XXXVI

AURORA

2,098 Years Before the Final Exodus

 

"You know, I'm getting a little too used to having you around again," Aurora said to Hades.

He laughed, "I know."

Aurora walked past the green gardens in Vulcan toward the mansion on the hill. Hades stayed by her side, dodging the people they came across. "You've been coming to me off and on for four hundred years now."

"True."

 

"You've never told me what the final goal was."

"Don't expect me to reveal that today."

Aurora passed a colonnade and took a path around the circular base of a statue of Hephaestus. "I've provided a home for the Thirteenth Tribe. I've supported them in everything. Now that they have natural procreation, they've blended in to the population." A citizen walked past, noticed Aurora talking to herself and tried to remain nonchalant. "It seems that their fears, my fears and your fears, for their … persecution are going unrealized. Iole hasn't heard any complaints at all about discrimination or abuse …"

"Don't worry. Things will get worse for your people sooner than you think." Aurora shot him a look but he kept speaking, "And that's when your efforts will really pay off. Yours and Apollo's."

"That's the other thing," she began as Vulcan proper was left behind and the mansion was just ahead. "You keep saying Apollo is going to help me, but he hasn't approached me to talk about anything."

"Well, you haven't approached him, either, have you?" Aurora shook her head. "Kinda hard to do that and not reveal that your long dead lover is the one who told you everything." They walked a few more steps and Hades said, "Apollo has already helped. He got the space program started long ago. Wasn't entirely his idea, either."

"You haven't told me why we're here," she said. Aurora looked up and studied the inactive volcano.

"To see Hephaestus."

Aurora rolled her eyes, "I know that. I'm wondering why, specifically, we're here to see him."

Hades grinned and jumped up the stairs toward the home's front porch. "Don't worry. I'll help guide the conversation."

"That always works so well." The goddess approached the front door and pressed the call button. A moment later, Aphrodite answered.

"Aurora! How are you?!" She was a beautiful woman. Long, dark hair and somewhat olive skin. Statuesque, even for an Olympian, and curvaceous in the way that made all men lose their train of thought. It was still a mystery among most how Hephaestus had managed to hold onto her for four millennia.

Hades had slipped past the lady of the house, so to speak, and was wandering about the sitting area. Aurora tried to not look at him, "I'm very well, Aphrodite. And you?"

"I'm great, I'm great. Please come in," she said and stepped aside.

Aurora walked in and wandered about, staring at the furnishings, much like Hades had already done. "It's a lovely home. I don't believe I've ever been here."

"No, you haven't." Aphrodite walked around to the low table, removing a few empty cups and plates. "But that's fine. A first time for everything, right?"

Aurora smiled, "Indeed." She glanced from painting to painting, recognizing Aphrodite's style. She had come with Hephaestus all those years ago simply because she was his wife; not because she had any great technical skill. In the intervening ages, she picked up several hobbies. To Aurora and the other Olympian females' chagrin, she always performed ridiculously well at whatever she wanted. It didn't seem fair.

"Please, sit." Aphrodite sat in a large chair, and watched Aurora sit hesitantly and uncomfortably on the large sofa. "So what brings you to Vulcan?"

"I came to see your husband, actually."

"Oh?"

Aurora caught herself, "Strictly business, of course."

Aphrodite laughed, "I know. It's alright." She stood and walked to a door in the corner of the room. She opened it up and Aurora could see what looked like stairs going down. "Hephaestus? Aurora is here to see you."

"Aurora?" came the reply.

"Yes, come on up." Aphrodite closed the door and walked back to the sitting area. "Can I get you something to drink?"

"Um, some water would be fine. Thank you." Aphrodite left the room and the door in the corner opened. Hephaestus stepped out.

"Aurora, this is an unexpected pleasure." He walked across the expansive room and held out his hand.

Aurora shook it while standing halfway. She sat back down and glanced over at Hades, who was studying one of Aphrodite's sculptures. "The pleasure's mine." Aurora nodded toward Hephaestus, noting his sweat, "Working in your lab?"

Aphrodite entered just then with two water glasses. "Huh? Oh, no." Hephaestus laughed and took one of the glasses, "I was just exercising."

Aurora grinned and took the other glass, "Thank you." After a sip, she said, "Why do you work out?"

Hephaestus pointed to Aphrodite, "Her cooking. It's damned good but," he grabbed his stomach, "it's a bit filling."

Aphrodite started to head back to the kitchen, "I keep telling him to have Asclepius look at his metabolism."

