In a motion belying his strange attire, he offers me his arm and leads me out to the area where others are dancing – an unusual amount of space is made for us.
The dancing here is quite informal. They give themselves over to the music, moving as it demands without conscious thought; a concept I well understand - but they move jerkily, as though they feel driven to refuse most of what is around them. My style is quite different from theirs, I have a purpose after all. My motions are graceful, fluid, and as seductive as the music will allow. I dance around Rock, revolving around him like Shiral around the sun, and almost touch him constantly, nearly caressing his remarkable chest and arms as though worshiping them. Nothing about my dance implies refusal. And while the other dancers do not make eye contact with those around them, I hold Rock’s eyes as much as possible, and do my best to make it a Beltane fire worthy gaze. His eyes wander over my body, but they do not leave me.
When we return to the bar, he seems rather flushed. “I like the way you… move.”
“I’ve always liked the way dancing frees the mind from the body, or maybe it is the body being freed of the mind…” I don’t think he hears my words, as I speak he draws nearer, putting one arm around my waist, the other reaching toward my cheek. He pulls me closer, and tilts his head down toward mine. He’s going to kiss me! I don’t know how… don’t panic, Shi'ahn – don’t ruin it all now! What do I do? Follow his lead, echo back his own actions, that should work. Our lips meet, then his tongue brushes my upper lip, almost as if he is tasting me. I taste him back, and suddenly his tongue presses between my lips and begins exploring my mouth! After a moment of shock, I begin echoing his exploration. Yet more warmth spreads through my body.
“You’re an uninhibited one – care to blow this joint for someplace a bit more private?”
Words fail me – I’m actually breathing heavily, all I can manage is to silently nod. Taking me by the hand, he leads me further back into the bar – we pass some unusual groups… men sitting around tables playing cards, looking as though the weight of life itself hangs upon the next draw. I find myself beginning to feel some trepidation, and by the time we reach what is obviously a bedroom-like ‘entertainment’ room, I’m not so sure I should be doing this.
He is quite perceptive, “Don’t worry – this is my private room, this place is mine, after all.”
“It is? I didn’t realize.”
He looks surprised again, “I had thought earlier you simply hadn’t recognized me in person – I’m well known around here after all.”
I have no idea why he smiles as he does when he says that – it is as if he fully expects everyone in the world to know who he is. “I’m… not from around here.”
“Well, that would explain why I don’t recognize your lovely…” his eyes glide down my figure and lingeringly work their way back up; “face.”
I’ve never been looked at or spoken to in this way before; I feel… warm. Especially my face. My heart races, I haven’t felt such intense anticipation before - it’s exhilarating! He leads me over to a very large bed. Is this it? Do I finally get to feel what everyone else feels? Instead of sitting down, he picks me up in his arms and kisses me again, hungrily. I continue to follow his lead, exploring his mouth, dancing with his tongue. My fingers unconsciously reach up to entwine in his hair as I have seen many others do in the past, but I encounter only spikes… Instead I gently caress the skin between each spike. He seems surprised, but then he shudders and his kiss intensifies. I’m so caught up in the moment I don’t notice we are moving until I feel myself laid down on the bed. Without any pause or break in our kiss, he begins to pull down my dress. Its elasticity proves perfect; I lose my ability to even think as he caresses each inch he uncovers. The only thing that breaks through my personal bliss is his moan as he caresses my hips, finding proof that the dress is truly all that I wear.
Time loses meaning to me as he moves his hands, my dress and finally his lips lower and lower, until my dress is tossed to the floor. He pulls back slightly then, I like the look in his eyes. Although it is dangerously close to worship it is different from that which has always plagued me, it is based on wanting, filled with lust.
“Beautiful, you are astoundingly beautiful.” Then his expression turns slightly playful, “Truly, a meal fit for a King.”
