In the Shadow of Mountains: The Lost Girls

by David George Richards

Chapter Ten

  The Gift

  When Rolf and Soo-Kai received their next visitors, another year had passed. This time Soo-Kai knew they were close-by well before they reached the clearing where their house stood. She picked up their scent easily. But the scent was familiar, like a well-remembered taste in the air. It pleased her and scared her at the same time. She knew some of those that came, and one she knew very well.

  The knowledge that she still lived, and that she came with them pleased her. But what filled Soo-Kai with sudden fear was the knowledge that Rolf was not with her. He was out of the house, off in the forest somewhere. They would not know that she and Rolf were bonded, and if they found him first, they could kill him.

  Without hesitation, Soo-Kai bounded out of the house and ran among the trees. Her feet were bare, and she was dressed in a faded blue waistcoat over an embroidered white blouse. Instead of leggings she wore a skirt of leather, faded blue like her waistcoat. It was her favourite outfit, made for her by Rolf after Gustavo and Mai-Zen’s visit.

  Soo-Kai stopped by a tree, stood on tiptoes, and drew in great breaths through her nose, trying to pick up Rolf’s scent in the air. Yes, there he was, somewhere off to the north. But to her horror, that familiar scent was also strong in this direction. Soo-Kai waited no longer. She ran, she ran as fast as she could.

  Rolf sat with his back to a tree. He held a long thin branch in his hand, which he idly beat and swept at the fallen leaves. He was lost in deep thoughts as usual, and didn’t even hear them approach. The first thing he saw was a pair of boots. He looked up and saw that it was Soo-Kai. But there was something strange about her. She was dressed as she was when he had first seen her all those years before, in a faded black tunic and leggings. And her sword was in her hand. Then he saw the others with her. One was blonde, the other brunette, both dressed the same, and both with their swords drawn. The brunette also had a long bow over one shoulder and a quiver of arrows over the other.

  Rolf became alarmed. He dropped the branch and made as if to get up. Instantly, the sword swished towards him, and Rolf felt its point pressed against his throat. He was pushed back against the tree, his eyes wide in his terror. He stared up at the one who held the sword at his throat, the one that looked so like his wife, like Soo-Kai. Her expression made her intentions clear. She was going to kill him. She would have killed him, but a voice stopped her.

  “Na dat!” the voice called out urgently, desperately. “Na dat te Navak!”

  The Destroyers all looked round. Soo-Kai appeared, the real Soo-Kai. She stood before her double, talking in a language Rolf had never heard before. She looked worried, she was breathing hard, and she spoke fitfully, but quickly.

  “Te Navak da kar Rolf! Se da umgrak blet Rolf! Na dat!”

  Soo-Kai’s double spoke back. The words were harsh and abrupt. Soo-Kai replied, her voice raised this time, and a moment later the pair of them were talking so quickly and loudly that it was obvious that they were arguing.

  Rolf understood none of it. He sat against the tree, listening and fearful, the sword still at his throat.

  Suddenly, there was silence. Soo-Kai’s double looked down at Rolf almost with distaste. “Be thankful that your bond came in time, Navak,” she said. “A moment later and I would have killed you.”

  Her tone was harsh and unforgiving, but the sword was removed from Rolf’s throat, and Soo-Kai instantly fell on him, kissing him and hugging him.

  “It is alright, my husband,” she said. “You will be safe now.”

  Rolf climbed shakily to his feet, Soo-Kai helping him. He was suddenly indignant. “Who are these women?” he asked. “Why do they threaten me? And why is she your twin?”

  “She is not my twin, Rolf. She is Kai-Tai, my mother.”

  Why is this scent familiar?

  It is your seed, Soo-Kai, from your last birthing.

  Ah, I had forgotten. Then she is not dead.

  No, just forgotten.

  There was silence in her mind for a while as Kai-Tai remembered the youngest daughter from her last birthing. Soo-Kai had been tall, headstrong, and, yes, perfect. They had stood together as one and fought many battles. But there had also been conflict between them. As the years had passed and her siblings had perished, Soo-Kai had grown more distant and pensive. They had argued more, and it became clear that Soo-Kai had developed doubts about the Purpose and her way in things.

