“Great, it’s already started,” Reddix muttered under his breath. “Come on—I have to show my support for Saber.”
“All right,” Nina whispered back. She wished she could ask Reddix what was bothering him. Was it just the stress of the political rally and the uncertainty about his future role in the Tarsian government? Or was it something else? He hadn’t seemed the same since they had left the witch’s hut. Nina had tried to ask him why, but every time she said anything at all he snapped back a curt reply or else simply didn’t answer.
If they hadn’t been in a hurry to get to the gathering, Nina would have demanded answers or at the very least, let him know she didn’t appreciate the way he was acting. But now wasn’t the time. She promised herself if he was still acting so grumpy after the meeting she would say something. For now, though, she would bite her tongue.
Reddix went around to the side of the large stage which was situated at the far end of the huge round room and started to ascend the back steps. Nina hurried to join him.
“Wait—I’ll come with you,” she whispered.
Reddix shook his head. “No. Stay here—stand by the exit in case you need to get away quickly. This could turn ugly.”
Nina frowned. “But the crowd…their emotions…”
“I can’t feel them anymore—I’m cured? Remember?” His deep voice was bitter. Nina wondered why. Shouldn’t he be glad to be cured of his awful affliction?
“So…you can’t feel anything at all?” she asked, still speaking in a whisper.
Reddix shrugged. “Only a little. It’s like a…barrier, a wall, has been erected between me and them. I’ll be fine.”
“Well…all right.” Nina stepped back reluctantly and let him ascend to the stage by himself. When he got there, he took an empty seat beside an older man who looked much like him—probably his father, Redan. Seated beside him were a richly dressed man and his wife that Nina assumed were Saber’s parents. Saber himself was standing at the front of the stage. Lissa stood a little behind him and to his left, her face pale but proud, and her chin lifted in defiance.
“I have a question,” someone from the crowd called at Saber. “Is it true you recently got bonded to your amalla—your little sister?”
“I did,” Saber said stoically. He nodded at Lissa who came forward to stand by his side. “But Lissa is no blood relation to me.”
“Yes, but you’re of the same clan,” someone else in the audience called out.
“Yes, we are.” Saber nodded. “I make no attempt to deny it. I love Lissa, and she loves me. We are going against the old ways because we feel they are outdated and wrong. A male and a female who love each other should be able to be together, even if their families are of the same clan. This is my belief.”
“Well, it’s not our belief,” one of the older clansmen said.
“It’s sick!” declared another one. “How dare you stand before us and announce you’ll lead us while you’re involved in an incestuous bonding?”
“It’s not incest no matter what we have been taught,” Lissa said, holding Reddix’s hand firmly. “There is no blood connection between us. I realize that we of the Touch Kindred began our strict traditions about marrying outside the clan in order to control our males’ violent tendencies and out-of-control Touch Senses. But those days are over. Our people have come such a long way—our males are strong and brave and true—as good as any of the other Kindred races. Can’t we all agree it’s time to put old traditions to rest and start fresh?”
“Your words are as fair as your face,” an older woman in the crowd called out. “But we can see plain as plain the tears in poor Saber’s mother’s eyes. She weeps for the way you’ve corrupted her son.”
Saber’s mother sniffed audibly and dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief, as though to underscore the woman’s point. Nina frowned—well, Lissa had said her mother-in-law didn’t care for her much. Still, she didn’t have to be so obvious about it.
“How can you stand to be with her? Have you no decency?” the older woman continued.
“Again I will say that I love Lissa—not as a sister, but as my bride,” Saber said stoically. “I know it may be hard to believe, but I have no familial feelings toward her at all. The kinship compounds which we are all injected with at birth don’t seem to have had any effect on Lissa or myself, leaving us free to fall in love.”
“You speak of falling in love with your kinswoman as thought it was right or good,” one of the older clan chiefs said. “But we of the Touch Kindred cannot condone it. We all weep for the loss of a fine young male who would have made an excellent OverChief.”
Saber bowed his head. “If you all feel that way, then I will of course, step down. But I would like to have more than one or two opinions before I relinquish my sacred right and duty to another.”
Reddix stood up. “Saber should be free to love as he chooses. We all should.” He cast a quick glance at Nina and then looked away. “He will still make an excellent OverChief and I for one will be proud to serve him.”
“You only say that because you fear to take the post yourself,” someone shouted out.
“I fear nothing,” Reddix growled. “I say what I say because Saber is my friend and my commander, and I believe as he and Lissa believe—the old ways are over. It is time for a new order.”
“Are all the younger generation corrupted?” one of the older chiefs demanded.
“All of those that would lead us, it seems,” retorted another.
There was a babble of voices.
“Heresy.”
“Disgusting.”
“Not right.”
“Forbidden.”
Nina felt her heart sink. Just as Reddix had predicted, the crowd was getting ugly and restless. Still, she was determined not to leave without him.
“How can you not see that this is wrong?” one of the older chief’s demanded, rising to address Saber.
“How can you not see that the old ways are outdated?”
Nina stared in surprise. The speaker was one of the younger clan chiefs which she had thought looked about Saber’s age.
