by Ben Stevens
She truly is beautiful. It’s so sad that she is so sad. He knew that her sadness went far deeper than the debacle that had been the liberation of New Puebla. He wanted so badly to know what the source of that was, and then to displace it from her life.
“Jon.” Her voice, quiet, wove its way through the falling rain and thunder and landed on his ears as soft and warming as the promise of tomorrow’s sun that would heat the chilled land and dry away the leftovers of the night's storm.
He lifted his head and peered into her jacket hood. The falling rain looked silver behind her.
“Let’s… how do you say? Soldier on?” There was hope in Maya’s voice. Jon half chuckled. Then that spark touched some unknown, hidden tinder and began to make a flame. A reluctant, tired smile spread across both their faces.
“Yeah. That’s right. Good idea, Maya. Let’s.”
Epilogue
“I’m hungry!” Wyntr whined, pouting.
“You have to be patient!” To-Kan called from across the room, where she was preparing food for the child.
“But I’m hungry now!” Wyntr said, jumping up and down on the room’s luxurious couch.
“Wyntr!” To-Kan yelled back, her voice taking on a serious tone. “Be still, sit down, and stop yelling, or you won’t get anything at all!”
“Okay…” Wyntr said, plopping down onto her rump as she finished the last jump. She crossed her arms and frowned.
“Thank you. Now, here you go. Lean over and don’t make a mess.”
Wyntr watched with anticipatory glee as her elderly caretaker, crossing over the open floor of the suite that had once belonged to the nice Lily Sapphire lady who rescued her, bringing her a steaming bowl of warm curry.
“Yummy!” Wyntr exclaimed, receiving the bowl and digging in.
“I know how much you like my butter chicken,” the old woman said as she smiled down at Wyntr. “Eat up, then it’s bath time.”
The child didn’t have to be told twice and began to devour the food, when a beep came from the door.
“YOU HAVE A VISITOR,” the room’s limited AI announced. Continuing to inhale her dinner, Wyntr watched To-Kan go to the front door and touch a panel adjacent to it. The door snapped open to reveal a haggard-looking Miller on the other side.
“General Miller!” To-Kan said. “What a pleasant surprise.”
“Please, To-Kan, just Miller when we aren’t in the council chambers. May I come in? We need to talk.”
“Of course, of course. Come on in. Have a seat. Dinner is on if you’re hungry.”
“Thank you, but that won’t be necessary. I won’t be staying long,” Miller said, stopping just inside the door, which snapped shut behind him.
Taking her bowl in her hands, Wyntr twisted on the couch and peered over the back of it, observing the adults as they conversed by the door.
“I take it you’re here about Matiaba?” To-Kan asked.
“You think? How could we let that happen?” Miller replied, quickly becoming agitated.
“You know I trust you, Miller, always have.”
“But?” the big man asked.
“But,” To-Kan said gently, resting a hand on Miller’s thick metal arm, “despite the… slimy nature of that lawyer, Libis, Matiaba has a point. We don’t know that he was any guiltier of anything than any other soldier.”
“Really? You really gon’ doubt the things he put Lucy through?”
“That’s not what I’m—”
“That’s what it is, To-Kan. By letting him walk, we are completely dismissing Lucy’s testimony.”
“I know, I know. But she isn’t here, Miller. And we could use Matiaba’s help getting this city running again.”
“That’s the other thing,” Miller said. “There has been no word from them. Not a peep. We lost contact before the first day was even over, and they’ve been gone two weeks now! Sooner or later, everyone will know. Even Martin and the Old Guard. I’m worried about what will happen then. You know the supply caravan didn’t make it back. I’m gonna have to send troops out east to investigate, and…”
Miller and To-Kan continued their conversation, failing to notice as Wyntr climbed down from the couch and placed her empty bowl down on the squat table next to it.
As quiet as a ghost, Wyntr slipped away from the room and the arguing adults and entered the sleeping chambers. Things were as she had sensed; another window was opening.
She stood off to the side, hiding her small frame behind the raised mattress, and watched as a small window of light grew into existence from nothing, stopping when it reached the size of a dinner plate. Crouching down, she left only part of her face exposed; it wouldn’t do to be spotted.
As expected, another object came flying through the tiny portal, landing softly on the room’s floor. The third such delivery in two weeks, this one was folded paper, unlike the first two squares of lightweight metal.
A second later, the window blinked shut and was gone. Knowing that she no longer had to hide, Wyntr approached the folded piece of paper and plucked it up off the floor.
Opening it, she read:
To whomever receives this message, To-Kan, or Miller. Things did not go very well in the city we encountered. Low on supplies. Really hoping that you get this message in good order and would like to schedule a face-to-face. Perhaps you could send us some food? We are now making our way to the Morning Star on foot. Ratt says we are in the same time zone, so we will try this again tomorrow at noon. Please have supplies ready for us, as it is tiring to keep these windows open for very long. If only you had another transport, we could determine our exact location by the stars and you could send someone to pick us up. Might be in for a long walk. Anyway, talk to you tomorrow.
Love, Maya
Wyntr folded the paper back up and made for the large walk-in closet on the far side of the bedroom. Opening its doors, she beheld the tiny mattress that To-Kan had placed there for her, and the small pile of stuffed animals at its head. She crawled onto her mattress and began moving the toys to one side, revealing a small box that she kept hidden there.
She turned to the bedroom door, her eyes narrowing. She had to make certain that the adults didn’t catch her. Not when she was under the spell of her secret compulsion. Soon she would forget about this whole scenario, but for now, she had to—was commanded to—exercise caution.
A second later, she opened the box, placing the folded note inside it, right on top of the two squares of metal.
Also In Series
INVASIVE SPECIES
HOSTILE GENUS
THE GOD SEED
ROOTS OF INFINITY
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