Starhawk Read Online Free Page A

decided to say nothing until they got home. They had time to do that and come back though he does not say how much time. But he and Trelawney agreed that a hypercomm report would only generate a rejection. That the politicians would want to keep clear of a meeting. Trelawney wanted to be there to fight for the meeting.”
    â€œWell,” said Priscilla, “it doesn’t matter now. It’s nine years ago. The aliens are long gone. And everybody’s dead on this side.”
    Jake looked up from the screen. “So what do we do, Captain Hutchins?”
    â€œFile a report, hope they can find the
Forscher
, and get on with our own mission.”
    â€œYou’re not interested in going the rest of the way out to Talios?”
    â€œIs that what you’re proposing?”
    â€œWhy not?”
    â€œJake.” She felt uncomfortable. Priscilla was used to running her life on schedules. “It’ll throw us way behind.”
    â€œSure it will. Think anybody will notice?”
    Â * * * 
    TALIOS WAS A class G dwarf, about the same size as Sol, but younger by two billion years. According to the data charts, there were eleven planets in the system. Talios III had life-forms. And that was pretty much the extent of the available information.
    Talios V and VI were where?
    They needed several more days to track them down. Talios V was small and airless, eight hundred million kilometers from the sun, completing an orbit every twelve years. VI was a gas giant with an entourage of forty-some moons and a magnificent set of rings. It was just over twice as far out. “Orbital period thirty-one years,” said Benny. “They were lined up three and a half years ago.”
    â€œSo we’re a little late for the wedding,” said Priscilla.
    Jake’s eyes closed. “Unfortunately, the groom never showed up at all.”
    â€œBenny, when will V and VI line up again?” asked Priscilla. “Not that it matters.”
    â€œSixty-five years and a couple of months.”
    â€œIt’s a pity,” said Jake.
    â€œYou didn’t expect them to wait around, did you?”
    â€œI wasn’t sure I wanted them to wait around.” It was the first time she’d seen him look uncertain. “Still—Well, let’s go take a look at Talios III.”
    Â * * * 
    THE PLANET FLOATED serenely on the navigation display, but it was hard to believe it harbored life. It did have large blue oceans. White clouds drifted through the skies, and there was snow at the poles. But the continents, the landmasses, looked utterly desolate. No fleck of green appeared anywhere. Nothing moved across its bleak, flat plains.
    â€œAccording to the database,” said Benny, “life got started here less than five hundred million years ago.”
    â€œSo it’s still in the oceans,” said Jake.
    â€œThat may be correct, Captain. In any case, you would not be able to detect its presence.”
    â€œToo small?”
    â€œUnicellular. It will be a long time before there’s anything down there that would be visible to the naked eye.”
    â€œI wonder if they’ll ever figure out,” said Priscilla, “why life is so rare.”
    Jake magnified the images. Large brown patches of land. River valleys. Mountain chains cutting across continents. All empty. “Hard to believe. What’ve we looked at now, hundreds of worlds with liquid water and stable suns? And just a handful are alive.”
    â€œA century ago,” said Priscilla, “they thought that almost any biozone world was likely to produce living things.” She was thinking that this was why the meeting at this world had been so important. With life so rare, and advanced civilizations virtually nonexistent—Damn.
    So close.
    Â * * * 
    THERE WAS NOTHING to look at. From Priscilla’s perspective, they’d wasted time coming here. But she wasn’t going to