Kim’s hands moved to the buckle of her belt as her eyes judged distances. Despite the unsteadiness of Rozek’s hands, the arrow would have too short a flight to hope it might miss a stationary target, yet Kim was going to have to take her chance. She held out her sword as if about to toss it down, but in the action of throwing, her hand grasped the hilt, shaking it with a whip-like action to free the sword from the scabbard, while at the same time hurling herself sideways. Kim heard the twang of the bowstring, the hiss of the arrow, and felt a sudden burning in her arm, but like Rozek’s wound, it was far from fatal.
Kim’s dive kept her moving. She hit the ground in a roll, triggering another explosion of pain in her arm, but then she was up on her feet and charging forward, sword in hand. Rozek had no time to string another arrow. The major tore her own sword free and leaped forward to meet Kim. The long, slashing Guard’s sword against the short, stabbing blade of a Ranger.
The first clash of weapons was nearly the last. Kim blocked Rozek’s stroke easily, but fire shot from her shoulder to her fingers. The hilt was almost wrenched from her weakened grasp as Kim managed somehow to parry the blow. She glanced down and saw the broken shaft of the arrow protruding from her arm. Adrenaline could only go so far in dulling the pain, and her sleeve was already soaked with blood. Soon it would trickle as far as her palm, making the hilt slippery. Kim jumped back from Rozek’s second swipe and quickly transferred the sword to her other hand, her face set in a wry grimace; with Rozek half-dazed and Kim left-handed, this was not going to be a classic, elegant duel.
However, Rozek had the worst of the problems. Already fresh blood was staining her tunic as her wound broke open again, but she seemed unaware, and launched into a frenzy of slashes. Kim blocked them all easily, even left-handed, and a grim smile touched her lips. Signaling strikes so much in advance meant the effort was wasted on Rozek’s part. It was energy she could not afford to squander and sped the loss of blood. The wild swings achieved little more than enhancing the greater length of Rozek’s sword in keeping Kim at a distance and preventing her from closing for a thrust. Then suddenly, Rozek shifted to a sharper jab, almost catching Kim unawares. Kim frowned. She dared not get complacent, and Rozek had not lost all caution. Her attacks were not so impetuous as to leave her front open. Time was Kim’s best ally. Before long, the major would weaken and make the error that would let Kim’s sword through.
Rozek’s sword flew in yet another sequence of slashes. Again, Kim shifted her balance to block and stumbled as one foot slid on the loose gravel of the scree slope. Kim realized she was on the brink of the drop down to the river. She cursed her own carelessness. How had she gotten so close to the edge? Or was it where Rozek had been driving her?
Rozek seized on the second of lost concentration. Her sword whipped across in a backhand slash. The stroke would take an awkward, cross-body effort to block, so Kim made no attempt. With her poor balance, there was little chance it would succeed. Instead, she half-ducked, half-fell to her knee and let Rozek’s sword whistle over her head. Now her opponent was the one with lost balance. Rozek had expected her strike to be blocked, either by sword or by body, but instead her arm shot out wide, swinging her around and leaving her front unguarded. Kim propelled herself up from her crouch, throwing her whole weight into the attack and driving the point of her sword deep into her enemy. This time there was no mistake.
Rozek’s expression froze on her face, then slipped from confusion, to surprise, and finally, disbelief that her Goddess had so unexpectedly, yet unmistakably, deserted her. Then her lifeless body tumbled back and crashed to the ground.
Chapter Twenty-Five—Where You’re Supposed To Be
The Rangers returned to Westernfort on a dull, gray evening. The thick blanket of cloud served to hasten the onset of dusk, and a hint of rain was in the air. The bite of a chill northern wind warned that autumn was fast approaching. Leaves were still green but devoid of any luster. Within days, the first flushes of red would be visible. Fans of migrating birds flew down the valleys.
