without hesitation. "Many times, but it was long ago."
"When will we meet the others of your kind?" the woman, Alissa, asked. Usher stiffened at the unchecked suspicion in her tone. Did she suspect his true nature? Again, he found himself impressed by her.
"By my kind," he asked, "I assume you mean homo sapiens? I am, after all, genetically a cousin."
"Oh?" Alissa's eyes narrowed. "I had assumed you were wearing some form of illusion to put us at ease."
"Hardly." With a theatric gesture, Usher held out both arms, letting the loose sleeves fall back, then turned his hands over, exposing the tracery of blueish veins beneath the skin. "Cut me and do I not bleed?"
"Then there are other humans aboard?" she asked, still unconvinced.
"No," Usher admitted. "Not at present."
"But, this ship? It's so immense..." McGrath said, his words trailing off in earnest confusion. "Surely you're not the only occupant."
"Ah, yes..." Usher paused. "What you see of this ship, as you put it, is but the tip of the iceberg. Is that the correct phrase? I'm somewhat new to your language and afraid I don't fully understand all its nuances." He smiled disarmingly to draw attention from the bold-faced lie.. "But to answer your question, yes, I am the sole occupant at the moment. You must understand that what you have seen is only part of my sum total. I am the ship, and the ship is me, or so I am lead to believe. There may be other forces at play that even I don't fully understand."
Be careful, Usher, the voice warned. You tread on dangerous ground. Alissa and McGrath stared at him, their disbelief plain. Chaco rejoined the little group, frowning as he glanced back and forth between his two companions. "Did I miss something?"
"Yeah," Alissa said quietly, her gaze never laving Ushers face. "You missed plenty, but I'll be damned if I know what."
The three humans returned to the shuttle to remove their heavy spacesuits and, Usher was certain, to run another battery of scans on him. He smiled wryly as he tended the small fire he had kindled, the bed of coals ash-white. Above the banked flames, neatly spitted, half a dozen small birds roasted, drops of grease spattering as they browned. He turned and gave the thick, porridge-like stew simmering in a copper pot a quick stir, then added a handful of herbs and wild onions to the mix. The smell of the aromatic melange was so rich it nearly overwhelmed him. He could have simply called the food into being, but somehow found the process of cooking calming, a connection between his now and those lost times when he had earlier met this race.
How long had it been since he had last worn a physical body, he wondered? Flashes of memory taunted him. So many worlds, and always, the outcome the same. He, in his thousand guises, would offer gifts too precious to refuse, and with them, like untended children, the unwitting recipients would run amok.
"Why does it matter so much to you?" he asked the dome of sky above him. The ragged clouds remained damningly silent, the voice in his head absent. It was frustrating, this sense that he possessed an almost infinite reservoir of knowledge, and all but a handful of it was denied to his current self.
Scowling, he thrust his stirring stick into the fire. A cloud of ash erupted outward, dark streamers dissipating on the breeze. Nearby, he heard a cough. Startled, Usher jumped to his feet. Alissa stood several paces behind him, smiling.
"I didn't hear you coming," he said a bit too quickly.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sneak up on you like that." Her smile broadened, her blue eyes deepened by the skys reflection. "Somehow, I don't think you are used to being surprised by anything."
"Ah, but I am constantly being surprised," he said disarmingly and returned her smile. Usher let his gaze rove over her. She wore a blue-gray tunic over dark pants bloused into tall, black boots. Out of the bulky E-suit, she was stunningly attractive. A narrow waist flared to softly rounded hips, her legs long despite her short stature. Full breasts that not even the unflattering uniform could hide drew his eyes, and he had to force himself not to stare.
"Where," he asked, eager to move the conversation, "are your companions?"
"They'll be here in a few minutes."
Usher nodded, his expression pleasantly bland. She was stalling for them, sent out to distract him while they conducted their tests. He didn't mind, would in fact have been disappointed if they hadn't made the attempt. But if they had known how effective their distraction was, they would have been stunned.
Why not let yourself try, the inner voice said, returning with a vengeance. You both want that, don't you?
Despite the cool breeze, sweat covered his forehead. He stepped away from the fire and gestured toward a low stone table setting on the grassy ledge, various bowls and utensils already laid upon it. "Won't you sit down? Supper is not quite finished."
Alissa nodded, then walked to the table and eased down to one of the granite tufts that ringed it. She took a long, appreciative breath.
"It smells delicious," she said. "What is it?"
