Ranger Dawning

by Richard Ford

  Anger began to creep into Vance’s words. ‘What is there to understand? My father is being criticised for doing the same thing that the Minbari were doing to countless humans. Killing. Does it really matter how?’

  ‘The killing, on both sides, was terrible and unfortunate. Perhaps the stronger of the two sides in any conflict, not being as desperate as the weaker, feels superior enough to dictate the terms of what is honourable and what is not. But regardless of the reality of the situation, you are on Minbar now. You don’t have to accept the feelings others have about your father, but you have to recognize that people are going to have them.’

  Everywhere Vance turned, his father seemed to be there already, lining his way with booby traps. ‘And I thought this might be a clean start,’ Vance said.

  ‘You should still believe that,’ Jerklenn replied. ‘We will soon be Anla’shok. Our focus must be on defeating the enemies to come, and the phantoms of our past should be forgotten.’

  ‘That’s just the point; these phantoms aren’t mine. They don’t belong to me. They are my father’s, but I can do nothing to get out from beneath them. Well, I suppose I could let Merreck kill me.’

  ‘That will not happen. Trust me. Merreck will want to see you suffer for as long as he can.’ Jerklenn did not smile as she spoke those words.

  They reached the eastern limit of Tuzanor and stood at the end of a street that forked into a seemingly endless promenade, one edge looking out onto the distant horizon. Night was beginning to fall, and the Se’en Voltayn, the ridge of crystals that surrounded the city, sparkled in the distance.

  Vance stared out. The horizon was spectacular, a red line turning green as it rose to the heavens. The clouds burnished gold as they were lit from behind.

  Despite the prospect of facing his unstoppable enemy once more, Vance could not help but be filled with awe at the sight.

  ‘You won’t see a sight like that on any other planet.’ The man’s voice was deep and filled with authority. Jerklenn and Vance both spun round to see Sinclair, the Anla’shok Na himself, standing behind them. They both bowed simultaneously.

  ‘Please,’ said Sinclair. ‘We are not in the academy now. On the streets of Tuzanor, at least let me be a man again.’ They both rose, Vance smiling at Sinclair’s candour, but Jerklenn looking shocked.

  ‘You are the Anla’shok Na. Wherever you go,’ she said.

  ‘That may be. But first and foremost I am an ordinary man. Pomp and ceremony I’ve rarely been comfortable with.’

  The three stood for several moments. The silence became a little uncomfortable, but Vance could think of nothing to say. ‘Would you mind, Jerklenn?’ Sinclair said eventually. ‘I think Vance and I have some things to discuss.

  Jerklenn bowed reverently once more and walked back into the labyrinthine streets. Sinclair walked forward to stand beside Vance. He looked out into the distance and took a deep breath.

  ‘I have nothing to say about what happened in the fighting circle,’ said Vance.

  ‘Good. I have nothing to ask you,’ replied Sinclair. He had expected Sinclair, with his rigorous military background, to at least make a mention of disciplinary proceedings. ‘I am more concerned with what you learned of your father today.’

  It was Vance’s turn to breathe a sigh. All things eventually came back to the Colonel. ‘With all due respect, I think I’ve heard just about enough of the old man for one day.’

  Sinclair turned suddenly. ‘I don’t think you have.’ His tone was harsher than Vance expected. ‘I have an idea what you’re thinking right now. Don’t assume I’m ignorant of the relationship you have with your father. You probably blame him for what’s going on at the moment. You’re angry and that’s understandable. But the bare-bones facts of his past aren’t all there is to it.’

  Sinclair paused. He took in the sight of Minbar’s second moon as it appeared from beyond the horizon. The grey orb was ringed with an ethereal blue light that pierced the cloud line. Vance looked at the silhouette of Sinclair’s face in the waning light. His features seemed to soften as he took in the celestial phenomenon before him. ‘He always loved you and your mother. You were everything to him.’

  ‘Is that why he left us for months on end? Is that why he put himself in constant danger?’

