Entropy Risen (The Syker Key Book 3) Read online

  “And their changes in time have hardly been perfect. They keep experimenting, trying to get the perfect balance. Fortunately the only thing they haven’t been able to affect is the Keys. We are the fly in the ointment for them. And it is my intention to poison their well so badly that they get the hell off our planet.”

  ***

  Arthur’s grief was second only to his wife’s.

  Their association with the Keys had shown them many things about the universe, one of them being the secret behind life and death, and as a result they knew that Jessica was not gone, just changed. But it still meant she was gone from their lives, and the pain was almost unbearable.

  Even Zack cried, but Arthur knew he shouldn’t have been surprised. Jessica had become the mother he was missing, and losing a second mother was not something any child should have to go through.

  He worked for endless hours getting the web site done, and continued to work on it long after John’s broadcast. They were getting millions of hits, and he was updating the information as quickly as Pan could feed it to him.

  Arthur was going to make sure the world remembered his daughter, and the sacrifice she’d made for the entire damned planet.

  ***

  Jessica decided to have some fun.

  Of course, what she was finding out was that everything in the fourth density was fun, with one exception: She still missed John. Uula had shown her that sometimes memory of emotion was strong, and could carry across the density barrier.

  But Jessica knew it was more than that.

  What she also knew was that the pain and suffering that her family was suffering at that moment was feeding the Draconians, and she didn’t think that was appropriate. So it was time to have some fun, change the game just a tiny bit.

  Crossing over to third density itself was tremendously difficult and required copious amounts of energy, but she decided that she wouldn’t have to cross over in full. Just a few little bursts were all that would be required.

  She flew through the atmosphere of Hermes, stretching her arms out as she did, pulling the gases along with her, creating drag, and delighted at not requiring any protective shielding anymore. Mere moments she spent, at least so it seemed. Time was something malleable in fourth density, and it took her some concentration to stay linked to the timeline after her death.

  Moments later she was in space, looking down at her creation. And laughed, then turned her attention to John, sitting on the roof of her parent’s home with Zack.

  Look up, she said to him.

  She watched him, at first he was unsure what he had just heard. He was holding Zack as he cried, as they both did.

  Look up John, she said again.

  Slowly John looked up, right into the heart of Hermes hovering in the sky over head. Jessica was amazed at how differently the world looked from her point of view now. She could easily now see the energy given off by all life, the ever elusive aura. John and Zack’s had been a dark blue, and she almost laughed at realizing the source of the saying “feeling blue”, but the moment John looked up, the moment a smile crossed his face, his aura changed from blue to bright orange. It was brilliant.

  “Zack, look!”

  The blue in Zack’s aura didn’t break immediately, but was flecked with bits of red and orange. “What does it mean?”

  “That, my boy, is Jessica talking to us.”

  Instantly his aura sparked to a brilliant orange-white, even more intense than John’s.

  She knew what they were looking at. It was ridiculous and simple, and fleeting. In the clouds of Hermes she had drawn a heart. And in moments it was gone, but it didn’t matter. It had done what she wanted. Zack and John hugged each other tightly.

  “Yah!” Zack yelled, pumping his fist into the air.

  I love you, she sent finally, to both of them, and watched a tear fall down John’s cheek.

  She knew he was too choked to speak, she could feel it in him. I love you, my wife, he sent back to her.

  Then it was time to go, but it had been worth it. Not only had she stopped their energy bleeding to the Draconians, but she had actually been energized by their transformation from sadness to joy.

  The heart on Hermes had faded, but Jessica wanted to show her parents as well, so she moved back in time a few mere moments and went to her parents, sitting in the apartment below John and Zack.

  Look out the window, she sent to both of them.

  They looked sharply at each other, then ran to the window. Catherine put her hand to her mouth almost immediately in shock, tears streaming down her face in rivers as the anguish gave way. Arthur simply laughed, that boisterous bellowing laugh of one who’s weight of the world had been lifted, a laugh at once magnificent and tinged with tears. Once again, she watched as those she loved move from sadness to joy.

  But she had work to do.

  She knew the Draconian named Marcus was attempting to manipulate events in light of the new changes she and John had done, and she could not allow that.

  Marcus was a time traveller, going back and forth trying to manipulate events in his favor. But Jessica was a time traveller now too, and her years with the Key had taught her a few things about being stealthy. It was easy for her to follow him, track him, and at the same time stay hidden. He never had any idea she was watching him try to change the past.

  She could see Marcus attempting to track them down, to manipulate her family. Twenty three times throughout history he tried to change their fates, but she would either go in quietly behind him and undo the damage, or made it impossible for him to find them at all.

  It was beginning to frustrate him. He saw himself as all powerful, but she knew better. Jessica watched as his actions became more desperate. This was one of the problems with the Draconians: They saw what they choose to believe. And he could not believe his actions weren’t having an effect.

  Marcus went so far as trying to kill her ancestors, but no matter what he did, she was able counter him. Her ancestors were safe.

