CHAPTER TEN
The Drycenian battle cruiser settled into orbit around Terramora Prime ready to plant Farra into the community so that she could deliver the evidence package to Michael Donaldson. The ship remained covert in order to avoid any unnecessary complications arising from the Terramoran authorities or the ANA wondering what they were doing there. They couldn’t allow anything to risk the success of the operation Farra was about to embark upon so secrecy was paramount. Farra, Lomas, Doctor Jam, Byron, Toma and few others were deep in conference, discussing the operation as they had done constantly throughout the trip from the Moxal System.
She was fitted with a highly enhanced Biomed Implant by the doctor so that her health could be kept at optimum while they were out of range and unable to get to her aid. This device is one of the very latest Drycenian medical advances. It consists of a tiny implant into the brachial artery of the arm which constantly monitors the blood as it passes through it. Sensors within it detect any toxins or harmful impurities. If something harmful is detected, the sensors signal to an extraction valve which filters the bloodstream of the foreign contaminant until the sensors signal it to stop. These impurities are treated by a Pulse Wave Energy implant that renders them inert and turns them into harmless pale creamy coloured pellets that can be removed and discarded with ease. All that is visible on the skin’s surface is a shiny silver metallic kidney shaped plate about 3 inches long. The surface of the plate contains minute solar cells which power the system and the whole thing is covered with Drycenian symbols and decoration to disguise the solar cells and make it more aesthetically pleasing. All Drycenians have these devices and Farra felt honoured to be fitted with one. It made her feel as though she was really one of the family. All she must do is make sure the surface of the plate gets at least one hour of sunlight per week of continuous use to ensure the system works at optimum. Just going about her normal daily business would be enough; it’s easy to get one hour of sun on your arm in every week even if you only emerge for a few minutes each day.
The only thing that might be a problem is that these devices mark you out as Drycenian right away. Anyone fitted with such a device must be either a Drycenian or a friend of them and people might very well question her about it. Because the Drycenians are a secretive race who tend not to involve themselves closely with other races, people are curious about them and are bound to question anyone with any knowledge or experience with them. Farra knew that she should endeavour to keep it covered at all times when in the company of others and to make sure that she was alone for a few minutes a day in order to keep the solar cells charged without people’s curiosity getting in the way.
The doctor also implanted a minute tracking device in place of the temporary one she had when she went into the Moxal 3 mines to retrieve the evidence package. This new tracking implant works permanently and is attached as an add on to the Biomed Implant device and is powered by the same solar cells. It contains a signal booster that enables the tracking signal to carry over vast distances via Pulse Wave Energy beam. This has the dual advantage of being able to resist contamination from other wave signals enabling it to travel unhindered at above light speed and it is as yet undetectable by any tracking device other than those of the Drycenians. This part of the Biomed Implant sends out an automatic signal every six hours that can be picked up by a long range signal scanner within the Drycenian battle cruisers. The signal consists of a tracking code for location purposes, as well as data from the Biomed sensors. All the time that the sensors are working within Farra’s bloodstream, they will send out this signal letting the Drycenians know that she is still alive and at least relatively healthy. If she were to die or if the blood filters stop working for some other reason the sensors would send out an emergency signal to the Drycenians. This way they would know that she is in trouble or has died and could retrieve her body. If they get to her body within seventy two hours of death and get her into the tank, they can revive her. Any longer than that and there’s no chance but at least they would be able to ensure her remains were treated with the honour and dignity deserved by one who has saved their race, as she did by rescuing Toma and ensuring the King has a healthy living heir.
