"And here we are, on the beautiful planet Galena." "Wasn't this a mining planet at one time?" "Niobium and tantalum, until the mines played out." "And bio-formed the slag planet into a hospitality world." "Right." "I hear when you walk barefoot, the grass massages your feet." "No wonder they say "give yourself to Galena."" "It's got other assets... a stable government, good facilities, secure." "That's why i chose Galena for this conference." "Hmm, somewhere beautiful to discuss something ugly." "Against the magog, we need every edge we can get." "The worldship is closer." "We all know that." "This gathering of scientists, futurists, and statesmen, it will make a difference." "Despite the threat of assassination hanging over the conference." "Hmm, maybe it's a good thing." "A good thing?" "We need answers fast." "When someone shoots at you, it focuses the mind." "No one is getting assassinated." "Well, i won't argue with that, especially since i'm making the keynote speaker mr." "Harper." "[Beeping]" "Captain, we have visitors." "They have our access codes." "Who invited them?" "They're high guard bailiffs, full security clearance." "Apparently, they don't need an invitation." "Oh, i think they do." "We have the bailiffs under surveillance." "Anything out of the ordinary, i want to know immediately." "Yes, sir." "It all began for me in a little place i like to call earth." "Humble, yes, but it was there that young seamus Harper... hey, boss... almost got my speech primed, and i'm ready to give myself to Galena, miles of lime green beach." "There's no time for that." "See, i called this conference because we need an exchange of ideas, and you've had firsthand exposure to this situation." "We're on the clock here, Harper." "I thought we were on a ship." "If i can't even make you laugh, how am i supposed to entertain the greatest scientific minds of our time?" "We'll figure something out." "[Beep]" "Captain, i'm receiving an urgent message from the office of professor wel-dar." "Professor millius wel-dar." "He invented the new pion trap for slipstream." "I can't wait to meet the guy." "I'm afraid you'll have to." "Wel-dar was on his way to the Galena conference this morning, but never made it to the spaceport." "They suspect kidnapping." "What?" "Kidnapping?" "And an assassination threat?" "That's why i need you to be in charge, mr." "Harper." "No problem, as long as you're coming with me." "This is my chance in the spotlight." "These people think that higher brain functions are sexy." "Well, then, you earned your place at the head table." "Thank you." "Hey, did you hear?" "Doctor professor kor-kavo's going to be there." "She's got the finest frontal lobes in the trl-galaxies." "She would look hot as fusion in a bikini." "Yeah, picture that bikini with a magog stuffed in it." "Hey, mental cruelty." "How to rain on a guy's parade." "Check his i.d." "That's classified." "What's going on?" "Okay." "You looking for me?" "Look, i don't like anyone roughing up my crew." "Ah... strong silent type, huh?" "Yeah, make that weak stupid type." "Nobody points a weapon at me on my ship." "Then what do you call this?" "Well, i would call that a... tactical mistake." "Dylan?" "So... what's going on?" "Commonwealth business." "Come on, you can do better than that." "Commonwealth intelligence." "My credentials... with the right to inspect, and... a summons." "You are legally bound to accompany us." "Day-code and t-stamp are authentic." "The universe is a dangerous place, but in our future, my crew and i fight to make it safe." "I am Dylan Hunt, captain of the Andromeda ascendant, and these are our adventures." "The Commonwealth security-coded, artificial intelligence communication system... skip to message." "My apology for the violence, captain Hunt." "I'm afraid these bailiffs are a rough-hewn lot." "Get them off my ship." "It's of vital importance that you be debriefed on a security matter." "That is still no excuse for bad behavior." "Please accompany them." "Time is of the essence." "I'm thanking you in advance for your cooperation." "Yeah, i'll cooperate." "Ladies and gentlemen, whatever doesn't kill you makes you smarter." "You're going to have to do this without me, mr." "Harper." "No, you can't leave me alone with these geeks." "You have more in common with them than i do." "I'll have Beka take you and rommie down in themaru." "No, no, no, no, i'm a genius with social