Guardsman

by Pam Uphoff

  “Today you are all going to try to project a shield. You are going to project it only a tiny way, and only one at a time, so I can intercept any out-of-control slices.” Her eyes wandered over them. “You are all very strong, and each of you is going to have to either control this . . . or never do it.”

  Dave watched her walk down to the end of the line. Fatina’s twins, grandchildren of two Prophets, Harry and Byram, had just turned seventeen and had been taking Rael’s morning classes almost as long as Dave had.

  Hafez was at that end of the line. And sat up straighter as Rael stopped in front of him.

  “All of you close your eyes and watch magically. Do not gather power. Hafez? You may gather power.” Rael circled around behind him, and Dave could see a faint haze she was projecting, a U of force, open in front of him.

  “Form your usual shield . . . Relax, breathe deeply. This isn’t actually very difficult. Better. Hold out your left arm . . . you’re right handed? Good. Now picture your shield flowing like water off your body and down your left arm, and right off the tips of your fingers, straight out, like a sheet of glass . . .”

  The faint shield that had sparkled on the boy’s body flashed out, contained on the sides by Rael, and in front cutting three posts twenty meters away.

  And disappeared.

  Hafez’s arm dropped, and he sagged.

  Isakson’s deep chuckle from behind them. “Very nice.”

  Rael handed the boy a bottle of boost. “Well, that was fast. Tomorrow I’ll start teaching you how to control that, so you don’t accidentally chop a person in half. Later, Isakson will teach you how to do it on purpose.”

  Dave sighed. Warrior strength at seventeen. And here I am. Forty-four. Unable to do diddly. I have Speed, and I can shield fairly well. And I failed these same classes a thousand years ago.

  “Hafiza? You’re not going to let your brother do that better than you can, are you? Pull power and shield.”

  The girl’s first try only went out a meter, but she held it, pulled in the sides and pushed it out. It faded and she panted, grinning.

  “Nice. Controlled and sustained. Qamar? Shall we see how a PhD in Magical Theory translates into practice?”

  Dave was surprised at Qamar’s nervous nod.

  But she relaxed, took a couple of deep breaths and gathered power. Pulled up a shaky, weak shield.

  “Hmm, you’re going to need more work on the basics.” Rael sounded surprised. “Relax the shield and listen in while I pick on Dave.”

  Qamar hung her head . . . and surely that wasn’t a tear!

  Dave stifled an impulse to hug her, and to hell with the shields . . . He sat up straight and took a couple of deep breaths. Tried to absorb that slippery thin sunlight and pour it into a shield.

  “Right handed?”

  “Ambidextrous.”

  “If you had only a single pistol, which hand would you use for it?”

  “Whichever it was in or the shape of whatever I was behind.” He grinned when he heard her growl. “Left hand.”

  “So stick your right hand out. Now think of the shield as water and it’s pouring out to your right hand. . . and straight out, this is antigravity water, smart ass. See how it’s fanned out? Pull it into a narrow blade and push it further.”

  “Now open your eyes. Lower your hand to that board in front of you, while holding the shield.”

  Dave opened his eyes. And lowered his hand. The board ignored him.

  “Push.”

  He pushed . . . a thin line . . . he leaned and the cut deepened. And his head hurt like hell.

  “Stop. Relax. Good job.”

  He looked from her to the board in disbelief.

  “Trust me that is a good first day.” Rael handed him a bottle of boost. “Don’t mind the brats.”

  Dave chugged boost, then scooted around a bit sideways . . . to watch the rest of the class. That it got him a little closer to Qamar had nothing to do with it. Really.

  He glanced at her. “I have a nasty feeling we’re going to be the class dunces.”

  She sniffed, and scooted a bit closer. “Everyone says I have an inhibition. That I’m so worried about hurting someone or something that I can’t do it.”

  “You? Well, you weren’t ever as fierce as Ra’d.” He frowned.

  “I thought Rael could get me past it.”

  That made him grin. “Well I know she’s good, but since you just got here this morning . . .”