"Eh?" Usher sat down opposite of her, and rested an arm on the polished slab. "I'm not sure it has a name, but it was a favorite of the northern tribes. Tell me, does the ice still cover the greater part of your world?"
"Ice?" Alissa blinked, obviously startled by the question. "You mean you actually visited Earth during our last Ice Age?"
He shrugged. "As I said, it has been quite some time since I saw your planet."
"That's incredible." She leaned across the table, her eyes suddenly so intense she seemed almost manic. Usher felt the burst of questions seething in her mind. Inadvertently, he realized, he had stumbled across her passion.
"That period interests you?" he said, gently leveraging her thoughts.
"Interests me? Its my field of study! I'm a socio-archeologist, my primary expertise centered around emergent intelligence." She laughed self-consciously. "Crap, that sounds pompous, doesn't it?"
"Not at all." Smiling, he cradled both elbows on the stone table so that he could look directly at her. "Tell me, how does a - what did you call it, a socio-arckeologist - come to be on a spaceship?"
"You want the long story or the short?" She laughed again. He found the nervous mannerism intoxicating. "My doctoral thesis was based on the idea that all sapient races will pass through certain predictable phases. Unfortunately, after I earned my degrees I discovered there wasn't a lot of call for people who specialized in social structures that hadn't existed for millennia. On a whim, I applied for this expedition, and to my complete surprise, was accepted. Seems my work had struck a note with the selection committee."
Usher continued to watch her as she launched into a more detailed explanation, nodding politely, though in truth most of what she said was mere gibberish to him. It was her thoughts that drew him, her excitement so bright it seemed to float around her like a halo.
You could have her, the inner voice goaded. Usher tried to ignore the thought, but couldn't, the idea of her white skin lying naked before him too enticing to blot out. The breeze shifted and again he caught a whiff of her musk, the flavor of it in perfect concert with the grasslands around them. His eyes locked on her as she continued to speak in rapid bursts.
"You actually saw neolithic humans?" She shook her head in wonder. "What I wouldn't give for a chance like that."
"Hmm?" Usher blinked, realized he had been daydreaming, then came immediately back to the present. "I did far more than see them. I lived among them, just as I had their distant ancestors."
Alissa's eyes widened. "How far back in time are we talking?"
"You would be shocked if I told you." Usher smiled warmly, then let his hand fall to the table, his fingers within easy reach of hers. He ached to touch her, ached to feel her heat against his body. A shudder passed through him, and he reluctantly drew his hand back. How would she react if she knew he had done more than simply live among her most distant forebears? Usher swallowed, his throat suddenly dry. "Tell me, how long has humanity been plying the stars?"
"Not long." Alissa sighed. "To be perfectly honest, this is the first manned expedition to reach the inner Kuiper Belt, and it almost didn't happen. For decades we've been receiving what we thought were radio signals from one of the minor planets past the orbit of Pluto."
"Oh?" Now his curiosity was piqued. "What did you find?"
"Nothing." A darkness spread across her face, and after a moment she shook her head. "We never found anything. The world is an iceball, hardly more than a comet. We were on our way home when we picked up the first traces of your ship and diverted..."
Her voice trailed off. Usher sank back, wondering. Had he - or more to the point, the entity that had created him - baited these creatures? Was he responsible for drawing them so far from their home planet? He started to say more, but before he could, heard footsteps approaching. He looked over his shoulder as Chaco and McGrath strode toward them from the shuttle.
Like Alissa, the men had changed into day uniforms, gray tunics over dark pants; but unlike her, they seemed aloof, almost hostile, the set of their backs and shoulders so rigid Usher could only wonder what their tests had revealed. He made a note to move cautiously. Smiling broadly, he rose and made a slight bow.
"Gentlemen," he said. "I'm so glad you could join us."
"Thank you," Miguel Chaco replied. He shot Alissa a knowing glance, but said nothing. Instead, he stopped just upwind of the smouldering fire and turned a slow circle, his head tilted back as he studied the cloud-streaked horizon that faded slowly to blackness where the node met vacuum. "I have to confess, this is nothing like I expected."
"Oh?" Usher feigned innocence. "And what did you expect to find?"
"I don't know." Chacos heavy shoulders bunched into a question. "Tubes. Wires. Shielding walls and reactors, maybe. But not this."
"Are you disappointed?"
"Disappointed? Hardly. But I am curious. How do you achieve such a detailed illusion?"
"Ah, that. As I said earlier, I will happily share the boring details with you. But first, let us eat, yes? I for one am famished."
