The Seeker - Finna's Quest

by E L Russell

  Vald said,
 

  Jamal elbowed her and Finna knew his thoughts were the same as hers. They could just guess who the gods were that gave that response.

 

  Finna thought he might be smiling, but since his eyes remained cold and his lips were lost in ancient folds, she couldn’t be sure. She rubbed her arms as if to wipe away the self-importance behind his words.

 
  Finna grappled to keep a growl between her lips.

 

  I just bet you did. Asshole. She wondered why they had to listen to all drivel and checked out Leeth’s expression for a possible clue. Still deadpan.

  Jamal started to ask a question, but when Vald lifted his chin and looked down his nose, he changed his mind.

 

  God’s Bones. Was Vald behind the circumstances that led to her being here?

 

 

 

  Seemingly unaware of their secondary conversation, Vald boasted on.

  Joining the fight? By God’s sarding bones. And if Leeth was their leader, he parceled out information like Bromwell parceled out kindness. She took a deep breath and asked Vald.

 

  But the hypocrite had vanished.

  After a quick look at Jamal, whose mouth hung open, Finna threw out her arms and let loose. “I thought they lost their powers in that meteor storm.”

  Leeth tapped his temple.

  She glared at Leeth, daring him to refute her words. “You are not saying we have an obligation to do this, right?”

  He frowned and tapped his temple again. Instead of answering them, he said to Jamal,

  The twelve-year-old hesitated and once again Finna marveled at his maturity. He’d lost his mother, been instrumental in saving her own life, been jerked across the galaxy to a world neither of them had heard of, and he could fight like a man. His response, when it came was thoughtful, relevant, and knowledgeable. Finna was as proud of him as any mother would be. He questioned something that had troubled her as well when Vald spoke of it.

 

 

  Jamal said.

  Finna’s jaw dropped at the depth of his education.

  Leeth grinned and clapped his hands. He ruffled Jamal’s hair. And you were well tutored, my boy. The words he uses do, indeed, translate into those terms. Vald’s use of the word Maelstrom is another clue about the Silva.

 

  He extended his hands into the space in front of him.

 

  49

  The Maelstrom

  Understanding Space

  He stopped by a large window. Night had come and he gazed out at the stars. For long moments he was lost in thought and Finna wondered where his mind had gone. Finally, he spoke.

 

  Finna glared at him.
 

  She felt like traveling troubadour. Too bad they didn’t sing and juggle. She scowled.

  Leeth teased, and stomach did something funny.

  In truth, she liked it too much, but she’d deny it with her last breath.

  Leeth relented.

  Finna took a deep breath. She was too damn old to blush. The thing was, she was getting to like the sorry, secret-keeping, lackwit and she was afraid it would show. “Remind us why we are doing this.>

  Leeth sighed in a long-suffering way. “This ship holds teams of Silva and Liberi traveling under a truce. The Silva will stop to pray at a place they deem holy and in their hubris they invite us to participate. So, we will play the role of good guests and join other trainers with their new warriors and witness the Silva praying to their gods, who they believe live in the giant Maelstrom.”

 

  he view of the Maelstrom is spectacular. It is a once in a lifetime opportunity for us all.>

  50

  Respect

  Revelations

  The intervals between the next series of repositioning jumps took longer than she had been led to expect. With each repositioning of their metal castle-spaceship, the stars looked more spectacular. It was too much to take in all at once and she took a break from the view.

  She never liked having unknown people behind her, so she sat on the stone floor with her back against the cool metal wall of the battlement. She missed the touch of the stone wall behind her when she sat with her father, watching the stars. How he would have loved this journey. Humph. He would have liked Leeth, too, she conceded. She missed him and his explanations of how masons chipped and crafted rough rocks, transforming them into pieces of beautiful buildings. Sitting on the cool stone floor of the rampart reminded her of years of training under her father’s sharp eye. Her fingers automatically felt how the stones of the floor came together. These stones felt wrong.

  She rolled over to her knees to examine the masonry more closely. Feeling with well-educated fingertips in the dim light, she realized that all the cuts in the slabs were identical. As a result, the fit was perfect where each stone met the other. All were perfect.

  That’s impossible.

  She examined the work again. Not even the best masons could create stones that fit without minor differences an expert mason could detect. Still on her knees, she crawled along the floor inspecting and searching for any defect. There were none.

  Feet appeared under her nose and she scrambled backwards, embarrassed to be found in such a position. Just as suddenly as the Seeker had appeared, the ambient light from the stars dimmed and she raised her chin and looked toward the heavens.

  he said. The ambient glow from the spaceship.

  A slow chanting began and half the sphere’s population dropped to their knees. The perfection they sought was not in the stonework, but in the Maelstrom they worshipped.

  Those who remained standing backed away from those in prayer. Was it respect, or suspicion and fear? She eased back against the nearest wall, not wanting to be identified with the kneeling Silva and certainly not with the man Vald.

  Jamal whispered in her ear.

  She grabbed his sleeve and yanked him close.

  He craned his neck to see the worshipers.

  He’d worked them for hours every day and it was only begrudgingly that she admitted she was stronger than before, as a result, and that was in spite of the heavier gravitational pull.

  Leeth arrived and pulled them both by the arm.