In an amazingly fluid motion he rolls over onto his back while taking hold of my waist, and lifts me up over him… I feel him against me, hard and hot, and he begins to lower me, ever so slowly. This is it! An unbidden song of joyful anticipation explodes in my mind, escaping the tight control I have kept over my music. A cold voice intrudes upon my senses.
“Warning, unexplained phenomena in progress.” Our rapturous moment ends before it is even begun, I silence my music, but it is too late.
Rock abruptly ends our kiss and pulls slightly away, “Explain, what is the source of the unexplained phenomena?”
“The woman in your embrace.” His encircling arms change from strong yet infinitely gentle to hard as steel.
“What is it, sorcery?”
“Unknown – it is not a method of sorcery with which I am familiar.” Rock has held my gaze throughout the conversation, his eyes becoming colder by the moment.
“Who are you, my pretty?” The very same words when he uttered them earlier had been appreciative and inviting, but now they are an accusation – it isn’t fair!
“It doesn't matter! I swear, I am no danger to you! Please forget about this; please!”
“Computer, provide full identification profile of Maiair.”
“She is not in my memory banks.”
“Then access external data-banks!”
“Wait! Rock, please don't do this. Who I am is unimportant, I promise you, I am no threat to you or your realm.”
“I cannot lie with an unknown and potentially dangerous partner.”
“But I swear I am no threat to you, just ignore such concerns, make love to me, please!”
He looks at me contemplatively, as though a part of him wishes to agree while another part warns against, then his eyes harden and he lifts me away from him and steps off of the bed, looking coldly down at me. “Computer, link to external data-banks; identify this woman.”
I stand as well, “Computer! Initiate override code 'Cantator Borealis!' Do not link to external network systems! Do not take any further actions until I allow it.”
A pause, then, “Override accepted.” Rock bursts out, “What the…”
I don't let him get any further, I spin out of his grasp and tap just the right spot on the back of his head to send him to the floor. I catch him, of course, and lower him gently onto his bed. I haven't a choice, I remove Rock’s memory of me. I just can't leave it at that, though, he may have stopped prematurely, but he had still given me a deeper understanding of what couples share in the night than I had possessed before. I caress his brow, “Thank you, my Rock, for showing me as much as you have of what it is that causes the voices of my people to rise above the wind in the night. Such beauty, such… I don't have the words to describe it. You have both my thanks and… my blessing. May you live a long, healthy and happy life, my Rock.” I let my gaze linger momentarily on the man that so recently had turned my mind to impassioned fire, then glance up toward the ceiling. “Computer, purge all memory of my visit here. If this were to become known, Rock’s life could be forfeit; my people would not understand. After I am gone and a proper time for my escape has elapsed, you are to resume normal functions and serve Rock to the best of your ability. Keep him safe. Someday, maybe someday, I will be able to return to him.”
That done, I dress and leave the room but encounter Max just outside. I also remove his memory of me, then run out past all those still in the outer room, erasing memories as I go. My heart floods with sorrow.
~~~
The water around me cools… I return to the surface, then to consciousness. I awake to my lonely bed, my pillow damp with tears. I’m alone with no one
to witness my weakness, no one to know my secret, that I have desperately sought love, and yet no man has ever held me through the night. That, try as I have, I have never taken part in the ceremony of life. I allow my sorrow to wash over and through me, and cry freely as I haven’t since Mathair was taken away.
