“Who’s here, Michael?”
“The Leaf Man.”
Tears filled Ellie’s eyes. She had known for a long time that he was the Knight, but she had feared that her words would be difficult for him, maybe even destroy him. She should have known better.
“Maybe he is,” she said softly. “Welcome to my world, finally.”
“I’m a man from an emerging world, Ellie. I can’t do this on my own, even if I find these keys, whatever they are.”
“You won’t have to. You’ll have all of us in this room standing with you, and one in particular.” She stood up and left his side. “Val, it’s time to finish your story.”
Mike, too, stood, his gaze on Val, demanding this time.
Val sensed the demand and responded, “In a moment, Sire. The Leaf Man, as you call him, said to me, ‘Be strong and whole so that others will find their way. You have already shown that one leg is sufficient to carry the burden of duty, but what lies beyond duty?’”
Mike’s brow furrowed. “An interesting question. Do you know the answer?”
I didn’t at the time, but I do now. It’s what lets us give all that we are.
Mike blinked a few times as he considered. “And what is it that lies beyond duty, Val?”
“Honor.”
Mike considered for a long time before nodding. “And your title?”
Val ignored the question. “Had you been there, Sire, you would never need proof of the story I have told here today. Nevertheless, I stand before you as living proof. When the leaf creatures left us, I had trouble standing up to return to the ship. You see, they’d taken my crutch.
“As I told you at the beginning of this story, one of them had dug a hole and filled it with liquid from his own body, then he placed my crutch in the hole and started massaging the crutch. When I last saw it, the wood had turned supple. The leaf creature continued working on the crutch while we were otherwise occupied.”
Mike’s eyes misted. “No way . . .”
“Yes, way. The other Protectors later verified the facts. When the leaf people left us and we stood up, I discovered that I had two legs. The leaf creature had turned my crutch into a new leg.”
Mike stared at him in wonder. Ellie came to his side and touched his arm. “I was there, Michael. Val speaks true.”
Mike’s head began swimming all of a sudden. Jake did whatever Riders do and he recovered, but Ellie noticed and reached out a hand to steady him. He didn’t respond: his full attention was on Val. “What title were you given, Val?”
“I was named the Right Arm.”
* * * * *
All of these things were known to Ellie, Val, and Otis, but for Mike and Reba it was all new. Both sat in silence for a time deep in contemplation. Ellie gave them time, but not a lot of time.
“That meeting took place almost thirteen years ago. Three of us here have had years to consider the implications of that day. You and Reba have not. You will, but not right now.
“Today we have focused on the past. Tomorrow we turn our attention to what lies in the future. Today I have formed my Inner Circle. At the moment, it is the five of us. Every Queen before me has relied on the advice of her Inner Circle, as will I. Within my Inner Circle titles are dropped. I expect each of you to speak freely and true, whether the words are welcome or not.” She focused on Val. “You call me Mother, and I shall always cherish the name. Do you know my real name?”
“I do, Your Majesty. Krys spoke it long ago.”
She nodded. “My name is Ellandra of the Chosen, but Mike has shortened it to Ellie, just as Rebecca has been shortened to Reba. I like it. Within my Inner Circle, I am addressed as Ellie. Understood?”
“Your Majesty, calling you Mother in private is one thing. What you ask is something all together different. In my wildest imaginings, I had never thought I would be in a position to offer you counsel.”
“I’ve always known you would. I told you all those years ago that I would not hesitate to call you to my side. The time has come.”
“I serve at your command, Your Majesty,” Val said. “I’m honored more than you will ever know.”
“I doubt it. I saw something special in you when you were just a boy with one leg and a crutch, when I taught you how to eat properly and how to conduct yourself in a manner suited to royalty. I loved you then, and I love you now. I won’t have to teach you how to be a Knight; you’ve been one all your life, but you’re much more than a Knight to me, Val. You’re family. There will be other Knights, but you hold a special place in my heart, as do Mike, Jake, Reba, Artmis, and Otis.”
