Peter Hamilton - The Dreaming Void

'Inigo is only human, he has flaws like the rest of us. Call it a failure of nerve at the last moment if you want to be charitable. My own belief is that he'll be watching events from somewhere, cheering us on.

'I hope so. Phelim paused as he reviewed the information accumulating in his exoimages, his u-shadow was balancing local data with a comprehensive overview of the election. 'Marius is here, requesting an audience.

'That didn't take him long, did it?

'No. There are a lot of formalities required of you tonight. The Greater Commonwealth President will be calling to congratulate you, as will the leaders of the Free Market planets, and dozens of our External World allies.

'How is the Unisphere coverage?

'Early days. Phelim checked the summaries his u-shadow was providing. 'Pretty much what we were expecting. Some hysterical anti-Pilgrimage hotheads saying you're going to kill all of us. Most of the serious anchors are trying to be balanced, and explain the difficulties involved. The majority seem to regard Pilgrimage as a politician's promise.

'There are no difficulties in accomplishing Pilgrimage, Ethan said in annoyance. 'I have seen the Skylord's dream. It is a noble creature, it will lead us inside the Void. We just have to locate the Second Dreamer. Any developments on that today?

'None. Thousands are coming forward claiming to be dreaming the Skylord. They don't help our search.

'You must find him.

'Ethan… it took our best Dream Masters months to assemble the existing fragments into the small dream we have. We believe in this case there is no firm link such as Inigo had with the Void. These fragments, they could be entering the gaiafield in a number of ways. Unaware carriers. Directly from the Void? Perhaps it's Ozzie's galactic field. Then there's an overspill from the Silfen Motherholme or some other post-physical sentient having fun at our expense. Even Inigo himself.

'It's not Inigo. I know that. I know the feel of his dreams, we all do. This is something different. I was the one who was drawn to those first few fragments, remember. I realized what they were. There is a Second Dreamer.

'Well, now you are Conservator you can authorize a more detailed monitoring of the gaiafield's confluence nests, track down the origin that way.

'Is that possible? I thought the gaiafield was beyond our direct influence.

'The Dream Masters claim they can do this, yes. Certain modifications can be made to the nests. It won't be cheap.

Ethan sighed. The conclave had been mentally exhausting, and that had just been the beginning. 'So many things. All at once.

'I'll help you. You know that.

'I do. And I thank you, my friend. One day we'll stand in the real Makkathran. One day we will make our lives perfect.

'Soon.

'For Ozzie's sake I hope so. Now, ask Marius in, please. Ethan stood courteously to receive his guest. That it should be the ANA Faction representative he saw first was a telling point. He didn't relish the way he and Phelim had relied on Marius during his campaign to be elected Conservator. In an ideal universe they would have needed no outside aid, certainly not one with so many potentially worrying strings attached. Not that there was ever any suggestion of quid pro quo from Marius. None of the Factions inside the near-post-physical intelligence of Earth's Advanced Neural Activity system would ever be so blunt.

The representative smiled courteously as he was shown in. Of average height, he had a round face with sharp green eyes emphasized by wide irises; nose and mouth were narrow, and his ears were large but flattened back so severely they could have been ridges in the skull. His thick auburn hair was flecked with gold, no doubt the outcome of some Advancer ancestor vanity. There was nothing to indicate his Higher functions. Ethan was using his internal enrichments to run a passive scan, and if any of the representative's field functions were active they were too sophisticated to perceive. He wouldn't be surprised by that, Marius would be enriched with the most advanced biononics in existence. The representative's long black toga suit generated its own surface haze which flowed about him like a slim layer of mist, the faintest tendrils slithered behind him as he walked.

'Your Eminence, Marius said, and bowed formally. 'My most sincere congratulations on your election.

Ethan smiled. It was all he could do not to shudder. Every deep-honed primitive instinct he possessed had picked up on how dangerous the representative was. 'Thank you.

'I'm here to assure you we will continue our support of your goals.

'You don't consider Pilgrimage will trigger the end of the galaxy, then? What he desperately wanted to ask was: who is we? But there were so many Factions inside ANA constantly making and breaking alliances it was virtually a null question. It was enough the Faction Marius represented wanted the Pilgrimage to go ahead. Ethan no longer cared that their reasons were probably the antithesis of his own, or if they regarded him as a simple political tool. Not that he would ever know. Pilgrimage was what mattered, delivering the faithful to their promised universe. All that mattered, in fact. He didn't care if he assisted someone else's political goal as long as it didn't interfere with his own.

'Of course not. Marius grinned in such a way it was as if they were sharing some private joke about how stupid the rest of humanity was compared to themselves. 'If that was the case, then those already in the Void would have triggered that event.

'People need to be educated. I would appreciate your help with that.

'We will do what we can, of course. However, we arc both working against a considerable amount of mental inertia, not to mention prejudice.

'I am very conscious of that. The Pilgrimage will polarize opinion across the Greater Commonwealth.

'Not just those of humans. There are a number of species who are showing an interest in this development.

'The Ocisen Empire, Ethan spat it out with as much contempt as possible.

'Not to be entirely underestimated, Marius said. It wasn't quite chiding.

'The only ones I concern myself with are the Raiel. They have publicly stated their opposition to anyone trying to enter the Void.

'Which is of course where our assistance will be most beneficial to you. Our original offer still stands, we will supply ultrad-rives for your Pilgrimage ships.

Ethan, a scholar of ancient history, guessed this was what the old religious icon Adam had felt when he was offered the apple. 'And in return?

'The status quo which currently reigns in the Greater Commonwealth will be over. .

'And that benefits you, how?

'Species survival. Evolution requires progression or extinction.

'I thought you would be aiming for transcendence, Phelim said flatly.

Marius didn't even look in his direction, his eyes remained fixed on Ethan. 'And that isn't evolution?

'It's a very drastic evolution, Ethan said.

'Not unlike your hopes of Pilgrimage.

'So why not join us?

Marius answered with a mirthless smile. 'loin us, Conservator.

Ethan sighed. 'We've dreamed what awaits us.

'Ah, so it boils down to the old human problem. Risk the unknown, or go with the comfortable.

'I think the phrase you want is: better the devil you know.

'Whatever. Your Eminence, we still offer you the ultradrive.

'Which no one has ever really seen. You just hint at it.

'ANA tends to be somewhat protective towards its advanced technologies. However, I assure you it is real. Ultradrive is at least equal to the drive used by the Raiel, if not superior.

Ethan tried not to smile at the arrogance.

'Oh, I assure you, Conservator, Marius said. 'ANA does not make that boast lightly.

'I'm sure it doesn't. So when can you supply them?