Chapter Ten
An Old Friend And A New Beginning
Leslie and Sornan took frequent walks through various human cities in order to gain familiarity with the people and surroundings. These walks also gave Sornan a chance to coach her in the observational and other skills a Guardian needed. Unless they were doing practice operations, they wore human clothing in order to blend in with their surroundings.
One such walk was on a lovely early spring day in Central Park. Sornan and Leslie were connecting, in Leslie's case reconnecting, with the area. This was where she had been a part of the Resistance. In fact, here were the benches facing the Bow Bridge, where she had spoken to Mia the night before the attack on the Centers. She had given her a weapon, with which to defend herself, should Korum suspect her involvement with the Resistance. Mia had taken the weapon, but told her that she could never use it on Korum, and, Leslie shuddered with relief, she hadn't.
Suddenly Leslie became aware of a thin thirty-something man of medium height with light-blond hair and ice-blue eyes. “John!” she said, surprised.
Just as surprised, John’s eyes widened at the sight of a K beside Leslie. “Leslie! Drop!” John's hand flew toward the pocket of his wind breaker. Leslie knew instantly that John was about to attack Sornan. Without thinking she pointed her index finger with its imbedded stunner and shot her former Resistance colleague in the chest.
Leslie rushed forward supporting John’s limp body and easing him to the grass. Checking that his airway was clear, and placing him in as comfortable a position as possible. Sornan checked the pocket of John’s windbreaker, removing the small oval device that would have turned him into dust, in the unlikely event that John managed to shoot him before he could react. He took out his fabricator and unmade the nasty little thing. The fabricators issued to Guardians had an override allowing them to unmake another’s creation. Provided there was a very good reason to do that. He smiled at Leslie. She had reacted perfectly. Eliminate the threat using nonlethal force, then, if possible, tend to the health and safety of the perpetrator of that threat. Cool and professional. “Well done,” he smiled.
John was mostly recovered in another minute. Looking at her in confusion. “Leslie, where have you been… Is this K controlling you?”
Despite understanding the shock she was about to deliver, Leslie couldn’t resist an anticipatory grin. “I suppose you could say that John. He's supervising my training as a Guardian. Also, he's my fiancé, so I really didn’t want him dissolved. John, this is Sornan, my fiancé. Sornan, this is John, my friend and former colleague.”
Still trying to process what she was saying in relation to everything he believed, he asked, “Leslie, did he make you his charl?” John sounded horrified.
Leslie smiled. "No John, he didn't.” With another grin, she added, “I would gladly have accepted being his charl, if that were my only option for being with him. You see John, charl does not mean what the KIETHS told us it meant. A charl is not a sex slave. She or he is a human mate, and a lifelong commitment for their cheren, the Krinar in the relationship. Mia was Korum’s charl…”
John tensed. “Was… What did he do to her?”
Leslie laughed. “He took her and her family to Krina. Three very important things happened there. Mia had asked Korum to petition the Elders to let her family have the same biological immortality that she and other humans taken into the Krinar society receive. After several weeks, the Elders agreed to consider this, but only if Korum brought Mia and her whole family to Krina to argue on their own behalf. They did that. I understand Mia spoke very eloquently on behalf of her family and of humans generally. Another important thing that happened, certainly where I’m concerned, is that Korum decided to marry Mia, his charl, in a lavish human-style wedding, in front of the Council and a good part of the Krinar society.
“A charl is the mate of their cheren, a status that makes them very much like a married couple, except that the charl is also the property of the cheren. These days, in most parts of the world wives and husbands are equal to each other. By giving that status to Mia, Korum raised her standing in their society from virtually nothing to enormous. By setting a precedent like that, Korum made that a possibility for all humans.”
She grinned at John. “A word of advice. Don’t badmouth Korum. We like him now.
“The Elders permitted Mia’s family to receive biological immortality. The oldest of them actually made that announcement at the wedding.
“Finally, two days before Korum and Mia and her family left for Earth, the Elders ended the Non-Interference Mandate. That means that the Krinar are free to share their technology. And, John, you no longer have to fight for that technology, because the Krinar are ready to give it to you.”
John gaped at her.
“And,” Leslie continued smugly, “because Korum had a human wedding, so can Sornan and I.” She held up her ring.
John looked, for once adorably confused. He looked from Sornan to Leslie. “You’re not going to arrest me?”
“No,” said Sornan. “We weren't looking for you and have no reason to go after you. Except for that illegal Krinar weapon we thought you might have. I didn’t find anything I wanted to confiscate though, so you’re clean.”
John was silent for a long minute, looking first at Leslie, then at Sornan. He took a deep breath. “In that case, please, can you tell me anything about my sister, Dana?”
Sornan gave him a sympathetic smile. “Of course, John. Just as the KIETHS didn’t tell you the truth about the meaning of charl, they didn’t tell you the truth about Dana.
