The Martian King: The Slave Planet II

by Seven Steps

  “Just think that in a few years, you will be king and you will have sons of your own to harass.”

  He felt the word on his tongue. Knew it in the pits of his heart.

  “Mother,” he said, hoping that it sounded more like a statement then a question.

  Her eyes peered deep into him, into his soul. Her calm expression changed to one stormier, more unsure.

  Kiln put his hand over hers, enjoying the feeling of his mother’s hand on his cheek.

  “Mother.” Unable to stop himself, he wrapped his arms around her.

  My mother.

  “Who are you?” Her voice was panicked, and she pushed him away from her, stepping back to look at him warily.

  “What do you mean?”

  “Who are you? You are not Praxis. You are...”

  Something clicked inside of her. Something in the look of her eyes changed.

  She took a step forward. Then another, coming face to face with him again.

  “You,” she whispered.

  Her eyes darted around the yard, searching for anyone who might have been watching. She then grabbed his hand and they ran across the yard, down the walkway, not stopping until they had ascended the stairs, into her room, and shut the door firmly behind them.

  “You.” She threw her arms around his neck, pulling him close. “My lost son.”

  Her body was warm, comforting. He hugged her back, feeling very much like a child in his mother’s arms.

  “Mother.”

  The word sounded so good on his tongue. Mother. He had a mother, and she was here with him now. Joy flooded his soul, washing away the guilt and anger that had been there before.

  I have a mother.

  “They told me that they sent you away. I had my spies look for you but no one knew where you had gone.”

  “They sent me to Venus.”

  “Venus,” she gasped. “They sent you to be a slave?”

  “Yes.”

  “How awful!” She took in a sharp breath, pulled away so that she could look into his eyes. “And your brother?”

  Kiln shook his head. “I don’t know. Boikis did something to him, and brought me here in his place.”

  “For what purpose?”

  “To convince Father to ally with the Venians.”

  “The Venians?” She put her thumb to her mouth, chewing on the nail. “Why would he want to ally with the Venians? He’s had no dealings with them since that woman left here all those years ago.” She turned back to Kiln, a smile on her face. “It doesn’t matter now. You are back. Oh, my son!” She threw herself at him again, and they squeezed themselves together.

  “You mustn’t tell anyone about me,” Kiln whispered. “If Boikis knew that you knew who I was, he might do something terrible.”

  “Boikis has no power here. He has no power anywhere. He’s an ambassador, a babysitter to dignitaries. If he wasn’t a third son he wouldn’t be in the palace at all.”

  “No, mother, he has men who follow him. He knows things. He’s planning something.”

  “Boikis is nothing to worry about. Leave him to me. I have your father’s ear. I can have Boikis thrown out of the palace if I wanted to.”

  “Mother, please.”

  “No. You are back now, my son. I will do everything in my power to protect you.”

  She smoothed back a blond hair that had strayed into Kiln’s face.

  Kiln stayed in his mother’s suite for hours. Though the rest of the planet was bare and plain, her room was filled with color and textures. Soft rugs, colored curtains, beaded bed sheets, colored lights. She even had a small dog that she kept with her. The small, white ball of fur yapped around Kiln’s ankles for the rest of the evening.

  Kiln told his mother about Venus, about Earth, about Nadira. She listened intently to his stories, fascination clear on her face.

  She told him about Praxis, Haggarty, and about all that had happened on Mars in the years he’d been away.

  By the end of the night, they could only fall asleep in each other’s arms, a warm peace flowing over them.

  A son had found his mother.

  A mother had found her son.

  CHAPTER 26

  “Where does she go?” Arees asked.

  She, Lex and Nim stood around a wooden table, preparing a meal. What time of the day it was, Arees didn’t know. The jail was below ground, with no windows. What she’d previously thought was outside light was only the light in the hallway being turned on and off by Cara and Nim. The only way to measure the passage of time was by the meals that were served.

  Gruel with hunks of stale bread for breakfast.

  Gruel with a hunk of cheese for lunch.

