A.K. Lambert - Prince Ventar of Trun

A message from the author.

At the rear of this book is a list of the character locations at the end of Book Two. Also, there are maps of Preenasette. If you require an additional electronic copy of these maps for greater clarity, email me on

A K Lambert

J apanese Honey Bees

The Japanese honey bees are not as gullible as their European cousins.

When a giant hornet appears on their doorstep they back away into the nest inviting him to enter. When he does, he is surrounded and smothered by about five hundred of them. They vibrate their wings, producing heat, creating a small convection oven, and when the temperature reaches 47 C, the hornet dies. The bees, however, can withstand temperatures up to 50 C, and so survive.

The hornet cannot release its pheromones to alert the others, and the bees remain undetected.

Dorrikk

Jerbbekk scrutinized his small room one last time. Satisfied, he looked outside, hoping to catch sight of Zumther, and almost opened the door into him.

Sorry, Zumther, he said to the old guard, carrying out his final pass of the J4 residential huddle a mass of tiny living spaces for Jay workers.

Are you trying to shock me into an early grave? he replied. Get inside and stay there, Jerbbekk, unless you want a caution.

Jerbbekk cowered and retreated into his room, closing the door. He slipped a thin rubber wedge in between the two segments of the maglock just before the door closed, ensuring he wasnt locked in. A short while later Brack entered, taking care to replace the wedge. When Dorrikk arrived, they bowed, and each took her hand, kissing the third talon.

Jerbbekk crawled into the robes closet and activated a secret panel, allowing access into the room beyond. His two friends followed. A small table with four chairs was set up in the centre of the room, with an unfinished game of Callebaut laid out. If the guards ever found this room, they would assume it was a gambling den and issue a harsh reprimand, but the friends real intentions carried a death sentence. Dorrikk moved the pieces of the game away while Brack activated hidden levers that released the wall panels, revealing walls crammed full of maps of their underground world.

The Luna meeting of the clandestine Varr Society was in session.

I n Search of the Enemy

Follow the Crumbs

THE CAST:

Searcher Ralphic Carrind, Searcher Flaverack Carrind

Ralphic and Flaverack strolled hand in hand through the sweet grass of this strange unnamed planet in the Vorderi system, the sun gently warming them. It felt luxurious underfoot. Two flattened tracks in the grass marked the route down into the valley, to their ships.

That isnt another of those large popularpods, is it? asked Ralphic. I heard something crying out.

Perhaps, replied Flaverack, but they are a long way away. They dont stray far from those violet-coloured trees; they find them much more interesting than us.

I hope so, said Ralphic, moving closer to her mate and putting her arm around his slim waist, the two tracks becoming one. Must we go? Its only been three weeks, and I do enjoy being here with you.

So do I. But there will be other stops.

Flaverack didnt understand her joy. Many of his mates whimsical moments were strange to him and curious to everyone on Gemini 7. That and her fiercely vocal opinions within the hive mind, continually challenging the consensus position, made her an oddity on her world. But he loved her, even if he didnt quite understand her. And, as skilled as she was at her job, the main reason they were given this task was to give the hive mind some respite.

Ralphics head bobbed in the breeze, rippling the sensory receptors on the spikes adorning her head. Flaverack barely felt it, the ability a remnant from early evolution days necessary to detect the odour of the snorting Drooge Hog that preyed on them. This sense was acute in his mate. Her beautiful bulbous eyes flicked open, lighting up her crimson face. She pretended to check for afternoon rainclouds, but she was studying him one last time before their imminent separation. He might not have understood her fiery temper, but loved her ways and adored her. He never felt that from anyone else they were always wrapped up in the hive mind.

The rain came, right on time, and for twenty-three minutes they enjoyed having their worries washed away. After, they let the warm sun and the wind dry them.

They put their transit suits back on, hugged each other, and boarded their ships. They would be physically separated for a long time, but a hive mind of two was always together. The spacecraft took off and began their slow journey to escape the planets gravity and atmosphere. Ralphic located the magnetised crumbs emitted by the tracker clamped to the flagship of the departing Zerot armada. She laid in a course and with her mate, carried on their long journey.

Their tracker vessels were not fast ships their journey between wormholes slower than the Zerots, added years to their mission. The decaying magnetised particles were getting harder to follow, especially near wormholes with their shifting nature. But his mate with her dogged tracking talents would find them.

They werent far from the next wormhole and glided safely through it. Following a short search for the diminishing crumbs, realisation struck.

They had found Zerot.

T hree Cities

Two

THE CAST:

High Commander Kam Major, Commander Joellen Grainter, Cravin, Domantry Zander, Jacall Raspp, Benja Jacob, Major Tang, Prince Ventar

High Commander Kam Major and Commander Joellen Grainter were in the taverna drinking their third beer. Neither drank beer by choice, mulled wine being their preferred tipple, and never when working, but tonight it was part of a plan. Advancement in technology over the ages had seen all sorts of bars and drinking establishments come and go, but the taverna lingered, even if it was considered retro nowadays. The theme of tacky seating and decor, tables made from the knotted wood of the boron tree, poor lighting, and no music of any description, lived on here, along with beers and ales made by traditional processes from centuries ago.

This is the obvious place Zander would return to, whispered Kam Major, what with his garrison placement. It would be the natural place for friends rallying to his cause to meet.

So we put a few noses out of joint, throw some slander about him around, flush out his followers and hope they lead us to him rather than beat the crap out of us? Grainter smiled. Good plan, boss!

Your idea, Commander, or have you forgotten so quickly?

Not one of my best.

Assuming hes alive, hes done a good job of staying hidden.

They were in Two, the second of the towns that made up Three Cities. Their actual names were Wonford, Cantingtoo, and Threep, until someone in the distant past learnt to count.