The Smuggler's Ascension: The Ties That Died

by Christopher Ingersoll

  Sabine had felt Kristof’s and Anasha’s pain and grief flare up wildly as she sat in her favorite chair in their living room. Her own tears welled up in her eyes as she sent her spirit to her loves through the connection they shared and wrapped them in her love as they vented their grief over Subat’s death. Sabine had her own well of grief for the loss of the man who, like Stephan, had helped raise her at the Sanctuary. Subat had become a surrogate father to her during that time as she coped with being in seclusion as well as the loss of her own father just a year prior.

  Her grief could come later, though, as Sabine just loved and supported the two most important people in her life. The depth of Kristof’s guilt over Subat’s death had shocked her, as it had Anasha, because he had buried it so deep that neither of them had felt it. Sabine felt a bit of guilt herself for not realizing it was there sooner. Anasha’s grief was certainly understandable, and Sabine wished she had been there to hold her lovely blond wife.

  Had she not been pregnant and feeling more and more ungainly by the day it seemed, Sabine would have run to them. Running was out of the question, though. While she was only half way through her pregnancy, she was having some difficulties already due to her rather tiny frame. She was not physically built to bear a baby well, and she knew that towards the end she would most likely be bedridden.

  So Sabine waited for her loves to find their way home as she sat and read through the data pad sent to her by Sir Laurence. Some of the texts had not been translated, she saw with some annoyance. She could recognize Old Puranni, but she could not read it. Anasha would have to help translate some of the texts because the computers seemed to be unable to. One of her old teachers had try to explain why, saying something about Old Puranni meaning many different things at once and required a human mind to intuitively decode the true intent.

  Sir Laurence had succeeded, though, as Sabine did recognize the word Triad in a few of the texts. Perhaps they would have some answers at last, Sabine thought. Skipping ahead to texts that she could read, Sabine began to lose herself in tales of long ago. There seems to be a common theme, so she quickly found a note pad and began making lists of major elements, hoping to be able to get the general truth from the sometimes wildly varying tales.

  Kristof and Anasha returned while she was engrossed in the tales, so she did not notice they’d come home until Anasha came and kissed her cheek from behind. Sabine immediately dropped her data pad as she grabbed Anasha by the hair and drew her around for a proper kiss, one that lasted several minutes. Kristof came to her next and Sabine kissed him just as passionately while still keeping Anasha close. She felt a tremendous desire to keep her loves close, perhaps because of the tales she had been reading.

  “How goes the research?” Kristof asked as they broke from their kiss at last and perhaps sensing her thoughts.

  “There are tales from several different cultures in the material Sir Laurence sent me,” Sabine said as she reluctantly released her husband and wife so they could take up seats near her. She’d completely claimed the chair the three of them normally shared together with her data pad and notes. “They all seem to follow the same general themes, so I am picking out the points where they all agree to make a framework so that I can go back and fill in the details. It’ll be easier once I get the notes from Stephan, too.”

  “I think you’re actually enjoying it,” Anasha noted with a smile.

  “I am, but I need your help,” Sabine said with a smile. “I can’t read old Puranni, but you can.”

  “But I hate research,” Anasha pouted, clearly not thrilled with the idea of spending many hours reading.

  “How did you learn Old Puranni if you hate research?” Kristof asked curiously.

  “It was something that my abilities aided me with,” Anasha said. “Since Old Puranni uses feelings as much as the words themselves to convey meaning, my empathic abilities seemed to see right to the heart of the words.” Anasha sighed as she said “Make me a copy of what you have, I’ll start in the morning.”

  “You’re such a sweetheart,” Sabine told her with a smile. “Thank you, my love.”

  “Thank my father,” Anasha said sadly. “He says that what you are doing is just as important as what Kristof is doing in this war.”

  “Your father?” Sabine asked, her voice catching with just a bit in sadness.

  “He came to me in a vision earlier,” Anasha said simply and fell quiet.

