01 - The Long Night of Centauri Prime by Peter David

Author:Peter David
Language: eng
Format: mobi
ISBN: 0345427181
Published: 1998-12-31T22:00:00+00:00

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—chapter 11—

Vir looked up.

And he saw the individual that he had only thought he’d seen earlier. The man was dressed in grey robes, and although Vir couldn’t see his hooded face completely, what he did see looked quite young. He couldn’t have been more than thirty.

Rem lay on the ground, staring upward. The cloaked man stepped forward, crouched down over him and seemed to study him for a moment. Then he passed a hand over Rem’s face, and Rem closed his eyes. His chest began to rise and fall in a natural sleeping rhythm.

“He’ll be all right,” said the cloaked man. When he spoke, it was in a very soft voice, so soft that Vir had to strain to listen. “He’ll sleep it off for a time, and when he comes to, he’ll have no idea why he’s here. He’ll be of no harm to anyone.”

“What happened?” asked Vir, hauling himself to his feet. “Who are you?” Then he noticed the man was holding a staff. The ends of the staff appeared to be glowing softly. In barely contained astonishment, Vir said, “Are you a… a techno-mage?” The notion was both fascinating and frightening. Vir had had dealings with the science-based sorcerers nearly four years earlier, and he had found it one of the most daunting experiences of his life. When the techno-mages had finally left on their journey beyond the Rim, purportedly never to be seen again, Vir had breathed a sigh of relief. Yet now, apparently, he owed his life to one.

“Yes… but a cloistered one. My kind don’t get out much. My name is Kane.”

“It is? Really?”

“No. Not really,” admitted the initiate. “It’s a chosen name. I’m not about to tell you my real name, of course. Names have power, and I’m not going to give you power over me of any sort. Rather a foolish notion, really.”

“That’s a good philosophy,” said Vir. “Thank you for squishing that… that…”

“Sleeper. Leftover biotech from the Shadows. Resided in your friend here,” and he tapped Rem’s body with the toe of his boot, “wiped his memory, and waited until it was ready to fulfill its mission.”

“To assassinate Sheridan.”

Kane nodded. “Yes. All Lanas had to do was get close enough, and the creature would have done the rest. It has quite a good jumping range. And once it landed on Sheridan, it would have stung him, and he would have been dead before they could get him to Medlab.”

“Just like Kran.”

“What?”

“Nothing. But why now? And why Lanas?”

“It wasn’t just now. There were times before. There will probably be other times, although death may take different forms. As for why Lanas,” and beneath his robes, Kane shrugged. “Luck of the draw. Purely random chance. They had to pick someone. They picked him.”

“They who?”

“That,” smiled Kane, “would be telling. You don’t need to know… yet.”

“But—”

“Tell me,” Kane drew closer to him, studying him thoughtfully, “why you chose to handle this matter on your own, why you did not summon security.”

“I… I didn’t have enough to go on.

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