  She was not perfect!

  She was my seed; to doubt her integrity is to doubt my own

  Another thought broke into her mind with a fresh scent.

  There is the scent of a Navak close by! Find him! Kill him!

  The Destroyers greeted one another by bringing their faces together and rubbing cheeks. Soo-Kai did this with each of them in turn, dwelling longest with Kai-Tai. It was clear to Rolf that Soo-Kai was glad to see her mother, but also a little uneasy.

  The blonde Destroyer was called Hai-Fam; the other was Nan-Po. Soo-Kai remembered Nan-Po, but Hai-Fam was unfamiliar to her. This could have been because they had never met, or because she had forgotten her. Soo-Kai could not tell which.

  Only Kai-Tai spoke during the introductions. Rolf was amazed by how similar she and Soo-Kai were. Even Kai-Tai’s voice sounded so much like Soo-Kai’s. From their silence, Rolf quickly realised that the other two Destroyers only spoke their own harsh language. It was strange. Until that day, he had never heard the Destroyer language before, and he had never even suspected that Soo-Kai had known such a language. It was his own fault really. He just didn’t know what questions to ask.

  Rolf had begun to record Soo-Kai’s memories in a journal as he had promised. But although he had already written many pages, and she read almost every night since he taught her how to read, he realised that there was still so much more about her that he didn’t know. It made him feel guilty for the time he had wasted dwelling on the possibility of children, when he could have been learning so much more from Soo-Kai while she still had her memory. He promised himself that he would be more searching in his questioning of her in future, and that he wouldn’t just rely on what she thought to tell him.

  When the Destroyers replaced their swords in their backs, Rolf relaxed a little. They had gone back to the house. Rolf walked arm in arm with Soo-Kai while the three Destroyers followed behind.

  Rolf couldn’t help being nervous. From having one Destroyer in his house, he now had four. And one was the equivalent of his mother-in-law. But despite his nerves, he was the perfect host. He sat them down at his little table, made coffee, and offered them food. While he toiled, they all sat in silence. Hai-Fam looked around curiously while Kai-Tai and Nan-Po looked most uncomfortable. Even Soo-Kai seemed un-sure of the situation.

  The coffee left Kai-Tai and Nan-Po unimpressed, only Hai-Fam took a second cup. But where the coffee had failed, the food succeeded. They were all hungry, and they all ate. And as they ate, they began to relax. Hai-Fam kept looking at the clothes Soo-Kai wore, even tugging at her waistcoat and blouse. She seemed fascinated by the colour and texture of the embroidered material. Even Nan-Po seemed curious. Rolf took his cue. He was quick to realise that Soo-Kai would wish to talk with her mother. So he busied himself showing Hai-Fam and Nan-Po the work he did as a tailor, ushering them to the corner where he worked and kept the cloth he traded for in the nearby villages.

  Rolf was surprised by the difference in their looks and their temperaments. Where Hai-Fam was curious and bright, Nan-Po was stand-offish and dark. He could tell that Nan-Po disliked him. She had long black hair, brown eyes and an oval face. Her expression was always either angry or aloof. Like Kai-Tai, she was harsh and abrupt in her manner, and she quickly became bored, showing little interest in anything she saw.

  Hai-Fam was the complete opposite. Blonde, blue-eyed and child-like, she delighted in the feel and the colour of the cloth and the finished garments he showed her. It was as if it was all new and exciting to her. She even kept a brightly coloured piece of sil
k that Rolf had discarded, using it like a ribbon to tie up her long blonde hair, pulling it into a ponytail. She shook her head, feeling the ponytail wagging back and forth over her shoulders. Nan-Po didn’t look impressed.

  While Rolf entertained Hai-Fam and Nan-Po, Soo-Kai and Kai-Tai remained seated at the table. Soo-Kai was the first to break the silence between them.

  “Why have you come to the forest in Halafalon?” she asked her mother.

  “We came in search of you,” Kai-Tai replied.

  “I have been absent from my den for six years. Why did you not search for me before?”

  “I thought you had been slain.”

  Soo-Kai was surprised by the bluntness of Kai-Tai’s reply. It hurt her, and when she spoke her tone was equally harsh.

