Dark Matters_ Shadow of Heaven (Book 3) - Christie Golden [19]
command of Captain Ulaahn are being permitted to witness the proceedings."
Tuvok inclined his head. "As you wish." He squared his shoulders and, to Janeway's astonishment, looked uncomfortable. He looked like someone who did not know where or how to begin. Finally he said, "Di. R'Mor, you are the one to whom this knowledge was imparted. Do you wish to explain the situation to the assembly?"
Telek looked even more uncomfortable than Tuvok for a moment. Then, he took a deep breath, and stepped forward. He indicated a padd he held in his right hand.
"I am no public speaker, or politician," he began. "I cannot hope to sway you with charisma. I must convince you with facts, and my own sincerity. I have here some notes to which I will be referring." He paused. "Among my people, we have something called the Right of Statement. It is given to every prisoner before his sentence is carried out. Captain Janeway has, I understand, told you a little of our adventures to this point. As far as my people are concerned, I am a traitor, though in truth I am none. I have been preparing my Right of Statement in the event that I am able to return home, where I will be tried for treason."
A lump rose in Janeway's throat. She had no idea that Telek had been drafting his last words.
"I will not read it, for that is not appropriate. But I will consult it from time to time. Are there trained scientists here?"
Several heads nodded. "Good," said Telek. "You will be able to verify many of my statements. I will make certain assumptions of your knowledge; please feel free to ask for clarification if you require it."
He was silent for a moment, looking down at his feet, gathering his words. At length, he raised his head.
"My Mends-for you are my friends; at this moment, all innocent peoples are-I speak to you today of dark matter-and dark matters.
"Over ninety percent of the matter in the universe is composed of dark matter. The rest is matter that we know and understand. We call it baryonic matter, and it is what composes stars, planets, this table, our very flesh. Even when we understand dark matter, its mystery lingers. Most of the time, we cannot see it, although we know that it is very nearly omnipresent. There are untold amounts of it in this room right now, perhaps hundreds of particles in a single strand of my hair. Dark matter is only visible when it interacts with subspace distortions, as in a dark-matter nebula. We have since learned," and here he glanced over at Janeway, "that the reason we cannot detect it normally is because it exists simultaneously in all universes. The reason it becomes detectable in a dark-matter nebula is because the interaction with subspace pulls it completely into this universe."
"Remarkable," said one of the council members. "That is a theory that we have been working on for years. How did you prove this?"
Telek looked uncomfortable. "We were told this. We have documentation of the event, should you wish to see it"
Janeway took a deep breath. If only they had solid data, rather than Tialin's word! Though she knew, as others could not, how true that word was.
"Captain Janeway has perhaps told you of a being calling himself Ambassador Lhiau, of a race called the Shepherds. They have spent eons manipulating dark matter. Lhiau came to our people and offered us a cloak which would render our ships and even individuals completely undetectable. We, I regret to say, leaped upon the opportunity without investigating it completely. We have paid dearly for that mistake. Lhiau also used his ability to manipulate dark matter to assist in our creation of wormholes of practically limitless size."
He was warming to the audience, who, to give them credit, were listening attentively. Janeway found