A Matter of Time

A MATTER OF TIME

Copyright 1994 Kenneth Joel Teicher

Smashwords Edition

Erin & Craig adventure stories

The Alkano Letters

The Carthage Connection

Carved in Stone

Mystery of the Kukulcan Temple

Science Fiction Stories

The Mission

Gateway: The Shaula Intervention

The Yesterday Tree

Solitude

Temporal Consciousness Transposition

This is a book of fiction. Descriptions of locations and environments are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual locations is purely coincidental. None of the characters is intended to portray real people. Names and incidents either are the product of the author’s own imagination or are fictitiously used and any resemblance to any actual person, living or dead is entirely by coincidence.

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronically or mechanically, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing by the author.

Introduction

The Coalition of Planets is a loose confederation of twenty-eight-star systems, containing fifty-nine planets. It exists just below the North Equatorial pole, in the outer arm of the galaxy commonly called the Milky Way. The history of the Coalition had been so deeply rooted in conflict that the calm of the last seven years resembled a unique anomaly more than just a lull in hostilities. There were times, not so long ago, that the different species that lived in this small sector of the galaxy appeared to search for excuses to attack one another. There would always be both the powerful and the frail, yet somehow, they all finally agreed to work together for the common good, at least for today. The year 2721 was looked forward to as the year peace would finally flourish.

Scientists and engineers on various planets had overcome the problems of space flight, one way or another, almost four hundred years ago. Minority groups, on the planet Earth, seized the opportunity to find new worlds they could live on, within the framework of their own unique ideologies and govern in their own way. As a result, the number of Earth colonies grew to seventeen in something less than eighty-five years.

At first, these reluctant explorers were faced with great hardships. It was nearly impossible to determine the suitability of a far off planet to sustain life. The only real data available about their new home worlds was that they met the basic criteria of being a type M3, generally equal to that of the earth. This included the planet's distance from its sun; an acceptable atmosphere; and a mass similar to Earth. Once launched, the explorers had little choice but to accept the conditions of their new homes, no matter how inhospitable they might be. These settlers hated the world that had given them life. Small battles, with the planet called Earth, were an almost constant occurrence.

During this same period, the Vupeculan Empire, a reluctant member of the Coalition, experienced its most infamous period. Military fleets were sent out to find and subjugate any race less than their equal. Whole populations were forced to provide large portions of their planetary output as a tribute to the Empire, leaving them little on which to survive. Other beings preferred less organized methods of stealing wealth from the weak. The Aquila, for example, were experts in exotic technologies such as anti-detection devices. They would track a freighter for light years and then attack under cover of their camouflaging devices. The years of turmoil did more than simply shift wealth from one system to another. It broke the spirit and many had nearly succumbed to the somber half-truth that there was no hope for a better life.

As the years passed, the government of Earth continued its attempt to control her colonies, only to provoke a greater hatred for the home world. New technologies allowed voyages previously taking many months now to last only days, or at most a few weeks. This improvement in travel was seen by Earth as a means to exercise even more domination over the settlements. Government agents were assigned to establish local rule by the home world and to ensure continued control over those who had left. Resentment continued to grow and the threat of all-out war intensified. The loose association Earth attempted to construct had one positive effect, it was the seed that led to the creation of the Coalition of Planets.

During the early years of Earth's space exploration, many life forms were encountered. Strangely, the technologies of these beings closely matched those found on Earth. A small amount of trade began to grow between the less belligerent inhabitants of the galaxy and soon the need for a common system of law was translated into a weak governing council. Earth's colonies played a major role in the institution of the body and greatly influenced its structure. They thought that by taking this action they could minimize the power of Earth. Most members of the Coalition refused to give up their sovereignty and elected to ignore anything that did not directly affect them. Little could be done to control the growing and inevitable intergalactic criminal activity.

One man, the Lord Protector of the Aldjioun System, Earth's oldest settlement, began to gain support for his belief in the need for a much stronger central government. Finally overcoming the sedentary political disharmony, he was able to unite the twenty-eight member systems into establishing a more robust organization. The first order of business was the strengthening of the Inspector General Branch, an inter-system police force. Other government agencies were also introduced to aid in the expansion of trade and to guide the sharing of emerging technologies. A new common language was developed, borrowed in great part from Earth. Standard helped draw the inhabitants of the galaxy closer together. Paradoxically this growth of commonality bred a more sinister hatred of those best fitting the paradigm.