He waved a hand dismissively, "Nah. I don't want him tinkering around with my DNA any more than it already has been. I can just work it off." Aurora nodded and sipped more water. "So, Aurora, what brings you to Vulcan in winter? Certainly not exercise advice?"

She shook her head and glanced toward Hades, who was still looking at art. "No, Hephaestus. I've come to …"

"'Ask some questions,'" Hades said.

"Ask some questions."

He raised his eyebrows, "Very well. About what?"

"'We're here to talk about faster-than-light travel,'" Hades prompted.

"We're here to talk about," and she caught herself, "I'm here to ask about FTL."

Hephaestus nodded, "What do you want to know?"

Aurora waited for some sort of comment from Hades, but he said nothing. "Um." She glanced around and decided to go on herself, "How far away would you say the humans are from getting it themselves?"

Hephaestus chuckled, "They've been space-faring for almost five centuries. They've got subluminal drives down pat, but the relativistic distortions are still too much. They've been going nowhere fast when it comes to FTL advances."

"Why?" she asked.

"Their theories have just been … off. More than that, I can't really say. I'm just an adviser. I'm there to make sure they don't violate any Olympian decrees and that they don't advance faster than they can handle. I'm not supposed to give them any substantive help."

"That's what we need, though," Hades said as he walked across the room to sit on the sofa next to Aurora.

"What would it take to develop FTL drives at this point?"

Hephaestus looked at Aurora with a scrunched up face. "Well, assuming that I could help, there are still a couple of different alloys they haven't developed yet. Beyond that, they'd need to come up with a spin-sync generator. I don't think anyone's quite had that epiphany."

Aurora nodded like she understood what he was saying. Hades leaned in close to her and whispered in her ear, as though someone else might hear him, "Tell him he has to work on it. We need it."

Aurora drank some more water. Hephaestus was confused, yet intrigued. "Why can't you help them with FTL more directly?"

He laughed. "Because those were Zeus' orders."

"Sure, centuries ago," she replied.

Hephaestus tilted his head, "Yes, but it's something that has been reiterated time and again. Once we helped them get to a certain point, he said the humans had to discover new technology for themselves." He chuckled, "Never mind not letting them out of his sight."

Aurora didn't know Hephaestus that well, but she knew he was loyal. She wouldn't be able to draw him away too easily. "What if you don't give it to the humans?"

"What?" Hephaestus was confused and, from the expression on his face, Hades seemed confused, too.

"What if you just build it? Don't give it to the humans. Don't let them help. Build it yourself."

Hades smiled broadly, "Good. Good move."

Hephaestus chuckled, "But why?"

Aurora leaned forward, "Because I need it."

"Where are you going?"

She shook her head, "Nowhere. But … it would be good to have FTL ships on hand." Aurora was completely making things up as she went now.

"On hand for what?" Hephaestus' playful attitude seemed to be fading.

"Hit him with a little truth," Hades said.

"The Cylons have children now. There are more than thirty thousand organic Cylons. And don't forget the hundreds of thousands of mechanical Cylons all over Kobol." She paused and studied his face. "Do I need to draw a picture?"

Hephaestus' expression betrayed nothing, "I have supervised the creation of all robotic Cylons. You," he pointed a finger, "have been overseeing Megara."

"Yes," Aurora said, "but how long before someone does what Thersites and Helena did five hundred years ago and take it upon themselves to …"

"Pretend that I agree for a moment," he interrupted. "Why should I undertake this … on my own?"

Aurora inhaled deeply. "You're an engineer. Always have been."

"Yes?"

"When's the last time you actually did some engineering? When's the last time you really created a new technological marvel?"

Hephaestus was still and quiet. After a moment, his gaze drifted to a painting on the wall and he grinned ever so slightly, "It has been a while."

Aurora sensed the opening and leaned forward again, "You get to build it by yourself. Create those alloys, that spin-sync thing, the computers for it all. It's all you. And," she leaned back in the couch, "if things go wrong, we've got a way out."

Hephaestus smiled a little wider, but then it faded. "It'll take a lot of work. Not just from me. The metals I need aren't easy to find."

Aurora smiled now, "Don't worry about that. Whatever you need – money, equipment, assistants – I'll handle that."

"And the humans don't get it?"

Hades grabbed Aurora's arm and shook it vigorously, "You've done it! Brilliant!"

Without lying, Aurora said, "No. The humans won't touch it."

Hephaestus stood and walked around the brick chimney to the large windows at the back of the room. "It'll take time. A few decades, at least." Aurora stood and walked up beside him. Hephaestus looked down at her. She was smiling and she flicked up a single eyebrow. He sighed. "I'll do it."