Rivers of Orion by Dana Kelly (a court of thorns and roses ebook free .TXT) 📕

“Looks like she could use the help,” said Cajun.

◆◆◆

Three days later, Mike knocked on Nimbus’s door, but she didn’t answer. He knocked again—louder—and called her name. After waiting a while, he pushed the door open and found her asleep on her side, buried under the covers. With an affectionate smile, he crossed the deck and lightly jostled her. “Hey, Nimbus. It’s time to wake up.”

“N equals… R… FP, NE, FL, FI, FC… L,” she muttered. “No, N equals… N-star… FQ, FHZ, FO, FL… FS.” She smiled drowsily and rolled onto her back. Yawning, stretching, she slowly drew open her eyes. “Hello, Miguel Santos. I dreamed, and it was amazing!”

“You’ve never had a dream before?” he asked.

“No, never before!” Sitting up, she tossed aside the covers and regarded him curiously. “Why are you in my quarters?”

“Casey wants to see the three of us in the briefing room,” said Mike. “You weren’t answering your door, and I got worried.”

“I suppose if the roles were reversed, I would be concerned for your wellbeing too. Regardless, I welcome your company.” With a slight smile, Nimbus shed her sportswear, donned a shirt and jeans, and slipped into a pair of running shoes. She stared at her laces as her eyes bounced slightly from side to side. With a nod, she stooped over and tied them just right. “I am ready! Let us join Orinoco Webb and Casey Cartwright.”

They walked the passageways to the lift and ascended to Deck 4. Moments later, they stepped into a large room with a holographic whiteboard, where Casey and Orin awaited them. “Glad you could make it,” said Casey. “What was the holdup?”

“I did not awaken with the expected ease, Casey Cartwright,” said Nimbus.

“For your fourth night of sleep ever, that’s understandable,” said Casey. She looked at Mike. “We’re hours away from the nightmare gate. I need to know if you’ll be signing on for the Arsenal Bay investigation.”

“I’ll participate,” said Mike. “Thanks for being patient. Do you have any leads?”

“Nothing actionable,” said Casey.

“Actually, I might have something,” said Orin. “Last night, I had the strangest dream…”

◆◆◆

Orin floated within a midnight ocean. At the edge of every horizon, stars bubbled up from the bottomless depths. He held his breath, but his lungs didn’t burn, and a gentle glow radiated from his body. He regarded his hands and found nebulae billowing within. I’m back in my nightmare body, he thought.

In the distance, he spotted a bolt of wooden lightning, and he drifted toward it. Brilliant bands of pink, green, blue, and yellow flashed around it. High overhead, an enormous eyeball coalesced. The closest star torched the eyeball with a searing cone of fire, turning half of it to stone. Pulsating spikes sprung from the scorched perimeter, and everything beyond them liquified. Countless electronic signals flooded Orin’s mind, and he held the sides of his head as he silently screamed.

A shower of leaves swirled around him, protecting him from the hurricane of data. Orin exhaled, and his body relaxed as he breathed in the dark waters. They flowed throughout him.

[Hello,] said Ellylle. [I was not expecting you so soon. What do I call you?]

“I am Orinoco,” he said. “Where are we?”

The bolt of wooden lightning unfurled into a swaying tree with golden blossoms. [I’m not sure. You’re the one who brought me here. Perhaps your connection to me is as strong as my connection is to you.]

“I’m connected to another,” said Orin. “You are not her.”

[No, I’m not the human woman you’re thinking of,] said Ellylle. [Your connection to her is superficial and will fade in time. Our connection will never die.]

“How can I find you?”

[Trust in your power.]

“If you won’t tell me, then I release you from this place,” said Orin.

The dark water surged from his lungs, as everything rushed away from him. Instantly, Orin stood before a yellow cab parked on a foggy tarmac. The transmission tower glowed faintly in the distance, and neon lights buzzed from all around. Reggie, Zella, and Lomomu startled to see him.

“Whit the devil is this, then?” asked Zella.

“Ellylle, this your doing?” asked Reggie.

A delighted smile formed on Ellylle’s face. “No, it isn’t,” she said. “This is Orinoco, and he’s the binary I spoke of just moments ago.”

Suddenly, Orin slammed back into his body, and he awoke with a gasp.

◆◆◆

“…you projected in your sleep,” said Casey.

“That’s right,” said Orin. “And I just know that transmission tower holds the key to the enemy’s ships and how they move.”

Casey gave it some thought. “Well, it’s as good a lead as anything else we’ve got. I don’t suppose your entish damsel gave you the name of the planet she’s on, did she?”

“Not that I can remember,” said Orin.

“We have plenty of clues to work with,” said Mike. “Let’s start with the first things you saw. The stars, the eye, and the ocean are probably metaphors for actual structures. If we consider what you saw when you projected—”

“It is Trionides in the Kerburen System, Miguel Santos,” said Nimbus, and her eyes darted left to right for a moment. “By process of elimination, it is the only tidally locked planet with such an esthetic that also serves as a t-net backbone.”

Mike blinked. “You skipped a few steps.”

“Tidally locked planets are also known as eyeball planets, and Trionides used to bill itself as a noir-aficionado’s ideal vacation destination, full of jazz clubs and intrigue. The cab Orin described is aerodynamically inefficient, but it captures the essence of the noir films of old. Orin heard buzzing from all around, which implies far more neon signage than could possibly be necessary for any business cluster. Whether the fog is cyclical or persistent is irrelevant. After considering the ring of towers Orin saw on his approach, the conclusion is inescapable. The world he projected to is Trionides.”

Casey raised her brow. “I’ll let Krané know where we’re headed.”

Chapter 26

Tranquility

On the planet Rhyon, Martin and his guests looked forward to the day things were safe enough