by NB VanYoos
* * * *
Tyler woke in the dark room. The lights were turned down, and nothing seeped through the blinds. It was night, so he lay quietly staring into the ceiling. He replayed the encounter with Eyleeria, realizing that was her name. He had dreamed of her and the Admiral, and in those dreams, he, or the Admiral had called her Eyleeria. He probed the dream, but it faded before he could yield much from it.
There was something else about the Admiral and Eyleeria, but he couldn’t remember what. He knew there was some bond between them, but what eluded him. He thought about the Admiral’s memories. He had bottled them in his subconscious and was reluctant to let them out.
He wanted to find a way to release them slowly, so that he could organize them and keep them from over-running his own.
I can help you. The alien suggested.
Tyler considered the offer carefully. He feared the presence but was good at suppressing it. Did he really have enough control to cooperate with it? He wasn’t certain, but he desperately wanted to know more about the Admiral and find a way to communicate with the people around him. He decided to take the bait. Okay, tell me how. He felt the presence swell from the depths at his response. He tightened his control and held it back.
How can I help if you hold me back? The alien pleaded.
You can simply tell me what I need to know. Tyler said coldly. He tightened his control, letting nothing of the alien escape the confines of his subconscious.
No response. Tyler didn’t know if the alien was contemplating the situation or refusing to cooperate under Tyler’s terms. Tyler urged gently. Very well, I can simply try it myself, without your help.
No, I will help! Tyler could sense desperation in the voice.
Okay, who are you? Tyler asked.
I am called Adanni, I am an … Onyalum.
I see, Tyler remembered what Thosolan had told him, how is it that you and I are joined?
I was trying to avoid detection and made a blind transition into your world. When I came out, I came out where you existed. Our two spirits tried to share a single body, but that isn’t possible, so we merged into a single entity.
Adanni fell silent, but Tyler thought he’d sensed truth in the words. It made sense, but he wondered why his essence had ended up the dominant one?
Because, I am from the ethereal Universe and you are from the real Universe. You dominated the body I collided with, and so you dominate the new creation we have become.
So, you can read my mind as well? Tyler asked a bit concerned.
Why not? That is where I am.
True enough—still, it worried Tyler.
What is it you want? To dominate and take control? Tyler didn’t know what kind of answer he would get, but he wanted to confront the issue now, while he maintained control.
No, no, not to dominate ... to share. Is not part of you a part of me? Why should you get all the control and me just a small corner of your subconscious mind? I, too, want to experience new worlds, new people and new things. It is why I was created. I traveled the Universe long before you existed, and I have valuable experience—experience that can help you!
Tyler thought the offer sounded reasonable, but was he telling the truth? He had a good point, it wasn’t right Tyler controlled everything. But how could he trust him, especially after what Thosolan had told him about Onyalum?
Why should I trust you? The way you talk, I suspect you assume you have more rights than me. After all, you said you had more experience.
Tyler waited, realizing he didn’t know what to do regardless of the response. This was new territory, and he wasn’t sure how things worked. What if he gave up control and could never get it back? How could he be certain he wouldn’t be thrown into the subconscious, Adanni gaining all the control? He couldn’t be sure.
The alien voice sounded defeated. It sounds as though you have made up your mind. Am I to be trapped here forever? The voice was broken, no longer pleading. Tyler didn’t think it was fair, but he couldn’t bring himself to let go of the power.
All right, before I give up control, you must do something to help me trust you.
Name it. The alien voice perked up at the opportunity.
You said you could help me with these memories of the Admiral’s. What can you do?
When an Onyalum occupies a body whose spirit has left, the memories are still intact and accessible to the Onyalum. It is how we fit in to the world of that body, by using the memories and becoming that person.
Tyler tried to imagine the experience. Can these memories take over? He was curious about the effects from integrating them into his own.
Ordinarily, no, but we are not ordinary. However, I do not think so, but there is no guarantee.
Fine, how do you integrate them?
Right now, you only have access to them. You have suppressed them like you have suppressed me. Give me control of the memories and I can integrate them into your own.
Will I understand their language?
Yes.
Tyler waited, trying to imagine how he could give the alien access without relinquishing all control. How would I give you control of those memories? I don’t even know how I control you.
Adanni replied quickly. Easy, simply think about what you want and then focus to make it happen.
Tyler hesitated, what if he was being led into a trap? What would change after it happened? Would he still be Tyler? Fear began to mount, holding him back. He resisted the urge to force Adanni back into exile and thought about giving the Admiral’s memories to Adanni. He could sense the barriers holding both back, and in his mind he brought them together.
