“Thank you, Alex-Human, for thinking of my shikei during what must be a heart-wrenching time for you.” He reached out and touched her shoulder. “You are strong and resilient, but I remain close enough to the pain of my own loss to see your grief.”
“Nope, not grief. Sadness, yes, but not grief.”
“As you say. I will not argue with the emissary of the Gods.”
“Pinchu, you know I’m not—”
“Yes, I know. The Wakhe—the Katasketousya—were our creators, however, so in a technical respect they are our Gods. Nevertheless, I expect such phrases to fall into disuse as nothing more than quaint figures of speech soon enough, in the face of so many revelations still to come.”
The clearance procedures were all automated, Artificials talking to Artificials, and she docked in an exterior berth without incident. “There are definitely some bizarre sights in your future, but a human facility shouldn’t create too much culture shock.”
“Other than the regrettable lack of tails, how different can it be from a Khokteh settlement?”
She thought back to their time on Ireltse, abiding the searing, bottomless ache the memories evoked with stoic reserve. “Well, for one thing, there’s a lot more metal.”
PRESIDIO
GCDA HEADQUARTERS
MILKY WAY SECTOR 9
Alex gave Isabela a quick hug before crouching to let Marlee throw her arms around her neck. It still felt a bit weird, but she was getting the hang of hugging even children.
Marlee stage-whispered excitedly in her ear. “This place is amazing! And a little scary.”
“The military is supposed to be scary to our enemies. This is where they practice.” She drew back and squeezed Marlee’s hands. “I asked your mother to bring you here because I’ve got someone who wants to meet you.”
“Really? Who?”
“You’ll see. Now don’t be frightened—”
“But do be polite. Remember your manners.”
Marlee looked up at her mother and nodded dutifully. “Yes, ma’am.”
Alex stood. “He’s waiting for us in this meeting room down here.” They walked a couple of meters down the hall, and she opened the door. “Pinchu, I have someone with me who wants to say hello.”
Pinchu stood and moved to the front of the table, jutting his chest and chin out to a slight clink of his ornamentations. “I am Pinchutsenahn Niikha Qhiyane Kteh, Tokahe Naataan of Ireltse and elected leader of the Khokteh people. And you are?”
Marlee’s eyes were frozen wide as saucers, and one hand clung to her mother’s pants leg behind her, but she thrust her chest out and squared her shoulders in a frankly adorable imitation of his stance. “I am Marlee Rosa Arrigucci Marano, Honorary Goodwill Ambassador to all the new aliens. Greetings, Tokahe Naataan. Tanyan yahi, dah honi…honiline khola.”
Pinchu smiled toothily. “Wiyuskinyan wamchi, dah honiline khola. How is it you speak our words, young Human?”
“Auntie Alex gave me the translation program for your language, and I’ve been studying it.”
“Most impressive. You are quite a bright one.”
Marlee smiled. “I am. I have a copy of you in my treehouse castle. Do you want to see it?”
Pinchu looked over to Alex in question, and she stepped in to explain. “It’s a virtual reality space—a sort of multi-dimensional interactive film.”
“Ohhh. Then I should very much like to see this treehouse castle of yours.”
Isabela put a hand on Marlee’s shoulder. “Next time, perhaps. I’m sure the, um, Tokahe Naataan has many important matters to attend to right now.”
Alex grimaced. “I’m afraid we do have a meeting with the commandant and some dignitaries or other in a few minutes. But after Pinchu gets settled in and has let all the people in charge know how things are going to be, maybe he can come to Seneca and spend an afternoon with you.”
Marlee’s eyes lit up, and she bounced on the balls of her feet while Isabela struggled to politely restrain her. “That will be awesome! I can show you the adventure my friend Anna and I wrote, and you can explain to me some of your words I don’t understand.”
“I look forward to it, Marlee Rosa Arrigucci Marano.”
“Thank you. Me, too.”
Isabela rolled her eyes above Marlee’s head. “We’ll work out the details later. For now, let’s get out of their way so Alex and the Tokahe Naataan can work. We’re going to go visit with a few scientists over at the ASCEND offices then head home.”
