The Indoctrination

by K. L. Bone

  “Why are they attacking Palta?”

  “Because it is under your protection,” came the reply. “It will strike a blow to the heart of the Empire and shake the confidence of your allies.”

  “So you would imprison the Paltas?”

  He gave a rough laugh. “Who said anything about imprison?”

  “You mean?”

  “Yes.”

  “You plan to kill them?”

  “Every last one,” he replied.

  “When will this attack take place?”

  “It is in the beginning stages and will take time, possibly two grets to formalize the attack and gather our troops into the system. But do not be mistaken, the attack will come.”

  “And we,” Lord Kasar said, stepping from the back of the room into Savrick’s line of vision. “Will be ready; thanks to you.”

  “You will be defeated.” Savrick said defiantly.

  “Everyone falls eventually,” Lord Kasar replied. “However, you will not live to see it.” Kasar turned to me. “You have done well, Chrissa. Now it is time to finish what you have started.”

  “What?” I asked, unsure of what he was saying.

  “This man is our enemy and uninfestible. We cannot possibly let him live to warn his allies that their plan has been discovered.” I stood from my chair and took a few steps back away from him.

  “You…want me to kill him?”

  Inquisitor Verayt stepped forward and handed a long, thin blade to Lord Kasar. Kasar took the blade carefully in his hand. He held it out towards me, handle first. “No,” I said softly.

  “It’s the last step, Chrissa. You have tortured him, and broken him. He has given you the necessary information. Now it is time to end it.” He took a step towards me. I took a step back. I continued to move backwards until my back was literally against the white wall of the examination room. “Chrissalynn,” he said firmly. “He is your patient and now the most merciful thing you can do - is kill him.”

  My eyes searched for Kavra who held a grave look upon his face. Kasar stepped between us, cutting off my line of sight. “Chrissalynn,” he said again in a commanding voice which few had ever refused.

  “Yes,” I whispered back.

  “Take the knife.” I took my hand and gently wrapped it around the hilt of the blade. It was heavier than I had imagined. Lord Kasar stepped to my right and motioned for me to move forward, which I did. I continued to move forward until I was only about five feet from Savrick, then I stopped. I ran a finger lightly over the sharp end of the blade. I hissed as the cold steel sliced my pale skin.

  “That creature,” Lord Kasar said to me, “would annihilate every last person on the planet of Palta. Every father, mother, and child. Every friend, every animal, and pet. It will be genocide. He will kill them all. He is a monster, Chrissa; not us. We stand for improvement and advancement to other societies. Protection from creatures such as this; he is a monster and he must be killed for the sake of all Paltas and Setians alike. You know I am telling the truth.”

  I gazed across the room, but not at Savrick or Kasar. Instead I looked at Kavra and he met my gaze head on. We stared at each other for a long time, uninterrupted as though all others in the room knew that this silence was important. I asked Kavra for help, silently begging him to tell me that this was wrong. That there was another way. That he did not want me to become a killer. He met my gaze only with silence; a sad understanding that after this moment, I would be a child no longer.

  I finally looked away and back to the blade in my hand. I walked towards Savrick. I closed my eyes and pictured that little five year old boy playing with his semnas. The joy in his multi-colored gold and green eyes and realized that this creature was going to kill him. Was going to murder the family he loved so much and the friends he played with in the fields. If this creature was allowed to live, he would kill them all. If he was allowed to live, he would try to find a way to warn his masters of our knowledge of their plan. I saw then that the only way to prevent this was to silence him. With a stroke of my blade I could save a billion lives. With a stroke of my blade, I would stop the holocaust of Palta. I looked back at my father, finally realizing that he was right, and lined the blade with Savrick’s throat. I pulled the blade to the left. A warm, wet liquid covered my hand. I stared down as the monster’s body gave its last convulsion and his eyes faded slowly to a blank, eternal stare.

