by Lisa Beeson
When the sharp pain finally calmed to a dull ache, Sennah’s muscles relaxed and she managed a breathless, mumbled apology as he laid her back down on his lap. The look on his face told her that all was well.
Checking her eyes, Vrahnon looked satisfied in the difference, and prepared the applicator once more.
The thought of enduring that pain again made her want to runaway screaming. Trying to control her panicked breathing, she forced herself to calm and not shame herself. If her uncle could endure the ravaging of a kodja for her, she could endure this without crying out or screaming.
Holding her left eye open, he poised the applicator above it, clamping her arms against her sides between his torso and elbow. Knowing what was to come, sweat clung to her brow as her heart raced and hands clenched helplessly at her side.
“Be brave, my neh’la,” he whispered.
His use of the word for “beloved niece” caught Sennah completely off guard, causing her to forget about the oncoming pain a second before her left eye was doused with liquid fire.
Her heels dug and kicked at the ground. However, this time she kept herself from lashing out by clutching onto her pant legs as Vrahnon brought her up and held her close. Breathing ragged breaths into his shoulder.
When the pain finally subsided, her rigid muscles relaxed and she melted against him. Tears leaked from her eyes as silent sobs shook her little body. She had tried, but she could not keep the tears at bay. She was not strong enough.
She sensed no shame coming from Vrahnon – only pride and relief that the ordeal was over. Bringing her arms up she wrapped them around his neck, as he continued to rock her.
At some point, she must have fallen asleep, because she found herself opening her door to the Inbetween.
The door disappeared as soon as she walked through into the wintery twilight of an alpine forest. She immediately recognized it as the forest beneath the Thalcian Mountains her Oan had created. The crisp scent of sap, wood smoke, and the sweet spice of ice berries brought her back to much happier times.
This was Oan’s favorite place to come in the Inbetween. He had created it as a present for Malu long before Sennah had been born. It was not exactly as it was in reality, but as he wished it to be.
It was a world awash in shades of blue and indigo. A peaceful hush settled around her along with the blanket of sparkling fallen snow, creating its own kind of ethereal music. Prismatic crystals twinkling with their own inner fire, floated like snowflakes between the branches of giant trees. Though it was only pleasantly cool, her breath puffed out in visible clouds, as she progressed through the snow, leaving little footprints in her wake.
As soon as she felt his presence, she turned towards it.
“Sennah!” she heard Oan shout amidst the crunch of his rapid footfalls running towards her through the trees.
“Oan!”
He scooped her up into his warm embrace, and she clung to him, desperate for the security and comfort her father’s presence gave her – his unconditional love and devotion was always an instant salve for her aching heart.
She was convinced that her dream back at the temple had to have been wrong. How could they ever be strangers to each other?
They held on to each other as the twinkling crystals floated around them, basking in the peaceful moment stolen from reality.
It felt too soon when Oan broke the dreamlike bubble around them and asked where she and Vrahnon were now.
“Hiding in a cave just outside of the Outskirts Border Bazaar,” she answered into his shoulder. She told him about all that had happened since the last time they met in the Inbetween, starting from when they had left the Xjaamin’s hidden residence.
He listened to her account intently as he walked towards the table-sized stump of a fallen tree, sitting down with her facing him on his lap. She could feel his anxiousness and heartache for her as she spoke, but he did not interrupt her.
When she finished, he gently placed his hands on either side of her face. “I am so glad that you are safe.” He kissed her forehead, then looked back into her eyes. “I don’t have much time. I called you here, because I need you to relay a message to Vrahnon. It is very important. He has barely slept for so long that I could not access his dreams as I usually would.”
She tilted her head in assent, though she was surprised that Vrahnon had not mentioned that he and Oan communicated through dreams.
“The name of the Ayan pilot is Losha Kael. He will be at dock 33 before the last export shipment run,” Oan said slowly, making sure she remembered every word. “He will hide you amidst the cargo on his ship and take you to Esharet. Once there, he will lead you to the rendezvous point.”
