Free Helix by Eric Brown

father.”
    After
a short silence, Sereth hugged him and whispered, “Be careful, my darling. Be
careful.”
    He
thought about what Hykell had said about Bishop Jaspariot allowing his
daughter’s hand in marriage to a disbeliever, and the implied threat of his
words. He shared everything with Sereth, but this threat he would keep to
himself.
    Later,
he said, “There is a place on the expedition for you, if you wish to come with
me. Think of the research opportunities...”
    Sereth
was a linguist, whose speciality was the dialects of the remote mountain
peoples. They had discussed how her research might be advanced by studying the
language of the scattered tribes, which populated the western plains.
    She
squeezed him. “I still don’t know, Ehrin. I want to come. I want to be with
you. But the thought of leaving behind all that I know, and venturing into the
unknown...”
    He
silenced her with a kiss. “You have a week to think it over, okay?
    She
kissed him. “I’ll think about it, Ehrin,” she said.
    In
the morning Ehrin made his way to the foundry and discovered Kahran at his
desk. The old man looked up, weariness in his eyes. Ehrin guessed that he had
been in the office since the early hours, filling his time in the only way he
knew how. Ehrin wondered if that was sad, or commendable... or perhaps both.
    Kahran
said, “And was I right? The Church imposed swinging restrictions, or declared
an exorbitant tax?”
    Ehrin
smiled. “You were right, Kahran. But nothing as bad as that. Come upstairs.
We’ll talk about it over a drink.”
    They
made their way upstairs, Ehrin walking slowly behind the oldster as Kahran
climbed the stairs with the painful precision of the infirm. They sat beside
the semicircular window and Ehrin poured the drinks.
    He
told his partner of his meeting with the Council. As soon as he mentioned
Velkor Cannak’s name, the old man stiffened.
    “What
did he say?”
    “He
was with you in ‘65. He said you ‘crossed swords’.” Ehrin waited, then said,
“Are you going to tell me about it?”
    Kahran
looked up, into the younger man’s eyes. “And risk the militia finding out that
you know? And risk their torturing you...” He held up his right hand,
displaying the thin fingers bereft of nails.
    “They
did that? But I thought—”
    “That,
and worse.”
    Ehrin
winced. “And to my father?”
    Kahran
nodded and took a mouthful of spirit. “I don’t want to see you suffer the same
fate.”
    Ehrin
felt anger swell in his chest. He said, “The proviso, Kahran—the Council are
sending an agent along with us, to keep us in check.”
    The
old man looked up, understanding in his eyes. “Tell me,” he said.
    Ehrin
nodded. “Velkor Cannak.”
    Kahran
was silent for a while. At least he said, “You asked me, months ago, if I’d
care to accompany you on the journey.”
    “And
you refused, claiming age and infirmity.”
    Kahran
fixed him with his grey eyes. “Well, claiming the prerogative of the old, I’ve
changed my mind. If the offer is still open, I would like to come along. I
don’t like to think of you alone with the likes of Cannak.”
    Ehrin
was of a mind to protest that he could handle himself in any situation, but
said instead, “Of course it’s still open, you old fool.”
    “To
think, Velkor Cannak, after all these years,” Kahran said, his eyes misting as
he recollected the past. He looked up. “It should,” he said, “prove an
interesting expedition.”
     

THREE : ICE WORLD

1
    The Lovelock began to disintegrate while cruising at just under the speed of light. An
explosion sheared the main drive from the starboard sponson and seconds later
the port drive blew. The starship hurtled through the emptiness of space,
breaking up and shedding a hail of debris in its wake.
    Hendry
was dreaming about Chrissie when he came awake. He called her name,
experiencing an aching, elusive sense of loss.
    The
crystal cover of the cryo-catafalque lifted above him and he sat up