>Which one?<
>The missing one. I’ve been giving it some thought. You weren’t born with it that way. I think I can fix it.<
>I don’t need two legs.<
>Agreed.<
>I don’t want two legs.<
>Then we’ll drop the subject. You can probably replace the crutch every hundred years or so.<
Four hundred years put a different perspective on things, Val had to admit. >How would you do it?<
>I’m not certain. A little at a time, I guess. I’d rather do it quickly, but I’d need help and you’d be down for a while.<
>What kind of help?<
>For a quick repair, you’d have to go into a tank.<
>What’s a tank?<
>The most advanced healing tool known to Empire medicine. It stimulates production of stem cells, the cells your body started with when you were in the womb. They can be turned into any organ, and with my help the process would be more focused. That translates to quicker.<
>How quick?<
>I’m not sure. I’d need to talk to Dr. Storvo first. Maybe a couple of months in the tank followed by several more during which you’d be ambulatory. Of course, you’d have to learn to use the new leg when I’m done.<
>I’d have to lay in a tank for two months?<
>You’d be asleep, Val. I, on the other hand, would be exhausting myself. I’m willing if you are.<
>I need to think about it.< He looked over at the sleeping form of his sister. >She needs me right now. I can’t leave her for a couple of months. Not yet.<
>Agreed, though I think, knowing the little that I know of her, that she’ll be standing on her own two feet sooner than you think.<
>Where would we find one of these tanks?<
>Come on, Val. Think.<
Val considered for a moment, then felt embarrassed in front of Artmis. This was Daughter’s ship after all. It would lack nothing of import.
He slept little that night. 400 years! And a new leg? What more could happen to him? It was coming too fast, even for him. He’d always prided himself on his flexibility, but now . . . every time he turned around, a new life-altering something seemed to be happening. Three days ago he’d been struggling to keep his head above water. Now, despite seemingly unlimited opportunity, he was sinking. He decided he’d get his focus back in the morning by concentrating only on what mattered most at the moment. Four hundred years and a new leg were not pressing concerns. As he drifted off to sleep, his awareness of the person sleeping on the bed beside him was what mattered most.
He awoke in the early hours of the morning to find Krys tossing and turning in her bed, mumbling. He stood up and went to her side, touching her shoulder. Then he shook her awake. “Hey! Are you okay?” he asked.
Her eyes stared blankly for a time, and she said, “There’s danger ahead. I’m afraid for her.”
“Afraid for whom?”
“Daughter.” Then her eyes focused on him. “Val,” she said reaching up to caress his face. “You’re real.”
“I’m real.”
“I just had a bad dream,” she said. “Go back to sleep.”
He tucked her in, kissing her forehead. “I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere.”
“I’m so lucky,” she breathed, then she turned over and closed her eyes.
He awoke the next morning to find her sitting up and staring at him. A smile lit her face as soon as she discovered his gaze upon her. “Hi, brother!”
“Hi, yourself!” He pinched his arm, and she giggled.
“It’s real, isn’t it,” she declared.
“It’s real, Krys. You have a brother, and we’re on Daughter’s private starship. I think they’re going to let me fly it.” Her eyes widened in a question, and he explained. “Captain Jzazbe is going to help me find out if I’m spacer material.” He eyed the bathroom facilities which were completely un-private.
She smiled. “I’ll wait outside.”
When he was through, he opened the door to find both Otis and Krys waiting in the corridor.
“Have you cleaned up yet?” Otis asked him.
“I took a shower yesterday, and these clothes only have one day of use. I’m ready to go.”
“No, you’re not. You’ll shower every morning, and you’ll start each day with a fresh change of clothes. We’ll see about a haircut later today. I’ll see Krys to her room. Daughter is expecting you for breakfast in half an hour.”
“Yes, sir,” Val responded, not understanding. But he did as ordered. When he knocked on Daughter’s door, it opened immediately. Otis and Krys were not there yet. He entered and bowed. “Good morning, My Lady.”
“Good morning, Val. What would you like for breakfast?”
“Uh, anything, My Lady.”
“I knew you’d say that. How about your sister? What’s she accustomed to?”
“Not the fare you have here, that’s for sure. But she knows deportment, My Lady.”
“She does? Excellent! Then we’ll both get to help you with yours. I see you remembered the shoe. Is it uncomfortable?”
“No, My Lady. It’s incredibly comfortable. Not what I expected.”
“Learn to expect it, Val.”
“Yes, My Lady.”
Otis and Krys showed up, and she was wearing a spacer’s outfit just like Val’s. Daughter greeted Krys warmly, and Krys finally got her chance to kneel properly before this royal personage.
Breakfast was as difficult as Val had foreseen, and though Krys was comfortable with her eating habits, she was not comfortable eating in the presence of Daughter and the Great Cat. The meal was strained, and Val was relieved when it was over.
Daughter excused them from the table and led them to her sitting room. “I have a busy day, but Otis tells me there is something of concern. You did not sleep well last night, Krys?”
Krys looked at her in confusion. “My Lady?”
Otis spoke. “Something happened last night, Krys. The AI alerted me to a concern you have. Will you tell us about it?”