As the two merged, Tyler felt his barrier weaken. He thrust it up, but couldn’t control what the two essences now did. Suddenly, memories streamed into his consciousness, becoming one with his own. Instead of the earlier flood, they came in slowly, organized. He saw each one individually, calling them up as though they were his own.
It was a unique and strange experience, but he relished it. He no longer feared possession as they each fell into place among his own. Tyler found he was not confused about which were his, and which were the Admiral’s. They streamed on and on until at last, they were in place. Every experience from when the Admiral was born until he died was accessible to Tyler. He ran through them all, learning everything he could. His life was an open book, and Tyler read feverishly.
The Admiral was born Nayllen Osloo on Poolto, one of two inhabited planets in the solar system. Poolto was the fourth planet from the sun, and did not contain the wealth of water that Krildon, the third planet from the sun, did. This had been a persistent problem between them, and was the primary reason for the war waging between the two worlds. Although born on Poolto, the Admiral had spent much of his youth on Krildon as the son of the official ambassador to Krildon.
At ten years of age, his father had sent him back to Poolto to attend the prestigious School of Warfare. Although his father didn’t agree with war, he had wanted his son to have all the advantages and benefits of a life in the elite, military ranks. The Admiral had excelled in all his classes, graduating at eighteen, the highest in his class. Everything his father had hoped for came true. Doors opened, and he rapidly moved through the ranks. Midway in his career, while still in the Advanced Space Tactics College, war broke out with Krildon. Trade negotiations between the two worlds had fallen apart, and the prospect of losing the precious water Poolto needed forced them into action.
The Admiral’s father, Nattur Osloo, was still ambassador to Krildon when the war started. Although officially protected under treaties during wartime, Krildon denounced the Admiral’s father as a spy and sentenced him to life in prison. His mother, Eynia Heerden, had been sent back to Poolto, no longer welcome on the world she had spent most of her life. It had been years since the Admiral had seen his father, and news of his imprisonment hardened him toward Krildon, a world he’d once admired.
Early in the conflict, fighting turned brutal, and wea
pons of mass destruction had rained down on both worlds, slaughtering millions. Because of the horror these attacks instilled, both worlds built a system to protect them from such destruction in the future. The systems, each modeled after the other from stolen blueprints, consisted of a ring of powerful weapons encircling each planet. The weapons were fully automated and contained enough firepower to destroy any incoming missile or ship. The Codes for these weapons were the most sophisticated ever made and changed constantly. Only the Imperial Palace of Poolto had access to them.
This new protection changed the course of the war, sending it deep into space. Both worlds waged a war for the precious resources mined in the asteroid belt. Immense battles raged for control of the asteroids, planets, and moons that contained the resources needed to build and sustain an advanced military.
It was in these battles that the Admiral made his mark on the history of Poolto. Known by the enemy as the Sorcerer, he won battle after battle with tactics never before seen. He was legendary and instantly became a hero to the people of Poolto—a hero the people rallied behind. The Emperor knew this and never missed an opportunity to be seen with the Admiral. The Emperor himself had promoted the Admiral to his current rank, Grand Admiral, the highest military rank of all. He controlled every ship, soldier, and weapon that Poolto brought to bear. He was the Supreme Military Commander, the most powerful man on Poolto—after the Emperor.
But before his fame, the Admiral had married. His wife, Toosia Slay, daughter of a prestigious Councilor on the Emperor’s Supreme Council, came from both wealth and political connections. Although love had not been the driving factor for their marriage early on, Tyler noted the Admiral had deep affections for his wife. Unable to conceive children, their marriage deteriorated over the last ten years as guilt and depression overtook her life. The Admiral, unable to deal with such emotional problems, distanced himself, burying himself in his work. The Admiral had not seen his wife in almost two years.
Without a family, the Admiral’s work became his life. His primary staff assistant, Eyleeria Snillen, had filled the void left behind by his broken marriage. Their affair persisted for five years in secrecy, and Tyler realized why she had been so emotional when he had first awakened and said her name.
The Admiral had a strong attachment to Eyleeria, but love was not a feeling Tyler could locate. The relationship was a mutual friendship—a need brought about by close proximity and the ongoing stress of war. The Admiral had suspected she wanted more, but he was unwilling to give it. His marriage to Toosia was more than political. The Admiral actually loved his wife, and could never bring himself to destroy her further with the dissolution of their marriage. Tyler felt unprepared to deal with these emotional issues himself. He had always avoided these types of situations, and the complexity of this one scared him.
