Deathstalker

  "Well," said Morrell, just a little breathlessly. "That was… interesting. Can we get the hell out of here now, please, Captain?"

  "We might as well," said Silence. "This mission is a bust. There's nothing here we dare let loose. No one can be trusted with this kind of power. I'd recommend scorching the world from orbit, if I thought it would do any good, but the nanos might survive even that. So we leave the genie in the bottle, until Humanity's evolved into something wise enough to use it correctly."

  "And we lost Barron," said Carrion. "I brought him here. He trusted me. He should have remembered I was always a bird of ill omen."

  Silence looked around at the empty rocky plain. "I wonder what the nanos will make of this place, now they no longer have a human mind to guide or limit them. Might be worth coming back here in a few centuries, just to see what kind of world the nanos make."

  He put in a call to the pinnace waiting in orbit, and it came down and hovered above the rocky ground as the landing party took turns to jump awkwardly up into the open airlock. Silence was last off, as Captain. He took one last look back, and off in the distance he thought he saw Barron, standing alone, waving goodbye. Silence turned his back on Zero Zero, and let the pinnace take him back to the Dauntless, and his duty.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  From the Undermind

  To the Oversoul

  Once upon a time, she was just an esper named Diana Vertue, but things had become rather complicated since then. As Jenny Psycho she'd been a hard-core terrorist and a saint of the Mater Mundi, but she'd outgrown both those roles. She'd gone looking for the truths of her existence, the meaning and purpose behind the events that had shaped her life, and unfortunately for her, she found them. Now she was just an esper on the run, hiding out in what used to be Finlay Campbell's old bolt-hole; a single cramped apartment in the warrens under the Arenas. The place was a mess, but she couldn't seem to raise the strength of purpose to do anything about it. She lay on her back on the unmade bed, wearing dirty sweat-stained clothes because she had nothing to change into, staring up at the ceiling above her, seeing everything and nothing.

  Her mental shields were all in place, as strong as she could make them. The most powerful espers in the Empire could have walked past her door and not known she was there. Theoretically. Once, Diana would have been sure, but there were a lot of things she wasn't sure about anymore. It helped that directly above her were the killing grounds of the Arenas, where the dying never stopped. The endless flow of suffering and slaughter, and the raging emotions and blood lust of the watching crowds, set up a constant mental bedlam that no one should be able to detect anything through. Diana was as safe and hidden as it was possible for anyone to be.

  And none of that mattered a damn, because she was hiding from the Mater Mundi. It would find her eventually, if only through the process of elimination. There were only so many places on Golgotha where you could hope to hide from a determined telepath. With millions of minds to search with, the Mater Mundi would track her down in time, and then Diana would have to run again or stand and fight. Either choice seemed likely to end in her death.

  Diana Vertue laced her fingers across her stomach, and wondered what the hell she was going to do next.

  How had her life come to this? A fugitive in a dirty room, contemplating her own imminent death? She'd had such plans, when she was younger. Such fervent hopes and great intentions. All the wondrous things she was going to do… Of course, she'd had a lot of the fire and innocence knocked out of her on the ghostworld Unseeli. Used as bait to catch a monster, by her own father. Menaced and driven to the point of madness, and only saved at the last by the song of the dead Ashrai. She was never the same, afterward. As soon as her father's old ship, the Darkwind, had docked at Golgotha, she deserted the Navy and went underground, joining the espers rebelling against Imperial authority. She thought she'd found friends and allies there, and a cause to believe in, but in the end they just used her too. They hid her thoughts behind a fake personality called Jenny Psycho, and then allowed her to be captured and sent to the esper prison Silo Nine, also known as Wormboy Hell.

  And then the Mater Mundi manifested through her, giving her the power to free herself and the other esper prisoners. Diana thought she'd finally found her role. She embraced the Jenny Psycho persona, and allowed other espers to declare her a living saint of Our Mother of All Souls. But that turned out to be a lie too, when the Mater Mundi abandoned her on Mistworld, just when Diana needed her most. She should have known. She should have expected it. The one continuing factor of her young life had always been betrayal.