Kim dismounted and left her horse to the care of the grooms by the paddocks. She would willingly have joined the other Rangers in attending to her own animal, but once it was seen that her arm was in a sling, the reins were taken from her and she was pushed toward the steep path. On the way up to the gates, she paused and looked down on the shuffling herds huddled around their byres and then raised her eyes to the range of mountains at the far side of the valley, indistinct in the gloomy mist. The first drops of a light drizzle began to fall, but despite the weather, Kim felt perfectly at peace. The cold and damp only increased her contentment at the thought of a welcoming fire, a hot meal, a warm bed, and Lynn.
At the top of the climb, the path passed through the gates. Kim turned her back on the low-lying plain and paused for a moment to study the scene in front of her, from the protective ring of mountains to the neat farmlands. The fields were mainly stubble now that most of the crops were in, and the village was tranquil at the close of day. Trails of sweet wood smoke drifted from the huts. Posts marked out the foundations for more permanent buildings; work would be starting soon, now that everyone was released from the harvest and the threat of invasion. The vision of how the village would look in ten years’ time rose in Kim’s mind, and her expression became mesmerized. For the first time, she fully understood what it would mean to her, that Westernfort was not just another posting, it was for the rest of her life.
Kim shook her head, a little bemused by her own reaction, and began walking again. Word of the Rangers’ return had spread and a few folk appeared from the huts, shouting a welcome. Kim’s pace increased slightly. Then, running up the path toward her, came Lynn, and all the rest of the valley ceased to exist in Kim’s eyes. She caught Lynn in a one-armed hug, and winced as Lynn grabbed her other arm before noticing the sling.
“Are you all right?” Lynn said with alarm.
“I’m fine.”
“But your arm?”
“I was stupid enough to stand in the way of an arrow. I didn’t—” Kim tried to joke, but the fear on Lynn’s face caught the words in her throat. Now she had someone else whom she must answer to when taking risks. More soberly, she continued, “But I’m safe. And I’m home now.”
The stories could wait until later, and the affectionate recriminations that would follow. She looked into Lynn’s eyes and felt her life, her soul, her heart defined there. Home. That was the important word. For the first time since she was fourteen, Kim knew she had come home.
*
The next day was spent in resting and retelling the story of the encounter with the Guards. By midafternoon, the clouds cleared and the mellow sunshine encouraged something like a party in the main square, with Lynn’s singing talents called on frequently to the accompaniment of pipes. Even the odd flagon of beer made its appearance. Celebrating the death of the Guards did not seem right, with the possible exception of Rozek, yet neither was it a time to be totally serious. As sunset drew near, the temperature began to drop sharply. The night was not one for gossiping under the stars, and the eldest folk began to move indoors in search of the warmth of the hearthside.
Kim stood by the entrance to the stone house. Despite her original rejection of the honor, she now found herself living there, sharing Lynn’s room. Gina was beside her, and the pair was trying to second-guess the Chief Consultant’s next move.
“She won’t be eager to send Guards against us again, but it doesn’t look as if she trusts Rangers,” Kim said.
“She won’t leave us alone. She’ll just keep upping the numbers.” Gina’s voice was gloomy.
“You think we won’t be able to fight them off?”
Gina’s face was solemn. “It may sound strange, but I’m frightened that we will. This world hasn’t seen war yet, but the old world knew it only too well. I wish the Chief Consultant would go and read some of the books in her library. She could start where I did, with the Franco-Prussian war. It might scare her enough to
start thinking. But she won’t either read or think. She’s too certain she has the Goddess in her pocket.” Gina sighed. “I honestly never intended things to work out this way. All I wanted was the truth, but now I’m not sure if all the truth in the universe is worth one woman’s life.”
“Better to live in ignorance than die in wisdom?”
“Maybe. But we no longer have that option. The choice is down to our lives or theirs. It almost makes me wish I believed in the Goddess.”
“Why?”
“Because then I’d have someone to pray to. I’m frightened that the Chief Consultant and I have set this world on the road to Hiroshima.”