“What?” The older chief looked surprised. “What did you say, Yarren?”
“You heard me.” The young chief rose. “I, Yarren, chief of the Moon Clan, wish to publicly declare my loyalty for Saber. When he serves as OverChief, I will be honored to serve under him.”
“What are you saying?” demanded another of the chiefs.
Saber’s father rose, the rich goldish-blue chain around his neck clinking importantly. “I think a better question, is why is he saying it?” he said. “Yarren, why do you speak so in support of my son?”
“A fair question—one I’m finally willing to answer.” The young chief, Yarren bowed his head respectfully to the OverChief and then looked up. “Only recently have I ascended as the chief of the Moon Clan, and many wondered why I chose to fill the position alone rather than take a bride.” He took a deep breath. “It is because I, too, am in love with my amalla.”
“What?” an older man who sat nearby him demanded. “How dare you say this, Yarren? I would never have stepped down and allowed you to take over as Chief if I had known.”
“I know, father,” the young chief said calmly. “But I love her, and I cannot be silent about it any longer.” He looked around the room. “Tamara—come to me.”
A slender girl with big brown eyes and long chestnut hair rose from the crowd at the back of the auditorium and made her way forward. Nina noticed that some people spat at her and made what she assumed were rude hand gestures as she passed. But others—mostly the younger people—looked at her with understanding and admiration in their eyes.
When the girl reached Yarren’s side, he took her hand and kissed her—gently but firmly—on the mouth. There was a long moment of silence, as though everyone in the auditorium was holding their breath. Then a young Kindred warrior in the crowd stood up and shouted,
“I love my amalla too!”
>
“I, as well,” shouted another.
Suddenly, the whole huge room erupted with shouts and declarations of love. The older chieftains looked around, plainly bewildered. Nina almost felt sorry for them, they looked so confused and upset.
Finally, Saber was able to restore order by shouting for silence.
“Yarren,” he said, addressing the young chief formally. “I thank you, my brother, for standing by me and for coming forward with your love. I know it isn’t an easy thing to admit. For any of you,” he added, addressing the other young couples in the crowd who were now standing side-by-side.
“Saber and I thought we stood alone in this,” Lissa said, smiling at Tamara and the other girls who were standing in the crowd. “Never did we dream our love was echoed by others.”
“But…I don’t understand.” Saber’s father was on his feet, staring around the room in bewilderment. “How could this be? What has happened to our young people?”
“As to that, OverChief, we do have a theory,” Yarren said, bowing his head respectfully to the older man. “I have long known that some of my Kindred brothers—all of us around the same age—dared to love outside the bounds of convention. My Tamara is a genetic analyst,” he said, smiling proudly at his female. “After doing some research, she has concluded that kinship compound we were all injected with as babies was corrupted in some way.”
“Yarren is right,” Tamara said calmly. “In fact, if my findings are correct, the compound we were given would make us more likely to fall in love with a member of our own clan rather than less. But I can promise you that no one had fallen in love with their brother or sister by blood.”
“It’s just that many of us have fallen in love with members of our own clan,” Yarren said.
The room erupted into a babble of voices again, but this time it was clear the younger people were making themselves heard. More and more of them came forward, announcing that they loved someone of the same clan until the older clan chiefs looked absolutely bewildered.
At last Saber’s father came forward. Calling for silence, he turned to his son and spoke.
“It is settled then—Saber will succeed me as OverChief.”
A few of the older chiefs started to protest but Saber’s father shook his head.
“No, do not gainsay me, my Brothers,” he said heavily. “What I have seen here tonight weighs heavily upon my heart but it is clear that our ways will be altered with or without our consent. Tradition and custom cannot stop the rising tide of change.”
A great shout went up from the younger people in the crowd and Saber took over from his father.
“I’m pleased and honored to serve you,” he said gravely. “And I swear by the Goddess to do my utmost to unite our people as one—clan to clan and generation to generation.”
Another cheer went up and some of the younger men who had professed love for their amallas surged forward to lift Saber on their shoulders. Clearly his position as the future OverChief was no longer in question. He would lead his people and lead them well, Nina had no doubt.
And, as she watched the tide of the meeting turn, she began to feel something growing inside her—an emotion she’d been suppressing fiercely for a long time. Hope, she thought, putting a hand to her heart. There’s hope now. If the younger generation supports Saber and puts him in power, Reddix will be free of his obligation. He won’t have to stay here and marry that awful Tilla. He can come with me, or I can stay with him. We can be together!
Excitement bubbled up inside her, and she looked for Reddix, hoping to see the same joy she felt on his face. But she couldn’t find him. Where had he gone?
She felt a twinge of unease, but just then Lissa came down to join her. The meeting had broken down into groups of people talking and gesturing, but it was clear that the younger generation was prevailing. Saber was smiling and laughing with some of the younger chiefs and the older ones were beginning, hesitantly, to speak to him as well.
“This is good, right?” Nina asked Lissa when she squeezed her hand.
“Very good.” The Kindred girl’s eyes were bright with excitement. “Amazing! Saber and I had no idea. And to think we almost didn’t come back.”