Usher stepped away from the low table, walked to the fire, then came back with the steaming copper pot. Sticky flecks of broth splashed over the rim as he set it down on the stone, then went back for the birds hanging above the coals. He knelt, taking his time, eavesdropping on the trio as he worked. He suppressed a smile as he heard Alissa and the others discussing him behind his back.
"What's the problem?" she asked, irritated. "You look like your shorts are too tight."
"The problem isn't what we found out," Chaco said. "It's what we didn't."
"Alissa," McGrath said darkly. "When we tried to make a radar map of this place, our returns failed."
"Meaning?"
"Meaning," Chaco said, once again taking control of the whispered conversation, "That either our host has some way of utterly masking the interior of his ship from our probes, or that we are no longer inside a ship. If we take our instruments at face value, we are actually in the middle of some god-damned prairie."
Usher rose, spit in hand, and carefully returned to the table. He placed the birds down on top of the copper pot, then motioned everyone to sit. He choose the granite tuft nearest the ledge, then nodded at the food. "Please. Help yourselves. I hope it is to your liking. And, Mr. Chaco, I believe we were discussing the illusion of this node, as you put it."
Chaco paused in mid-reach for one of the simple wooden bowls and stared wide-eyed at Usher. "Yes, I did ask that."
"Good." Usher picked up a ladle, filled one of the bowls with the stew, then set it in front of the suspicious pilot. "To answer your question, this is not an illusion. What you glimpsed from your ship is only part of what exists here. This node is connected via a hyper-shunt to several higher dimensions."
"Higher dimensions?" McGrath suddenly looked pale. "How can you do that?"
"The explanation is somewhat technical, but I will be most glad to show you the formulae later." A wave of guilt washed through him. How defiant he had been when he argued with his over-self, and now here he sat, blithely revealing everything he had sworn to conceal. Angry with himself, Usher filled the rest of the bowls, handed them around, then lifted a crude earthen jug from beside the stone slab. He removed the clay stopper from the jugs throat. The heady scent of yeast and ginger-root spread around the table. He smiled disarmingly. "Who would like something to drink?"
"What is it?" Alissa frowned slightly.
"Honey mead. Again, a great favorite among the northern tribes." Usher turned to face McGrath. "I think you will find the flavor interesting."
McGraths face, pale only moments ago, now flushed, beads of sweat popping out on his forehead. Usher could sense his burning desire for the alcohol within the potent beverage. He actually licked his lips, but gave his head a quick shake, his fleshy jowls swinging with the movement.
"No, thank you," McGrath said, his voice suddenly thick. "I don't drink alcohol."
"Oh?" Usher tried to sound innocent, but was secretly pleased that his suspicion had been correct. McGrath was an addict, but struggled to hide the fact from his companions. Useful knowledge, he decided.
Admit it, Usher, the voice in his mind laughed. You enjoy tempting these poor fools. Why don't you just give in and do what we all know you want to do?
"No!" Usher grimaced, the word slipping out. Alissa stared at him, shocked at the outburst.
"What did you say?"
"Eh?" Usher straightened, embarrassed that his control had broken so badly. Smiling, he tried to cover his mistake. "I'm afraid I'm still struggling with your language. Forgive me." He finished ladling out the food. They made small talk as they ate, the tension rippling just below the surface of every conversation. By the time the meal had ended, even Usher was exhausted. He bid his guests farewell, then watched as they returned to their shuttle for the night, staring at Alissa until she vanished inside the airlock.
We all know you will give in eventually, the voice whispered teasingly. Why fight it?
"Why?" Usher shuddered. "As if I had a choice."
Night spread across the grasslands, the shadows merging until the entire sky was covered with stars. Reeling slightly, Usher stumbled toward a low, conical hut made of flat rocks stacked one upon another. Flickering yellow light came from within, more wood smoke and the scent of burning tallow rising through the hole at the structures apex. His head throbbed, partially from too much of the honey-beer, partially from sheer exhaustion. Ducking low, he squeezed through the narrow door.
A brief falling sensation swept over him, and instead of finding himself inside a cramped, smoke-filled cell, he stood at the edge of a deep, beehive-shaped chamber, the walls glowing softly blue. It was warm within the chamber, with no trace of the grasslands' chill. Usher sighed. He walked across the floor, the material beneath his feet spongy, yielding to his weight as if he stood on a carpet of feathers. Relieved, he sank down upon it, stretched out, and was almost immediately asleep.