  That got a laugh out of her. “I know, I know. Like magic. Poof! Done!” She heaved a sigh. “It’s just going to take more time.”

  They both looked over to where a seventeen-year-old former priest was pushing out a wavery shield-slice and cutting down another post.

  They sighed in unison, and somehow his arm went around her shoulder and she was leaning on him.

  “That woman’s going to train half a dozen more Warriors just out of this bunch if she isn’t careful.” Dave squeezed her shoulders, then dropped his arm and shifted a couple of centimeters away.

  She’s the daughter of a prophet. She’ll marry someone with prospects, not a half-power guard.

  Chapter Five

  History through Vids

  20 Shaban 1413

  “So. What ridiculous three things are we watching this Wednesday night?” Dave kicked back between Foo and Oldy, clicking off his minicomp. A—purely casual—search through jobs had shown a daunting lack of interesting positions that didn’t require a college degree. Welcome to the future, Dave.

  Oldy grinned. “We decided you two were ready for the Cannibals.”

  “Surely not three . . .”

  “Yep. Three vids. The Cannibal World was an all Disco action, and an all-around disaster, then the middle story. It wasn’t a real great vid by itself, but then the blockbuster final episode finished it off nicely.” Foo shook his head. “Accurately, too. At least the part I saw in person. Talk about a battle!”

  “I’ve never watched all three in a row.” Ashi flopped down on the far side of Foo. “That middle part? That everyone says is so stupidly unrealistic? I was there, on the observation world, and I damn well saw Ra’d take out four tanks with seven shots.”

  Lucky Dave nodded. “He was always good with guns. Any type. A natural, easy to train, plus he practiced. Lots. With and without magic.”

  He noted the nods all around. Well, they’ve no doubt seen him at the range, and a few of them apparently in the field. Between him and Isakson, they know about Warriors . . .

  “These new Warriors . . . Rael and who else?”

  “You’ve met Scar, Icks, and Ux. Ohhe has gone back to the regular army and is trying to find people with the potential to be Warriors to send to Isakson for training. Qayg, Xiat, and Izzo.” Foo grinned and jerked a thumb at the screen. “And Ebsa and Paer. You’ll see them in the second vid.”

  Lucky Dave hesitated. “Umm . . . just to be clear, here, you are not talking about the president’s daughter, right?”

  Multiple toothy grins.

  Major Eppa had been walking by. He turned, also grinning. “Our president’s daughter kicks ass, takes names, and then heals all the bones she just broke. She’s currently terrifying us by handing her two-year-old twins over to the nanny and running off to cross-dimensional disasters.”

  Dave thought that over. “Right. I’ll just file that under weird future stuff, and get on with it.”

  Sometime a bit after midnight he headed back to the mansion. Speaking firmly. “That was fiction. At worst a Very Highly Fictionalized version of what really happened.”

  “You wish!” Someone called, from behind him.

  I’m going to have nightmares.

  It was a relief to get up before dawn, run two kilometers before he staggered to a halt to walk back. Sit cross-legged and meditate, to visualize the mirrors to keep his thoughts in and other peoples’ thoughts out. To imagine that the warmth of the rising sun was sinking into his body.

  Even though he knew it wasn’
t happening in any magical sense.

  Bad luck, this time, Lucky Dave.

  So just soldier on, as always.

  But he ran a bit further every day, lifted heavier weights . . . and one morning Isakson grinned, and handed him a neatly folded bundle of heavy white cloth. “Put it on and report to the gym, Captain.”

  “I’m dead.”

  Foo laughed. “Nah, he hasn’t accidentally killed any of us, yet.”

  Lucky Dave eyed him. “How about on purpose?”

  “No, but I swear he’s tried a few times.”

  ***

  But to his surprise, Isakson grinned with his beautiful (new!) teeth and nodded at Rael. “I want to watch how you move. Just a friendly little bout.”

  Rael giggled and bounced out to the mat.

  Lucky Dave winced. One, I’m not supposed to hit girls. Two, I saw her beat Isakson. Three, oh crap this is going to hurt!

  He tromped on his impulse to call up anger.

