“Circle the planet before we land,” Tim said. “Just in case.”
We did as requested, verifying what Walker had seen and also that there didn’t appear to be anyone waiting to attack us in some way.
“Mother,” I asked as we circled, “how close can we get to the sun safely? And, more importantly, can you tell what’s inside it?”
“Currently we could get as close as what we will be calling Planet Two, which is, as far as my sensors show, the last inhabited planet. Planet One is very close to the sun, but it would be dangerous for us to land there, and it is likely too close for us to be even if we remain in space. As for what I see inside, it’s different from what was inside the other stars. I need to cross-reference before I can make confident statements.”
Mossy and Wruck returned as we came back to the crash site of what we could confirm was the Eknara. Decided not to pressure Mother for the internal star organs at this precise time.
Mossy had filled Wruck in, such as he could. “John,” I asked as we started to lower, “could a parasite, a Superior’s soul, join with a sun and survive?”
He stared at me. “It’s never been done.”
“Wasn’t asking if precedent had been set. Was asking if it was possible.”
“I don’t know. I’d have to think that it wouldn’t survive the heat.”
“And yet they’ve survived flying through space and slamming into unwilling hosts? I think they’re a lot heartier than you want to give them credit for.”
“Perhaps.” Wruck didn’t sound convinced.
“What if it was Mephistopheles? Could he have managed it?”
Wruck looked thoughtful. “I suppose if the Superior were powerful enough, such as Mephistopheles was, then yes, it would be in the realm of possibility.”
The music changed to “Antichrist Superstar” by Marilyn Manson and that meant I was pretty sure I was right.
“So, here’s this hour’s Megalomaniac Girl proclamation, everyone. What’s slammed into this sun is a parasite, and it’s likely a really strong one, probably one of Mephistopheles’ favorite pals.” Mephs had said as much in my dream, after all. “And that means that, despite the odds, this particular parasite is going to successfully bond with this star. Meaning that the most powerful superbeing in existence is trying to form in front of us.”
There was that silence you get when everyone is so horrified by what they’ve heard that they can’t speak for a few seconds. But the guys recovered.
“What?” Jeff asked weakly. “How could that be?”
“Look, as per always, I don’t make the plans, I just have to figure out what they are and foil them. In this case, it’s not a plan so much as it’s just the freaking way our luck goes. And this makes sense, if you consider that the neutron wave has been carrying this parasite forward.”
Tim nodded. “I can see it. In that sense, it’s a good thing the Eknara was hit.”
“I agree.” I did. It, like everything else, made too much sense to be wrong. And I knew things the others didn’t, particularly that we were on the Fix Mephs’ Big Errors For Algar Tour.
“How so?” Mossy asked.
But Chuckie was with us. “If the Eknara wasn’t hit and stranded here, who would know what was going on? No one. These three solar systems are close to each other, but they’re extremely remote from anywhere else. More importantly, only one planet in all three systems is even close to spaceflight. They can’t call for help or warn anyone. Without the Eknara crash-landing here, we’re not here to try to stop it.”
“If we can,” Hughes pointed out.
“We can,” Jerry said confidently. He grinned at me. “Our Fearless Leader is here and she’s on the case.”
“I feel the love,” Tim said. “But if we’re talking a being who can harness the power of a sun, then said being can engulf the planets, too.”
“And those two other suns and their planets.” Knew how the Superiors worked. Just like all the other bad guys worked—get as much as you can, regardless of who you harm along the way. “So, we’re trying to save at least three systems.”
“No,” Jeff said. “If we take your hypothesis as correct, then we’re trying to save the entire galaxy. Again.”
CHAPTER 76
READER NODDED. “I’m sure Jeff’s right. Because if we have a sentient star that’s being controlled by someone as powerful and evil as Mephistopheles was, then they aren’t going to stop at three systems.”
“And the more they consume, the stronger they get,” Mossy said. “Just like a black hole.”
“And since Mother sees the beginning of a black hole, that totally fits.” Managed not to say that black holes sucked—didn’t want to hurt Algar’s feelings and also didn’t feel like getting punned at for the rest of the landing.
“Prepare for final landing,” Hughes announced. “The gravitational pull doesn’t seem as strong as it was on Cradus—this is a more Earthlike gravity, so we should be fine to take off, even if we’re fully loaded.”
The landing was, for our crew, the most complicated one we’d done yet, seeing as this planet wasn’t forming a landing pad for us. Fortunately, Drax had accounted for this and there were support pillars that came out of the bottom of various parts of the ship—the ones for the saucer section being longer than those for the sport car section in order to keep our “head up”—or else we’d have to land tipped forward. All the landing pillars were high enough to keep our thrusters off the ground, too. The tricky part was lowering the ship while also lowering the support pillars, but everyone who’d flown planes said it was similar to normal landing gear.
So, we managed, me by providing the soundtrack, everyone else by doing something to get us down. We got to listen to “Landing on London” by 3 Doors Down and “Pillar of Davidson” by Live, which I felt was helpful, though actively chose not to ask anyone else’s opinion.
Once we were down, Mother did a scan. “Air is breathable for all on board. You should be able to exit via the main gangplank, not an airlock. Temperature is similar to the Northern United States and lower regions of Canada.”
“So, chilly, but not terrible,” Tito said. “Whoever’s going out should dress accordingly.”
“I suggest we put on Drax’s nifty body armor.”
Drax nodded. “I agree. It will ensure that you don’t feel extreme temperatures. The suits are made to keep the wearers safe in all situations.”
Those of us strapped in got unstrapped, I grabbed my iPod and dropped it back into my purse, and we all headed for the Observation Lounge via the Hyperspeed Daisy Chain.
“As before, no one is to get off,” Jeff said as everyone was getting out of their harnesses. “And that particularly means you, Jamie. We may not be staying here very long, and we want everyone inside and accounted for.”