by neetha Napew
“Well, this has been totally nonproductive.” Maggie made a careless gesture, and a moment later we were back in space, with galaxies whizzing past us and stars exploding at distant points. “I’ve given you immortality and the guardianship of this galaxy, and all you can do is cling to your idiotic human suspicions?”
“Guess you picked the wrong experimental fetus.” Now I patted her cheek. “Better luck next time.”
“I’ve given you proof!”
“You’ve shown me exactly what I needed to see to believe you. Beauty and wonder on an epic scale. Only the scale isn’t balanced, Maggie. No superior species is going to live in crystal cities, or sell themselves to slavers, or mess with inferior life-forms. That’s ridiculous. If your kind is as powerful as you say you are, you’d play volleyball with this galaxy first. We would mean zero to you because we’d be nothing to you.”
“And now you’re going to tell me your theory, I suppose.”
I had one, but I wasn’t going to show her my cards. “No. I don’t have one and I don’t care. I don’t care about you, the Jxin, your plan, or anything else remotely connected with you. Now, if you’re done playing with me, I’d like to go back to my life. I’d also like you to stay out of it. Forever. Any questions?”
She gave me a speculative look. “No. But-“
“But nothing. Wave your wand, send me back, whatever you have to do to end this.” I rubbed my aching brow. “I thought finding out I was a clone was bad. Then finding out my father/brother/whatever had made me to be his wife was worse. But this? This really takes the cake.”
“It’s the truth, Cherijo.”
I looked at her. “Why am I still here?”
“This has to be done.” She changed her shape, transforming into the Jxin female again. Her voice struck my ears with the full force of its terrible beauty. “There must be cohesion, order.”
Which confirmed part of my working theory. This wasn’t about benevolence. It was about control. “I know a couple of Terrans who would agree with you. Like Hitler. Or Hussein. Or my father.”
“Your role in the order must be carried out.”
“I’m not falling for it. Go find someone else. You’re not God, and you’ll never convince me that you are.”
She rose to her full height and extended her arms. Wind began to blow around us. “The Jxin are your God.”
Now came the celestial fireworks, apparently. “Then I just became an atheist.”
The Jxin female laughed. The wind died, and I could hear the ghost of Maggie laughing with her. “Of all my special ones, I have loved you the most, girl. Now I know why.”
She loved me, all right. The way Joseph had loved me. For reasons that made me want to throw up. “Yeah, well, get over it, because I am not doing anything for you.”
“Don’t you see, child?” She smiled. “You already are.”
I didn’t have a clear memory of what happened after Maggie/Whoever smiled at me. One minute, I was ready to scream, the next I sat up and groaned.
Sunlight filtered over my face, warm and gentle. My back felt like someone had taken one of the Taercals’ clubs to me.
“Mama?” Marel was perched on my legs, playing swat-the-grass-blade with some cats sitting overhead on the edge of the recess.
Both the Jxinok and Terran felines seemed determined to shred the thin green stalk into ribbons, so I took it from her. “No, baby, they might claw you by accident.” I coughed and rubbed my throat-my voice sounded terrible, like a rusty drone’s.
“Healer!” A terrified Omorr face filled my vision. “You are awake, thank the gods. I have been attempting to revive you for more than an hour.”
“I’m fine.” I checked my daughter over, but she seemed none the worse for wear. “How long have I been out?”
“We found you last night. Linguist Reever could not revive you at all.” Remembered fear clouded her eyes. “The child refused to leave you.”
“I’m sorry I scared everybody.” I set Marel aside and got to my knees. “Did someone kick me?”
“It must be from sleeping on the stone. Here, let me help you.” I handed Marel up to her, then climbed up out of the recess.
Garphawayn helped by tugging with her three upper limbs. “I cannot recall a time I have been more frightened. I would not want to undertake your profession for all the drell rings on Omorr.”
I thought of Maggie. “There are worse jobs.” I looked around. “Where’s Reever?”
“He and the Chakacat decided to return to the launch to retrieve some medical supplies and repair the communications transmitter, if possible.”
I scanned the skies, but there was no sign of anything but some fat, lazy clouds. “I guess if they’d had any luck, we’d be rescued by now.”
“Your spouse was quite concerned about someone he called Maggie having some manner of hold over you,” she added. “I was not aware there were any inhabitants here to be concerned with.”
“There aren’t, and it’s a long story.”
I didn’t want to wait until my husband and the Chakacat returned, but the Omorr refused to go anywhere.
“We are exactly where we are supposed to be, and I can’t remember the way back to the launch. Can you?”
“No,” I had to admit. I paced around the recess, feeling the uncontrollable desire to put as many miles between me and Maggie’s world as was possible. Instantly. “How long did he think it would take?”
“It took no time at all.”
I turned and ran to Reever, who caught me in a fierce embrace. “Duncan.”
When he managed to wrench his mouth from mine, he cradled my face between his hands. “What happened? I couldn’t even link with you this time.”
“It was Maggie. Or whoever Maggie is. What she told me- well, you’re not going to believe it. I certainly couldn’t.”
“Will you link with me?”