He continued scanning, looking for the accident that had brought Tyler to his current predicament. The memories indicated the battle over the Krildon moon was intended to severely weaken their ability to build and sustain their fleet. It had been intended to be a surprise attack on their maintenance facilities and factories close to their home world. The Admiral had planned this unthinkable attack himself and had limited the knowledge of the operation to only those commanders he trusted. The plan was to create a diversion on one of the asteroid colonies held by Krildon, drawing off their fleet to that distant location.
A new technology Poolto had developed simulated a large fleet on the war-path, presenting a situation Krildon couldn’t ignore. Having drawn off much of their fleet, the Admiral would bring the real fleet to within the outer range of their planetary defense weaponry. From there, they could attack most of the moon bases and orbiting maintenance facilities by overwhelming their protection grid with steady bombardment. The trick was surprise and numbers.
They should have had both, but something had gone horribly wrong. They discovered too late that the diversion had not worked. Although it drew some ships away from the home world, the bulk of their fleet remained ready to fight. Somehow, Krildon was expecting the attack! That meant a traitor in the Poolto military. No one but trusted commanders and a very select few bureaucrats knew about the attack. The Emperor knew, of course, but his staff was small and heavily trusted. That narrowed the list considerably, but the Admiral trusted his own commanders, having fought side by side with many of them. That left the bureaucrats or someone within the Emperor’s staff.
Tyler shrugged it off, although the intrigue sparked his curiosity. He knew he had much greater things to deal with than a mysterious traitor he didn’t even know how to trace. It began to dawn on him that the small-time drug dealer from Los Angeles may have bitten off more than he could chew. Despite having all the Admiral’s memories, Tyler wasn’t sure how to pretend to be an Admiral.
I can help you with that as well. Did I not hold up my end of the bargain?
Tyler had to admit, Adanni had given him what he had wanted, but he was uncertain how much he could trust him.
All right, you came through, a first step towards trust. Let’s begin with letting you speak as an advisor, helping me navigate this world and this body. I will not give over any control of this body to you, yet, but I will let you observe and offer advice. Is this acceptable?
What choice do I have? Adanni replied coldly. You hold the power.
Exactly.
Tyler was certain he’d made the right choice, but he realized it hadn’t come out fair. He would have to watch the advice Adanni gave him, if he was one of the Onyalum who corrupted and interfered, he might try to control the situation even behind barriers.
Don’t worry, my good friend, my intentions will always be noble!
I hope so, otherwise, I will be forced to exile you permanently.
Your point is taken.
Adanni’s inner voice didn’t appear to hold malice, so Tyler thought they’d found a good starting point for building a relationship. It would have to do as Tyler needed Adanni’s experience to pull his charade off.
Geez, the Grand Admiral in a war between two planets! Tyler thought morosely. I couldn’t have picked worse if I’d tried?
Yes, you could have. There was no emotion in Adanni’s voice, just a simple statement of fact. Adanni didn’t elaborate, and Tyler wasn’t sure he wanted to know what could be worse.
Dim light crept around the edges of the window shade, and Tyler realized he’d spent much of the night with Adanni and the Admiral’s memories. He knew someone would come soon, and he wanted to be prepared. With the Admiral’s memories integrated, he felt confident he could speak the language. He practiced before anyone showed up, making statements, and issuing military commands, or commands he imagined the Admiral might have made. His memories seemed to confirm this, and it was all that Tyler had to go on. He would have to trust the memories.
After practicing his speech for a while, the memories seemed to confirm he sounded like the Admiral. That was a crucial step. He needed to make a good impression if he were to be released from the hospital and returned to duty. Although the thought scared him, he looked forward to experiencing this new world.
He lay back, tired from his efforts, but feeling much better than the previous day. At least he believed it was the previous day. Sleeping as much as he had, he really wasn’t sure how much time had passed. The door opened slowly and an older woman entered carrying a tray filled with bottles and devices. She hadn’t noticed Tyler was awake, and moved across the room to the bureau. She put the tray down, fussing with the contents. Tyler didn’t know what she was doing, but believed this would be a good time to practice his voice. He took a deep breath.
“Good morning.” he said quietly.
The woman stopped what she was doing, turning to face him, a look of disbelief on her face. She remained silent for several moments, and Tyler began to wonder if he had said it right. His memories confirmed he had used the correct greeting for the early part of the day, so he tried again.
“Good morning, what
is your name?”
“Uh …. oh, good morning, sir, you caught me off guard. Forgive me.” She bowed slightly, waiting for him to respond.
“Nothing to forgive. What is your name?” he asked once more.
“Yes, my name, well I am Weerna Soldan, I mean Nurse Soldan. I work at this hospital.” She was very nervous, and Tyler realized the Admiral really was a major figure on the planet.
“Well, Nurse Soldan, relax, I mean you no ill will.”