skills." "I'm a rare breed." "Most geniuses are geniuses at arguing with each other." "Academician ler near called 26carol's article on homological algebra" ""the product of advanced brain rot."" "Her reply inthe galactic space journal was equally as terse." "I don't like this any more than you do." "You just have to find a way to make them work together." "I know you can do it." "Do not let him out of your sight." "We already have one missing scientist." "You feel you are required to answer this summons?" "Well, timing is everything, as if they want me away." "Would it not then be prudent to stay?" "It's just as important to find out who is interfering, but send a courier to follow me." "I want to stay in contact." "Affirmative, and don't worry, captain." "Harper... will stay out of trouble." "Yeah." "I'll be back as fast as i can." "Mm-hmm." "Boss, when's the last time you changed the scrubbers in here?" "Air quality's normal." "Your pulse, however, is 120." "I'm not nervous." "One mistake, though, and those people will eat me alive." "Apt image, considering the magog are the topic of discussion." "What do you suppose happened to professor wel-dar anyway?" "I mean, a simple ride to the spaceport, and the guy just disappears?" "It is worrisome, but i recommend you focus on the hard work at hand, Harper." "Right, find a way to make a bunch of headstrong scientists get along so we can all stop the magog." "Captain Hunt, you'll need to surrender your comm unit." "No communication with your ship is permissible until after the debriefing." "Tell me again what branch you're with." "My detachment is assigned to special collections division." "Collectors." "Correct." "Didn't you used to be the good guys?" "The comm unit?" "Yes, of course." "Please relax." "I'll be with you shortly." "Yeah, i'll relax." "To your health." "Ooh, bad year." "The magog, the ever-advancing magog, the threat beyond reason." "Who better than bu-habib, whom you will meet shortly, to inform us?" "These images before you do not lie." "If we don't all work together to find a defense, or better yet, an offense, we will perish." "Yes, my fellow scientists." "We are out of time." "Check again." "Look closer." "Seamus zelazny Harper plus one." "All right, wait a minute, who's in charge here, anyway?" "Okay, so maybe she's not officially invited, but she's with me, ergo she's invited." "Of course your artifact is welcome, as you are, seamus Harper." "Artifact?" "Doctor professor kor-kavo." "Delighted to finally meet our keynote speaker." "The pleasure is mine, and i do mean "pleasure," and i do mean "mine."" "I've never seen kor-kavo so revoltingly social before." "One of those two must have an idea worth stealing." "Yeah." "Academician ler near and dr. 26carol." "It's an honor to meet you both." "What's it like having magog eggs in your stomach?" "It's like indigestion with teeth, you've got a handful of hairy, flesh-eating fetuses gnawing on your stomach." "And who is this?" "An artifact mr." "Harper built." "Call me an artifact again." "Uh, uh..." "this is rommie, avatar of the Andromeda ascendant, the biggest, baddest, most awesome warship in the universe." "I'm sure." "Excuse me." "Ladies and gentlemen, may i have your attention, please?" "As preeminent minds of the Commonwealth, you'll be leading working groups on how to defeat the magog." "To put our urgent task into perspective, who better than professor bu-habib, chair of ethno-mathematics at all-systems university?" "Well... [gurgling]" "Mmm." "[Gurgling]" "Huh!" "Woof." "Woof?" "[Screaming]" "No!" "Harper, crowd control." "Uh, everyone, stay back, stay back, please." "The natives are getting restless." "Is there a prognosis yet?" "His higher brain centers are riddled with passageways about three microns across." "Molecular surgery?" "It could be." "Great." "Keep me posted." "This surgery is recent." "My bet... he went for brain augmentation." "Why would bu-habib risk this simply to increase his intelligence?" "Well, anything to win the mygot prize again." "Nobody's won it twice." "Not with the same brain." "Is this practice common in the scientific community?" "Dr. 26carol would be up on that." "What are you implying?" "What are you suggesting?" "Look, i'm sorry, but i did my best." "How could you lose captain Hunt?" "There's multiple decoys exiting the slipstream, or that thing was the fastest thing that i've ever seen." "Which leaves you guessing." "I