CHAPTER 12
Ambra looked out of the shuttle's window at the Relentless. It was not the latest class of heavy cruiser, but she knew it to be the best. When she took control of Military Operations, an initial order for a new class of heavy cruiser was a done deal. One was already in service and a further nine were already in various stages of assembly. However, incompetence by her predecessor had allowed construction to begin before all the problems were ironed out. Ambra only wanted perfection. She had cancelled production of further ships, but had to accept at least six of the new class into service. It would be another seven years before the first of her new and improved heavy cruisers would be built. In the meantime, she had instigated a programme to retrofit older models with the latest systems. Thus, she chose the Relentless as her flagship.
The Relentless filled the view from the shuttle: dark grey ablative armour, no windows, bold angles, no curves. It looked like what it was meant to be, a weapon.
The shuttle pulled alongside an opening in the side of the ship and smoothly entered the shuttle bay.
It took several minutes before the landing protocols were completed and Aloyd Falentha came out of the cockpit. The aloyd looked less than pleased to be playing the part of Ambra's personal shuttle pilot. I will have to make sure she still knows her place, thought Ambra.
Gral'hilanth opened the exterior door of the shuttle and stood aside. Ambra climbed from her seat and walked to the exit. Sarray followed quietly a few paces behind. Two security guards followed the slave.
Ambra paused once she had exited the shuttle and dismissed the security detail. They saluted her and Aloyd Falentha, and then marched away.
"You're awfully quiet, Aloyd Falentha. Nothing to say?"
"No. Bren."
Ambra noticed the pause before her title and smiled inwardly. She knew it wasn't because Gral'hilanth was still getting used to it. It was because the aloyd hated being subservient to her, and only tolerated it because Ambra promised her a way to take revenge on Kikola ap Karthen.
Dealing with the former aloyd was on Ambra's list of things to do, but a long way from the top. Karthen posed no immediate threat, but she was an embarrassment and a blot on Ambra's reputation. So, while Karthen was not high on Ambra's list, she was there somewhere, even if it was only as a carrot to dangle in front of Gral'hilanth.
Karthen had been Ambra's first choice for her right hand. Who better than the next Rivelor to help Ambra usher in a new era? Ambra had recognised the subtle signs in Karthen that she had discovered in herself. Signs that Ambra thought she could exploit, but the former aloyd had seemed oblivious to Ambra's overtures. Maybe I should not have been so subtle, she thought.
Despite her obvious shortcomings, Gral'hilanth was proving to be an acceptable alternative to Karthen. Even more so, because Kikola ap Karthen, as it turned out, had a troublesome streak of morality. Falentha had proven she had no such scruples. Now that Ambra had won the vote, taken control of the Council, and declared herself Bren, all that was left to do was root out any remaining opposition.
"I have some good news for you, Aloyd." Ambra reached into her pocket and pulled out a small box. She handed the box to Falentha.
The aloyd tentatively took the box.
"Open it."
Falentha did as instructed. "Aloyd, First-Class rank bars," Gral'hilanth said as she opened the box. "For me?"
Ambra laughed. "No. For your father. I am abolishing the rank of lunguseth. Your father is Elit. He deserves the rank of aloyd."
"Thank you, Bren. He will be honoured."
"He will outrank you, for now." Ambra took back the box and started walking.
"For now?" asked Gral'hilanth hurrying after her.
"Your position of Aloyd, Third-Class will suffice – at the moment. However, once any resistance is dealt with, I will think of a suitable position for you." Ambra paused outside a lift. "Being in the military is not for you. You're still Hila Llyte inside. A freighter pilot. A Quernal."
"Bren, I assure you—"
Ambra raised a hand to silence Falentha. "I have not yet appointed a new Council Member for Military Operations. Continue serving me well through this transition, and I will consider you for the job."
The door to the lift opened and they entered. Sarray pressed the appropriate button.
"I am not sure I am the political type," said the aloyd.
"You'll be whatever I want you to be. Just as you'll do whatever I want you to do."
"Yes, Bren."
Good girl, thought Ambra.
"Do you know where the main Karthen family estate is on Kalenth?"
"Yes," replied Gral'hilanth. "It is located on the southern continent in the Nevaruk Desert.
"Good. Destroy it. I want it razed to dust. I want to make sure they have nothing to return to. This ship is capable of doing it from orbit. It won't take long. Consider it a reward for your loyalty."
The doors to the lift opened. Ambra stepped out and turned back to the aloyd. "Come to my quarters when you've completed the task."
"Yes, Bren."
~~~~
"Target destroyed."
The tactical officer relayed the information to his superiors. Gral'hilanth stared straight ahead, but from the corner of her eye she could see Captain Eadmon looking at her.