***
Lucian had of course directed her dream to some extent, trying to learn more about this fascinating flower of seeming innocence. The wide variety of emotions she has invoked in him had caused him to doubt her sincerity – how could she have so completely forgiven him for his past neglect? True, he had cast a mild compelling upon her to get her talking freely, but it shouldn't have been enough to gain the status of confidant. To have thrown herself, laughing, into his arms. He had decided that delving deeply into her mind would reveal any likelihood of deception, but instead he found her apparent purity to be true, not only physically as he has already learned, but emotionally as well. She was lonely, terribly lonely, and couldn't really help but to react positively to his kind treatment; like a moth to the flame. Normally, such innocence would not interest him so, but this young woman… she’s strong and self reliant in most circumstances, had been willing to forfeit her life in an attempt to avert the coming war, and yet she is also fragile and forgiving. She is family, but not so close as to be forbidden fruit. Truly a breath of fresh air to one who had thought he had seen it all; had thought he had experienced every kind of woman that existed. He cannot, however, blindly trust her. How had she managed to cross into the sacred circle? She is so naive, could she take another with her – someone that she mistakenly trusted? She troubles him, and yet he feels, to his astonishment, protective of her. He buries that thought deep within his mind, and carefully orders his thoughts – it's time to prepare his report to his father.
Chapter 20
Status Report
Lucian pauses outside the Emperor's office, steeling himself for an unwelcome ordeal. He can't lie to the Emperor, and yet he can't find it within himself to share all he has learned. He was, however, designed by the Emperor himself to be the best spy in existence – and what spy can't misdirect?
The Emperor looks expectantly to his inquisitor, “Well, Lucian, what do you have for me so far?”
“Nothing, essentially; they’re all innocent in this situation. Although each has a slightly different perspective, their stories correspond appropriately. They all agree, though for differing reasons, that Nero was indeed not Nero at all, but was undoubtedly of our blood. Someone powerful, but not particularly wise.”
“So what have you learned of our most recent relatives?”
“William is concerned primarily about Shi'ahn. I did not admit to him that she had returned, I instead asked him where she was, and it has him quite upset. Apparently he is not used to being separated from her during stressful situations – and since he has ascended the Path while she has not, he feels responsible for her safety instead of the other way around, as it had always been with them in the past.”
“And what about Shi'ahn?”
“She troubles me. She’s so…”
“Astoundingly inexperienced, seemingly shallow and simple, yet disturbingly powerful? Dangerous?”
“No, not at all, she’s… pure. Would you believe that she actually tried to stay behind in Chaos, as a symbol of Lumina's innocence in the Magni Dominar's murder? And no, she wasn't lying, all of them have confirmed it. She is… the ultimate innocent.”
The Emperor laughs, “And you’re keeping her in your little pleasure palace – yes, I had noticed that she wasn’t being kept down in the dungeons with the rest. I decided it wouldn’t hurt anything if you had a little fun in this process; she isn’t a particularly close relative, after all.”
“I happen to have been experimenting on her. I dropped the shielding I usually maintain in the suite to protect my 'guests' from the effects of being so close to the Spire; it didn't affect her in the slightest. She is most undoubtedly one of us. I have also been conducting her interrogation in a way that is, I'm sure, far more productive than a dungeon stay would have allowed.”
“Alright, alright. So what did you learn of her?”
“Beyond the fact that she is absolutely innocent?” Begin with the intriguing, but fairly unimportant. “She is a consummate musician, well beyond what is outwardly obvious.”
“Yes, yes, we all know she incessantly projects fairly complicated music.”
“No, I mean physical performance. I had planted a wide variety of instruments in the room, and when she did not play any of them I suspected she couldn’t – so I invited her to play a duet with me. I expected her to decline, but her joyful look of expectation convinced me to capture the event for later analysis.”
“What did you find?”
“A far brighter young woman than I had previously suspected.
“Did you stress test her?”
“I did.”
“At what point did she break?”
“She didn’t. I ran out of instruments to give her – she sometimes gazed at them momentarily, but then played each flawlessly.”
“How many did she handle at once?”
“Nine, and she didn’t even break a sweat. The medical scans were particularly revealing – she has a highly ordered and nearly entirely utilized brain.”
“She was using all she had for your test then?”
“Not for the playing, no. Near full utilization occurred only during the moments when I presented her with a new instrument that I can only assume she was not familiar with. Then the segment that glowed the brightest during her analysis would take over control of the instrument.”
“And just how did she control them?”