They also kitted her out with a Magnopik; the automatic lock picker she was so amazed by back in the Moxal 3 mines, a large tub of Tutsie – a Drycenian word meaning beautiful blue which is the blue wound compound Toma gave her and a Unicom transmitter fitted into a standard inter galactic cell phone headset. This device is a super powered one way cell phone type of device that she can use to transmit voice messages back to them, much like calling them up on a cell phone. It’s just a one way device though, they can’t answer her but if she needs help she can call for it and if there are any necessary last minute changes of plan, she can warn them. Being fitted into a standard intergalactic cell phone headset means she can use it anywhere without drawing attention to herself. So long as she makes sure she looks likes she’s hearing the other side of the conversation, no one will be suspicious. As with all Drycenian devices, the carrier wave is undetectable and only receivable by Drycenian technology.
Lomas bestowed upon her a magnificent gift of a Drycenian Royal Dragon Dagger. This blade is beautiful and she was visibly moved when he gave it to her. The hilt is fashioned in the shape of a fearsome winged dragon and she found when she hefted it that it automatically adjusts itself in the users hand to be the perfect weight for its user. The blade itself is just shy of nine inches long and has four sharpened recurved barbs carved out of the top edge. The blade is made of tempered Drycenian Minneva which never rusts and its edge, once sharpened will never dull. At the touch of a secret button in the hilt the blade retracts and the wings fold in so that it can be safely stored within its ornately carved scabbard. When worn on the hip, it looks like a rather intricately carved oblong metallic carrying case, ten inches by two inches by one inch. When placed within the scabbard it locks itself in place and can only be retrieved by the thumb print of its owner being pressed to a special one centimetre square plate on the top leading edge of the scabbard itself. All she has to do to call it into service is to take it from the scabbard, making sure her thumb touches the little plate and as it emerges from the scabbard, the blade shoots out and the wings unfurl. This magnificent instrument is ceremonial for the Drycenians and only given to those who deserve the highest of honours but that doesn’t mean it isn’t usable. It’s beautiful to look at, safe from being taken and used against its owner and deadly in service.
“Farra,” said Lomas emotionally. “I give you this gift to be your guardian in times of unrest. He will always be at your side ready to defend your life and purpose. Whenever your life or safety are in peril, know that he is with you. Call on him and he will be forever, your friend. We cannot be there to give you aid and you must face the trials and dangers of the coming days alone. Never for a moment doubt that wherever we are, we are working tirelessly to assist you to bring light into these darkest of days. We will not rest until we have returned Vincent to safety and freedom and the loving embrace of his people and together, all of us, walk with him as he fulfils his destiny. Know with all of your heart that we are thinking of you and loving you every moment whilst we are away from your side.” He took a pace back, placed a hand on his own ceremonial dagger and bowed his head. “My sword and my life.” She stood to attention, placed her hand on the magnificent dragon dagger that now graced her hip and bowed her head in response.
After much hugging and well wishing, tears from Toma and Doctor Jam who dabbed a handkerchief under his eyes constantly, she boarded the same little ship that rescued them from Moxal 3 for the covert trip down the to the surface of Terramora Prime. During the flight she had time to reflect upon everything that happened during the past few weeks and months. In just over seven months she’d come from being just another Earth gal who loved the military, to being a Lilean chosen one given the task of saving the only Lilean left who could fulfi
l a centuries old prophecy and save their race and countless other worlds and the lives that lived upon them, to saving the only living heir of the King of the legendary and secretive Drycenian Nation and here she was on her way to deliver a package that contained the only things that could save Vincent and therefore, the Lilean race, to a man who few got anywhere near. She felt incredibly proud, immensely humble, a little scared and very very alone. She wiped away a tear from her cheek and sent a thought out to her father.
“Pop, I hope you’re proud of me.” A throb from her little scar and Leon’s voice inside her mind. “He is child, he is.”
