Free Bringer of Light by Jaine Fenn Page A

sounded a bit smoky, far as Taro could see; it looked like no one would know Khesh owned the ship unless they looked really fucking deep.
    He stopped listening after a while. He sipped his drink, his other hand on Nual’s knee under the table, thinking about his former life here in Khesh City. He was getting used to being back, but then, this was topside. His real home had been the Undertow, and there were a few people down there he still considered friends.
    Finally the deal was done. Jarek sat back, stony-faced.
    The Minister cleared his throat. ‘Right then, this beacon.’
    ‘So you can get us one?’ Jarek’s tone implied that after what had just happened, he’d better be able to.
    ‘I can arrange for you to get hold of one, though you will have to fetch it yourself,’ said the Minister.
    ‘Where from?’
    ‘A system called Aleph – although that will mean nothing to you. You won’t have heard of Aleph, because there is no record of anywhere of that name.’
    ‘Another lost world?’ asked Jarek, sounding interested.
    ‘Not exactly. Aleph was never ruled by the females. And it is in another galaxy.’
    ‘You’re shitting me!’ Now he’d signed over his beloved ship to the Minister, Jarek appeared less in awe of him.
    ‘No – well, to be completely accurate, the Aleph system is in one of the smaller satellite galaxies that orbit our own. When the conflict between the male and female Sidhe was at its height, a large number of males fled there. It turned out to be a one-way trip for them, though shiftships can travel to and from the system.’
    ‘That’s where the rebellion was coordinated from, wasn’t it?’
    ‘Aleph was a major centre of operations, though those of us who remained behind did our part too.’
    ‘And how will these males at Aleph feel about us turning up out of the blue and asking for a beacon?’
    ‘You won’t be turning up out of the blue. I have been in contact with Aleph; they are willing to provide a beacon to help you in your fight against the females. However, you must bear in mind that we males have a rather different outlook than our sisters. We are less interventionist – and less unified. The females like nothing more than to band together in dark corners and plot how to manipulate human destiny. We tend to keep our distance, both from humanity and from each other.’
    ‘You’re saying there may be factions at Aleph who won’t be too pleased to see us?’ asked Jarek.
    ‘I would say there is a high risk of that, yes. But given what I know about you, Captain Reen, I suspect that is a risk you would be willing to take to win your beacon.’ He turned to Taro and Nual. ‘And you two as well, apparently.’
    ‘I already saved your invisible arse,’ said Taro. ‘Reckon it’s time to get really ambitious now.’
    Nual just smiled.
    ‘One thing you should probably know about Aleph: the males there are similar to me and my two brothers. Like us, they live through their machines, and interact through their avatars. Right—’ The Minister made a show of looking at his com, like he actually needed to check the time. ‘I still need to thrash out a few details with my distant brothers, so I will have to leave you for a while. I recommend you take some time to see the sights, Captain Reen. I am confident there will not be any further unpleasantness – though I would still advise against going out alone.’ He stood up. ‘I’ll be in touch.’
    As part of the deal, the Minister had taken their cargo from Hetarey off their hands. Taro suspected he’d only done it to indulge them, but whatever the reason, they now had spare credit to their names. Jarek wanted to use some of their new-found wealth to take the Minister’s advice. Taro let Nual act as guide, and they took him to a decent restaurant, then on to an ‘exotic cabaret’ complete with glitter and grav manipulation. Nual elected to stay sober, so Taro and Jarek kicked back and relaxed – in fact, Jarek acted