  Gruel with chunks of vegetables for dinner.

  They sliced cheese and watched Diana disappear with her small cart down the hallway.

  Diana’s wing.

  “Two bowls,” Lex said. “That means that there must be two prisoners down there.”

  “Who do you think they are?” Arees asked.

  “No one knows,” Nim replied. “The prisoners in Diana’s wing are brought in through a special entrance, not through the main doors.”

  Diana turned a corner and was out of sight.

  Arees exchanged a look with Lex, then turned back to Nim.

  “Why did you let us out, Nim?” She asked.

  The woman smiled meekly. “We are sisters,” she said. “Us Venians have to stick together here. It’s hard enough fighting off men without fighting each other.”

  “I want you to know that I appreciate it.”

  Nim took a bite of her cheese. “You’re different, you know,” she said.

  “Different?” Arees inclined her head to the left. “How so?”

  “I remember you back on Venus. You didn’t care for anyone or anything. Now. Here. You’re different. You took up with a man. You say thank you. You’re kind. What happened after I was kidnapped?”

  Arees set down her cheese and leaned her forearms on the table. “So much. Almost too much to tell.”

  “We aren’t going anywhere. Please. Tell me.”

  “Well, it started when I was pushed into a wormhole...”

  ~()~()~()~()~

  Arees’ tale lasted deep into the afternoon. Nim was so wrapped up in the story that she didn’t notice Lex re-joining them at the table.

  “That is an incredible story,” Nim said, her full attention fixed on Arees.

  “It is. But, I am the better for it. I’m a better woman, and, maybe one day, I’ll get to prove that I’m a better leader.”

  Nim nodded, and went to wash out her bowl as Arees stretched.

  “We’d better get back to our cells,” Arees said. “We wouldn’t want Cara to catch us.”

  Nim waved her hand. “She won’t care.”

  “She won’t?”

  “No. As long as you don’t cause me, her or Diana any trouble, she’s fine with letting the prisoners out. It’s not like you’re going anywhere.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?”

  “There is no getting out of the Royal prison,” Nim said, coming back to the table to pick up Arees and Lex’s bowl. “There are guards stationed all around us, and the doors are all locked from the outside. We can do whatever we want while we’re in here, because we will never get out.”

  Arees looked Lex. Her eyes searching for news of what he’d found.

  Who were the prisoners that Diana fed every day? Was there a way out that way?

  “I’m going to go lay down,” Arees said, rising from the table.

  Lex took her hand, and, instead of going to Arees’ cell, they went to his. She kept her eyes on the shadows, ensuring that Cara wasn’t around to hear, before she turned to him.

  “What did you find?” She asked.

  “There are two cells that Diana goes into. One of them looks furnished, with a bed and books. There was a woman in there, but I didn’t see her face.”

  “And the other?”

  “Def
initely Kiln.”

  Arees let out a breath. “Good. They’re here. That will make it easier for us to escape.”

  “We can’t. Kiln is chained a wall. Diana has to hand feed him and clean him up when she’s in there.”

  “We can free him.”

  “How? We have no weapons, no tomas. You heard Nim. The prison is surrounded by guards. There’s no way out.”

  “There has to be,” Arees said.

  “Maybe if we had the toma’s.”

  “We can’t rely on the toma’s,” Arees snapped. “We’ll have to figure a way out on our own.”

  Lex took Arees’ hand and pulled her close, hugging her tightly to her body.

  “If we never get out of here-”

  “No. Don’t say that. We have to get out of here.”

  Boikis’ words played back in her memory. He said that he would feed her to the teams at war games. She imagined all of those men with their hands on her. No, she had to find a way out.

  Or else, she would die trying.

  CHAPTER 27

  Each tick of the clock brought Kiln closer to madness.

  He was anxious to get the day over with so he could talk to his mother again.

  Did she find Nadira? Did she find a way to thwart Boikis’ plans?

