Read Online Survival by Julie E. Czerneda - Free Book Online Page B

felt the hairs lifting on the back of her neck.
    â€œAh, she does know something. Yes, the Naralax is the only transect that extends into the Chasm. There’s a special destination for you, if you’re a prospector, archaeologist, or tourist with a taste for the macabre.”
    Oh, she knew about the Chasm. Every biologist, every religious order—probably every being who learned of it—worried over its very existence at some point in their lives. “There’s nothing in the Chasm,” Mac said. Except for system after system containing life-capable planets, all completely without life.
    Oh, it had been there once. It had—disappeared—three thousand years ago. That much, and only that, they knew.
    She shook off a chill. Stuff of fables . “Don’t tell me,” Mac continued, raising her voice into a falsetto. “Chasm Ghouls have kidnapped all these beings and are on their way to Earth next. We’re the only ones who can save the day.” Before Emily could do more than begin to look offended, Mac relented. “That was uncalled for—”
    â€œThat’s for sure—”
    â€œI am grateful for any insights you have, Em. Frankly, if it were up to me alone, I’d stuff this message down your Nikolai’s throat and let him look after our guest.”
    â€œThus causing an interspecies’ incident before supper?” Emily said, the corners of her lips curving up. “One would think you enjoyed notoriety. The vidbots would be here before dessert.” Her smile faded. “Mac. The locations and dates matter because they occur as if whomever or whatever was behind the disappearances is traveling the Naralax from Thitus Prime toward Human-dominated space. The affected Dhryn colony is only systems away from our outermost settlement. If this pattern continues, the next beings to disappear may well be Human. I’d say that’s valid reason for the Ministry and us to take this seriously.”
    â€œSerial murders. Mysterious disappearances. They happen all the time,” Mac protested, stuffing the message back in her pocket. “We’re talking thousands of worlds. Trillions of beings. Standards of morality that vary from incomprehensible to those that would make an alpha shark swim deep and fast. Let alone species like the Ehztif and Setihak . . . Sethilak . . . or however you say the damn name—you know, the ones who eat one another given half a chance and a dark alley. With all that, what makes these few incidents so significant?”
    â€œYour first question for our dinner guests, I presume,” Emily said, gesturing to the door. Then her slim hand turned palm up, stopping Mac before she could take a step. “The hair. At least the hair. Please, Mac.”
    â€œYou’ve got to be kid—”
    â€œThink of it as camouflage.”
    â€œYou’re going to be a pest about this, aren’t you?”
    â€œI’m right and you know it.” Before Mac could move out of reach, Emily had grabbed her braid’s end and tugged smartly. Hair, still damp enough to smell faintly of soap, cascaded over Mac’s shoulder and threatened to cover one eye. “There,” Emily pronounced with satisfaction.
    Mac shook her head to settle the mass down the center of her back, shoving the strand over her left eye behind her ear. “Happy now?”
    Emily’s wolfish smile wouldn’t have looked out of place on one of the Haida totems that still startled visitors to the shore. “I will be.”

- Portent -
    T HE FIRST drop plunged into the fine sand, coalescing grains into a tiny, glistening ball, green against the dusky red of the dune. The ball slipped downslope very slightly, drawing a shallow line behind.
    More drops fell, more balls formed, more lines clawed at the massive upcurve of the dune.
    More. Drops struck already dampened balls, shattering them into smaller, darker portions that spread the