Slave Empire - Prophecy

by T C Southwell

Chapter Eight

  Rayne smiled at Tallyn when he entered the sun-warmed morning room, and he returned it. She continued to eat her breakfast, trying to ignore Rawn slurping his porridge. After four years, they had settled into a comfortable routine in Tallyn’s house, although he remained distant. Still, he showed them great kindness and consideration, and many of his friends had become theirs.

  Oddly, his crewmen were not numbered amongst his friends, so she had not met any of them. She and Rawn spoke fluent Atlantean now, and spent more time on recreational activities, especially Rawn. He had several friends and often went out, but she disliked the social circles. All too often, her possible identity as the Golden Child either intimidated or alienated potential friends and admirers.

  Tallyn interrupted her reverie. “I’ve spoken to the Council, and they’ve given me permission to take you back to Earth, to see it, if you wish.”

  Rayne stared at him, her spoon poised in front of her mouth. “Why?”

  “Well, when we left, you said you wanted to see your world from space, and were somewhat annoyed at the speed of our departure, if you remember. Until now, the Council forbade any trips into space by the two of you. But the members have grown more lenient, especially since I explained how much you’ve been studying it. Perhaps they underestimated your intelligence, but now they’ve relented.”

  “Has it changed a lot?”

  “Our scouts have reported its progress, which is as we predicted.”

  “And how are things progressing?” Rawn glared at his porridge.

  Tallyn shrugged. “The cloud cover has increased, and the surface temperature is now in the hundreds. Probes show that the seas have dried up.”

  “Sounds wonderfully depressing.”

  “I’ll understand if you decline, but I thought I’d make the offer.”

  “Big of you,” Rawn said, putting down his spoon.

  Rayne frowned at him. “There’s no need to be rude. Tallyn can’t understand how we feel. It’s not his planet.”

  Tallyn shook his head. “I do understand. That’s why I think you should see it. In the distant past, my people were forced to leave their home world when the sun swallowed it. I’ve seen the holofilms of the evacuation, and it’s traumatic. But it’s not something that should be avoided. It’s part of our history, and yours. The loss of a home world is devastating for any race.”

  After a short, tense silence, Rawn nodded. “Okay, we’ll come.”

  “Good. We leave tomorrow, early.”