Obligations

by Cheryce Clayton

  “I should go,” Morgan whispered, her eyes drifting to Tim’s mouth.

  “I know,” he answered before kissing each of her eyelids and then her lips.

  His tongue lingered in her unprotesting mouth before he pulled away brusquely, stood, and waved her toward the door.

  The break in contact left her cold, and she rose without a word and walked from the room.

  The corridor was crowded with retainers moving toward the main audience chamber. They all dropped to their knees when they saw Morgan, and she waved them out of her way. She could feel Tim following her as they moved toward the chamber where she had first seen him on board the ship.

  Tadesde and several others were crouched within a barricade. Their fur was green, and Morgan wondered briefly as to their fertility; she knew that few regressives bore children.

  But to take that risk, Morgan thought with a shudder.

  “My Ladee, my Ladee!” Tadesde howled as she dropped to her knees.

  The Sansheren present clutched their ears as the voice peaked into a painful range.

  “Wee are both Ouosin, you and I. I would honor you, my Ladee!” Tadesde crawled forward, and Morgan noted the ridges that had formed on the captive’s back.

  The regression was worse than anything she had ever read about, and the thought of fathering death children of the other horrified her.

  “She should stand as a warning to indulgent parents. Take her to the zoo on the Shere. All the Great Houses should bear witness to her existence,” Morgan said to cover her discomfort, addressing Iedonea who grinned her own response.

  “At least keell me! You promised to keell mee! Where is your honor? Keell mee,” the voice dropped to a guttural whisper as Tadesde collapsed sobbing on the floor.

  Amigo moved from Enrico’s side and stood watching as tranquilizer drugs were fired into the regressed leader’s back.

  “Spontaneous genetic regression. I thought it was just insults, and flowery speech.” Isaacs’s voice echoed through the room, and he looked about for reassurance.

  Tadalde moved to his side and placed her arm on his shoulder. “It is a deep personal fear no one speaks of. I would not be alone this night?”

  Her request hung in the air only moments before Isaac draped his arm across her shoulders.

  “What of us, my Lady?” Ferseca shouted and Morgan turned to see the old woman’s green fur and muzzled face.

  “You chose your role in history, accept it,” Morgan said as she gestured for the retainers to be drugged.

  “Send them all to the home world. Tadesde will need food,” Morgan called over her shoulder.

  Ferseca’s scream followed her into the corridor, and Morgan did not notice that Tim failed to follow her. She made her way to the command center and was joined there by Iedonea.

  “She was right,” Morgan said, not looking at Iedonea.

  “In what? My Lady,” Iedonea asked, and Morgan thought she ignored her intent.

  “I am as much Ouosin as she. My beloved Neadesto gave me the rank of Twelve but not the right of Eleven,” Morgan continued talking as she watched the holograph display without interest.

  “Your modesty will be spoken of through the ages, my niece,” Iedonea tried to joke.

  “I wear a banner that is made a mockery by my lack of experience. How long before the whispers start? It is you who should wear this.” Morgan turned to her older friend and began to unfasten the ancient banner Neadesto had given her.

  “You’re not the first to offer me such honor, but who am I to deny the whim of the great Morganea?” Iedonea again joked as she moved to kneel at Morgan’s feet.

  “You honor me with your presence,” Morgan began the ceremony. “Do not disparage the moment with a false fealty. Stand.” Morgan placed her hands on Iedonea’s shoulders and lifted; the other made no move to rise.

  “It is your presence that honors me, child. I can only hope such bravery is contagious,” Iedonea said to begin her own ceremony, and smiled even as her voice choked with emotion.

  “It was your bravery I borrowed from,” Morgan said as she sank to her own knees.

  “Your devotion is beyond measure, I can do no less than bring you closer to myself.” Iedonea reached a hand to Morgan’s face and was rewarded when the human woman leaned forward and rested her head on the older leader’s shoulder.