I opened up my mind, letting Reever see everything that I had experienced while under Maggie’s trans-dimensional spell. It felt as if we were linked closer than ever before, and he felt every one of my emotions.
Finally there was nothing more to remember. Duncan, I don’t know why she tampered with Joseph’s experiment, but she created me for a reason. Just not the one she was trying to sell me this time. What I do know is, if she went to this much trouble to get me to believe this story, then maybe it’s better that I never know the truth. I have the feeling there aren’t any crystal cities in the real story. I reached for him, with my hands and my thoughts. He was so quiet and still that it shook me. Say something.
I love you.
We emerged from the link. “Are you sure? I don’t think she will hurt anyone besides me, but I don’t want to take chances with you and Marel.”
“We will deal with Maggie together.”
I felt the invisible weight on my shoulders evaporate. “Then you’ll stick by me, no matter what?”
All he had to say was one word. Lucky for me, it was “Yes.”
The rescue team was on the way to rendezvous with us at the launch site, so we gathered everyone together and trekked back through the woods. A veritable herd of near-cats escorted us, and seemed particularly drawn to Alunthri, who was carrying Juliet and the kittens in its arms.
“I’ll speak to Xonea when I get back to the ship,” I said to Reever. “I have to resign from the Council as soon as possible.”
“Do you think that’s wise?”
“Given this new turn of events, yeah, I do.” I looked back through the forest, and shuddered. “I want to stay as far away from positions of world domination as possible.”
“Perhaps the Jorenians will assist us in getting a ship of our own.” My husband stopped for a moment, listening for something. “Wait.”
Garphawayn came up short behind us. “What is it?”
“Someone is already at the launch site.”
“Xonea’s a fast worker.” I started forward, but Reever held me back.
“The rescue t
eam won’t be here for another thirty minutes.” Reever turned to Alunthri. “Can you identify their scent?”
“I have smelled them before, on Oenrall and K-2.” The Chakacat stepped back into the foliage. “It is the Bartermen.”
Weapons suddenly appeared all around us. I took Marel from Reever and held her close, and saw Alunthri vanish into the undergrowth.
A small, robed figure stepped out in front of us. He yanked back his cowl, displaying a gaunt, gray-skinned face that was as attractive as the odor coming from his dusty robe. “Bartermen have appropriated this vessel, and all its contents.”
“We have no quarrel with you. Take it,” my husband said.
The end of a pulse rifle nudged his chest. “All of its contents, including escaped slaves.”
As we were forced inside the Bartermen’s appropriated Oenrallian vessel, Garphawayn decided to vent some of her pent-up frustrations.
“I refuse to believe that a sentient species who also belongs to the Allied League of Worlds would violate the treaty between the League and Omorr by selling my person to slavers.” She turned to the Barter-men’s head trader, and rapped him on the arm with her sojourn pack. “I am speaking to you, sir. You will rescind this reckless decision and return us to the Sunlace immediately.”
“Bartermen not change trade agreement.” He pointed to a corridor. “You go there.”
“I certainly will not!” The female Omorr moved her head from right to left, then back again. “Who is in authority here? I demand to speak to that person, at once!”
“Bartermen speak for Bartermen.” Our escort jabbed his hand toward the corridor again. “You go there now.”
“I will not.”
Then Lady Cestes did something I never expected. She thumped down on the deck, folded her hands in her lap, and refused to look at the Bartermen.
“You get up and go there,” the Barterman said.
“I cannot hear you.” Gildrells stiff, pink skin blazing with patches of purple color, the Omorr turned her face away.
By unspoken agreement, Reever and I sat down on the deck with Marel between us. Garphawayn thawed enough to give us a curt nod of approval.
The Barterman took out his weapon. “You get up and go there or Barterman will shoot you.”
“Bartermen have a trade agreement for live, unharmed slaves,” my husband said. “Understanding your professional reputation as I do, I seriously doubt you will use that on us. It would nullify the entire deal, would it not?”
Our escort turned to me and Reever. “You tell Omorr female to get up and go there.”
“No, I don’t think I’m going to do that. Reever?” My husband shook his head. “Sorry. Can’t help you out.”
Clearly frustrated, the Barterman grabbed Garphawayn by two of her arms, and tried to pull her to her foot. She responded by screaming at the top of her lungs and beating him over the head with her sojourn pack.
“How dare you! I am the first daughter of the Cestes line! I will have you stripped and flogged for daring to put your filthy hands on me!”
I tried to hold Marel close to me, but she was too fascinated by the spectacle of Garphawayn pummeling the smaller Barterman with her pack.
Reever also got up, assuming that stance he used just before he began wiping up the deck with someone. “Release the Lady Cestes. Now.”
My daughter buried her face in my tunic. “Mama, Daddy’s mad.”
“I know, honey.”
“I doan wike id when Daddy mad.”
I rubbed her back. “Me either.”
More Bartermen came back into the compartment, doubtless to see what all the racket was about.
When more weapons appeared, I got up and held Marel close. “That’s enough, Lady Cestes.”
Startled into silence, the female Omorr let her sojourn pack sag. “What-“
“I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but this isn’t the time.” I looked straight into my husband’s eyes. “Or the way.” To our escort, I said, “We will cooperate as long as you allow me to transmit a signal to the Sunlace first.”