“When Dana met Lotmir in Mexico, she begged him to take her with him. Lotmir agreed to take her, but was unwilling to make her his charl. She lived with him for a while in Lenkarda. But after that she found another K who was willing to take her to Krina, where she lives today. She didn’t call anyone from Lenkarda and she left without telling anyone, John, because she didn’t want her family to know.
“You’re her brother though, so I’m pretty sure none of that was directed at you. If we could get Larkon, our Lead Guardian, to find her location on Krina, and ask if she would accept a virtual meeting, would you be willing to come to the Arizona Center for that?”
John’s face went white. His hands were shaking. “Go to a K Center!”
Leslie smiled, putting her hand briefly on John’s arm. “There and back again. We promise.”
For a fraction of a second, Leslie saw a flash of anger, quickly suppressed, cross Sornan’s face. She wondered what that had been about, but quickly forgot it.
Taking a shaky breath, John said, “To talk to her, I would do anything for that.”
Sornan smiled at him. He used his wrist computer to send Larkon a report on their encounter with John, and a request for assistance setting up a virtual discussion with Dana.
He received a reply from Larkon twenty minutes later. “Dana agreed to meet with John, as long as no other family would be present.”
They would meet in Larkon’s house at 9 p.m. Mountain Standard Time. In addition to John, Larkon, Leslie, and Sornan would also go.
That left them with an evening to kill, as the Arizona Center was two hours behind New York. Sornan bought dinner for them. Then they went to John’s apartment, where they sat around for the evening catching up.
Leslie was excited to learn that Rose came through going on the run with no ill effects. She was planning to start a master’s program in the fall. Despite that, John thought that she felt let down after the end of the Resistance. Working in a counseling center was a far cry from driving alien invaders off the earth. Leslie was also grateful that Rose hadn’t ratted her out about being in the Resistance, when her parents called about her. They had suspected Rose was hiding something, but the truth would have been infinitely worse had they known it at the time.
John’s life had been the Resistance after Dana disappeared. Moving on with his life had not been easy. His private detective’s license had not expired however. He was beginning to pick up a few cases.
Jeff, the only leadership member who had been anonymous enough to have taken part in the assault on Lenkarda, was still at loose ends. John said he was thinking of going into the army, only the problem with the army was that it had very little purpose with no one to fight. The Ks would not tolerate a war.
Professor Mason was going through a rough time. After the failed attack on the Centers, Columbia University’s administration had suddenly decided that they were uncomfortable with the idea of a Resistance leader being on their faculty. They worried that the Krinar might be displeased about that. She had kept her job as such, but was not teaching. They had her working in the Career Placement Office while “things were sorted out.”
Leslie said, “It seems like you guys are suffering from withdrawal, I bet the rest of our brothers and sisters are too. Maybe there’s a way to fix that John. We can talk about it later.”
Shortly before 11 p.m. the three of them walked to a fairly isolated area of Central Park. There, among a grove of trees, Leslie called her fabricator. She said, “Make a four-person ship.” A quiet buzzing sound filled the air around them, as the ship that would take them to Arizona came into existence.
John stared at the ship and then at Leslie in disbelief. Sornan smiled. “Leslie told me what the Resistance expected after the KIETHS took over. They would have shared K technology with all of humanity.
“That might have taken a while. Given seven of them teaching seven billion of you. Even if those seven knew how most of that technology worked, which they didn’t. Even had they been interested in anything more than ruling the planet, which they weren't.
“They have been sent to Krina for rehabilitation. They won’t be back any time soon.
“The reason why we haven’t shared our technology with humans is that our Elders wouldn’t allow us to, outside of special circumstances, such as our charl. It was a serious criminal offense to do it.
“The Elders felt that humans needed more time to evolve, without interference from us. As Leslie explained, that policy, the ‘Non-Interference Mandate,’ is no longer in effect.”
Sornan’s voice turned dramatic. “And this means that everything the Resistance wanted, can happen. And you don't need to fight the Krinar to get it, because, instead of blocking you, we will help you! Instead of seven, actually eight, traitors happy to endanger everyone, you now have fifty thousand Krinar Earth inhabitants, including some who are top experts in their respective fields. And you have those you thought of as sex slaves, including Mia, including Leslie, with whom we are mated. They have learned, in one case over the course of twenty-three centuries, to relate to us and have much to teach their fellow humans.”
Leslie said, “So, John, let’s get to Larkon’s house. After you visit your sister, we can talk about how ‘you can help us’!”
John gave her a long-suffering look. “I don’t always say that Leslie.”
Leslie grinned. "It’s good to be with you again John!”
A few minutes later Leslie landed her ship next to Larkon’s house. The three of them walked toward the ivory walls, which dissolved as they approached. Larkon waited for them on the other side. “Welcome John.” Larkon smiled. “I’ve heard a lot about you. It’s nice to finally meet you.”