Dreams flitted through his mind, a confusing torrent of images. He moaned softly as one after another the strange juxtapositions piled upon his sleeping mind. Tossing and turning, Usher struggled against the visions but could not break free. Now he walked through the twisting, muddy streets of some Bronze Age village, only to turn the corner and find himself strolling past the tiled palaces of a great Asian city. Even more exotic vistas waited beyond the next turn, and the ones after that as he moved from planet to planet in the space of a heartbeat. Quixotic languages assaulted him, the mouths they issued from far from human. How many of these were real events and how many mere imagination, Usher wondered, his physical body a slave to chemistry in his brain.
"Leave me alone," he cried, delirious. "Why can't you leave me alone?"
In answer, a disembodied face loomed out of the foggy background, the proportions massive. Usher moaned in fear as the laughing phantom filled his mind's eye. A sneer flickered across the things enormous features. Leave you alone? it asked. How can I do that? No matter what the question, the answer is always the same.
"Go away." Trembling overtook him, and despite the chambers warmth, he felt chilled. Vaguely aware that he was awake, Usher curled in a tight ball upon the spongy floor, knees drawn to his chest. Tears streamed down his face, leaving damp trails across his dark skin. Deep convulsions ran through him as the dreams faded, the memory of the monstrous face stealing the heat from his blood. He squeezed his eyes shut, but still the memory lingered, those piercing eyes as potent as javelins, the face he had seen his own.
Blood-red light spilled over the prairie, a dawn so garish Usher could only wonder if his subconscious mind had affected the weather in this little universe he had created. He stood near the remains of the fire, the damp smell of dew-covered ash hanging in the air. He had put on a quilted outer robe, the thick garment hanging nearly to the frosted ground. In his left hand he held a tightly wound scroll. He watched Chaco and McGrath descend the short ladder from the shuttle. They slowly made their way toward him. They too had put on heavier clothing, gray hooded jackets covered with zippered pockets. Alissa, he saw with a mixture of disappointment and relief, was not with them.
"Good morning, gentlemen," Usher said, his breath visible in the morning chill. "I trust you slept well?"
"Very well," Chaco said. From the deep circles beneath his eyes, Usher suspected he was lying. He glanced at McGrath. The man looked positively miserable, his color drained until only the reddish blotch at the tip of nose showed any signs of circulation. He was shivering, his breath leaving little spurts of white that hung in front of him.
"And Alissa?" Usher continued blandly. "Is she well?"
"Yes. She's fine," Chaco replied. Usher had the distinct impression the pilot was being evasive. "She had some work to catch up on."
"Ah, of course." Usher made a slight bow, then smiled. "But what kind of host am I? Let's get warm around the fire, shall we?"
A flash of amazement washed over the newcomers faces as they glanced at the fire pit . What had been dull ash only a heartbeat earlier now bloomed with fire, branches as thick as Usher's wrist snapping and crackling as the flames devoured them. At the edge of the fire, perched precariously on a flat stone, an enameled coffee pot now simmered, brown foam bubbling out the pointed spout. McGrath's jaw dropped open.
"How did you do that?"
"Eh?" Usher tried to look surprised, as if he had expected the pair of humans to fully understand the minor miracle he had just performed. "A thousand pardons. Sometimes, I forget myself. The technique is really rather simple, once you understand the basic concept." Still smiling, he handed McGrath the scroll. "This should help explain the principles involved."
McGrath took the scroll, but made no move to open it. Still feigning innocence, Usher knelt down by the fire, found a pot holder laying on the matted grass, and retrieved the coffee pot. Steam hissed out as he tipped the heavy pot and filled three tin cups resting on the cold ground. He handed one to Chaco, and another to McGrath. On an impulse, he twisted the molecules within the liquid, adding a strong dollop of brandy to the older man's cup. McGrath took a sip, his eyebrows shooting up at the unexpected bounty. Usher raised his own cup in salute.
"To discovery," he said. Again, the guilt he had felt the night before slammed against him, all his brave protests tossed aside in a glaring bout of showmanship. Why did he care if he impressed these creatures?
It is your nature, the voice in his mind whispered. Give in. Show them the miracles they want.
The answer did little to comfort him. To bide time he took a sip of his own coffee, careful not to scald his lips on the metal cup. The flavor was odd, bitter with rich overtones he had not encountered before. He frowned. Like their language, the memory of coffee had been drawn from the collective mind of the ship's crew during their approach, though Usher had no recollection of it. That his current incarnation was incomplete, he had no doubt. How else could he explain the gaps in his memory? He felt like a book that had been torn apart, then hastily stuffed back together with no regard to the order the pages took.
