○O○
Without the necessity of the spoken word, the Sorgina was alerted by her Ahs Dormis, who stood upon the high ramparts of the fortress wall, of the approach of a new threat.
To the south, an ocean of Portigalweg soldiers stood ready to break against the walls of the fortress like an inexorable tide.
To the west, an army of Parenmerians marched forth from out of the trees with banners flying high.
From the east, came the army of the Geldneth a hundred thousand strong.
To the north, the entire valley was filled from east to west and as far as the eye could see with advancing soldiers, some on foot, others mounted on those horse-like creatures Cris had seen in the barn on the first day. This was a mixed force of all the peoples of Nazer.
Then, out of the west, hundreds of Rapna, painted in the green colors of Emer Alda, descended from the sky and initiated the attack from the air. All four walls were hit and many of the fortress's weapons were forever silenced.
As the green Rapna turned for another run, the various armies of Nazer let out a war cry that shook the foundations of the planet, and they bolted toward the black walls of Kurat Vara.
The Sorgina smirked at this feeble effort by these thousands of tiny vermin. As soon as she had squeezed as much fun as she desired from the bodies of her captives, she would, she told herself, wipe them away with a wave of my hand.
The remaining weapons within the dark, scarred, smoking walls opened a barrage of fire upon the advancing armies and tore great holes in their ranks, yet still they came. Cannons blasted shards of razor sharp metal into the onrushing wall of flesh and tore the young soldiers to pieces, still they came. Their determination unfettered, their resolve only stiffened.
The allied soldiers of Nazer took careful aim and fired both rama and arrows at their enemy high in the black walls. Many did so with tears in their eyes for they knew that they were killing their own. This, they had all agreed, was the necessary price of freedom. This was necessary to save their children from such a fate and to set free the survivors.
The Rapna hit the walls again and more of the guns fell silent, but the cost was high, and thirteen Rapna vanished in billowing clouds of flame.
One young pilot was hit, and knew he was moments from exploding in midair. He turned his craft and dove directly for the stone gates of the ancient edifice, and through his sacrifice, opened the way.
○O○
Tattie and Tarnus emerged from the dark tunnel and appeared in the courtyard. Several Ahs Dormis took their weapons from them, then marched them to a large Ahs Dormis, all dressed in black, who was in the process of tying Cris to a vertical wooden post as they approached.
The black cloud boiled forth from the tower and gathered above the courtyard, blocking out the sun so that Tattie could no longer see Cris. The Sorgina's dark shroud also blocked out the sight and sound of the battle that had just erupted beyond the black walls.
Slowly, the shadow settled downward, encompassing all in its now arctic darkness. The pale blue light returned so that some vision was possible. Above them, as large as the fortress wall, was the veiled face of Bruckna the Sorgina. She was smiling down at them.
"Tattie Bogle, I promised Cristóbal he could watch you die and he would be able to take your face with him into death." Then with a voice devoid of any mirth she demanded, "Step forward!"
"Bruckna, you old croat," Tarnus shouted, "come fight me first, lets us—"
"Be silent, fool. You go next. I have devised a death for you that Nazer will talk about for countless cycles."
"Bruckna, my old enemy," Tarnus now sounded humbled, "will you grant me a last request?"
"Why should I do that?"
"It is a tradition for the condemned, on Earth."
"You are not from Earth, Tarnus."
"No, but young Cris, there, is. He and Tattie were to be joined, making me his Nazerian father; ergo, I wish to invoke an Earth privilege."
"My, but you have sweetened my revenge with that knowledge Tarnus. I will grant you a request, within reason.”
"All I ask is that you allow the young lovers to say goodbye."
"Granted—be quick."
Tarnus looked down at Tattie, who was shocked at her teaoh's comments. "Go kiss him goodbye, child."
"Teaoh?"
"Kiss the man goodbye, Tattie."
○O○
Tattie walked slowly toward Cris. In the dim blue light, she could hardly see him. When she got closer, she could see great sadness in his eyes. He looked up. "I'm sorry, Tattie. I'm sorry I got you into this."