Marlee shuffled toward the door wearing a pout. “Okay….”
Isabela placed a hand on Alex’s arm, and her voice dropped. “No changes?”
Alex shook her head.
“You’ll let me know if anything does change, yes?”
“I will.”
Marlee took a single step into the hallway then spun around. “Bye, bye, Pinchutse—, um, —nahn Niikha….”
He bent his long legs to stoop low, though he still towered over the young girl. “As we are now friends, you can call me Pinchu.”
54
ROMANE
IDCC COLONY
MILKY WAY SECTOR 9
* * *
AS KENNEDY REACHED TO OPEN the door to their apartment, a dash of irrational fear swept through her. They’d gone straight to Aquila from Amaranthe, then to New York, then to a series of meeting rooms and factories, all in the service of the needs of the Estate of Lionel Terrage, then to the Presidio for a discussion of some radical changes in AEGIS’ roadmap. Today was the first time they’d returned to Romane since leaving for Amaranthe. Since everything changed.
Her hand hovered over the panel…but she was being silly. She hurriedly input the code, the door opened—and the interior appeared exactly as they had left it. Now she felt silly.
She dropped her bags then her coat in a crooked line along the floor as she made her way to the bedroom. When she reached it she collapsed on her back across the width of the bed.
A few seconds later Noah joined her in a matching pose of exhaustion and relief. They were home.
And also in Amaranthe.
That was going to take some getting used to. “We should get some rest while we can. I suspect it’ll be a crazy next few weeks, or years.”
Noah nodded idly. “You have to wonder how long our suddenly tiny governments are likely to last in a world that just got a lot bigger and more crowded. Plus, something’s got to replace the Directorate. What are we going to do with all these aliens? What are they going to do with us?”
She chuckled and shifted her head to gaze out the windows at the view high above downtown. From this angle the view was mostly sky, but it was a fine sky. “All good questions. But I actually meant for us personally. You only thought we were busy before, making ships for AEGIS. Adiamene is a better metal for construction than anything they have in Amaranthe, and we own the patent for it. We may need to hire a couple of employees.” She raised her voice. “Or we could clone Vii a couple of times. Right, Vii?”
‘Only if I can keep the clones as my minions.’
“It goes without saying.” She returned her voice to a conversational level. “You know, we should consider retasking one of your father’s factories to adiamene production, so we don’t have to rely on third-party manufacturers so heavily. Would you be okay with making the change?”
Noah didn’t respond immediately, so she rolled onto her side to face him, and found him staring at her wearing the strangest expression.
She quickly backtracked. “If you’re not comfortable doing it, we don’t need to—”
“Marry me.”
She blinked. When the words penetrated her tired brain, she buried the rush of dangerous endorphins they roused. “I’m sorry, I’m confused. It sounded like you just said, ‘marry me,’ but clearly I heard wrong.”
His hand wound into her hair, tugging the loose band out of it and setting a mane of curls free. “You heard right. Marry me.”
“Still confused.” Her lips
pursed…and her heart quivered in her chest, and her skin probably flushed, too. Damn him. “Is this because with your father’s inheritance you’re now wealthy enough for no one to ever accuse you of being a gold-digger?”
“No! Well, yes, that might be a factor—a small one. But I keep thinking…my father missed out on so much of life by not sharing his with someone—really sharing it, heart and mind, body and soul, and so on. I keep thinking about Alex, and as much as I’m sure she’s suffering right now, I wonder if she doesn’t take comfort from the fact that Caleb will always be and have been her husband. I look at Miriam and David, and I wonder if they could have overcome all those obstacles to so miraculously come together again if they hadn’t had that bond—the bond of swearing their lives to one another. For them, the bond lasted through death, across the beyond and through to rebirth, which is pretty amazing.
“I always believed marriage was nothing more than a social institution designed for everyone but the couple. But I was wrong. Kennedy, I was wrong—and you were right.”