“What’s at—” Kim began, but she was interrupted by Lynn, who had finally finished singing and had come to join them. Kim smiled and put her good arm around her lover, hugging her close.
“You look like you’re having a painful conversation,” Lynn said.
“We were thinking about the Chief Consultant.”
“Oh well. If it’s any consolation, I’ll bet she looks even more miserable when she thinks about you two.” Lynn looked thoughtful before adding, “And me.”
Before anything more could be said, a fourth woman approached. She was a member of the rescued family of heretics. The condition of the oldest one had slowed them down, so that they had only arrived at Westernfort a few hours before the rest of the Rangers, and they had not had a chance to settle in properly.
Lynn, in the role of healer, had visited the elderly woman and learned her name was Nedda. The rest of the family consisted of her two daughters plus their partners. The young girl was Nedda’s granddaughter, the child of the older couple. The woman who now approached was the younger of Nedda’s daughters. When Lynn had been introduced before, she had seemed friendly, but now her manner was very hesitant, to the point of teetering on flight, and over her shoulder, Lynn could see her partner hanging in the rear. Lynn smiled in an encouraging fashion, although it did not seem to help the woman’s awkwardness.
“Excuse me, ma’am...” the young heretic began uncertainly, her eyes darting between Lynn and Kim.
Lynn looked at the woman, confused. “Is it me you want, or the captain?”
“Er...you, ma’am.”
“Oh, well. There’s no need to call me ma’am. Kim neither, come to that, unless you desperately want to apply for the Rangers.”
“Oh. Well, um...” The woman was inexplicably nervous. “Well. We’ve been told you’re an Imprinter.”
“Ah.” Lynn suddenly understood where the conversation was going and was hit by an attack of her own anxiety. “I was. But I don’t know whether I still am.”
“Was...?”
“I’m no longer a virgin.” Lynn indicated Kim’s arm around her, and despite her unease, had to fight to keep the grin off her face. If it could possibly have been in doubt before, it definitely was not after celebrating Kim’s return the previous night. “The Sisters would tell you my powers will be gone, but I’ve not had the chance to put it to the test yet.” She bit her lip. “I take it you’re not asking out of idle curiosity?”
The other young woman had come to stand beside her partner. “No. We were saving up for the imprinting fees. We nearly had enough, and then we were denounced and had to run and...we’ve brought what money we had with us, and it’s yours if—”
“No,” Lynn cut in abruptly. “If I can imprint, then I will do it for free. Anyway, there isn’t much around here to spend money on.”
“So...?”
Lynn was aware of both Kim and Gina watching her intently. She raised her chin and said, “No one here puts much faith in the Sisters’ teachings, but maybe there is a reason for what they say about celibacy and imprinting. However, if you want, I will try for you tomorrow.”
*
Lynn was sitting alone in the common room of the stone house, staring into the cold fireplace, when Gina came to get her.
“Are you nervous?” Gina asked, seeing Lynn’s sober expression.
“Not really.”
“Thoughtful?”
Lynn pursed her lips and then nodded. “Yes.”
“What are you thinking?”
“About being where you’re supposed to be.”
“Surely not in the temple?”
“Oh no. I never wanted to be there, never felt I belonged, despite what the Sisters said.”
“And you feel you belong with Kim?”
Lynn smiled. “More than I’ve ever belonged anywhere else in my life. But I’ve changed so much. I’d loved Kim for ages, yet I hadn’t realized that making love to her would cause me to feel so differently about...”
“About?”
“Everything. Some mornings I wake up and don’t feel like the same person anymore.”
“Do you think it’s likely that you can’t imprint?”
“I don’t think so. I won’t know for certain until I try, but it doesn’t feel as if any of the healer sense has left me.” Despite her words, Lynn looked troubled.
Gina studied her face for a while. “I was expecting you to be suffering from a recurrence of the doubts you had the first time you were called on to imprint in Westernfort.”
Lynn shook her head. “Not really.”
“But there’s something else bouncing around at the back of your mind. I can see it on your face.”
