by Viola Grace
One hissed and shoved her sister to the side. “I told you so, dummy. She is in Medical and wearing a gown. She isn’t a Guard yet.”
“I am not here to be a Guard.” She shifted and her body ached.
One of the little girls put her hand on Minerva’s leg, and she held on. “I hope you feel better.”
The other girl chirped, “Why are you here?”
“Because my parents are dead and I was injured. There is nowhere else for me to go.”
The little girls must have had more than their fair share of empathy, because they wrapped their arms around her legs and sobbed.
Effin came in and a woman with dark rainbow hair followed him. She sighed, and the moment she took hold of the children, the resemblance was more than apparent. “Come on, girls. You are getting Minerva all wet.”
The little girls turned and clung to their mother. Babbling out how Minerva didn’t have parents and she needed to stay with them.
“Enough. Isala, Mabi, go to your nanny. He is looking all over for you, but since Medical is not in your allowed zones, he didn’t look here. Go and set his mind at ease. Junior is worried about you.”
The girls bobbed quick curtsies to Minerva and left Medical.
The mother smiled. “I apologize. I am Mala, or Fixer if you prefer. Effin has told me about the regeneration with your wings, and I have to say, I have been dying to try something temporal. Your wings will come back. Based on the scans there is no doubt of the regeneration. But, I can delay it.”
“You can?”
Mala’s expression was kind. “I hope I can. Effin will guide me while I work, but halting the growth in the base of your wings should be possible. Will you let me try?”
Minerva stared into the rainbow eyes of Fixer. The solemn determination was more bracing than any pity. “Please. Do what you can.”
Effin was moving around in the background, and soon, Minerva was face down on a surgical table with the two prodding the scars on her back, analyzing the tissue damage.
She was given a shot and everything faded to black.
“Mechanical! That is it; you control any object you are in touch with.” Mala was reading the display and checking the data from the initial medical team.
Minerva was sitting in her new suit with the heavy metal banding around her waist and back. Her hair was in a shiny cut that swung when she moved, and she was feeling a lot better.
“What about my skin growing like that?”
“The body is a machine. It was trying to bond you to anything touching your muscles, since you had an open wound, it was a dangerous situation.”
“Why would you think I had a leaning toward mechanical control?”
Mala turned toward her and sighed. “Well, as you don’t seem to know, a blast to your mech turned it into a large chunk of scrap metal six hours after you first got into it. It was you and you alone that kept the mech moving and operating even after it had run out of ammunition. That was all you.”
Minerva blinked. “Great. How would we test it?”
Mala slowly rotated the chair to look around her workshop. “Aha! That should do.”
“What?”
“It is a jumper harness that I made to help regular-gravity species on heavy grav worlds. It is designed to propel folks upward. I haven’t installed a power system. I keep getting interrupted.”
Minerva tried to flex her wings, but the pressure of the metal against her back reminded her that they weren’t there anymore.
Mala must have seen something in her face. “How are you adapting?”
“I am doing better today. I have only tried to move them three times today.”
Mala made a sympathetic face and then smiled. “Well, you will be flying in a sort of way if you can get the harness moving.”
The straps were odd, the harness confining, but Minerva stood in the exoskeleton and slowly lifted her arms. Mala stood in front of her and waved for her to approach.
Minerva took one step and then another. The thudding of the harness was echoing inside the workshop.
The spring in the steps was increasing, propelling her with more force. “I am going to need to get this outside soon.”
Mala stepped to one side. “Take it for a run and then bring it back.”
Minerva kept the bouncing to a minimum until she made it past the door, and she headed down the tarmac, getting as high as she could with each step. When she reached the far end, she sprinted around the edge until she was aimed toward Fixer’s workshop once again.
* * * *
Effin called Mala on the com. “How is she doing?”
Mala looked at him. “She is doing well. The growth is arrested and has not recurred. She should be able to travel soon.”
“Relay has contacted Citadel Balen. Minerva will be welcome there until she finishes her recovery, and then, she will be sent on to Citadel Ohkhan for training and permanent assignment.”
Mala glanced out and watched Minerva bounding around in the distance. “Why the double transfer?”
“From what Balen has said, there is someone who wishes to meet with Minerva.”
Mala scowled. “I don’t like her being shifted around. If she is being sent to Ohkhan, I want her to go straight there.”
“I will have Relay make the arrangements. I don’t know if anyone has ever mailed one of them before, but Minerva is a special circumstance.”
Mala looked up as Minerva tried to still the bouncing of the harness. “She will remain here for a few more days; I need to complete her suits.”
“Are you going through with it?”
“If she needs them, she will have them. I don’t care what she says right now, flying is part of her life.” Mala could sense it; she knew what it was like to have lost a beloved parent, and to lose two and her wings in the course of a few hours had dented Minerva’s sense of her personal reality.