  Finally he gave up. That was Jessica’s cue to move on to something else. Or someone else.

  She found Pan sitting in the Sahara desert, in total darkness, eyes closed and using the Key to feel his way around the world. This was going to require a bit more energy, because she knew what was at stake.

  She could see that Pan was the proverbial powder keg. He was collecting energy and knowledge for a strike. Against John’s wishes he was planning to kill every living Draconian within a light year of Earth, as much as warning as revenge.

  Jessica watched his aura. Alive, she would have been shocked to see the black fire surrounding him, but from her vantage point she simply understood it for what it was: Entropy.

  Breaking the density barrier took tremendous concentration, but she was determined to help her friend.

  “Pan,” she said, though she suspected her voice sounded rather more like wind through leaves than her own voice.

  She watched as Pan opened his eyes, then gasped as he saw her. Hardly solid, she appeared to him as an apparition. Ghost stories indeed. She thought back to John’s favorite film, Star Wars, and nearly laughed at the role reversal.

  “Hello Pan,” she said, smiling.

  “Jessica...”

  “I’ve come to warn you.”

  He appeared confused for a moment, unsure. “Warn me?”

  “You are planning vengeance, but there is something you have forgotten. Your plans for destruction will in fact only feed them, make them stronger. Every Draconian you kill will make the rest of them that much stronger. Even if you are able to kill all of them, and I will admit you are more than capable of it, the energy you will transfer to them will be enough for that Draconian World Ship to turn around and return to Earth.”

  She watched as his thoughts raced, and the darkness of his aura began to ebb. “They can’t be permitted to get away with it.”

  Jessica smiled at him. “They did not. They are already the cause of their own failure. By tr
ying to kill me they ensured that they would be unable to disrupt our family throughout history. I have seen to it.”

  He got it, and flecks of very faint orange began to spiral around him. “It was you all along?”

  “Yes.”

  “It wasn’t because they couldn’t see us, it was because you were protecting us.”

  She nodded, smiling, and watched as the wind was stolen from his anger. The black faded to blue, and more light was beginning to shine through.

  “I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you,” he said finally.

  “There is no need for regret, Pan.” Finally the energy expenditure was too much for her, but she left him with one more message before fading completely from his view.

  John will need your help.

  And he would, but not yet.

  Forward The Future

  John sat in the head office of Virgin Galactic, across from the President of the company, who appeared to be a little beside himself. “I’m honored to meet you,” he said.

  John simply nodded. He was tired, and wanted to get this new project underway. “I’ve got a proposal for you.”

  “I’m all ears!”

  “You are planning on building craft to mine the asteroids for materials, fuel, that kind of thing.”

  “Yes, we’re pretty far along the design stage at this point we think.”

  “What if I took you further?”

  He looked at John, confused. “How?”

  “You build a mining machine, I’ll take it there.”

  That hit him. His eyes widened at the possibilities. He spent a moment thinking about it, then became dubious. “Why?”

  John thought about his answer. “Because frankly, it’s time humanity got off this damned rock and learned how to get along in space. This isn’t charity, it’s preservation. I still expect you to figure out how to get these machines back and forth, but for now I’m willing to help give you guys a jump start. I figure it will have two benefits. One, it will speed our development to being a space-faring species, and two, it will help protect the environment if we’re busy mining in space instead of digging up forests.”

  He smiled at John. “I like the cut of your jib,” he said.

  John laughed. He hadn’t heard that one in a while. “Don’t worry though, you’re not going to have to rely on me for long. I have a plan to get you a propulsion system that will knock your socks off.”

  ***

  Pan watched the storm fade, surprised at how much it felt like his own insides.

  From the eastern slopes above Lake Geneva, he watched the clouds finally lose energy, depositing their loads onto the fields of grapes below. For a bearer, the electricity in the air was literally palpable. It was spectacular, and reminded him how much of nature was more incredible than he could even imagine.

  Jessica had been right. He was ready to kill every last one of them, and the mere memory of it was enough to drag him back into that world, but he fought it back. I will not feed those bastards, he thought.

  Even here, below him in the city, was one of his targets, who he now knew he would let live, the human collaborator known as Gareth Konig, the one who had seen right through Pan’s disguise in New York. But his influence was already starting to fade, and there was no need for Pan to go after him beyond pure vengeance, tempting though it might be.

  John appeared beside him.

  “Good morning, son.”

  “Hi Pan. How are you feeling?”

  Pan smiled, then turned to his son. “Jessica came to me this morning, told me some pretty disturbing things. I’ve since had to re-evaluate my plans.”

  John nodded. “And what are your plans now?”

  “None! I actually have no idea.”

  “Then maybe you can help me?”

  “What did you have in mind?” Pan noticed John had a devious grin on his face.

  “You probably know better than I do that there are some exotic technologies out there, hidden from the public.”

  “Yes, so...?”

  “Specifically I’m looking for something in the way of propulsion. Something to help get the human race off the planet.”

  Pan thought about it for a moment, then grinned. “I think I might just be able to help you with that.”