  Chapter XIII

  Two days later Lord Kavra woke me from a sound sleep with a gentle shaking. I opened my eyes groggily and glanced at the small clock against the far wall. “It’s barely even morning,” I said in a rough voice. “What is so important?”

  “Today we are going to the beach!” Kavra said with a much too perky smile.

  I put my head back on the pillow.

  He laughed and stood from the bed. A few moments later, bright light poured into the room. I pulled the covers over my head. Kavra jerked them away from me and threw them to the floor. I groaned. “Go away.”

  “Rise and shine,” he said. I laid there groaning for several moments until Kavra started softly hitting me with a pillow. I was laughing as I grabbed the pillow beneath my head and hit him back.

  “Okay, okay,” I finally said. “I’ll get up, I’ll get up.”

  I pulled myself out of bed and asked my maids if I had a bathing suit. They promptly opened a drawer in my dresser and provided me a choice of almost any color of the rainbow. I chose a suit of a deep, emerald green and was handed a pair of silky pants and shirt to match. I was also handed an emerald wrap which I draped over my shoulders like a scarf. I walked out to find Lord Kavra in a blue t-shirt and matching shorts. Lord Kasar was in blue jeans and a red, short sleeve shirt. “Shall we go to the beach?” Lord Kavra asked.

  I nodded and walked quickly to climb into the limousine which once again took us down the narrow streets and into the downtown portion of the city. From there, we exited the limo and climbed onto a private shuttle which took us from the floating city to the ground below. I stepped off the shuttle and walked down the concrete platform. At the end of the walkway, the sand began. The sight took my breath away; it had been so long since I had seen a beach.

  I ran forward, losing my shoes in the process. My bare feet touched the warm sand and I ran towards the dark blue water, Kavra laughing somewhere behind me. I reached the beginning of the wet sand and then suddenly stopped, memories flooding my mind so violently that it almost brought tears to my eyes. I closed my eyes against the brightness of the sun and could almost feel my father watching me; could almost recollect the sound of his voice. “Chrissa,” his voice said softly. I turned around. “Chrissa,” Lord Kasar said again. “It’s beautiful, is it not?”

  I turned back to the water as Lord Kasar walked up behind me. I took a breath of salty air, so similar to that of Earth. “Yes, it’s beautiful,” I finally replied, my words carried gently by the wind. I removed my outer bathing suit covers and started walking closer to the water, but was stopped by memories once again. My father…what would he think of what I had done? Would he still think of me as his Princess if he had lived to see me now?

  “Chrissa,” it was Kasar again. He reached for my hand and led me forward until the cold water touched my feet, the white foam covering my toes. I reached down and put my hand in the waves and for a moment I felt…

  “Its home,” Lord Kasar spoke my thoughts. “The ocean is.”

  “Yes,” I whispered back before stepping farther into the water, allowing it to cover my skin and hair with salt and sand. I ducked under the next wave and let it wash away the memories. I rose from the waves and walked back to the beach where Lord Kavra and Kasar were lounging on a large beach towel. I sat down next to them. I spent much of the afternoon lounging in the sun and playing in the water.

  As the sun was beginning to set, Lord Kasar took my hand and walked me up and down the beach looking for seashells. We found a beautiful pink, yellow, and turquoise shell which Lord Kasar placed in a soft b
lack cloth to keep safe. Then Lord Kasar proceeded to produce a small, crystal vial in the shape of a spark, a thin, colorful fish native to Setianta.

  “This,” he informed me, “is for your water from the sea. You can wear it,” he reached deeper into his pocket, “on this golden chain.” It was a thin rope chain of yellow gold, both simplistic and perfect for what I wanted. I took the crystal spark gently in my hand and walked back to the edge of the waves. I knelt down and held it just above the ground, allowing the water to wash over and into the vial. I stood and placed the crystal top back onto the vial. I raised it towards the setting sun. It sparkled with all the colors of the rainbow.