Mala had had her mother to focus on, but Minerva had nothing. Everything familiar was gone. She needed a new purpose as quickly as she could find one.
Citadel Ohkhan had an excellent reputation for training; they were going to earn another star talent for their team if they could get Minerva under control and seeking a future.
For Minerva’s species, she was barely out of her teens. A new adult, she had just been learning her path on her world when it had been shattered beneath her. Now, she was something new, and it would take others who could help her gain a grip on the changes to get her to accept what she had become.
Mala was eager to see where Minerva’s career would take her.
Chapter Three
Minerva was nervous as she put in the coordinates for Citadel Ohkhan, but the ship she had been given was Fixer’s gift to her. It was one of a kind, and it was all adaptable for form and function.
Two days of flight training in a shuttle made her nervous, but the comforting pressure of her suit eased some of the tension. Being out on her own was just what she needed.
When the ship’s controls took over, she put her gloved hands over her eyes and sobbed until she was dizzy, her throat was raw and her soul matched it.
She got to her feet and staggered to the galley, getting a pot of tea and looking back toward the present that Mala had added to her pile of equipment. She could not imagine the circumstances that would drive her to that extreme, but she had not been able to imagine any of the events in her life that had led to her being alone on a ship and heading for a new world that she was bound to call home.
She pressed a cool compress to her eyes and cheeks.
Oh, she missed them. She missed everyone on Decla, for that matter. What use could she be to the Citadel if she was no longer what she was born to be? Mala had tried to cheer her up, but without the relentless efforts aimed at her, Minerva felt the hollowness creep in.
Leaning back in a chair was an odd feeling. The support that it offered was surprising. Enjel chairs were designed with narrow backs
that settled between the wings. It was more for looks than support. Actual backs on the chairs were rather interesting, as was the act of lounging.
She poured herself another cup of tea, and she returned to the controls. Watching the stars go by was a far better option than sitting and reflecting on all the changes she had just been through.
It was a two-day journey in silence, and she would have plenty of time to grieve on the way. The stars were alone and they would sympathize. It was better to be alone in company, sometimes. This was one of those times.
Her ship wobbled as it landed, but she followed the directions from ground control and settled in her assigned zone.
“Whew.” She wanted polite applause, but she settled for standing up and getting her bag of light armour and clothing.
She made sure that all systems were set to passive mode, and she disembarked into the highly floral air of Ohkhan.
An arrangement of buildings clumped together until they culminated in a tower was her destination. From the brief information pack she had studied, it was the hallmark of every Citadel, no matter the architecture.
A man approached her, and he raised his eyebrows as she drew near. “Minerva Nhu?”
She nodded. “I am.”
“I am Master Kibor. I will be your instructor while you are in training. Novice Minerva, or would you prefer Novice Nhu?”
“Novice Minerva, please.” She swallowed as the sound of her family name sent a pang through her.
“Please, come this way. Your quarters will be in the Specialists’ quarters. We have been assured that you already have a grasp of your talent, so the title of Novice is mere formality.”
“I believe that Guardsman Fixer has overestimated my skills.”
“I do not believe that is the case; however, that is what we will discover. After I show you to your quarters, we shall have lunch and you can tell me what your goals are for your education.”
He offered her his arm and she took it, his kindly features reminded her of an image of her great grandfather.
Kibor chatted to her as they walked through the courts, and she learned of the tradition of the Citadel Ohkhan, the history of the designs in the robes that the students and instructors wore, as well as the variety of species that were quartered on the grounds.
Her room was on the ninth floor of the Specialist building, and she looked out of her window at the view of open spaces with a soft sigh.
She swallowed and Master Kibor extended his hand. “Come with me. We have much to discuss. This is your future at stake.”
Minerva made a face. “Shouldn’t I check in with Medical or something?”
“In good time. For now, you look a little pale. How was your journey?”
She paused. She had cried, screamed and wailed to the stars.
“It was fine.”
He nodded. “Of course.”
They travelled down the lift to the main floor and across the grounds to the food court.
Kibor directed her to food suitable for her species, and they rejoined each other, finding a table away from the groups of folks in laughing conversation.
“Being at a Citadel is a social experience, and you will have your share of classes with other Specialists and Novices.”
She looked around and then at herself. “I am not wearing a robe.”
He chuckled. “No, you are not. The clothing that Fixer designed for you are distinctive enough that we won’t soon forget who you are or what you are.”
She sipped at her tea and prodded at her plate. “Does everyone know?”
“That you are a wingless Enjel? Yes. Only myself and the administrator know why. Everyone else will simply assume you were born that way.”
She swallowed. “Good. How about the metal corset I have to wear?”
“You were injured in the attack on your people. No other details are needed.”
Minerva nodded. “Right.”
Kibor ate and chatted, “What do you want to learn?”
“Languages, medical treatment, battle tactics, how to use any and all grades of weaponry. I don’t want to be clueless in the face of the enemy again.”