  Kristof filled Sabine in on the rest of Anasha’s vision of her father as it had been told to him. Sabine unburied herself from her notes and data pad and went to Anasha, easing her way into the other woman’s lap so that she could be close and give the woman who was central in her life all the love and warmth she needed. Anasha embraced Sabine tightly, accepting the love and warmth that was given.

  “He was a wonderful man,” Sabine said simply after a while. “I loved him dearly.”

  “As he did you, my love,” Anasha replied as she held her tiny wife. “As he loved us all.”

  Kristof came and wrapped both of his wives in his embrace. He then relayed his ideas for Max and Subat’s home to Sabine, and she turned to look at him in amazement.

  “That is beautiful,” Sabine said, “I didn’t know you had it in you. You always seem so stern and implacable, and yet here you are with such a poet’s soul.”

  Sabine leaned back and kissed Kristof.

  “I thought so too,” Anasha agreed. “I think my father would approve.”

  In time Sabine returned to her seat while Anasha went to the bar to fix herself a drink. Sabine watched her as she went, envying her freedom of movement without having a little bundle making her awkward. She placed a hand on her stomach, knowing she wouldn’t change it for the world, but still wishing she could move more easily.

  Anasha had also worn a body glove like the ones Sabine loved to wear, only blue instead of black, and Sabine couldn’t help looking at her wife’s body hungrily, suddenly feeling amorous. She pushed the thought away, for the moment anyway, as she took a long last look at her wife’s figure before turning to Kristof.

  Kristof had noticed her stare and joined her in an appreciative glance at Anasha. Sabine smiled as she shared a naughty thought with her husband before turning back to the task at hand. There would be time to make love to her wife and husband later, for the moment she wanted to keep focused on her readings.

  “Have you learned anything?” Kristof asked her as she picked up her notepad.

  “Some,” Sabine said as she got herself situated in the chair. “There’s a general theme I’ve been able to establish, which suggests that all of the legends have a common source. I’ve also been able to make some guesses, but I need Anasha’s translations to know for sure. I think I know what this Triad business is.”

  Kristof went to get a drink himself as Anasha returned to sit beside Sabine in a nearby chair. Kristof gave Sabine a questioning look and a glance towards her teapot, and Sabine nodded. Her husband began making her some of the tea she hated as she continued her story.

  “From what I gather, the Gods at one time lived in the physical world with us people,” Sabine began. “Among the Gods there were three who figure prominently in the tales Sir Laurence found for me. They were the Fiery Heart, the Dark Prince, and the Gentle Maiden as they were called in many of the tales.”

  “The Phoenix God, Death, and the Su’Tani Goddess Anza’Tai that Kristof learned of earlier?” Anasha suggested.

  “So it would seem,” Sabine agreed as she took the cup of tea that Kristof offered her. As much as she hated the stuff, it did wonders in settling the baby. “So the tales go, the Fiery Heart fell in love with the Gentle Maiden, as did the Dark Prince. The Maiden also loved the two Gods, so equally so that she could not choose between them. They entered into a union much like our own.”

  “So what happened?” Kristof asked as he resumed his seat with a glass of whiskey in hand. “Last I checked, the Phoenix was intent on me killing Death, so much so that he
unleashed this power in me that even he couldn’t control.”

  “Jealousy,” Sabine said simply. “The Fiery Heart and the Dark Prince became jealous of each other over the centuries, until at last war broke out. The war destroyed the home of the Gods and brought death and famine to the people of the universe, so the Father of the Gods intervened.”

  “The Father?” Anasha asked. “I’ve never even heard of such a possibility.”

  “Neither had I,” Sabine told them, “Though it’s not surprising since our society here in the Protectorate anyway has become mostly secular. At any rate, the Father banished the Dark Prince to the Underworld for starting the war, even though the Fiery Heart was just as guilty. The Prince threw the first punch so he got the punishment, I guess.”

  “After that,” Sabine continued as she sipped at her tea, “The Goddess rejected them both. She was distraught at what their love had brought about. She disappeared from the tales soon after. It seems the Father was also greatly saddened by what had happened, and he decreed that his son should remain in the Underworld until another Triad should form that would show the Gods what true love really was. At least that is how the legends read, anyway.”