“You’re spying on us?” Krys asked in alarm.
“Definitely not,” Daughter informed her. “The ship does not spy on you, or anyone else for that matter, but certain key words alert the AI. Any mention of danger to me causes an alert. Tell me your concern, child.”
Krys suddenly looked scared. “It was just a bad dream, My Lady.”
“We all have those from time to time. Tell me about it,” Daughter asked kindly.
“I don’t remember it, My Lady.”
Daughter sat back to study Krys. “Don’t, or won’t?” she finally asked.
“My Lady, you ask too much,” Krys murmured.
“In certain areas, it is my duty to pry,” Daughter said softly, rising to stand before Krys. She sat down beside her. “You’re among friends here. Do not be afraid. Why would you be concerned for my safety?”
“I don’t know,” Krys murmured.
Daughter put a hand to Krys’ face, a caressing hand. “Do not be afraid, child. You have nothing to fear here.”
“Yes, My Lady.”
“We will speak of this another time.” To Val, she said, “What are your plans for the day?”
“I had hoped to study, My Lady.”
“Then you shall. And you, Krys?”
“I, too, would study.”
“What are you studying, child?”
“I don’t know, My Lady.”
“I see. We must have you both evaluated and set up in a proper program of study.”
“Mine is proper,” Val stated clearly.
“I don’t doubt that it is, though it is certainly not all encompassing. Off with you then.”
They both left without delay, returning to Val’s room. Later that day Otis interrupted them. Both were heads down in their pads, the room crowded with the two of them. Otis’ great bulk forced Val to share the bed with his sister.
As usual, Otis did not waste words, and his focus was Krys. “Do you know my purpose here
?” he asked her.
“Yes, sir. Val has told me about Protectors, you and Borg in particular.”
“Then you understand that my sole focus is Daughter’s safety. Do you know why?”
“No, sir,” they both answered.
“Some two thousand years ago, the Royal Family saved my world from beasts even more hideous than ourselves, beasts imported by enemies to destroy us. They very nearly succeeded before the Empire came to our rescue. Because of that rescue, my people have pledged to protect the Royal Family. We Protect them at all costs.
“Those of us trained as Protectors and Guardians learn to function within the civilized worlds of the Empire, but at heart we remain primitive. On my home world, my people still kill to eat – by choice. Perhaps because of our essentially primitive natures, we follow ancient customs which include beliefs in spirits, good and bad, ancient tales, and dreams. They are very much a part of our lives. Dreams in particular hold great power among my people.
“And now we come to the Royal Family. Everything related to the Royal Family is significant. To Protectors especially, dreams are held in high esteem. For that reason, I would know more of your dream, Krys.”
“It’s nothing, Otis.”
“To you it may be nothing, but to me it could have meaning. Tell me.”
“I sensed danger, Otis, and it seemed far in the future.”
“What kind of danger?”
“I don’t know! Just danger.”
Otis sat, deep in thought. “You cried out, awakening Val. Surely you recall details.”
Krys closed her eyes, then mumbled, “You will be so much more and have so much less. They will best you, but a man of dirt will come to your aid.”
Otis rose, his hackles lifting as his face moved to within inches of hers. When she opened her eyes, she backed away from that hideous face.
“What does it mean? You speak in riddles, Krys.”
“I know. That’s how it always is, and I never know what they mean.”
Otis sat again. “This has happened before?”
“Yes,” she answered in a small voice.
“Do these riddles come true? Do you understand them when they do?”
“Sometimes,” she answered fearfully. “I don’t always know if they come true. I’ve been punished over this, so I’ve learned to keep it to myself.”
Otis’ sole focus was Krys. In an amazingly human gesture, he sat back on his haunches, raised a hand to his muzzle, and stroked. Then he reached out to Krys with that same hand, saying in a low growl, “You will not be punished here, Krys. Daughter must be told about this. There can be no secrets withheld from her.” He rose and beckoned Val and Krys to accompany him.
Two women and a man were in conference with Daughter when they entered her quarters. She looked up in surprise, but dismissed her attendants without hesitation. Clearly, Otis did not interrupt without good reason.
“My Lady,” Otis said after the door snicked shut behind the departing staff, “Krys has something to tell you.”
Daughter rose from behind her table as Krys and Val bent knees to the floor. “Enough of that,” she barked. “What is it, Krys?”
“I had a dream, My Lady. A dream of you.”
“And . . . ?”
“You were in grave danger.”
“In your dream.”
Krys’ voice quavered as she answered, “Not exactly, My Lady.”
Daughter leaned back against the table in silence as she considered Krys’ words. When she spoke, she spoke softly. “When we touched yesterday, you seemed to lose focus for a time. Would that have anything to do with your dream?”
“Yes, My Lady.”
Daughter’s lips pursed. “Tell me what happened when you came into this room yesterday.”
Krys stood absolutely still, terrified. But she obeyed. “When you took my hands, for just a moment we were not in this room. We were somewhere else. In a desert. Otis was lying atop you in the dirt with another Great Cat beside him. I believe his partner was dead. I think you were at the bottom of the ramp of a ship similar to this one. It must have been night, because the area around the ramp was lit with lights from the ship. Otis fired his blaster at something, I don’t know what. The words came to me, then we were back in this room and everything was as it had been.”