Inter-system travel became comparatively safe and all but the most loathsome criminals found occupations that are more legitimate. Even the Vupeculans, the race that had devoted itself to war and conquest, began to learn that peace was an acceptable way of life. The Inspector General Branch found its greatly expanded power equal to the task of rounding up the vast majority of criminals, smugglers, and racketeers who had so plagued the twenty-eight member systems. A high court was also established and most member systems accepted its judgments, albeit reluctantly.

Intergalactic trade began to bloom and even the most isolated systems saw their standard of living improve. Resources Unlimited, the vast enterprise of Teric Leoj, led the way to a prosperity never imagined possible. He controlled his company with an iron hand and yet proclaimed a great degree of benevolence when dealing with others. Teric had grown up on Earth and witnessed the devastation that its ruptured society had put itself through. He knew, more than most men, how deep the pain of an unhappy people could become. This solitary man also knew that life in the Coalition could be better if all species worked together for the common good. He spared no expense in helping promote trade and grew even wealthier for his efforts.

Competition for trade routes had become so fierce that the government was forced to create a new body of law to administer the activity of the newly emerging commerce. At first, alien philosophies clashed on almost every issue that confronted them. Large committees were organized to deal with the diverse ideologies in the Coalition. Few were willing to deliver their independence, in favor of the greater good and the art of diplomacy was strained to its limits. New technologies were being shared and the need for the research center, established on Lacerta, required greater and greater funding. The Lord Protector of the Aldjioun System, now the First Director of the Central Council, found himself more of a business arbitrator than a political leader. The need for peaceful interaction was finally recognized and peace soon overcame the last remnants of discord.

So much was happening that the mysterious race from the center of the galaxy, the Shaula, was all but forgotten. It had been more than twenty years since they were last seen and only a few had even known about them then. Segments of their technology had been so interwoven with Coalition science that many thought it was their own. Only the scientific team on Lacerta still studied the single most exciting machine left by that strange race. The Gateway allowed virtually instantaneous travel across the vastness of space and, in time, it also became commonplace. But the Gateway held many secrets still to be unlocked.

Doctor Elizabeth Genrete was one of the few that met the Shaula. She studied their ways and knew much of their science. Together with her staff, she continued to study the Gateway, hoping to one day fully understand how the device functioned. Recently, this small group of scientists had discovered an unusual component of the system that appeared to serve no useful purpose. In order to complete their studies, they realized that they had to travel to Velinii, the location of the first Gateway and the only one actually constructed by the Shaula, in Coalition space. Memories of what had occurred on that small, unimportant world, brought back emotions that Elizabeth had not dealt with for more than twenty years.

It all began so innocently, as the result of an unfortunate mining accident. Elizabeth did not know, at the time, that the Coalition saw the situation as a pretense to disband United Mines. In fact, she knew of little else but life in her own scientific community. The company had received its charter for the purpose of supplying the member systems with resources unavailable from local sources. So great was the cost of constructing spaceships and other new technologies that many systems were forced to rely on the more affluent members. It soon became apparent that only by charging this single company with the responsibility of transporting material throughout the Coalition could the less fortunate survive.

The company had grown into an ugly monopoly, controlling even basic fuel sources necessary for the very life of Coalition inhabitants. At first, a symbiotic relationship developed but United Mines continued to grow in power until the Coalition was too weak to control it. So great was its authority that it was able to claim uninhabited worlds as its own, thus greatly increasing its wealth and dominance. The company executive responsible for Velinii attempted to exclude Coalition efforts from investigating the accident but was unable to do so since so many had died.

Three departments were represented in the investigation of the accident on Velinii. Kiel Tarragot headed the Inspector General Branch, the IGB inquiry, supported by a small group of agents. He was a young, headstrong investigator who thought himself invincible. Kiel's education did not include personal relationships and he was constantly intruding on the privacy of others. His boss, Chief Brodsky, saw much of himself in the young agent and allowed him a great amount of latitude in the investigation. It was Kiel who would ultimately lead the battle against United Mines.