counted seven." "I followed number four." "I guessed wrong." "It's not your fault, lieutenant." "Come on in." "Grab a shower and a meal." "Valentine out." "Get me trl-lorn." "Onscreen." "Office of the triumvir trl-lorn." "This is Beka valentine, acting captain of the Andromeda ascendant." "I have an urgent matter, and i need to speak with him." "The triumvir is in and out of slipstream and not currently reachable." "I'll see he gets your message." "Hey!" "Jerk." "Probably wears flexis for underwear." "Trance, please tell me some good news." "Bu-habib is dead." "Dylan would want to know." "Great." "His higher cortical center was riddled with wormholes." "Gross." "How did that happen?" "Looks like an attempt at brain augmentation surgery." "Have we done a search of all medical procedures done to professor bu-habib?" "Two years ago, arterial fissure, repaired by nanobots, but nothing since that time." "But this was a recent procedure." "It was destructive and deliberate." "That's not good... not good at all." "Oh, hi." "Who... who makes this stuff?" "Uh-oh." "Hmm." "You know, you really... you really should get a doorbell." "All right." "I want to talk to your superior." "In due time." "Let's get started." "By all means, let's get started." "State your name for the record." "Captain Dylan Hunt." "That's Dylan with a "d."" "What do the collectors want with me?" "You're here to be interrogated, not for a briefing on classified activities." "You've got to be kidding." "I'll be returning to my ship." "You are officially detained." "Stop me." "I'm not permitted to stop you." "Yeah, that's right." "The detainee retention system does that." "Magog are nature's blunder." "They're disgusting, from start to finish." "For one thing, they're oviparous." "Hey!" "No offense." "Believe me, some of my best friends are egg layers, but i've got to draw the line when they lay their eggs in me." "Harper, we've got to talk." "I was just describing hand-to-hand combat with a swarm of deadly magog." "Combat with a swarm?" "Did you get to the part where you cried... my battle cry?" "Yes." "Yes, i was just getting to it." "What?" "Kor-kavo's office said they can't find her." "What?" "Not kor-kavo." "That's two missing scientists." "Mm-hmm." "Therefore, i think it would be wise if you stayed close, at least until we can reestablish contact with Dylan." "Help." "Help." "Doctor professor?" "Well, your scan is normal." "How do you feel?" "A little shaky." "What happened back there on Galena?" "I'm not entirely sure." "I went to look for mr." "Harper." "Seamus." "Next, i was being chased." "I came into the lobby and saw seamus and his artifact." "That's rommie." "I need to get back to the conference." "Well, there's no medical reason why she can't." "Harper, i want you and the professor... doctor professor." "Uh-huh." "I want you and the professor to stick close, and stay near rommie." "Well, spending time with mr." "Harper is no hardship." "Tell me, mr." "Harper... seamus." "Hmm." "I'm earth irish." "Do i still have to call you" ""doctor professor"?" "You can call me anything you like." "How about i call you for a weekend in a zero-g love pod?" "Was that my outside voice?" "I'm sorry." "You said "anything you like," and it just came out." "Don't be sorry." "Be bold." "Tell me about your warship avatar." "You must know a great deal about her systems." "From stem to stern." "Do female systems interest you?" "Does a nightsider nosh on his young?" "I mean, speaking from an engineering standpoint, unless you meant standing closer." "So close... we should be alone." "We tracked pion trails of the seven slipstream decoys." "A little over three minutes ago, i located Dylan's comm signal." "Where is he?" "Curiously," "Dylan's signal has reappeared in this star system." "He's here?" "Yes and no." "The ship carrying Dylan is headed directly towards guarnerl-12." "Guarnerl-12, the star?" "His ship is at full thrust." "He's headed into the sun?" "Impact in seven seconds." "Five, four, three, two, one." "This is crap." "He's not dead." "We should continue searching for Dylan." "No." "We will proceed on the assumption that he is dead." "It's what whoever's doing this wants us to think." "I will not." "Since when is it up to you, rhade?" "I'm in command here." "I have to do what Dylan would." "We're dealing with organized resistance." "Andromeda, show me Dylan's flight path from the time he exited slipstream