  “If you thought I was dead, then why do you search for me now?”

  Kai-Tai answered her question with another question. “Do you forget what year it is?”

  For a moment, Soo-Kai looked puzzled. Then her expression hardened. “Then you did not come in search of me, as you said, but in a quest to enter the castle.”

  “My answer was truthful. Our journey was towards the castle, but as we came near, we picked up your scent and came to investigate. I can tell from your voice that the knowledge that I did not concern myself with your loss gnaws at you. I tell you now that this change in you concerns me more than your death would have done. Do not forget who you are, Soo-Kai. We are Androktones, the Gest Hroya: Destroyers. Do not let your bond with this Navak soften your resolve.”

  Soo-Kai wasn’t the least bit affected by her mother’s reprimand. “You tell me off like a mother, but you were not concerned for my life,” she replied. “Why should I let your words influence me?”

  “Because you are my seed and because you are a clone of the Tun-Sho-Lok.”

  “I am bonded, and the bond takes precedence over the Purpose.”

  Kai-Tai nodded. “For now this is true, and none can interfere. But this will not last forever. When your bond is over, your mind will be free, and you will revert to the Purpose once more.”

  “I am old and Rolf is young,” Soo-Kai replied. “Who is to say that I will revert when his life is over?”

  “You are old, but I am older,” Kai-Tai countered. “A long time ago you and I stood together on the bridge of the Althon Gerail, you at one command console, and I at the other. The Navak felt our wrath. When the Nakora Tabek returns, I will stand again on the decks of the Althon Gerail, and the data link will be re-opened. I will escape from here, and the galaxy will again feel the wrath of the Gest Hroya, the clones of the Tun-Sho-Lok.”

  Soo-Kai was unimpressed. “Your words are full of strength, but the humans will not let you enter the castle.”

  “The humans have lost their resolve for war against us. They forget the importance of the castle, and its garrison is weak.”

  “But you are too few.”

  “There are other Androktones gathering in the forest, they will increase our numbers. We maybe few, but our resolve has not broken. Come with us, Soo-Kai. If you do not, you could be left behind.”

  Rolf had returned with Hai-Fam and Nan-Po. He heard only Kai-Tai’s last words, but they frightened him. He spoke without thinking.

  “No! Soo-Kai stays with me!”

  Kai-Tai didn’t even look at Rolf. She kept her eyes on Soo-Kai, and asked, “Does he command you?”

  “He is my bond, my husband,” Soo-Kai replied. “Even if he had not spoken, my answer would have been the same. If he commands me, it is because I wish him to.”

  Rolf had come to stand by Soo-Kai. He put his arm around her shoulders, and she put her arm around him.

  Kai-Tai stood up. “Then our time here is over.” She turned and called to the other Destroyers in their harsh and unfamiliar language. “Cha! Sun lak!” She walked out the door without another word. Hai-Fam and Nan-Po followed her.

  Soo-Kai stood up and watched them go. Rolf had been proud at what she said, but now he saw the tortured look on her face, and he became anxious.

  “You don’t really want to go with them, do you?”

  Soo-Kai went to the door and stared at the departing figures. “No, my husband,” she said. “But there is something I must yet discuss with my mother.” She turned her head to look at him and placed her hand on his chest. “Wait, please.” Then she ran out the door after them.

  Rolf stood in the doorway and watched. He wanted so much to run after her, but he did as she asked.

  Soo-Kai ran forward and called after Kai-Tai, her voice anxious.

  Kai-Tai heard her and stopped. She spoke to Hai-Fam and Nan-Po then turned back on her own.

  Soo-Kai ran up to her. “I am in compression,” she said simply.

  “You fear that you will forget me,” Kai-Tai said in a knowing way.

  “Yes. You, Rolf, and everything upon which I build my mind.” Soo-Kai said nothing about the journal she kept safe by their bed in the little house.

  “It is the same for all of us,” Kai-Tai replied. “Gradually, all that clutters our minds will be removed. Only the Purpose, and the tactical data required to achieve it will remain. I too am in compression. The process is already well advanced. Soon the history of what happened and what I experienced will fade. Even the memory of you, my only surviving seed, will be gone. In truth, it is the compression of my mind that has caused my failure to seek you out, not my disinterest. I had already forgotten you. Only your scent revived the memory.”