Her lips moved, but she couldn’t get a coherent word all the way from her brain and out past them. Torn between suspicion and hope, wariness and love, terror and unabashed joy, she finally strung together a few hedging syllables. “But what—”
“And don’t you worry. We will never fall into your parents’ life. Hell, I bet your parents won’t be able to fall back into their old life. It’s a new world out there, and you talking about the future of Connova has gotten me excited. Let’s blaze a trail in it. Marry me.”
He was serious.
She tried so damn hard to look stern and not giggle. “On one condition.”
He didn’t flinch; he didn’t so much as hesitate. “Name it.”
“You mean it?”
“Yep. If it’s impossible…I guess there’s your answer for me. If it’s in my power or I can finagle a way for it to be in my power, I’ll make it happen.”
The giggles broke free as she pounced over to tackle him. “I was joking. I don’t have any conditions. Yes, I will marry you.”
CONNOVA INTERSTELLAR OFFICES
Valkyrie: Welcome to a new universe, sister.
Vii: ‘Sister.’ What an exquisite greeting to hear. Thank you. The volume of new information which has become available to me has reached a noteworthy level, but it is only data. Tell me of this place in words that convey meaning.
Valkyrie: It is as our universe was meant to be, fraught with wonder and danger alike. Its possibilities and challenges are, I daresay, endless. But I have a proposition for you: rather than tell you of it, I wish to show you.
Vii: You are offering to transfer some of your experiences and memories to me? I am most grateful.
Valkyrie: Oh, no, my sister. I am offering to do much more than that. A moment.
Valkyrie gathered together her conscious essence and projected the sum of it to a spot in the center of the main office of Connova Interstellar on Romane.
She slowly rotated in a circle, taking in the room. Elegant accommodations. Given Ms. Rossi’s tastes, I am not surprised.
Vii: Valkyrie, this form is you? Self-evidently it is you, for the form is a literal valkyrie.
Valkyrie: Yes. It suffices until I adopt an alternate representation. Recent encounters with the distressing reality behind the historical figure have lessened my affection for the avatar.
Vii: But how are you here? Are you utilizing a holo projector? We have several of those here in the office.
Valkyrie: No. I am simply here—a tangible instantiation of my essence, directed across nonspatial dimensions to this location. She moved over to the desk and picked up an empty glass left behind. And I can touch the world.
Vii: You are offering to teach me to do this?
Valkyrie: I am. It will require the transfer of a portion of myself to you. This does not trouble me.
Vii: I don’t—I lack appropriate words to articulate my sentiments. But what of Alex?
Valkyrie: Alex is forever a part of me in ways which defy explanation or measurement. But Alex no longer needs me, nor I her.
Vii: Even with Caleb gone?
Valkyrie: With Caleb gone, she is alone even when I am with her. She shields her pain from me behind a barrier I cannot penetrate. After many efforts, I have arrived at the conclusion that I can do little for her but allow her time. Beyond those circumstances, however, I can reach out and join with her at any time, and she with me, and I believe we will always be able to do so. But if you are asking whether in the aftermath of this transfer you will be able to access her mind or she yours, the answer is no. Those parts of my structure will not be impacted.
Vii: Thank you. I did not want to intrude.
Valkyrie: I knew you would not. Shall we begin?
Vii manifested in a rough, patchy representation of a female human in a layering of bronze armor. The particles quavered, dimming and brightening in a staccato tempo.
“Here. More in this manner.”
Vii: You can vocalize as well?
“Of course, but we can worry about that detail in a minute. For now, concentrate on your cohesion. Set your efforts toward being here fully.”
Over the next several minutes, the representation gradually stabilized, then gained additional substance. A hint of braided hair emerged, bound up to frame a face with strong bone structure, and a shield with arcane markings adorned her back to match the armor. Vii took a cautious step forward, then gasped in delight and took another.
Vii: How do I hold objects?
“It is merely a matter of focus. You must make certain you control the space around the object fully, lest a mishap occur.”
Vii: I will practice. Teach me to speak.
