Urszula whistled and clapped and her mantis came bounding over like an obedient dog. “You must tell me where you wish to go,” she said, impatiently. “Otherwise I will bring you back to the pits.”
“There’s a hanging valley on the other side of the river,” I said. “We passed it on the way to Frelsi. There’s a pond and a waterfall. It was the last place I saw Karla. That’s where I want to be.”
Her eyes lost their focus momentarily, but came blazing back. “Then that’s where we will bring you. Come!” She extended her hand.
Chapter 30: Vetted
The Reapers’ trail veered off the plains and slashed up the side of a hill. Each step of elevation added to Karla’s peace of mind, bringing her closer to the glow she assumed to be Frelsi and away from whatever unseen menaces stalked the pits and plains, at least in her imagination.
It made no sense why the open sky of the Liminality should frighten her more than its underworld where night was perpetual. The intensity of her terror puzzled her. Below ground, she had felt at ease, like a bunny safe in its burrow, despite the ever-present danger in those confined spaces.
Perhaps the tunnels were the devil she knew. And because the Weaving came easier down there, weapons and Reaper-proof refuges could be simply willed into existence. Her chamber had provided a womb to curl up in, impervious to all harm. What she would give to be there right now … with James.
Up top, she felt exposed. Her marginal Weaving skills had been weakened even more by the added distance from the Core. Here, it was tooth and claw against her bare flesh.
The stars grew numerous—a continuous smear of light across the sky, far broader than the Milky Way. The way grew steeper and rougher, studded with boulders and pocked with gullies. The Frelsians didn’t seem to bother to grade their access roads, probably because smoothness didn’t matter to their shape-shifting mounts. The trail remained about as rugged as the terrain it traversed.
At least the stench of the Reaper’s excretions made it obvious when she had wandered off the path. It was so odiferous, a blind woman could follow it all the way to Frelsi.
It went against her instincts to be intentionally following a path laid by Reapers, but she could understand why the Frelsians had domesticated the vile creatures. What other choice did they have for beasts of burden? Giant arthropods? That Reapers could be harnessed for good as well as evil somehow struck a nice chord.
As hauled herself up between two boulders, she detected a soft patter on the slope above, where the trail switched back on itself. There was a gaggle of people walking, with no sign of any Reaper.
She was seized with an urge to join them. It didn’t matter who they were. She didn’t want to be alone any longer. She picked up her pace and left the trail, scrambling up the side of the mountain, homing in on the voices.
The advantages of following the Reaper’s trail immediately made itself evident in the bramble and cacti that kept scraping against her bare legs. She persevered, panting, scrambling up the slope. The voices grew louder. People were laughing. Someone was actually singing.
She knocked a stone loose and it tumbled down, clanking against other stones. The voices went silent.
A bright orb, glowing green, flared into existence and floated down. It stopped and hovered an arm’s length in front of her face, blinding her.
“Who is there? Please identify yourself.”
Karla knew that voice.
“Victoria?”
A pause.
“How do you know my name?”
“We met. In Luthersburg.”
“Really? Oh, not yet another one. Next, it will be Luther himself. Come forward please. Do not be alarmed by the glow. It is harmless, but it will follow you.”
As promised, the orb floated behind her, throwing a sickly green glow over the scrubby slope, washing over the faces staring down at her in various mixtures of awe, trepidation and curiosity.
There were about twelve people in all, mostly women. Karla was the only one among them who was unclothed and it made her feel suddenly self-conscious. She walked awkwardly, knees together, arms crossed over her bosom to cover her nakedness.
Victoria stood at the head of the group, bearing a long staff with a loop at the top. A steady wind blew her hair back and pressed her long shift against her calves. Her stare was penetrating. As if Karla had anything to hide. Her feelings were just as her flesh, exposed for all to see.
“Ah, I remember you,” said Victoria. “You are that friend of Lille’s.”
“Have you seen her?” said Karla. “How is she? Is she here? Is she alright?”
“She is fine, as far as I know, and staying in Frelsi. If you come with us, I can tell you where to find her.”
“And James? James Moody? Do you know him?”