The original incident that led to the accident was the result of the discovery of a large volume of alien artifacts. An Anthropological team, headed by Doctor Susan Merniehm, was also dispatched to the planet to study these relics. She was young and insecure, being a member of the Denerian race.

Deneria was another of the original Earth colonies. A unique combination of elements had affected the settlers of this planet, creating a basic imbalance in their psychological makeup. However, Susan loved studying the ancient remains of long dead races and quickly earned a trusted place in her profession, in spite of her psychological problems. Unfortunately, she lacked even a basic understanding of technological artifacts and found herself confronted with objects she did not understand.

Since the accident was reported to be caused by some sort of sophisticated machine, Elizabeth Genrete and her two assistants were ordered to the planet to help determine what had happened. She was eager for an opportunity to prove her worth to the research center and saw this as an opportunity to demonstrate her abilities. Being a solitary person, she loathed being required to work with the other departments represented on Velinii. Each of the three team leaders felt they should be in charge of the mission and the animosity between them was destined to be very great.

A representative from United Mines was also dispatched to oversee their interest in the mineral rights of the planet. The Quadrant Vice President, R. David Banyon, was a power hungry man, bent on furthering his career regardless of the cost. When a large power generator was discovered in the caverns on one side of the planet, he realized he had found something that could help gain favor with his superiors. He arranged for the system to be powered up and inadvertently sent Susan on a trip that would change life in the Coalition forever. The anthropologist had been studying a large machine, on the other side of the planet, when it suddenly came to life. Before anyone knew what was happening, she disappeared from the platform of the device.

Kiel, who was in love with Susan, decided that he had to go on a rescue mission to locate her. Elizabeth, who still did not care very much for either of them, realized that she had to accompany Kiel since she was the only person who had any understanding of the alien equipment. After she reluctantly agreed that he would lead the rescue mission, they managed to send themselves to wherever Susan had gone. They arrived on a strange planet, occupied only by two very human-like androids. Kiel and Susan were reunited but the rescue team was unable to return to Velinii. Instead, they were sent to a planet called Shaula, where they were to meet one of the strangest races in the galaxy.

The Shaula are a benevolent race, whose dream was to build a galactic community. They had constructed their Gateway devices on planets all across the galaxy in the hope of finding other intelligent species. The Shaula believed that if a race was intelligent enough to operate the Gateway and find its way to their world, they might be capable of becoming members of their galactic community. They had not anticipated this accidental use of their machine and were undecided about how to deal with the representatives from the Coalition. The Shaula finally resolved the problem by returning with the rescue party and observing the activities of the Coalition, first hand. Their hope was to gain sufficient information so they could make a determination of how to deal with their accidental visitors.

Banyon learned of the Gateway machine and realized that it was both a threat to United Mines and the very tool he was looking for, to aid his advancement. He was determined to gain control of the device and would stop at nothing to reach his goal. He managed to talk his superiors into allowing him to build a Gateway for the company. As part of his scheme, he abducted Elizabeth so that he could gain the information she had learned about the machine's function. He realized that he must not allow the Coalition to gain access to the device on Velinii and began a war for its control. This bloody battle ultimately led to the demise of United Mines and a prison term for Banyon.

The Shaula helped the Coalition in its battle with United Mines but not before many lives were lost. Among those that died were Elizabeth's two assistants as well as many of Kiel's friends and those of Susan. The mysterious race disappeared, leaving the Coalition to wonder if they would ever be seen again. Now that the Coalition had access to the Gateway, they were determined to take advantage of its power. Elizabeth was given the responsibility of developing a network of the machines all around the Coalition.

After completing her primary mission, Elizabeth continued her research of the Gateway for many years. She was joined by a young scientist, the daughter of Kiel and Susan, Linda Tarragot. A young computer programmer, Michael Rathjay, also joined her staff. He and Linda began to date and, after a whirlwind love affair, they married.

Years of study resulted in the team discovering the sector of space containing the home of the Shaula. They convinced the Coalition to fund an exploration mission to search for the mysterious race. Elizabeth invited Kiel and Susan to join her and they readily agreed. By this time, Banyon had been released from prison and was determined to change his life. He had fallen in love with Elizabeth and persuaded her to take him along on the mission. Together this group went out in search of the Shaula. After many months of travel, too many strange planets, their exploration met with success, they found the home world of the Shaula.

