Alexander, despite his current discomfort, was feeling much happier. The physicality of the practice had relaxed both his mind and body and while he was focused on fighting, his hindbrain had been given a chance to work on solving the problem of how to get out of the enemy’s trap. Lynch’s fighting style, one that relied heavily on feint and deception, had sparked the germ of an idea that both he and Vimes were now currently fleshing out while being treated.
After all three men had been attended to and discharged, they stood at the exit to the infirmary to say their goodbyes. The two Sergeants had business to attend to themselves and Alexander was eager to discuss his idea with Admiral Frith in person, not wishing to communicate it via implant. If his plan was to work they would need to begin moving everyone over to Dauntless right away and rig the remaining ships for autonomous fighting, under the control of their respective AI’s.
Extending his hand, Alexander thanked each of them in turn, at the same time giving private instructions through Vimes to Dauntless’s Purser for the Sergeant’s Mess bills to be wiped for the next month, an unexpected gesture that the two men would appreciate when they found out.
“It will go some way to compensate for their discomfort,” he thought, watching the retreating backs of the two men as they walked off along the corridor to the nearest transit tube, carrying their kit bags and limping slightly, “now all I have to do is convince Frith and everyone else that I can perform miracles.”
Scene 4, Skye, Scotland. A Revelation
Karen sat atop the large, rocky hill that sat at the back of her uncle and aunt’s bungalow, glad of the padded overcoat and hood that were doing a grand job of keeping the morning chill and damp from seeping into her bones. She’d remembered to take with her a black plastic bin liner to sit on and was making full use of it. In all the years she had been coming to Skye, Karen had never sat here and watched the sunrise.
She’d woken early, too excited to lie in bed any longer and a little bored of watching Adam breathe slowly by her side, so had decided to go for a walk and try to compose her thoughts. A smile came unbidden to her lips as Karen wryly remembered the previous evening's exertions.
“No wonder he’s still sleeping,” she murmured to herself with a self-satisfied smile that threatened to take over her face. “I gave as good as I got, too,” and with that, allowed herself a moment of smugness.
It didn’t last long, however, for she knew there were a number of hard choices ahead; not least what to do about her work and finding somewhere to stay with Adam when her aunt and uncle came home. After Adam had proved beyond doubt his story was true, Karen was so relieved she couldn’t help herself. They’d first made love in the lifeboat then, after Adam had guided it under cover of dark to her uncle’s large green boatshed and covered it with a large tarpaulin, they’d run the short distance back to the bungalow and into her bedroom, shedding their clothes the moment they had shut the front door behind them.
Adam had exceeded her most optimistic expectations and, if she was honest with herself, she’d been surprised at her own reaction. Again, the smile threatened to widen all the way to her ears.
“But am I doing the right thing?” the thought kept interrupting her pleasant reveries, again bringing her back to the hard choices ahead. Deep down, Karen knew she wouldn’t be leaving Adam’s side, with all that meant for her work and future. She found it ironic she’d let Ian, her old fiance, move to New York and leave her because she wasn’t prepared to give up her career, yet here she was, on the brink of following a man she’d only known for a few short weeks and, amazingly, was technically an alien.
“I must be mad,” she thought to herself, not for the first time.
From the hilltop, Karen had a distant view of the Cuillin hills, fortunately not shrouded today in clouds or mist. To her left she watched a sea-eagle lift off from its eyrie, set high up the cliff that marked the start of a valley cut deep into the rock by two small streams, slowly emptying themselves into the loch beneath the causeway bridge. The tide was out and the mussel and cockle beds that made up the loch’s exposed sandy bottom glistened as the breeze rippled the pools of standing water dotted around. A few sheep were up and about, cropping grass half-heartedly along the fence lines. An occasional car or lorry drove past, disturbing the otherwise quiet morning. The beauty and grandeur of the scenery never failed to make her feel a little awed or even insignificant, and she could understand why many of the people here turned to religion.
In the face of these examples of human insignificance, in comparison to the ages old, slowly changing landscape, many people felt the need to look for some higher meaning. Karen had little time for religion, for as a Doctor she had experience of life and death in all its many forms and knew from bitter experience how little the individual mattered in the grand scheme. To her, the important things were the people around you and the relationships you formed with them. She regularly witnessed the depth of love people had for one another which helped them through medical crises, allowing them to draw strength from each other. Things like that were far more important to her than the slim possibility of some omnipresent, capricious deity that required unquestioning obedience. “Still,” she thought, “to each, their own.”
In the warm, intimate glow between periods of lovemaking, Adam had described his world and civilisation to her in great detail. She was amazed at how far ahead their medicine was compared to what she knew, and his stories of aliens and empires spanning hundreds and thousands of worlds left her mind spinning with so many questions. So much to learn and also unlearn. Things she’d taken for granted all of her life had been turned on their head and she now totally understood Adam’s real worry about what would happen to him should his identity ever be found out. When he’d told her about Vimes, his ever-present companion, Karen had at first felt uncomfortable but was reassured when told he wasn’t sentient and simply a program running in an organic computer lodged at the top of his brain stem. Whenever she had asked about Adam’s family, the answers were a little vague but she put that down to sadness at being apart from them and so didn’t press the point, not when there were so many other questions. Even so, Karen felt there were things he was deliberately avoiding, but for now, she would let that pass.