"You have the bridge, Captain," said the aloyd, and she left the bridge.
As Gral'hilanth navigated the corridors towards Ambra's private quarters, she thought about what she had just done. This wasn't the first time Ambra had ordered Gral'hilanth to carry out actions against the Bren's political enemies. The promise Ambra had made before the Council, that no one would be harmed, was soon broken.
Since her ascension to Bren, Ambra had launched a campaign against the founding families who opposed her on the Council. She had already ordered the arrest and execution of Chairman Guljein ap Maldan and the forfeiture of his family's estates. Now the destruction of the Karthen estate. There were no deaths in the action she had just taken, but it struck Gral'hilanth as a pointlessly destructive act. Even if it was the family home of her nemesis, Kikola ap Karthen, destroying it did little to quench her thirst for revenge.
There was only one thing driving Gral'hilanth, and that was the thought of Kikola ap Karthen seeing her in an aloyd's uniform and grovelling before her, begging for mercy.
Sarray opened the door to Ambra's quarters and allowed Gral'hilanth to enter.
"This way," said the slave and headed towards the bedroom.
The aloyd's heart sank. It looked like Ambra had another loyalty test for her to endure. As soon as they entered the bedroom, Sarray removed her blue slave's uniform. Ambra stepped up and allowed her hands to wander over the slave's naked body. Her touch varied from gentle to rough. The slave did its best to not react to either.
Ambra pushed the slave face down on the bed. "Come here, Aloyd."
Gral'hilanth moved closer.
"Sarray has been a good slave today. I think it deserves a treat. So, you are going to put your tongue to use and give it an orgasm. I will be in the main room waiting."
It could be worse, thought Gral'hilanth after Ambra had left. She settled on the bed and proceeded to perform her task.
Gral'hilanth thought she might be losing her touch, but eventually the slave's body succumbed and it muffled its cries into the pillow.
Gral'hilanth gave her face a quick wash before leaving the bedroom. On entering the main room, her feet became rooted to the spot. A man in a dark grey uniform, with silver thread woven into the collar, was standing with Ambra. She immediately recognised the uniform of a lunguseth and the man who wore it.
"Father! I…"
"You are probably wondering why I asked you here," Ambra said to Gral'hilanth's father.
"I am curious, yes, but I assume I will find out in due course."
"Indeed, you will." Ambra handed a small box to Oalanic and gestured for him to open it. "Oalanic Andor ap Falentha, under my authority as Bren, the rank of lunguseth is being abolished. You are Elit. Therefore, effectively immediately, I am promoting you to the rank of Aloyd, First-Class."
Gral'hilanth's father looked up from the box in his hand to Ambra and then to Gral'hilanth. "I joined the military to serve the Hegemony," Oalanic began. "I did not seek out medals and commendations, or promotions. I believed that doing my duty was its own reward.
"Being promoted to lunguseth was perhaps the worst thing that happened in my career. It singled me out as different. The other aloyds were my social equal, but I could never attain their rank.
"This honour you have given me is beyond measure, and for which I am truly grateful."
"It is a rank you should have been given years ago."
Oalanic stood up straighter as he pinned the insignia for an Aloyd, First-Class – a reverse 'C' with three over bars – on his collar.
Gral'hilanth offered him a smile, then saluted. "Sir." Her father returned the salute and Gral'hilanth relaxed. He saluted Ambra.
Ambra returned his salute. "You will need a new uniform to go with the rank bars. See the quartermaster immediately and have them issue you an aloyd's uniform."
"Yes, sir."
"I prefer Bren," said Ambra.
"Yes, Bren," Oalanic replied.
"Also, you are to have a new command. The Formidable is a fine old ship, but an Aloyd, First-Class should command a striker group. The heavy cruiser Bulwark has just been retrofitted. You will have command. You will leave for Timar in five days." Ambra smiled. "This promotion deserves to be celebrated with family," she said as an aside. "Good luck, Aloyd. You may go."
Gral'hilanth was about to leave with her father, but Ambra stopped her. "I didn't mean you."
"I—"
Oalanic gave his daughter a slight shake of his head. Ever the soldier, he saluted, turned on his heel, and left.
"Will that be all, Bren?"
"No." Ambra sat down in a nearby chair. "After mentioning a new uniform to your father, a thought occurred to me. I should have a uniform made, so I can blend in better with the crew of my flagship. What do you think?"
"Whatever you say, Bren." Gral'hilanth wanted to get away and was ready to agree with whatever Ambra suggested.
"Though not in that drab grey colour you and everyone else wears. I think it should stand out from the crowd."
"Yes, Bren."
"What do you think of red? No, purple. Nothing too bright or garish, mind. Perhaps an insignia, one that is worthy of Bren. I know, a dryg. Fierce, powerful, mystical."