  ‘Well, yes it was. You have no idea what it was like during the war. The Minbari were approaching Earth. We had no way of stopping them, and no way of knowing whether they were on a genocidal rampage or not. We had to assume they were. Your father volunteered for more and more dangerous missions, and he was good at what he did. He did it to protect his family. He took any chance he could to damage the Minbari advance, and by God he suffered for it. It wasn’t medals or glory. He was never interested in any of that. It was his wife and son. Trust me, I know. We spoke about it more than once. You know, for a while I was jealous of him. For what he had. I’m not married and I’ve never had children. In some ways I think the war was easier for me. I had less to lose. He knew if he died he’d be leaving you both behind, but there was no other way. He was happy to sacrifice himself to give you both a chance at life. Then he was captured and tortured, and when he eventually returned he found his wife had died.’

  Sinclair continued, still looking at the heavens. ‘Can you really blame him for what he did? I know you think he’s interfered in your life, Vance. I know you blame him for a lot of things that have happened, but he always wanted the best for you. Why do you think he sent you here? He knows you’re one of the best. He’s prouder than you know.’

  ‘Then why has he never said it?’ Vance said through clenched teeth.

  ‘Some men just aren’t built that way. Some are good with words. Some aren’t. Your father was always good at being a soldier. Don’t think for a minute that because he can’t say it he doesn’t feel it.’

  They could no longer pick out any detail of the Minbari landscape other than the glittering crystals in the distance. Vance was glad of the darkness. ‘I hope you’ll think about what I’ve said.’ Sinclair patted Vance on the shoulder and turned to leave. ‘Oh, just one thing,’ he said suddenly. ‘Merreck is of the Star Rider’s clan. It would do you well to learn of their traditions.’

  With that he left.

  Vance could only wonder what the Star Riders’ traditions would do to help him beat Merreck. He cared little anyway. All he felt was guilt. For years he had hated his father and blamed him for the death of his mother. He realised now how selfish he had been. As he continued to watch the night sky over Tuzanor, he could not hold back the tears.

  Protocol

  The weeks passed in a rush of training and Vance fully dedicated himself to becoming Anla’shok. After what he had learned, nothing else mattered. He had to succeed, had to make a difference. For the first time in his adult life, he wanted to make his father proud. Well, maybe not for the first time, but this was the first time he had ever admitted it. The faith that the Colonel had put in him would be rewarded, even if it killed him.

  As time went on, Merreck demonstrated no more open hostility, at least none that manifested itself in outright violence, and Vance assumed that someone must have spoken to the big Minbari about his vendetta. If they had, no one mentioned it to Vance, least of all Merreck. Vance hoped Merreck might have at last called off his feud.

  Nevertheless, Vance continued his study of the Star Riders as Sinclair had suggested. His investigations revealed that their name was derived from the clan’s ancient history as a band of mounted warrior nomads who navigated using the stars. Their deeply honourable history harkened back to long before the first Shadow War. During that conflict, they were instrumental in the suppression of a renegade warrior clan known as the Dark Knives.

  Valen’s attempt to unite the warrior clans and face the Shadows as a single force failed. Seeing no other choice, Valen challenged the clan leaders to decide amongst themselves who was the strongest. He would face that champion in single combat, and the winner would lead all the clans. The
champion the clans sent forth was Nershan of the Dark Knives. Even when Valen subsequently defeated Nershan in single combat, the leader of the Dark Knives rejected him and sought out the Shadows, offering the services of his clan to the enemy.

  These renegade, or Shadowsouled, Minbari fought on long after the end of the Shadow War, and the Star Riders accepted it as their personal mission to suppress the traitors. They accomplished this, but at great cost. Centuries passed before they could rebuild their numbers, but during that time they became much stronger.

  Vance also learned in his studies that over the centuries they built many traditions and rituals unique to their clan. The overriding theme of these was honour, duty and sacrifice. Vance could only see how this would stand against him. Surely Merreck was bound by honour to seek vengeance for the death of his father, and the tenets of his clan reinforced it. However, the vows of the Anla’shok probably took precedence over the strictures of a warrior’s clan. He hoped they did.

