Zherosha Chronicles- Unknown Origin

by Nancie Neal

  "I can understand why Trinka isn't here, yet, but where is Father?" Amnika wondered.

  "Perhaps he was stopped by a few more friends," he said. Amnika noticed how uneasy Rhada sounded.

  At that moment, Trinka walked off the lift, struggling with three cases. She took one, moved it off the lift, then grabbed the second one, and placed it on the first. The third one, Trinka pushed it off the lift towards the others. She stood it on its edge, picked it up and put it on top of the others. She looked proudly at her work and then she turned around. Her eyes danced about the room before settling on Rhada and Amnika.

  "Where's Zeth?" She asked.

  They looked at each other for a moment. Amnika shrugged. "Rhada thinks that he might have been stopped by more friends."

  "Okay," Trinka took a few steps towards her friends, then stopped. She looked back at her cases.

  "There is something I have to tell you," Amnika said.

  "Tell me in here?" Trinka responded, "These cases aren't light."

  Rhada leaned in and grabbed a case.

  "Did you put rocks in here?" He held the case with one hand and tossed it a little. "It is a bit heavy for an Inersien to carry."

  Amnika glanced uneasily at Rhada.

  Rhada stopped tossing the case and looked back at Amnika.

  "What?" Trinka's eyes narrowed as she looked at them both.

  "Let's bring your stuff into my room first." Amnika grabbed the second case, there were three in all and realized that she could barely pick one up.

  "I got used to carrying it all, I guess." Trinka carefully lifted the case almost as easily as Rhada. The only reason why she struggled was that the case was nearly too large for her to get her arms around.

  Amnika followed Trinka and Rhada into her room.

  When Trinka finished bringing her stuff into the room, she turned to her friend. "Okay, now what do you want to tell me?"

  Amnika grabbed her friend's hand and shared what her father told her. When she finished, she stepped back and waited.

  It seemed Trinka stood there for a long time. Then she took a breath. "How many know about it?"

  "I'm not sure," Amnika said. "I suspect everyone knows about my mother by now. In a few days, it's likely many more will know about you, too."

  "I've seen some of the files on Earth," Trinka said. "As far as I'm concerned, I grew up Inersien. I am Inersien. My home is Zherosha. I don't think I want anything different."

  "So you aren't upset?"

  "Why? What will change with this information? It looks like that I was given a better life than what I would have on Earth. I'm happy here." Trinka gave Amnika a hug. "I am a little disappointed that I found out this way, but I'm not angry."

  Amnika thought back to her conversation with her father. "If mother stayed behind, I would have stayed behind, too." She turned to Trinka. "I guess I should be grateful that I grew up here."

  Then Amnika sensed her father was home, so she went out to greet him. Just as she stepped out of her room, Zakkon and Nahaeda also stepped out of the lift.

  Nahaeda didn't look like the kind old Natisien that she knew. He stood in a slight crouch position as if he were ready to pounce. He glowered at Amnika.

  Amnika looked confused at Rhada who took the same position towards his father. She grabbed her father's hand. "What is going on?" Amnika cast a thought to her father.

  "Just wait."

  "Amnika," Zakkon said. He sounded nervous. "I want to apologize for not being more forthcoming."

  Confused, she looked at Nahaeda again. He studied her closely.

  "I don't understand," Amnika said. "I'm not angry. I never was."

  The tension broke. Nahaeda looked relieved. Zakkon sighed.

  "Actually, I'm disappointed and hurt."

  They all looked at her.

  "When have I ever indicated that I would rage about this?"

  This time they all looked at Father, who now had his hands on his hips. His head was straight, but he looked up at Nahaeda with his eyes. Amnika looked back at Rhada who had his arms crossed. Trinka peaked around the door of the bedroom.

  The old Natisien looked shocked and then remorseful. Zakkon looked down. Amnika walked over and gave him a hug. "Just no more secrets, okay?"

  "No more secrets," Zakkon agreed. He hugged her back.

  "This means that you will eventually explain to me about why I was never told about who I was. Mother gave up her identity because of this."

