The Island on the Edge of Forever (The Epic of Aravinda Book 2) by Andrew M. Crusoe Read Free Book Online Page A

carefully pushed off from the floor and floated up to the ceiling where the jagrul had been. When he reached the top, he noticed that a small section of the ceiling had been removed. And inside, he saw a dizzying mess of pathways etched into a layer of crystal behind the ivory wall. At the far edge, thin wires all joined at one point which became one of the braided cables that led into Navika’s nucleus. He felt the thin pathways etched into the crystal with his fingertips; they felt cool to the touch. His hand followed the pathways to where they interfaced with the wire mesh and found two of them broken.
    “Ack, jagrul! No wonder Navika can’t communicate with us! From now on, I’m feeding you regularly, and you aren’t leaving the ship until we can return you to the Amithyan Council. You’re too dangerous.”
    Just as he was about to begin repairs, the glowing walls dimmed, and an alarm rang throughout the ship, shattering Zahn’s focus. He pushed himself downward, flying through the air toward the door pad.
    The alarm grew louder. Without Navika’s voice, he couldn’t do much about it until he was in the command chair.
    Finally, his hand touched the panel, and the door slid apart. He propelled himself forward again, flying toward the back of the command chair before grabbing onto the armrest and spinning himself around to sit down.
    Once situated, the situation became simple. Overlaid on his vision were five red indicators, all emerging out from a single point, and Zahn directed the overlay system to hone in on the origin of the craft. At first he could find nothing unusual, but when he shifted beyond ultraviolet to gamma, he clearly saw the shape of a small vortex within the planet’s rings.
    He almost asked Navika what the odds were of a second vortex in the area, but caught himself. Either Navika couldn’t hear him or wouldn’t respond. Zahn wasn’t sure which.
    Yantrik only ever mentioned the marauders coming out of a single wormhole, so this must be it. Now was his chance. He knew what he had to do, and he sped toward the vortex as fast as the impulse drive could take him. After all, this was what he’d come here for.
    The marauders wouldn’t know what hit them.

CHAPTER6
     
    A SHEER CACOPHONOUS NOISE
     
     
    Zahn took a deep breath.
    The last time he jumped into a wormhole, his entire life had flashed before his eyes. He’d been convinced he had died. It wasn’t an experience he would ever forget.
    The Tulari was still nestled within the braided cables of the central node, and he knew what it was capable of. The Tulari couldn’t help but seal up the wormhole. It was its purpose.
    Zahn directed the ship to the center of the wormhole and pushed it to a fantastic speed.
    Once again, the space around the ship stretched and twisted. The roar behind him grew louder.
    He counted down again. “Three…” This was the moment. “Two…” Two birds with one stone. “One…”
    His mind and the roar became one, and he studied the twisting wormhole ahead of the ship. Unblinking in his white-hot determination, he flew into the swirling sphere and vanished.
     

     
    A sheer cacophonous noise erupted into his ears as his awareness touched the source of infinite light. Below him, he saw the wormhole fold up like a flower blooming in reverse.
    At last, the wormhole was gone. The Tulari had patched the tear in space.
    A perfect silence.
    The silence had a peculiar nullifying quality to it that invaded his senses. He was so loved and so cherished, even if he didn’t consciously realize it. Everything he had done, self-serving and others-serving, brought him to this point. He found himself in the midst of a pristine immaculateness.
    The music returned, music that he could never fully describe. He looked all around, floating in the midst of a pure brilliance.
    “Tulari, are you there?” Zahn managed to say. “I guess I don’t remember how to—” He stopped. “What was I saying again?”
    Using the Tulari