her expressionless features. ‘Perhaps a period of contemplation would do you good,’ she said. .
‘Well, maybe . . .’ Bennett shrugged. ‘What’s in the rucksack?’
‘My possessions. A change of flight-suit. Toiletries. And the Book of Meditation , the Bhao Khet book of philosophy.’
‘You travel light,’ Bennett said.
She inclined her head. ‘We all begin the journey light, Josh, but some of us burden ourselves on the way.’
Bennett gave a slow nod of feigned understanding. ‘Right, Ten.’
Mackendrick passed them cups of coffee. ‘Now that you’re here, Ten, we can get down to business. As I’ve already mentioned, we’re lighting into uncharted space. The fourth quadrant, and, to be even more precise, the Rim. If you’d care to sit down I’ll show you some video and computer imagery.’
While Mackendrick tapped the touch-pad of the com-screen on his desk. Bennett eased himself on to the sofa. Ten Lee took off her rucksack and sat cross-legged on the floor. Mackendrick sat side-saddle on the edge of his desk, as his computer-enhanced alter ego had done last night. On the screen beside him was the still image of an unfamiliar solar system.
‘A few years ago one of my uncrewed reconnaissance ships relayed some footage from a star system known only as G5/13. It was the furthest any vessel, from any line, had ventured, by some thousand or so light years. As you might know, the remit of the Expansion, which makes sense in the circumstances, is to explore space in an ever-widening cone along the spiral arm. This is merely in the interest of economic viability - it’s good business sense to open colony worlds closer to known, inhabited space.’
Mackendrick paused.
‘I like to do things differently. Call me a maverick, but I don’t like running with the herd. There’s all the sprawling universe out there, and I’m damned if I’m going to restrict myself to crawling around in our back yard like some helpless ant. So I take risks. I send out ships where other companies are too scared to go. Sometimes I draw a big fat blank. Sometimes I come up trumps. Some of my most successful ventures have discovered planets rich in valuable ores and metals, plant life indispensable in the production of pharmaceuticals. Over the years I’ve always gone that little bit further.
‘As I said, one of my ships started sending interesting footage back from the Rim. The ship received information from one of its probes, processed it and relayed the results back to our receiving station on Mars. This is what one probe discovered.’
He turned and tapped the touch-pad. The scene began rolling, speeded up faster than real-time. It showed the system from the point of view of the survey probe. Icebound outer planets flashed by. Then came a collection of smaller Earth-sized planets, orbiting their primary at a distance of some twenty million miles, according to Mackendrick. The angle of approach turned, veering off towards the sun and a gas giant that rapidly filled the screen. The banded stripes of blue and green gaseous light filled the room with an aqueous glow.
Mackendrick paused the film.
Bennett leaned forward. ‘A gas giant?’ he said. Why would the survey probe find a gas giant of particular interest?
Mackendrick smiled. ‘I’ve named it Tenebrae,’ he said, ‘but it’s not the planet I’m interested in. The planet in question is hidden by Tenebrae’s bulk, almost indiscernible in this shot.’ He pointed to a small disc, a coin held at arm’s length, silhouetted against the broad, bright bulk of the gas giant. ‘I’ve called the world Penumbra, for obvious reasons. Watch.’
The film continued, speeding up as the probe fell towards the tiny planet. Soon the planet filled the screen: a cloud-whipped, pale mauve world which resolved itself, as the probe plummeted through a storm-racked atmosphere, into a landscape of mountains and
‘Well, maybe . . .’ Bennett shrugged. ‘What’s in the rucksack?’
‘My possessions. A change of flight-suit. Toiletries. And the Book of Meditation , the Bhao Khet book of philosophy.’
‘You travel light,’ Bennett said.
She inclined her head. ‘We all begin the journey light, Josh, but some of us burden ourselves on the way.’
Bennett gave a slow nod of feigned understanding. ‘Right, Ten.’
Mackendrick passed them cups of coffee. ‘Now that you’re here, Ten, we can get down to business. As I’ve already mentioned, we’re lighting into uncharted space. The fourth quadrant, and, to be even more precise, the Rim. If you’d care to sit down I’ll show you some video and computer imagery.’
While Mackendrick tapped the touch-pad of the com-screen on his desk. Bennett eased himself on to the sofa. Ten Lee took off her rucksack and sat cross-legged on the floor. Mackendrick sat side-saddle on the edge of his desk, as his computer-enhanced alter ego had done last night. On the screen beside him was the still image of an unfamiliar solar system.
‘A few years ago one of my uncrewed reconnaissance ships relayed some footage from a star system known only as G5/13. It was the furthest any vessel, from any line, had ventured, by some thousand or so light years. As you might know, the remit of the Expansion, which makes sense in the circumstances, is to explore space in an ever-widening cone along the spiral arm. This is merely in the interest of economic viability - it’s good business sense to open colony worlds closer to known, inhabited space.’
Mackendrick paused.
‘I like to do things differently. Call me a maverick, but I don’t like running with the herd. There’s all the sprawling universe out there, and I’m damned if I’m going to restrict myself to crawling around in our back yard like some helpless ant. So I take risks. I send out ships where other companies are too scared to go. Sometimes I draw a big fat blank. Sometimes I come up trumps. Some of my most successful ventures have discovered planets rich in valuable ores and metals, plant life indispensable in the production of pharmaceuticals. Over the years I’ve always gone that little bit further.
‘As I said, one of my ships started sending interesting footage back from the Rim. The ship received information from one of its probes, processed it and relayed the results back to our receiving station on Mars. This is what one probe discovered.’
He turned and tapped the touch-pad. The scene began rolling, speeded up faster than real-time. It showed the system from the point of view of the survey probe. Icebound outer planets flashed by. Then came a collection of smaller Earth-sized planets, orbiting their primary at a distance of some twenty million miles, according to Mackendrick. The angle of approach turned, veering off towards the sun and a gas giant that rapidly filled the screen. The banded stripes of blue and green gaseous light filled the room with an aqueous glow.
Mackendrick paused the film.
Bennett leaned forward. ‘A gas giant?’ he said. Why would the survey probe find a gas giant of particular interest?
Mackendrick smiled. ‘I’ve named it Tenebrae,’ he said, ‘but it’s not the planet I’m interested in. The planet in question is hidden by Tenebrae’s bulk, almost indiscernible in this shot.’ He pointed to a small disc, a coin held at arm’s length, silhouetted against the broad, bright bulk of the gas giant. ‘I’ve called the world Penumbra, for obvious reasons. Watch.’
The film continued, speeding up as the probe fell towards the tiny planet. Soon the planet filled the screen: a cloud-whipped, pale mauve world which resolved itself, as the probe plummeted through a storm-racked atmosphere, into a landscape of mountains and
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