She stood up and took his hands. “All your life prior to this day has been preparation for what is to come. The Empire is counting on each of us in this room to give all that we are. We cannot fail.” She took his head in her hands and kissed him on the mouth, then she gave him a hug. “As Ellie, I say welcome aboard, Val. You, too, Artmis.”
“I am welcome here, but there’s one who’s missing.”
“We’ll find her, Val. Our family will be complete one day.” She hugged him again. “This is your Naming day. Kneel before me if you will.”
She placed her hands on Val’s head, saying, “Lieutenant Val, like the Phoenix you rose by your own determination from the ashes of poverty. Upon your commissioning you swore an oath of allegiance to the Royal Family, an oath to which you remained true. In reward, I now ask for even greater sacrifice in my name. Artmis, you have shared the trials, tribulations, and commitment of the past thirteen years. Will you each swear fealty to my Crown?”
Despite all the words he’d spoken in this room today, Val found himself unable to utter a word. He remembered back to the time on Hespra III when he’d held Sir Jarl in his arms, a man who had truly been a Great One of Empire. And now he, Val, was being asked to fill those shoes.
His Queen looked down at him with glistening eyes, knowing exactly what this moment meant to him. She brushed a stray lock from his forehead and said softly, “Say yes, Val.”
“Yes,” he croaked.
“I take that for a yes. Stand, please.” Poor Val couldn’t get up. Mike and Reba had to help him. Ellie reached into a pocket and produced two Knight’s Pins. “You wore these very Pins once before. Do you recognize them?”
A look of wonder crossed his face. “They’re the ones?”
“They are. I have kept them all these years, knowing they would one day be yours. The last time you wore them you were impersonating a dead Knight. I’m certain Sir Jarl, if he was alive today, would be pleased for you to wear them again. Will you?”
Otis let out a growl of satisfaction. He, too, had waited many years for this occasion.
Val straightened. “I will, Your Majesty.”
Ellie explained to Mike and Reba that the Pins were smaller versions of the First Knight’s pendant worn by Mike and made of the same rare gem. Eyes still twinkling, she met Mike’s gaze from over Val’s shoulder as she removed his lieutenant’s insignia. She activated the jewels and locking mechanisms by placing her own and Val’s hands over the Pins, then attached both Pins to his collar, one on each side. As she pinned them in place, she said, “With these tokens, I knight thee, Sir Val and Sir Artmis, Knights of the Realm. Your word is my command on all worlds of the Empire.” She kissed him on both cheeks, then had to help steady him as his eyes glazed over again.
“And now it’s your turn, Reba. Will you kneel before me?”
Reba smiled. She knew precisely what was going on. “I will, Your Majesty, but it’s not necessary. I’m just happy to be here. Let me rise through the ranks as is proper.”
“What’s proper is that I surround myself with capable individuals in whom I place complete trust. You’ve been called, Reba. We’ve been mind-linked on the net, something no Queen has ever done. I know you for who you are, and I choose you. This is not as much a reward as it is a demand for even greater sacrifice in my name. Kneel before me, if you will.”
“I wish my father could be h
ere,” Reba said softly. Tears sprung to Ellie’s eyes again, and Reba knew exactly what was going through her mind. Ellie had no remaining family. She embraced Ellie as her own eyes filled.
“We’re your family now,” Reba said softly.
Ellie stood back with a smile. “You’re my sister, and I say that with happiness in my heart.” Reba knelt, and Ellie placed her hands on Reba’s head. “Do you, Rebecca Morrison, swear fealty to my Crown?”
“I do, Your Majesty,” she replied strongly.
“Please rise.” She took two more Knight’s Pins from a pocket, activated them, and pinned them to Reba’s collar, saying, “With these tokens I knight thee, Lady Rebecca, Knight of the Realm. Your word is my command on all worlds of the Empire.”
She kissed Reba on both cheeks, then passed her to Mike for a congratulatory hug. Val was next in line beside Mike. Still dazed, he blushed as he kissed Reba on the cheek, lingering perhaps a little longer than necessary.