She bade a warm farewell to the Troopers who delivered her safely and covertly to the surface of Terramora Prime before setting off in the direction of the city. The Drycenians kitted her out with suitable clothing so that she would blend in without calling attention to herself although Terramora Prime is known as a cosmopolitan planet where people from all over can come and mix together and be welcomed. The area she found herself in was a little way out from the city and still showed signs of the Transmortals having been there. This must once have been a magnificent forest but what were once majestic trees reaching gracefully to the heavens were now blackened stumps and the once rich brown soil was now grey with ash. She was pleased to see that everywhere she looked amongst the sad black wrecks of the ancient forest, seedlings and saplings were growing by the thousand. Green and full of life, they reached for the sun, refusing to desert this planet that was their home. Some of the oldest of these saplings were twenty feet high or more and home to birds and creatures who all scurried and flew and crawled and crept about their daily lives, a living reminder to all with eyes to see that mother nature will not be controlled and where she chooses to lay her hand, life will not be lost for long. Farra saw and it gladdened her heart and gave her hope that Lilea was also enjoying a similar rejuvenation.
As she approached the city she could see how much rebuilding was taking place. Everywhere she looked people were working; building new homes, making existing ones safe, clearing rubble from as yet untouched plots and there was a tangible sense of optimism and hope. Scaffolding loomed and men ran up and down ladders singing and whistling whilst children played kick the can on newly cleared plots of land that had been made safe for them. People of all different cultures, races and colours worked together rebuilding this world for no other reason than it was the right thing to do for those in need. They smiled as they worked, they sang and they whistled while they laboured, they made jokes and laughed together as they shifted, cleared and hauled. Farra thought that she would enjoy being here amongst these hopeful happy people. She smiled warmly to a man who waved to her as she passed by the building he was reglazing. As she rounded a corner she came upon a scene that wiped the smile from her face. A crowd was gathered around the remains of a building that wasn’t yet cleared. A man was standing apart from the crowd and seemed to be addressing them. As she moved closer she was able to hear what he was saying.
“No longer will your humble servant know the pain and agonies that he once endured. Universal God, in your great wisdom you took this child to be at your side and while we weep for him having gone from us, we celebrate his awakening into your glorious sight. Take his hand oh Lord and walk by his side into the garden of heaven, too long has he waited here in darkness and we humbly beg forgiveness on the troubled souls of those who took him from us. We commit the soul of this perfect unstained child unto you oh Lord, forever into paradise, Amen.” Those gathered around whispered whatever Amen was appropriate and right for their beliefs, all united in one moment to pray, no matter what the faith or creed of the hands that beseeched. Moist eyes were dabbed with handkerchiefs and the crowd backed away reverently allowing Farra to see what it was.
Amongst the ruins that they were just starting to clear for rebuilding, they’d found a tiny skeleton of a baby. A doctor and three funeral administrators examined it and identified it as a male of less than three months; the statutory age for DNA printing that would give his name and family details so that he could be reunited with them. As she stood looking at the tiny remains, she was reminded of the story Leon told her of Vincent’s birth and the Lilean massacre by the Transmortals. How easily those fragile bones could be Vincent’s she thought to herself as she watched the funeral administrators cover and remove them into a waiting cart. As the animals clopped away the crowd of men who had been praying just seconds ago, picked up their shovels and picks and continued laboriously clearing the ruins of the building. As she continued walking she noticed a signboard propped up against what must have once been the doorway. She cocked her head to the side so that she could read it. The tears came and she didn’t try to stop them as she read “Happy Hat Day Nursery, all under fives welcome.”
Her Drycenian friends equipped her with all manner of maps and documents so that she could fall right into society here without raising any suspicions, so she handed over her identification document with a smile as she registered for a room in the city’s biggest hotel, The Metropol. The desk clerk was a small thin man who didn’t seem to know how to smile. He looked flustered and irritated so she gave him her warmest smile.
“Hard day?” she asked. He looked at her and for a moment she thought he was just going to ignore her attempt at a friendly gesture. Then he gave a heavy sigh.