  Sabine smiled at her two loves, and they returned the smile just as brightly. The love they shared had become something unbreakable. They knew that early on they had dealt with issues that it seemed these three Gods had been unable to, such as jealousy. Sabine remembered their conversation in bed one night, about how early on Sabine and Anasha had felt very possessive of Kristof and had needed to come to terms with how they would all interact. It seemed odd that humans could resolve something the Gods had not.

  “The Gods seem to deal in absolutes,” Kristof suggested as Sabine relayed her thoughts on jealousy in their own relationship. “I know the Phoenix has a hard time with the concept of sharing. He was quite put out once he gave me this power and learned he couldn’t control me.”

  “Yes, the power,” Sabine said at last. “The tales make mention of that, too, I think. It seems this power was left behind by the Father as a failsafe, should war erupt once more between the two Gods.” Sabine was reluctant to finish the tale, because the implications that they’d already hypothesized, were all but confirmed in the tales. “It also says that with the death of one of the Gods, a new God would be born of the blood of the Slayer.”

  Sabine began to cry then, even though she had known how the tale ended. She placed a hand protectively on her stomach as Anasha came and took away her data pad and notes. Kristof and Anasha then climbed into their chair with her and enveloped her in their love. She wished the Gods could have known this kind of love and acceptance, then maybe her baby would not be lost to her even before she could know him.

  “If there is any way I can prevent our son being lost to us, I will do it,” Kristof told her softly. “This power I have been given must surely be good for more than just slaying a God. We have done something, the three of us, that the Gods themselves could not. There’s nothing saying we cannot do it again.”

  Sabine turned to Kristof and kissed him long and hard, before pulling away and whispering “Thank you.” Anasha also kissed Kristof and then Sabine.

  “I too will do whatever it takes to make sure your child remains with you, my love,” Anasha vowed.

  “Our child,” Sabine said as she caressed Anasha’s cheek, unknowingly echoing Kristof’s declaration to Anasha from earlier in the evening. Anasha’s tears flowed next as she lay her head on Sabine’s stomach, as if listening for the child within.

  “I’m not giving up our family without a fight,” Kristof added softly as he embraced his wives protectively.

  ~12~

  The alarms began to sound in the middle of the night, and Kristof was on his feet and dressing almost instantly. Anasha was right beside him, also dressing, while Sabine struggled awake as the alarms continued to sound. He didn’t know exactly what the alarms meant, but for them to be sounding throughout the Palace was not a good sign.

  “What is it?” Sabine asked as she struggled to focus.

  “Those are orbital assault alarms,” Anasha said as she grabbed clothes for Sabine and tossed them to her. “We need to get to the war room immediately.”

  Kristof grabbed Sabine’s clothes and helped her start to dress since she was still having a hard time waking up for some reason. Anasha ran to the other room as he did, and he heard her yelling directions to Sabine’s guards who had appeared in the apartment.

  “Are you ok?” Kristof asked Sabine as they worked together to get her dressed as quickly as possible.

  “I just feel so…not with it,” Sabine said, her words somewhat slurred. “It is almost like I am not here, but feeling my people around the world. There’s a lot of fear right now.”

  Kristof didn’t wait for more of an explanation. He scooped his diminutive wife into his arms and followed Anasha into the other room. Through the windows he could see that the Palace force fields had been activated, covering the Palace in a dome of protective energy. Max also joined them as they quickly made their way to the doors.

  “The Clovani have launched a full out assault,” Anasha told them as the guards led them through the Palace at a rapid rate until they reached a guarded elevator. Echoes of laser blasts striking the shields echoed through the corridors as they crowded into the elevator.

  “It’s a bold move, considering how weakened they are right now,” Kristof said as the elevator descended deep beneath the Palace. “I’m guessing Korvan is feeling a bit desperate.”

  “Do you think your brother made it off of Clovani Prime?” Anasha asked.