  ***

  The surface of Ceres was barren, to say the least.

  Especially this far from the sun, with no atmosphere to speak of, it was a gray and beige mass of regolith, but not how Jack Weston had pictured it. Instead it looked like it was scarred, with large swaths of charred material marking the surface in irregular patterns, the result of it’s passage through plasma storms through it’s rough history.

  One thing about being in a space suit was that the sound of your own breathing tended to be heavy, loud, but at this moment Jack heard nothing. He was getting used to it, and every time he stopped to look out over the sight before him it took his mind away.

  For six months he had been working, with John’s help, to construct a new launch base on the tiny asteroid. With a diameter of not even six hundred miles, the horizon was close, seemingly unnatural. But it was perfect for their base, since it was enough gravity to work effectively, but weak enough to launch craft without wasting tremendous amounts of fuel.

  The first phase of the base was finished. A series of titanium reinforced bubbles, two landing pads, a field of solar collectors, and assorted airlocks connecting the various constructs.

  And Jack was in charge. From programmer and amateur astronomer to project manager for a base on a freaking asteroid. Un. Believe. Able. He loved it.

  “Looking good, Jack,” he could hear John say over the radio. Jack turned to see if he could find the source of the transmission, and watched as John walked slowly towards him, hopping really in the light gravity. He wasn’t wearing a space suit, but had that bubble of air surrounding him.

  “Thanks to you!”

  John smiled at him. “Well, you were the right man for the job. Should we go in?”

  “Lets.”

  John waved at and greeted the other crew as they passed them on the way to the closest airlock. They all knew him, since John had spent nearly as much time up here as they had. They entered, one at a time. Jack always thought it odd that John would go through the airlock, but remembered him talking about trying not to overuse the teleportation trick. Something about unknown consequences, which was strange because they had done nothing but teleportation to get all this equipment onto the surface of Ceres.

  Clearing the one-man airlock only took two minutes, then the door to the interior cycled and he entered. Jack removed his helmet, then started on the suit. He had done this enough that he was getting good at it. By the time he was done John was through.

  They sat at the lone table in the room, and Jack grabbed two bottles of water, handing one to his friend.

  “So what’s next?”

  “Well, I think tomorrow I’m going to start the crew on the concrete dome.” It was something he’d been looking forward to, and in theory it was easy: Inflate a balloon, then cover it in concrete made from local regolith and water and epoxy imported from Earth. Instant dome. Well, as instant as the drying concrete would allow. It had the advantage of being a natural radiation barrier, and Jack was happy to have an extra layer of protection. He didn’t sleep well in the camp, even with it’s lead shielding. The dome would be three hundred feet across and be subdivided; everyone would get their own room.

  Enough for the crew of the local base, and enough for occasional visitors. Jack envisioned this being the new frontier, with frequent visits from miners as the new economy kicked in.

  “In a couple weeks we’ll probably get the drilling started,” another one of Jack’s pet projects. Rumor was that there was a minor ocean of water under the surface of Ceres. He intended to find out. “Save you having to transport another skid of water,” Jack said with a grin. “How’s Virgin doing with the new engine?”

  “They fired up the engine yesterda
y. They’re fitting it to a prototype now, probably get a test flight within another month.”

  “Hot damn,” Jack said with a smile. A true interplanetary engine. Earth to Mars in a day. “I can’t wait.”

  “What, you don’t like my rides?” John said with a grin. Jack knew he was as anxious to get them working as the rest of fifteen people now living on the base. “Yeah, I can’t wait either. I even made them promise me tug number five in return for the engine design.”

  “Your own private yacht?”

  “Something like that.”

  “You realize that’s going to make you the first person with your own personal space craft?”

  John looked stunned. He apparently hadn’t thought of that. “Wow.”

  “Yeah, wow alright. Next time I get near the Internet I think I’ll make a Wikipedia entry about it.” The Internet was something sorely missed at the base, and they had been reduced to watching broadcasts with enough strength to reach them. Television. Who watched television anymore? “Hey, it’s my turn to make dinner for the crew. Care to help?”

  “Jack, you know I’m a lousy cook, but I will anyways.”

  They made their way to the small kitchen and sealed the door. The problem with an enclosed environment, food smells stuck to everything, so you tried to minimize it. At least with the kitchen sealed off it was easier to maintain.

  Jack never ceased to amaze at the million little differences of doing things in low gravity. Chopping tomatoes was almost comical since everything bounced, and frying was dangerous...the spit tended to go much farther. It was a good thing the entire kitchen was stainless steel.

  “How’s Angie?”

  Jack smiled. Angie, one of the crew. They were sharing quarters now, but had met on Earth at an astronomy symposium in Denver. When John had asked him to head up this project, he remembered the conversations he’d had with Angie about space exploration. They’d hit it off, but nothing had come of it beyond keeping in touch via email. The idea of being a construction worker didn’t appeal to her. Until she found out it was on Ceres, and that her skills as a biologist were going to be in pretty high demand once the place was built...she was sold.