“Some people assume there is a greater power, sure. But someone who can tell the future? No, most people don’t believe in that.” Hannah shrugged.
“Yet, some people on Earth do see psychics and fortune tellers. Just not a lot of people.” Anna glared at Hannah.
“The Oracles are the holiest beings outside of the Vadana. It is one of our deepest held beliefs. Everyone consults their local oracle on a yearly basis.”
“Everyone? Even the scientists?” Hannah produced a skeptical, sidelong glance
“Yes, everyone.” Decana flushed, her eyes flashing. “Why would being a scientist have anything to do with it?”
“It doesn’t. Pay her no mind.” Anna held up her hand. She needed to change the subject before Hannah offended someone beyond repair. “How is Vadon?”
Decana glowered at Hannah a moment, then sorrow flooded her light-blue eyes. She sank down into her seat. “He is not well, but I’m sure he will mend. It will take some time.” Decana knotted her hands and her gaze drifted to the door
“Good. May I come to your room this afternoon and see him?”
“Oh. You are too kind, but he would be mortified to meet the Vadana the way he is now.” Decana shook her head with an apologetic look.
Anna frowned. She wanted to apologize to him in person. “I understand.”
Outside her door, someone shouted, and the sounds of racing footfalls came closer. One of the guards threw open her door, which hit the wall behind it with an earsplitting clatter. Varick drew his sword and raced to her side.
“Your Majesty, the ship has returned. It just landed outside the northern gate,” the guard announced.
“Yes.” Brendan shouted. He sprang out of his chair, thrusting his fists into the sky. He ran for the door.
“Brendan. You can’t go out to meet them. You go to the ship when we do.” Anna rocketed out of her chair
Brendan skidded to a halt on the ornate rug laid out in front of the door. “Well, let’s go then. What are you waiting for? A gold-plated invitation?” Brendan gestured to the door
She scowled at him. He rolled his eyes and sighed. Brendan lumbered over to the circle of chairs by the firepot. He folded himself into one and let out a low groan of frustration
“We’ll be leaving soon.” Hannah walked over and patted him on the shoulder
“Not soon enough.” He shifted in his seat.
“How long will we have, Your Majesty? I must tell my husband.” Decana paled, her lips pressed together into a thin line. Anna suspected that if her jaw was not so firmly clenched, it would tremble. Anna questioned Varick with her eyes
“They’ll need time to repair any damage that’s been done during the attack. I can’t see us leaving before dinner at the earliest.” He sheathed his sword.
“Will you excuse me, Your Majesty?” Decana rose, her hands clasped together. “I would like to spend some time with Vadon.”
“Yes, of course.” She gestured to the door.
Decana hurried out of the room.
“We can’t take him with us?” Anna caught Varick’s gaze.
“Moving him now would do more harm than good.” Regret flickered in the depths of his eyes. “I’ve already talked with the Chancellor. He’ll be well looked after here, under the doctor’s care. Excuse me. I’ll need to speak to the guards.”
Varick went to the doors. She followed him. He stepped outside and spoke with the guard who had seen the ship. He sent the guard to speak with Captain Fayn about how much damage had been done, and how long they would need to remain on the planet. The guard jogged down the hall and disappeared.
She strode to the balcony. The sun was brutal. She shaded her eyes, and just past the corner of the building, she could make out half of the ship, sitting on the sandy beach by the lake. Varick joined her. They stared in silence until the heat was too overwhelming to remain outside anymore.
In less than an hour, they were still sprawled across the dining room, discussing their journey when the guard strode in, followed by Councilman Meroca.
“Councilman?” Anna rose with a smile.
“Your Majesty.” He bowed. “I’m so relieved to see you again—all of you. I knew Varick would keep you all safe, but when we found your abandoned escape pod earlier, we feared the worst.”
Meroca knelt beside her and kissed her hand. He peered into her eyes and produced a warm smile. She breathed in the councilman’s familiar scent of sweat, soil, and damp leaves.
“We’re relieved to see you as well. If the ship hadn’t survived the attack, we would’ve been devastated.” She held his hand in both of hers
“Not to mention stranded.” Hannah hooked her leg over the arm of the chair she sat in
The councilman chuckled and placed his hands on Varick and Anna’s chairs to try to push himself into a standing position. He smiled at Varick, which dissolved into a disappointed stare. Varick gave a soft cough and pushed the chair away from the table.
“It’s good to see you, councilman. I was just counseling the Vadana on the next leg of our journey. We have some unexpected news for you.” Varick offered the councilman his chair, which Meroca took as he wiped copious amounts of sweat off his brow.
Varick hovered between Anna and Councilman Meroca as he launched into a recounting of coming to Rinat and how they met Decana. Varick finished by telling the councilman their new plan to shut down the experiment on the science station.
“This is what we need. She is what we need. Thank the oracles for sending us this gift.” He clasped his hands and raised them to the skies
“Decana is sacrificing a great deal to come with us. If we succeed, I want her returned to this planet.”
“There is no need, Your Majesty. If we succeed, then we will go to the Capital City. We shall recall all of our people and bring them home. Her husband will join us there to make a new life for himself and our people.” The councilman made a grand, sweeping gesture to encompass the city of Rinat. A serene smile spread across his face as he gazed out into the distance beyond the balcony.