His own memory began with his awakening in the birth chamber only days before, and yet he had access to a store of knowledge that stretched across hundreds of thousands of years, back to the time when humanity had been little more than clever animals. Usher, or another of his incarnations, had spent generations among those frightened creatures, guiding them, teaching them, sleeping with as many of their females as he could to pass on the carefully tailored genes that would push them to the brink of extinction and then beyond, giving them eventual dominion over their harsh world. When he had called these people his children, he had meant it in a literal sense. Had it not been for himself and the others with him, no doubt humanity would have become just another forgotten branch on the primate lineage. He paused with the cup halfway to his lips, shocked at what his memory had just revealed.
The others with him?
Usher stiffened, the revelation. so clear he was aghast that he had missed it before. All through history, at every turning point he had guided this species through, he had not acted alone. Others of his kind had been with him, others who did not share his personal reluctance.
What did you expect, the voice whispered in his mind. You have always been too much the philosopher to trust completely.
"Usher?" Miguel Chaco asked, his brows furrowed. "Are you all right?"
"Yes," Usher said, snapping back to the moment. "I... I was reminiscing, that's all." Drops of hot liquid struck his sandaled feet, his hand shaking so badly that coffee sloshed over the cups rim. Quickly, he steadied it with his other hand, ignoring the searing pain as his palm met the tin cup. Behind him, so soft it might have been a wildcat stalking an unsuspecting bird, he heard footfalls in the frosted grass. He shut his eyes and fought down a wave of nausea, then turned to see a woman standing on the other side of the fire pit.
"Brother?" she said sweetly. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your guests?"
Mcgrath and Chaco stared open-mouthed, too stunned to speak. Usher understood how they felt. The woman, like himself, was dark, her hair and eyebrows jet black, her skin a deep olive brown. She was short and softly rounded, with broad hips that exaggerated the curve of her waist. Heavy breasts lay barely concealed beneath the simple white shift she wore, her nipples erect in the cold air. She appeared to be no more than twenty, but her eyes, like his own, seemed ageless. Swaying gracefully, floating more than walking, she circled the snapping fire and took the cup from his hand, then wrapped her fingers around his. They felt as hot to his touch as the coffee had been.
"Who the hell are you?" McGrath blurted.
Usher struggled to control his raging emotions as another onslaught of memory flooded through him, the centuries ripped away to reveal histories he had only suspected. He drew a deep breath, and then as bravely as he could, said, "Gentlemen, may I present my sister, Aset."
Furious, Usher returned to the stone hut and ducked under the lintel. This time, however, rather than finding himself within the quiet sleeping chamber, he now stood at the center of a vast silver toroid, the walls blurring into a milky haze as they curved upward. He raised his face and shouted.
"Why are you doing this?"
No answer came. Shaking with rage, he spun around, hoping to find someone, anyone, to vent his anger on. Far across the circular chamber, at the very edge of his vision, he saw another figure. Fists clenched at his sides, Usher stormed toward them. At once, the distant figure started toward him as well. Usher scowled, but quickened his pace, his blood burning for the fight. The other figure also walked faster, the distance between them falling away. Cold mist rolled down from the high ceiling and enveloped him, its touch icy against his skin. He ignored it, too angry to think of anything beyond throwing himself at the approaching creature and tearing it apart with his bare hands. The further he went, the more his rage deepened until he felt consumed by it, reveling in the sheer power his fury lent. All his frustration, all his pent up fear and indignation now focused on what he would do when they clashed.
As swiftly as it had descended, the mist drew away. Usher stopped and stared, dumbfounded by what he saw. Standing not ten paces in front of him, staring back across the quicksilver floor, was a mirror image of himself. He raised his right hand, and immediately the figure raised its own, mirroring his every movement, nothing but an illusion. Anther cloud rolled past. When it had gone, Usher stood alone.
He began to cry. In his mind he heard laughter, peels of mirth cast at his expense. Dejected, he slunk away from the center of the glistening tube, back toward the tiny door. He squeezed through it, his hair and robes soaked from the fog and his own perspiration. Shivering, he stood in the cold dawn, soaking in the feeble warmth from the rising sun. He wrapped his arms around his chest, but the chill would not go away.
"Usher?"
