Chapter 5: Planetary Probe

They moved furtively from star to star. In each system, unknown worlds seemed to float serenely off Skryben's bow, brought close by the magic of long range scanners. Each time, the image in the central screen gave little or no hint of the world's potentials. Each one was just a planet, some smaller, some larger. Each system was studied with almost exaggerated care, only to be rejected for one fault or another as unsuitable to their purposes.

They jumped, and jumped again, heading for a system some seven light years from the last star they had visited. Rand had to be careful that they didn't come out too close to the heart of a system. Too close to the local sun, and enemy detectors could pick up the flare of energy as they emerged. He plotted a series of ever shorter jumps, setting up a course diagram on his console. He had practiced such maneuvers at the Academy, of course, but this was the real thing. He couldn't afford to make any mistakes.

With a jump interval of two hours, he had to be sure that each emergence was exactly two light hours closer to the target system than the one before it, and in a different part of the celestial sphere. This was intended to spray Vortigen detectors with a multitude of faint energy bursts, arriving almost at the same time from over a wide expanse of stars. Each jump had to be shorter than the last, so that the energy received by the Vortigen detectors from each emergence would be about the same as every other one. The hope was that such bursts of energy would be dismissed as artifacts of faulty electronics.

Skryben halted at the greatest distance that would allow accurate investigation, circling close to one of the outer planets of the system. The latest world to draw their interest was the second out from its sun. It was nine tenths water, and what little dry land it boasted was broken into strings of islands and minor continents. Its only moon was a jagged chunk of asteroidal rock and metal, whose too regular orbit suggested that it might have been moved into position. A few miles in its longest dimension, it gave forth only an occasional squeal of radio noise. The Vortigen base, if base it was, hardly seemed worthy of the designation.

"Acting Communications Officer Korsun, give your report."

The bridge of Skryben seemed unusually crowded. All three pilots were present, while their console was manned by an assistant. Medic Morss and Quartermaster Jyrd Ta Aweti were there, too.

One more, a man whose craggy features Rand didn't know. He reached out to Skryben's memory banks... , scanning...

'... Strike Left'nt Tran Af'Sword, Imperial Marines... '

Of course. He'd been riding, along with his two squads of Imperial Marines, in the ship's stasis tanks, waiting for the time when they would be needed. Strictly speaking, he wasn't a member of the ship's crew. He came under Captain Jeryth's orders only as long as he was aboard ship. Away from the ship, his was an independent command, answerable only to the Emperor.

Quartermaster Aweti looked uncomfortable in these surroundings, as far as his alien features could be read. He'd given them a brief report on the state of the ship's stores, using as few words as possible. He was from Eewluuim IV, a world of swamps and shallow seas. Few humans lived there, unable to cope with its dank heat and gray skies.

The only non human aboard Skryben, he usually kept to his quarters when off duty, taking his meals in hot and humid solitude. On duty, he was gruff and uncommunicative, his moist gray skin uncomfortable in the ship's dry air. The slender amphibian was from one of the few races sturdy enough to stand the rigors of stellar combat. Almost all of the air breathing races of the Imperial Cluster were some form or other of light gravity insectiles.

A low hum of conversation died as Rand pressed a key on his console. Heads turned as displays of several quite ordinary solar systems appeared on a smaller screen, spreading from left to right across one wall of the bridge. Fat ellipses enclosed reddish to yellow orange suns. A blinking green light showed where Skryben lurked on the outskirts of the right most system.

"We were fortunate to find an inhabited system with a substantial Oort cloud on only our fifth try," he began, and a diffuse shell of pale yellow encircled their view of the leftmost system. "We studied the transmissions from the inner planets of that system for three days, sorting out official from entertainment channels. This gave Skryben and her crew time to recover from jump shock, as well as to refill her storage tanks with essential elements harvested from the ice balls of the Oort cloud. When we had learned all that we could without giving away our presence, we moved among nearby systems until we found one that better suited our needs."

"So, what did you find out from the Vortigen broadcasts?" Captain Jeryth prompted.