  I then walked back to the towels. Lord Kasar handed me the chain. I slipped the crystal spark on the golden necklace. Lord Kasar proceeded to fasten it securely around my neck. I laid back on the blanket and watched the sunset. The sky showing a brilliant array of colors from orange to red to pink and finally, black as the night was filled with a thousand twinkling stars and the silver of the moonlight. By the time I got back home, I was exhausted. I took a quick shower and climbed into bed to the most peaceful sleep I had experienced in years.

  The three of us played for the next few days, relaxing by the pool and enjoying elegant dinners. Then one night, Lord Kasar and Kavra knocked on my door. I had just laid down, so I said, “Come in,” in a somewhat groggy voice. Both Lords entered the room. Lord Kavra sat on the corner of my bed while Lord Kasar stood beside it. “We will be returning to the ships tomorrow,” Kasar began. “It is sadly time to get back to work.”

  I was disappointed. “Will Kavra be coming too?”

  “Alas,” he replied. “I must be on my way. The council has assigned me to the Zauros system. I’m afraid I will have to leave early in the morning.”

  “Oh,” I said sadly. There was a long pause before I finally said, “You will be careful, won’t you? And you won’t stay away too long?”

  “I will be careful, Chrissa, I promise.”

  “And?” I asked as I rose to wrap my arms around his neck.

  “Tell you what,” Lord Kavra told me. “Anytime you feel that you can’t stand missing me a moment longer or you simply just need to get away from this old man,” he winked at Lord Kasar. “You call me and I will send someone straight over to fetch you. Or if you just need to talk, give me a call, okay?”

  “Okay, Kavra. I’ll do that.”

  “I’m going to leave you two alone,” Lord Kasar whispered as he left the room.

  When the door closed, I turned back to Kavra, “I will miss you.”

  “And I’ll miss you too, Chrissa. You keep up those studies now, and I’ll be back before you know it.”

  I made a face, “Not interstellar math again!” He laughed and to my surprise, kissed me lightly. “Good luck, Chrissa. I will see you in a few weeks, if not sooner. Lay back down and I will sit here until you fall asleep, if you like.”

  “Yes,” I said softly reaching for his hand which he took in his own. We talked for a few minutes and then my eyes began to close and I whispered, “Goodnight, Kavra.”

  “Goodnight, my Lady.”

  Chapter XIV

  Once we returned to Lord Kasar’s ship, my training was extended to new lessons, far different than the simple memorization of battles and history. My first lesson was the importance of appearing neutral at all times during public engagements, showing no emotions to anyone. Emotions are weaknesses which can be used against us. Certain emotions cause people to make mistakes which could prevent one from getting what they want and deserve. Without emotions, a person is willing to do whatever is necessary to win the game that we all play everyday. This loss of emotions came hand in hand with learning the importance and acceptance of sacrifice. All creatures, from the least powerful to the Emperor himself, live their lives in service to the Empire. Nothing is more important than living and eventually dying in that service and everyone lower ranked than I was expendable.

  I learned this the hard way one night when an unexpected problem occurred on the planet of Beckensailt. It was a new planet, conquered only three weeks prior to our arrival. I was just shy of fourteen years old and was standing near Lord Kasar by a Setian pool. The last of the planet’s inhabitants were being rounded up and forced towards their inevitable fate. The Beckens were tall creatures with pale skin probably resulting from the fact that their small sun only lit the sky two hours before being followed by thirty-seven hours of complete darkness, minus the occasional star. Bright lights surrounded the pool though, making the darkness appear as light as day. The Beckens squinted against the harshness of the light as they were dragged forward, their four arms shackled behind them. Some were struggling fiercely, being held between two or in some cases three of Lord Kasar’s guard, while others came quietly, already beginning to accept their fate. I knew by now that the struggling was pointless, it was a simple matter of time.