  Zakkon pulled away slightly and hesitated. "Afkistan thought that culture may play a role with how humans treat each other. He thought that you may do better if you didn't know. So I gave the order. He was right with one thing. You, Astran, and Trinka act very much Inersiens with a few deviations. However, We should have told you all sooner."

  Amnika hugged him again. "I'm not sure I would have done anything different with the information you had. No one can predict the future fully, I suppose."

  "Nahaeda!" Amnika took a few steps back to see him better. She wasn't sure what hurt more, the lack of information, or the assumptions based on fear.

  Nahaeda straightened up and looked at her.

  "I'm not… Naehus." Amnika's voice wavered. She held back her tears.

  "Amnika," he began to say. His low voice carried through the floor.

  "I'm going to bed early tonight," Amnika interrupted. "I'm tired." She didn't wait for Nahaeda to try to apologize. She didn't think he needed to.

  Rhada followed her into her room. "You aren't angry with my Father?"

  "No. Your father doesn't need to apologize either. From what I understand Naehus was very destructive. It's understandable that he wants to prevent that from happening again." Amnika took off her outer clothing, leaving her health-monitor suit on. "I am a very strong Inersien. I know that. I think I may surpass Rodgistan and I think Nahaeda knows that too. But I'm disappointed and hurt." Amnika's voice cracked. "I'm hurt that he doesn't trust me enough to know that I won't rage."

  Amnika put her night clothes on. Trinka also got dressed.

  "I know I can be a 'cracklier,' but I would never harm anyone intentionally. I couldn't live with myself if injured someone, even indirectly." Amnika sniffled.

  "Is that what the Natisiens call you?" Trinka asked. Amnika could sense that her friend was still uncomfortable. "I'm a rattling generator."

  Amnika scoffed. "Natisiens love their nicknames, don't they?" Amnika glanced back at Rhada and gave him a weak smile.

  Rhada grunted and put his hand on Amnika's back. "Only for those who are out of the ordinary."

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Amnika woke up while her walls were still dim. She sat up on her bed feeling sad. She knew that she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep before she had to go to her studies. She got up went into the wash closet.

  When she came out, Rhada was sitting up in his bed.

  "Did you sleep well last night?" he asked.

  "I slept well. No dreams." Amnika said.

  "You're sad," he said.

  "I am," she walked out of her room and looked towards the cooking area.

  "You will be doing that for a while.," Father put his tablet down on the short table next to him.

  Amnika looked back at the cooking area. Her mother was always there in the morning, and she realized that for a brief moment, she had forgotten that her mother was gone.

  Her father got up and walked over to his daughter. She still stared at the quiet room. He tugged on her arm, and she went in for a hug. Amnika could hear Rhada sigh.

  "It will be difficult for a long time," Father said to Amnika.

  "How long?" Amnika's voice cracked. "It's been a few days."

  "It may be a few moon-cycles before you stop looking for her," Rhada spoke quietly, and she could feel his hand on her back.

  "Sharing with me and your friends are important," Father said. "But if you want someone to relate to, talk to the Natisiens. They have more experience with unconnected deaths."

  "
I have," Amnika pulled away from her father and looked at Rhada. "It does help."

  Amnika grabbed herself a bar and took the lift down. From the lift, she could see Roniathan. She always felt a little better when she saw her ship. She walked across the gathering area and the hangar area and stood next to him, admiring the sleek lines and the new polymer.

  "Good morning!" Roniathan said.

  "Yes," Amnika responded. "Good morning."

  "Amnika." The low voice was unmistakable. Amnika turned to face Nahaeda. She hadn't seen him since the tense encounter they had.

  He knelt.

  "No, you don't have to apologize…"

  "No apology," Nahaeda interrupted and spread his arms. "Hug."

  Amnika giggled like a young child and practically leaped into his arms. She took in his woodsy essence as she held onto his neck.

  "Nahaeda, you know me well. You carried me everywhere. You saw me grow up. I'm curious to know why you thought I would rage against Zakkon."