The dryg was a mythological creature. It was a symbol used in the early days of the Hegemony, but had long since been consigned to fairy tales and bad fantasy novels. Gral'hilanth was bewildered by Ambra's musings, but played the dutiful underling. "Sounds good. If there is nothing else, Bren, I would like to spend a little more time with my father."
"We are not done here." Ambra stood and walked towards the bedroom.
~~~~
Tehvay looked around the table as Boran relayed news to the PPG leadership of the change of power in the Hegemony. There were seven of members, including Trujilon and Ellovene. Tehvay made eight. They had gathered at the home of Szymon, the head of the group's leadership. Their faces were hard to read, except for Trujilon's. He was hearing this for the second time, unlike the others, and was fired up for action.
When Boran finished speaking, Trujilon jumped up from his seat at the table next to Tehvay.
"This is a great opportunity for us to strike!" The young man was animated. "We have a few small ships that can raid the Hegemony border regions."
"To what end?" asked Szymon, an older man with short grey hair atop a round face.
Trujilon couldn't answer him and sat back down.
Szymon addressed Boran from his place at the opposite end of the table. "This woman who's declared herself Bren, is she going to be better or worse than the old ruling Elit? From what you've said, she's removing the founding families from power. That sounds like a good thing to me."
"I don't know her personally," said Boran. "From what I know of her actions, and speaking to Kikola and Mariantha ap Karthen, this Ambra is much worse."
"Well, they would say that. They are opposed to her."
Tehvay spoke up. "Kikola had been chosen as Rivelor to lead the conquest of the Graelands. If the old regime were still in power, it would be another thirty years or more before they were ready with a new Rivelor. Ambra doesn't have the same need for a Rivelor. Once she's suppressed any internal opposition, she'll come."
"Can you be sure?" asked Szymon. "She wants control of the Hegemony, that's obvious. What evidence do you have that Ambra would invade the Graelands?"
Tehvay was stumped and turned to Boran.
"Ambra has seized power in the Hegemony," said Boran. "If history is anything to go by, those who ascend to power that way are seldom content. They always want more."
Szymon rubbed his neck as he thought. "This situation is much bigger than we can handle."
"We need to test oursel—" Trujilon started.
The older man stopped him. "I understand, Trujilon. I really do, but the PPG is not large enough to act on this galactic stage."
"The Losper Empire is," said Ellovene. "We should tell them that the Hegemony is at war with itself. They can take advantage of that. And in exchange for the information, we could ask them for protection."
"Yes!" Trujilon leaned forward in his seat. "If the Hegemony's enemies can take advantage of the situation, the new regime will be too busy to invade the Graelands. It'll weaken them further, and maybe even see them crushed for good."
"I'm not sure that's a good idea," observed Tehvay. "Kikola said that it's better for the civil war in the Hegemony to be over as quickly as possible. If the Empire takes advantage, then millions of people will suffer."
Szymon nodded. "It is likely The Losper Empire already knows what's going on in the Hegemony. They probably have spies inside, and if not, they can monitor across the border. It is unfortunate for the innocent civilians, but there is nothing we can do." He gave Tehvay a sympathetic look. "Thank you for bringing this to us. And thank you, Boran. I think the only thing we can do is take it to the government. Let them decide which course of action to take. Is everyone agreed?"
"Shall we propose a course of action that we think they should take?" asked Ellovene.
"I can't see what harm that would do," Szymon replied. "What are the options?"
"Approach the Empire," said Ellovene.
"Any others?" Szymon paused and looked around the table.
"I'd like to suggest, for the moment at least, we take no action," offered Tehvay. "The situation in the Hegemony is still ongoing. I think it'll be better to wait until it is resolved, or at least we have a better idea of what's going on. In the meantime, the PPG redoubles its recruitment efforts, we continue our mission to Inosa, and we recommend to the Dansek government that contingency plans should be developed."
Szymon nodded. "Very well, then let's vote. All in favour of Ellovene's proposal."
Ellovene, Trujilon and one other raised their hands.
"And Tehvay's," Szymon said as he raised his hand.
The remaining three raised their hands. It was a formality, but Tehvay raised her hand as well.
"Okay." Szymon nodded. "I'll take the information and Tehvay's proposal to the government," he said. "We have a public meeting scheduled in three days' time. We'll get together before that. Hopefully, we will have a response from the government by then."
The meeting was adjourned and members started to make a move to leave.
Ellovene came over to Tehvay and Boran. "We're going for drink. Do you want to join us?"
"Ell… I hope you don't… I mean, me suggesting a diff—"
Ellovene laughed. "No, I don't mind. That's what this is all about. For people to have their voices heard."
