A Mear Sleight of Hand

BOOKS BY THERESA SNYDER

The Farloft Chronicles

(Dragon books suitable for Middle-school to Adult)

James & the Dragon - Vol. 1

Kingdom of the Last Dragon - Vol. 2

Dragon Deception - Vol. 3

Too Many Dragons - Vol. 4

Three & a Half Dragons - Vol. 5

Dragon Memories, Dreams & Reflection - Vol. 6

The Star Traveler Series

(Sci-fi suitable for Young Adult to Adult)

The Helavite War - Vol. 1

The Heirs of Henu - Vol. 2

Old Friends/New Enemies - Vol. 3

The Malefactors - Vol. 4

Cataclysm - Vol. 5

A Mear Sleight of Hand - Vol. 6

The Twin Cities Series

(Paranormal Mature Young Adult to Adult)

Shifting in The Realms (Book 1)

Shifting Agony & Ecstasy (Book 2)

Memoir

(Adult Non-fiction)

We 3

Learn more at

www.TheresaSnyderAuthor.com

Dlf’s Story

There is some background information you need to be aware of, if you are not already, in order to understand the volume you are currently reading. Two items pertain to navigation through space and one to a very deadly disease.

Let me start with the navigational lesson, that will get the dry stuff out of the way so we can proceed to the exciting part. Read carefully, you might need the following information in the future for other than my book. You may have the need to get from point ‘A’ to point ‘B’ in space one day.

You cannot speak of navigation in space without first talking about the Valarians, the cartographers of the universe. The Valarians were exploring their worlds, for they inhabit all eight planets of their solar system plus one artificial giant, and beyond well before the Henu ever existed - long before the human earthlings evolved into their present state.

Valarians are aggressive explorers and totally fearless. Viktor Prasch, the first earthling to contact and travel with the Valarians wrote that he was thankful the Valarians were not a conquering breed of beings, for if they were we would all be speaking Valarian now.

The cartographers started by mapping their own solar system, but with their extremely large space traveling population that didn't take long. They found, not too soon after starting, that their planet bound telescopic searches were insufficient to keep up with their explorer vessels. This prompted Ha-Hex-E-Ta's invention of a new navigational system, the Navigational Beacons or N.B.’s.

The beacon was a mechanical device shot out in front of the exploring vessel like a stepping stone into space. It emitted an easily intercepted tone which could be locked onto by a corresponding navigational chip placed in your onboard computer. When activated the beacon was also equipped with multiple laser beams with encoding capabilities.

The Valarians explored the area of space in which the tone from the beacon could be easily and quickly accessed. They programmed the beacon's rotating lasers to lock onto each of the major planets, moons, suns and stars in the explored area and encoded each laser beam with navigational coordinates your onboard computer chip could lock onto.

When you locate a beacon and activate it your onboard computer displays a holographic image of the destinations of the various beams from that beacon. You have merely to select the appropriate code number from the display, enter it into your computer, and ride the beam to your new destination. Once your destination is reached the beam deactivates automatically behind you.

There is a charge associated with using the N.B's. When your ship locks on the registration of your vessel is automatically read, digested and sent to I.N.C. for the purpose of tracking and deduction of the user fee from your account. This record is often accessed in emergency situations by officials to track and locate ships equipped with the Valarian maps and chip. The vessels last known position can easily be ascertained by discovering where they last activated an N.B.

The maintenance and repair of the N.B. is performed by an alien race affectionately referred to, both collectively and individually, as ‘Hummers.’ Each N.B. has a permanent resident of one of this race.

The Hummer is a team consisting of a host and a parasite.

The host resembles the long extinct octopus of earth origin with three major exceptions. The host is much more intelligent than the ancient octopus. The host possesses three additional ‘finger-like’ appendages at the end of each tentacle, two across from one opposing. These ‘fingers’ are equipped with fine, extremely sensitive fibers which make the host a very tactile creature. The third and final difference is the host is blind. The host's ability to maintain the N.B. is accomplished through its advanced sense of touch and the guidance and direction of its sighted, attached parasite.

The parasite resembles the Subterranean Sea Flat of Walh. Its eyes are placed high and wide apart on extended cartilage which enable 365 degree rotation. When not ‘grazing,’ its favorite position is atop the host's head. From this location it speaks to and directs the hosts maintenance and repair of the N.B.

The two communicate through a series of harmonic vibrations, hence, the name Hummer.

The parasite performs its duty as eyes for the host in exchange for a meal of the host's sloughed off scales. Both profit from the partnership as well as having someone to talk to. They are a very quiet, contented species.