  "Remember your encounter with Astran?" he asked.

  Amnika almost forgot about that.

  "Oh, Nahaeda. How much did you hear? Did someone tell you the whole story?" While Natisiens tell everything, Inersiens usually keep to themselves. Sometimes part of a story comes up in the conversation, but because experiences are shared telepathically, the Natisiens will only hear parts.

  She could feel his chest heave a sigh.

  "No, I only heard parts."

  "So what's worse? Secrets or a partial story?" Amnika pulled back a little and put her head against his. "This is why I told you not to apologize. I knew you had a reason.

  "Astran attacked me," she explained. "I don't know what he wanted at the time or was trying to accomplish. Rodgistan took the hit for me. I thought I had to stop him, so I attacked him back. It was wrong, I know this now. I wasn't trained and didn't understand but I understand now, and I'm better trained." Amnika pulled away so she can look at Nahaeda in the eye. "I can stop a burst in mid-air. Rodgistan taught me that right away so that incident won't happen again."

  Nahaeda let her go, and he stood up. "Rodgistan is a good instructor." He smiled.

  Amnika took a couple of steps back and smiled back. "He is." Then she looked towards the research buildings. "Speaking of which, I need to be at my studies."

  She turned to leave when she heard Nahaeda said, "I'm proud of you, son." Amnika looked back to see Rhada and his father embrace. Rhada turned to follow Amnika, and as he walked by, Nahaeda clapped him on the back.

  Rhada beamed with pride, and he followed Amnika to the research building.

  When they were in one of the study rooms, Amnika put her tablet down on the table in front of her.

  "What happened?" Amnika said. "There seems to be more to the story."

  "When you went to get Petrez, I talked with father," Rhada sat on the stool next to her. "Your father mentioned telling you everything. My father thought you would be angry. I said you do not get angry easily. You overthink things. But he insisted that…" Rhada paused and looked up at the ceiling. "He said that I should keep a close eye on you. We had an argument. We yelled a lot."

  "I bet your father insisted that Zakkon apologizes to you." Rhada looked back at Amnika. "It's why father was there. He thought you would be angry then. But when you didn't, it showed that I was right."

  "Rhada, you are perceptive." Amnika traced the edges of her tablet.

  "Well, so are you." Rhada put his hand on her back.

  "I wondered if there will be a time something will get me that angry," Amnika said. "I mean is it possible?"

  "I think you would curl up and turn into yourself," Rhada said. "I told father this. You are not the type to be angry, but you may stop connecting. You already don't connect enough. You like staying in your own head."

  Confused, Amnika looked up at Rhada.

  "Well, that's what Rodgistan said. How many do you count as close friends?" Just before Amnika could say anything, he added, "Besides Rodgistan and your Father."

  "There's Trinka," Amnika said.

  "Who you don't see much, anymore."

  "Zakkon," Amnika said, "but he disappointed me recently."

  Rhada grunted his affirmation. "But we can count him because you two connect."

  "Astran."

  "You have more reason to connect with him now," Rhada agreed. "Go on."

  There was a long pause, "Anias?"

  "How many times have you connected with him?"

  Another long pause. Amnika sighed.

  "I find it easier to talk to Natisiens than it is to connect, I guess." Amnika took her finger and spun the tablet around on the table a few times.

  "You were raised mostly by Natisiens," Rhada said, "Natia did a good job at helping you understand our ways. I think it made it difficult for you to connect to other Inersiens, though."

  "Maybe." Amnika stopped her tablet from spinning. She leaned on him.

  "Amnika?"

  The two turned towards the door. There stood Anias.

  "What are the odds," Rhada chuckled.

  "You were talking about me?" Anias' shy smile gave Amnika goosebumps.

  "We were talking about connections," Amnika said.

  "I see." Anias stepped into the room and held out his hand. "Reinforcing old ones is always a good thing."

  Amnika smiled and grabbed his hand. He pulled her close, and she shared her sadness about her mother and the fact that she forgets that she is gone. He shared that his father married old and medical put his mother in her last year. He will miss her when she's gone.