“I will tell Vrahnon,” she assured him, even though anxiety prickled the skin on her scalp.
Sensing her unease, he said, “Stay strong and true, my precious girl, we will be together soon.” He hugged her close, infusing her with his love.
After one last squeeze and a kiss on her forehead, he lifted her off his lap with a quick farewell and ushered her through another red door that had just appeared in the trunk of a nearby tree.
Sennah awoke on the cave floor. A violet and orange aurora of morning light was just brightening the horizon. Vrahnon stood under the outcropping, staring off into the distance.
Sennah ran over to her uncle, who was watching as a desert craft came their way. She told him everything her Oan wanted her to relay.
He tilted his head in assent, storing the information away as his eyes followed the craft as it sped past the rock formations then circled back. On closer inspection, she could make out that the craft was a small, sleek aeridost; the Musqars preferred mode of transport.
“Go back into the cave,” Vrahnon instructed. “Do not move or make a sound until I say otherwise.”
Sennah did as she was told, squeezing herself into a small crevice in the back wall. With a limited view, she watched as Vrahnon hid behind the lip of the cave mouth, ready to attack. The engines of the craft idled a short distance away. After a tense moment, Vrahnon deactivated the field before leaving the shelter of the cave.
Anxious, Sennah spread out her field of awareness, then relaxed when she felt Musqar Fenn’s presence. There was another unfamiliar presence, but she could not identify what it was. After what felt like an eternity, but was most likely only a few moments, she heard Vrahnon and Musqar Fenn’s voices talking in low whispers. They walked into the cave and she was able to catch the tail end of the conversation.
“…is spirited and may need to be broken,” Musqar Fenn said.
Vrahnon tilted his head. “You did well. You have my gratitude.”
Musqar Fenn handed Vrahnon a bundle and he looked towards the back of the cave where she hid.
“Come out, child,” Vrahnon said.
Sennah scooted out from the crevice. As she came near, she saw Vrahnon take out a collar and four smaller braces from the bundle. Her step faltered when she recognized what he was holding.
When Malu had first explained that they were going to disguise her as a Gaian slave, Sennah had researched all the data available to her about them. There had not been much since the practice was illegal – not to own or sell a Gaian, just to obtain them from their home world. However, she was able to learn that what Vrahnon held was a servient-torque and the corresponding ankle and wrist braces. With those, Vrahnon would be able to dictate the distance she was allowed to travel from him, control whether or not she could speak, and punish her within the range of small shocks to paralyzing ones. Once those were on, she would be completely at his mercy. He was already wearing the domen’s cuff on his wrist.
It was one thing to pretend to be a slave, but the reality of wearing the torque and braces made her entire being balk. She could not force her feet to continue moving forward.
“All is well child,” Vrahnon said, going down on his knees. “It is only a disguise. I will only use it to keep you near me, so I can keep you safe. Do you understand?”
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Sennah tilted her head in assent, but she still could not make herself move forward. The torque repulsed her. How could she let herself be collared as though she were a pet – as though she was a piece of property?
Vrahnon came to her instead. Slowly, as though he were afraid she would bolt like a frightened animal. “It is only part of the disguise,” he assured her.
The torque and the braces were beautifully ornate with a unique motif that matched the domen’s cuff, showing all that she belonged to Vrahnon.
Standing there frozen, she allowed him to place the braces on her wrists and ankles. However, she could not help the reflexive wince, when they tightened and sized themselves to fit– snug, but not painful. If Vrahnon chose to, he could immobilize her by making the braces attract to each other to form leg and arm restraints. She pushed that thought to the back of her mind. She trusted her uncle.
When it came time for the torque, Vrahnon looked her in the eyes. “You have nothing to fear from me, neh’la,” he whispered, so Musqar Fenn would not overhear the term of endearment.