"I joined you, remember?"
"Why did you do that?"
"When I looked into your eyes that morning in the cave, I saw you Cris, all that you were, and all that you are, and all you could likely become. I saw that you had never loved, nor been loved, and I saw all that emotion pent up in you, just awaiting a vent. Cris, our souls are two shards of the same stone, and I knew that we were destined to—" Tattie suddenly remembered the words the Velka Mislay said to her in the guise of Cris's mother, "Remember child, mitziatzu Iretsa gustiec (Love conquers all)."
Tattie looked again deep into Cris's eyes and said softly, "I love you, Cris."
○O○
Cris's mouth opened slightly as he looked deeply into her eyes where all his pain vanished, his fear evaporated, and all doubt vanished from his mind—and his heart.
"Tattie," he said slowly, "I—"
"Enough!" the Sorgina yelled. "You are through!"
The Ahs Dormis were moving forward to drag Tattie back. She threw her arms about him and hung on tightly. Then she pressed her lips to his.
Cris felt the warmth shoot through his body. He desperately wanted to throw his arms about her. He knew this would be their last kiss. The warmth of that kiss increased, it was now hotter than Cris had ever felt the sensation.
○O○
Tattie, too, felt the surging heat, the truth was that she had felt every spark of warmth Cris had felt since they first met, and like Cris, she was now feeling the hot sensation reach an entirely new threshold. Neither Tattie nor Cris found the feeling uncomfortable. As the temperature increased, so did a feeling of joy inside them.
Behind Tattie, two Ahs Dormis grabbed her and instantly jumped back as the heat surged through them.
At the point where Cris’s chest met Tattie's breasts, a light began to glow. The Sorgina's blue light vanished but the light from Cris and Tattie shone clearly. The longer they embraced, the brighter it became.
○O○
Tarnus saw a bubble form around the two of them, some attempt by Bruckna to stop the spread of the light. The intensity continued to grow stronger, so that Tarnus could no longer see Cris and Tattie through the glare.
The dome of dark energy about the two of them now began to fracture in several places. Then, suddenly, there came an explosion of light and warmth. Tarnus hid his eyes behind his arm—still, the light was blinding.
A scream from the throats of a great many souls rent the air, then one at a time, ceased, until the only scream remaining was that of Bruckna. It, too, trailed away, and at last, was stilled.
The black cloud evaporated, and the sun's golden rays flooded into the courtyard. Cris and Tattie's light merged with that of the sun's until, at last, Tarnus could see again.
The old warrior looked about to find that all the Ahs Dormis were wakening. No longer slaves, they looked around, disoriented and lost. He ran to Tattie and Cris.
"Look, the people are returned—the Sorgina's spell is broken!"
His words fell on deaf ears. Tattie and Cris were still bound in their embrace.
Tarnus cut the ropes that bound Cris, and instantly, Cris's arms encircled Tattie. Their eyes were closed tight, and their lips never parted. The walls of the fortress seemed to evaporate around them—the rocky hill, the plain of Dort, and Nazer itself all dissolved and they floated together in a swirl of stars.
Chapter 23
> Natu
Cris and Tattie stood, gazing into each other's eyes. The full realization of all that had just transpired had not yet blossomed in their minds; neither had entirely returned from their voyage among the stars. Cris could not remember ever being so happy or his mind being this much at peace.
"What were you going to say?" Tattie asked.
"Hmm?" was all Cris could muster.
"Before the Sorgina interrupted you, you were going to say something to me." Tattie knew very well what he was going to say, but would he say it now without death hanging over his head?
"Tattie Bogle, I was going to say three words. Now, those words seem insignificant. What I feel demands volumes be spoken, epic poems written, there should be music, and endless celebration. I so love you—I was like a mole shown a distant star—some magic, some lovely magic, brought me to that star where I found you.
"I don't think a man has ever loved as much or as deeply as I love you, Tattie." He pulled her to his breast and kissed her with more than passion…he kissed her with love.
Tarnus, who stood but a meter away listening to every word, waited as long as he could. "I beg your pardon, but have you not noticed the rest of the world about you?"