Tehvay breathed a sigh of relief. She had felt like she was siding against her friends. "If Szymon is only giving the government my suggestion, then your voice is not being heard." That gave Tehvay an idea.
Before everyone left, Tehvay suggested putting both options to the government.
Everyone agreed to present both ideas, then said goodnight to Szymon and filed out into the chilly night.
"So, about drinks?" Ellovene asked.
"I would love to, but Boran is taking me out for a meal tonight."
"You kids can join us if you like," Boran offered.
"That's okay," said Trujilon. "We finally learnt our lesson with these meetings and had a big meal beforehand."
Ellovene rolled her eyes. Tehvay chuckled.
"Well, some other time," said Boran.
"Count on it," said Trujilon.
"Good night, Boran," said Ellovene. She reached out and gave Tehvay's arm a friendly pat. "We'll talk with you tomorrow."
"And whatever the government decides, at least we're doing something," Trujilon added.
The brother and sister said goodnight and left Tehvay and Boran standing on the pavement alone.
"You've come a long way," Boran said. "Being part of this group. I'm proud of you."
Tehvay blushed and shrugged.
"Don't be modest, Tehvay. I'm a coward. I ran. You're making a stand. That's brave. You should be proud of you."
Tehvay thought for a moment. "We both ran. And now we're both making a stand." She nodded her head slowly. "I think we're both brave."
"I think we're both hungry," said Boran. "Come on."
~~~~
Mariantha walked into the ship's lounge. It was the top deck of Boran's luxury cruiser. When in flight, the ceiling could be made transparent for stargazing. Mariantha was glad that it was opaque at the moment. She wanted anything other than to see the murky Trengos sky above.
The lounge itself was spacious, several couches and armchairs were positioned around the perimeter of the room. Two tables occupied the central area. Kikola sat in a chair staring out of a window. Jenissa sat at one of the tables staring at the floor. Kikola is more at ease with the people on this planet than she is with her own kind, Mariantha thought.
Mariantha's decision to flee the Hegemony had been a knee jerk reaction, borne from fear for her safety and empathy for Jenissa ap Taliss. During their flight from Yun'thul to Shibato and from Shibato to Trengos, Mariantha had grown fond of the young woman. In fact, she realised she had more in common with the Taliss girl than her own daughter. Seeing Kikola again reminded Mariantha how much she missed her daughter and how much she longed for a closer relationship with her.
"I have made a decision. I am going back home," she said.
"Pardon?" Kikola looked at her mother in confusion.
"I am going home – to the Hegemony."
"You can't!"
"I must. Marleen just informed me that the Karthen estate on Kalenth has been destroyed."
"Were there any casualties?" Kikola asked with concern.
"Thankfully, no," replied Mariantha. "Your brother and the rest of the family have made their way to safety."
"Good. You must stay here mother. It will be too dangerous for you to return to the Hegemony now."
"No, my place is with the family." She looked at Jenissa. "The founding families must work together to defeat Ambra ap Lentol. Do you want to come back with me, Jenissa?"
Jenissa looked up at her. "I am staying. There is nothing for me there."
"Your fam—"
"My family did nothing to stop Menari from being murdered. Besides, they would not welcome me back. I have brought dishonour and shame to the Taliss name." Jenissa glanced at Kikola. "I meant no offence."
Kikola nodded.
"Very well," said Mariantha. "If I can, I will inform them that you are safe and well. I will not say where."
"My thanks."
Kikola stood up and approached her mother. "What do you hope to achieve? You will be going back to chaos. You will not be safe."
Mariantha could read the desperation on her daughter's face. Kikola was worried for her, but could not come out and admit it directly.
"My safety is not important – our family is – and I cannot abandon them to their fate at the hands of Ambra ap Lentol!"
"No! I won't allow—"
"Kikola Mariantha Jacand ap Karthen, you will not tell your mother what she should or should not do."
Kikola fell silent and bowed her head. Mariantha pulled her into an embrace.
"I don't want you to go," Kikola mumbled against her mother's shoulder.
"We don't always get what we want." I have wanted to hold you close like this and be your mother so often, it hurt, but I had to be father too, she thought. Mariantha disengaged from the embrace and held Kikola by the shoulders. "Come with me."
Kikola blinked in surprise. "I… can't."
"You can. You must. Your family needs you. I need you."
"I can't go back."
"You were raised to never back down. You were raised to face any difficulty and win."
Kikola shrugged out of Mariantha's hands, turned away, and mumbled something.
"What did you say?" asked Mariantha.
Her daughter turned to face her. "I have faced my battle and won."
"What does that mean?"