“Yes actually, sorry Miss err, Duncan but it has been a trifle stressful today with the new turnaround happening tomorrow. Always so much work to do and not enough time. Still I shouldn’t complain really, so many people all wanting to help and make sure everything is done right. I should be glad.” Then he managed a weak smile. Farra and the Drycenians had studied the Terramoran system of administration during their journey here and she knew the desk clerk was talking about the register of those wanting to attend the ANA meetings on board the liner. She felt a bit guilty adding to the guy’s workload but this was important for a lot of people.
She smiled even wider. “Ahh so am I too late to register? I was a bit delayed. I meant to be here yesterday to get it done but err, circumstances overtook me.” The clerk looked at her and for a moment his face remained expressionless. Then he smiled and shook his head.
“Oh no it’s okay. Here, give me your documentation and I’ll sort it for you. By the time you’ve freshened up and had a drink and some lunch, I’ll have your poll card ready for you. But err, promise me one thing?” He lowered his eyes and looked conspiratorially at her.
“What?” she whispered back.
“That you won’t tell anyone I hurried it through for you? There’d be a riot if it got out to the masses,” he laughed.
She laughed with him and hoped it looked genuine. “My lips are sealed,” she promised, and she would keep that promise, she decided.
The room was basic but clean and would serve her well enough. There was a bed, a night stand, a chair and a closet. A tiny bathroom contained just shower, basin and toilet. Everything was the most basic possible but perfectly clean and although it wasn’t a palace, she couldn’t find anything she could complain about. She was hot and tired and would take a little while to acclimatise to the weather on Terramora, which was hot and dry and after the perfectly controlled environment on the Drycenian ship, was a bit of a shock. She chided herself for having gone soft and stripped off her clothes to take a shower. The water was deliciously cool as she stepped in and stood there letting it cascade over her head and all down her body. She caught her reflection in the mirrored shower walls and smiled. She still wasn't used to seeing herself with a golden tan and wrinkle free complexion. Once her tan developed she decided to get Doctor Jam to re colour her tattoo to make it stand out more. She had the big dragon tattoo done on her back while on leave from the DSTU’s about five years ago and her male colleagues teased her for ages about it, calling her the old dragon for weeks. She never regretted having it done and she found that most of the men who saw it when she wore ski
mpy tops in hot climates, thought it was cool. She never got bad comments from men about it but did get a few from women. She chose to assume they were just being catty and jealous and she paid them no mind.
She looked at her little scar, the Lilean star on her breast bone and smiled. She was proud of that too and hoped that the Lilean people would accept her when she went there. She was aware of a growing feeling of wanting to be connected with Lilea on a deeper level, as though she wanted it to be home somehow. She wondered what Vincent was going through at this moment as she washed her hair and freshened herself up. Was he suffering, was he hurt? She felt a bit guilty standing here in relative luxury when he was probably living very roughly and having a hard time. She suddenly wished very much to let him know she was fighting for him, that he wasn’t alone and that she was working towards freeing him. Then she thought of that tiny skeleton in the ruins of that day nursery and then of the images Leon gave her of the day of his birth. Suddenly she felt very far away from him and wished so desperately to let him know she was his friend. All of the recent trials and dangers she’d gone through, the changes to her life and destiny came tumbling upon her and she gave in to them and sobbed as the cool water cascaded down over her.
She lay down on the bed in her room, clean and cool and refreshed from her shower and from letting all the pent up emotions go. She was suddenly very tired and allowed herself to drift off to sleep. Leon was waiting for her in the hinterland between sleeping and waking. He smiled and took her hand gently. “Look,” he said, pointing behind her into the mist. She strained her eyes but even with her state of the art eyesight she couldn’t see anything in the fog. “Look, there,” he said again and as she looked a vague shape formed out of the dense mist. She couldn’t make it out at first but as it gained solidity she saw it was a man asleep. It was Vincent, she was sure of it. The bald head and massive arms and those lips, it had to be.
“Vincent?” she looked enquiringly at Leon, who just smiled and nodded.