Ellie found Mike staring at her, then his eyes moved to Otis and his eyebrows rose in an unspoken question. Ellie sighed and looked warmly at Otis. He nodded his head, and she turned back to Mike, though she spoke to all of them.
“I asked Otis long ago to kneel before me. He refused. He told me his focus was only me, and Knights are required to focus on more. I asked him again shortly after our meeting with the leaf people and he agreed. Like us, he was tasked by them to look to the future. I have never seen him show his Pins, but he has been a Knight for many years.”
Jessie didn’t just growl, she roared, startling everyone. Ellie turned to her in surprise, but Jessie held her head high. “No one knows, even on Brodor, Your Majesty. He is the first of our people to wear the Pins.” She bowed to Ellie, then she bowed to Otis.
“Yes. Well!” Ellie clapped her hands together. “This has been a day of deep reflection for all of us. We’re done with official business, and I invite each of you to remain here or to spend time in private reflection, all except Reba.” She looked fondly to Reba. “You will be otherwise engaged.”
Reba smiled. “What do you have in mind for me, My Queen?”
“Ask Mike, my dear.”
Reba turned to Mike with an expectant look.
He smiled. “As Knights, I expect we’ll be tasked with things beyond normal expectations, and we’ll need all the help we can get. Jake has a gift for you that you might find helpful.”
“You mean . . .?”
“Yes. He’s created a new Rider. His offspring has chosen you.”
Her mouth quivered. “Oh, Jake,” she breathed.
Tears of happiness fell unabashedly from Ellie’s eyes as Mike approached Reba. She had only witnessed a transfer on one other occasion, and that occasion had not been a happy one. This one was.
Reba was dressed in a standard one-piece coverall. Mike looked at it for a moment and frowned. “Uh, there has to be skin to skin contact, Reba.”
She didn’t hesitate. “Close your eyes, Mike. You too, Val,” she said, casting a mischievous glance in his direction. Val turned his back to her immediately. Mike heard the seals on her coveralls part, then her hands guided his to rest on her hips. The transfer needed only a few minutes, but they were long minutes. Mike felt nothing as the Rider left his body for hers.
>Okay, Mike. It’s done. What a relief.<
“It’s done,” Mike said as he removed his hands from her bare hips.
“I think I’d better help here,” Ellie said. “Give me a second to get her closed up.”
When Mike opened his eyes again, Reba was just standing still with her eyes closed. Mike laid a hand on Val’s shoulder and turned him around to watch.
“Hi, yourself,” Reba said aloud. “Do you have a name?” Moments later, “We’ll work on it together.” She just stood there without awareness of the others in the room.
“Okay, looks like she’s out of it,” Mike said. “Jake tells me she’ll probably want a few days to herself. Val, do you know where her room is?” he asked as he took Reba’s arm in his.
“I do. May I help?”
He took her other arm and the two left Ellie’s quarters without even saying goodbye, but a smile remained on her face and her heart was filled with happiness. A new chapter was about to open in their lives, and though she still sensed great danger, she had the beginnings of a wonderful team by her side to help her through those dark times. More important, she had friends by her side, friends whom she loved and friends who loved her for herself, not her position.
Yes, her heart was filled with happiness.
Chapter Fifty-one: Orion III
Krys waited on the bridge as Rappor exited hyperspace on the outskirts of Orion III. In the net, Stven, M’Sada, and Tarn studied sensors and decided things looked normal within the system.
“Continue inbound, but keep an eye out. We don’t know if they’ve figured out who we are yet,” Stven ordered.
“If we’re not marked yet, we will be soon. I’ll keep an eye out,” M’Sada replied.
Stven told the gunners to stand down, then he exited the net. He turned, mindful of brushing anyone off their feet with his tail. Krys waited anxiously, and Kross waited beside her. Tarn removed his helmet and lounged back in his seat.
“All normal, My Lady. We’re continuing inbound,” Stven reported to her.