Unfortunately, the Shaula were still not convinced that the Coalition was ready to join the galactic family and forced Elizabeth and her friends to return home. Before parting company, the Shaula erased all memories of the trip and the location of their world from the minds of those that had visited them. They did, however, allow Elizabeth to continue her study of Shaula technology, especially the Gateway device. She and her team spent many years researching the workings of the strange machine until they thought they had discovered its other extraordinary function.

Excerpt from the First Book of Shaula

(Translated by Dr. Susan Merniehm Tarragot)

"Here was, is, and shall always be but one great truth: The spiral of time cannot be altered. The dark mist swirled about the orb, filled with minuscule particles that burnished its skin as if to cleanse it for the undertaking to ensure. In the incomprehensible depths, a conglomeration of everything that was and would be blended and dispersed in an endless succession of happenings, waited for the ignition that would begin the final process. Millennia passed and still the infinite coalescing and disuniting of elements continued, searching for the singular event that would transmute the mixture into what it was ordained to become. At last, the appropriate bits of protein and amino acids established the proper amalgamation and life burst forth upon the long since cooled world. The uniqueness of the event was in its approximate duplication on the uncountable worlds that existed in the vastness that was the universe.

That which arose to find in itself intelligence, at once proclaimed its own uniqueness and sought to subjugate all else. Never looking beyond its own abode, the life force believed itself to be alone the single sentient being and therefore to be the one true entity in all of space. The spiral of time continued and the duplication of events renewed itself throughout the universe. The life begun in isolation was, all too soon, to learn that the insubstantial thing it was in reality, could be found on more worlds than could be counted. It is in the understanding and acceptance of that reality that all life can find the contentment of what it is and the capacity to go on."

Chapter 1

Had the thick dust not hung in the dense atmosphere, perhaps the long rays of the setting sun could have been seen. The tall, overweight, man paid no attention to the storm safely on the other side of the double pane, reinforced glass window. Teric Leoj sat back in the large, overstuffed chair, behind an expansive semi-circular desk, wondering what had gotten his chief engineer so excited. This office, one of many scattered around his vast empire, was located in a three-level building in the middle of the complex. The facilities on Mirach were heavily involved in refining minerals. Even after the installation of large dust collectors and filtering systems, the atmosphere continued to hold small amounts of powdery by-products that came to rest on every surface. The fine dust made breathing difficult and no one ventured outside without the aid of a respirator. This situation, coupled with the forbidding atmosphere, that contained little oxygen, made the planet extremely inhospitable. It also made Mirach the perfect location for the secret research facility Teric had recently visited.

When he called, Dale acted so strangely that Teric thought he might be ill. The facilities on the planet did not include any production units and were of no concern to Dale. The research department was not involved with anything new and offered no indication about what the engineer might have found so significant. Even the alterations Dale was making to the drive system on Teric's ship should not have caused such excitement. There was nothing on Mirach that could offer a clue about what might have caused Dale to become so agitated. Teric watched through the interior glass panel, on one side of his office, as the young engineer walked swiftly toward him.

Dale was about forty-four, (Teric was not sure of his exact age) but looked like a man half his age. He spent many hours in the company gym and prided himself on his strength and agility. In his youth, Dale worked with nuclear power systems and lived in constant fear of radiation poisoning. He learned to take great care of his body and even though the danger no longer existed, continued to examine himself regularly and keep fit. Having been born and raised on a small planet with only eighty percent of Earth-normal gravity, Dale was also obliged to exercise regularly so that he could endure the full one gravity maintained on Teric's ship. His thoughts were interrupted when, suddenly, the door was flung opened and the young engineer breathlessly burst into the office. He began reciting his tale even before collapsing into a chair opposite his boss.

That's the silliest idea I've ever heard.

Well, I've been speaking to a friend of mine on Lacerta, and from what he's been telling me there are a few scientists who are taking the idea very seriously.

Oh come on, people have been dreaming about that idea for hundreds of years and no one has ever taken them seriously. None of the theories have been very substantial and there has never been any real work done in the area except for a few crazy schemes that never got off the drawing board.