“He’s that American who was with you all. Is that right? The one who destroyed my favorite portal?”
“Yes,” said Karla.
“I saw him get taken by Dusters a few days ago. I had asked him to wait for my return, but he wasn’t there. I had assumed he had crossed back to Earth in the interim.”
“Actually, I think he has gone on to Frelsi,” said Karla. “At least, that was where we were headed.”
Victoria maintained a subtle smile that never wavered. Her face provided zero insight into her thoughts.
“Come to me. Come here.”
Karla went forward. She did not feel threatened at all. This was Victoria, after all. She and her friends had held her in as much regard as a Saint since her confrontation with Luther. The glowing orb followed and took up residence within the loop of Victoria’s staff.
“I have heard a lot about you, Miss Karla Reith,” said Victoria. “Miss Lille thinks very highly of you. She had asked me to keep a lookout.”
Karla halted a few paces away. The stares and whispers of the others began to annoy her.
“Please come closer. Show me your arm.”
“My arm?”
Karla took a hesitant step forward. Victoria grabbed her wrist and twisted it gently around, exposing her forearm. She reached into a pocket, took a pinch of something wiry and squirmy, cupped them into her palm and clapped it against Karla’s skin.
There was a stinging sensation, followed heat and an intense itching. Victoria drew her hand back. Karla rubbed the inflamed patch with her other hand, finding a thickly embossed C raised on her flesh.
“Consider yourself vetted,” said Victoria.
“But … what did you do to me?”
“It’s just a mark that shows you belong to Frelsi.”
“You mean you’ve just branded me? Like a cow?”
“Oh no, not, not at all, it’s called vetting. See? I also have a mark.” Victoria pulled up her sleeve, revealing the complete circle on her arm. “Now let’s see about getting you covered.
She tore a strip of cloth from her hem and tugged at its edges, expanding and shaping it into a sari-like wrap. Some of the other women came up and helped fit and fasten it around her frame, but the fabric itself did most of the reshaping on its own.
“Come, we had better get going. The steepest pitch yet lies just ahead. We don’t want to get there late and keep the Mentors waiting.”
“Did walk all the way from the pits?” said Karla. “No Reapers?”
“A little exercise never hurt anyone,” said Victoria. She lowered her voice. “And to tell you the truth, I cannot stand those filthy creatures. I wish they had never been taken and tamed.”
***
It was still dark when they reached the rugged outer wall of Frelsi. Though, the stone of the external ramparts loomed darkly over them as they came up the final stretch of finely graded road, the inner wall glowed with its own intrinsic luminescence, casting its diffuse light on the bizarre and spiky trees within its confines.
“Please make yourselves comfortable here,” said Victoria, as they passed through the unguarded entrance into a chaotic mess of shabby, little shacks. “Any unoccupied dwelling that
you find is fair game. Hemis are not allowed to claim property here. Fewer than half of you are present in this world at any one time. Your average residency is less than two days. If you encounter anyone objecting to your presence, please find a Master immediately and report them. As Hemis, you are all required to share.”
She panned the group, her eyes contacting each member of her flock, as if to ensure they understood the rules. “Alright, then. By first light, I want you all to reassemble back here so I can introduce you to your Mentors.”
She started off up the lane.
“Wait! Miss Victoria!” said Karla. “You were going to tell me how I could find Lille.”
Victoria turned to her, her face calm, her eyes weary, almost sad.
“Lille keeps a shanty near the outer stables. Not the best of locations. It reeks of Reaper, but at least there is some open space. Just follow this wall to the left and you will know it when you see it, I’m sure. Lille has a certain flair for distinctive décor, even when it comes to shanties.”
Karla walked away from the rest of the group, who seemed tired, befuddled and reluctant to part company with each other after their journey. Who knows how long they knew each other down below?
She threaded her way through a solid mass of shacks devoid of alleyways or paths. She nodded to a few souls who were awake, fanning coals, but they did not even react to her trespass, as accustomed to strangers treading through their kitchens. The porridge they were warming smelled quite good. She was tempted to ask for a taste but was too proud to beg.