“We are one step closer to that today. How soon can the ship be ready? Did she sustain much damage from the attack?” Varick paced by the table.
“Yes, we sustained a good deal of damage. It wasn’t too long after you left the ship that we deployed the sonic cannon and blasted them toward a moon. If they survived, they didn’t bother to pursue us again. We made haste to the nearest star port, and Captain Fayn drove the crew to the bone to get the repairs done as fast as possible. We set out for this planet this morning when your beacons came on. We found the abandoned escape pod first, but then we picked up the other two signals coming from here.”
Meroca patted the table. “We should be ready to leave whenever her Majesty has a desire to do so. The remaining damage can all be repaired enroute or at Marsra.”
They stared at Anna, who shifted on her feet. She cleared her throat. “Varick told Decana we would have until dinner time. That’s what we should give her. We’ll leave after that.” She surveyed their reaction to that decision. Brendan clapped, Hannah smiled and draped herself across her chair
“As you wish.” Councilman Meroca ducked his head. “Though I may return to the ship very soon. This planet is blazing hot.”
They laughed at the councilman’s words, as he mopped more sweat from his brow.
“Was anyone hurt in the fighting?” Anna asked
“Yes, there were many wounded and 12 killed.” A somber expression turned down the corners of his mouth. His eyes filled with sorrow.
Her hands flexed over the armrests, gripping the uneven carvings on the chair. Lives lost. Under her rule, on her ship. While she was busy fleeing for her life. She hung her head. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“They died defending their beloved leader. There is no greater honor for them.” Concern welled in his eyes.
Anna whirled away and peered out the windows. She wasn’t sure she deserved such devotion from any of these men
“Yes, you should go with the councilman.” She spoke over her shoulder.
“I’ll return very soon.” Varick performed a stiff bow, watching her with his piercing green eyes.
Varick helped Councilman Meroca to his feet. They strode toward the door. Anna angled herself just enough to watch them leave. Varick looked over his shoulder, sweeping his concerned gaze over her. He gave her an encouraging smile, but she turned away from it. The door opened and closed with a creak and a soft thud.
Once they were gone, Brendan left to go pack. Anna could feel Hannah’s eyes on her as she rose, moving to the windows to contemplate the city below.
“It’s not too late to go back.” Hannah maneuvered her chair until it wobbled on two legs beneath her.
“Of course not. We haven’t even left yet.”
“No, I mean to Earth. We can just tell them we can’t do this.”
Anna swerved around. She took a step toward the table
“No. We can’t do that at all. How could you even think of that now?” She paced in front of the balcony doors
“You’re having second thoughts aren’t you?”
“Yes, but not about that.”
“About what then? Varick?”
Anna stopped mid-step and shook her head. “No. He’s amazing. I don’t know…” She sighed and ran both hands over her face. “I just feel so uncomfortable sometimes the way they…ah…”
“Worship you?”
“Yes, exactly.” She waved Hanna’s words away. “They don’t even know me, but these men were prepared to fight off an attacking ship for me? They shield me from mobs of people, torture people to protect me, and race across the universe just to make me their queen? They don’t even know if I’ll be a good leader. They don’t even know if I’m worth it.”
“What if you are worth it?” Hannah set down the chair on all four legs
“What?”
“What if you are worth it? Your anxiety is centered on the fear that you’re not worth it. But what if you are?”
Anna paused in her steps. She shrugged. “I don’t know. I mean, I feel like I’m their leader sometimes, but most of the time I can’t wrap my head around it. I don’t even know what I’m doing.”
Hannah’s expression sobered. “So then why did you even bother getting on the ship in the first place?”
“You were pestering the hell out of me, and I gave in,” Anna retorted. Hannah speared her with a look of impatience, and she sighed in resignation. “Because I had just found out I didn’t belong on the only planet I had ever known, and my parents’ dying wish was for me to take our family to Dahrel. I wanted Brendan to have a chance to know his heritage. I wanted to know where I came from, okay? So, I said yes and got on Varick’s damn ship.”
Hannah smiled. “Your parents didn’t just want you to go home. They wanted you to be the Vadana—to lead their people, didn’t they? Brendan didn’t just want to visit a planet and travel through space, he wanted to be a councilman. Didn’t you want to be the Vadana just a little bit?”
Her eyes narrowed, and her lips pursed. She crossed her arms as she glared at Hannah
“Admit it to yourself,” Hannah demanded.
“Oh, fine—yes.” She stomped away from the table to the balcony door. She hated to admit that sometimes she enjoyed all the attention and power
“It’s just a little bit more overwhelming than you’d planned. Are you going to give up because you’re afraid you’re a little in over your head?”
“No.”
“Good…You just have to be worth all of the running and fetching and fighting these people do for you.” Hannah sprawled in her chair. “Which I believe you are. In fact, I know you are.”
“How do I do that, Hannah? How?” She spread out her arms as if she were drowning
Hannah got up from the table and marched over to her. She placed her hands on Anna’s shoulders. Her fingers dug into Anna’s knotted muscles.
