“I lead them,” Ennat said. “I coordinate. We attack the farthest outposts. We let them think we’re starting with the sections where they have the fewest patrols. I am in command. Vane and I fly.”
Karna shot her a look of concern. “No. I don’t like it. I should be with you.”
“Karna, I’m a Blood decoy. I’ve been a decoy from the beginning. Bom will sense me on the edges and he will deploy his troops. He’ll be forced to scatter them like raindrops. I can clear the way to Matsu. We can minimize bloodshed. That is Aja’s goal, to keep as many alive as possible. You and Kyr must go with Aja. Bom and his generals will remain holed up on Matsu. You must be there to maintain order, to see that there is not, well, indiscriminate retribution. We don’t want the Resistance to become what we hate.” She put a hand on his arm. “I can handle myself. I swear it.”
“My only concern is the men,” said Karna. “I’m afraid when push comes to shove they will refuse your orders.”
Ennat turned on her heel and headed back to the galley. “Then I suggest we find out right now,” she called over her shoulder.
Book II: Return
“Do you have the means to contact my sister Tem?” Aja asked.
“Thy sister already knows what ye wish of her.”
“Good. Then she can wake him up. It’s time to get moving. Ennat has flashed with six vessels. She and Vane plan to harass the outer bases and blockade the shipping lanes. She’s dropped her veils and she is unprotected. We want to draw much of the Coalition force after her, to the edge. I leave in two days. I want to give this plan time to work.”
The Empress nodded her agreement.
“Will you stay here or do you plan to return to your own time?”
“Once We see thee on thy way, We shall return to Our own people.”
“Then I won’t meet with you again,” Aja said.
“Ye will not meet Us again.”
“And my mother and her consort, and my brothers? They have not appeared in my future.”
“No, so sorry. They shall live out their lives with Us. Thy mother has much practical wisdom to pass on to the next Empress and We think this time has no further need of them, while We—” the Empress gestured toward the women warriors at work, “—have much need.”
Aja nodded her agreement. She expected tears to fill her eyes, but they didn’t come. She wondered if she had grown hard or if it was because she knew in her heart her mother, the man she knew as father and her two brothers had already been dead for nearly three thousand years.
“They were mourned on Persephone, then?” She asked.
“Yes, in secret. Vane can show ye their gravesites should ye wish it. Thy mother is very proud of her three daughters. She trained ye well.”
“She chose love over power,” Aja said. “As will Ennat and I. Tem has chosen another path altogether.”
“Thy sister is not quite the monster ye think.”
Aja stared at the far distant mountains, reddish in the setting sun. “She is an Abomination. She has helped us immeasurably, but she is an Abomination nonetheless.”
Aja felt the Empress cool hand in hers. “Yes and no. Ye will see the truth of her in the end. We have considered Our final words since ye spoke of them, and We believe We understand now why We will repeat the Queen Mary’s epitaph.”
Aja squeezed the older woman’s hand and smiled at her. “Would you care to share?”
The Empress Ya smiled back. Aja saw affection in her gaze. “We think not. It would seem thy sister Tem will discuss the matter with ye herself if ye so wish, when the outcome of the battle is decided.”
Aja laughed. “Well then, I had better supervise the loading and finish this great battle quickly. I would not want to keep a goddess waiting, even if she is only child and could stand to learn a bit of self-control.”
Aja raised the woman’s thin hand to her mouth, brushing her lips against the delicate skin. She reached for the Empress’s long mahogany braid, streaked with gray. “They chose a lovely shade for us, didn’t they, our makers?”
The Empress made no reply.
“I will not see it in my own children and neither will Ennat. But we have served our purpose for thousands of years, yes?”
“Yes.”
Aja watched the Empress’s gray eyes soften as they filled with tears. “Do not mourn us overmuch,” Aja said. “It would have come to this eventually. From your perspective, it won’t happen for another three thousand years.”
“Time is relative,” murmured the Empress. “Ye can still reconsider.”