From what my friend says, it's gone much further along than just a dream and a number of very serious people believe it is possible.

Oh really, like who?

Doctor Elizabeth Genrete, for one. In fact, she's the scientist who started seriously considering the idea, to begin with. She and her team, at the research center, have been doing a lot of preliminary work on the project.

Genrete, that name is familiar somehow, wasn't she the leader of the project to build Gateways, all around the Coalition, several years ago? That project certainly took a long time to get moving but she finally made it work. I've heard that she's a very competent and determined woman but a bit of a recluse.

The very same, and it's the Gateway technology that gave her the idea to begin this new research. She and her assistant, Linda Tarragot Rathjay, have already asked for a grant for some time on the big nuromater computer system to construct a model and test their hypothesis.

That wouldn't be Kiel Tarragot's daughter, would it?

Yes, it is. Do you know her? Dale asked, sensing that his boss was becoming more interested in the research.

I met her once at her father's home. She did seem to be a very intelligent young lady. Do you know if her father is aware of anything about this ... ah ... project?

I really couldn't tell you. Why do you ask?

It happens that I have a meeting scheduled with him on Aldjioun, next week. Tell you what, I'll talk to him about this project and find out if he knows what it's really all about. You can go ahead and see what else you can find out from your friend and then we'll talk about it again.

That's great, Resources Unlimited is the only company that has the wherewithal to make this idea work.

Just a minute Dale, I didn't say anything about committing company funds to this project. I only said that I'd like to know more about it.

I know, but it is something that the company could do a lot with, just think about the possibilities.

Before we start thinking about all the possibilities, we'll need to know a lot more. Research like this must be done very carefully.

What do you mean?

I mean a project of this magnitude will have implications far beyond anything we can imagine. I'm sure the criminal element would love to get their hands on whatever technology we can develop. Security will have to be tight from the very beginning. We don't want to have the kind of trouble we've had in the past, now do we?

The men stared at each other in the growing silence. Teric wanted to make sure the meaning of his words was fully understood by the young and often flamboyant engineer. He wanted to make absolutely certain that they did not have a repeat of the problems they encountered when working on the bio-com coupling system. Several people, including Teric, had almost lost their lives as a result of a breach in security during that project. Teric knew that Dale had been responsible for allowing top-secret data to fall into the hands of some criminals. Until now, he had never confronted the engineer with this information since everything had worked out and the project had reached a successful conclusion.

I know what you're talking about boss, and you won't have to worry about me, Dale responded, admitting his part in the unfortunate incident.

Good, now what about those modifications on the Klug drive, have you made any progress?

Teric was hoping to change the subject as quickly as he could but knew that his chief engineer wasn't going to give up the idea very rapidly. Once Dale got hold of something, he acted like a Malvarian tiger with a fresh kill and wouldn't give it up for anything. Still, he thought it was an interesting topic of conversation even if it was impossible. Time travel, even the words sounded too fantastic to speak aloud. He knew all of the old arguments against it, even though they were mostly very unscientific. If you could travel through time, what would happen if you went into the past and killed your grandfather? Silly, the whole idea was just plain silly. Still, he was just now between projects and thought it might be fun to investigate the possibilities. It would be very interesting to be able to travel through time. Dale was obviously very excited about the idea and Teric knew they would have many more conversations on the subject. But the modifications to the Klug drive were much more important, at the moment.

As a matter of fact, that's the real reason I came over, Dale answered, once again interrupting his boss's thoughts. I wanted to ask if it was okay to take your ship out for a short trip so we can test the modifications.

Ready so soon? I thought you said it would take a few weeks to make the changes.

Apparently, the Shaula had this design concept in mind when they turned over the sample of the Klug drive to the Coalition. When I first studied the system, I could see that many of the subassemblies were open ended. I thought these were simply left available for specific features as the need arose. I wonder if they expected us to work out the changes I've made. It seems almost as if they wanted us to experiment with their design. We've had no trouble at all making the alterations to the drive on your ship and it's ready for a test right now.

That's great, we can go to Aldjioun. It'll be nice to get home in time for Marlene's birthday.

Fine, I'll make all the arrangements. See you on board.

Teric watched as his young friend left the office, thankful that the other matter had been forgotten, at least for the time being. Teric knew