  Rael giggled. “That’s right. No anger, and the Speed will take care of itself.”

  He bowed as she bowed.

  She bounced in and he barely deflected a punch, had to chase her around, got chased as fists and feet flew. Refused to get angry, blocked another kick, got punched—a light controlled tap. Pushed himself to keep up with her quick movements.

  The bell dinged. He limped back to the center and they bowed to each other.

  He frowned at the bell . . . “That was more than three minutes.”

  Isakson chuckled. “No, that was cold speed. She’s very good at getting it out of people. Not that you should need help. Your instinctive Speed always starts cold.”

  Lucky Dave eyed Rael. “Cold Speed. The best of the Warriors could do it. I never could, deliberately. It just happened, sometimes.”

  She shook her head. “Do you disbelieve in all your abilities?”

  He sighed. “I believe in my luck. And I know from experience that it comes in good and bad. I have to be careful, until I see which way it is.”

  “Hmm. That brings up some interesting possibilities. Is it personal, or does it affect people around you?”

  He glowered at her. “Most people treat it like a joke.”

  Giggle. “Hey, I hang around with the God of Spies. I know it’s not a joke.” Wicked grin. “Even though I do giggle and pretend to disbelieve.”

  Isakson snorted, then eyed Dave. “You need more work on strengthening the leg and flexibility in the shoulder. Good. You’re almost recovered.”

  Vet slid out of the watching crowd. “Yeah, I saw that too. Let me introduce you to wall ball.”

  Wall ball involved rolling a ball up and around and all over a wall. The high and behind parts . . . “Okay, you’ve found the painful bits, can I stop now?”

  “No. Three reps. And then how about some squats?”

  “Grrr . . .”

  Vet just grinned.

  “So, why don’t you go three minutes with Crazy Redhead One?”

  A snort from Rael. “I’m telling Crazy Redhead Two you said that.”

  And then Vet trotted out to the mat and did a credible job of not getting too badly beaten.

  I’m back among the fit and dangerous.

  Chapter Six

  The In Group

  25 Shaban 1413

  Dave received an invitation from Urfa to join him in a meeting.

  At Government House. Itsy turned up driving an official car—at least it wasn’t a limo—and turned it over to another guard at the back entrance to Government House.

  “I’m supposed to make sure you find the right room. Betting in the barracks is that you’d wander around lost and the first person you asked for directions would be the guard at the door to Urfa’s conference room.”

  Lucky Dave sighed. “You guys do realize that luck comes in a bad variety, right? So tell them I walked confidently into the ladies lav. Okay?”

  “Oh Kay. You know that one word is enough to identify you as a thousand years old?”

  As they walked up on a guard, he opened the door he was guarding for them. Inside, a drop-dead gorgeous woman was sitting behind a desk. She flashed a smile and pointed at the side door.

  “Just walk in, Captain, and have a seat.”

  Itsy dropped into a chair across the desk from her. “Any interesting gossip, Puur?”

  Lucky Dave eyed the door. Straightened his shoulders and opened the door. Stepped into a completely ordinary conference room. No. It was absolutely bare. A long table with a dozen chairs. A desk a bit apart, crossways at the end to his left. The desk was bare, the walls were bare, the only things on the table were small comps the people there had obviously brought with them. No windows. I wonder if, for really secret topics, everyone leaves their stuff outside?

  Rael was there, chatting with two strangers in business suits. One short and blond, the other large and brunette. Idlo, one of the Directorate Agents he’d met. Several other men, an older woman looking him over with a sharp gaze.

  Rael caught his eye and pointed at a chair.

  “I think everyone but Urfa is here, now. So perhaps some introductions for the two new people. Over there we have Captain Dave ibn Daiki ibn William, whom we, along with half the other organizations on the world are trying to recruit. And sitting next to him, Jiol Withione, former Action Team, and former Presidential Guard, among other things, and now with Disco.”

  “Dave, Jiol, to my right, Ahxe Withione Blackpoint who works with the police and courts on the colonies. His boss, Director Izzo Withione Alcairo of External Relations. To my left Ydro Neartuone, Inre Neartuone, and Idlo Withione are specialists in Political Intel.”