“No,” said Aja. “I have no wish to walk through time. I’ve come to like where I am.”
“Because of thy man and the child ye carry, or because ye fear the power?”
“All three.”
“Ye could control the power. Ye have the strength and the heart to do right by it.”
“But I do not wish it.”
“What do ye wish, then?”
Aja thought for a moment. “I wish to learn to gallop a horse across the grassy plains of Calen. To see the great rivers swollen in the spring thaw and hear them roar. To wake in the morning and look to the distant high mountains, and watch as their snow-covered peaks are painted pink and rose. I want to see the sun set blood red in a sapphire sky. I want to watch my children grow and prosper and I will remain bonded to the man I love until the day I die. I have no wish to muddy the waters by meddling in time.”
“Ye are the One and ye well know it. Ye walk away then, from thy great destiny.”
“Oh, no, Lady. I walk into the greatest destiny of all, freedom.”
How awful, Tem mused, to be trapped inside one’s own body. It was nearly as bad as being trapped in a single time. She knew her father, General Bom, could hear his military advisors talking as they stood around his bed.
Outliers were being attacked. The Resistance had initiated armed skirmishes around the edges of the Empire. His generals discussed a response and they needed his input. They’d already sent two-thirds of their forces to the outer quadrants.
It was a mistake, of course.
Tem could hear his thoughts. General Bom didn’t know how he knew the action was a mistake, but he knew for sure and for certain his men had overreacted. She knew he believed this to be a feint, a deliberate attempt to distract the Coalition from the real target of the Resistance, Matsu. Oh, she knew he wanted to warn his men, but nothing other than air came from his open mouth.
Tem laughed and she allowed him to feel Ennat, to know her Blood, so he would recognize his daughter and go after her regardless of what his military sense told him. She’d made herself a tempting target.
Ah, yes, Father, there she is, leading the Resistance forces. Tem taunted him. She let him see Ennat clearly—the long, mahogany braid, the gray eyes, the fighting stance as she guided the warriors to very specific targets.
They’d already captured four communications arrays. General Bom assumed it was Aja. Even better.
“Father, my dear father, Blood of my Blood, I’ve come to see you. I’ve come to release you from your prison.”
With a flick of her finger, Bom’s eyes opened. He looked right through her and sucked in a loud breath.
“Go after them,” he croaked, pushing himself up on his elbows.
Tem smiled. His movements looked painful.
“Kill them. Burn every one of those rebel ships, but bring me the Empress’s daughter, the one called Aja. She’s leading the Resistance forces. Now help me out of this hell-hole of a bunk.”
Well, that’s done.
Tem stepped from the room and back through time twelve thousand years. Back to Earth’s past. She would return to finish him. But she had time. Tem laughed. She had all the time in the world.
Her mother had chosen their father well. His Blood was strong. But duty to her sisters demanded that the man die.
Duty was Tem’s strength.
Her sister, Aja, was hampered by her kind heart and her desire for j
ustice.
Ennat, by her honor and sense of fair play, although she would be hard pressed to admit it.
Tem possessed no such scruples. Unlike her sisters, she embraced her destiny.
She had a duty to preserve the line. Above all, she had a duty to begin the line.
Besides, was there anything more glorious than to be worshipped as a goddess? To be sixteen suns and the shaper of worlds?
Her attendants bowed as she appeared in the temple dedicated to her in one of her many names.
Heady stuff. Nothing her sisters possessed could compare to this joy.
Book II: Return
The troop transports dropped one at a time as Karna’s station couldn’t accommodate more than a single large vessel.
Excited to see some action at last, the men quickly and efficiently uploaded their weapons and themselves. The female crew of each ship passed out bags in case of motion sickness and checked to see that every trooper was strapped in before they lifted off the ground and blasted into orbit.
Kyr could picture the satisfied grins on each pilot’s face as she skidded close to the ground before pulling straight up. He grinned himself, imagining the stomachs of the poor men inside. He knew Aja wouldn’t spare Karna the same treatment and he hoped the fact that his brother had bonded with Ennat would mitigate some of the sickness.