“Yes child. He is sleeping now, in this same moment of time many worlds away. You are both in the hinterland together. I’ve awoken you in this moment but his guide Syra is keeping him asleep. Go to him.” He indicated with his hand. She looked up at him questioningly but he just smiled. “He will not wake, nor will he respond, but he will hear you and somewhere inside, he will remember and your words will stay with him. Go to him child.”
She realised now, Leon heard her thoughts when she was in the shower and he knew of her distress. She walked over to where Vincent lay; a shimmering shade but himself nonetheless. She knelt down and just looked at him for long moments, getting to know him as best she could. She felt a bit intrusive doing this while he slept but she might not get another chance. She gently put a hand on his face and traced her fingers down his cheek and over those lips. She leaned down and whispered into his ear, suddenly needing this conversation to be private between them.
“Vincent. Don’t worry. I am fighting for you. You are not forgotten. I am working to free you and bring you home. Don’t be sad Vincent, don’t think you have no one to care. I care. I care very much. Sleep well and wake refreshed my friend. Be safe, and remember, I care. Remember that Vincent, I care and I’m fighting for you.” She kissed those lips and he vanished. She looked at Leon. “Where did he go?” she asked and he laughed quietly.
“He woke up my dear; your kiss woke him up.” He put his arm around her shoulder and pretended not to notice that she was blushing. “Now Farra,” he said gravely. “Tomorrow you will be informed that you have not been allocated a ticket for the next meeting. Don’t worry, all is not lost. As you already know, Donaldson has agreed to make a visit to Terramora to a celebration for the twenty fifth anniversary of the beginning of the rebuilding programme. He will be staying in this very hotel. The top five floors have been set aside for him and his aides. Security will be very tight but you will have better opportunities to get to him than you would at a meeting on the ANA liner. I will be with you and I will guide you every step of the way. You will need to trust me and do what I tell you without fear. Can you do that?”
“Of course, whatever it takes. Just say the word and I’m there,” she promised. Leon smiled and didn’t doubt her word for a second. “Thank you so much for letting me speak to Vincent,” she said, her eyes welling up again. “It means a lot to me, and I hope to him too.”
“He will remember your words. They will be there within him and they will make a difference,” he promised her. “Now sleep child.”
She awoke refreshed and thought she should go and get something to eat, so she dressed in what she thought would be coolest and most comfortable and went down to the dining room of the hotel. She found herself a table on the veranda and sat looking out across the garden to the city beyond. It was a hot climate on Terramora but at least she was sitting in the shade, for which she was grateful. The city was undergoing a continuous programme of renewal from the centre outwards and people came from many planets to get jobs and help out. Everyone knew of the ever present threat of the Transmortals and they knew that it could one day be them needing this help on their own worlds. This kind of thing was making people put their differences aside and pull together and she was sad that it took such a tragedy to achieve a harmonious united front. Each building first had to be demolished if it couldn’t be repaired; the rubble cleared and searched for remains, which then had to be dealt with in the proper manner, then a new building could be put in its place. It was painfully slow but the people worked patiently and diligently, with smiles on their faces and songs on their lips. Everywhere one went in the city there were builders, labourers, glaziers, painters, carpenters, power companies, water companies; everything had to done again from each humble brick to state of the art technology and it was happening in every city on Terramora and, supposed Farra, on Lilea too. Everywhere there was a tangible sense of hope for a brighter tomorrow, it was infectious and she began to relax.
“Excuse me, Miss Duncan?” A voice beside her made her jump. It was the desk clerk.
“Oh, hello there,” she smiled warmly.
“I have your errm, documents ready for you Miss,” he said looking around to make sure no one was listening in. He handed her an envelope with a smile. Suddenly she got an idea and when she felt a throb in the centre of her chest she knew it was a good one.
She looked up at the clerk and smiled her warmest smile. “Thank you very much, I really appreciate the help. Would you like to join me for a drink of something?” she offered. The man looked about to refuse but then changed his mind.