The Hummer is totally encapsulated in a globe which can be as tough as quillanium and contains the liquid needed to sustain the two. However, when the host and parasite ‘hum’ together at a certain pitch they can make the wall of the globe change its molecular composition to allow the Hummer to reach through the wall for the maintenance and repair needed on the N.B. The Valarians, who are the only other race to have seen the Hummers, describe the above mentioned procedure as miraculous to watch. The Hummer host presses against the wall of the globe, as it ‘gives’ in to the pressure and the tentacle emerges outside. The globe's wall creates an air and watertight seal around the appendage, keeping the life sustaining liquid in, but still allowing the host to maneuver well enough through the parasites direction to complete its mechanical task. When the appendage is withdrawn back through the wall the hole effectively seals again.

The maintenance of the N.B. is conducive to the well being of the Hummer. They seem delighted with the vibrations that are set up by the N.B. when a ship activates it. Each encoded beam creates a slightly different vibration. The Hummers who inhabit N.B.'s on average, live twice as long as their planet bound counterparts.

Anyone can find a beacon that has sufficiently sophisticated listening equipment aboard their cruiser. However, it was decided early on by the Valarians that only a select number would have the ability to activate the beacons. The Aero Space Academy was founded for the purpose of selecting those who would receive the activating chip for their onboard computer and a set of the holographic maps.

Anyone can apply to the academy; however, not all are accepted. You have to prove that you do not intend to use the maps for the purpose of conquering or exploitation. The academy teaches a modified version of the non-interference directive.

It was difficult to get Taylor accepted at the academy due to his father's family background check, but perseverance prevailed and the Calpernia was equipped with a set of the Valarian maps, and the computer chip, which were issued to Taylor upon his graduation at the age of twenty from the academy. One day perhaps I will tell you of his three years there.

None of the mercenaries possessed the Valarian chip or maps. That is the reason they compiled such detailed logs. Any new destination that was discussed, any new coordinates given were painstakingly recorded for future reference. Many of the older more experienced mercenaries located the beacons in their operational area. They could not activate the beacons, but they could plot by them and use them as a different sort of navigational tool.

Out of the inability to activate the beacons, and the charge for their use, was born the ‘Free Riders.’ These are young, adventuresome mercenaries who lie in hiding until a cruiser activates the beacon, then once the ship's computer is encoded and the vessel on its way to its destination, the Free Rider falls in at a safe distance (out of sensor range) behind the cruiser to ride the beam it has activated. Free Riding is illegal. Galactic Officials are tired of finding ‘ghost ships’ drifting in space because their Free Rider lost his way when the beacon's beam shut off with the arrival of the activating vessel at its destination. These ghost ships, with their dead crews, create a navigational nightmare to the high speed travel that is executed to get from place to place in space. They drift into the gravitational pull of ‘Windows.’ They appear where you least expected them and, in many instances cannot avoid a collision with them.

Anyone caught Free Riding is immediately, and without recourse, grounded. Their license and registration pulled and their ship impounded for sale at auction, cannibalizing for parts, or demolished, depending on the ship's condition.

A navigational phenomenon you should be aware of is the Maelstrom. The Maelstrom is a gravitational stream in space, caused by an unknown force which feeds on the energy from the suns and stars it passes. It leaves a wake in its path much like a ship at sea. It travels a given route over and over like the path of an earth bird called a roadrunner. A ship can ride the stream much like a speedster ‘drafts’ behind a larger space ship. It can speed your pace far beyond even the capabilities of your ship's Hyper Drive. Riding within the Maelstrom is extremely dangerous especially upon entering or exiting the stream. The change in speed is so severe that you can be whipped into any solid mass or flung far off your course.

The Maelstrom is believed to be caused by an intelligent force. Several scientists have tried to investigate its source. None have returned. It is thought that the thing, whatever it is, turns on the exploring vessel as a source of energy and devours it.

Coal caught the Maelstrom to get to the Galactic Academy years ago. He once told Terrell about the experience and Terrell wrote of it in his journal. Coal said it was the most dangerous, frightening, and foolish thing he ever did.

Enough of the navigational lesson - now, to the discussion of the disease.

Reeves Fever is named after the first settler to die of the disease on Two Moon Helena. That particular colony was all but wiped out by the fever. The only two survivors were left completely insane as a result of the lengthy run of the extremely high fever associated with the disease. They were transported to St. Mathews Hospital on Paracleese by a merchant freighter that came to the colony on a delivery and found them raving and clawing at the open sores on their faces until they bled (another symptom of the disease).

The hospital staff tended to their wounds, though nothing would save their faces from the horrible disfiguring aftermath of the sores. They would be pockmarked and scarred for the rest of their lives, not that they were aware enough to care.

One of the patients, James Kelly, was a passive survivor. He spent the better part of the rest of his life drooling as he sat in a corner of the mental ward lounge.

