“You are saying it is impossible for us to reach the planet through normal space,” Galyan said.

  “Exactly,” Maddox said. “That’s why we needed the Prism Drive.”

  “But if that is true,” Galyan said, “then our Prism Drive will not act the way you thought it was going to act for us at the water world.”

  “How did you think it was going to act?” Maddox asked.

  “I believe, sir, you thought you were going to be a submariner, going in ghost mode to approach and destroy whatever needed destroying.”

  That was exactly what Maddox had thought. “Are you running your personality profile on me?”

  “I always run my personality profiles. It helps me understand those I work with and those I care for.”

  “Enough of that,” Maddox said. “Let’s stick to the issue at hand.”

  “As you command, I will do,” Galyan said.

  “There’s a call from Ludendorff,” Meta said from the comm station.

  “Patch him through,” Maddox said.

  “Go ahead, Professor,” Meta said.

  “The Prism Drive is hooked up to our engines,” Ludendorff said over the intercom. “With my new unit, I can instruct the drive to shift us into various phases—if that’s the correct way to say it.”

  “We’ve just been attacked,” Maddox said.

  “I could feel the ship shake as the disruptor cannon fired,” Ludendorff said.

  “We’re in a situation I don’t understand yet,” Maddox said. “We’re going to use submarine tactics in space. The enemy hit us from another dimension.”

  “I don’t think that’s right, sir,” Galyan said. “The Seekers would already be here then.”

  “Good point,” Maddox said. “Continue to theorize.”

  “Since we are not experiencing an interdimensional attack, I think the term ‘underspace’ might be the best way to describe this for now,” Galyan said. “You used the word earlier and I believe it is apt. The Prism Drive appears to be the key to this. It may not operate exactly as a phase shifter. It may, however, take us to different levels in underspace.”

  “Underspace?” asked Maddox. “Yes. That works for me.” He faced the others. “Keep on your toes. We’re in a strange situation. Our enemies attacked using their weaker weapons first. Two of their ships have paid the price. We know now how the aliens are collecting their great graveyard of spaceships. They’re popping out of underspace and attacking in a stealthy manner. Remain alert and ready.”

  There were “ayes,” “yes sirs,” and nods all around.

  Maddox sat in his chair, ready to use the Prism Drive and see if he could outmaneuver the enemy and find the water world.

  -63-

  Galyan stood on the bridge, watching the situation and detecting activity in space through the sensors.

  At that moment, Galyan became aware of a duality in his nature. Perhaps subtle switches occurred in his inner AI sanctum. Awareness gradually dawned on him by degrees that he had for some time possessed a split personality. He did not understand, and in a moment, he disappeared from the bridge.

  Galyan took his holographic image offline and proceeded to dive into the AI core. He needed to understand what was happening.

  Galyan ran through checks, and they baffled him. Someone had been tampering with the core. Someone—he ran an analysis and personality profiles. With a shock, he realized, “I have tampered with this. I created the duality.”

  He tried to enter the other part—the dualist other half—and failed. A small section of the AI deep core was cut off from him.

  He attempted an AI link to the other half—that didn’t work.

  Abruptly, the separated firewall collapsed. In a rush, Galyan understood exactly what had happened. However, he needed a moment to analyze this.

  The break had begun while Victory was in orbit around the rogue planet when Maddox, Ludendorff, Meta and Riker had gone down. He had been watching the grounded Tarrypin. He had followed Captain Maddox’s instruction, staying aboard Victory, not venturing into space and certainly not past the shield. The new shield was protection against Omegan.

  As Galyan watched from Victory, he realized something was happening in the rogue planet cavern. He wanted to launch probes and see exactly. Valerie said no. There were flashes of light and odd emanations from the cavern.

  “What is happening?”

  That was when Galyan had come up with the idea of splitting himself in two. The diminished form from the other dualist half left the starship. That part was blocked from the rest of him by special codes, a firewall and security apparatus Galyan had set. That part now recalled what had happened back then.