  Try as he might, Vance could find nothing in the history or traditions of the Anla’shok forbidding Merreck from fulfilling the vow he owed to his father and clan. Even though he had gone through the same ritual of burning his possessions as Vance had, there was no reason for him to forget past sins. Even worse, the Star Riders considered themselves clan members for life. Even if they joined other clans or cultures, they would be returned to the Star Riders for burial. Merreck would be a member of the Star Rider clan even after his death as Anla’shok.

  The Minbari were also very dogmatic about their memories and how they regarded past slights. They were generally quick to forgive, but they never forgot. Where Merreck was concerned, he seemed to have decided to skip the “forgive” part. As long as he did not allow it to interfere with his training or dedication to the Anla’shok, Merreck would be free to harbour his grudge. And he was careful about it too. He only confronted Vance in the proper place at the proper time, where his challenges could be put down to eagerness or a yearning to face the best in healthy competition.

  Vance had seen Merreck face other recruits. He made short work of them as well, dispatching them with ruthless precision, but he was never sadistic or bloodthirsty. Only Vance’s judicious use of stealth tactics prevented more altercations. It pained him to run from a fight, but he recognised this as a fight he could not win. Neither did he want to win. If he was honest with himself, he felt pity for Merreck--and in some way he did feel guilty for his father’s actions. The more he read of the Star Rider’s traditions, the fewer options he saw at making amends. But there must be a way. Why else would Sinclair suggest he investigate this avenue?

  Despite Merreck’s apparent cessation in hostilities toward Vance, he still pursued his scholarly quest, sometimes long into the night. If there was a way to set things right, he would find it.

  It had been a particularly long day, with no time for rest between stealth training and a full afternoon of combat. Vance spent much of the afternoon sparring with Jerklenn, whom he had to admit was turning into a capable warrior despite her religious Caste sensibilities. Afterward, he did not retire to the dorm but found himself in the library, once more studying Minbari military history. He had exhausted every tome on the history of the Star Riders clan and now turned to more general texts in the hope of finding a solution.

  Several hours passed before Vance finally found it in a text that roughly translated as “Fearing Darkness”, written in an archaic version of the Worker Caste dialect. Vance’s recent advanced study of Minbari languages allowed him to translate the text, and he silently thanked Sech Nelier for his firm tuition. The manuscript described several internal conflicts from Minbari history, described from the point of view of a Religious Caste Minbari named Kelveer. He wrote the text in Worker Caste so that all might benefit from his unique viewpoint. Other transcripts Vance read on the internal squabbling of the various warrior clans all took the soldier’s perspective. They analysed detailed combat actions, large-scale military strategy, the reasons behind certain orders and the philosophy of the warrior, but none revealed the real reasons: some clans lusted for glory, some interpreted honour in very different ways to others, but the most far-reaching and over-arching reason was at the core of all conflicts: power.

  The text described an account of Kelveer’s encounter with a group of Star Riders during their conflict with the Dark Knives clan. Kelveer met the warriors after a battle, and many of the Star Riders were severely injured. Their own healer had been killed, leaving only Kelveer to administer to them. Luckily for the Star Riders, Kelveer was an experienced healer, well versed in the art of battlefield medicine. He stayed with the Star Riders for several days, ensuring the warriors survived their wounds. In the fractious time he spent with them, the surviving Star Riders taught Kelveer an invaluable greeting ritual: one that no Star Rider could refuse to pay credence to. The greeting ritual itself only passed through the ranks of the Star Riders through verbal tradition, but Kelveer saw no betrayal in writing it down for all to see, particularly since very few warriors would deign to read a book written in the Worker Caste dialect.

  Now that Kelveer knew the ritual, he could greet any Star Rider, hailing him as a friend. If the correct statements, responses and protocols were followed, the two would remain allies until the instigator of the ritual decided otherwise. The book went on to describe how Kelveer travelled the system, free to meet and greet the Star Riders without fear of reprisal, always expecting to be treated with the respect due a member of their clan and Caste.