  Suddenly to everyone’s astonishment, one of my guards gave a shout. I looked up and found Beckens pouring into the area from all sides. Taking the guards closest by surprise, the Beckens knocked them to the ground and released the prisoners they had been holding.

  Shouts echoed throughout the area as about forty Beckens were suddenly surrounding us. I had six guards near me and they took positions all around, blocking my view of the unexpected battle. As we stood, there was a loud whistling sound and the two guards on my left fell to the ground, never to rise. One of the remaining four grabbed me in his arms and the entire company ran back towards the ship. People were shouting. Screams shattered the air. The men ran, shooting their weapons at the attacking Beckens. The guard on my right fell to the ground. I finally obtained a clear view of the battle.

  Bodies littered the field from both sides. Blue, red, and green blood soaked into the yellow grass beneath our feet. I clung to the creature holding me, afraid of not getting out alive. Then suddenly, the grass turned to black steel and four walls enclosed around me as I was taken safely aboard Lord Kasar’s ship. The moment I was on, the door closed and the ship rose into the air. The guard put me down on unsteady legs and Lord Kasar was there. “Are you all right?” he asked.

  I took a deep breath before finally nodding, “Yes. The guard saved me.”

  “Come with me, child.” he said. “Come watch what happens to those who rise up. It will be a lesson for you to remember.”

  I silently followed him through the dimly lit corridor until we reached the front deck of the ship. The walls were black, like so many of the other rooms, but directly in front of us was a window offering a clear view to what was going on outside the ship. We had flown back to the site of the pool where the fight was still occurring. I started to ask what we were doing, but before I could finish the sentence, Lord Kasar ordered, “Fire.” I stopped speaking as a streak of yellow light flew from the ship and completely incinerated the entire area. Where the pool had once been, there was nothing but a black scorch across the land. No one survived, not those who rebelled against the Empire, nor the men who had been faithfully fighting to protect it. Everyone was dead.

  I looked at my Lord with a look of what surely must have been utter disbelief. “The troops?” Lord Kasar just stared at me in silence.

  My eyes wandered the room as though searching for hidden answers that would never appear. “No,” I said. “They were fighting. They were protecting us.” My eyes finally returned to his, “Why?”

  “Several reasons,” came the reply. “First, those men had a simple job. They were supposed to protect the pool. They failed, proving themselves weak. We do not tolerate weakness in this Empire.”

  I found myself fighting tears as I said, “The attack was a surprise. There was no way they could have known.”

  “Surprise or not, they were attacked,” Lord Kasar explained. “You see Chrissa, if those men had done their job, the fear of our Empire would have kept any remaining rebels far away. If those men had done their jobs, none would have dared to attack us.” I wasn’t sure what to
say, so he continued. “Also, the fact that rebellion must be crushed at all cost. The smallest of sparks can start a raging fire, so all hint of resistance must be completely destroyed. Destroying the pool will help to destroy any hope which might have otherwise risen from our enemies at the news of rebellion. Those who gave their lives today saved countless others from dying in later resistances that this rebellion would have created.”

  “Then of course, there is once again the fact that these men failed, and the only way to be forgiven for failure is to give one’s life to the Empire. Those who died have regained their honor and shall find themselves gloriously rewarded on the other side of existence.”

  I left the room in silence, lost in a million contradicting and confusing thoughts. Several hours later, I walked to the private quarters of Lord Kasar’s Captain of the Guard. I knocked lightly on the tall door and Karagteon 27, a creature covered in brown fur standing upon three legs with two green eyes that seemed a little too large for his slender face, answered the door. He had two arms. I stared up at the seven foot tall captain and told him that one of his guards had saved my life, and I wanted to thank him, but I did not know who or where he was. The captain informed me that “His name is Neilsv 247, my Lady, but I should inform you that he went back down to fight. He refused to quit so easily.”

  With a feeling of sadness, I asked. “Did he have family?”

  “Yes, my Lady.”

  “Would you please tell them that he saved my life and that any failure he might have had is forgiven?”