Deathstalker 07 - Deathstalker Return

type."
    "Greetings, Captain," said the Ecstatic cheerfully. "I think we should keep this short and to the point.
    Because your ship is upsetting the oversoul. It keeps trying to talk to them. I like roses. Do you see the Light People too?"
    "Yes," said Corcoran. "I do. I see them. They walk among us and no one knows. Which is kind of
    spooky, if you think about it. But they don't bother me so I don't bother them. Do you know where you're going?"
    "There's currently some debate about that," said Joy. "We can't stay here indefinitely, but we're a long way from anywhere else."
    "You need to access hyperspace," said Donal. "It's easy. Look."
    He reached out to the oversoul and touched it with his altered thoughts. Both sides winced, but they held contact. Donal could see into many places now, and hyperspace was one of them. He showed the oversoul a direction to look in, that they had never suspected existed, and there was hyperspace waiting for them. Donal withdrew, hiding inside his own head again, leaving the oversoul with new possibilities and a massive collective headache.
    "Go to Mistworld," said Donal. "I did a lot of trade there, when I was still sane. They're still rebels at heart, and they have defenses that could stand off whatever the Empire sends against them. They'll take you in. They remember what it was like to be hunted. I was happy there. It seems such a long time ago."
    "Don't be sad," Joy said earnestly. "The universe isn't as dark as it seems. The long night is full of stars, and the worlds are full of people. Who could have predicted that? We are not alone. There is comfort."
    "I don't want it," said Donal. "I only want revenge now. It's all that's been left to me."
    Crow Jane frowned. "You've had closer contact with the Terror than anyone else. Could it be some part of the Recreated, that was never made human again by the blessed Owen?"
    "No," Donal said immediately, shaking his head violently. "It's bigger than that. It lives in more than three dimensions. Its spawn incubates in the hearts of suns. It eats souls. It wants to destroy the whole universe and everything in it. Unless I kill it first. I can see it. I can always see it, no matter what place it's in. Part of me is there with it, and it suffers."
    "How can you hope to stop it?" said Crow Jane.
    Donal smiled. "It pushed me into Hell. And now that I know the way, I'm going to grab the Terror and drag it down into damnation forever with me."
    "Hope you've got a backup plan," said Joy.
    Crow Jane hushed him. "Best of luck, Captain Corcoran. Perhaps we'll meet again someday."
    "It doesn't seem likely," said Donal.
    He broke contact, and the two vessels passed each other in the night, each going its separate way.
    Treasure Mackenzie, that almost impossibly gorgeous star of the vid soap The Quality, was going to have dinner with her husband-to-be, King Douglas. He wasn't expecting her. She contacted him on the viewscreen in his private chambers, using a private number she shouldn't have known about, and invited him to join her at one of the most famous and fashionable restaurants in the city. The kind of place where you had to get on a waiting list just to bribe the maitre d'. But of course people like Treasure never needed a reservation—as long as her ratings held up.Douglas explained to her, very politely, that the dinner date wasn't possible. For reasons of security, Finn Durandal had decided that it wasn't safe for the
    King to leave his palace. Except to go to the House, and then only when protected by Finn's guards.
    Treasure pouted prettily, wrinkled her perfect brow, and then smiled brightly. Not to worry, she said.
    And within half an hour she was knocking at the door to his private chambers, having brought dinner with her. WhenDouglas opened the door she barged right in, followed by half a dozen waiters from that very fashionable restaurant, pushing trolleys loaded down with everything necessary for a full scale banquet. There were main courses, side courses, in between courses, and a selection of snacks to keep them going while they decided which course to have next. Just the smell alone would have fed a family of six for a month. If anyone else had asked the restaurant to provide such a meal to go, they would have laughed in their face; but of course nothing was too much trouble for Treasure Mackenzie. She bustled about the room, directing the waiters on where to set things up, making sure everything was to her satisfaction before