Heirs of Earth by Sean Williams, Shane Dix Read Free Book Online Page A

that’s likely to conflict with your interests. You see, I’m not just banking on this plan; I’m also following the Yuhl path. I’m also migrating outward in other directions and hiding a few of myself on worlds that might be overlooked by the Starfish. I’m taking every option at once and hoping that at least some of me survive.”
    “Spores,” said Alander, his face a picture of distaste.
    Axford 1041 didn’t shy from the analogy. “Exactly. Every one of me is a seed. By propagating them as widely as possible, I hope to guarantee the survival of the Axford genome.”
    “A plague of Axfords,” Sol mused. “It doesn’t bear thinking about.”
    His smile only widened further. “It doesn’t seem so bad from my point of view, collectively speaking,” he said. “And there’s the rub. From my point of view, as an individual, this situation is a little different. The thought that one of me might survive somewhere, but not here, is only intellectually satisfying. It won’t change the fact that I’m still dead. So I’m going to do everything I can to ensure that this me will survive, that I will pull through. And if I have to drag you along with me to do it, then I will.”
    “No guarantees afterward, I presume,” said Sol.
    Frank the Ax’s smile turned predatory as he shook his head. “Once we’re out the other side, then it’s everyone for themselves. But it’s a big galaxy, Caryl. I’m sure we can coexist peacefully enough.”
    Assuming anyone survives, Thor thought to herself.
    “All right,” said Sol, her expression guarded. “You’ve told me some of it. Now give me the rest. And bring Peter up to speed, too.”
    “What about the others?” Alander asked. “What’s the point of letting them argue on if we’re going to make our own plans here? Shouldn’t we at least let them know there might be an alternative?”
    “Perhaps when they’ve finished arguing, we’ll consider bringing them into it,” said Axford. “Once the engrams and the Yuhl have divided into their camps, then we’ll know who has the guts to work with us. They’re the people we need: the Species Dreamers determined to find a new home; the patriots willing to defend the home they already have. There’s no room for fence-sitters now, people. We either stand or we fall; it’s as simple as that. There is no other alternative.”
    Axford’s words settled like a cowl over the conversation, and for a long time no one spoke. But from their expressions, Thor could tell that the ex-general’s words had hit home. And when her original finally met her eyes and gave a reluctant nod of approval to the plan, Thor allowed herself a brief, self-satisfied smile.

1.2.0
UEH/ELLIL

    There was no fanfare as the Yuhl migration divided in two. Although it took a great deal of preparation and incredible attention to detail, the occasion itself was marked only with silence by the human observers and sadness by the Yuhl. The many hundreds of hole ships comprising the Mantissa that had survived the Battle of Beid were split almost down the middle, with 44 percent staying behind to confront the Ambivalence and rebuild themselves a home, and 56 percent continuing onward with their great emigration. The species was well and truly divided.
    Ueh/Ellil watched the separation of the Yuhl/Goel with resignation but no small amount of uncertainty. His species had been attending the Ambivalence for more long cycles than he’d care to count. The home worlds were legends remembered only by a handful of survivors of that time. But such memories did not belong to him. He had only ever known life in the hole ships, and sometimes it felt as though this was the only world he would ever know. It seemed inconceivable to him that the life he knew would ever end.
    And yet for some it had already ended. Those who had voted to remain behind were no longer part of the Yuhl/Goel. The Species Dreamers were Yuhl/riil now. They were prey, the already dead—and he