  Then the great rebellion, the overthrowing of Lionstone, and a chance for a new life for all espers. So Diana put the Jenny Psycho persona behind her, and tried to create a new role for herself, only to face the greatest betrayal of all. The new order turned out to be just as corrupt as the old, only more subtle. The new freedom for espers included the freedom to starve and die and be forgotten. And the esper underground, that great force for justice and the good, turned out to be an unknowing tool of its own subconscious. The last and greatest betrayal; that the cause to which she'd given her life had proven to be nothing but a mask for the same kind of heartless manipulation she'd been fighting.

  Diana idly wondered why she clung so grimly to a life that had brought her only disappointment and the destruction of her beliefs. Perhaps she continued just to spite the fates that seemed so determined to grind her down. There was a strong stubborn streak in Diana that would not yield to any outside pressure, no matter how great. Perhaps the only useful thing she'd inherited from her illustrious father. She was damned if she'd just give up and die, if only to frustrate the Mater Mundi one more time. She smiled widely at the ceiling above her, a thin-lipped snarl that had only the blackest of humor in it. Diana Vertue, or Jenny Psycho, or whoever the hell she really was at heart, had always been a fighter. Once more into the breach, into the Valley of Death, into darkness and damnation if necessary; just for a chance to drag her enemy down with her.

  It occurred to her then, in something very like an epiphany, that she wasn't necessarily alone in this fight. There were others like her, powerful minds unconnected to the Mater Mundi, that might yet be convinced to fight beside her. She reached out with her altered, expanded mind, in directions only she could sense, sending out a call for help that only minds like hers could hear, let alone respond to. To confuse and confound the searching Mater Mundi, Diana sent her mind shooting up and out of her body, up past the bloody sands of the Arenas, up and beyond the Parade of the Endless, until finally Golgotha itself lay turning slowly beneath her. The world looked very vulnerable, all alone in the dark. Some way off in the distance, but drawing slowly closer all the time, was the Recreated. A great howling black hole, trying to suck her thoughts and her soul into its awful inhuman self. But it was still too far away to be able to compel her, and Diana turned her mental back on it, secure behind her shields. She called out again, need and desperation giving strength and urgency to her appeal for help.

  To her great surprise, the first response came from a dead man.

  Hi, said Owen Deathstalker. What's up?

  You're supposed to be dead! said Diana, too startled to be polite. No one's been able to contact you, or find any trace of you, for ages.

  Sorry to disappoint you, said Hazel d'Ark, dryly, but we've been kind of busy.

  The mind boggles at what, said Diana.

  We've just finished wiping out the Blood Runners, said Owen. They'd used a rather unusual power source to create their own subspace dimension; a private little reality of their own where they could concentrate on torture and murder undisturbed. But I found a way in. Now the sub-space, the homeworld, and the Blood Runners no longer exist.

  We kicked their ass, said Hazel.

  Well, thank the good God you're back, said Diana, because I've got an enemy here that could seriously use a good kicking, and I can't do it alone.

  Hold everything, said Owen
. I'm sorry to disappoint you, but we have our own mission now we're back, and we can't afford to be distracted. We have to go back into the Darkvoid. Back to the Wolfling World. Something's happening there, something bad. Something only we can deal with.

  Whatever it is, it can wait, said Diana firmly. A lot's happened while you were… out of touch. Most of it really bad.

  Department of absolutely no surprise there, said Hazel. We take our eye off the ball for five minutes, and everything goes to hell.

  What's happened about the Royal Wedding? said Owen suddenly. I mean, if everyone thinks I'm dead…

  It's still going ahead, said Diana. Only Constance is marrying Robert Campbell instead.

  Ah, said Owen, after a pause. All for the best, really, I suppose. The Campbell's a good man. Probably make a much better constitutional monarch too. I never wanted to be Emperor.

  How does Constance feel about all this? said Hazel.