“By being you. Your whole life, Anna, I’ve watched people quietly look up to you without you even noticing. So just pretend like you don’t notice all of their admiration, and you won’t doubt yourself so much. You’ll earn their admiration in the end. I know you will.”
Anna took a deep breath, and her shoulders relaxed. She smiled, letting out her breath in a slow hiss
“Thank you. I needed that.” She tugged Hannah into a hug
“Yeah, well, that’s why you let me tag along.” Hannah shrugged
They both laughed.
~ * ~
When Varick returned to the citadel, it was almost dinnertime. He craved time alone with Anna before they had to go to the ship, but the ship inspection had taken too long. He jogged down the long hallway from the stairs to the room, but Anna wasn’t in her suite. He found her in Decana’s room, talking with Vadon and Decana about Dahrel and what life was like there.
After dinner, Decana said a tearful goodbye to her husband, and then the group moved downstairs for an official state farewell in the main hall. Varick rushed the chancellor through his lengthy goodbye to the Vadana, and then hustled everyone else out the doors and down the steps.
A full battalion of soldiers stood by to shepherd them to their vehicle. There could be no concealing their plans to leave with a massive space ship sitting outside the city limits. Therefore, Varick made sure they would have a sea of soldiers between Anna and everyone else.
He was glad he did. Throngs of people piled onto the steps and into the street to send them off. The soldiers kept them all at bay, and when Anna waved to them, the crowds cheered and screamed their love for her.
As their military vehicle rolled through the streets, the crowds followed them up to the gate and out into the desert. They formed a swarming ocean of humans. The ship waited at the edge of the city—guarded by more soldiers. People poured out of the city into the desert like the first rainfall of the year.
When Varick helped Anna down from the vehicle, he peered out over a blue-gray ocean of bodies behind the double line of soldiers around them. Somewhere in the crowd, a chant began. It was from the prophecy given to Anna at her birthright ceremony.
“The light to our way home!” they chanted.
“What does that mean?” She mouthed to him, her voice drowned out by the roar of the crowd.
“I’ll tell you later,” he said, urging her up the plank to the ship.
They all smiled and waved as they climbed up the metal plank and entered the ship. The throngs continued to cheer. Every voice in Rinat rose in joyous rapture, bouncing off the metal walls of the ship’s hallway with an echoing roar. Varick smiled. Their people could finally hope for a safe return to the place they once called home.
Chapter Eight
Anna stared at the wall, her full lips pursing. Varick raised his eyebrows and smiled, hoping Councilman Meroca couldn’t see him out of the corner of his eye. The councilman sat at Anna’s dining room table with a massive book in front of him—The Great Book of Houses. The only book that existed in the Dahrel system, since they had converted all of their other written texts to electronic versions more than two centuries ago.
This text, however, was one of their most sacred books. It recorded the lineage of the Royal houses. Councilman Meroca tutored Anna in her lineage, making her repeat the names of her distant relatives from more than a century ago. They started this subject right after they left Rinat three days ago. Anna slouched a little more in her chair, cupping her forehead in her hand. She rattled off the names for the fourth time. She got lost somewhere around her great-great-great grandmother and started guessing names.
“I think that the Vadana has had enough for today.” He leaned over a dining room chair.
“Yes, but she must learn these names.” T
he councilman gestured to the great book.
“I’m sure she can study them more tomorrow.” He shrugged. He never understood the need to memorize the royal lineage. “Under the circumstances, no one will fault her for not knowing her lineage.”
Meroca slid Varick an appraising glance, nodded, and closed the book with both hands.
“You’re quite right. Your Majesty, we’ll pick up where we left off tomorrow?” The councilman raised both eyebrows
“Yes, yes. That would be better.” She waved a dismissive hand at the book.
Councilman Meroca surveyed her, a thoughtful expression on his face. “It’s funny, you know. Your mother could recite her whole royal line forward and backward by the time she was eight years old. She had a wonderful memory.” The councilman looked wistful for a moment.
“So you’ve said before.”
“You certainly have her gift with plants.” He patted her hand. “The golden lions we planted yesterday have already sprouted.”
She perked up like a flower in the sun. “Have they? Do they always sprout so soon?”
“No. Not at all. They shouldn’t sprout for at least five days. It’s remarkable. I think that potting mix you came up with did the trick.” He wagged a finger at her
Anna clasped her hands, pleasure softening her features. Varick’s heart warmed. She rolled her shoulders. “Good, I’ll be delighted to see their progress.”
“Excellent. Shall we go up to the atrium now?” The councilman waved toward the door.
“Yes, absolutely.” She pushed her chair away and jumped to her feet.
“Your mother would produce the most wonderful fruits and vegetables every year. The palace kitchens would feed all the royal families and most of the kitchen staff off what she grew alone. She was remarkable that way.”
Anna took Meroca’s proffered arm. Varick fell into step behind them. He had hoped the councilman would leave and give him some time alone with her, but he should’ve known better. He spent the last few nights trying to invent excuses to be with her. Then every night he would leave for his room when there were others around, only to sneak over later when no one else attended her. It was excruciating and thrilling.
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