  The separated segment had descended, projecting its holoimage into the cave. He’d seen a lost corner of giant Builder artifact cube. The robots the others had reported seeing were gone.

  Galyan inserted his dualist half’s holoimage into the giant cube and began to search. He ran through lines of logic and found burnt-out areas.

  Had Maddox attacked Omegan? (This was before that happened.)

  Galyan searched more, doing careful analysis, and it came to him as he witnessed the outcome of a self-destruct sequence. Omegan had done this to the Builder artifact.

  The dualist half Galyan had tried to restore what he could to the cube with energy bursts from Victory. He did not tell anyone because that part of him was not linked to the greater Galyan AI core. It had been acting independently, separate from anyone else.

  Now the whole Galyan discovered the alien code and ancient program. The computer entity known as Omegan was not from this dimension but the other side. Through careful analysis, Galyan discovered the truth. The rubies, city-sized scooper and water-world engine originated from Omegan, from the other dimension.

  Long ago, there had been a natural breakthrough from those fleeing the evil one in that dimension. There had been a latent virus among them. Part of the latent virus had entered the Builder artifact, which merged and become the entity named Omegan.

  Galyan now understood the profound hunger of those on the other side. They had devoured everything in that dimension and were subsisting on what was left. They devoured their machines, slave races, underlings, and the lesser classes, all to sustain the evil one and his highest authorities.

  Galyan could not determine the name of the evil one. He understood more of the enemy’s plans and deceptions, however.

  This was making more sense. The Prism Drive was from the other dimension. Omegan used underspace to hide an entire planet and star in order to bring the evil one from another dimension without any interference from this dimension.

  Omegan was the key to all this. He had suborned the Inkari, the so-called squid aliens on the water world.

  “I must tell Captain Maddox this,” Galyan said.

  The breakthrough to the other dimension was near. The Seekers, the authorities and evil one would come through. It would not take thousands of ships to defeat the Inkari, or more precisely, the drilling machine. This was the most delicate and dangerous time for the others.

  Omegan had been delaying. That’s why Maddox’s threat had worked the first time when he had gone down to use the portals. Omegan had needed time to disengage his main core from the greater Builder artifact so he could vanish through a portal and reach those on the water world, the Planet Bluemar. Omegan had gone to warn them.

  Time was of the essence. Soon, the Seekers would come through. Galyan must tell Captain Maddox at once.

  He left the AI core to go as a holoimage to the bridge.

  -64-

  Galyan appeared before the captain and began to tell him everything that had happened to his dualist half. Maddox understood almost right away that this was too monumental—they all needed to hear this.

  “We need a meeting,” Maddox said. “Keith, keep watch. If any of the saucer ships come into view, destroy them. We have to think through our next move.”

  They had an emergency meeting. Ludendorff, Galyan, and the others except for Keith sat around the long table. Galyan related all he’d learned from Omegan while studying the Builder artifact.

  “Let me see if I get this right,” Ludendorff said. “This computer virus, I suppose it’s a virus, isn’t it?”

  “Originally,” Galyan said, “at least from what I can tell.”

  Ludendorff nodded, continuing, “This virus came from another dimension. In lieu of anything else, we’ll call it Dimension X.”

  “That’s original,” Valerie said.

  Ludendorff smiled instead of scowling, perhaps believing that his newfound method was proving more productive with the crew than his previous ways. “Dimension X. This computer virus escaped from it, came here, and in some manner found the Builder cube and inserted itself in it. From that, it learned, likely…about the Builders and the rest?”

