A Forest of Stars - Kevin J. Anderson [203]
“Too many Roamer ships have disappeared en route lately,” Peroni said. “Maybe EA was aboard a vessel that ran into an ‘unforeseen hazard.’ ”
“I hope not.” Concerned, Tasia thanked him. “Well, good luck cutting through the red tape.”
He scowled. “It always happens.”
105
JESS TAMBLYN
The stormy ocean world was uninhabited, sterile, and nameless. It appeared as only a minor notation on the original Ildiran charts the Roamers had purchased long ago. No one had ever found the place interesting enough to take a second look.
The wental thought it was perfect.
Feeling exuberance from the ancient water-based entity, Jess maneuvered his ship through the gray clouds and buffeting winds. Lightning lanced from storm to storm, endlessly churning the murky atmosphere. Compared to the hellish system of Isperos, where he had once taken Kotto Okiah, this world didn’t seem too treacherous. Roamers were accustomed to harsh beauty.
He always felt excitement when he explored an unknown place, but now the thrill was even greater. He was about to do something more important than anything he had ever done in his life. It might have shattering consequences for the future of the Spiral Arm.
Jess had signed aboard a nebula skimmer, surrendering to necessity…or perhaps just running away from Cesca, salving his emotions and letting the galactic conflict take care of itself.
Now, though, Jess could bring a new ally into play, an opposing force that might be able to thwart the hydrogues. If he could re-establish the wentals and turn them into powerful warriors to help protect humanity…then wouldn’t he—Jess Tamblyn—be offering at least as much to the future of the Roamers as any prince from a forest world?
Jess recognized the rare emotion inside him as genuine hope and optimism. Perhaps now, humans would have a chance after all.
He skimmed over the expanse of hungry ocean that covered the planet. Only the tiniest dots of sterile outcroppings rose above the surface, and waves foamed around the rocks. The main difficulty would be finding a place to land, but it was possible. Anything was.
In its container, the wental hummed and throbbed with inner light, seeming to burst with anticipation, though Jess supposed he could never fully understand the goals and thoughts of this alien entity. He scanned with the ship’s long-range sensors until he detected an outcrop of flat surf-washed rock large enough for him to land on. There.
Expertly, he set down the stabilizing pads, then donned an air mask. The temperature was within a tolerable range, but the air was almost entirely nitrogen and carbon dioxide.
He stood in front of the cylinder that held the shimmering nebula water. “Your companionship has been strange, and I’m glad I can help you,” Jess said. Cradling the cool, tingly container in his arms, he stepped into the air lock and cycled through.
When he stood in the biting air of the storm-swept planet, he looked into the knotted clouds and saw lightning crackle overhead. The ocean looked thick and gray, like molten metal. The waves churned and swirled, frothing with whitecaps. A breaker slammed into the rock where his ship had landed, sending a blast of spray into the air.
“Doesn’t look terribly hospitable,” Jess said.
It is most inviting, a welcome liberation from long dispersal in the cosmic wasteland.The wental flickered and roiled inside the container. Pour us into the ocean, and we will be free to grow and expand again.
Jess stood at the edge of the rock, looking into the black ocean. He was reminded of the sea under the Plumas ice sheets, the subterranean body of water where they had held a funeral for Ross. To him, this place looked empty and cold, devoid of life, a blank slate, yet—for the wentals—full of possibilities.
The cylinder grew warm in his hands. For some reason, he felt anxious and uneasy. What if it didn’t work? What if the wental’s hopes were false?
Do not hesitate. Its thoughts pulsed through Jess’s.
The misty water was alive and eager, as if inhabited by a strange ghostly