"Very little, really." Rand flushed, wishing that the spotlight was on someone else. His head still felt fuzzy from the long series of closely spaced jumps they had undergone, and he wondered whether the rest of Skryben's crew felt any better. "In each inhabited system, there seemed to be only one non military video channel for entertainment and news, beamed to all of the occupied planets. The broadcasts on it were in two languages. Most of them were in Standard Vortigen, the same as the scraps of broadcasts that have been recorded from their ships. The rest were in another language, different in each system. All other channels, from ten to forty three of them, were for military communications, linking together the asteroidal and lunar bases. Most of those broadcasts were in a standard code, one that we've been able to decipher quite easily, now that we've gained some familiarity with Standard Vortigen."

"Sounds like those other systems were all pretty heavily fortified. We were smart to leave them alone." As the diagram changed to enlarge the display of the system they were in, Strike Left'nt Af'Sword studied it carefully. Any action by his men was likely to be on the ground, but they were equally well trained for space combat. "What's so different about this one?"

"It's almost unprotected. The one lunar base is all that we've found. The planet, they call it Ly'Ath, is E type, of course. The others are smaller; rocky and barren, with little or no atmosphere. There's no distinct asteroid belt. The only exception is Seven, the one we're orbiting, which is a minor gas giant with rudimentary rings. Ly'Ath is the second planet from its sun, and has a mean diameter of 6,700 miles, a surface gravity of 0.73 standard, and is 11% dry land. From what we have been able to gather from the entertainment broadcasts, the natives are insectile molluscoid amphibians, with a free swimming larval stage. Their scientific orientation is primarily biological, with a very few high tech in grafts from the Vortigen."

"Very concise," Captain Jeryth approved. "Our mission is to find out how tightly the Vortigen control the Drift, and whether the subject planets have any degree of self rule. We must learn the current political structure of the Drift, and as much as we can of Vortigen history. We've been studying a number of transcribed broadcasts from the planet's surface."

At Captain Jeryth's nod, Rand pressed another key, replacing the system diagram with a brightly colored vista. In the background was an expanse of water, studded with islands. Closer at hand, clusters of multicolored bubble domes nestled among stringy vegetation. The village seemed to have been built partially under water, the buildings becoming larger and closer together as the sandy soil sloped down to a protected beach. The colors were normal for an E type world; splotchy pale green vegetation, greenish blue water, and a blue sky with puffy white clouds. There was nothing in the scene to tell them its true scale, but compared to the beings moving about the domes, the smallest buildings could be no larger than single family dwellings.

Another press of the button brought the scene to life. The beings moved about ponderously, and sound was added to the picture. Musical instruments plonked and faded, to be replaced by a high pitched babble of squeaky voices, chanting in unison. It seemed to be a formal occasion, and the being at the center of the screen was using the Vortigen language.

"Skryben can give us an approximate translation..."

"... Here, this day," the being, somewhat larger than its fellows, was saying, the Terranglo words overlaying the sound of its voice. "A new... (something)... has finally dawned. The words of our Gracious Masters Above have at last come true! No longer must we Kreert labor only for our own... (something). At last, we are to be allowed to contribute to the Commonwealth of the Stars! Our young, as soon as they make the change from free swimmers, are learning to operate the... (something)... of our gracious masters. These schools have been provided at only a nominal cost, and instructors trained by..."

"The usual kind of propaganda, as the local economy is being integrated into to the Empire," Captain Jeryth commented as Rand killed the sound and motion. "What do you think? Can we infiltrate here, learn some of what we need to know?"

"We can give it a try," he assented, somewhat dubiously. "But we'll need to learn more about the planet before we land anyone. When they do go down, one of the smaller towns might be the best place. All of the official channels show only Vortigens. I would guess that very few members of the subject races, if any, are allowed to travel to other worlds, so that they'd be suspicious of us in the towns where ships land."

"All right. As Acting Communications Officer, you will send down a full set of probes to study the planet, before you go down in person."

"Me? But..." Rand bit off the words, knowing that his ears were burning red. He heard Tasca's stifled laugh, and turned even redder, but Captain Jeryth turned away without comment. After all, he was Skryben's Acting Communications Officer, and it was his job.