“It’s...” Lynn frowned as she searched for words. “Despite being outside the temple, and you making me doubt everything about Celaeno and Himoti, I’ve never felt so spiritually complete in my life. And I was wondering, even if Celaeno didn’t make the universe, perhaps there was a Goddess who did, who worked through Celaeno and the people who built her. Perhaps we were supposed to come here.”
“I think you’re playing with an extremely vague hypothesis with no useful or practical implications, and I’m a little uncertain of why you would want to bother.”
“It’s just, at the moment, I feel I need someone to give thanks to. If there isn’t a Goddess, then there ought to be. I know you told me to follow my heart...” Lynn paused for a second. “And from the depths of my heart, I cannot keep from giving praise for life. It would be nice if someone was out there to listen.”
Gina laughed. “Then I think you’ll do all right.”
The weather outside was bright and mild for the season. Sunshine from the previous afternoon had returned, burning off the last of the morning chill. The snow-covered peaks were crystal sharp against the blue sky, and the wind carried the soft scents of autumn. As had become customary, the entire village had gathered to watch. They stood subdued around the edge of the square, waiting for the leader of the heretics to escort the Imprinter out of the stone house. The thought occurred to Lynn that they had renounced the ceremonies of the temple only to start creating their own. In another two generations, she could see heretic-style imprinting getting as bound in ritual as anything the Sisters practiced.
The two young women were standing a little apart from the rest, looking hopefully toward the door of the stone house. Lynn walked over, took their hands, and led them out into the center of the square. She went through the limited necessary instructions and then the three of them sat down. A hush fell over the assembled crowd.
Lynn began to slip into the imprinting trance, but she was distracted as the two young women glanced across to meet each other’s eyes. This time, Lynn did not resist the temptation to copy their action. She looked up and saw Kim in the crowd directly in front of her. Their eyes met also, and then without Lynn’s conscious effort, the imprinting trance swept over her, but not like ever before. She was taken not inward, but outward.
She was surrounded by the world. The sense of it burst in upon her, soaking in through every pore. More solid, more unstoppable, more intense than ever before, from the ground underneath her to the arch of blue sky over her head. The mountains and the grass. The heartbeat of the world. Lynn felt herself caught up by the ecstasy of life. She could feel it, taste it, and smell it in every strand
of her being. The two women whose hands she held were brilliant tapestries of dreams, spun on a double helix. The sight of the village square faded from her mind, but the image of blue sky seeped in, with the strength of mountains, the fresh scent of fir trees, and the wonder of Kim’s love. Lynn knew with absolute certainty she had found her true place in the world Celaeno chose for her. She was where she was meant to be.
Appendix
Extracts from Peter McKay’s Diary
15-May-2254: Ellen and I boarded the Celaeno today at 20:00 GMT. The shuttle ride up was pretty routine, including the twenty-minute delay on takeoff. As we got close to the ships, everyone rushed to get a good look at the seven of them floating against the backdrop of stars. It’s an image I’ll carry with me always. The colony ships are enormous. Nothing really prepared me for the scale of them. The closer we got the bigger they became. And to see them just floating in space. You can’t put the effect into words. So many dreams are bound up with the ships, but I wasn’t the only one to spare a glance back at the Earth and choke a little. How long before we’ll see her again? But it’s too late now to change our minds.
We’ve both been put on the Celaeno with the life scientists. A last-minute adjustment from UNSA, we only found out last night. Originally I’d been allocated a place on the Taygete with the other geologists and the terra-forming equipment, but the agency must have made one of its intermittent attempts to keep couples together, and there was a big swap around. A nice gesture, even though we’ll be asleep for the whole journey.
I said the ships were big, but you’d never think it once we were inside. To call the passenger area cramped is to strain the meaning of the word, although of course, it isn’t intended to provide living quarters. Ellen and I were some of the last to board. Most of the SA chambers are already occupied, and we’ll be put under very shortly. There’s certainly nothing on the ship to stay awake for, except the view.
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