Kibor nodded. “I see.”
She let out a weak chuckle. “You must have seen many things in all your years.”
“I don’t have as many as you would think. Unlike your species, mine ages rapidly. I have one decade more than you do. I will reach our maximum age in the next five years. I could pop off at any moment.”
Minerva blinked. She was facing a life span of two hundred years. To be cut off at less than five decades was unthinkable. “I am so sorry.”
He tilted his head back and laughed. A few of the other diners looked at him and smiled, but no one interrupted his mirth.
He reached out and took her hand. “Despite your misery, you could still feel sorry for me. That leads me to believe that you are not as numb as you pretend to be.”
She smiled and finished her meal. “You mean I am not so far gone that I can’t be saved?”
“Something like that.”
He handed her a data cuff from a fold inside his robe. “We normally use data pads, but Fixer warned us that your biology might not blend well with the direct contact of working technology. She sent this on ahead for your use.”
Minerva inclined her head and fastened the cuff on her arm. She used her right hand to touch the screen, and it came to life at her light caress.
“Huh. We have been trying to get it to work. It was being stubborn.”
She smiled. “I am powering it. Part of my talent. Fixer had me flicking devices on and off for over a week.”
“Well, that leads me to the next question. Are you tired or are you able to give a demonstration? We have arranged a series of devices for you to demonstrate your talent on.”
“Oh. All right.” She finished her tea and smiled. “Ready when you are.”
He finished his meal and drank his tea. “Let us be on our way. There may be a few folk who want to watch, but the crowd shouldn’t get in the way.”
“That will be fine. My talent doesn’t involve me getting naked, so that will be fine.”
She got to her feet, took care of their trays and followed her instructor to the testing ground.
Mechanisms were arranged around the wide chamber, and each and every one was powerless, right down to the lights.
Kibor waited until the last viewer filed in and took a position against the wall before he stated, “The goal here is to operate as many of these devices as you can, and keep them running, if possible.”
Minerva nodded. “When do I start?”
He flicked off the only illumination in the room. “Now.”
She stepped toward the first light stand, and she started the light. The next machine seemed to have farming application and had never been designed to move on its own, but she got it huffing and churning. A saw blade whirred as she caressed the cutting unit; another grinding unit began to thud and crunch as she touched it. She moved around and around the room, keeping all the objects doing whatever they had been designed to do.
“Thank you, Specialist Minerva. It was an excellent display.”
The objects went quiet.
The title he was addressing her by proved that she had mastered her talent, even if she wasn’t quite sure what it was.
Mala had guessed that it was an energy projection, but Carella had called her a poltergeist or the ghost in the machine. It was an amusing idea that she could be in two places at once. Astral possession was another theory. Hopefully, Kibor could sort it out.
She swayed but her suit kept her upright. It was another gift from the Fixer. She could be exhausted and still have amazing posture.
“Do you have a diagnosis, Master Kibor?”
“Yes, get some sleep. I will call on you in the morning with the plan for your continuing education.”
She couldn’t fight his assessment of her fa
tigue. “Good afternoon, Master Kibor. I will see you tomorrow.”
Minerva staggered back to her quarters, and she leaned on the wall of the lift as it headed up to the ninth floor. She was drained, but her soul was exhilarated. She had performed in front of a crowd of spectators. It was not something that she could have imagined being able to do.
When the lift arrived and she stumbled down the hall to her quarters, there was a message light on the door. She ignored it and entered the room, removing her gloves and settling in at the com station to pull off her boots.
A small squeak got her attention, and the small grey figure that barreled toward her stopped when it reached her leg, rubbing its small head along her calf.
“What are you? Some kind of weird rat?”
The com light was flashing. She flicked the machine and a voice filled the room. “Hello, by now you have met the Yaluthu provided to you at its insistence. It is an empathic healer. It will be your constant companion from now on, and if you listen, it will tell you its name. They communicate through images and sound. The full care and feeding manual is attached to this file. Enjoy its presence in your life. If it has demanded to be with you, there is a reason for it.”
The message ended.
The creature was looking up at her with huge grey-blue eyes, and its hair was a scruffy blend of greys. When she leaned over and picked it up, the body wriggled in her hands.
Enjel didn’t have this kind of pet. It just wasn’t done.
The inquisitive chirp came again, and this time, when Minerva met its wide-eyed gaze, she fell into those eyes as the small beast took her measure. The warmth and affection that poured through her took her by surprise. Poppy was doing a full assessment of her emotional and physical state.
When the Yaluthu was done with her, Minerva lifted her and set her on the bed, removing her clothing for sleep. She was unsurprised that Poppy climbed up next to her and cuddled in. They settled in for a bonding sleep.
Chapter Four
Waking to a pair of huge eyes staring at her jolted her back with a shout. Poppy blinked, chortled happily and waddled up to her, unperturbed by her vocalization.