until solar impact." "Enhance." "Beka..." "look there." "It passed the far side of Galena." "Readings would be occluded." "Are you suggesting... they could have transferred Dylan while they were out of sight." "He's on Galena." "Galena's a big planet." "Where do you want to look?" "It's awfully hard to kiss a moving target, you know." "Well, anticipation is everything." "I've been anticipating my whole life." "There's a nice firm table right over here." "It's awfully dark." "It's a shame not to see you." "Lights." "Academician?" "Ler near?" "What... they sawed off the top of his head." "[Door opens]" "Good news." "Good news, captain Hunt." "What?" "The test came back, and you're not a complete moron?" "No." "I told my superior officer, i said, "sir, captain Hunt's a unique individual." ""We all want what's best for the Commonwealth." "Let me talk to him."" "Can i talk to you, captain?" "No." "Agree to work with us." "That's it?" ""Agree to work with us"?" "You hold me here against my will to ask me that?" "Well, yes." "All right, look." "You know, we are all supposed to be part of the same Commonwealth, so you'll have to forgive me if i don't quite understand what "work with us" means." "Well, you'd keep your present assignment, but you'd also run missions for us, help eliminate threats." "Oh, threats like you?" "Oh, great." "I already do that." "Threats we identify." "Ah." "We maintain facilities on most known worlds." "Using them, we identify threats." "We offer you riches and power, captain, pleasures to suit your every desire." "This isn't an interrogation." "It's a recruitment." "Very good." "Yes, it is." "We recruit many of our agents this way." "We determine the candidate's abilities and whether they're with us or against us." "If with, they prosper." "If against, they die." "Or in your case, we'll be thrilling to be drilling... but the bottom line is we will find some way to exploit your usefulness, either one way or another, and we won't let anyone endanger our sacred mission." "Right." "Sacred?" "Tell your chief "no deal."" "You're making a big mistake." "Well, it's never a mistake when you're doing the right thing." "You'll forgive me if i don't show you to the door, but i'm very, very busy." "Harper?" "Harper?" "It's horrible." "Horrible." "I found him, and... i was jumped from behind." "Seamus tried to help me, and then i was pushed aside... and knocked out for about a minute, and i didn't get a chance to see who it was." "I don't trust that woman." "What?" "Would you... she's a victim as much as we are." "Come on, she's dedicated to the conference." "These are the exact injuries i saw on bu-habib." "Only evident on a molecular level?" "Yes, and as before, the caudate nucleus, the putamen, and the globus pallidus are all intact." "He was still alive when i first got here." "You saw the dying spasms of the autonomic nervous system." "No, i saw him breathe his last breath." "Regardless, the missing parts are responsible for higher mental function." "Memory and cognitive ability." "More." "I think that someone is trying to take their genius itself." "Well, this is an encrypted transmission device." "I believe the results of the surgery have been transported elsewhere." "It is possible to reassemble some of ler near's knowledge and intelligence in some way, perhaps a nutrient vat?" "What do you think, professor kor-kavo?" "Doctor professor." "I think you may be right." "Bu-habib and ler near may still be sentient... somewhere." "Hmm." "All right." "Eat some food, bask in whatever adulation's going around, marvel the masses with wickedly witty Harperisms, even take on the magog... mentally, from a distance... this i can do, but homicidal brain thieves?" "No, no, no, i'm way out of my element." "This is Dylan's job." "This is Dylan's turf." "He's the one who should be doing this." "Where the hell is he?" "Oh, here we go." "I told the chief judicator you refused." "He scowled." "Yeah, i know." "He really shouldn't do that." "He'll get frown lines." "Take him to the chambers." "You're really not my type." "I'm disappointed, captain." "Yeah, i'm disappointed too." "I never got that second bottle of wine i ordered." "Take him to a holding cell, have him prepped for surgery." "Don't worry, captain, the process is quite painless, and in the end, you'll be serving a greater purpose." "I'll also be helping the Commonwealth." "Prep him immediately." "Chamber