Before them, the console’s array of thirteen graphic displays teemed with images. Most were static, but strings of indecipherable alien text and colors scrolled across four of the screens, moving too fast for his human eyes to follow. “Can you make out any of that?”
Tasthene uttered another string of clicks. “Some, but most of it is in a language I do not understand. At least, I do not think I understand. Though I have never before seen this script, at some level, it is recognizable, but I am unable to explain how that is possible.” Lifting his left arm from the panel on which it had been resting, the Tholian continued, “These readings are from a subterranean power plant hundreds of kilometers below us, as well as a computer storage and environmental control system. The other systems I do not recognize, and the information regarding them appears to carry a sophisticated encryption scheme.” After a moment, he added, “All attempts to move beyond the planetary network are proving ineffective.”
Studying the information being relayed to his tricorder, Xiong frowned. It was true that Tasthene’s efforts had resulted in far more success than what he had been able to do by himself on Erilon. Still, the vast interstellar network the Shedai once had used to showcase their power and supreme rule over the Taurus Reach, if it had not been destroyed by whatever action had resulted in the disappearance of the Jinoteur system, remained dormant. He had suspected that this might happen, though he had chosen to remain optimistic. Tasthene’s report dampened that hope.
“Do I take from your expression, Earther, that you have not yet been successful?”
The voice intruded on his thoughts, and Xiong turned to see Lorka regarding him with an expression of disdain. Her large, muscled arms were folded across her chest. Behind her stood two more Klingons, flanking what appeared to be an oversized packing crate. How long had she been standing there? He chose to assume that Lorka had overheard several minutes of the conversation between him and Tasthene.
“We’ve made some progress,” he said, indicating his Tholian companion and the consoles with a nod of his head, “but we’re limited with what we can do here. Accessing the global network to any meaningful degree would take far more power than we could ever generate. Access to the subterranean power source is impossible because of an incredibly complex encryption method, the likes of which I’ve never seen before.”
Seemingly unimpressed, Lorka asked, “What about the planetary defense system?”
It was Tasthene who responded, stepping away from the console and turning to face the Klingon. As he did so, the millennia-old equipment once again went dark, no longer benefiting from the Tholian’s contact.
“The defense system is protected in similar fashion,” Tasthene said. “Even if we were able to access it, without the proper key or other decryption method at our disposal, there would be no means of utilizing any of it, to say nothing of gaining entry to the larger network used to communicate and send information across the Taurus Reach.”
“I’m not interested in that,” Lorka countered. “At least, not at the moment. The weapons system is the first priority.”
Releasing an exasperated sigh, Xiong pointed to the console. “We don’t even know what we’re looking at. Tasthene might understand a fraction of the information we’re getting to. There’s nothing with which to compare it, nothing for a universal translator to grab onto. We need more time.”
“Perhaps you recall what I told you the last time you made such a request,” Lorka said. “My husband grows more impatient by the day, but he has come into possession of something that may prove helpful to you.” She nodded toward Xiong and told her two subordinates, “Bring it in here.”
Xiong looked past her, catching the look of uncertainty the two Klingons shared before—in what Xiong took to be a somewhat reluctant fashion—bending and straining to lift the container sitting between them and bring it closer. He felt a sudden, unexplained hint of unease, even paranoia, tingle at the back of his mind. Though he already felt fear, of course, given Lorka’s threats to kill him, this was something else.
The guards set down the crate at Xiong’s feet, and he noted that even Lorka took a step back before saying, “We believe the contents of this container to be another artifact. If those who possessed it are to be believed, it may well prove useful to our research.”
Without asking permission, Xiong ran his hands along the crate’s surface. Determining that it was not locked, he raised the lid, beholding what he could only describe as a stone sarcophagus within. “What is it?”
“Unknown,” Lorka replied. “No attempt to scan it has been successful.” As she spoke, Xiong noted that she appeared to swallow a nervous lump.
What the hell is this thing?
Despite his curiosity, Xiong sensed his own agitation growing as Lorka directed the guards to remove the lid from the sarcophagus. He felt his jaw slacken as he beheld the stone casket’s contents.
Lying on a bed of lush, thick fabric that reminded Xiong of an ornate tapestry sat a large crystal. Nearly the size of a human head, it had been cut to resemble a dodecahedron. Its clear, colorless exterior formed a solid shell around a smaller, violet crystal sphere at its center. The smaller crystal was about the size of a large grapefruit.
As he studied it, the inner crystal flared to life, emitting a vibrant aura that radiated through the clear outer shell and bathed the interior of the sarcophagus with a brilliant lavender hue.
“Oh, my God,” Xiong said, unable to control his reaction. “I’ve never seen anything like this.” There was no way to determine with certainty that the crystal was a Shedai artifact, but there was no mistaking its apparent lineage. Looking up, he watched as Tasthene stepped away from the crate, his entire body seeming to tremble in panic as he beheld the crystal.
Was it a true missing link, perhaps the very sort of key for which he had been searching since his earliest examinations of Shedai technology? The challenge now facing Xiong was twofold. He could not waste this opportunity to learn something new, though he also would have to do everything in his power to avoid giving too much to his Klingon captors. Somehow, he would have to find a way to balance those two goals, at least for as long as it might take for Starfleet to find him, if they were searching for him at all.
You have to do all of that and not get yourself killed. Good luck.
45
Draining the contents of his coffee cup, Reyes relished the brew’s rich flavor. He reached toward the table before his small sofa to set down the cup but pausing in mid-motion. As he examined the cup, he considered the odd notion that had just come to mind.
“I’ll bet the coffee there tastes like crap.”
Sitting next to him with her legs curled beneath her, dressed once again in the uniform she had earlier discarded, Desai released a tired sigh followed by a small, humorless laugh as she shook her head. “Your sense of priorities never ceases to amaze me, Diego.”
“I’ve had plenty of time for ponderous reflection,” Reyes said, rising to his feet and crossing the room to return the empty cup to the food slot. Deciding against another cup, he turned back to Desai. “Any word on Xiong?”
Desai shook her head. “Nothing. Jetanien’s still pursuing a few back-channel options, but the Klingons flatly deny taking any prisoners.”
“That’s SOP for them,” Reyes said. Still, Ming Xiong was Starfleet’s foremost expert on all matters related to the Taurus Reach. If the Klingons—or the Tholians, for that matter—wanted insight into the progress the Federation had made in understanding the secrets of the Shedai, Xiong was the prime candidate to provide that knowledge.