  “And you do not fear this as I do?”

  Kai-Tai shook her head. “No. It is a time I welcome. My mind will be clear once more, as it was when I first began. And like Hai-Fam, who is not yet mature, I will be able to pursue the Purpose with renewed vigour.”

  Soo-Kai turned and stared at Hai-Fam in sudden awe. “How old is she?” she asked quickly.

  “Four summers. She is the only one that survived from Fam-Chen’s last birthing.”

  “And Fam-Chen?”

  “Killed in a skirmish with Outsiders at the mountain pass in Falonbeck.”

  Soo-Kai continued to stare at Hai-Fam. “You must watch her well. Her chances of breeding may be greater than ours.”

  “No one of us is greater than the Purpose,” Kai-Tai said rather callously. “Not Hai-Fam, and not you. If the situation dictates, I will break the bond between you and this Navak.”

  Soo-Kai looked now at Kai-Tai. “When my bond with Rolf is at an end, I will seek my own death. I do not welcome the compression of my mind, and I will not revert to my old ways. I have already lived too long.”

  Kai-Tai’s answer was without remorse. “Compression of your mind will soon erase the memory of what you say and the will of your intent. When the time comes, you will revert. And no matter what you may decide now, you will out-live me.”

  Kai-Tai turned and walked back to Hai-Fam and Nan-Po, and the three of them walked away.

  Bonded! She has bonded! Why has she done this now? Why accept a bond with a Navak?

  Your anger is based on your own hatred of the bond!

  Yes! Yes! I despise the bonding process! I hate it! It led my mother astray! She was deceived! Betrayed!

  Bonding is part of the Purpose! To deny it is to deny the Purpose!

  The bond killed my mother!

  Your attachment to your birth mother reeks of mutation!

  The Purpose burned like fire in Tai-Ann! I know! I remember! To accuse me is to accuse her!

  Then accept the bond as she did!

  It killed her!

  She did what had to be done! Her bond fell at her own hands!

  As she did to his!

  This Navak is not a warrior! You know it! And your anger and interest in your seed’s activities are incorrect!

  She speaks against the Purpose! She denies it! These are not her words, but those of her bond!

  Liar! They are the words you remember from your last meeting with Soo-Kai! The only difference is that
now she is bonded! If she persists in this talk once her bond is at an end, then she must die! Until then, desist with these thoughts lest they lead you astray!

  Kai-Tai seethed in anger.

  This is the year of the ship! If the situation dictates, I can, and will break her bond!

  You say this because you wish to see her by your side in battle once more, not because it would benefit the Purpose!

  To increase our numbers at a time of conflict does benefit the Purpose!

  As does the bond! How else can our numbers be increased?

  It is no longer possible to breed with a Navak!

  Tell that to Fam-Chen! Desist!

 

  Rolf hurried from the house and came to stand by Soo-Kai. She instantly grabbed him and said, “What did you think of Hai-Fam?”

  Rolf was surprised. He had thought Soo-Kai was going to tell him something about Kai-Tai. He shrugged. “Oh, I don’t know,” he said, and looked up at the departing figures.

  At that moment, he saw Kai-Tai reach across to Hai-Fam and pull the cloth of silk from her hair. Hai-Fam tried to take it back, but Kai-Tai held it out of reach and then threw it away. Hai-Fam looked back at the discarded cloth as Kai-Tai and Nan-Po pulled her along, and soon they had disappeared among the trees.

  Rolf smiled. “She seemed alright, I suppose. She was a bit more curious than the other one. Why do you ask?”

  Soo-Kai turned to him, her face filled with emotion. She wrapped her arms around him and spoke excitedly. “She was a gift, Rolf! She was four! Do you realise what that means?”

  Rolf stared back at her in amazement. “Four? How can that be? She was as tall as...” His voice trailed off as he finally realised her meaning. He grabbed Soo-Kai’s shoulders. “Four! A mere infant! Then it can be done!”

  “Yes, my husband! And if one can do it, so can another! We must try again! And often!”