Revelation by Nigel Foster

Author:Nigel Foster [Foster, Nigel]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Titan

9

One Earth week after running away with the Originators – triune floating globes joined by metallic umbilicals – Tatia had an insight.

It was, as breakthroughs go, subdued. No trumpets, balloons or cake. No co-workers to shake her hand, no congratulatory hugs. Kara would be well impressed, she thought to herself. So would Marc. And shed a tear, but only a small one. Tatia had quickly learned to ration her emotions. It was either that or wander around the Originator’s craft, alternately weeping and screaming with mad joy, hair wild and clothes rent. It was the sense of destiny that sustained and calmed her. She was where she was meant to be, born to be. As before, when her leadership skills – who knew? – had saved the surviving pilgrims captured by the Cancri. She remembered Kara saying that armies weren’t always needed to win a war. The right person in the right place at the right time could even prevent one. Tatia was the butterfly that would flap her wings in the Amazon and cause a typhoon in China. It was lonely as all hell but weeping wouldn’t help... and if she was to die alone, if the butterfly ended up in a spider’s web, she’d die with dignity and pride. Then wished she hadn’t thought of the spider analogy... although even a tarantula would be company, but what would she feed it? There are no flies on you, Marc had once said and she’d had to ask what he’d meant. Antique colloquial English was not one of her strengths, and...

She understood that the Originators were not the boss pre-cog race.

How did Tatia know they weren’t top dog? She just did. Tatia had been born to meet... destroy those who founded the pre-cog empire. These three-globed freaks weren’t them. And there would be some sort of event, probably violent, when they did finally meet. Not here, not now.

The Originators, she decided, were probably the Praetorian guard. They kept things nice and safe and orderly. Distributed or looted tech, using the vegetable-like Gliese. But they weren’t boss, rather they were as much slaves to the pre-cog world as the Gliese. So pointless to try and negotiate with them. The only beings that mattered were those that had established the event line in the first place.

Never expect logic from the Originators, for whom self-survival was less important than following the plan. Tatia should think of the Originators and others as religious or political fanatics.

< That’s a wonderful insight.

> Maybe it was yours.

< If I did all the thinking you’d just sit and mope.

She’d never liked AIs. But here and now it was the only friend she had. No matter if she couldn’t remember having it fitted. Kara must have had it done, secretly. Or even her bloody father, typical sneaky thing he’d do. But complain too much, and it might take umbrage and go away. That would be a shame because as Tatia discovered the AI had a store of her favourite music and vids.

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