  Vance could barely control himself. He pushed down a foolish impulse to leap ahead and confront Merreck immediately. Any error in his recitation of the ritual would leave him open to Merreck’s wrath, and the Minbari would not be forgiving if he thought Vance was trying to trick him.

  The firelight by which Vance studied flickered, and he decided sleep could not wait. He would return to this the next night, and so he placed the tome in a secure spot, marking the correct passage to learn. Hopefully, in the next few days, his problems would be over and he could concentrate on what really mattered.

  Merreck was relaxing in his favourite location. The combat hall was empty but for the feral figure of the Minbari warrior, practicing his art. Occasionally his denn’bok cut the air so swiftly the sound carried to the roof and echoed back down.

  From the far side of the hall, shrouded in darkness, Vance watched. His extensive study of the correct protocols had prepared him for this moment, but still he hesitated. Could he trust Merreck to honour the ritual? Clenching his fists tightly, he stepped from the shadows. Merreck’s split-second pause was the only thing that betrayed his surprise.

  Vance breathed deeply as he approached the combat circle. Merreck ignored him, perfectly executing the complex moves. Vance finally reached the edge of the circle, careful not to step beyond its intricate boundary. He began to speak in flawless Warrior Caste Minbari.

  ‘Greetings from the earth to the stars. As far as you ride may the light guide your way and your mount remain steady.’ Vance levelled a gaze at the Minbari and waited for the requisite reply.

  At these words, Merreck stopped dead mid-strike. Vance saw he recognised the words and did not like them one bit. Vance hoped Merreck remembered--and cared--that failing to reply would mean losing face and dishonouring the clan.

  Merreck had his back to Vance, his fist wrapped tightly around the denn’bok. Vance could not fail to see the whiteness of the knuckles and the slight trembling. Slowly he turned, his eyes flaming in fury but his jaw clamped firmly shut. The expletives he wanted to express must have been burning in his throat.

  ‘Fire burns for my clan,’ he began. ‘Rain slakes our thirst and we prosper. Who wishes to share the fortunes of the Star Riders?’

  ‘James Vance.’ The reply was without hesitation. Vance wasn’t about to waste any time.

  ‘Then kneel, James Vance, and tell why you should be honoured thus.’

  Vance quickly fell to one knee, making sure he kept his eyes o
n Merreck’s feet. This was a crucial part of the ritual and to hold any kind of eye contact would show a lack of respect. ‘I honour as the Star Riders honour. I fight as the Star Riders fight. I worship as the Star Riders worship. Together we can roam the plains and watch the stars, and you will know my friendship is unmatched. Our joining makes us stronger until I sunder it.’

  Vance slowly looked up. Merreck’s face was resigned to what had just happened, and he slowly turned his back, a last show of trust. When he turned back, Vance extended his arm. Merreck reached forward and grabbed it tightly. In Kelveer’s description of the ritual, he hadn’t described this part in detail, but Vance was sure that Merreck did not need to grip quite so hard. He grabbed Merreck’s arm in return, and for several seconds they watched each other silently, waiting to see who would be the first to release the other. Vance knew that the protocol bade Merreck to let go first. Vance’s heart beat faster, wondering if Merreck would stand here forever, forcing Vance to let go out of fatigue or dehydration.

  When Merreck finally released the grip, a smile of relief spread over Vance’s face. He knew the ritual had to be a success, for if it hadn’t Merreck would have challenged him there and then. ‘Allies?’ asked Vance.

  ‘Allies,’ nodded Merreck. ‘Until you break it asunder. I hope you know what that means, James Vance. You are now bound by the tenets of the Star Rider clan. Once you break one, we are no longer allies. Then I am no longer bound by the ritual we have just performed.’

  ‘I understand.’

  With that, Merreck turned and left. Vance felt relief wash over him. At last! At least for as long as he could uphold the tenets of the Star Riders, he needn’t worry about any more beatings from Merreck. Quickly he headed back to the library. He felt compelled to remind himself of the traditions and conventions of the Star Riders.