Reading his sincerity, Sennah closed her eyes and squared her shoulders, resigned yet still strong. She felt him position it over her larynx, then the click of the torque fastening at the back of her neck. When it started tightening, a rush of panic convinced her that it would impede her breathing. She clawed at it, trying to loosen it, but Vrahnon quickly grabbed hold of her hands.
“Don’t touch it!” he said. “If you try to tamper with it once it has connected it will hurt you. And with one as small as you…” He left that it could be fatal unsaid.
His words did nothing to alleviate her fears, but she understood the crucial importance of them.
“Look at me,” he said, still holding her hands in his.
She met his gaze, fighting the urge to grab at the torque.
“Calm your breathing,” he said in a soothing whisper. “Trust that it will not harm you. Trust in me.”
She did trust her uncle. He had done nothing except what was necessary to protect her.
Staring into Vrahnon’s eyes, she saw that he did not want to do this to her. She saw his love for her.
It was his love and reluctance to subjugate her, which allowed her breathing to calm, and her muscles relax. She could breathe fine. Nothing was constricting her. She could almost pretend that it was a harmless piece of jewelry.
“Good,” Vrahnon said, seeing her calm. “I will activate it now, and you will see that nothing will change.”
He paired his cuff with her torque and braces, generating a pulsing field of a static. The field settled to a slight thrum, not enough to agitate, but enough to make the wearer continually aware of its presence – and its threat.
She trusted her uncle. She trusted the bond they had built between them.
As Vrahnon went to prepare his pack, Musqar Fenn came over and knelt down beside her. “I wish you well, child,” he said while placing a hand on her head. Leaning in, he whispered. “If you shall ever need me again, you may call me by my true name, Torr.”
Sennah started in surprise. A Daizan’s true name was sacred, given by the mother at birth. It was the ultimate show of respect and trust to give someone else your true name.
“May the sun always guide you, and the shadows fall ever behind,” he said, drawing away.
Sennah said the traditional Musqar farewell back to him, thankful for everything he had done for them, and relieved that he did not expect her to reveal her true name to him in return. Even if she did trust him, it would not be safe for either of them if he knew it.
Vrahnon gave him the protective field activator, then bowed his head toward Musqar Fenn in a silent thanks.
Musqar Fenn took the activator then bowed his head towards Vrahnon, before retreating to the back of the cave. Where, Sennah assumed, he would rest before heading back to his family.
“Come,” Vrahnon said to her as he left the shelter of the cave towards the aeridost. Sennah followed, head bowed.
The sun had still not broken the horizon, so neither of them had donned their desert gear.
Before reaching the craft, Vrahnon stopped to kneel down in front of her, his eyes boring into hers. “You must promise not use your unique abilities from this moment on. The Gaian disguise must be authentic. Our lives depend on it. Do you understand?”
Sennah tilted her head. “I understand, domen. I promise.”
Satisfied, he stood back up and continued walking. “Musqar Fenn purchased a Gaian boy to pose as your brother,” Vrahnon said as they walked towards the old, yet serviceable, aeridost. “He was resold at a discount because he gave his previous domen some trouble. That is why he is bound. He understands a few words of Common, but insists on speaking in his gibberish. The boy is competent for a Gaian, but do not expect much of him. He serves only to facilitate our disguise and to help show you how to act.”
Sennah was intrigued yet also appalled that her uncle had actually purchased a real Gaian slave. Musqar Fenn’s words describing someone who was spirited and in need of breaking came back to her. Was the Gaian dangerous?
Vrahnon opened the door to the craft. As she entered the small cabin, she saw the adolescent Gaian seated in the back, his eyes focused on the ground at his feet. The first Gaian she had ever seen in real life. His xjaasa was not nearly as bright as the other races she had seen. His coloring was similar to what hers was now, but his face was taught and grim.
“Darius,” Vrahnon said.
The boy immediately lifted his gaze to Vrahnon.