  “Your devotion gave me strength, I can do no less,” Morgan paused to take a shaky breath before she continued speaking into Iedonea’s ear. “I can do no less than bring you closer to myself,” and Morgan whispered the name of the Twelfth rank of the Sansadee to Iedonea. There was a brief pause as the moment built and then Iedonea whispered the name of the Eleventh rank of the Sansadee to her. Both women held the position, the emotions overwhelming them. They were unaware of the small crowd that gathered to watch the double ceremony in awe.

  #

  “That’s it! We just leave? No goodbyes, no nothing?” Greg shouted at Tim’s back.

  “It’s all been said,” Tim said without turning. He stood waiting for the airlock to cycle.

  Morgan had been on Bystocc for several days before Tadalde had given in to Tim’s request, and agreed to grant them passage back to Wergol.

  “Maybe, but I ain't said it,” Greg stated as he followed his friend into the airlock.

  “I sent her a note, invited her to Sam and Denise’s wedding. You know how the Sansheren are about marriage and kids. She’ll come as soon as her honor lets her leave this rock.” Tim pointed out the airlock window as the ship they were in drifted clear of the flagship and offered them a view of the war-damaged planet. The blast craters were easy to spot, and they stood in the airlock for some time as they watched the planet shrink.

  “Hey, when you gonna teach me that crap they speak?” Tim hit Greg in the arm as they entered the corridor.

  Chapter Thirty One - Bystocc – 2013

  “Are you certain?” Morgan sat on a lounge chair, watching three Sansheren children play at stalking each other behind the viewing glass.

  “They are the only triplets to be found, my niece,” Iedonea said from beside her on a separate lounge.

  “When a nursery team comes from Sheresuan we will run the tests. Until then, it comforts me to pretend certainty.” Morgan offered Iedonea a half felt smile.

  “We have found a group of survivors who claim to have been your nursery team here. They were succored by natives during Tadesde’s brief reign. They wish to return to work now.” Iedonea did not voice her opinion of the validity of their claim.

  “Have they any proof of their claim?” Morgan asked as she stood and gestured for the room’s door.

  “They have several children with them who have barely passed into the age of reason.” Iedonea shielded her eyes as they moved into the brightly lit corridor.

  “Indeed. I will grant them audience today.” Morgan offered Iedonea her arm as they picked their way through the rubble that decorated the floor of the corridor.

  An occasional blood splatter could be seen high up on the walls, and they passed by the few remaining bones of an unidentified, though obviously palatable native as they made their way up to the ground level.

  “They will be honored by your personal attention to their case. Tell me, when will we leave to see your family’s newborn?” Iedonea cast a side glance at her that Morgan did not see.

  “I have duties here to accomplish first,” she answered without breaking her pace.

  “A leader must balance her duties carefully, lest one aspect of her life becomes neglected,” Iedonea seemed to be speaking to the air; Morgan kept walking without pause.

  “I do not see Enrico,” Morgan said to break the silence that built between them.

  The aircar they had traveled in was no longer sitting in the street where they had left it.

  “Ah, but I see a shadow. Do you, my niece?” Iedonea asked without pointing to the aircar shadow which betrayed its position above them.

  “Yes,” Morgan r
esponded as the aircar swooped down silently, mussing their banners with its breeze, and landed in front of them.

  “My turn, my turn,” Amigo called out from the back seat of the vehicle.

  “My turn,” Iedonea interrupted as she waited for the grinning Enrico to climb free of the pilot’s seat.

  “Now you have done it. Her skill and daring are known on twenty planets. The last time she piloted an aircar on Sheresuan, Neadesto entertained claims of accidental regression for weeks.” Morgan laughed as she buckled herself in.

  “Just unscrupulous cowards trying to enrich their standing by false claims of injury,” Iedonea called over her shoulder as she fired the craft’s engines and revved them far hotter than was necessary.

  “From the head of the clothier’s consortium? She was in the craft with you.” Morgan’s laughing taunts were cut short as Iedonea lifted the craft up and began to wind amongst the buildings at a height that barely cleared the tops of the ground cars as they passed. Their speed built, and soon they were zooming through more rural settings.