He turned. Alissa waited at the edge of the crude stone hut, her eyes narrowed with concern. He sensed confusion in her thoughts, deep emotions warring against themselves. Fear. Desire. A thirst for hidden knowledge and the willingness to pay any price to quench it. Her pulse quickened, her physical senses heightened. Usher recoiled, shocked at what he saw, certain that he felt Aset's hand in the human woman's awakened lust. Or were they his own needs that drove her, his unconscious mind taking the advantage? He knew from experience how potent his nightmares could be once unleashed.
"Go away," Usher croaked, not with malice but with fear. "For the love of whatever you believe in, go away before it's too late."
She made no move to leave. Instead, she stepped closer and put her arms around him. He wanted to pull away, but didn't have the strength. Usher drew her closer to himself, painfully aware of her heat, her body so warm against his own. How desperately he wanted this woman. How easy it would be to take her now. One simple thought, a mere push of emotion and she would melt into him, their mutual hunger overwhelming. His hands spread across her shoulder blades, tracing the muscles beneath as he stroked her back. He felt her fingers exploring as well, her flesh trembling against his. Slowly, as if in a dream, her eyes closed and she bent her head to kiss him. Blind to all but his searing need, Usher opened his lips to receive hers.
He stopped, shocked at what he was doing. He wanted her so badly, but not like this, not as an unwitting puppet. Furious with himself, he pushed Alissa away. She stood blinking in the ruddy light, confused by what had just happened.
"Where am I?" she asked, her voice barely audible.
"Alissa..." He opened his mouth, but the words wouldn't come. Usher felt as if the fog had returned and now rolled within his mind. He shook his head to clear it. It was time he told her everything.
"Alissa, listen to me. You need to go. You and your friends. Get back to your ship and leave."
"But, why?"
"Why?" A harsh laugh tore out his throat. Where to begin? "I'm not what I seem. None of this is."
"Then who are you?"
"I'm..." Before he could say more, pain exploded within his skull, raced down his spine, crushed every nerve. He felt his bones pulled apart at the joints, felt his flesh singed from an inferno blast of heat. His back arched in agony until it seemed his spine would snap. From somewhere far away he heard a scream, but had no idea if it was his own or Alissa's. Unable to stand, his knees buckled and Usher toppled to the frost-covered ground. He heard his body strike, felt the hard thud, then, mercifully, felt nothing as blackness swept him away.
Soft thighs pillowed his head. Usher lay, eyes closed, too weak to rise. Sharp fingernails traced loose circles across his cheek, the motion faintly seductive. Aching in every joint, he lost himself in the simple balm of her touch. Hesitantly, he drew a breath. The air was cool and damp. It was still morning, he thought. At least he hadn't been unconscious for more than a few hours. He took a deeper breath, daring his aching ribs not to shatter. The scent of exotic flowers and myrrh drifted in his nose, and buried beneath them an even stronger, more ancient perfume, the wildness of it all too familiar. He forced one eye open.
Aset tilted her head down and smiled at him. "So, brother, you decided to live after all?"
He winced. "Where are the humans?"
"They have gone back to their shuttle for a few hours." Her voice was dark, her accent so alluring that he hadn't realized until now they were speaking in the Old Tongue, the language so ancient its origin was all but lost. Aset laughed softly. "They are quite sophisticated, these children of ours. The larger of the men wanted to take you with him. He suspected you had what he called an epileptic seizure. I told them that you have always been prone to such fits, and that it would pass."
"I'm surprised you didn't let them take me."
"I considered it. But what might their scanning machines have shown? I think it best they learn the truth slowly, don't you?"
He tried to rise, but she gently pushed him back to her lap, her long, straight hair tickling his face as it swept past. Annoyed, he brushed it away. The ache in his shoulders sharpened with the motion, and he winced with the new pain. Again, Aset laughed.
"Why do you fight it so hard, brother?"
"Why don't you fight it all?"
"Because," she said, "I accept my destiny."
"Even when millions die because of it?"
"What is death?" she asked. "Old forms die to make way for the new. It has always been this way. Come, brother, play your part. Accept what can not be altered."
"Accept?" Usher forced his eyes fully open. The sunlight tore at his retinas, but he managed to keep them open. Clumsily, he rolled over and somehow managed to push himself up until he sat opposite of Aset, staring directly into the depths of her glass-bright eyes. "You want me to accept that I am a murderer? A fiend? That wherever I go, death follows?"
"You always were the dramatic one." Aset sighed. "Are not the gifts we bring worth the cost? Without us, what would they be? Little more than animals. We gave them civilization. We created them."
"At what price?"
Aset shrugged languidly. "I am a pragmatist. It is these creatures' destiny to learn. It is ours to teach them."