“She used her unusual control of vibration. It is far more adaptable than I had seen evidence of before. As I added instruments her use of it became almost transparent, as though it was nothing to her – purely natural and without any effort whatsoever.”
“Interesting. Did she appear to have an understanding of the underlying form of the music, or was she merely extemporizing?”
“She showed excellent understanding and initiated some very artistic transitions of her own. I expect she will likely grow to become the most skilled musician in this family.”
“It sounds harmless, but… I do not trust the girl, I’ve never trusted that family line.”
“She did say something that took me by surprise. She quite seriously asked me if I was her father.”
The Emperor nearly chokes. “Do you think she honestly doesn’t know?”
“I’m certain of it. She said she didn’t want any of our other men to be her father because, well, she is a very emotional young woman and her feelings have been hurt deeply by the lack of an acknowledging parent. Even the Nebulaeans distrust her.”
“You interrogated her in her sleep, I assume?
“Of course, as I have them all.”
“What did you learn of her origins?”
“Her homeworld is interesting. It is never completely dark and their sun is extremely intense. Consequently the natives have very dark complexions, all except for Shi'ahn, William, their mother whom I did not recognize, and a group of people living deep underground in the southern polar region.”
“What of her father?”
“She has no image of him in her mind – she vaguely remembers some unremarkable man leading her mother away, but that individual is of no significance to her.”
“Do you think then that the woman could be her Nebulaean ancestor?”
“It seems the most likely conclusion, the woman's complexion is evidence of remarkable resistance to the solar radiation. Their line is different from ours; it's possible that there simply isn't a father in the normal sense. It wouldn't be the first time, for them.”
“Indeed. Did you learn where her Shiral is located?”
“As I said, their night sky is never dark, certainly not dark enough to see stars. I accessed an encounter in their Lunarium, but did not gain suffic
ient evidence, our computers were not able to identify even a single planet that matches the available data.” When misdirecting someone, especially someone like the Emperor, one must stick to the truth as much as possible, and he had, indeed, just spoken the truth. No need to mention that a certain double star in the exact center of the Universe is the only possible match; it would raise too many questions.
“Anything else noteworthy to add?” Lucian pauses, purposely appearing unsure as whether or not to continue. “Out with it son, I know you have more to say.”
Tell him what he will accept. “I felt sorry for her, so I took her for a short walk in the forest within.” The Emperor looks displeased, but says nothing. “I let her curiosity guide us, and we ended up at the Circle of the Nine Seraphim. She walked within the circle as though there was nothing blocking the way. The old one brought her out, and surprisingly wasn't the least bit upset by the trespass.”
“Had you told the girl not to go within?”
“Why would I have – it isn't possible. It shouldn’t have been possible.”
The Emperor scowls in thought. “I don’t like this, I need to know more.”
“I believe Shi'ahn simply does not possess the knowledge you seek.”
“Then turn to other sources. One of which is her computer. It isn't right that she has managed to lock us all out. I don't care what it takes, access it! Then…” Lucian listens with concealed displeasure to his Emperor’s orders. His father pauses, and then continues in a thoughtful tone. “In trying to have a bit of fun, you have placed Shi'ahn in a situation that is sure to cause the others to feel slighted, possibly even quite insulted, and they'll take those feelings out on her. This should be interesting to watch play out.”
Lucian says nothing as he respectfully leaves the Emperor’s presence, yet hatred blooms in his heart, for he is incapable of refusing his father’s carefully worded orders. He embraces the hatred, for that his father can understand, while he ruthlessly withholds his elation that the Emperor did not see through the deception, did not realize that Lucian had learned a great deal more about Shi'ahn, William, their world and their parents. He also managed to pass on none of the catty and, in some instances, downright hateful comments from a couple of her fellow travelers. He feels quite justified in that, as he is certain their dislike is misplaced. Information from Celeste was key in helping him reach that conclusion.
Between Darkness and Light Trilogy Page 28