Jeffrey Carver - Eternity's End

Tracy-Ace slipped her arms around him and hugged him wordlessly. She pressed her face to his shoulder.

He wanted, desperately, to be satisfied with that. “Trace,” he murmured, squeezing her, “what if YZ/I doesn’t live up to his promise?”

“Which promise?” she whispered.

“The promise to stop piracy.”

She chuckled into his shoulder. “I have a pretty good idea what promises he can be expected to keep, and why. I’m connected to YZ/I, Legroeder. I’m part of him.” She drew back and peered at him. “You mean you never suspected?”

Legroeder stared at her, feeling utterly stupid. “Do you mean that you’re—of course, you’re connected to him. Your augments…” He suddenly remembered his dream—or had it been a dream?—of his augments connected to Tracy-Ace’s, while he slept and she fought with YZ/I.

Tracy-Ace chuckled. “Yes, love. Not now . But when I’m there, in the intelnet. At certain times, you could say that I’m a significant component of his consciousness. Didn’t you ever wonder why he understood your views so well?”

Legroeder flushed. “Do you mean to say—” he glanced around and lowered his voice “—that when we were making love—”

“No, dear, not then. He might have been interested —but no. I’m me , Legroeder, not some hybrid. YZ/I, now—he’s a different story.”

He stared at her. “I won’t argue with that. What other tricks does he have for me? Or should I say, do you have for me?”

Tracy-Ace grinned. “Touché.”

He raised his eyebrows.

“No tricks,” she promised. “There’s a lot I have to do here, though. When our returnees start arriving, there’s going to be pressure on Carlotta to follow suit—especially if she thinks we’re benefiting from relations with the Centrist Worlds. On the other hand, if she thinks we’re betraying them, and convinces the Republic of that—anything could happen.” She turned to peer out at the curved edge of the planet. “By God, though, Legroeder, I’m going to make it work. Damn if I’m not.”

There was an adamance in her voice that he liked, and admired.

They walked arm in arm to the opposite end of the observation deck, away from the planet, where all they could see was the dark of deep space. They stood awhile, peering into the measureless infinity of stars. “There’s a lot to do at Outpost Ivan, before the first fleets can leave for the Well of Stars,” Tracy-Ace murmured. “I’ll need to go back eventually to join them. But right now my work is here, I think.” She gazed at Legroeder for several heartbeats. “You never answered my question. Do you want me here? Do you want me with you?”

He smiled out at the stars.

“Legroeder?”

He turned. “What exactly is it you want to do here with me, Trace? Besides making sure that I’m delivered in one piece to the Narseil?”

“Besides be with you? I’m not sure, I guess. Are you still in legal trouble?”

“I dunno yet. But I’ve got Harriet. I think we’ll be able to handle it.”

“But can I help you?”

Legroeder drew her close. “You helped me come back on the deck of Impris . I don’t know what more you could possibly do.”

Tracy-Ace’s augments were gleaming like jewels. She closed her arms around his neck. “How about if I do this?” she whispered, and kissed him. It was a long, slow kiss that flickered between his lips, and seemed to stretch out time itself. He imagined his implants tickling themselves to life, joining with hers; imagined them all talking back and forth, like an echo in a canyon.

// …love you… love you… love you… //

He held her close and thought, Maybe you can, at that. Maybe you just can.

“Are you going to answer me?”

He felt a foolish grin crack his face before the words came. “Sorry—I thought I already had…” And he kissed her again as, outside the viewport, the stars shone bright and beckoning.

THE END

For my family, with love—

Allysen, Alexandra, and Julia

This book took four years to write: forever, it seemed; an impossible task. But at last it is done. I owe more than the usual debt to those who helped me through it, and this is where I get to thank them publicly.

It’s customary to save one’s family for the end in this sort of thing, but I’m going to break with custom and start with the very best: my wife Allysen, without whose love and support this book would never have been written. Thanks for that and so much more. And what better fans could any writer ask for than my own smiling daughters? They’ve spent more time in my office than anyone but me, and I doubt they’ve known what a wonderful, continual encouragement they were to me. (Note to A. and J.: I look forward to many more years of having you peer over my shoulder asking, “Are you almost done yet, Daddy?”`) And thanks to my brother, Charles S. Carver; he knows why. (Note: if you happen to be in the fields of personality or social or health psychology, you may know his books, too.)

Next in line comes my dauntless writing group, more than twenty years old now! Mary Aldridge, Richard Bowker, Craig Gardner, Victoria Bolles. Three times—and more!—they read this book through, in all of its stages of semi-intelligibility. They helped me think through many a complex twist of plot and character, and circled the dumb parts so you wouldn’t have to. I am forever grateful. Whatever the flaws in this book, you can’t blame them.

Nor can you blame my friend and editor, Jim Frenkel, who waited patiently, patiently, while I wrote, and rewrote, and rewrote some more. Thanks, Jim—and not just for that, but for the hard editing, too. And while I’m at it, thanks to Tom Doherty and the rest of Tor Books, and my agent Richard Curtis, for letting me take the time I needed, not just to finish the book but to finish it right.

Thanks are also due to Freeman Deutsch and Noel Friedman, for their generous contributions to the Big Sisters auctions. I hope you enjoy your namesakes’ appearances.

And finally, there’s you the reader. Some of you are new; some of you have been waiting a lonnng time for the next book. Some of you, in the CompuServe and SFF Net forums, helped me search for a title. Well, here it is, and welcome aboard! Thanks for waiting, and for all the letters and emails that helped me persevere. You can’t imagine how much they meant to me.

Now, enjoy.

Arlington, MA

August, 1999