Hal Vester was not so lucky. The fever left him violent. All the minor dislikes of his life were focused into obsessive hatreds. The doctors found it necessary to fit him with a sedation cuff.

This is a device used on the more violent patients. An operation is performed to surgically attach a permanent cuff equipped with tubes implanted directly into the cephalic vein of the wrist. The mechanism of the cuff senses elevated levels of adrenalin and automatically administered an injection, directly into the bloodstream, of enough sedative to calm the patient. The cuff carries a year’s supply of dosages at a time. This leaves the staff free of any guessing as to the need, or level, of sedative to keep the patient under control.

Bob and Billy Braden contracted Reeves Fever on Penal Planet #10.

1. Braden

Braden struggled at the restraints that held him to his hospital bed.

Oh, God! Please… he begged pitifully. He followed this plea with a scream of agonizing pain which fell off into a rage of delirious curses.

Dorothy Dickens, the night nurse, came in to check on him. There wasn't much she could do. William (Billy) Braden was brought in five days ago with his older brother Robert (Bob) Braden from Penal Planet #10. They were both diagnosed with Reeves Fever by the team that made the annual inspection sweeps of the penal planets. Bob died four days ago.

Little was known about Reeves Fever other than it was a latent virus which could be contracted years before the actual symptoms of the disease manifested themselves. These two men could have contracted it almost anywhere. They were mercenaries before being accused and convicted of multiple murders and sentenced to the penal planet almost forty years ago. Billy Braden was a young man, in his early 20's, at the time.

The disease had a 99.9% kill rate with no known vaccine or cure. Even treatment to keep the patient comfortable until death overcame them was pretty much an exercise in futility. Nurse Dickens already administered as much painkiller as clinically acceptable without killing Billy. Obviously from his ranting and rage it wasn't coming even close to relieving his agony. She thanked God Reeves Fever was not contracted by personal contact with the infected patient.

She bent over him and gently removed the medication soaked bandages on his face. This action sent him into wild screams of pain. She fortified herself to look at his horribly disfigured face. It was all she could do to keep from throwing up. It was a map of the final stages of Reeves Fever. His face was covered with open, gaping sores which were cleansed of the mucus that filled them upon his admission into the hospital. She found herself trying to concentrate on his eyes as she replaced the soiled bandages with clean ones.

He riveted her with a piercing stare and seemed almost lucid when he said, Please kill me. Please.

You're going to be all right Billy. She prayed God would forgive her for telling this lie and he would take this poor man soon to relieve him of his misery. Even a convicted murderer deserved an easier death than this.

She watched him slip back into delirium and listened to his rage build as he began to rant again in his pain. It wouldn't be long now. He would be gone by the time she came in tomorrow for her next shift.

2. Reeves Fever

But, Billy Braden did not die. He was one of the ‘lucky’ one-tenth of one percent that lived through Reeves Fever. The only other one Nurse Dickens ever saw was a man on Ward L that was so much like a vegetable he appeared to be an example of the 20th century lobotomy patients on earth. He just stood against the wall in a corner staring off into space - drooling.

Braden bore no resemblance to the passive Ward L patient. The disease left him a raving, insane fanatic with huge pits in his face resembling the craters on Titan III.

At first, after his wounds healed and his ravings subsided, they tried to incorporate him in with the rest of the mental patients in Ward L. This was a disaster. He fixated on what seemed to the staff as infinitesimal injuries to his person and blew them far out of proportion. When another patient of the ward stole the biscuit off his dinner tray, Braden tried to kill him. The innocent act of entering his room uninvited would warrant a physical attack. Taking a reading flat laying beside him on a table, which he was perhaps thinking of picking up himself, warranted an attack of such magnitude that shortly thereafter the decision was made by the seniors of the hospital staff to fit him with a sedation cuff.

Once the cuff was surgically attached the incidents ceased altogether and Braden became a controllable, if somewhat unpredictable and secretive, patient. The staff was unaware that his violent nature had only been capped not eliminated. His thoughts turned inward and he began to fixate on larger injuries to his person. He began to think about the time before his incarceration on Penal Planet #10 - his years with his brother, and the incident and people responsible for that all coming to an end. The dementia left over from the Fever warped his recollection of the player’s parts in that mission so long ago. His mind twisted the events that led to his brother and him being accused of murder. He did not remember it in any other way other than as a grave injustice that was done to him and his brother.

Six months later, when the hospital was dealt a major financial cut back Braden was deemed to be competent enough, if monitored and the sedation cuff refilled once a year as prescribed, that he could be released into society again.

He was set up in a half-way house, found a job in a small factory and assigned a med-tech to report to once a month for evaluation.