three." "Corridor six, section two, i'm under attack." "This whole place is under attack now, pal." "What were you doing in the lab?" "What do you think?" "Your idea or hers?" "Mine." "No, hers." "No, it was mutual." "Rommie, are there any connections between bu-habib and ler near?" "A.i. Is checking." "Scanning high security data stored on conference files." "I can penetrate their wetware security and crack their encryption, but it will be traceable back to us." "No time for finesse." "Entering Galena secure data farm." "Although neither met in person, bu-habib and ler near both worked at different times and places on aspects of the engine of creation." "The engine?" "The ongoing attempt to employ controlled quantum vacuum density fluctuations to produce matter from nothingness." "Destroy the universe, or save us from the abyss." "Did anyone else from the conference work on the engine of creation?" "Professor wel-dar and the clone dr. 26carol." "She's so hot." "Can you believe there's 25 more?" "That's a connection." "Anyone else?" "No one else." "Hmm." "Are there any other matches with their backgrounds, aptitudes, abilities?" "Yes, two people... professor kor-kavo and our very own seamus Harper." "Someone is after the engine, but they will settle for your brain." "They are after my brain, aren't they?" "Creepy." "Thank you very much." "It's a piece of crap." "Please check corridor four, section one." "Corridor four, section one, clear." "What are the 10 radical isotopes?" "From the beginning, tell me the 10 radical isotopes." "Professor wel-dar, we've been looking for you." "Professor wel-dar?" "You're next, after me." "They're mining brains, harvesting brilliance from the greatest minds of the galaxies." "The conference must be warned." "As soon as i get us out of here." "The abyss, it knows." "From the beginning, 10, the radical isotopes." "What does the abyss know?" "Ask, and it will be told." "From the beginning... always a good place to start." "Tell the 10 radical isotopes." "Ask, and it must told." "[Beeping]" "The conference must be warned." "The conference." "We have to go." "All right, let's warn them... but first, i need to get in touch with my ship." "Yeah, yeah, i know it's low-tech, but, hey, it works." "All right, let's get you out of those chains." "Let's go." "Please check corridor six, section one." "Any word from trl-lorn?" "Still unreachable." "We have to find Dylan now." "Okay, pinpoint him." "Galena used to be a mining planet, right?" "Uh-huh." "I think maybe if i were hiding someone... right." "Andromeda, run a dpr scan of the planet's subsurface." "Galena is a maze of old mine tunnels, some almost two kilometers deep." "Check all frequencies, anything that looks like a signal." "I'm picking up a crude repeating transmission on x-band." "Low power." "It's him." "Or some kid with a jacked-up crystal set." "The signal is now transmitting high guard distress codes." "Or not." "No, no, no, wait, wait, no." "You can't leave." "We've got work to do." "Even if it is dangerous, i mean, it's no more dangerous than any other place that's had two murders and a kidnapping in 24 hours." "Please." "Seamus." "Not now." "Uh... hey, hey!" "Anyone who claims to be a scientist, listen up." "You're not." "That's right, you heard me." "You're not scientists." "You know what we got here?" "A room full of great minds and weak hearts." "A bunch of intergalactic cowards." "Where would science be if the great minds before us had been afraid?" "If heisenberg had been afraid?" "Or if simmonds had been afraid?" "Afraid to ask questions, afraid to face facts, afraid to work together, even under risky conditions?" "I'll tell you where." "We'd still be in caves worshipping those mysterious lights in the night sky." "No, they weren't afraid." "They were scientists." "Now, what about the magog?" "Does anybody care?" "Because i do." "Stay back!" "Follow me!" "Whoever knows must tell." "Radical isotopes." "Yeah, yeah, i know, i know." "All right, hang on, wel-dar." "I'll have you out of here in a second." "[Click click]" "Okay, you... you don't happen to have a gun, do you?" "The conference." "We must warn... we were worried about you." "I'm glad about that." "Look who i found." "We must warn the conference." "Sure thing, pops." "Things are falling apart back there." "I think i know how to put it back together." "Right there, professor." "Let's get over to that