After a few more pleasantries, Larkon placed a small white dot on his temple. “These dots are what allow us to experience virtual reality,” he told John. “They feed the experience directly into our brains.” He quickly placed dots on everyone. “In a moment we will be in Dana’s house on Krina.”
He paused. “John, you may experience some shortness of breath. The air has a lower oxygen content on Krina. You can ignore this by remembering that your body is not actually on Krina. That will make you more comfortable and it won’t interfere with your subjective experience. Once you have the advanced nanosytes that Leslie has, your body will adjust to virtual or physical changes so quickly you won’t notice.”
A moment later they were in a room a little smaller than Larkon’s, but otherwise similar, with floating planks of various sizes arranged for a comfortable seating arrangement. There were also a couple of large pots growing exotic-looking flowering plants. Through the transparent walls, Leslie saw that it was night out here as well. Not dark though. Unlike the world they had just departed, there were three moons in the sky, forming their own little solar… no, she thought, Krina system, above the planet. Leslie wondered how frequently the orbits of the three moons converged like this over this part of the Tinara, the super continent. No need to bother the Ks with her thoughts. She would just be a silly superstitious human all by herself and call it an auspicious sign.
A slender young woman, almost as tall as Leslie, looked a little overwhelmed at the number of people appearing in front of her. Her ice-blue eyes and light blond hair looked very familiar to Leslie. “Greetings, Leader Larkon, this is an honor…” she began “…John!” She ran to her brother, who threw his arms around her. Both of them were crying as each of them tried to draw the other’s presence into themselves.
After a time, Dana pulled away. She turned to the others and invited them to sit. She took John’s hand and led him to a smaller plank, where the two of them could sit together. John took a somewhat shaky breath. “Dana, why did you leave like that?”
She looked ashamed. “John, I’m so sorry I did that to you. I was just so sick of Dad’s ‘loving father’ bullshit, and Mom’s excuses and pretending. He wasn’t doing anything to us anymore. But the memories were there all the time, they were tearing me apart. I had to get away, John, just had to. When I met Lotmir, it was like I could breathe for the first time.
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you. I was just so afraid that something… something would stop me.”
“I understand, Dana. Believe me, I understand.
“I got away by joining the Resistance. Our parents disowned me. They wouldn’t be associated with a child of theirs who got involved in such illegal activity. Never mind I wanted to rescue their other child from being a sex slave in Lenkarda.” Dana gave the two Krinars in the room an anxious glance. “Don’t worry they know all about me,” John said.
They went on to talk about the paths their lives had taken. Dana was open enough about her role in Krinar society, she was basically a courtesan, a pleasure giver, as the Ks called it. She did not face the stigma she would have among humans. And being outside of human society, therefore, being no threat to the Non-Interference Mandate, she had received the priceless gift of immortality. She hoped, however, one day to do something more challenging with the centuries that lay ahead of her. Sornan said nothing, but gave her a speculative look.
John talked about his role as a Resistance leader, and his interaction with the KIETHS, and unbeknown to him, at the time, Saret the mind expert, their leader, the sociopath who had planned to use an irreversible form of operant conditioning to influence the minds of every human on the planet.
He told Dana how following an ineffective attack on the K Centers, he and other Resistance members known to the Krinar had gone into hiding. When it became apparent that the Ks were no longer trying to find them, they had gradually emerged. His close friend Leslie had disappeared. He had found her today in Central Park. She was walking with a K. She was engaged to the K. Also he was training her as a Guardian. “First they told me that you weren’t being held as a sex slave in Lenkarda, as our supposed K allies had told me. Then they told me that they would ask for their leader’s help, so that I could visit you like this.”
“Where do we go from here?” asked Dana. “Is this the one time we see each other, or can we somehow be in each other’s lives again?” Sornan looked at Dana from across the room, where he was sitting with the others. He said, “Now that we have your coordinates, John could see you every few months. However, I couldn’t help hearing that you eventually wanted to do something different with your life. Vary soon there is going to be a lot more interaction between humans and us. We need people who are familiar with both societies.
“The Human Compound, where captured Resistance fighters and others were held, is being remade into the Arizona K Orientation Center. How would you like to teach there?”
Larkon stepped into the conversation. “When the Elders ended the Mandate, they gave us a problem. A problem we very much wanted, but still a problem. We need to integrate with a population that outnumbers us; not just the Earth inhabitants, but all of us, many thousands to one. We badly need humans who already know us to help with that. If you would like to try something more satisfying than what you’re doing on Krina, then Earth has a job for you!”
“I want that job,” Dana said quietly.
A long goodbye later, the four of them returned to Larkon’s house. Larkon called Korum and arranged passage for Dana for the following month, on the same ship that Korum had created to bring Mia and her family to Krina. The little ship had proven to be quite useful, and routine travel between the two galaxies had grown a lot more routine.