Davi Fedd would be flying with them. He’d been Kyr’s right hand since childhood and there was no way Kyr was going to the revolution without him.
“Here she comes,” said Karna, approaching from behind. “She’s flying the largest.”
Kyr put an arm around his brother’s shoulders. “That’s my girl.”
“She’s also your Empress. We, all of us, need to remember that fact.”
“Don’t fret, brother,” Kyr said. “I never forget it. I just don’t care. But in front of the men I will defer to her, exactly as you do with Ennat.”
Karna cleared his throat. Kyr knew that as Commander, his brother was under far more pressure to abide by the strict rules of protocol than he was. But he doubted protocol mattered much in his brother’s bunk.
“Aja will have news of her sister. I suspect all is well,” Kyr said.
Karna nodded. “I would feel better if I was with her, but I understand her reasoning.”
“You’re needed here in any case.”
“Yes. Someone has to keep these brills in line. They’re anxious to see some action after all the talk.”
“They aren’t the only ones. I’m feeling a bit perky myself.”
Karna snorted. “That’s because your woman touches a ship down as soft and smooth as a baby’s behind.”
“Oh, that she does, for certain.”
Kyr stepped forward as the gangway was lowered and Aja strode toward him. Her smile was wide and she broke into a run, women guards keeping pace. Kyr opened his arms.
Squealing with delight, Aja jumped into them, wrapping her legs about his waist. He twirled her around, kicking up dust on the landing site. Kyr kissed her soundly in front of everyone, Karna, Aja’s own guards and the semi-organized squadron of elite fighters carrying arms and equipment.
“I swear,” he said, as he lowered her to the hard rock. “This may be the very first time I’ve seen you in boots.”
Aja swatted at him. “We’re off to commit revolution and you’re talking about boots.”
“They look good on you,” he said, his mouth pressed against her ear. “Wear them in my bunk next time.”
“And nothing else?”
“The knife.” He kept his voice low. “Wear the knife.”
Aja laughed. “Aye, aye, Captain Aram.” She tugged on his hand and Kyr allowed himself to be pulled along. “My sister, the Lady Ennat does well on the edges, Commander, so let’s load ’em up and get the hells out of here.”
“Yes, my Lady.” Karna bowed to her.
Kyr suppressed a smile at the look Aja shot his brother. He knew she wanted to kick him, but instead she returned his bow.
“Gentlemen,” Karna called out. “Load up and strap in. Make sure all armaments are locked down, safeties on. We’ll be flashing in thirty clicks. And gentlemen, remember, the Empress commands you. I am her second. Her orders supersede my own. Are we clear?”
Kry watched and listened as the troopers called out their agreement and bowed low. He turned and bowed also, to show solidarity with the men and because he understood the necessity.
Most everyone knew he was Consort, but still, in this he was no different than any other man. He was expected to bow before her in public, even if he fucked her ten ways to Solsday in private. Aja stomped on his instep as she headed back to the ship, her arm upraised, displaying the Royal Ring to all assembled.
“Time to go,” Kyr said. He followed Aja to the gangway.
“Open a com channel and a vid feed to all ships,” ordered Aja. She stood on the flight deck of the largest transport, Kyr, Karna, Mr. Fedd and several other military advisors at the ready.
“Channels open,” responded a female pilot. “They’re waiting, Lady.”
Aja took a deep breath. She was a woman of few words, but she knew she had to make herself heard. Her people trusted her enough to make this leap of faith. She couldn’t let them down.
“Men and women of the Empire, today belongs to you. It is your destiny we reclaim, not mine. The men of the Coalition may have forced the Royal Family to abdicate the throne, but they’ve forced you to abdicate your hopes, your dreams and your civil liberties.