“Oh, well I err, that is, I’d be happy to, thank you.” He sat down next to her and called a waitress over. “Have you settled into your room okay? Is everything to your satisfaction?” he enquired, confident that it would be.
“Oh yes thank you, the room is immaculate. My compliments to your cleaning staff, they do a wonderful job,” she said and meant every word.
“Good, good. If there is anything you need, you have only to ask.” He was really beginning to come out of himself. She wondered how often people extended the hand of friendship to him and thought that it was probably not that often. The job of a hotel desk clerk involves being seen as the receptacle for complaints and having to be polite to everyone all of the time. She was sure she wouldn’t last a day in such a job and she decided she was going to make an effort to be nice to this guy for however long or short her stay would turn out to be.
As she walked through the city she pondered on what the desk clerk divulged to her about the impending visit by Michael Donaldson and his ANA cronies. He was due to arrive the following afternoon and stay for three nights. The entire top five floors of the hotel were sealed off and reserved for them with Michael Donaldson staying in the Penthouse suite at the very top. On the first evening he would attend a dinner for all of the city bigwigs to celebrate the twenty five year mark since rebuilding
began. On the second morning he would attend a memorial service for all the souls lost during the Transmortal attack which would involve laying the foundation stone for a memorial garden fountain in their memory. The same afternoon he would go on a tour of the city to see the rebuilding in full swing and would return and spend the evening at a concert put on in his honour. On the second morning he would go on a tour of the still undeveloped and unrepaired areas outlying the city, to include a visit to the rapidly regrowing forest that Farra saw on her walk into the city.
She learned that Terramora is famous for its ancient forests which are held in very high regard. Trees on Terramora are seen as visible manifestations of God, due to their long life and their gift to humanity of the very air that we breathe. To lose those ancient forests was seen as almost a worse tragedy than the loss of the people. It was to the Terramorans, as if God himself had been killed. Now that they were happily re growing, no state visit would be complete without an official visit there. Donaldson was to make a speech to the people at the forest, before returning to the hotel for a brief lunch, followed by a visit to three state of the art care facilities where injured survivors of the Transmortal attack still lived and were looked after. That second evening he would spend in his hotel room, preparing for his return to his space ship the next morning. So Farra now knew his schedule, all she needed to know was when to strike, where to strike and how.
She was beginning to feel as if she were about to melt in this heat. Having to keep her arms covered so as not to divulge the existence of the Drycenian Biomed Implant on her arm didn’t help matters. She longed to remove her jacket but she didn’t dare; she didn’t want to mess things up now that she’d come this far. She crossed over the street and saw a row of newly opened shops so thought she would take the opportunity to get out of the sun and go in and browse. To her complete and utter delight she found a shop selling women’s clothes and spent almost an hour rummaging and trying things on before emerging with her new purchases. The fabrics were the softest and lightest she’d seen since the Drycenian skin mesh she worn when she was tanked.
She managed to outfit herself with a new pair of trousers and a roomy over shirt with long sleeves and a hood to keep the sun from her head. Both were made of a woven fabric that was as light as chiffon but resisted the heat of the sun so the skin beneath could stay at a reasonable temperature. The hood was strange and she didn’t understand what it was for until the sales girl explained. The hood was so large that it would go not only over the head but right down over the face as well. There was a slit cut out for the wearer to see where they were going and when worn, the whole head and face would be completely covered. The sales girl told her that many people who came to Terramora lived on planets that didn’t have such a fierce climate and so these hooded shirts were designed so they could keep cool and comfortable and not damage their skin. They proved so popular that even the Terramorans themselves now wore them during the most fierce heat of the day in mid summer whenever they went outside in the sun. She also indulged in a pair of light shoes that would be wonderfully cool on her feet. She always wore sturdy boots and although safe and protective, they didn’t exactly help keep the feet cool and sometimes she longed to go barefoot. There would be times when these would come in handy, she was sure and anyway, she is a gal and gals love shoes.
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