"I was raised to be a soldier, an aloyd, the Rivelor. I was not raised to be a person, to be who I am, to be me. I was confronted with a choice: be what was expected of me, or be what I wanted to be. I chose the latter. I chose, I fought, and I won."
Mariantha's frustration at Kikola's obstinate attitude boiled to the surface. "You mean you chose gratification over duty, over family."
Kikola's cheeks flushed. "It is not that. I chose Tehvay because she loves me for who I am, not who I am expected to be."
It was Mariantha's turn to blush. "I guess I deserved that. I know I pushed you to be the perfect daughter, the perfect student, the perfect aloyd. Perhaps I didn't show you as much affection as I should have." A terrible thought came into her mind. "Is that why you crave affection from a female? Is it my fault?"
"No, Mother. It is not your fault. It is not anyone's fault," Kikola assured her. "I have no explanation for why I fell in love with Tehvay, but it has more to do with who she is and how she makes me feel – really feel. Before Tehvay, my emotions were shut off, compartmentalised. Now I feel all sorts of emotions that I am finally learning to express, thanks to Tehvay."
Kikola is right, Mariantha thought. I raised her to think with her mind, not feel with her heart. It took Tehvay to bring out that side of my daughter, perhaps for the better.
As if her daughter had read her thoughts, Kikola reached out for her mother's hand. "I love you, Mother."
It brought a tear to Mariantha's eye to hear her daughter say she loved her with such sincerity. "I love you too, my daughter," Mariantha replied. "Come with me. Bring Tehvay."
Kikola removed her hand and for a moment looked away. "I cannot ask Tehvay to leave her family—"
That hit a nerve in Mariantha. "What about your family? You left us for her!"
"What choice did I have?" Kikola asked soulfully. "Besides, Tehvay and I are considered fugitives in the Hegemony."
Mariantha looked from Kikola to Jenissa and sighed. "We are all considered fugitives now."
"Then stay here with me, please," Kikola said.
Mariantha saw the anguish in her daughter's eyes. She had also seen first-hand just how much her daughter loved Tehvay. She had to admit, Kikola was a different person because of Tehvay. Mariantha was reminded of her late husband, Strambik, and how difficult the years have been being parted from him. How can I begrudge my daughter her chance at happiness with the person she loves?
"If you won't return with me," Mariantha replied, "then I want you to do two things for me."
"What's that?" asked Kikola.
"Look after Jenissa. Be her friend and…"
"And what?"
"Hang on to Tehvay. I can't say I am happy that she took you away from me, but she's good for you."
~~~~
Tehvay stood near a wall of windows and glanced out at the steady stream of shuttles and cruisers taking off and landing. It evoked memories of when she had first passed through the doors of the Dansek spaceport with Kikola, to start their new life on Trengos, and all that had transpired in the months since that day. Her mind flashed through their chance meeting with Rikana in the market that to led to her being reunited with her family, the PPG, Boran's arrival, and of course her deepening intimacy with Kikola. She was brought out of her reverie when she heard the pilot announce that it was time to depart.
The Dansek government had heard the PPG's proposals and decided to follow their recommendations to approach The Losper Empire for a possible alliance, as well as develop planet-wide defence contingency plans. An envoy was appointed to speak to The Losper Empire, and he was to be escorted by members of the Dansek Security Force.
Rikana had immediately volunteered for the security detail. According to Rikana, 'it beats chasing spotty teenagers on the cold streets'. Yuniph volunteered as well and was put in charge. With some persuasion, Yuniph agreed to take Mariantha to the border so that she may return to the Hegemony. Tremothen and Marleen had agreed to accompany Mariantha, partly for her protection and also to gather information from their business connections for Boran.
That was why Tehvay, Kikola, Boran, and Jenissa were at the spaceport – to see them all off.
"Ilistan will meet you on the Graelands side of the border," Boran said to Tremothen and Marleen. "The pilot has the coordinates."
"Right," replied Tremothen.
"You may have to wait a couple days, but Ilistan's getting away from Dameb as quickly as he can. He said he's heard rumours of Losperese forces gathering along the border, probably in an attempt to reclaim Otopa at least and Dameb with it."
"And how much am I supposed to pay him?" asked the man with the flaming red hair.
"Too much," said Boran. "Eight thousand credits to take the two of you and Mariantha to Gatlor and another eight thousand to transport you two back here."
"Do you want us closing out your accounts on Gatlor?" asked Marleen.
"No, leave one open with twenty thousand credits," Boran said.
"Will do," replied Tremothen.
"I needn't tell you—"
Tremothen anticipated what his boss was going to say. "We'll be careful."
Boran laid his hand on Tremothen's shoulder. "You don't have to do this."
Tremothen's frowned. "Someone has to make sure Ilistan holds up his end of the bargain."
