The Ascendant Stars - Michael Cobley [80]
‘There may be an alternative,’ Ian Cameron said.
Theo leaned forward. ‘You mentioned the possibility of an alliance with a splinter group of Spiralist zealots.’
Ian nodded. ‘One of their leaders came to us and offered the help of his faction in any attack on Giant’s Shoulder. He told me that the prophet lied, and that an alien machine is now in control up there.’
The Uvovo, Listener Weynl, cleared his throat. ‘This alien machine is actually a creature known as a Knight of the Legion of Avatars. It landed on Darien some days before the Spiral armada’s invasion. Our Seer Cheluvahar was following this vile creature through Greathome Forest – as you call the Forest of Arawn – for several days before he was captured by it. As Rory had been earlier.’
Gideon glanced at Theo. ‘So when we met them on the way north, they could well have been enslaved by this Knight of the Legion.’ He glared at the Uvovo. ‘My men claim to have heard rumours that this thing is an ancient enemy of the Uvovo – is this so? And what is the truth about the Forerunner installation within Giant’s Shoulder? – it has been described to me as a malfunctioning matter transporter but I cannot see the Hegemony or their Brolturan pets expending this amount of effort over something that does not work. In the meantime, this Knight of some Legion now seemingly controls it, supported by an army of combat mechs. A satisfactory explanation would be most helpful.’
Theo and Listener Weynl exchanged a look, almost by chance. Theo decided to respond first.
‘Captain, you are correct – there is more to Giant’s Shoulder than what you have seen or heard. There is a Forerunner artefact inside it, a warpwell. The first time I saw that chamber and that well with the light pouring out of it … an amazing sight, I can tell you. But yes, as I recall it, the warpwell is really the front door of a prison, a prison in hyperspace, y’see, and … ’
‘If I may, Major Karlsson,’ said Listener Weynl. ‘Might I tell the tale from our side?’
‘Certainly, Weynl, go ahead.’
‘Captain Gideon,’ said the Uvovo. ‘The Legion of Avatars was the last great enemy faced by the ancient Forerunners. They swept across the star-rivers in vast numbers, hundreds of millions, laying waste to entire civilisations. To fight them, the Ancients caused warpwells to be built on a hundred worlds – Giant’s Shoulder, which we call the Waonwir, is the location of one such device. At the height of that last immense battle the warpwells snatched every enemy machine and creature and dragged them down uncountable, immeasurable distances, thrust them into the light-less, frozen chasms beneath the deepest underdomains … ’
‘They were imprisoned in the abyss of hyperspace,’ Theo explained. ‘All except one, a Legion Knight, a kind of armoured cyborg.’
‘So I gather,’ Gideon said. ‘And is this warpwell likewise the last of its kind?’
‘The Sentinel of the well told me that Hegemony scholars have discovered the dead remains of several others throughout their territory,’ Weynl said. ‘But ours does appear to be the only functioning example yet found.’
‘The major described it as the front door of a prison,’ Gideon said. ‘If all that you’ve said about the Knight creature is true, do we know if it has tried to break down that door?’
‘Been wondering that myself,’ Theo said.
All eyes were on Weynl, who seemed to consider the Tygran’s question for a second or two before speaking.
‘It fills me with sorrow to have to say yes, it has succeeded in unlocking the well. Six days ago, before dawn on the day after Gregory Cameron was sent to Segrana, every Listener and sensitive Uvovo on Umara was aware of the very moment when the well was opened. Certain bearers of wisdom estimate that it would take between three and five days for the unlocking to travel all the way to the imprisoning depths, and perhaps the