The Acolytes of Crane (Theodore Crane, #1)(73)

‘I remember this planet well,’ I said. ‘I’ve never been there, but it was a very popular backdrop for much of our training back on the Uriel.’

‘Very good, sir. I can’t say anything of the Uriel, for it would be most disrespectful,’ Ed said.

I swiveled to my tin companion. ‘Can’t, or won’t?’

Ed blinked. ‘Very astute. I won’t. Indeed, a most nasty ship.’

‘I admire you. Is there still someone following us?’ I asked.

‘There has been no indication, sir. If you would like, I can take evasive actions once we enter the planet’s atmosphere. I have been programmed with numerous techniques to avoid capture.’

‘Yes, please do that.’ I rubbed my chin. ‘Why this planet?’

“Sir, you cannot meander in space forever. You need food and water. I have sources that indicate to me that the Elons on this planet could be valuable allies.’

‘Whoa. What are Elons?’

‘I know very little about them. I will brief you now. But there is no other planet close by. Given the huge risks that face us, I recommend an attempted landing.’

‘Very good. How long will it take me to recover from my wounds?’

‘Your wounds? On a human body, at least two weeks,’ he said.

‘I have this syrup. Do you think it could help?’ I asked, and handed him the vial that I had seen upon my escape.

‘This is dephlocontis mucilage. Yes, very good. With this substance your wounds will be healed within minutes, maybe an hour at the most. I should have queried you. Since you are irrational, you have failed to disclose important information. I am going to rub some of this on your wounds, and I want you to consume three tablespoons. We’ll save the rest in case you sustain another injury later on. We make our descent once you are finished with this medicine.’

There was no sign of the tailing ship. They might have been cloaked as we were, or just out of our radar range.

As I gazed at the awe-inspiring planet, I finally started to reflect what had happened upon my last moments aboard the Uriel. There was no way to escape any savaging of my reputation aboard the Uriel, even though I might have been controlled by Odion’s mind. I fervently prayed for my friends, fretting that they would hate me by now.

Wait. I froze as my thought seized me. Nezatron had mentioned a traitor, someone who had attempted to hack into the database aboard the Uriel. It wasn’t me, that’s for sure. And I distinctly remembered King Trazuline’s voice as he guided me to my escape. Was it really him? I was in a stupor most of the time during my mad scramble—was I recalling correctly?

Why would Trazuline be covertly undermining Zane? My blood gelled. Tez! These sweet hushed tones she had conveyed to me—was she part of her father’s plot too? I tormented myself, and pleaded to no one that nothing would happen to her.

We orbited the planet for about an hour, searching for a port of entry. Ed was concerned that we might be risking our lives. To my surprise, he informed me that this ship wasn’t really designed for a planet’s atmosphere. It was only designed to shuttle in between ships in outer space, nothing more.

‘I don’t care,’ I told him. ‘I’m not going to stay stuck in space forever. Land the craft.’

‘Aye-aye, sir.’

Ed was emotionless. He sat and did exactly what I told him to do. He only engaged me if I asked something of him. I realized how amazing the artisanship and science behind the Dietons was, compared to the limitations of robotics. Since he was not composed of Dietons, Ed was limited. At least I had nothing to fear from him. There was no way Zane could control him.

‘Ed, can you get a . . . virus, like me?’ I asked. Then I remembered what Migalt said about allowing Odion into my mind. The whole idea of it made me nauseated. Thankfully, Ed had removed the virus. I was now safe too. The thought made me more relieved than I could ever imagine. Zane could no longer access my mind.

‘I think you are referring to the software patch as a virus. The nanocom that you had, allowed all thoughts to be extracted and processed by a central authority. Horrible things, really. Such viruses are capable of causing serious damage to a CPU in a robot. I made it a point to avoid contact with yours while you still had it,’ he said.

‘Ed, I really appreciate what you did for me. I feel like myself again.’ I sighed with relief.

‘Anytime, Master Ted.’

‘Ed who made you?’ I took a seat in the captain’s chair.

‘I was developed by Rangiers,’ he said.

‘What are Rangiers?’ I asked, butchering the word he had previously said. In a heartbeat, I recalled the Rangier Cliguire dragons. Were they developed by Rangiers?

‘Rangiers are known specifically for their ability to construct languages and cultures for newly founded or colonized planets. Rangiers live in a solar system near where you are from—Earth, I presume. Their home planet is known to my database as Foita.’ I nodded my head, ‘They live under the surface of Foita. They do so because the weather on Foita is extremely volatile and they cannot survive in it without heading underground. Are you processing, Theodore?’

‘Do you mean understanding? And yes—I guess,’ I said.

‘Yes. The original home planet of the Rangiers was destroyed in a supernova explosion thousands of years ago. Fortunately, before then, they had the technological know-how to locate a new planet suitable for what they needed. The Rangiers colonized this planet and named it Foita, which means: heart within. They are responsible for the creation of the Mecca Dietonical database, called Eppa. Are you familiar with Eppa?’ Ed asked.