  “I believe that is true,” Galyan said. “Afterward, Omegan created the entire system. He discovered the Yon Soth portals. To what extent or how he modified them, I do not know. But clearly, he modified them to a degree, capturing some Ardazirhos and using their knowledge. I suspect Carn Dar was the last of the Ardazirhos he’d captured. How Omegan built the city-sized scooper on the Ruby Planet, how he suborned the Inkari on Bluemar, those things I also do not know. Since then, Omegan has guarded everything from his station on the rogue planet. How he infiltrated or brought the technology of the crystalline personal shields to those of Leviathan, I cannot tell you that either. I do not know if he suborned the strategists of Leviathan. I know this is the critical moment. We must destroy the multi-dimensional engine in orbit around Bluemar. If we can, we must also destroy the ruby ring.”

  Maddox nodded. “We’re the only ones that can do it. We’re here. You’re saying the dimensional breakthrough is imminent?”

  “In a matter of days,” Galyan replied.

  “Days,” Maddox echoed. “We’re the only ones that can do this then, as I said. Professor, have you figured out how to control the Prism Drive yet?”

  “Theoretically, my boy,” Ludendorff said. “We’ll have to make a few tests first just to make sure.”

  “I learned a little about underspace through Omegan,” Galyan said. “There are many different properties within underspace: gravitational anomalies, geometric designs or structures and quantum fluxes, to name a few.”

  “Will we face that all at once?” Maddox asked.

  “I doubt it,” Galyan said. “These occurrences are on various levels of underspace. I do not know how to deal with any of them, however.”

  “That might be good enough for now,” Maddox said. “We know more than we did. We know where the planet is: in underspace. We have to fly through levels of underspace to reach it.”

  “With an unknown number of enemy vessels waiting to attack us,” Ludendorff said.

  “True,” Maddox said. “Any suggestions?”

  “This isn’t a suggestion so much as an observation,” Valerie said. “This might be one of the greatest risks we’ve taken. It sounds similar to moving through dimensions. I don’t understand this underspace.”

  “I believe it has something to do with interdimensional travel,” Galyan said. “Certainly there is more to our dimension, or to any particular dimension, than we have realized. A dimension is constructed of greater substance or depth than we realized. How that is so, and how that all works, I am still trying to coordinate and correlate it.”

  “Galyan,” Maddox said, “I want you to join the Professor as we make these shifts with the Prism Drive. Professor, is the drive stable?”

  “My boy,” Ludendorff said, throwing his hands into the air, “I have absolutely no idea. This is all new to me.”

  Maddox frowned.

  Ludendorff turned to Galyan. “Once we’re there, do you have any idea how we can stop the dimensional drill from beaming a hole so the Seekers and the so-called evil one can come through?”

  “It is not so-called,” Galyan said. “The entity is evil indeed. Whether he was banished to Dimension X, as you are calling it, or whether it originated there, I do not know. I barely comprehend and correlate what I have learned and integrated so far.”

  “Could this be a subtle attack upon your AI systems?” Valerie asked. “Will Omegan suborn you as we go in for the assault?”

  Galyan’s eyelids fluttered. “I do not think so, Valerie, but I think that was a reasonable question.”

  Maddox nodded. “We go in and out as fast as we can. I imagine destroying the engine that causes the dimensional beam to drill would be our best bet. An antimatter missile in its guts should take care of that.”

  “I do not know if that is the case,” Galyan said. “It may be able to use a crystal lattice defense, or it may be able to shift itself into a slightly different phase. That way, the blast will pass it, perhaps like a thin wind.”

  “That certainly makes everything easy,” Maddox said.

  “Easy, sir?” Galyan asked. “I think it would make it harder.”

  “Galyan,” Meta said, “that is what we call sarcasm.”

  Galyan stared at her. “Thank you, Meta. I understand. You were being sarcastic, Captain?”

  “This…” Maddox shook his head, ignoring Galyan’s question. “Here we have Leviathan ready to launch an assault upon the Commonwealth, and we’re dealing with a side issue.”

  “Hardly a side issue, sir,” Galyan said. “This is a dangerous and critical situation. I believe the Seekers would be one of our most dangerous adversaries. It is best to stop them before they arrive.”

