The Darkside Of The Sun

And the Creapii use sun rafts on some stars.’
    ‘ IT IS CERTAINLY THE ONLY CASE WHERE A SUN HAS A DARK SIDE. THERE ARE, HOWEVER, MANY BINARIES OF THAT TYPE, AND A SYSTEMIC SEARCH WOULD BE TIME-CONSUMING. ’
    ‘I gather you don’t agree with my ssuggesstion?’ said Hrsh-Hgn thoughtfully.
    ‘ I PRAISE IT AS IMAGINATIVE THINKING OF THE HIGHEST ORDER ,’ intoned the Bank carefully.
    ‘Iss it true that the Jokerss helped you evolve, as the legend sayss?’
    ‘ I DO NOT ANSWER PERSONAL QUESTIONS. THERE IS ONE FACTOR YOU MIGHT CONSIDER. WHY NOT RUN AN EXTENDED SET OF EQUATIONS ON DOM AND DISCOVER EXACTLY WHEN AND WHERE HE MAKES HIS DISCOVERY? I HAVE JUST RUN AN ANALYSIS TAKING AS ITS PARAMETER THE EXISTENCE OF JOKERS WORLD AND ITS IMMINENT DISCOVERY. I FIND I ARRIVE AT THE MANTRUM:
    ncreg8
    (bRf) (nultad) E YY –’ (=) 56::: nultad
    tt:
    al
    ‘ THIS IS ONLY A FIRST-APPROXIMATION DISTILLATE. ’
    Hrsh-Hgn pulled a notecube out of his small carry-all, and gazed at it carefully.
    ‘What value do you give the datum?’ he asked.
    ‘Ae(d) IN THE USUAL SUB-LUNAR MATRIX. ’
    ‘Then that ressultss in an almosst perfect collapsed field within the next twenty-seven days.’
    ‘ EXCELLENT. I DID NOT KNOW HIGHER PROBABILITY WAS A PHNOBIC SPECIALITY. ’
    ‘It iss, you understand, in accordance with our universse-view.’
    Dom had wandered over to the potted palm and was fingering a leaf idly. It moved under his touch, betraying itself as a vegetative shape-changer from Eggplant. He let go quickly, and stroked Ig.
    ‘I don’t begin to understand,’ he said, flatly. ‘To me it sounds like Jargon.’
    ‘ JARGON? ’
    Hrsh-Hgn turned to the Bank. ‘Nonsense,’ he explained. ‘In Sadhimist tradition God invented it to foresstall the firsst attempt at intersstellar travel. To prevent scientissts from understanding each other, you understand. You will find it mentioned in the Newer Testament.’
    The pinpoints swam into a new position. The robot extension gave a mechanical gurgle.
    ‘ AH YES. AS WE SPREAD OUR CIRCUITRY LESS ESSENTIAL INFORMATION ...YOU UNDERSTAND HOW IT IS. ’
    The Jokers did not show up on p-math. It was as if they never existed. P-math offered no explanation for the towers or the other artefacts. Wherever the Jokers had been they left a shadow in the equations.
    Dom’s future was sure for twenty-seven standard days.
    ‘That’s something to look forward to,’ said Dom. ‘How about giving me a little hint about its whereabouts?’
    ‘ EVERY INHABITED BODY IN THE HOME BUBBLE HAS BEEN THOROUGHLY EXPLORED. I SUGGEST A FRUITFUL FIELD OF EXPLORATION IS YOUR OWN MIND. HOWEVER, YOU MAY CARE TO SEEK OUT HIM WHO LIVES ON BAND. HE IS OLD. HE HAS MET THE JOKERS. ’
    ‘But Band is unoccupied except by sundogs – it’s been proved it could never develop a higher lifeform.’
    ‘ I HAVE SAID TOO MUCH. ’
    ‘Well, will you work on the problem of my assassin?’
    The Bank paused. ‘ YES .’
    ‘Charge it to my personal account.’
    ‘ I WILL DO SO. IT IS A PITY YOU WERE NOT HERE EARLIER. THE GREATEST AUTHORITY ON THE JOKERS, AND CERTAINLY THE MOST INCISIVE MIND IN THE GALAXY, WAS HERE. ’
    The atmosphere was perceptibly warmer. Dom relaxed. The Bank was hiding something, though.
    ‘I thought you were the most incisive mind in the galaxy,’ he said.
    ‘ A COMMON MISTAKE. ALAS, I AM NO MORE INTELLIGENT THAN THE AVERAGE CREAP, OR HUMAN GENIUS. MY BULK ALLOWS, SHALL WE SAY, FOR BREADTH OF INTELLIGENCE RATHER THAN HEIGHT. I WAS REFERRING TO CHARLES SUB-LUNAR. ’
    “‘Poet, polymath, soldier of fortune”,’ quoted Dom. ‘Was he the man I saw in the hotel? Scarred, he was, with an early Class One robot?’
    ‘ HE DOES NOT ALLOW HIS LIKENESS TO BE PUBLISHED, ’ said the Bank, and there was a hint of laughter in the voice.
    ‘Uhuh. I’m getting the hang of things. I don’t think seeing him was an accident. I thought he recognized me. He looked rather self-satisfied, so ...’
    ‘ DOM, BECAUSE YOU ARE MY GODSON I WILL RETAIL TO YOU A CERTAIN FACT. YOUR GRANDMOTHER IS AT THIS MOMENT IN ORBIT ABOVE US, REQUESTING CLEARANCE TO LAND. ’
    A screen by the robot’s arm flashed into life and Dom saw the familiar shape of his grandmother’s personal MFTL barge Drunk With Infinity drifting against the stars.
    ‘ SHE HAS JUST REFERRED TO ME AS, I QUOTE, A “DISEASED BALL OF ROCK”. ’
    ‘I’m not certain I want to meet her,’ said Dom.
    ‘Mysself neither, my word!’
    ‘ THIS COULD BE