  In as much as Idlo had taken the chair at the foot of the table, and his nose was starting to elevate, he apparently didn’t like being grouped with the other two.

  Mere Neartuones. In the Presidential Director’s ingroup! The horror! Dave shrugged off the thought that if not for Ra’d quick intervention, he’d have been even lower. A Halfer.

  These people are insane to judge people’s worth with a genetic test.

  He turned his gaze the other direction. And that’s Izzo, eh? Okay, not quite what I was expecting. But damn, he looks a whole lot like Furkan. I’ll bet he’s wicked fast. And blond, so either Byram or Oliver. Or both, of course.

  The door opened again. Urfa and his pretty secretary.

  Everyone turned off their electronics.

  “So, Ox, everything smooth?”

  The big guy—Ahxe—nodded. “Not without a few noses out of joint, but when I told them they could take their complaints to Izzo . . . they decided they could live with the situation.”

  Urfa grinned, and glanced down the table at Dave. “We colonized four worlds with a native population, and had separate police and courts for the natives. Which was silly from the start, with Homestead, but now they’ve all been combined. One police force, one court system for each world. One set of laws, empire-wide.”

  Dave made a mental note to ask about how a single police force could cover a world.

  “So, welcome to Paris.” Urfa looked down the table. “Jiol? How’s that problem working out? This is not for public discussion. But a quick overview for the new people?”

  The old woman snorted. “An un-contacted Earth, Tunguska Branch, circa 2172. They found a gate—probably made by the Combat Gang—that connected to the Maze. They went exploring and decided to start they introduction to the Multiverse by capturing this city their scout found. Embassy of course. Fortunately their scout had the sense to go straight to Xen, and Xen sent their invasion packing. He left them a small branch of the Maze to keep them busy and said he’d contact them in a year or so and see if they’d decided to be sensible.”

  Dave eyed her. “You make it sound like he did it alone. Or was it a small expeditionary force?”

  “Six armored mobile artillery units, and two companies of infantry. And yes, he did it alone. We all go to bed every night praising Allah for making Xen a genuinely nice guy
.” The old woman chuckled. “You’ll see, if you ever spend much time around him.

  “In any case, the scout rounded up his family and brought them back to Embassy, before Xen isolated that world.” She grinned. “And it seems that the split point came midway in the creation of the original Tellies, and some have survived, and were the scout’s extended and courtesy family. So we now have Chloe, Zeynep, Daiki, and Kaito as well as two Tellies from other companies, living on Embassy.”

  Lucky Dave choked. Hoped his poker face was working.

  “Use of magic was illegal there, so they have practically no training, but are picking it up quickly.” She paused. “The update is pretty much just that. They’re learning fast and their kids and grandkids are in the mostly Oner school, and doing well. Ambassador Ashe is staying in touch with them, as is Ambassador Itsi of Whirlpool One.”

  Her glance sheered over to Dave. “I asked—they didn’t know any Tellies named Nicholas or Emre. So I think they never existed, but if, when the Prophet can travel, perhaps he could see if these are the people he knows, or different experiments with the same name.”

  Lucky Dave nodded. “Actually Isakson will know them all, except Chloe, and I have met Zeynep and Kaito. And I know my father, Daiki, very well. A DNA comparison between him, myself, and Davos should settle the genetic question.”

  She eyed him. “Your father . . . Sorry, living on Embassy I hadn’t quite realized . . . Indeed. When you can . . . well, frankly, they’re a suspicious bunch and may not cooperate. I’m afraid their Earth has turned into a police state, and a lot of their friends have died or disappeared. So don’t rush. Our curiosity can wait on their acceptance.”

  “Yes. No point in being pushy.” Dave thought it over. “And Davos and I having a bit more time to internalize that this is not our Dad, he’s Dad’s twin brother, is a good idea, too. And if they’re half as overwhelmed as I am by the modern . . . Multiverse, yeah. Let’s do this later.”