Her uncle did not have a high opinion of the boy, but Darius had intelligent, assessing eyes. He was scared of Vrahnon, but she could read that he was clever and adaptable – a survivor.
“Sen,” Vrahnon said, pointing at her by way of introduction for the two of them.
His use of Rysura’s familiar name for her sent a stealthy dagger of grief through her heart.
Seeing her as a fellow Gaian, Darius took in how small and apparently young she was. She read his sadness and pity for her, and though he hid it as best he could, she saw his indignation and bitter resentment towards Vrahnon.
Vrahnon ushered her to the seat across from Darius, then left the cabin for the piloting controls of the craft. Through the open doorway, she saw him getting his bearings of the equipment, entering the coordinates to the Malethian city of Nathsban, and then engage the engine.
Once they were on the way, Sennah turned back to the boy sitting across from her, finally noticing the braces on his wrists and ankles secured together. She could see that the boy was no danger to her, and her heart hurt for the Gaian. Being a slave may only be a disguise for her, but it was a reality for him.
She vowed that if she ever made it to Gaia to save her olen she would take Darius with her so he could be free.
Leaning forward, Darius took her hands between his. He spoke to her in a rushed whisper in a language she did not understand, throwing glances of pure loathing in Vrahnon’s direction. Though she did not understand the words he was saying, she understood his intent. He was trying to console and assure her. He wanted her to rely on him to keep her safe from Vrahnon. To him, Vrahnon was an evil alien oppressor.
She tried to explain to him in Common that all was well, that they were not really slaves, and it was all a disguise until they got to Esharet.
Darius gave her a blank look. He did not understand. Vrahnon had said he only understood a few words. She had promised not to use her abilities, so she had to repress the urge to communicate with him as she did with Ruhk. Instead, she pointed to Vrahnon in the pilot bay, saying the Common word for “good”, hoping he would understand.
Darius moved his head in an emphatic left and right motion. “No, Sen,” he said in Common. He held up his bound wrists then pointed to the servient-torque around his neck. “Domen no good.”
Chapter 16
Val followed Zachary out of her room and two suited men, who had been waiting on either side of the door, flanked them.
The men were holding what looked like telescopic cattle prods, and she noticed the outlines of holstered guns under their jackets.
Val tensed, ready to for flight. I’m not restrained to a chair this time, you bastards. Let’s see you just try to touch me.
“Relax. They’re with me,” Zachary said over his shoulder, unconcerned. “Behave yourself and no harm will come to you.”
Val bristled at being treated like an unruly toddler by someone her own age, but she kept herself under control. There was no benefit to instigating trouble at the moment. Just keep your eyes open and look for opportunities… Be ready.
She could not tell much about the suited man on her blindside, except that he was young, mid-twenties. The man on the right was older, his grey eyes and stony demeanor held a hint of repressed resentment. Maybe he did not appreciate being assigned as a subordinate to a teenage, glorified cigarette lighter. He also had a hitch in his step that he was trying to hide. A weak knee, she guessed. …could be useful.
Counting the halls spotted by pools of light from the skylights in the ceiling, and memorizing turns as they walked, the further they went the antsier Val became. Except for the sound of rapid footfalls and squeaky wheeling carts heading down unseen corridors, the halls were unsettlingly empty. Something was wrong; the threat lingered like a bitter tang in the air.
She had heard and felt rumblings in the night, like localized earthquakes, and Diana’s words echoed in her mind …something has them scared and scrambling.
Every cell in Val’s body was screaming at her to run, but the solid feel of Conejito against her back gave her courage.
Never show weakness.
Turning a corner, Zachary led them towards a set of doors at the end of the corridor where another pair of suited men stood guard. The men opened the doors and silently stepped aside as they passed through into what looked like a large conference room. The back wall was one big black screen. And at the end of the wooden conference table taking up the center of the room, sat a man that stopped her feet cold.