Karen suddenly shuddered involuntarily, feeling for an instant as if someone had walked over her grave. She’d never felt that before, until now. She stood up, deciding with a smile it was time to go back and either wake Adam or crawl back under the covers and let him warm her another way. Turning around, she was startled to see a woman standing quietly a few yards behind her and took a step backwards in shock, nearly tripping. She looked at the strikingly beautiful woman standing there; tall, with short brown hair devoid of any trace of grey. Of indeterminate age, anywhere from thirty to sixty, she held herself straight and looked appraisingly at Karen, as if judging her in some way. The woman’s clothes looked decidedly dated, reminding Karen of outfits her grandmother used to wear.
Shocked at having this woman come upon her so quietly and not knowing what else to say, Karen could only come out with, “Hello, how long have you been standing there?”
“Long enough. Beautiful view isn’t it” the woman replied, a hint of a smile creasing her mouth.
She walked forward towards Karen and extended her hand.
“Apologies for startling you like that. I saw you up here alone and decided to introduce myself. I’m Christine, Adam’s mother and you and I need to have a chat.”
For the first time in her life, Karen was truly speechless and unable to articulate anything meaningful other than a strangled, “Mother?” Instinctively, she took the proffered hand, noting the firm grip and familiar unnatural warmth that immediately reminded her of Adam.
Seeing the colour drain out of Karen’s face, Christine spoke. “I’m sorry, my dear, that was unfair of me and I apologise for springing this on you in such a fashion. Unfortunately, I don’t have much time here but I did want to meet with you alone befo
re I saw my son.”
Karen interrupted, “But Adam told me he was lost with no means of contacting his family, so how on earth did you find him? What does this mean?” Karen’s initial shock started turning to anger, thinking that for all Adam’s protestations of good faith and not wanting to hurt her she had been misled and let down yet again. Before she could continue with this train of thought, Christine interrupted her.
“No, Karen. He didn’t lie or mislead you; everything he told you was true. He was lost and alone, just not in the way he or you thought, but I need to speak with him first before telling you the full story. Let’s go surprise him together.”
The walk back down the hillside towards Karen’s bungalow was undertaken in almost silence, with Christine answering the occasional question from Karen, who was still trying to take in what she had been told and reconcile it with what she had been told by Adam. They finally crossed the galvanised cattle-grid that marked the entrance to the grounds and all the doubts suddenly came back to Christine. Now only a few yards before reaching the large, white bungalow that belonged to Karen’s Aunt and Uncle, Christine was unsure how the meeting with her son would go and knew that any one of the pieces of news she was going to give him would, in itself, be enough to cause a bad reaction. Adam had been a particularly stubborn child and once he made his mind up on a subject she knew it was notoriously difficult to get him to change.
When, earlier that day, at the Council of War meeting back on Capital, she had made the decision to bring Adam back early from training, she had known the possible risks, but now she was here and having to explain everything without the support of her husband, she was beginning to question her decision. Hopefully, in the few short weeks he had been away, this young Earth woman beside her might have been able to effect some changes in him for the better.
“I had no choice but to bring him back early,” she told herself, “With Alexander missing and the Empire in turmoil, this was the logical thing to do. If Alexander really is dead, then Adam needs to assume the throne before Frederick has had time to consolidate his hold on the rebellious Sectors.”
“Are you all right?” asked Karen, noticing that the tall, elegant lady next to her had started to slow as they approached the front door. “Do you want me to go in first and tell him you are here?”
“No. But thank you anyway. This is something I need to do for myself.” Christine stopped and looked Karen in the face.
“I will need time alone with my son. I don’t mean to be rude, but there are things we need to discuss alone and I don’t want to have to wipe your memory just because you overheard things you were not meant to hear.”
Karen was taken aback by the last comment. “What! Wipe my memory. You can actually do that to people?” she asked.
Christine simply looked at her as if she was a child. “Karen, by my reckoning, technologically, we are some four thousand years ahead of you. Think how far your planet has come in that time and what it has achieved in just the last century and extrapolate that forward. As I told you earlier, your thinking is currently limited by your technology.”
“Really? If you’re so advanced then why are you still nervous about facing your son and explaining all that’s happened? retorted Karen, more than a little defensive and somehow feeling she had to stick up for Earth with this woman. “I can see it on your face and in your body language.”
The veneer of politeness vanished from Christine’s face in an instant, replaced with a look that almost made Karen want to take a step back. The look passed as quickly as it had come, replaced with the earlier, friendlier one.
“Forgive me, I forgot that to you I am simply Adam’s mother and nothing else. I’m under a lot of stress and it’s hard to adjust back to what I used to be. Let’s get this over and done with. Lead on, please,” said Christine, gesturing towards the door.