“You belong to Bartermen now,” I was told.
“Whatever.” I mentally crossed my fingers. “If I don’t send them a signal, they will fire on this vessel as soon as you enter the upper atmosphere.”
Our escort and the other Bartermen formed a huddle and discussed my warning in their native tongue. Reever came over and took Marel from me, to show her he wasn’t mad anymore. She held on to him with tight hands and, incredibly, fell asleep in his arms.
He stroked the back of her head. “They will try to separate us.”
“We’re not going to let that happen. I have a plan, but I need you to promise you won’t interfere.”
Before he could say anything, one of the Bartermen came forward and spoke to me. “Bartermen will permit a brief signal. Bartermen will punish deception harshly.”
I wasn’t going to risk them taking out their ire on Marel, so I stuck with my story as I raised Xonea on the Bartermen’s transmitter.
“We’ve decided to take a little trip with some friends,” I said. “You might want to stop by this planet. There are all kinds of cats down here. Big ones who talk, as a matter of fact.”
His expression changed. “Cherijo-“
“The Taercal and the Oenrallians will be here in a day, right?” I spoke quickly, to keep him from blurting out anything that might provoke the Bartermen further. “Make sure the Jado get them to call a truce before they decide to blast Oenrall to smithereens. Duncan and I will take care of our friends as well. Talk to you soon.”
As the Bartermen’s vessel made the jaunt back to Oenrall, we were herded into a confined, empty compartment and locked in. Reever immediately began looking for weapons and a way out, while I held my sleeping daughter and spoke quietly with Garphawayn.
“They will do whatever they want to secure a trade agreement. In our case, we’ve already been sold to a slaver on Oenrall. In their eyes, we really are nothing more than misplaced property.”
“I was not sold to anyone.” The female Omorr stared with great indignation at the locked door. “But still, surely I can pay these little creatures enough credits to release us. My family is quite wealthy.”
“You can offer, but I don’t think they’ll accept anything but hard currency.” I thought of the impending war. “Also, no one will jaunt into this system until the Jado get this peace treaty hammered out.”
More unpleasant news arrived when our escort came back to inspect us.
“You.” He pointed a skeletal finger in my direction. “Bartermen remember you. Bartermen never forget one who corrupts the flow of trade.”
They’d sworn never to forget the way I’d shut down their brisk trade business during the Core plague on K-2. Just my luck, they’d stuck to their promise. “I’m touched.”
“Bartermen will substitute the Omorr female for you to the Akkabarran slaver on Oenrall. You will bring much greater trade from the Allied League. The Hskt-skt also wish to make trade for you.”
“So which one are you guys going to sell me to? Whoever makes the best offer?” I shook my head sadly. “The minute you offer me to one of them, the other side is going to attack you.”
“Bartermen have trade agreements with both sides. Bartermen will be protected by them. You eat, drink. Bartermen will transport you to the surface shortly.”
He dropped some ration packs on the deck, then departed, securing the door behind him.
“I hope the Hsktskt really slam these guys.”
Garphawayn looked thoughtfully at the door panel. “I suspect what he claims is true.”
I rubbed circles into my throbbing temples. “If they try to play the League off the Hsktskt, or vice-versa, someone is going to blow up Oenrall in the process.”
“They do not appear to be concerned with anything but trade,” the female Omorr said. “It does not matter to them what happens to any of us.”
“They have nearly drained
Oenrall of all its assets,” my husband said as he joined us. “They must be planning to abandon the planet as soon as they finish this transaction for Cherijo. She is the most valuable item they possess.”
“I can give them something even more valuable.” I looked up at Duncan. “The ability to trade forever.”
When the Bartermen escort came the next day to check on us again, I made my radical offer.
“You release my husband, my daughter, and the Omorr female. In return, I will give you the C.H.E.R.I.J.O. experimental data.”
The Barterman folded his hands in his sleeves. “Bartermen do not know of this experimental data. Give Bartermen details.”
I told him exactly why the League and Hsktskt were after me, skipping several key facts, but leaving enough of the truth in to make the offer irresistible.
After I finished, he nodded and held out a hand. “Give Bartermen experimental data to examine.”
I shook my head. “That’s not how it works. I don’t have it on me. I have it in me.” When he came forward as if to search my body cavities, I held out my hands. “I memorized it before I left Terra. Everything”-I tapped the side of my head-“is up here.”
He left the compartment, only to return a few minutes later with some of his buddies. “Bartermen wish to see a sample of the experimental data. You come with Bartermen.”
I was taken to a terminal, where I entered the beginning sequences of a number of genetically engineered alterations, and identified what they altered. I didn’t give them enough data to use for anything but verification of my claim, then returned to the compartment.
“Cherijo, you must not do this,” Garphawayn said, as soon as we were left alone. “If you are as you say, they shall auction you off to the highest bidder. Someone will take you to a laboratory and experiment on you, or lock you up in it until you produce a clone like yourself.”
I fought a grin. “They’ve already done that, twice. Reever and I are pretty good at escapes, aren’t we, handsome?”