Dream Called Time
Authors: S. L. Viehl
Tags: #Cherijo (Fictitious Character), #Women Physicians, #Torin; Cherijo (Fictitious Character), #Fiction, #Science Fiction, #Torin, #General, #Medical, #Speculative Fiction
Table of Contents
Praise for the
StarDoc
Series
StarDoc
“I don’t read much science fiction, but I got ahold of a manuscript copy of
StarDoc
and just loved it. Don’t miss this one.”
—Catherine Coulter
“Continuously surprising and deviously written and splendidly full of new characters.”
—Anne McCaffrey
“Space opera somewhat reminiscent of C. J. Cherryh’s early work.”
—
Chronicle
“An entertaining, almost old-fashioned adventure. . . . The adventure and quirky mix of aliens and cultures makes a fun combination.”
—
Locus
“An excellent protagonist. . . . [Viehl has] set the stage for an interesting series of interspecies medical adventures.”
“Space opera and medical melodrama mix with a dash of romance in this engaging novel . . . a rousing good yarn, with plenty of plot twists, inventive scene-setting, and quirky characters to keep readers thoroughly entertained . . .
StarDoc
is a fun adventure story, with an appealing heroine, a lot of action, a sly sense of humor, and wonders aplenty.”
—SF Site
“A fascinating reading experience . . . a wonderful heroine.”
—
Midwest Book Review
Beyond Varallan
“[Cherijo is] an engaging lead character. . . . Viehl skillfully weaves in the clues to build a murder mystery with several surprising ramifications.”
Endurance
“An exciting science fiction tale . . . fast-paced and exciting. . . . SF fans will fully enjoy S. L. Viehl’s entertaining entry in one of the better ongoing series today.”
—
Midwest Book Review
“[
Endurance
] gets into more eclectic and darker territory than most space opera, but it’s a pretty engrossing trip. Recommended.”
—Hypatia’s Hoard
“A rousing medical space opera. . . . Viehl employs misdirection and humor, while not defusing the intense plot development that builds toward an explosive conclusion.”
—
Romantic Times
Shockball
“Genetically enhanced fun. . . . Cherijo herself has been justly praised as a breath of fresh air—smart [and] saucy. . . . The reader seems to be invited along as an amicable companion, and such is the force of Cherijo’s personality that it sounds like fun.”
—Science Fiction Weekly
“Fast-paced . . . an entertaining installment in the continuing adventures of the
StarDoc
.”
—Locus
“An exhilarating science fiction space adventure. The zestful story line stays at warp speed. . . . Cherijo is as fresh as ever. . . . Fans of futuristic outer space novels will want to take off with this tale and the three previous
StarDoc
books as all four stories take the audience where they rarely have been before.”
—
Midwest Book Review
Eternity Row
“Space opera at its very best. . . . Viehl has created a character and a futuristic setting that is second to none in its readability, quality, and social mores.”
—
Midwest Book Review
“S. L. Viehl serves readers her usual highly entertaining mix of humor and space opera. This episode is enlivened by the antics of her daughter, Marel, and by an exploration of aging and immortality. As usual I look forward to the next in an exciting series.”
—BookLoons
Rebel Ice
“Well-drawn cultures and fascinating aliens.”
—Publishers Weekly
“It’s fast, fun, character-driven and left me wanting more . . . one of my all-time favorite sci-fi series.”
—
Fresh Fiction
“Both gritty and realistic.”
—
Romantic Times
“A thrilling addition to the series.”
—
Booklist
“A wonderful piece of space opera.”
—SFRevu
“Seems very realistic—almost as if the author visited that world and decided to write about it.
Rebel Ice
is a terrific outer space science fiction novel.”
—
Library Bookwatch
Plague of Memory
“Another exciting adventure in this well-regarded series.”
—Monsters and Critics
THE COMPLETE
STARDOC
SERIES 2000-2010
StarDoc
Beyond Varallan
Endurance
Shockball
Eternity Row
Rebel Ice
Plague of Memory
Omega Games
Crystal Healer
Dream Called Time
ROC
Published by New American Library, a division of
Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,
New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto,
Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)
Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2,
Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)
Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124,
Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.)
Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park,
New Delhi - 110 017, India
Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, North Shore 0632,
New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)
Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue,
Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:
80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
First published by Roc, an imprint of New American Library,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
First Printing, August 2010
Copyright © S. L. Viehl, 2010
eISBN: 9781101437865
All rights reserved
REGISTERED TRADEMARK—MARCA REGISTRADA
Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the author’s rights is appreciated.
This book is for
all the loyal
StarDoc
readers out there.
It took ten years for us to make this journey
through constant hardships
and endless heartaches,
but while I chose this path,
you never once let me
walk it alone.
Thank you.
Yesterday
When I woke up, it was in the oddest of circumstances. I was crammed into a very small space, with my legs tucked in and my shoulders pressing against what felt like a tiny console. I opened my eyes and found two small, slimy faces close to mine. “Who are you?”
“Rilken.” One of the diminutive aliens reached out and prodded me with a sticky finger. “You Terran?”
“Uh huh.” I tried to sit up, found I couldn’t, and swiveled onto my stomach instead. I was inside what had to be the smallest vessel I’d ever seen. A lavatory on the
Sunlace
was ten times bigger. “Why am I here?”