"Besides, who else can you trust with your money?" the grey-haired woman added with a grin.
Boran hugged his old friends. "Still, steer clear of trouble. I want you both back."
"We will," Marleen replied. "Look after Boran," she said to Tehvay as she gave her a hug.
"I will miss you," said Tehvay. She disengaged from Marleen's embrace and gave Tremothen a hug. "Take care of each other."
"We will," said Tremothen. "You too," he added, glancing in Kikola's direction.
Marleen and Tremothen picked up their bags and made their way to the entry ramp.
Boran put an arm around Tehvay's shoulder, and together they watched Tremothen and Marleen go aboard.
Tehvay felt a tear fall onto her cheek. She had only just been reunited with Tremothen and Marleen, and now they were leaving again. At least Boran is staying with me, she thought. She leaned into Boran and gave him a squeeze around the waist.
Out of the corner of her eye, Tehvay could see Kikola saying goodbye to her mother.
"I suppose I should go and say goodbye to Kikola's mother," she said to Boran.
"Kikola would appreciate that," Boran said, and gave her a gentle push in their direction.
Kikola's mother was just saying goodbye to Jenissa when Tehvay came up to the small group of former Elit. Tehvay drew herself as tall as she could when Mariantha's eyes locked onto her. I can't claim to be sad to see her go, Tehvay thought, but I do feel for Kikola. Who knows when she will see her mother again?
"Safe journey," Tehvay offered.
"My thanks," Mariantha replied.
The older woman turned to her daughter. "Remember what I said: Take care of this one, too." There's was a slight tilt of the head in Tehvay's direction, then Mariantha turned and headed for the ship.
"Did she just say something nice about me?" asked Tehvay.
Kikola blushed. "She thinks you are good for me."
"Ah! So, she does have your best interests at heart."
"Yes," Kikola agreed. She appeared to hesitate a moment. "There is something… My mother wishes for me… us to look after Jenissa, help her adjust. I thought…" Kikola glanced to Jenissa. "I thought maybe Jenissa could move in with us. Just for a short time. That is if you agree."
Tehvay did not feel any bitterness towards Jenissa; in fact, it was the opposite. She felt sympathy for her over the loss of Menari, but didn't necessarily want her staying in her home.
"I—" was all Tehvay managed to say before Jenissa interrupted.
"That is most kind of you. However, I discussed this with Mister Zerbilla, and he is more than happy for me to stay on his ship. I think that would be for the best. I am sure Tehvay does not wish to have a former owner living under her roof."
"That is all in the past. Now you are a friend, and you are welcome to visit us whenever you like," she said.
"Thank you. I will do that."
The doors of the VIP lounge slid open and out walked Yuniph, Rikana, and the government official. The ambassador went directly to the ship; however, Yuniph and Rikana hung back.
Boran and Jenissa politely stepped back to give Tehvay and Kikola a few moments to say goodbye to the officers.
"Have a safe trip," Tehvay said to her sister.
"Don't worry, I will. It's Rikana we have to worry about," Yuniph teased.
"Rikana, please take care of yourself and take care of my sister," Tehvay said.
"She'll be fine," Rikana replied, "as long as she doesn't bore me senseless."
"I think it's Yuniph who will get bored of you first," said Kikola.
Tehvay's mouth dropped open. She was shocked to hear Kikola make such a comment. Then she noticed Kikola smiling and Rikana doing her best not to respond in kind. Did Kikola just make a joke? Tehvay thought. Kikola had made the occasional joke in private, but Tehvay had never known her to make one in public.
"It's time to go," said Yuniph. She gave Tehvay a hug and whispered, "Take care of Ima and Ita. They might be lonely without me under foot."
"I will." Tehvay tried to hold back the tears. "Please, promise me you won't take any unnecessary risks."
Yuniph smiled. "You know me, I'm always careful."
Kikola turned to Rikana and said, "Don't expect me to hug you."
"You wish." Rikana cackled.
Yuniph addressed Kikola. "Officer Karthen."
Kikola's instinctual reaction was to come to attention.
"Relax. I just wanted to say… what I mean is… I have recommended you for promotion to sergeant. See the commander in the morning."
Kikola came to attention again. "Understood."
"Don't I get a promotion?" asked Rikana.
"When we get back," said Yuniph. She turned back to Kikola, "Take care of things until I get back," Yuniph said. "Especially my sister."
Kikola nodded. "You can count on me. Good luck with your mission."
"Thanks." Yuniph was about to leave, but stopped and looked back at Tehvay. She closed the distance between them and gave her sister another hug. "Would you believe I'm going to miss you?"
Tehvay replied, "I can believe it, because I know I'm going to miss you."