  After they finished sharing, neither one of them let go. Amnika felt comfortable in his embrace and rested her head on his shoulder.

  "You will be of age on earth soon." He whispered in her ear.

  "Anias," Amnika heard Rodgistan say, "she needs to at least find a level first."

  Realizing that she was caught up in the moment, Amnika felt her face grow hot and she and walked back to the table.

  Anias sighed. "I know. I can wait." He winked at Amnika. He left.

  Watching him leave, Amnika sat down in the stool that was next to her. She looked up at Rodgistan who pulled a stool out from under the table.

  "You know…" He sat down next to her. "That might be why everyone is confused with you. You look like an adult. You even act like someone who is coming of age. But here on Zherosha, you are at the end of your twelfth cycle. You are still, numerically at least, a child."

  Amnika looked towards the door where Anias stood moments before. Rodgistan turned the stool so that she faced him.

  "Regardless of age, you need to find a level first. When we established that, we'll have Medical look you over to see if you are physically ready to unite with anyone." He put his hand on her shoulder. "Be very careful until then. No one will judge you for uniting too soon, but you might destroy your ability to reach your full potential. Family life takes time away from your training."

  Amnika understood. She's seen some Inersiens unite before they reached their predicted level. It wasn't bad, and they seemed happy, but they stopped progressing.

  "I'll keep her in check." Rhada stood up, crossed his arms with a smug look. "Now that I know someone is interested."

  "Ah, yes, well." Rodgistan also stood up. "Good. I certainly would like to see what level you can reach. Now I would like to know about what you researched this morning."

  "Not exactly researched," Amnika admitted. "We mostly talked about connections, which is what started all of this. Rhada thinks that I don't connect enough."

  "I can see that," Rodgistan said.

  "Rhada thinks that it's because I was mostly raised by Natisiens."

  "Maybe. You are more verbal. It could be an inherent trait."

  "You mean human?"

  "I did some research on humans but not enough to know for sure. I do know some humans prefer a smaller group of friends. For Inersiens, this could be a bad thing as work and family dynamics can change quickly. Sometimes
having more connections means that if some friends leave, you still have some nearby."

  "Also, every time you connect and share, you spread your experiences." Rodgistan nodded to someone walking past the open door. "This helps us to grow as a whole."

  "Maybe I should share on what happened a few days ago," she said. She knew that Rodgistan heard what happened, but she wanted to show him her perspective.

  He held out his hand, and she grabbed it. She showed him everything that happened. Then she showed him her encounter with Nahaeda.

  "You are much more perceptive than he thought," Rodgistan said. "I think he may not be too quick to misjudge you next time." He motioned her to follow him out of the research building. He took her to the training room where he trained her more on her abilities. However, this time it seems she improved only a little.

  "Don't worry," Rodgistan assured her, "there will be times where you may not improve at all. It's why we test for a level on a yearly basis."

  They walked back out to the hangar, and they found Zakkon standing there, studying his tablet. He looked at them and smiled.

  "Amnika, you know I'm apologetic about sending you on a dangerous mission." He started.

  Amnika gave a dramatic sigh.

  "I know, I know." Zakkon held up his hand. "But the data from the anomaly…" he paused. Amnika could sense that he was having a hard time containing his excitement.

  "Go, on. I'm intrigued."

  "Indeed." Rodgistan put his hand on her shoulder and leaned in a little.

  "Well," Zakkon said, "It looks like it's possible to trade with Earth. Roniathan not only gave a report but he finally figured out how to go through the anomaly without any harm." Zakkon held out his tablet. "Within a few cycles, we can have enough resources to start building a gate. We won't even have to wait for the anomaly to form."

  Amnika and Rodgistan looked at each other.

  "Wow, I mean…" Amnika was speechless. Some good has come out of the fiasco. "This is another leap."

  Rodgistan chuckled. "Sometimes it's better not to say anything," he cast a thought to Amnika. “Just enjoy the moment.”

  Zakkon was too far to pick up on it, but her father caught it and smiled.