“Our ship will soon become an item of interest to the Rebels,” Kross stated, “if it hasn’t already. We won’t be able to use it much longer. We should give consideration to a change at Orion III.”
“Depending on how the meeting goes on Orion III with Admiral Korban, we might be able to borrow one from him,” Tarn spoke up. “If subsequent meetings go well, we might be able to switch to a different ship at each stop.”
Kross growled. Clearly, he liked the idea.
Krys was not so certain. “Admiral Chandrajuski set this up as a civilian operation for a good reason. What if things don’t go so well at one of our stops? As Imperial officers, you’d be bound by whatever orders were given us by senior commanders. What if I just buy us a new ship, another civilian ship?”
“That takes time, a lot of time, and I’d rather not give up the modifications Chandrajuski made to Rappor,” Stven said.
“What if we change the name of the ship?” Tarn asked.
“Can we?” Stven asked in surprise. “The name is hard-wired into the beacon.”
“I have no idea.”
Gortlan, the engineer, was called. When asked, he considered for a time. “The beacon cannot be changed without changing the AI, and the ship has to be completely powered down to do that. Provided we had access to another AI, we could do so in port, but what good would that do? As soon as we left, they’d have our new ID.”
“Admiral Chandrajuski hinted that civilian ships are sometimes used in clandestine operations,” Krys said. “Could those ships have a means of changing their beacons?”
Gortlan shook his head. “No way. I can visit the military port at Orion III and ask around, but if there was such a thing, I think I’d have heard.”
“What if I hire a trader?” she asked. That brought surprised looks from everyone.
“We’d be subject to the whims of their crew. You wouldn’t even need us anymore,” Tarn said with a worried look.
“We’re not splitting up, but it remains an option,” she declared.
It would take three weeks to reach Orion III. Normal shipboard duties continued, including serious personal weapons training under the tutelage of the three Great Cats. Her message would not always be well received. That day had not yet come, but it would eventually, perhaps even here on Orion III. When it did, the three Great Cats and six crewmembers wouldn’t stand much of a chance, but Kross insisted on maximum performance. The Great Cats were famous for refusing to give up under any circumstances. Orion III would not likely be a problem – Admiral Korban’s loyalty was beyond reproach – but like everyone else, he did not know one of the Chosen had survived the coup. It was possible he had gone
over to the Rebels simply because there was no one else in charge.
Half a year had gone by since leaving Rrestriss, and visits to Mitala I, Rega VIII, and Strdx III, each taking about two months, had gone well. Senator Truax had left the ship at their first stop, and they had no idea of his present whereabouts. Krys had visited the Sector Commanders and the governors, and her message had been well received. She had attempted visions with each, but she had seen nothing.
She continued her daily exercise and meditation periods, and Tarn usually joined her. During the past months, he’d become more limber than at any time during his life, and he liked the feeling. He was less fond of the time spent meditating, and he was frequently gone by the time Krys completed hers, but she was working on him and he was getting better.
The approach to Orion III was not without incident. Stven, examining the many ships within the system, discovered two Chessori traders emerging from hyper a couple of weeks behind them. A small puff of noxious gas escaped from each nostril, bringing shouts of anguish from the others on the bridge. M’Sada was forced to withdraw from the net. He raced from the bridge, his two upper hands preening his long antennae furiously.
Stven ignored the commotion as he considered. Both Chessori were simple traders, but he was leery of all Chessori. They had learned of the terrible mind weapon at Rrestriss, but they had encountered no Chessori since then, and he was not anxious to experience its effect himself.
He called Krys to the bridge. “There are two Chessori traders a couple of weeks behind us. We’ll have to limit our time on Orion III. I’d like to be away before they get anywhere close.”
She bit her lip, then nodded. “We’ll be as quick as we can.”
They landed on the civilian side of the port. Kross and Sheeb accompanied Krys and Tarn while Gortlan headed off on his own for the military side of the port. He would ask around to see if anyone knew how to change beacon codes.
Last of the Chosen (Spirit of Empire, Book One) Page 52