  “I am told this particular model can circle an average planet in less than a day. Shall we try for dinner on the Southern Continent?” Iedonea brought them into a higher altitude before her question and now did not wait for a response before she threw open the throttle, and the craft shook in protest of the increased demands. The clouds and landscape far below could be seen to move, and Enrico gave up trying to determine their relative speed.

  “Um, I would never dream of challenging one so experienced in the worlds as yourself. But…” Enrico said, and Iedonea allowed his protest to linger as she aimed the nose of the craft at the sky above them and the clear blue began to darken.

  “But? I do not think this is the place for flattery my dear. Speak your mind.” Iedonea laughed as she once more leveled the craft’s altitude.

  “This craft may have been equal to your skill when it was built, but it is old and I fear it has not been regularly serviced. Your flying is far more advanced than its ability to fly. I humbly request that we at least return to breathable atmosphere.” Enrico swallowed several times while he spoke. The shaking and pinging of protest increased with their altitude.

  “Indeed. Has it been so very long, how are we both so old?” Iedonea began to ease the craft back toward the planet. They were now over an ocean, and she could make out the hint of a continent on the horizon.

  “You should not protest age, my Lady. It becomes you well,” Morgan shouted, over the increased sounds of vehicular distress.

  “You speak the truth, my dear. But the ever courteous Enrico spoke a greater truth when he called my attention to this weary vehicle. The air intake regulator just failed. If I were still indulging my childish flying, we would be dead, I fear,” Iedonea said as she fought with the controls. A loud hiss grew to dominate all other sounds; it was several moments before the passengers realized the engines were silent.

  “I can help,” Amigo jumped from her seat and pulled herself forward to cling to the back of Iedonea’s seat.

  “Climb onto my lap, child. It has been a long time since I glided a craft in, I would appreciate your small muscles and fast reflexes.” Iedonea leaned back in her chair as Amigo slid in front of her.

  The child braced her feet on either side of the steering column and placed her hands beside Iedonea’s.

  “This is the test of a real pilot. You watch that monitor; we have to avoid all blue patches. No matter how faint. They’re down gusts. Look for the pink ones and we’ll try to catch them. The radio seems to have blown out as well,” Iedonea finished with an aside to Morgan and Enrico. The craft dropped suddenly, and she returned her complete attention to the controls.

  “Sorry,” Amigo murmured, but only Iedonea could hear her over the scream of the invading air. Without power for the locks, several hatches were now loose and threatening to tear open.

  “They just appear like that. No anticipation will help you sometimes. Let’s just try to stay in the pinks and reds.” Iedonea pressed her lips to Amigo’s head and was distracted to notice that the younger one was already shedding her scalp fur. The loose strands of fine fur floated in her nose and tickled her.

  “The global locator shows us just short of the Southern Continent. We should see land soon. Regardless, we will have lost too much altitude before long.” Iedonea stopped trying to reassure her passengers and concentrated on the controls again. That, and not sneezing.

  “There are no large predators in these waters. Let us just hope the seat floats have been better serviced,” Enrico shouted as he found his hand making a familiar path about his body; forehead, stomach, shoulder, shoulder, chin. It was a religious habit he thought broken before his eighth birthday. The memory of the small room, metal floor, silent fountain, and seven other frightened children came to him suddenly. The voice of the nameless priest saying last rites as they waited for their captors echoed from his memory, and he shook his head to exorcize it.

  “Where are your flowery words of skill and experience, my friend? I have never crashed a craft yet. Would you foretell such an event now? With land on the horizon?” Iedonea found herself laughing as she forced the controls to obey her desire.

  “I have heard human pilots say that any landing you can walk away from is not a crash,” Enrico shouted forward, still trying to fight down the memory.