Rikana rolled her eyes. "And speaking of missing… we've got a ship to catch. Let's go." She gave Tehvay a friendly smile. "Keep this one out of trouble while I'm gone, Miss V." She nodded in Kikola's direction. "I can't wait to make her life hell when I get back."
Boran and Jenissa left to go back to his ship as soon as the hatch closed. Tehvay and Kikola decided to stay in the lounge and watch the ship move away from the building to the launch area. A few minutes later, it rose steadily into the air and streaked off.
"You and Rikana seem to be getting along," Tehvay said to Kikola.
"She tolerates me," Kikola replied. Kikola slipped an arm around Tehvay. "Come on. Let's go home."
Home, thought Tehvay. A small word that means so much.
~~~~
With little in the way of entertainment on board the small transport ship, Yuniph and Rikana spent most of the time in the bunkroom they shared. Yuniph sat at the table by the foot of Rikana's bed. Rikana sat on her bed, with her back against the wall and one arm propped on the table.
A holographic projector displayed a game onto the table top. It consisted of coloured hexagons, each colour representing a type of terrain: yellow for sand, light green for grassland, dark green for hills, blue for water, white for snow and grey for cities. Various holographic pieces were distributed around the playing surface. The red pieces belonged to Yuniph; the green pieces belonged to Rikana. The green pieces outnumbered the reds.
Yuniph's finger pushed at the image of a red game piece and it moved from one hexagonal division to another. Rikana cackled, and moved one of the pieces stationed near her capital. A thin beam extended from Rikana's piece to Yuniph's piece. Another beam returned the other way. Yuniph's piece disappeared in a fiery effect.
"Got you on the ropes," Rikana crowed.
Yuniph smiled as a pinging sound rang out. A red piece appeared on one of Yuniph's cities. The one closest to Rikana's capital.
"What? No!" Rikana cried.
Yuniph pushed the new piece to a dark green tile. Multiple beams shot out, three of Rikana's pieces disappeared before they could return fire. Crucially, a beam hit the grey tile representing Rikana's capital.
Rikana sat up straighter. "You can't do that!"
"I just did," Yuniph said with a hint of smugness.
"Pfft! Too much damage. I can't recover from that!" Rikana hit the reset button.
"That puts me four ahead now." Yuniph rubbed her hands. "Another game?"
"Later." Rikana picked up a bottle of beer off the table and took a swig. She looked around the room. "I don't like being this close to Hegger space."
Nor me, thought Yuniph. She felt a billion eyes looking at her, as though the Hegemony knew she was close. She decided to take her mind off the troubling thoughts. "Why did you come with me?" she asked.
"To kick some Hegger arse," Rikana replied.
"No, not now. When I found you sleeping rough?"
Rikana took a swig of her drink and stared into the bottle. "It seemed like a good idea at the time. I was cold, hungry, and desperate. I figured you might want something in return – if you get me – and I thought if that was what it took, fair enough. You wouldn't have been the first to proposition me."
Yuniph looked at her with shock. "If I wasn't the first, why were you on the street?"
"Let's just say I was only prepared to go so far to get a meal and a bed. You weren't even the first security officer to find me, though you were the first woman."
"Not the first security officer? Who was it? I will have words with them when we get back."
"It wasn't in Dansek," said Rikana. "He was a sick fucker. And he won't be taking advantage of anyone else again."
"You didn't—"
"No! I didn't kill him, though I bet he wished I had."
Yuniph thought of her sister. If Tehvay had killed those who had her abused her, how would I feel? Pleased, she concluded. But if she had even thought of fighting back, she would have been killed herself, and we would've never known each other existed. Yuniph shook off such thoughts as unthinkable and regretted having ever felt jealous. Now she felt only gratitude.
Rikana tilted her head back and drained the bottle. She held it above her mouth and shook the final drops out. "That's the last bottle," she said as she placed it on the table. "Should have brought more. Oh well." She let out a long sigh.
"The dispenser stuff is okay," said Yuniph.
"If you like drinking piss. And I'm not talking about it being recycled." Rikana shook her head. "I'll stick to water from now on."
Yuniph stood up, walked the few paces to her bunk and flopped down on it. As soon as her head hit the pillow the comm beeped.
"We've been contacted," said the pilot.
"Our contact?"
"Who else?"
"Are you sure it's them?"
"The code matches."
Yuniph and Rikana headed to the cockpit. Tremothen was standing behind the pilot. He gave Yuniph an odd sideways look for a moment, and then a smile flicked across his lips. She guessed he was still not used to her resemblance to Tehvay.
"Where are they?" asked Rikana.
The co-pilot tapped the display in the centre of the console. A small dot moved slowly towards the middle of the screen. The minutes dragged as the other ship finally came within visual range and made its approach. It was an unremarkable transport ship. It was a standard model, looked to be several years old, but reasonably well maintained, and no distinctive markings. A few minutes later the two ships were docked.