“We purchase you from Bartermen.” One of the little guys went to an equally tiny helm and initiated some engines. “Prepare for launch.”
“Wait a minute.” I managed to hunch over and sit up, and immediately felt like Gulliver. I filled up half the passenger compartment, which had been designed for beings less than half a meter in height. “Where are we going?”
“We are leaving Oenrall,” the other pip-squeak said. “We are mercenaries. You will be returned to the Hsktskt for blood bounty.”
Midget mercenaries. Well, why not? “You’re friends with the lizards?”
He shrugged his tiny shoulders. “The Hsktskt offer more credits for you.”
The tiny vessel lifted off and entered the upper atmosphere. Before the mercenaries could initiate their flightshield, something struck us.
“What is it?” The one guarding me ran up to the helm.
“A Jorenian ship, firing on us.” Fear ran through the Rilken’s voice. “They have disabled our stardrive.”
Considering the size of the ship, Xonea must have used a peashooter. I crawled up behind both of them, and felt for the syrinpress I’d been carrying in my tunic pocket. It was gone, so I’d have to use more creative measures.
“Nighty-night, boys.” I knocked their skulls together once, then watched them slide to the floor. I looked around me. “That’s it? I don’t get shot, stabbed, poisoned, whipped, burned, or anything else?”
The Rilkens didn’t make a response.
Clunking them was certainly easier than using their communications array. I had to use one of my fingernails to operate the control panel. At last I raised the
CloudWalk
to let them know I was in control and all right.
“It is good to see you, council representative,” the Jado ClanLeader said, and smiled. “There are two others here who wish to relay their happiness, as well.”
He stepped aside, and the welcome sight of my husband and daughter appeared on the vid screen.
“Cherijo.” My husband looked very relieved. “You escaped the Bartermen by yourself?”
“Mtulla helped. By the way, if you ever want to get kidnapped, pick Rilkens. Very easy species to overpower. Marel could do it.” I thought of the peace talks. “Have I ruined everything for Captain Teulon?”
“No, it appears the negotiations are a success. The Torins retrieved Alunthri from the Jxin, and it has convinced the Taercal that your cure is a divine intervention, and that their god refuses to allow them to suffer, as was prophesied.”
“About time.” I moved one of the sleeping Rilkens out of my way and sat back against the interior hull wall. “Well, I think that wraps it up here. I’d really like that vacation now, please.”
“Come and get us.”
Reever told me how to fly the Rilken vessel to rendezvous with the Jado ship, then touched the screen with his hand. “I’ll be waiting for you,
Waenara
.”
I matched my fingertips to his. “Not for long,
Ose
”
peke
.”
Those last words we exchanged would come back to haunt me. I just didn’t know it yet.
Because the shot from the Jado had wrecked the stardrive, I could only coax limping speed out of the propulsion system. I set the helm on autopilot, tied up the Rilkens so they wouldn’t cause any more trouble when they woke, and tried to make myself comfortable by stretching out my legs on the deck. I’d always felt like a shrimp compared with most other beings, so it was kind of a novelty to experience for once what it was like to be a giant.
I didn’t expect ClanLeader Jado to send a launch to meet me, so when one appeared on the exterior viewer, I reached for the dinky console to send a signal. “Reever told me how to use the ship’s position to navigate to the
CloudWalk
, Captain. I won’t get lost.”
No one responded, and when I peered at the console, I saw several warning lights blinking. Someone was jamming my transceiver, which wasn’t a good thing. Neither was the launch, the design of which wasn’t Jorenian, but League.
I tried another signal, this time opening the relay so it could be picked up by the other vessel. “League transport, identify yourself, and your reasons for approaching my vessel.”
A harsh voice responded with only four words. “Prepare to be boarded.”
“Prepare my ass.” I swung around and crouched over the console, taking it off auto control and changing course to evade the League transport.
I dodged them for a while, but their engines were working perfectly, as was their pulse array. They fired twice and took out what was left of the Rilkens’ propulsion system, then used a third to destroy my transceiver.
I couldn’t see the
CloudWalk
on the viewer, but I knew they were out there and monitoring my progress, as was the ship belonging to my adopted family, HouseClan Torin. They’d definitely pick up the pulse fire on their scanners. Any attack on a member of a Jorenian HouseClan resulted in a declaration of ClanKill, which meant my adopted kin would devote themselves to hunting down my assailants and subjecting them to an instant and painful death by manual evisceration.
“You guys are going to be so sorry you did this,” I muttered as I looked around the cabin for weapons.
The Rilkens had a couple of pistols and rifles, but they were too small for me to handle comfortably. I settled for a dagger I took off one of my unconscious abductors, although I had to wrap the hilt with some plastape until it was large enough for me to grip. I staggered as the deck rocked; the viewer showed the transport’s docking clamps engulfing the little ship.
I put my back against a wall and watched the upper access hatch. Energy crackled through the air, and then something knocked me away from the wall and threw me to the deck.
I crawled, my teeth still chattering from the power surge they’d sent through the hull, but there was no place big enough for me to hide. A pair of League boots appeared in front of my nose, and I raised my head to look into the business end of a pulse rifle.
“Colonel Shropana sends his compliments,” the soldier said just before he reversed the weapon and slammed the stock into my face.