  Oh, it's a love match this time, said Diana. It's really very sweet. But can we not be distracted, please? The whole existence of Humanity is under threat. You've got to come back.

  She broadcast compressed telepathic images of all that had been happening during Owen and Hazel's absence. The great golden ships of the Hadenmen, blasting the Fleet apart, destroying cities on a hundred worlds, deploying armies of golden-eyed merciless killers, to destroy or remake Humanity in their own logical image. The huge Shub ships sailing out of the Forbidden Sector in endless numbers, taking planet after planet with their armies of Furies and Ghost Warriors and Grendel aliens. The Recreated, and their vast insane ships, moving steadily toward the homeworld Golgotha. The nano plague, spreading slowly but unstoppably from world to world, melting down all living tissue. Jack Random executing his enemies on Loki, and then returning to Golgotha to murder more people there, before going on the run with Ruby Journey in hot pursuit, sworn to kill him. And finally, the awful truth about the actual nature of the Mater Mundi.

  Damn, said Owen. I can't believe Jack's gone rogue.

  I fought on Loki as a mercenary some time back, said Hazel. Probably beside some of the same people Jack had hanged. A bloody rebellion and a worse peace.

  I can't believe Jack just killed that many people in cold blood, said Owen.

  Oh, you can be pretty sure it wasn't cold blood, said Diana. By all accounts he had a really good time doing it.

  Something must have pushed him over the edge, said Owen tiredly. Jack was a good man. A hero. He must have lost his mind…

  And a madman with your powers and abilities could do a hell of a lot of damage, said Diana. God knows how many more he'll kill before he's stopped. Now will you come back?

  I've been trying to reach Jack through our old mental link, said Hazel. I can't get any response from him, or Ruby. They must be deliberately blocking us out. We'd be no better at tracking him down than anyone else. And even if we could find him… I'm not sure what we'd do. What we could do. I mean, this is Jack Random we're talking about.

  No one's above the law, said Owen flatly. It has to apply equally, or it means nothing. But Jack… isn't our problem. None of the things you've described are as important as what's happening on the Wolfling World. Our mission there has to take precedence.

  Captain Silence is on his way into the Darkvoid, said Diana desperately. Let my father deal with it, whatever it is.

  I don't think so, said Hazel. In fact, if he's on his way there, it's more important than ever that we get there first.

  And as suddenly as that, they were gone. She called again and again, but no one answered. Diana wasted a few moments in cursing their names and general foul language, and then moved reluctantly on to the next on her mental list. Having located two Maze minds, it wasn't too difficult for her to track down another.

  Damn, said Jack Random. I would have sworn no one could find me. Hello, Diana Vertue. How are you?

  Just a tad desperate, said Diana. How are you, Jack? Killed any more innocents recently?

  None of them were innocent, said Jack immediately. They all needed killing. I'm just doing what I've always done. Taking out the garbage.

  Diana tried to get a glimpse of where he was, or what he was planning, but Jack's shields were already reforming, like bricks in a great wall, and she knew he'd never let her find him again. She'd caught him by surprise, but her expanded mind, powerful as it was, was no match for his, and they both knew it. She quickly filled him in on the latest emergencies, and the true nature of the Mater Mundi, but she could tell she wasn't reaching him.

  Interesting was all he had to say. But esper problems are your province, not mine. I have my own responsibilities, and the duty I have chosen to shoulder is a heavy one. I can't put it down, even for a moment. Don't try to find me again, for your own sake. I can't trust anyone these days.

  And then his presence was gone, shut away behind shields so powerful Diana couldn't even sense where he had been. Diana called after him anyway, and was somewhat surprised to get an immediate response. From Ruby Journey. Hers was a cold, controlled presence, her thoughts as precise and unemotional as well-oiled machinery. Diana quickly prepared her own shields and defenses, just in case. This was Ruby Journey, after all.

  I heard your call, said Ruby. I even managed to listen in on your conversation with Jack. I don't give a damn about your problems either. All I care about is locating Jack. You must have picked up some idea as to where he is, some clue to what he's planning. Open your mind to me, so I can see.