Cris and Tattie looked up. Former Ahs Dormis were now greeting one another and slowly segregating into their respective clans and races. Cris, holding Tattie's hand, took a few steps away and stood atop a block of stone and shouted to the crowd of freed slaves.
"My friends, the Sorgina is dead, you are free. But the fight is not yet over, there is still much to do—"
As if to punctuate his words, two Lautmen burst out of the Sorgina's tower and rushed at Tattie. The first grabbed her and yanked her arms behind her back, the other stood between Tattie and Cris, brandishing a sharpened wooden shaft. "We goes free or da Geldneth trop dies. Tell me you understand." The creature snarled at Cris.
Cris glanced at Tattie. She smiled at him, and slightly nodded. Cris pounced. He shot off the rock, and in midair, knocked the point of the spear aside. He landed atop the Lautman and, in an instant, grabbed his head and broke his neck. He jumped up to find Tattie had freed herself, and in a flash, recovered the spear and driven it through the body of the brute who had held her.
Cris grabbed her and held her tightly a moment, then took her hand and turned to face the shocked crowd. "People of Nazer, your world, your home is infested with Lautmen and scavengers. With the Sorgina dead, many will likely leave, many will stay to hold themselves in reserve for the return of Caval Du Mal. He is coming, never doubt that. Before he arrives, the infestation must be eradicated. If we do not prevail this time, what happened to you will happen to every man, woman, and child on Nazer. The people of this planet must rise up and strike now to deny Caval Du Mal his allies on Nazer, show him we are united in our defense."
A voice in the crowd spoke up, "You expect Geldneth, Portigalweg, and Parenmerians to fight together? Clearly, you do not know our history—"
"No," Cris shouted, "I do not expect enemies to fight alongside one another. I expect the people of Nazer to fight side by side for their home and their freedom.
"Just as you have been doing as slaves of the Sorgina, you must now do as free people!"
From the top of the north wall, a former Ahs Dormis soldier shouted, fear dripping from his voice "They are coming, in their thousands!"
Tattie, Cris, and Tarnus raced to the tower and up the stairs then out onto the north rampart. The entire valley was filled with the allied Armies of Nazer, the smoldering walls of the fortress were surrounded with soldiers of every race on Nazer and overhead, the remaining green Rapna orbited Kurat Vara and had doubtless reported that the Sorgina had been vanquished and her slaves were awakening from their living death.
A great cheer rose up from the blackened and bloody plain of Dort. Cris leaned over the ramparts and shouted down at freed slaves below, "Here is your answer! Out there, tens of thousands of Geldneth, Portigalweg, and Parenmerians have joined to bring war to the Sorgina. Your people have stood up as Nazerians, and now you are free!"
A great cheer came up from the voices of the free people in the fortress. The advancing armies heard the sound, and their cheering redoubled. The eruption of joy, so long silenced on Nazer, was deafening. Tattie hugged Tarnus and then threw herself into Cris's arms.
"All who call Nazer home have banded together," Tarnus observed. "The Avory, it seems, did as I had asked and alerted everyone around the globe."
Cris's joy was tempered with the knowledge that a much more dangerous opponent had yet to be engaged. He may even now be aware of the events on Nazer and be preparing to return and crush this rebellion—and kill its leaders.
A new dread came over Cris. He feared for Tattie's life more than his own, a feeling he now knew Tattie had been living with for quite some time. He wanted her removed to safety, but knew that would be impossible to achieve. She was as much a part of this fight as he—even more, because Nazer was her home and her future.
Cris removed the disk Capek had given him from his pocket and activated it. Shortly, from the forests to the east, they saw the little Meerlow lift up and head in their direction. Capek landed directly in front of the ruined doors to the fortress.
Tarnus, Tattie, and Cris returned to the courtyard. Many of the former slaves were already exiting through those ruined gates, some running, others staggering in awe. They went to join their respective armies. Walking against the tide, they saw Capek striding toward them.
"I see," he said, "that in addition to victory over the Sorgina and the uniting of the peoples of the planet, there is additional cause for celebration, all three of you have survived."