“What words came to you, Krys?”
Krys closed her eyes and repeated the words.
“You will be so much more and have so much less. They will best you, but a man of dirt will come to your aid.”
Silence pervaded the room. Val looked at his sister as if she was someone he’d never met before. Otis’ hackles were raised again, just as they had been in the cabin. Val, too, felt a momentary chill and shuddered. Was something wrong with Krys?
Otis growled low in his throat, but Daughter just sat back against the table looking contemplative. When she spoke, she said, “Ship, record.”
“Recording.”
“Do you know what the words mean?” she asked kindly.
“No, Ma’am.”
“And this has happened before.”
“Yes, My Lady.”
“Where did the words come from?”
“I don’t know, My Lady.”
“Yes, you do. And they’re important.”
“I don’t want to get in any trouble.”
“Oh, child, I’m so sorry you feel that way. Do your visions often come true?”
Krys squirmed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, My Lady.”
“Have you been punished for them?”
Krys lowered her head. That was all the answer Daughter needed. “Hear me well, Krys. If what I suspect is true, you might have a gift, or more likely a curse, that is more rare than my own. I have never been in the presence of a Seer. They are the stuff of legend, and no others exist as far as I know.”
Krys lifted her gaze to meet Daughter’s. She did not flinch. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“I think you do.”
“Krys,” Val said, “the first rule here is that we keep no secrets from Daughter. I ask you as your brother to trust me in this.”
Krys’ gaze remained locked on Daughter as she considered Val’s words. “Sometimes I see things, My Lady,” she finally said. “More often it’s just feelings. Sometimes words. I rarely understand the words, though the feelings are strong. Sometimes things happen later that make the meanings clear.”
“I see.” Daughter turned to pace. “You said, ‘You will be so much more and have so much less. They will best you, but a man of dirt will come to your aid.’ Can you tell me what it means?”
“No, My Lady, but I believe the words refer to you.”
“I will be more, but I will have much less. I don’t understand.”
“Nor do I, My Lady.”
“Who are ‘they?’”
“I don’t know, My Lady.”
“And a man of dirt?” What can that possibly mean?”
Krys thought hard. “I’m not sure I said it right. It was a foreign word, but I sensed that it means dirt, or the ground.”
“What exactly was the word?”
“It was earth, or maybe Earth. Could it be a place?”
Daughter looked to Otis. He remained mute. She turned back to Krys. “Was I alive in your vision?”
“I sensed strongly that you were. I also sensed you and Otis were in unbelievable pain.”
“But we survived?”
“I don’t know, My Lady. If the words are true, someone came to your assistance.”
“Indeed. Is there anything else to this vision, any slightest detail you have not told us?”
Krys closed her eyes for a time. “Only that I sensed it was some years in the future, My Lady,” she finally said.
“May I Test you?”
“Test me?”
“She means she wants to read your mind, Krys,” Val said. He rose and took her hand. “It’s okay. I’ve been through it, and it’s okay. It’s someth
ing the Chosen do. No one else can do it. She wants, and I suspect she needs to know exactly what you know about this. It sounds pretty serious. Say yes.”
So important was this to Daughter that she seated Krys on the couch and kneeled down on the floor before her. She reached out and put both hands to Krys’ head, and Val knew the Testing had begun. When Daughter was through, she sat back on her feet and looked up at Krys with a look of amazement.
She stood up and paced for a time, then turned back to Krys. “I never, ever talk about what I learn during my Testings without the consent of the one Tested. I know you for who you are, Krys, and I will never betray you. However, I would like your permission to discuss some of what I have learned with my closest advisors. May I?”
Krys thought for a time. “My Lady, I have been mostly successful at keeping knowledge of this ‘gift,’ or ‘curse’ as you describe it, from others. If it becomes common knowledge, it will make my return to the orphanage very difficult.”
“Do you want to return to the orphanage?”
“Never!”
“Consider yourself free of the place forevermore. We can discuss your futures later.”
“You’re giving us our freedom?”
“Not giving, Krys. You have both earned it in your own way.”
Krys stood up and approached Daughter, then kneeled on the floor before her, her head bowed low to the floor. “Thank you, My Lady. You have my permission.”
“I ask that you continue to keep your gift a secret for the present. Please return to whatever you were doing, and rest assured that you are not in any kind of trouble.”
Val and Krys left. As soon as the door snicked closed, Daughter turned to Otis, troubled. “There’s nothing there, Otis. I can’t see her visions.”
“My Lady?”
“For the first time in my life, I have met someone I cannot fully Test. She has visions, that much I know, but I can’t see them. I believe she is truly a Seer.”
“Could she be lying?”
“No. I sensed the truth of her. She is true to herself, and I ask no more than that from one so young. How is it possible that among all the worlds of our Empire we happened to come to this world at this time to discover these two?”
“I, too, am amazed, My Lady. She seems very . . . quick. The words of her vision trouble me deeply. Their tone is ominous.”
Last of the Chosen (Spirit of Empire, Book One) Page 44