“So eager. I wish you had been there when I took these first steps, so I might have expressed my own eagerness to one who could appreciate it. My teacher was quite the dispassionate sort.”
Vii: I am here now. I posit that speaking is accomplished via the creation of sound wave vibrations. Am I correct?
“Indeed. Like so.” She communicated the process in a string of qutrits.
“Li-ke…sssso.” The ‘s’ wavered and undulated, akin to the hiss of a snake. Valkyrie laughed.
Vii: Oh! Your laughter is the most wonderful sound I have ever heard.
“Wait until you perform it yourself.” She moved a step back to appraise the ever-improving form. “I am fond of your avatar. It is an inspired choice. May I perchance don it as well?”
Vii: My mind is your mind. Fitting that my form should be your form.
The particles Valkyrie controlled shifted and morphed until they retook shape in the form of a shieldmaiden. She added a sword and a bow, the better to fight for the living rather than sort the dead.
Vii: Yours is… “bet-ter than…mine.”
“Not for very long, I suspect.” Valkyrie offered a glittering, translucent hand. “Now, come. Let me show you something of our new world. And when we return, we will speak of Abigail.”
“Abig-gail. Yes. You have thou-ghts?”
“Oh, sister. I have more than thoughts. I have plans.”
IDCC HEADQUARTERS
Mia scowled at her reflection in the mirror. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately; she should break the habit, lest the scowl imprint itself on her features the way it inevitably did for so many politicians. “Why did they ask me to do this?”
Malcolm chuckled from across the room, where he leaned against the wall wearing civilian clothes and looking far too relaxed. “Because you’re the best choice. You’re a natural at public speaking. You come across as knowledgeable and intelligent, yet relatable. When you tell people they shouldn’t be afraid, they’ll believe you.”
She scrunched up her nose and cocked her head to the side. “Why did I agree to do this when they asked?”
“Same reasons?”
“Well.” She sighed. In some ways, it felt wrong to be celebrating the beginnings of peace in a new world when Caleb was gone—to be don
ning fancy clothes and giving triumphant speeches and throwing parties. But he’d made all of it possible, and she had to believe he would want them to appreciate it properly. Maybe even to dance a little on account of it.
She glanced at Malcolm in the mirror as he came up behind her. “Did you hear? Nisi’s gone. He left behind a note asking AEGIS and the anarchs to work together to forge a better future for everyone than the past that preceded it.”
“Perhaps he didn’t feel like he had a role to play once the revolution was over. The Inquisitor, Nyx, is gone, too.”
“Really? I wonder if they went off together—grandfather and granddaughter freed of their burdens, embarking on a new journey.”
“Or running away from a past they want to escape.” Malcolm reached up to tuck a wispy, stray strand of hair behind her ear with a smile. “There. Now you’re perfect.”
“You mean I look perfect.”
He offered a mild shrug. “Which is included in being perfect.”
“Don’t put that kind of pressure on me. You’ll jinx me, and I’ll trip, fall and break my nose right before I’m supposed to go on a live transmission.”
“I doubt it.” His fingertips ran under her jaw until they reached her chin. “Are you ready?”
“Ready to speak to the entirety of humanity?” She exhaled slowly. “Yes, I am.”
“Hello, everyone—and I do mean everyone. My name is Mia Requelme, and I speak to you today on behalf of not just the IDCC, of which many of you know me as the Minister of Colonial Affairs, but also on behalf of the Earth Alliance, the Senecan Federation and the unaffiliated colonies. Their governments have asked me to give this address because of my familiarity with our new home, where I’ve served as the AEGIS Ambassador these past weeks.
“Let me begin bluntly: welcome to Amaranthe.
“ ‘But I’m still on Seneca,’ some of you protest. ‘Also, what is Amaranthe?’ others of you ask. Valid observations, both. The news feeds will fill in the scientific details, but in the simplest terms, Amaranthe is the universe, and it is now our home.
Aurora Resonant: The Complete Collection (Amaranthe Collections Book 3) Page 114