He stared at her, holding her gaze, surprised at how little he could penetrate her inner thoughts. How powerful was this creature, this woman who would be a goddess? His sister. Usher shook his head. "Do you really think it so simple?"
"Simple?" Aset raised one perfect eyebrow, the arch elegant above her wide, dark eyes. "Nothing is ever simple. But, I will tell you this much. In the end, you will relent, just as you always have. What choice is left?"
Brooding, Usher walked along the ledge, his head down. To his left lay the wind-torn grasslands, the sky a hemisphere of pale autumn blue. To his right lay eternity. Stars blazed in the stillness, so bright he felt as if he might push his arm through the invisible barrier that kept the vacuum at bay and drag a handful of them back inside. Closer, near enough that he could make out the structure of the primitive machine in the flash of its running lights, the newcomers ship drifted, matching pace. He stared at it, amazed that the people within had trusted their fragile lives to something so crude, so dangerous. What was it that drove them? What curiosity did they possess and he himself lack? Were they the true masters here, the ultimate lords of creation?
The voice in his head said nothing.
Farther away, behind the crest of a low rise, he heard someone call his name.
"Usher? Wait!"
He turned. in time to see Alissa crest the hill. She jogged toward him, her pace redoubled. For a moment he considered throwing himself off the ledge, but knew that would solve nothing. Come the next dawn another copy of this body would have been created and the dance would move on as if nothing had happened. She caught up and stood panting, her cheeks flushed from the exercise.
"Your sister said you had gone," Alissa said, out of breath.
"And you were afraid she meant permanently?" He smiled bitterly. "Better that I should have, but I am too much the coward."
She brushed a strand of hair back from her eyes and stood watching him, her breathing slowly calming. When the silence lengthened, she said with forced carelessness, "I wanted to apologize for what happened earlier. About the kiss, I mean. I don't know what came over me."
"I came over you," Usher said softly. He broke off, ashamed at himself for his part in the deception. For a heartbeat he stood looking at her, then turned again toward the emptiness that waited outside the node. "Where are Chaco and McGrath?"
"They're with Aset."
A shudder passed through him. "Then they are already lost."
"What do you mean?" An expression of alarm spread over her face. "What will she do?"
"Do you mean will she kill them?" Usher snorted with disgust. "Nothing so honorable. She will seduce them. Trick them into believing the lies she tells."
"Give us some credit, Usher. We're stronger than you might think."
"Are you?" He turned once more and stared at her. She was beautiful, this earnest young woman. So clean, so full of health, her mind spinning with questions. "Aset will take them as easily as she draws breath. McGrath, the drunkard, she will tempt with narcotics a thousand times more potent than your strongest wine. And Chaco?" He shrugged. "What man could resist sleeping with a goddess?"
"Is that what you are?" Alissa asked. The corners of lips trembled slightly, though with fear or something stronger, he couldn't tell. She took a step closer. "Are you a god, Usher?"
"A god?" He laughed at the thought. "I am a demon. An angel cast down from heaven. I am Lucifer and Loki and Coyote. I am Set and Shiva and every dark monster that haunts the shadows of your race. Leave, Alissa. Fly back to your ship and go home. Go back to where you belong and never mention what you met out here in the emptiness."
"What are you so afraid of?" she asked, her eyes never leaving his face. "Why do you promise with one hand then push us back with the other? Damn it, Usher, we aren't stupid. And we aren't children that need to be protected. Can't you see that? We came out here looking for answers, and now that we're on the verge of finding them, you want me to run away?"
"Alissa..." His voice broke off. Already, the desire for her, the need to take her and protect her, to swear eternal love and allegiance, wormed through his conscience. How he ached to hold her, to smell her skin, taste the curve of her neck, feel her flesh against his own. He could love this woman, just as he had loved thousands before. Love her and watch her age and die and crumble into dust.
"Those designs you gave Dr. Mcgrath," she said, her voice husky. "He said they are very intriguing. He thinks they might open the door to real starflight."
"Does he?" Usher rolled his eyes. "Those are baubles. Nothing but toys. The real prize lies inside you."
Alissas eyes widened. "I don't understand."
"Of course you do. Think about a human child with the capability to manipulate minds. A child who could step between dimensions the way you step through a door." A deep shudder passed through him. "A child of our union would be a king, or worse, another messiah." She stiffened, a flash of anger in her wide-set eyes.
"You're exaggerating the problem."
"Am I?" Usher shook his head sadly. "He would be the father of a new race, and you the mother of them all. Are you ready to become a legend, Alissa? Is that what you want? To let your genes be the blueprint for the next stage of human evolution?"