  “We are alike then, human and Sansheren pilots. Any landing you can walk away from, I like that.” Iedonea pull hard on the steering column and was grateful for Amigo’s strength. They turned the craft away from what their screen showed as a looming wall of blue. They banked again, and then found themselves riding upwards on the thermal currents that poured off of the glacial mountain a few miles inland. Clouds enshrouded them, and Iedonea risked freeing a hand from the steering column to tap the global locator they were relying upon.

  “The locator shows a city in this direction. Let us see just how close we can come,” Iedonea said, her voice low for Amigo only. They both continued to fight the craft’s tendency to drift toward the downdraft just offshore.

  “No choice,” Amigo grunted as the steering column was once more almost ripped from their hands.

  “I know, but never tell your passengers that.” Iedonea gave a short laugh as the clouds continued to obscure the city the locator now placed beneath them. The spaceport was marked on the map and they were approaching it rapidly.

  As they dropped down further, the clouds cleared and they found themselves fast approaching the vast rectangle of the spaceport. Iedonea risked a hand free of the steering column to activate sullen controls; without electronics they were forced to wait for the hydraulics to cycle the craft’s landing gear. In the meantime, the steering column drifted left, and they banked into a steep circle. Seeing the stretch of usable tarmac shrinking fast, Iedonea brought her hand back to the steering column, and she and Amigo wrestled the craft into a violent landing. No one moved for several minutes as the craft skidded sideways to a stop, unencumbered by any remnants of the landing gear.

  “Next time I fly,” Amigo said fervently, and she scrambled over Iedonea’s shoulder and into Enrico’s lap.

  Enrico held her until her shivering subsided and she looked out of the window.

  “Company,” Amigo said to her companions. Several natives of Bystocc were approaching the smoking craft cautiously.

  “Well, let us see about arranging transportation back to our headquarters,” Morgan said in a businesslike manner as she unfastened her harness and released the craft’s door.

  “Greetings. The beauty of the Arbitrator was understated in the broadcasts we have heard. We are your servants, my Lady.” The lead native knelt on the ground and called out in broken Sansheren when Morgan emerged from the car.

  “Stand, my friends. Stand,” Morgan said as Iedonea accepted Enrico’s help climbing out of the craft.

  “It would not be fitting for one as worthless as myself to stand with you, my patron.” The native continued to kne
el as Morgan walked toward it.

  “This is your planet. I only have the honor of protecting it.” Morgan knelt as she placed her hand on the taller alien’s shoulder.

  “Your wisdom brings tears to my eyes. We have heard that Tadesde is no more?” the native looked deep into Morgan’s eyes as they both stood.

  “She is no longer a threat to this world or any other. Come, we require transportation back to my headquarters.” Morgan’s gesture included the natives and her own party who moved away from the aircar and now stood watching.

  “It will be arranged, my Lady. Might I ask when they quit being a danger?” The native pointed at Amigo as the entire party moved toward the buildings at the edge of the square landing field.

  “Four, sometimes five years. If there are infants hunting within your city we will be certain to send a nursery team here,” Morgan said reassuringly.

  The buildings were sunk into the ground, with less than half of a story showing, Iedonea realized.

  “There are only three. Children of one that Tadesde killed, we think. The infants are locked within a fortified room. But they want for food.” The native continued speaking as it directed them down a gentle slope that led into one of the hangar buildings.

  “Have you heard the name of this mother?” Morgan asked as Iedonea and Amigo moved away to inspect the single craft within the hangar.

  It was ancient, and technologically it was behind the old Sansheren craft they had arrived in.

  “The evidence says that she was your wife, my Lady. We sent an envoy to your headquarters, but no word has come back to us as of yet.” The native rushed its words out as Morgan froze and Enrico turned with a hard look.

  “Several natives helped me to escape. We were forced to leave Neavillii behind. Dead,” Enrico mumbled to no one.

  “I know one of those that aided you, she, too, thought the Lady Neavillii was dead. But her name is painted on the door to the cell, I do not know what else to assume-“

  Morgan silenced the native by placing her hand upon the other’s arm again, reaching up to do so.