Yuniph assessed the man who came through the airlock. He was in his late thirties or early forties, medium build, with lank brown hair that brushed the collar of his black and white striped jacket. However, the thing she noticed most was that he was nervous. His eyes darted from side to side, and he licked his lips and looked ready to run. That put her on edge. He flashed a smile and spread his arms. "Is Bo with you?"
"Bo?" Yuniph asked.
"Boran."
"No. He stayed behind," Tremothen replied.
"Oh, right." He grinned for no discernible reason. "So, where's my money?"
"Are you Ilistan?" asked Rikana.
"Err, yeah. That's me!" His mouth snapped into another grin and he shrugged.
"Is that your first name or last?" Rikana pressed.
"What? My first or… yes."
"Yes?" queried Yuniph. "Which one is it?"
"Both." Another random grin and small movement of his arms. He licked his lips. "Ilistan Ilistan. That's me!"
"Ilistan Ilistan!" Rikana half stifled a cackle. "Your name is Ilistan Ilistan?"
"Yeah." He looked confused. His eyes flicked from Rikana to Yuniph and back. "What's wrong with that?"
"It's stupid, that's what!" Rikana didn't bother stifling the cackle.
"Do you have ID?" asked Yuniph.
"No need," said Tremothen. "It's him."
Ilistan grinned and waved his arms. "Money? You've got my money, right?"
"You know the arrangement," said Tremothen. "You'll get paid half when you get us to Gatlor and the other half when you return us to Trengos."
"Gatlor? Nobody said nothing about going to Gatlor. You tell Bo, my price has just doubled!"
Tremothen raised his comm unit and showed it to Ilistan. "As you can see, your transmissions indicate that you were informed it would be Gatlor, and you agreed."
Ilistan glanced at the screen. "Yeah, okay! But things are different now, that was twelve days ago! You tell Bo, it's double or no go!"
"Wait here." Tremothen and Marleen left the airlock area, leaving Ilistan with Yuniph and Rikana.
"Which one of you is Mariantha ap Karthen?"
"Do we look like Heggers to you?" asked Rikana in her usual confrontational manner.
Yuniph noticed Ilistan's eyes were still darting around nervously. They finally settled on her, and he took a closer look at her uniform.
"You're cops! This is a trap!" Ilistan exclaimed. "You can't hold me! Is this a trap? I know my rights! You can't prove anything!" He seemed to get more agitated, circling his arms wildly.
Yuniph expected trouble at any moment. Her hand hovered near her weapon. She glanced across to Rikana. Her partner was already drawing her weapon.
"Woah! Don't shoot!" He jumped back and put his hands out in front of him.
Mariantha came up to the airlock. "Are you Ilistan?"
"That's me." He grinned and gesticulated with his arms.
Rikana released her weapon's safety and powered it on. Ilistan froze.
"Please. I'm allergic to being shot." He nervously chuckled.
"Put the weapon away," Mariantha ordered Rikana.
Rikana did not take the instruction kindly and scowled at the older woman.
"He's acting weirdly," said Yuniph, drawing her own weapon.
"Yes, he is," said Mariantha. "That's not a crime. Put your weapons away."
"I don't trust him," said Rikana.
Mariantha fixed a stern gaze on the young woman. "I am sure that if you shot everyone you didn't trust, there would be a lot of dead bodies. Now, lower your weapons."
"Yeah!" Ilistan agreed. "As she said!"
"Keep your eye on him," Yuniph said to Rikana. "I'm going to check out his ship."
"Check? It's fine! No need to check it!"
Rikana frowned as she watched Ilistan grin and wave his arms. "Can I punch him?" she asked.
"Hey!" Ilistan protested.
"Please let me punch him," said Rikana. "Just a little bit."
"You're not coming with me!" Ilistan looked towards Mariantha as if recognising her authority. "She's not coming on my ship!"
Rikana punched him on the arm.
"Oww! Why do all of Bo's friends keep hitting me?"
"Because you're bloody annoying," said Tremothen as he and Marleen returned. "Boran has agreed to your price, but not a credit more."
Ilistan seemed pleased until Tremothen added, "And you don't get a single credit until Marleen and I are back on Trengos."
The dark-haired man pouted. "Fine."
"I was just about to check his ship," said Yuniph.
"I think that is a good idea," Tremothen concurred. "We'll both check the ship."
"Don't hit him again," Yuniph said to Rikana. "Unless we don't come back."
After Ilistan's ship had been inspected, Mariantha, Tremothen, and Marleen transferred to it. Once it had departed, the pilot set course for The Losper Empire.