“Oh! It’s not that, sir, it’s just that you have been here so long without talking, it seems like a miracle. I’m … I’m just very happy, sir, that’s all.” She smiled weakly, but was more relaxed.
Tyler thought about what she had said—he had been here a long time. How long?
“How long have I been here?” he asked calmly.
“Well, I am not sure I should be the one to discuss this with you.” She hesitated. “I should go and get Doctor Falill to discuss this with you.” She turned towards the door, but stopped short.
“Sorry, sir, I mean with your permission, I would like to get your Doctor.” She bowed her head slightly, showing deference.
Although her request was strange, he released her to get the Doctor. “Yes, please.”
She lifted her head, leaving quietly through the door. He heard her rapid footsteps down the hallway before the door closed him in silence. He realized it was better to let her go. Her obvious discomfort inhibited their ability to communicate, and he wanted someone who was less deferential and could provide facts.
He propped his pillow up and sat against the backboard, silently waiting for his Doctor. The Admiral’s memories drew a blank on the Doctor’s name, but that wasn’t surprising considering the Admiral had never needed one. The Admiral knew the armed forces’ Chief Medical Officers, of course, but that relationship was purely official and neither of them even practiced medicine. The Admiral had always made it a general rule to familiarize himself with all the officers on board his ships, including the medical staff. But beyond the Chief Medical Officer, he rarely had exposure to the medical teams unless something went wrong.
It surprised Tyler the Admiral didn’t have a personal physician. For someone so important, Tyler imagined the Emperor might demand he have one. But, this wasn’t Earth, and maybe good health was a characteristic of these people. It wasn’t something the Admiral’s memory necessarily confirmed, so Tyler bided his time to learn more.
One of the doctors from the previous encounter strode through the door purposefully, Nurse Soldan following in his wake. She stood slightly to his right behind the Doctor while he looked over the screen of a small device in his palm. Without looking up, the Doctor addressed Tyler.
“I see you are better today, Admiral. How do you feel?” With that question, he looked up from his device and smiled slightly.
“I feel fine.” Tyler assured. “I still have some pain in my side … and my back.”
The Doctor absorbed this while writing on his device.“Well, of course you do! The injuries you sustained nearly killed you. To be honest, we were surprised you weren’t killed.” The Doctor jotted more notes before continuing. “After our last encounter, I was beginning to think you might have sustained some serious brain injuries. Your inability to speak or understand us was quite a shock, but I kept the faith that you would recover these abilities. You just needed additional sleep and recuperation.”
“Yes,” Tyler agreed, “well, imagine my own surprise at not being able to understand you? How long have I slept since that previous encounter?” Tyler asked, curious.
“Well,” the Doctor began, distracted by his device, “about a week, give or take a day.”
“A week?” Tyler asked incredulous. To him, it felt like yesterday. “How long since I first got here?”
“Well, now, that is amazing!” The Doctor began, a look of reminiscing on his face. “I guess its going on about eight months since they brought you here. Of course, that’s after about a month on the hospital ship bringing you back from the battle. I tell you, we really were surprised you weren’t killed!” The Doctor went back to jotting notes.
Tyler thought about the time. Nine months since the accident—it was even hard for him to believe. How had his essence kept the body from dying? Clearly it had been severely damaged.
As though reading Tyler’s thoughts, the Doctor answered his question. “We believe your incredible good health is what sustained you all this time. It is truly remarkable you have never been sick a day in your life.” The Doctor put his device behind his back and smiled.
“Yes, I am grateful it saved my life.” Tyler responded.
“Indeed,” the Doctor offered, “we certainly can’t take the credit. We have simply been providing your basic needs and monitoring your progress. The medical ship did all the repairs to your body, we have simply been in charge of managing the healing process.”
“I see.” Tyler understood why Nurse Soldan had been so surprised when he had spoke to her. “Thank you, Doctor, for your excellent service.”
“No need to thank us, Admiral, it’s our job!” The Doctor turned toward the nurse, “Nurse Soldan, please administer his meds, and help clean him up. I suspect there are more than a few people who will want to talk with the Admiral … assuming you feel up to it, Admiral?” He turned back toward Tyler with a questioning look.
Tyler knew he didn’t want more company, but he realized he couldn’t avoid it forever. Better to face it now and prepare for this new world.
Tyler lied. “Yes, I think I could manage a few visitors.”
“Good! Nurse Soldan will help you prepare while I go and spread the good news about your recovery. The Emperor himself has kept a constant vigilance on your progress—he will be very excited to hear the news!”
With that, the Doctor nodded to Nurse Soldan before leaving the room staring at his device.