conference." "Harper." "Harper, do you copy?" "Dylan leaves me in charge, and look what happens." "Total chaos." "Oh, Harper, you did the best you could." "I don't even want to call these people colleagues." "Wait a minute." "Yesterday you couldn't wait for their approval and respect." "Yeah, well, today, they can keep it." "[Beeping]" "Harper, do you read me?" "Harper, do you copy?" "Boss, i messed things up." "No, you didn't." "If we expose the killer, the conference will go on." "Yeah?" "How?" "Ask the scientists this question..." ""from the beginning, what are the 10 radical isotopes?"" "What?" "I haven't heard of those." "What..." "Harper, just do it." ""From the beginning"... okay, okay, i got it, i got it." "Uh... attention, please." "I have a question." "Ahem." "From the beginning, what are the 10 radical... [growling]" "Doctor professor, are you okay?" "Mr. Harper." "Just say it!" "From the beginning, what are the 10 radical isotopes?" "Whoa." "From the beginning, the 10 radical isotopes." "Tukerium, negative five." "Dongor, neg 17." "Lu, neg 31. kartex, neg 79." "Sharbar, neg 101." "Muilamium, neg 127." "Isotopes with negative atomic weight?" "They're all prime numbers too." "Idaron, negative 173." "Simmondsium, negative 211." "Mattite, negative 239." "Krasnov, negative 307." "These are the radical isotopes... from the beginning." "You have no power." "Oh, boy." "Rommie?" "No, no, no." "You don't want her." "She's just an artifact, remember?" "Again with the artifact?" "You want me." "I'm the one who created her." "I'm the smart one." "Come on, come on." "Come get me." "Come on." "Touching down." "All right, let's go." "Not you, professor." "You just stay here and... and... well, don't touch anything." "You're not kor-kavo." "What have you done with her?" "She is with us, as are bu-habib, ler near, and many others, and now you will be with us as well." "I don't think so." "Make sure no one gets in this room." "How you doing, Harper?" "I've been better." "The abyss has entered the world of matter." "Again with the abyss." "Soon, we will make all that is not be." "You know, for all those brains you stole, it sure didn't make you any smarter." "You will see." "You will understand soon... soon now." "Yeah, real soon." "Next time, make sure you have a force lance." "She didn't have me fooled for a second." "I was waiting for my chance." "Well, your chance, mr." "Harper." "I want a full report back in my quarters." "I apologize for the delay." "I've been traveling, and your message only just caught up with me." "Well, what about the vital security debriefing you ordered?" "Well, the debriefing was intended for post-conference." "You must have misunderstood." "I didn't misunderstand the day-code or the proper time stamp and the fact that the collectors tried to kill me." "They had access to the day-code." "That the Commonwealth has enemies on the inside, trl-lorn." "Then we've got to work together to find out who they are." "Agreed." "I don't want to see the Commonwealth destroyed from within again." "Nor do i." "On a high note, congratulations on saving the conference." "Mr. Harper pulled all the scientists together." "I would like to recommend him for a trl-galaxy medal." "Mm-hmm, with spiral cluster." "Done." "We will talk in depth about these internal threats, captain Hunt." "Call me when i'm back on tarazed." "Trl-lorn out." "Captain, i have Harper waiting outside." "It's about time." "Send him in." "Mr. Harper." "Boss." "Did you find their connection with the abyss?" "The radical isotopes?" "Yes." "Uh, not quite, but i have been talking with professor wel-dar, comparing notes." "It's fascinating." "Negative atomic weights?" "An isotope with negative atomic weight is like a planet with a negative number of moons orbiting it." "It's impossible, unless... they have something to do with, you know... the other universe." "So these radical isotopes could be the key to the destruction of the abyss." "Keep working on it." "Okay." "Yes?" "Boss, i'm sorry." "I almost lost my head over a girl, literally." "I told you not to... mr." "Harper, we all know that your choice in women is... well, you know, it's... it's... it's not good." "But, you know, on the positive side, your speech that rallied all the scientists together, it was truly impressive." "Really?" "Yeah." "You thought it was good?" "It was very good." "The whole thing, or just parts of it?" "Don't push it." "Right." "Hmm."