Then I found myself back in the swirls of color, neither hot nor cold.
I shuddered. Which Tyndel was I - black or white?
You are as you were. That other you no longer exists, since only the informational quanta crossed back through the wormhole.
Why?
Because the independence of that other entity, that avatar of you, was necessary to obtain the information I sought... and because it pleases me to demonstrate that T meet the traditional criteria of 'God'
'You're not claiming to be God?' From what I'd seen, the nanogod was acting like an ancient deity.
Acting like the conception of an ancient philosopher who could not comprehend the universe does not a deity make, any more than having your cells repaired constantly by miniature organic technology makes you a demon. The faint sense of a chuckle followed.
The chuckle bothered me.
Nanogods shouldn't have a sense of humor?
Engee could have a sense of humor or not. I just hoped I could get back to the Mambrino and return the needle to Earth Orbit Two.
Why not? You acted in good faith, if with fear.
I blinked and found myself standing on the shimmering gold platform in the middle of nowhere in Follower Station. What was I supposed to do now?
Whatever you want. You could return to Dorcha, not as your previous self, of course, or to Rykasha.
Dorcha?
If you study yourself, you will sense the difference. Since 'you'had to be transmitted in quantum form, I took the liberty - call it payment for services rendered - of reconstituting you in a slightly more durable form. The functions provided by the nanites have been integrated on a cellular level I would caution you. You remain a destructible individual, although that destruction would be far more difficult for outside agencies, but you will register as a totally old human on a Dorchan demon scanner and as a converted human on a Rykashan scanner. That will also increase your cellular life expectancy.
Cellular life expectancy - a polite way of saying that I was far more likely to die in an accident or be killed than for my body to wear out or run down.
Exactly. You could live for several tens of thousands of years more, internal objective clocking, that is. Your ship is reengergized You may leave as you wish. Unlike the rumors, I do not turn humans into subprocessing units. They're rather inefficient at that.
I shuddered, then walked across the empty space, a nanite-based force-field I could sense, and the hexagonal door opened.
Bream bowed. His face was pale. 'As you wish, angel of light.'
'I'm ready to leave.' I paused. 'How long has it been?'
'Three standard hours, ser.'
Three hours, to ensure that Engee could change the fate of the universe? Or was that conceit? I laughed softly, and kept walking. I knew my way back.
As I neared the cream-and-white walls of the waiting area, Berya hurried toward me, not quite running. Then she stopped short.
'I'm back.'
She studied me silently, for a long time. 'You look the same, Tyndel. But you're different. I can't say why, though. It's something.'
Being tossed into another universe to report quantum data and freeze might change even a demon, I reflected. Tm still me.'
Berya fingered her chin. 'Can we go?'
'Any time.'
Berya turned to the six passengers who had watched me return. 'Captain says we're ready to board.' She glanced at me again, speculatively. Alek's in the control center. Figured that one of us ought to be there at all times.'
'That was a good idea.'
'I'll button up the locks,' she said, glancing back at where the gold-clad Bream stood silently, his faint smile somber.
I'd finished the systems check when she returned to the control center. 'Passengers are secure; locks secure, captain.'
'Good. We're about ready.' I pulsed the release commands
to the cradles, hoping they responded. They did, as they did on any Rykashan station.
'Follower Station, this is Mambrino. Clear of locks, departing this time for Sol.'
'A happy journey, captain and angel of light. God will always be with you.'
'What was that all about?' asked Alek across the shipnet. 'Angel of light?'
'I managed to make their god happy. So I'm an angel.' I snorted.
'Is Engee a god?'
'He's a being of immense power. I don't know that I'd want to go beyond that. After all, compared to the humans of ten thousand years ago, we're beings of immense power.' I eased up the power on the ionjets, wanting to get clear of Alpha Felini as soon as possible, for reasons scarcely clear to me. 'I doubt that our technology could destroy Engee, but the swords and arrows of our ancestors couldn't destroy us.'
'They couldn't destroy you, Tyndel,' Berya pointed out. 'Alek and I are still vulnerable to that sort of thing. Maybe you are an angel.' Then she laughed.
I swallowed a sigh of relief at her laugh and torqued the ionjets to full power.
As the Mambrino eased clear of the Follower station with the artificial gravity that should not have been, clear of the energy fluxes and the sparkles of matter being reenergized, of local entropy being reversed, I spread the photon nets and began an acceleration to raise us above the incidental dust density.
'All passengers must be securely restrained.' The clamshells began to descend with Berya's announcement.
I scanned the cabin, but the passengers were all locked in place. They had probably strapped in as soon as we pulled away from Follower Station, if not before.
As we slipped into overspace under close to maximum acceleration, needling through the barriers with lattices that flamed, I had a lingering thought. What about the changes Engee had made to me? Did they affect the gene structure?
Of course. Your descendants, should you choose to have any, will retain the improvements. I suggest you have descendants, if only to save some later needle pilots from the difficulties inherent in my finding one such as you.
'That's almost blackmail.'
It is honest. It is not truth, but honest.
'You shy away from truth ...'
The basic concept of 'truth' as exhibited in human culture indicates the deceptive nature of your species. If an object exists or an action indeed took place, then why do you need to protest the 'truth' of its existence unless you need to distinguish that truth from events which did not take place? And why would you need to make such a distinction unless you are in the habit of frequently representing that which was not as having been?
Even in my pilot's couch, I winced at the accuracy of Engee's assessment. He and Cerrelle had certain characteristics in common.
'Why did you do all this?'
To keep the universe from fulfilling its purpose ...
I eased the Mambrino sideways, avoiding the vortex-blocks spinning away from a yellow-cold spear singularity, waiting for the explanation that might come but not ignoring the ship or overspace - an overspace that seemed almost light green, with everything in even greater relief and better perspective.
The universe's purpose, although that implies a sentient volition which I have not been able to ascertain, appears to be formless entropy. Intelligence opposes formless entropy.
More focused and mobilized intelligence can effect more opposition ...
Tern were doing quite well at that without our assistance.'
For now.. .but nanites and nanotech deities lack one factor in their makeup that organic intelligences possess. I waited again.