  He felt his father’s eyes on him as he ate, and refocused on the task at hand: eating like a slob. He purposely smacked when he chewed and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. He felt like a fool.

  “Lucas hasn’t contacted me yet about your test results,” Haggarty said. “Have you seen him?”

  “Yes, I saw him yesterday at your orders.”

  “And what did he say?”

  Kiln tried not to rub his hand over his sore chest. Dalio had come back last night, and covered Kiln with tattoos from his neck down to his waist. His body felt like it was on fire. “He said that I was fine, but I needed more time to rest.”

  Haggarty grunted. “Odd. He’s usually pretty prompt about reporting back to me. I tried to comm him earlier, but he didn’t answer.”

  “Maybe he’s resting?”

  “Resting. Bah! I’ll have someone go check on him soon. Maybe tonight.” Haggarty’s eyes softened as he looked at Kiln. “I worry about you, Prax. You don’t seem yourself.”

  “I’m fine, Haggy.”

  “Perhaps you are feeling fine but you are acting so strangely. Like you’re here but not really here. You’re quiet, your stance on matters of state have changed. Tell me, is anything the matter?”

  “No.”

  “Come on, Prax. You can tell me anything, you always have. Is it this Venian business that’s giving you so much trouble?”

  Kiln shook his head.

  “Venians. Vile women, every one of them.”

  “Not all of them.”

  “Now you sound like that idiot brother of yours.”

  Kiln swallowed the meat in his mouth and let his eyes rest on his father. Each day he grew weaker, and ate less. What was wrong with him? If he died, who would tell Kiln his history? With Praxis gone, Kiln only had his mother left. He knew so little of his family, especially his father, but something inside of him ached, too.

  “Tell me about your father,” Kiln said.

  Haggy’s brows knit together.

  “When did you become interested in our family history?”

  Kiln shrugged, hoping that it wasn’t too out of characters. “I’ve just been wondering.”

  Haggy put down the goblet he’d been drinking out of his and set his sights on Kiln.

  “Do you really want to know about my father, Praxis?” he asked softly.

  Kiln nodded. “Yes, Haggy. And you.”

  Haggy shook his head. “You really are acting strangely, boy.”

  Rising, Kiln walked around the table and went to sit on his father’s left. He put his hand over the Kings. It felt deathly cold and bony. Still, he didn’t pull away.

  “Please, father. Tell me about who I am.”

  He watched his father’s face soften, and he leaned back in his wheel chair.

  “Take me to my room,” he said.

  Calling back to mind the map of the palace, Kiln brought his father to the elevator. They rode up in silence, and when the doors opened, they stepped out onto the second floor. Two doors down were Haggy’s rooms.

  Kiln pushed the door open and stepped inside.

  Haggy pointed a thin, pale finger at a small table.

  His curiosity peeked, Kiln wheeled him to it, and watched as his father reached into the table and pulled out a wooden key.

  “Take me to the Monument,” Haggy said.

  Remembering that there was a large wall that ran along the front of the palace, Kiln wheeled his father back out the doorway, into the elevator, and out the front door. Before long, they stood in front of the wall that ran around the length of the palace.

  “Over there.” The king pointed to the far wall, where the wall seemed to end.

  The wall was made of red bricks, each one inscribed with letters. Kiln slowed down to read them:

  On this day, the third month, the fifth of the month, in the year 3500, King Quaggs brought peace to the domes.

  On this day, the twelfth month, the twentieth of the month, in the year 6065, King Xerx built the tenth done.

  On this day, the fifth month, the tenth of the month, in the year 7018, King Gonk proclaimed the Year of War Games.

  Each brick held a piece of Martian history, and the Martian that had brought it about.

  By the time they had arrived at the end of the wall, Kiln had traveled thousands of years through time, finally arriving at the present day.

  Haggarty leaned forward, placed the key in a small key hole in the wall, and turned it. The wall groaned as it slid open.

  “What is this?” Kiln asked.

  “It is my tomb,” Haggarty replied.

  Kiln wheeled his father inside, and lost the ability to speak.

