ENTOVERSE

They came to a smallish room filled with cubicles, monitor panels, and equipment racks—evidently this was where the establishment’s couplers connected into the communications net. Somewhere else in the net, possibly far from Shiban, a channel through the net ter­minated at a live node carrying an i-space link to JEVEX. There was a console with lights and several screens, one of them displaying a pattern of symbols and geometric lines that meant nothing. Keshen sat down and began what looked like a series of status checks. The pattern on the screen altered; new symbols appeared. Keshen gave an intermittent commentary, which Nixie elaborated for Murray, and Murray did his best to explain to Hunt.

“This is their link into the net that connects to JEVEX, okay?”

Hunt nodded. “Out of curiosity, ask him if he knows where the connection into JEVEX is,” he said.

Murray passed the question on. Keshen shook his head.

“The net goes all over the planet,” Murray interpreted back. “The entry into JEVEX could be anywhere. It all depends how the techs who are running the core system have got it set up at the moment— which isn’t something that he makes it his business to go around asking questions about. His ass is on the line enough as it is. Does it make sense to you?”

“Yes,” Hunt replied. It meant that Keshen was not aware that the connection led to an off-planet link somewhere. In other words, he didn’t know that JEVEX proper wasn’t on Jevlen at all—just as Hunt would have expected.

Keshen indicated another section of equipment, and Murray wenton. “This channel goes out to an i-space-what would you call it, sender? Connector? Transformer?”

“Transceiver?” Hunt suggested.

“Yeah, right. Anyhow, it’s miles away somewhere. It hasn’t been operating since the Gs shut down JEVEX. But there just happens to be a line into it that isn’t supposed to exist, and he’s just brought it up again and fed in the—some kind of operating numbers?”

“Parameters?”

“If you say so. . . to tune it for VISAR. So that line’s through to Thurien, okay?”

“It’s through to Thurien?” Hunt repeated. He couldn’t contain a quick laugh. It sounded too good to be true.

Murray checked. “That’s what the guy says.”

“Could we verify that?” Hunt said. “Can he get VISAR through to us here, right now?” –

“Dunno.” Murray asked Nixie, who asked Keshen. Keshen checked with Scirio, and then entered more commands into the console.

Then a voice said something in Jevlenese from the console speaker. Keshen replied, answered a few more questions, and then the voice said in English, “My word, you are there, Vic! It seems you’ve pulled off one of your stunts again.”

A relieved grin spread across Hunt’s face. “Hello, VISAR.” He indicated the others who were with him in the room. “Well, these people had more than a little to do with it, as well.” He heard what sounded like his own phrase being repeated in Jevlenese. VISAR was assuming the role of translator.

“They did a good job.”

“It pays to make friends,” Hunt said. “What’s the situation with the others?”

“Calazar’s here,” VISAR answered. “Gregg Caldwell went away to take care of something else, but someone’s gone to fetch him. We’ve heard nothing more from anywhere else on Jevlen. As. far as we know, the others are still where they were when we got cut off.”

“I think Gina and Danchekker are being moved,” Hunt said.

“They’re on their way here,” Scirio said, his words translated by VISAR. “It wouldn’t have been safe to leave them.”

One of the screens on the console activated, showing Calazar. “Congratulations,” he said. “VISAR has just given me the news. And you have a channel there into JEVEX?”

Hunt moved next to Keshen. “Do we?”

Keshen checked the indicators on the other screen. “Yes. And you want VISAR connected into it? Is that so?”

“They’re in charge now,” Hunt said, waving toward the screen showing Calazar.

An exchange of technical jargon between VISAR and Keshen followed, ending with Keshen confirming that it could be done. “Do it straight away, while JEVEX is still asleep,” VISAR said. “Then when they bring JEVEX up to full power on Uttan, guess who’ll be in control of it.”

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