  Go to hell, said Diana. I'm not having you trampling about in my mind. I don't know where Jack is, or what he intends to do. And if you're not willing to help me, I don't give a damn about you either.

  Foolish, said Ruby Journey. Very foolish.

  Her mind smashed against Diana's, but even her Maze-given powers couldn't just sweep aside Diana's shields. Ruby increased the pressure, but despite the pain and the strain, Diana wouldn't give way. Ruby's power raged about her, like a storm that might capsize a ship at any moment, but somehow Diana's shields still held. And in the end Ruby got tired, or bored, and backed off. She sent out a single mental image, and Diana studied it cautiously from behind her shields. The image showed Ruby Journey at a city armory, equipping herself with all manner of weapons and explosives. Enough to hunt down and kill a hundred men. Ruby was smiling coldly.

  If Jack contacts you again, show him this image. Show him what's coming after him. And remind him that I never, ever, stop once I've accepted a commission.

  Ruby disappeared behind her shields and was gone, leaving Diana hovering alone above Golgotha. It was an unnerving thing, to know you'd just faced an enemy that could have beaten you if she'd cared enough to spend a little more time and energy. Far off in the dark, the Recreated were still howling their endless awful scream. Diana felt very tired and very vulnerable, and fell back into her body. Once again she was lying on her back on a stranger's bed, staring up at a dirty ceiling in search of answers it didn't have. There were others Diana could have tried to contact, but after her disappointments with the Maze people, she couldn't see any point in exhausting herself any further. She was going to need her strength, where she was going.

  All right. I'll just have to do it alone. I've always had to do the most important things of my life alone.

  She allowed herself a few moments to say good-bye to her life. She'd always hoped it would amount to something more than just a mistaken saint, and a hero of the rebellion that most people seemed to prefer not to remember. Oh, they'd written her into a few of the holo films they'd made about the rebellion, and its heroes, but she didn't recognize herself at all in the enigmatic sorceress or total psychopath they'd chosen to portray her as. Some accounts weren't even sure which side she'd fought on. But then, Jenny Psycho had always been a little too extreme for most tastes.

  She would have liked to have known love, friends, family; but there was never any time. She knew duty, and sometimes honor, but few friends, and never a love or a lover. She scared people. She g
ave so much to the cause, only to discover in the end that it wasn't worthy of her dedication.

  At least the elves had put up a statue to her.

  So; time to face down the impossible, master the monster, put her life and sanity on the line as she had so many times before. Alone again against a powerful enemy, while those who might have helped her went their own way. Business as usual for Diana Vertue. She summoned up all the old berserker rage and dedication of her Jenny Psycho persona, and dived deep into her own mind, down past the shining columns of conscious thought, and into the dark unexplored areas of the mind; the backbrain. Some joking part of herself showed her a bright neon sign. Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here, and then she'd left the outside reality behind, diving down into the dark miracles and mysteries of the inner mind. The face behind the mask, the place where normal humans couldn't go. The backbrain.

  Most people didn't know what the backbrain was, though a few bandied the name about as though they did. Most people only used a small part of their brain, accessing only the merest fraction of what it could do. The esper gene allowed some people to delve deeper into their minds than most, and make use of the powers they found there. Telepathy, pyrokinesis, precognition. Others, like the Maze people who'd had their minds forced open by outside forces, could call up even stranger and wondrous abilities. Diana had studied the concept of the backbrain during her time in the esper Guild House, trawling tirelessly through its massive files in search of knowledge. The espers had been studying themselves almost as long as they had existed, and they had discovered many things about who and what they were, most of it disturbing. Most of that knowledge had never been released, even inside the esper community, and much was actively suppressed, for a variety of reasons. Partly because if the normals ever got hold of it, they'd just use it to better control their esper slaves. And partly because the Mater Mundi made sure some things were forgotten, rather than risk their true nature being exposed.