The key to the Ghosts was their past. The world of the Silver Ghosts was once Earthlike: blue skies, a yellow sun. But as the Ghosts climbed to awareness their sun evaporated, its substance torched away by a companion star. As their world froze the Ghosts rebuilt themselves. They became symbiotic creatures, each one a huddled cooperative collective. That spherical shape and silvered hide minimised heat loss.
The death of the Ghosts’ sun was a betrayal by the universe itself, as they saw it. But that betrayal shaped them for ever. Their science was devoted to fixing the universe’s design flaws: they learned to tinker with the very laws of physics.
When humans found the Ghosts, at first two powerful interstellar cultures cautiously engaged. But the Ghosts’ home range lay between mankind and the rich star fields of the Galaxy’s Core. The Ghosts were in humanity’s way. War was inevitable.
After early quick victories, for centuries the Ghosts stalled the human advance at the Orion Line, an immense static front along the outer edge of the Sagittarius Arm. The Ghosts, capable of changing the laws of physics in pursuit of weapons technology, were a formidable foe; but humans were the more warlike.
A weapon that could use g-waves to devastate worlds was a characteristic Ghost weapon, exotic and powerful. And it worked, the Integumentary said, by tapping into the large-scale properties of the universe itself.
‘Perhaps you understand that the universe has more dimensions than the macroscopic, the three spatial and one of time. Most of the extra dimensions are extremely small.’ A technical sidebar translated this for Hex as ‘Planck scale’. ‘But one extra dimension is rather larger, perhaps as much as a millimetre. You must think of the universe, then, as a blanket of spacetime, stretching thirteen billion years deep into the past and some twelve billion light years across—’
‘And a millimetre thick,’ said Hella.
‘There are believed to be many such universes, stacked up’ – the translator boxes hesitated, searching for a simile – ‘like leaves in a book. Also our own universe may be folded back on itself, creased in the thin dimension.’
Engineer Jul said, ‘So what? We know about the extra dimensions. We use them when we hyperdrive.’
‘But,’ said the Ghost, ‘your applications are not currently on the scale of ours.’
‘Tell us about g-waves,’ Teel commanded.
The Ghost said that all forms of energy were contained within the ‘blanket’ of the universe – all save one. Gravity waves could propagate in the extra dimensions, reaching out to the other universes believed to be stacked out there. The Ghosts had learned to focus the gravitational energy raining into their own universe from another.
‘The energy source in the other universe is necessarily large,’ the Integumentary said. ‘Alternatively it may be a remote part of our own universe, an energy-rich slice of spacetime – the instants after the initial singularity for instance, folded back. We aren’t sure. You understand that this weapon offers us a virtually unlimited source of power. It’s just a question of tapping it. Beyond weaponry, many large-scale projects become feasible.’
Hella said, ‘I wonder what “large-scale” might mean for a species of universe-botherers like the Silver Ghosts.’
Teel said, ‘Even when we were friendly with them the Ghosts scared us, I think.’
Hex had had enough of awe. ‘Let’s talk about the target. This weapon system is in the control of the Black Ghost…’
Recently the Ghosts had suddenly been scoring victories against the human forces. Their tactics had undergone a revolution that must reflect a change in their command structure, perhaps their very society.
‘Humans work in hierarchies,’ Teel said. ‘Chains of command. All large-scale military organisations in the past have done so. We tend to think it’s the only way to operate, but in fact it’s a very human way to work.’
‘An evolutionary legacy of your past,’ the Integumentary said. ‘When you were squabbling apes in some dismal forest, in thrall to the strongest male—’
‘Shut up,’ Teel said without emotion. ‘Ghosts, however, have always worked differently. Their organisation is more fluid, bottom-up, with distributed decision-making. The whole of their society is self-organising.’
‘Like a Coalescence,’ Borno said with disgust.
‘Like a hive, yes.’
‘The Ghosts are this way,’ said the Integumentary, ‘because of our evolutionary past. As you would understand if you knew anything about the species you are endeavouring to wipe out.’
‘Maybe,’ Teel said, ‘but you stayed that way because it’s efficient. Even in some military applications: if you’re waging a guerrilla war on an occupied world, for instance, a network of cells can be very effective. But in large-scale set-piece battles, which we always try to draw the Ghosts into, you need a command structure.’
‘And now they have one,’ Hex said.
‘Which makes them harder to beat. But it also makes them more vulnerable, because suddenly assassination is an effective weapon.’
Hex, intrigued, asked, ‘Why would any Ghost commit this treason? If the Black Ghost exists – if it lies behind these new effective tactics—’
The Integumentary said, ‘The Black Ghost’s is the greater treason, because of where its project will inevitably lead.’
Teel prompted, ‘Which is?’
‘To an arms race. Humans will steal or reinvent the gravity wave technology for themselves. Then we will conspire together, humans and Ghosts, to wreck the Galaxy between us. Or, worse—’
‘Ah,’ said Teel. ‘The Black Ghost will unleash such power that there won’t be anything left for the victors to take.’
‘It’s possible,’ Borno said. ‘Ghosts are single-minded. They choose a plan and stick to it, whatever the cost.’
In the training academies there was a joke about Ghosts that had the right of way to cross a road. But the transport drivers ignored the stop signs. So the first Ghost crossed, exerting its rights, and was creamed in the process. So did the second, the third, the fourth, each sticking to what it believed was right regardless of the cost. Then the fifth invented a teleport, changing physical law to make the road obsolete altogether…
Teel said, ‘So you want the Black Ghost eliminated before it destroys everything. Even though this may be your best chance of winning the war and of avoiding the subjugation or even extinction that would follow.’
‘Sooner extinction than universal destruction,’ the Integumentary said.
‘How noble.’
Hex said, ‘And you, Integumentary, are prepared to make the most profound moral judgements on behalf of your whole species – and their entire future?’
Borno said, ‘Who cares about Ghost ethics? They won’t need ethics when they’re all dead.’
‘You’re deranged, gunner, but you’re right,’ said Teel. ‘We don’t need to consider Ghost consciences. Our job is to consider what use to make of this strange opportunity. Certainly we need to find out more about these new Ghost variants you’ve come up against. I’ll pass this up the line to—’
‘You decide now,’ the Ghost snapped.
Borno said, ‘If you think a commodore is going to take orders from a ball of fat like you—’
‘Can it, gunner,’ Hex snapped.
‘You decide now,’ the Ghost said again. ‘You allow this crew, in this ship, to follow my instructions, or I disconnect the link.’
Hella said, ‘I guess the Integumentary has its own pressures. Imagine trying to run a covert operation like this from our side.’