  Leeth repositioned them to their quarters within the Liberi compound of the spaceship castle. It consisted of seven small rooms ringed about a common area with seven chairs arranged around a circular table. The door to each room was open. Frosted pitchers of cold water sat on a table set for the next meal. There were no names on anything.

  Turning in a circle, Finna examined their quarters with suspicion.

  “We are safe to speak with our voices here.” Leeth poured a mug of water. “Anyone else want some?”

  Finna glared at him. “And the answer is?”

  “You will reposition in and out of here. There is no need for external doors on this world.”

  “That’s may be fine for you, but Jamal and I can’t always do that alone. We are still practicing that skill, which gives you too much control of our movement. You govern our actions like a damn puppet master.”

  Jamal burst from one of the rooms. “I found my bags on the bed with my weapons. Did anyone notice there are no doors? Are we allowed to reposition? Can we practice repositioning by ourselves? I think we need to, don’t you, Finna?” He shifted his gaze to her to find her scowling at Leeth. “Ah, I guess that means you do.”

  Leeth sounded annoyed. “You two are a tough crowd. You were taught to reposition in your dream training. That’s how you will learn most of your skills and powers. In your sleep. I’ll teach you new skills as your brain develops.” He lowered his face to eyelevel with Finna. “You have repositioned on your own on several occasions. All you have to do is practice it. It is there for the taking, to gain confidence.” He reached for his glass and drained it. “Keep hydrated. It is important for fighting.”

  “Huh”

  He waved a hand in dismissal. “Later. Keep in mind, once we land on Silva’s Combat Planet, your powers will not exist outside of Castle Star Point. You can get out of the castle, but only someone from your team within the stronghold can reposition you back inside.”

  Finna was itching for a fight and Leeth wouldn’t take the bait. Everything was so strange. She liked combat, because she knew what to expect and what was expected of her. She excelled in it and that’s when she felt normal. Maybe the repositioning thing would satisfy part of her need for control. She began a search the rooms and found her own gear on the third try. After a quick change, she adjusted her belt and stood looking at the closed door to her room. Now or never, she smoothed out her robe and following Leeth’s instructions, repositioned to the common area.

  “Well done.” Leeth raised a mug of water in a toast. “Here, drink up, it’s cold. Find your knife?”

  She patted her belt and accepted the mug. “We’re supposed to be seven? Who’s in the other rooms?”

 

  Finna flinched at the soft pop of displaced air that came with his arrival and Leeth patted the boy’s shoulder.

  “Nice jump. When the spaceship makes land on the Combat Planet, these rooms will be our quarters during our tour of duty. The other four, who will share these rooms, were deployed on an earlier spaceship and they’ll catch up with us when we arrive at the combat world. After we eat and sleep, I have a few things to tell you about our mission, like what we know of the enemy’s tactics and some skills I want you to review.”

  Finna played with the handle of her mug. “We are replacing other fighters, aren’t we? They won’t be there when we arrive will they? What happened to them?”

  Leeth scratched his head the way he did when he was buying time to come up an answer. “They, uh, had an accident.”

  Jamal’s mouth dropped. “They’re dead? You mean like, they died?”

  “We’ll cover that and the enemy’s tactics in the dream training. The same thing will not happen to you. I promise you that. I will see to it personally.”

  “And I suppose you can be sure of that.” Finna shook her head at him, discouraged to catch him in another lie of omission.

  She exchanged a look with Jamal. She was an experienced warrior and could take care of herself, but she worried if she could take care of Yasmin’s son as well. He was excited about battling the enemy, but for all that he fought like a man, he was smaller than most and he had little experience beyond their journey. Furthermore, his focus skills needed honing.

 

  51

  First Combat

  Graduation

  Finna came awake with her heart thumping. She couldn't get enough air, and her stomach
cramped. She was outside the safe zone, outside the compound. That meant she was vulnerable. She stretched for her bow and sword by her side. Jamal, several feet away, slept on. They had kept low in the ground cover and had not built a fire.

  She examined the densely tangled branches in the thick canopy of green above her. It looked like the squat trees held hands with all their neighbors to remain standing in the planet's sarding oppressive gravity. A cool breeze stirred the leaves, and as she watched, the leaves on one of the branches morphed into a scornful smile. Too late, she saw the curve of a black bow and an arrow plunged into her chest. The groan from Jamal's body told her he, too, had been shot.

  Finna lay in a clearing holding her breast where the arrow had pierced her leather vest and ripped into her chest. It ached like all the sarding dogs from hell were chewing on her heart, but she couldn’t find a wound. Leeth stood above her.

  Jamal sat cross-legged nearby, also rubbing his chest. “That was a dream exercise?”

  “Dream or not, it hurt like the real thing.” She lifted her chin to Leeth who towered over her, frowning as if willing her to grasp a deeper meaning. “Ah. “That’s how the previous team died, isn’t it? In an ambush?”

  He shook his head. “That pain in your chest is only the shadow of a painful memory.”

  “What are you saying?” She frowned and continued rubbing her chest. “Their deaths were not from fighting or an accident?”

  He continued to shake his head. His expression was not one of sadness, and she felt his anger growing.

  Jamal’s voice became low and flat. “They died in a way you were not able to redeem them.”

  She thought Jamal's direct statement would elicit a truthful response.

  Leeth filled his chest with air and tapped the top of his mug with his fingers, appearing to be searching for words he might control. "Vald had them executed for trying to escape."