  “Agreed,” said Maddox. “Any other ideas?”

  “I have one,” Galyan said.

  “Let’s hear it,” Maddox said.

  “There may be a way to destroy the ruby ring.”

  “With saturation antimatter blasts?” asked Maddox.

  “No,” Galyan said, “through nanites that devour the gems as they move from ruby to ruby. If the nanites replicate fast enough, they should be able to devour the entire ring in a few hours.”

  “That’s ingenious,” Ludendorff said. “I imagine I would have thought of that in another few minutes. Yes indeed, Galyan, I applaud your originality. That is a good idea.”

  “Do we actually have such nanites?” Maddox asked.

  “No,” Ludendorff said, “but I can begin designing them.”

  “No,” Andros said, “you’re going to be working on the Prism Drive. Nanites are more my territory. We Kai Kaus are particularly adept at their use.”

  Maddox nodded. “Get to it, Andros.”

  “Can I use your science lab for this?” Andros asked Ludendorff.

  “Of course, of course,” Ludendorff said airily. “My lab is your lab, for this emergency that is.”

  “You have your assignments,” Maddox said. “Andros, start developing those nanites. Make as many as you can. Professor, Galyan, figure out the Prism Drive. Once you feel, even to a small extent, that we can enter underspace, I want to do so. Remember, if time is of the essence, Omegan is going to throw everything he can at us to stop or slow us down.”

  “Maybe he already has,” Meta said. “If Omegan left the rogue planet to warn those on Bluemar, and five saucer ships attacked us, maybe that’s all they have on short notice.”

  “Ah,” Ludendorff said. “Perhaps Prism Drives are not easy to replicate or make, or perhaps the conditions in our dimension are not the same as Dimension X. Maybe the enemy only has a few drives, the ones that came through the natural opening with the Omegan virus.”

  “That would be a break in our favor,” Maddox said. “They have only a few ships until the Seekers come through. Therefore, we have more of a shot at this than we realize.”

  “One thing troubles me, though,” Ludendorff said, just as Maddox was about to end the meeting.

  “What’s that, Professor?”

  “Why did Omegan send you to the Ruby Planet? What was his purpose?”

  Maddox thought about that. “Maybe that what the Leviathan strategists wanted: raking rubies put me out of commission.”

  “Possibly, possibly,” Ludendorff said. “I’m not convinced that is the answer. For one thing, that would imply a closer and more direct working between Omegan and the strategists. From the strategists’ meeting, they didn’t seem to know precisely about Omegan.”

  “What is the answer then, Professor? Spit it out. We’ve got work to do.”

  “I don’t know,” Ludendorff said, “but I’ll think about it.”

  “I hope you don’t think about it,” Maddox said. “I want you to use all of that,” he tapped his forehead. “I want you to use that fantastic genius mind of yours to figure out the Prism Drive.”

  “Are you being sarcastic?” Ludendorff asked with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

  “I’m not,” Maddox said. “I’m being factual. You are a genius. Now let’s see you use it.”

  “Yes!” Ludendorff said as he slapped the table with an open palm. “Indeed, I will.”

  With that, the meeting ended as everyone rose and went to his or her designated assignment.

  -65-

  After three hours and thirteen minutes of tests, Ludendorff announced via the intercom that he was ready to try the Prism Drive.

  “I do have one last question,” Ludendorff said. “Do we know at which level in underspace this star, or planet, is located?”

  Maddox said, as he sat in the captain’s chair, “We do not. We’re going to have to find it. If Galyan’s right about what he’s learned from Omegan, there are disturbances on the various levels. I imagine whoever moved the star and planet set it in a stable level.”

  “Makes sense,” Ludendorff said. “Let’s get started then.”

  Maddox was irritated Ludendorff had said that. “Yes,” Maddox said, “it is time to begin.”

  With a direct connection to the engine room and Prism Drive, Keith began to manipulate his board. The starship made its first shift, dive, or descent into underspace.