"And if I was?" she asked, her words as direct as if she had already guessed where the conversation led. "Would that be such a horrible thing?"
He squeezed his eyes shut. A parade of memories marched past, disjointed glimpses of other worlds, other times, the backgrounds different but the result always the same. He felt suddenly ill. "Whenever the new arrives, do you think the old simply steps aside? Do you think the billions of people on your world will placidly accept that they are no longer viable? Tell me there won't be wars. Promise me there would be no slaughter when our children come into their own."
"It doesn't have to be that way," she said quickly. "Not if you come back to guide us." Hesitantly, her hand shaking as badly as his, she reached for him. He drew back, shaking his head. "Alissa, don't. I beg you. If you touched me now, if you gave me the slightest encouragement, I could not stop what happens next."
She stood, arm outstretched, watching him. Thoughts spun out at him, her mind blazing with what he told her, the emotions so raw he felt overwhelmed by the sheer force of them. Revulsion and desire. Terror. Adulation. And something else, something more complex. Hope. Usher waited, silently pleading she would not touch him, and all the while wishing she would. At last, when he thought he could stand it no more, she lowered her arm.
"All my life I've searched for a key to the puzzles. And now that I've found one..." She broke off. With a self-conscious swipe of the arm she brushed another strand of hair aside. "So what happens next?"
"You go back to your ship. Go back to Earth. Can you fly the shuttle? I'm not sure Chaco or McGrath will let you leave otherwise."
"You expect me to abandon them here?" Alissa's eyes widened in shock. "You can't mean that."
"There may be no other way. As persuasive as I am, my sister is a hundred times more so." He smiled for her benefit. "Trust me, they will be safe here, and will lead long and very interesting lives. Aset will see to that."
Again, he caught the sense of bleak resignation in her thoughts. Finally, she nodded. "Just tell me one thing?" Her voice fell so low he had to strain to hear her. "Whoever the entity that created you is, why do they care so much about this, what did you call it, this next stage of evolution?"
A burst of cold laughter ripped from his throat. "Don't you think I've asked myself that same question a thousand times? It's the one thing in the universe it seems I am forbidden to know. Maybe..." He choked on the word, and for a moment expected the punishing pain to strike him again. When it didn't, he pushed on. "I think this thing that I am part of is lonely."
He started back along the ledge, but stopped when he realized Alissa was not following.
"Usher?" she said, a renewed firmness in her tone. "Did you ever think that you might be wrong? That despite the turmoil, this is supposed to happen? I'm willing to find out."
"Alissa, don't..." He shut his eyes. Behind him, he heard the brush of dry grass, felt her warmth steal over him, felt her fingers slipped into his. Moving as if in a dream, he turned and took her in his arms. Their lips met, and this time he did not pull away. From somewhere far away, he heard the voice in his mind laughing.
Usher stood watching from the ledge as the shuttle receded into the darkness, the strobe growing fainter until it vanished completely. He could have reached out with his mind and followed it, but did not. There was no need. Alissa would arrive back at her ship safe and sound, and in a few hours, days at the most, the ship would resume its long journey home. What waited for them there, he had no way of knowing. He was sure he would find out in due time.
Aset joined him.
"So, it is done?" she asked, laughing. "You came to your senses, did you?"
"Go away," he muttered. "There was no consummation."
"And you, my brother, are a terrible liar." She sighed, but there was no malice in her voice. "You did what you had to. You were not created to be noble, brother. Only useful."
"I could still destroy their ship before they reach home," he said quietly.
"Yes, but you won't." She turned and met his eye. "You are not a murderer."
"Aren't I? How many millions will die because of what I've done?"
"Perhaps. But ask yourself how many more will live." Aset fell silent a moment. "You and I, we are tools. Nothing more. But that doesn't mean we cant take pride in what we have wrought."
"I wish I could share your optimism." After a long while, he said, more to himself than to Aset, "Will this ever end?"
"I don't know," she replied. "Would you want it to?"
Usher said nothing. For a long time he stood staring out at the uncaring stars, then turned and slowly walked away.
© Justin Stanchfield
Full-time rancher, part-time snowplow driver, occasional musician and struggling writer, Justin Stanchfield's fiction has appeared in publications ranging from Boys' Life and Cicada to Black Gate, AEon and Interzone. He lives with his wife and two kids on a Montana cattle ranch, a stone's throw from the Continental Divide. His other work for Reflection's Edge can be found here.