Rand crouched at the edge of the alien forest, trying to ignore the squad of Imperial marines poised behind him. He peered nervously past tilled fields at the partly submerged village. The brightly colored bubbles reflected orange light from the rising sun. The morning's clinging mists were fast burning off, the villagers beginning to stir.

In Skryben's belly, a swarm of metallo organic constructs had been seeded and rushed to maturity. While they were being readied, Skryben had moved into a powered orbit that had brought her close to Ly'Ath. At the appropriate point, a cloud of objects had been released to scatter across the planet's surface. Skryben had then hung off the planet for ten of its short days, shielded by its bulk from the Vortigen base and protected by her own electronic counter measures. All possible precautions had been taken, until only the rarest of evil chances could have revealed her presence to hostile eyes.

Unpowered, the tiny probes had seared through Ly'Ath's atmosphere, tumbling and slowing as they neared the surface. Most of them, falling into water, transformed themselves into innocuous seeming replicas of local life forms, sessile or free swimming. At intervals, they would break the surface or send up tendrils, beaming up bursts of data for Skryben to interpret.

Others, falling onto land, simulated small rocks, trees, or bushes, changing their golden hues to match their surroundings. They retained limited mobility, but used it as little as possible. None of the probes had been discovered by the natives, though quite a few of the free swimmers had been devoured by the local equivalent of sharks.

Most of the probes relied on solar energy collectors, or else they oxidized organic substances for power, but a few had tiny reactors built in. These, before reaching the surface, spread narrow wings. They took advantage of the heavy air and light gravity, soaring on random currents of air, and needed little power to stay aloft.

Over a period of days, a reasonably complete picture of the planet had come together in Skryben's data banks. She now knew Ly'Ath, from its shallow depths to its unimposing heights. Knew it, that is, as well as she knew any planet and its inhabitants. She'd been born in space, and grown up in the confines of an orbiting shipyard. To her, the touch of a major planet's surface would mean a crushing death.

Rand had studied Skryben's findings, correlating them with what had been revealed by intercepted Vortigen transmissions. Much of what they'd learned had confirmed their suspicions. The Vortigen ruled the Drift with an iron grasp. Now, his job was to find out just what methods they used.

He moved out into the open, waiting to be noticed. The squad of marines followed at a distance, ready to repel any sudden attack. For a moment, everything seemed unreal. The ground felt hollow under his feet, as though it was a bubble to be burst by an incautious footstep. His surroundings seemed like flimsy props in an outdoor drama. If his calculations were right, this was the one approach that was the least likely to trigger violence. If he was wrong, the squad of marines was close by...

One of the Kreert approached slowly, its opalescent shell gleaming in the morning light as it moved about on thick insectile legs. The gentle breeze was cool on Rand's forehead, heavy with the scent of ocean and green plants. The Kreert froze in its tracks as it caught sight of the strange beings, and a discordant squawk issued from the spiracles along the edges of its shell.

"Peace." Rand's words, translated into Vortigen, issued from the golden collar around his neck. "I come from afar. I would speak with the foremost ones of this island."

"It speaks!" The softly spoken exclamation burst from the native, and it paused. The stalked eyes bent to examine this tiny intruder, and its next words were in a much louder voice. "You did speak?"

"I come in peace." The translator uttered the words with a volume to match the native's, resounding in Rand's ears. Could these beings be somewhat deaf? "I would speak with the foremost ones of this island. I bring greetings from my people to yours."

"Are you... (emissaries?)... from the Masters? You speak their tongue... No, tell me not. It is none of my concern. Come, I shall lead you to the Under Master."

Towering over the frail Human, the Kreert moved on chitinous legs toward one of the larger of the nearby domes. Rand followed, keeping well out of reach of the Kreert's writhing tentacles. His mind kept reaching out, seeking the comfort of contact with his fellow crew members through Skryben, but there was nothing. Skryben was far away, and he was here alone...

He shook off the sudden feeling of terror. What was wrong with him? This wasn't the first time he'd been ashore on an unfamiliar planet! He reached out once more for the comfort of contact with Skryben, the warmth of Tasca, and the calm strength of Berniss...