The Power of Gnaris Read Free

the perpetrator is Karavec. He or she must
have somehow got hold of a key card, known the PIN, and passed the
retinal test?”
    “How is that
possible?”
    “That I have
yet to determine. But of one thing I am sure . . .”
    The Great
Savant widened his eyes in anticipation.
    “. . . he or
she did not act alone.”
    “You mean more
than one Karavec was involved?”
    “No, I mean he  let’s just call the culprit ‘he’ for the
moment until we know their identity  I
think he had outside help.”
    The Great
Savant looked puzzled. “You mean . . .”
    “Yes, this is
not just a criminal act. I believe this could be an act of war, and
perhaps one of our enemy races is behind this. This has been done
to provoke your people into an act of aggression in
retaliation.”
    “But,
who?”
    “It could be
the Cerds, the Previns, or even the Anzous.”
    “They are all
possible. Our enemies are many, and they do not forget. What about
the Singalites?”
    “No, I do not
suspect the Singalites. They are not yet ready to wage war.”
    “Did you find
any clues at the scene of the crime?”
    “Not much that
will help us. The killer was very careful to leave no clues, and he
must have taken the murder weapon with him. There were no
footprints, and no hair samples.”
    “Karavec do
not have much hair.”
    “ However, I
did find this.”
    Forster
snatched a sample bag from his pocket. It contained a curved
finger.
    “One of the
nurses must have fought back, and managed to use the perpetrator’s
weapon against him. This finger does not belong to any of the dead
nurses. I have already done some tests. It must, therefore, belong
to the murderer. We may be able to match the fingerprint.”
    The great
savant frowned. “This is no use.”
    “Why?”
    “The Karavec
live for many centuries, outliving the other races in the Milky
Way. This is mainly due to our ability to replace damaged limbs or
body organs. If this sample is from the killer, then the finger
would have been replaced already, and the new finger will have a
different print from this one. This will not help us identify
him.”
    Forster
smiled. “However, we could match this sample to the DNA of a
suspect.”
    “But first you
must find a suspect. So what will be your next move?”
    “First we must
find the Karavec who has committed this crime, and match his DNA to
this sample. Then we will use some . . . er . . . methods of
persuasion to discover who he is in league with.”
    “You have my
permission to use whatever means you have at your disposal. We must
find this traitor and prevent this from happening again.”
    Just at that
moment the Great Savant’s communication device came to life with a
jingle of music, and an image appeared on the screen.
    “Excuse me,”
he said to Forster. “This message has come through on my most
urgent channel. It is my deputy on Hikon.”
    Forster nodded
in acquiescence while the Great Savant turned his attention to the
screen.
    “Yes, Mallow,
what is it? You have interrupted a very important meeting.”
    “Forgive me,
my Lord Barrow, but this cannot wait,” he said breathlessly. “The
Embrycultural Centre on Hikon has been violated. All the embryos
are dead!”
     
     

Chapter 2 – The
Speed in Darkness
    “ Where
light abounds, we are limited; but in the absence of light . . . ah
. . . we are limitless.”
     The Book of
Karavec (36, 51)
     
    “We must leave
at once for Hikon,” said Forster.
    “Not so
hasty,” said the Great Savant. “My first consideration is the other
Karavec colonies. If this murderer has struck twice, once here on
Arion, and now on Hikon, he will surely try to strike again. We
must warn the other colonies, step up the guard at all the
Embrycultural Centres and change the security codes. So, if you
will please forgive me, I must attend to this as a matter of great
urgency.”
    “Of course,”
Forster replied, bowing his head slightly, and turning towards the
door.
    “Your
accommodation is