A little confused by the comment, Karen moved ahead and climbed the four steps up to the front door, which was set at right angles to the main wall to act as a windbreak. For a few moments, she fumbled for the keys, then opened the door. Walking into the hall she could hear music coming from the radio and the welcoming smell of coffee and hot toast hit her nose. Adam had obviously woken up and decided to make himself some breakfast. Both women walked inside and headed towards the kitchen, Christine indicating with a nod of her head that Karen should be the first to enter. Karen walked through the door first and was surprised when Adam grabbed her from behind the door and swung her around.
“Good morning, gorgeous,” he said, putting her down and leaning forward to kiss her. Seeing the look on her face he stopped, then followed her eyes back towards the door where Christine had walked in unnoticed.
“Mother,” he exclaimed, letting go of Karen and taking a step forward, then stopping, not quite believing what he was seeing.
Christine looked at her son for a moment, before rushing forward and hugging him to her body, tears in her eyes. Adam responded, the familiar sense of safety and belonging he knew as a child flooding back. “You’re here, you’re here,” he murmured into her hair.
Karen stood by, watching the touching scene and happy for Adam but unsure how to react. She was pleased for him, knowing he was no longer lost, but worried about what would happen now between them. “Is this going to be yet another time when the person I am getting close to walks out of my life?” she thought to herself sadly.
As she held her son, Christine sent him an urgent message via their implants.
“Adam, please do not say too much in front of this woman yet. I know how much you have told her and what has happened between you, but please, no more until we have spoken properly about what we are going to do about her.”
“How do you know what…VIMES!” Adam almost shouted in Christine’s mind, realising that Vimes had been communicating with his opposite number in Christine without him knowing. He pulled away and stood back, angry.
The two stared at each other silently, the exchanges between them unheard by Karen, who could only see the angry expression on Adam’s face. She understood they were communicating silently with each other, having remembered Adam telling her previously that this was something they could do via their implants. As the seconds went past, Karen had enough of being a passive bystander and muted the radio, a gloss white Ruark R2i, before interrupting them.
“Don’t either of you know it’s rude to talk in a foreign language in front of someone who doesn’t speak it? The same applies when you do this mind thingy, you know,” she complained, allowing a hint of annoyance to come out in her voice. “I would like to know what’s going on, thank you very much.”
Mother and son both turned and looked at her, each having forgotten for a moment she had been standing there.
The expression Karen had seen earlier on Christine’s face returned, this time looking as if it might stay a while.
“You want to know?” Christine asked rhetorically, “Fine, I’ll tell you, but first you need to make a choice.”
“Mother…,” Adam tried to interrupt but was silenced by a look and a thought.
“No Adam, she wants to know and actually, has a valid point.” Christine moved to the kitchen table, pulled out a chair and sat down, motioning them both to do the same. Karen did so immediately, followed a second or two later by Adam, who looked uncomfortable as he watched the two women who seemed ready to square off against each other. He realised, with a start, how similar the two of them were temperamentally.
“What are my choices then?” Karen asked bluntly, her earlier feelings of warmth towards Adam’s mother rapidly fading. Advanced aliens they might be, but she certainly wasn’t going to let anyone be rude or talk down to her.
Christine looked thoughtful for a few moments before continuing. “You have three, Karen. The first is to come with us when we leave for home in a short while. There are no guarantees that you and Adam will make a success of this relationship you have entered into, but the chances of your ever returning to Earth woul
d be, for a variety of reasons, remote. If it doesn’t work out, our family will set you up for life and you can retrain as a Doctor or anything else that takes your fancy, with abilities you can currently only dream of. The second option is to stay here with your memories intact, never to see either myself or Adam again. I will arrange for you to be recompensed for your time and kindness towards my son and we will simply vanish. No-one will believe your story as nothing will be left here as proof. Make too much fuss after we have gone and you run the risk of ridicule. Your final choice is to remain, but have your memories of recent events wiped. You will remember Adam saving you, but that’s all. For you, he will have vanished after arriving back on Skye and you will not recall anything else happening between you. This is perhaps the kindest option, for if you truly have feelings for my son these too will be erased and leave you free to get on with your current life without any regrets for what might have been.”
Christine looked Karen in the eyes, her features softening. “Your choice, Karen. Out of respect, I won’t make the decision for you. Trust me when I tell you very few of your people have ever been given such a choice,” and with that she fell silent, waiting for a response.
“Not much of a choice is it?” Karen asked, a little taken aback as this was not what she expected. “How long have I got to make a decision?”
Christine and Adam looked at each other before they both turned towards her. “Not long, maybe an hour or for as long as it takes me to explain the situation to my son privately. Once you decide, there is no going back from the decision. If it’s to come with us, I will explain almost everything to you, but there are two things that must remain strictly within our family.”
Imperium: Revelation: Book Two in the Imperium Trilogy Page 3