  In the center of the room was a casket. A simple, brown box with the word Haggarty carved into the top. Around it were piles of bricks.

  “This is where they will bury me,” Haggy said. “Along with every King who ever roamed this planet. And do you know what I want to be remembered most for when I die?”

  Kiln shook his head.

  “You, Praxis,” he said. “You are my crowning achievement. A prince who is magnificent in war games, and politics. You will be a God among kings.”

  Kiln’s eyes slid to his father’s and he swallowed.

  How could he tell this man that he was a fraud?

  “When I was a boy, my father wanted me to be an engineer. He was an engineer. His father before him was an engineer, as was his father before him. That was all he knew. Design the domes that will house your children, he’d said. When I threw my hat into the ring for the kingship, he stopped speaking to me. Wasted talent, he’d said. The last I heard of him, he was in dome five, dying of red lung fever. That was years ago. I used to think that he was a cruel man, but now I know that he didn’t want a son who was greater than him.” His eyes turned to Kiln. “I am not my father. I vowed to raise a son who would be the most magnificent king that Mars had ever seen, and I have, Praxis. The men love you. They will follow you. That is the greatest trait that any man can hope to achieve.”

  Haggarty stood, and shuffled over to the tomb, running his hands over his name engraved in the top.

  “I don’t have much time left, Praxis. But, I have filled my share of bricks and I have raised a good son. That’s all a man can be asked to do. When I die, no one will be able to beat you in elections. The men will follow no one else.”

  Haggarty’s feet suddenly gave out, and he collapsed to the floor.

  Kiln rushed to his father’s side, picking up the frail king and placing him in the wheelchair.

  “Are you alright, Father?” he asked.

  The king’s eyes turned glossy, far away. “Perhaps it is time for us to talk about your coronation.”

 
Coronation? But I’ve barely gotten a chance to know you. How can you leave me so quickly?

  “Haggy.”

  “Take me back to my rooms, Prax. And call the physician.”

  The old man’s eyes closed, and his head tilted to the side.

  “I am not Praxis.” Kiln whispered. “I’m Kiln. Your son.”

  The King’s eyes remained closed, unresponsive.

  Maybe its for the best, Kiln thought, as he rolled his father’s wheelchair back to the palace.

  Everything was wrong, so very wrong.

  By the time he arrived in Haggarty’s room and left his still slumbering father in the capable hands of the attendant, he felt as if he were on the verge of a breakdown. The walls closed in on him, and the world seemed to spin faster.

  He wished Nadira were here. Nadira could calm him. Her sweet voice and gentle arms would wrap around him and tell him that everything would be okay. But she wasn’t here. She was locked in a cell somewhere on this forsaken planet, and it was all his doing.

  No. It was Boikis’ doing.

  Boikis and his miserable plans.

  Kiln’s hands boiled into fist by his side. He’d never hated another person before, but, today, he hated his younger brother with a passion that made his chest burn.

  “More father son bonding time?”

  As if he’d conjured him up, Boikis suddenly appeared besides him, his gait carefree.

  “What do you want, Boikis?”

  “Just checking in on my brother.”

  “Half brother.” Kiln spat back.

  “Oh, that doesn’t matter here. As long as you are sired by the same father, you are true brothers. We should have covered that when preparing you.”

  Kiln swung his room door open, marched in. He didn’t stop walking until he’d placed his hands on the windowsill, his back to his brother.

  “So, I see that father has taken you to the stone wall?”

  “Is that what your spies tell you?”

  Boikis narrowed his eyes at Kiln.

  “Perhaps,” he slowly replied. “I wouldn’t get too close to old Haggy if I were you. He’s dying, you know.”

  Kiln’s throat constricted. “So I’ve seen.”

  Boikis tilted his head to the side, studying Kiln’s back.

  “I came to tell you that your coronation will be in two days, and after that will be the celebratory war games, which you will star in. I suggest you step up your training. We wouldn’t want the men to get any ideas about you not being who you say you are.”