“I’m so glad you did,” Nina smiled at her. “This means Reddix is free—right? I mean, he doesn’t have to be the OverChief?”
“It doesn’t look like it.” Lissa beamed. “Come on, let’s go talk to him—it must be a huge weight off his shoulders!”
“Where is he? I don’t see him anywhere,” Nina nearly had to shout, to be heard above the crowd.
“Oh, he’s waiting for us by the shuttle. We have to go back to the Mother Ship tonight.” Lissa pulled her through the crowd and out of the huge, spherical auditorium as she spoke. “Whew,” she said, taking a deep breath when they got outside into the cool twilight. “That’s better—it’s so hot and crowded in there.”
“It really was,” Nina agreed. “Um, did you say you were going back to the Mother Ship tonight?”
“Yes, now that things are looking more settled here, I have to get right back for my friend Kat’s joining ceremony which I’m supposed to be planning and organizing. I assume you and Reddix will be coming back as well?”
“I think so,” Nina said, smiling. “We, uh, agreed last night that if things somehow worked out we would stay together.”
Lissa nodded. “I had a feeling about the two of you. I wasn’t sure it was a good idea at first, but, well, I’ve seen the way he looks at you. I think you’re good for him, Nina.”
“Thank you.” Nina felt her cheeks get warm at the compliment. “I hope so. I know he’s had a hard life but maybe—oh, there he is now.”
They had been walking through the small wooded area behind the auditorium. Now the trees had opened up to form a small landing area. In it, a shuttle was parked, obviously primed and ready for takeoff. Standing in front of it, arms crossed over his broad chest, was Reddix.
“Reddix!” Nina ran to him and put her arms around his neck, but he made no move to return her embrace.
“Shuttle’s ready. You two should get going.”
“We…two?” Nina looked at him uncertainly. “What are you saying? Aren’t you coming with us? Who’s going to fly the ship?”
Reddix shook his head. “There’s a pilot already at the controls. I’m staying here.”
“To help Saber get everything in order?” Nina asked. “Do you want me to stay too? Or come back later?”
He frowned. “No, you’re going back to Earth, and I’m staying here on Tarsia. Permanently.”
“I…I don’t understand.” Nina released her hold on him and stepped back a pace. “What are you saying, Reddix? I thought we agreed that if things worked out for Saber to be the OverChief you and I would…would stay together. That we’d build a life together.”
“That was before.” He looked down at the ground, scowling.
“Before what?” Nina was beginning to feel sick at her stomach. “Before you remember you were engaged to Tilla?”
“Tilla has nothing to do with this,” he growled, glancing at her briefly. “I told you I don’t want anything to do with her.”
“But you don’t want anything to do with me either? Is that it?” Nina shook her head, feeling like she was in the middle of a bad dream. “Reddix, look at me! What is this all about?”
“It’s about you leaving, and me staying here. Is that so hard to understand, sweetheart?” he snapped sarcastically.
“But…I…” Nina shook her head. “I don’t get it. I thought…thought we cared about each other. I thought we wanted a life together.”
He laughed harshly. “Looks like you thought wrong.”
Nina stared at him. A strange, high buzzing had started in her head. A feeling of unreality so strong she kept expecting to wake up at any minute consumed her. This couldn’t be happening, could it? He had never actually said the words, I love you—neither of them had. But it was understood, wasn’t it? He loved her, di
dn’t he? She could tell it by the way he had begged her forgiveness for Tilla, the way he had come hunting for her in the swamp?
The swamp, she thought suddenly. The swamp witch has something to do with this!
“What did she do to you?” she asked, taking a step toward him. “The witch—what did she do? Did that potion she give you make you feel different…strange? You haven’t been the same since you took it.” She took his hand in both of hers. “Please, Reddix, tell me.”
“The only thing different about me is that my RTS is cured now. So I don’t need an emotional damper hanging around all the time touching me.” He yanked his hand out of hers and took a step back.
“So that’s it? That’s really it?” Realization began to dawn on her. “Of course, that’s it,” she murmured, answering her own question. “You don’t need me anymore. You’re free of your RTS, and now you want to get rid of me too.”
“Now you begin to understand,” he growled.
“I understand, all right.” She crossed her arms tightly over her chest and took another step back from him. “I understand that you’ve been using me, right from the start. All you ever wanted was a cure for your RTS—that was why you kidnapped me in the first place, right? And then you probably set things up with the witch so that she would come and get me and take me back to her hut.”
“Now wait a minute,” he protested. “I never—”
“She told me,” Nina went on, overriding him. “She told me that having a willing victim for the sacrifice would make her potion more effective. Is that why you made me care about you, Reddix? Is that why you made…” She choked but forced herself to go on. “Made me love you? So I’d be willing?”
“Nina…” The hardness in his silver eyes had melted, and the look on his handsome, scarred face was desperately unhappy, but Nina was too upset to see it.
“No.” She turned away from him and headed toward the waiting shuttle. “I don’t want to hear anymore. I just want to go. I want to get out of here and never see you again.”
Shadowed Page 30