"One other thing," Tarnus said. "These two have declared their love for one another."
Capek tilted his head. "You'll forgive me this observation, but it is about time."
"And just how did you have any idea?" Tattie asked.
"I am able to detect each of your pheromones at a range of fifty meters. There have been times when the pheromone density had exceeded normal levels of sexual—"
"That will be enough, Capek," Tattie stopped him.
"Am I being too verbose again?"
Tattie smiled and looked away from Cris. "Indeed, you are."
○O○
During this exchange, Tarnus had returned inside and began asking a question of several of the former slaves.
"Bruckna kept a spacecraft hereabouts, do you know where we might find it?"
At last, he encountered a woman with an answer. "I do, you see, I was on the crew of those assigned to maintain the machine. It is in the southeast tower. You'll need to find Epney Togel, a Geldneth. He serviced the Automated Arithmetical Integrators and knows all the codes."
And so the hunt began. Not finding him in the fortress, Capek and Tarnus flew the Meerlow low and slow over the Geldneth Army and, over a speaker, asked Epney Togel to come forth.
○O○
Evening was upon them before Epney Togel produced himself to the commander of the legion he had fallen in with, the commander then escorted him to the fortress and presented him to Tarnus.
Epney was tall, as were all Geldneth males, and young, but being undernourished, he was not as well defined as Tarnus.
"Am I in trouble?" he asked.
"Not at all. Did the legion feed you?" Tarnus asked.
"Yes."
"Which legion was it?”
"The third of twelve."
"Good troop, the third of twelve. Served with them in my youth, I did." Tarnus then placed his hand on the young man's shoulder. "Epney, I'm told you know the Automated Arithmetical Integrators on the Sorgina's Galla nava, is this so?"
"Yes, it is so, but I'm free of that now."
"My friends and I will need that machine. Can you provide us the codes?"
"The codes? I can disable them, but—you had better take me with you just in case."
"In case of what?"
"In case I miss something."
○O○
After the battle, the dead were respectfully loaded into carts to be removed for burial. The Plain of Dort was far too hard to allow for the presence of a cemetery. The Avory permitted the dead to be laid to rest in the small clearing east of the Mouth of Death where the Meerlow landed the night before.
That night, giant fires were raised in every camp. Their quiet allies, the Avory, had themselves provided the dead wood from the forest floor for this purpose. Much food was prepared, and the hungry former slaves ate their fill. There was singing and dancing and merrymaking in every camp. The peoples mingled, and new friendships formed.
Tattie and Cris stood arm in arm on top of the northeast tower. "It's the beginning of an entirely new world," Tattie observed.
"Yes," Cris said slowly, "one well worth holding onto."
Tarnus emerged from the door on the floor of the tower's roof and stood next to Tattie.
"I wish your father and mother had lived to see this," he said.
"Teaoh, I believe they do see it—the people united, singing and celebrating. It was father's fervent desire."
"I meant I wished they could see the two of you. I look at you two and I see your mother and father. They were as happy together as you two are now."
"What happened to your parents?" Cris asked.
Tattie glanced at Tarnus, who responded, "After the last war, a terrible disease ripped through the populations of all Nazer. It took with it my brother, Ulvarn, and his lovely wife, Donau. I miss them both every day."
"Teaoh took me and raised me from an infant," Tattie said. "He has been both father and mother to me all my life."
Tarnus pulled himself up straight, to his full height, and took a deep breath expanding his barrel chest, then looked hard at Cris. "Presume for a moment this war is over, and your options are unlimited. What will you do?"
"I'm sorry, what?" Cris asked, confused.
"A simple question Cris, will you stay…or will you go home, to Earth?"
Cris looked at Tattie. He could see she was afraid of what his answer might be. He had originally set out on this quest to find a way home. Standing there now, with this choice shoved into his face, he—looked into Tattie's eyes and as he did, he fell into them—his mind reeling. Inside her gaze, he again felt that unimaginable warmth and happiness.
Across a Sea of Stars Page 31