“We go now to restore what is yours by right, the one thing men and women have given their lives for since ancient days, freedom. We fly together, as loyal citizens, comrades in arms and friends. I will not waste time with a long speech, but I repeat here the battle cry uttered by the freedom-loving ancient Earther sect known as the Gurkhas.”
Aja stopped speaking for a moment and pumped her fist. “Jai Mahakali! Victory to the Goddess!”
She closed her eyes and listened as an echoed cry returned to her through every com. Aja smiled. “Fire ’em up, pilots,” she ordered. “We go straight on through to Matsu. Keep coms open, vids off, watch your formation.”
She sat in the pilot’s seat and took over control of the ship. She grinned at Kyr as he strapped himself into the co-pilot’s seat. “Better warn your brother to tie down every moveable part of him. He’s in for the ride of his life.”
Book II: Return
In that day, the Royal Armada flashed from the sky. Like great birds of prey, the ships dropped straight down into the city of Matsu. All the people who were witness to this holy sight fell to their knees in fear and awe.
The ensuing fight was brutal, as the forces led by the Empress Aja drove the enemy from house to house, street to street, routing the traitors and pushing them outside Matsu to the Plains of Sithia.
The Imperial forces sacrificed themselves to protect the innocents during the fierce battle, while the traitors of the Coalition did not. It is said the traitors used innocent men, women and children as human shields in order to make good their escape.
At Sithia, they say, justice was meted out, not by the Empress, but by her sister, the Red-Eyed Demon, Tem.
At the Empress’s insistence, the men were spared execution, but to this day no one is sure and certain of their fate. Some say the men were killed in secret and their bodies burned, but most believe them to be disappeared, along with supporters of the Coalition everywhere who also vanished on that same day from every planet in the Empire.
It is believed they were scattered into the past and future by the Demon, all but one, the infamous general known as Ika Bom, leader of the Coalition, Blood Father to the Empress and her sisters.
Eye witness accounts claim the general called out the Empress Aja. He challenged her to a fight to the death.
Her few words, remembered by storytellers, were—You are already dead, my father.
She turned her back and did not watch as the Demon took him.
The D
emon Tem stepped into the center of the grassy field and kissed her father on the lips. As she looked on, blood began to pour from his mouth, his nose, his eyes, and his ears.
General Ika Bom fell to the ground and his spirit fled, shrieking in terror, to the lowest of the Seven Hells of Wrath. The Empress’s forces burned his body where he fell.
Even now there remains a spot in the midst of the Plains of Sithia where nothing will grow but the red weed known as bloodgrass.
It is rumored that a marker once existed at the site. On it were writ the words, ‘Here lies Ika Bom, Father of Worlds,’ but that marker has long since crumbled and most hearers scoff at the very notion. All know it is the Demon Tem who is the Mother of Worlds. She left her sisters to travel deep into our Earther past, saying: I shall provide our makers with many children from which to choose.
I am our beginning.
The women pilots who followed the Empress from Eir-Edan journeyed to all corners of the Empire, marrying with men from many worlds. Even now, there remain pockets of women with the tell-tale mahogany hair and gray eyes of the Blood, but none on one planet.
The Empress Aja and her consort, Captain Kyr Aram, lived out their lives on Calen, as did her sister, the Lady Ennat and her consort, First President Karna Aram.
It is on Calen that their children and their children’s children have remained for over eight hundred years. They have golden hair and violet eyes and they are known to be the finest horsemen and women in the Empire.
It is said that one day there will again come a time of great need, and a girl child will be born on Calen bearing the rich mahogany hair and soft gray eyes of the Blood.
On that day, the Empress Aja will return to save her people.
Book II: Return
“That one.” Aja pointed at a two-year-old liver chestnut with a blond mane and tail. “That one is mine.”
Kyr turned toward his wife. She had never looked more beautiful. The wind, fresh off the mountains, blew through her unbound mahogany hair, her cheeks had turned a pretty pink in the frosty air and her gray eyes sparkled with joy. This was what she wanted. This was the life she chose to lead, with him.
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