  “It wouldn’t surprise me,” Kristof replied as he looked down at Sabine, who seemed to be in some pain. “What is it, love?” he asked her quickly.

  “I can feel my people dying,” Sabine said with a sob.

  Kristof and Anasha shared a quick worried, yet confused, look of concern. This was something new, and Kristof wondered if it wasn’t the baby that was actually feeling the results of the attack above. Unfortunately they didn’t have any time to search for answers, so Kristof just held on to her tighter.

  The elevator opened onto the war room, which was in a frantic state as controllers directed the defenses above. The main view screen showed a tactical display of everything happening in orbit. Their ships and the orbital station were shown in green, and then red ships to show the hostile enemy vessels.

  Kristof found a chair for Sabine on the command dais and set her down softly. She was slowly becoming more alert finally, he saw, as she fought against whatever it was that she was feeling. She was reluctant to let him go, so he stayed close while Anasha went to the ranking commander for a situation update.

  “The Clovani appeared suddenly out of hyperspace and began firing on the planet and the orbital defenses,” Colonel Jannis, the War Room commander, informed them. “Admiral Arctura is organizing the fleet to retaliate, and General Mannis has remained on the surface to command the ground based defenses.”

  “Mass launchers!” one of the officers on the command dais announced suddenly, fear touching the edged of his voice. “Five projectiles inbound, two minutes to impact!”

  Kristof watched the five new icons on the screen that were surrounded by flashing red diamonds. The fleet reacted instantly on the screen and began firing on the incoming iron cored asteroids that had been launched by the enemy’s mass launchers. The asteroids would inflict horrific damage on the planet’s surface if not stopped.

  Two of the incoming asteroids disappeared as the fleet converged on them, while a third was intercepted by a fast moving frigate that sacrificed itself to stop the incoming weapon. The screen flashed as the icons of the asteroid and the ship collided, and then were gone.

  The fourth asteroid made it past the orbital defenses and Kristof watched with a sickening feeling in his stomach as the asteroid descended towards the planet’s surface in the southern hemisphere. The floor beneath their feet trembled slightly as the asteroid
impacted twelve thousand miles away from them.

  “My god,” Anasha said in astonishment, her voice sick with horror. Sabine cried out as if in pain, and Anasha went to her and wrapped the tiny Queen in her arms.

  The final asteroid also made it past the orbiting ships, but rather than streaking towards the planet below, it struck the great orbiting space station that created a giant ring around the planet.

  “Papa!” Sabine cried in fear as she finally came to her feet. “Colonel, get me Admiral Arctura on the line immediately!”

  “Yes, Your Majesty,” the Colonel responded quickly and began punching in commands on his terminal. Moments later a smaller screen on the command dais came alive with the image of Sabine’s grandfather. Kristof could hear alarms sounding in the background as crew put out several small fires on the station.

  “Papa, are you ok?” Sabine asked worriedly, not caring who heard her address the admiral by his personal name she had for him.

  “The station is in great peril, Your Majesty,” Admiral Geoff Arctura responded, maintaining his professionalism. “The asteroid has been stopped and is no longer a danger to the planet, but the station’s orbit has been shifted. Crews are already working to reorient our orbit, but if we can’t then the station is at risk of falling into Purannis’s atmosphere.”

  Kristof knew that the asteroid hit had not been by chance. The station falling from orbit would be a global catastrophe equal to several projectile hits. It seemed Korvan was truly seeking revenge for Clovani Prime by trying to unleash a similar cataclysm here.

  The tactical screen showed the enemy ships disappearing into hyperspace as the Puranni’s superior numbers began to turn the tide of the battle. It wouldn’t matter now, Kristof knew, if the station could not be saved.

  “Admiral,” Kristof asked suddenly, “Are the Queen’s Honor and the Archangel equipped with tractor beams?”

  “Each has several heavy tractor beams, yes,” the Admiral responded.

  “Those ships should have sufficient mass and power to help realign the station,” Kristof suggested and saw the realization dawn on the man’s face.