She smelled the stables before she saw them, and her heart revved when she broke out into an open space surrounding a series of deep, rectangular depressions full of grunting, snorting Reapers.
The glow of the inner wall cast a faint light over the line of shanties packed cheek to jowl along the wall. In the far corner, where another solid mass of dwellings resumed, she spotted a pastel-colored wall with crude ginger-breading tacked on and dangling just below the roof line. A little round table with two chairs stood in front, a primitive simulacrum of the set Lille and Bern had in their cottage garden back in Luthersburg. This had to be the place.
She trotted across the open grounds, went up to the door and knocked. There was a muttering from inside. The quavering light of a lantern sifted through gaps in the sheets cladding the outer wall.
“Who is it?” The voice was creaky but familiar.
“Lille! It’s me. Karla.”
The door scraped open, dragging across the rutted clay.
“Oh my Lord,” said Lille, palm clasped to her chest. “Bern, can you believe it? It’s our Karla!”
Lille smothered Karla in her arms. Karla put her palm on Lille’s cheek, amazed by her youthful appearance. She looked to be in her late twenties at most.
“Oh, it’s marvelous to see you, my dear! I so missed our little chats.”
“How? Who did this for you? Look at you! You look wonderful.”
“What, this face? Oh that’s nothing,” said Lille. “Just turning back the clock a bit. Everyone does it here. Everyone except Bern, it seems.”
“I’m still cogitating,” said Bern, limping out of the dark recesses of the hut and into the light of Lille’s lantern. “It’s taken me decades of experience to become this distinguished-looking. You can’t expect me to give up all this gravitas, this patina that I’ve worked so hard for … just like that.” He snapped his fingers. “Without as much as a second thought?”
“I’m sorry dear, but any more experience on that face and you’ll start looking those mummies they feed to the Reapers. I’m not asking for much, get rid of a few creases here and there, smooth that rumpled brow, and maybe shift your hairline a little more forward. You don’t want people to think you’re robbing the cradle, do you? What, what?”
Bern slipped around Lille and gave Karla a peck on the cheek. “It’s so nice to see you, dear, though I assume your presence means you’ve no luck finding James on the other side? Is that so?”
“Yes, we have not found him yet. But I thought … is he not here? In Frelsi?”
“Well, he was,” said Lille. “He arrived with Bern yesterday, but he seems to have gone away somewhere. He did leave a message saying he would be right back.” She pointed to the terse and uninformative message he had scratched on the wall.
“So where do you think he went?”
Bern rocked his head. “I would venture to guess that he went back down the mountain to wait for you. Down on the plains … where you last faded.”
“I just came from there … from the place he said we should meet. I didn’t see him.”
“I don’t know what to say,” said Bern. “Except that he didn’t seem to like this place very much. I can’t say I blame him.”
“Now Bern, you’ve just got here. You’ve hardly given it a chance.”
Bern sighed. “Well, you see his little note there. Maybe he just wanted to get away from the hubbub for a bit. He obviously intends to return. I suggest you just sit tight and wait for him to come around. You’re welcome to stay here, though, it looks like Lille won’t be sticking around past today.”
Karla was shocked to hear that the couple might have had a falling out. They seemed amicable enough, or at least no more fractious with each other than usual.
“Why are you moving out, Lille?”
Lille beamed. “Oh, don’t look at me that way. It’s all good. You see dear, today is a very special day for me. Once the sun is up, we’re going up to glaciers. And if all goes well on the other side, my soul is going free today. My Mentor, Alec, has finalized the arrangements.”
“You mean … you’re dying?”
“Yes!” said Lille, with a smile a mile wide. “He’s found someone to go to my nursing home and pull my plug!”
“Oh Lille! I’m sorry, but … that sounds so ghastly.”
“No, it’s all good. Don’t you see? It means security for all eternity. No longer having to worry that my soul will be whisked off to the Deeps.”
Karla glanced at Bern, who looked less than thrilled by the prospect.
“Bern has promised to join me, as soon as Alec figures out the logistics. Who would have thought that a prison would be such a hindrance to an assassin? Oh! My gown! I’d love to hear what you think of it.”
She held up a long dress of creamy chiffon with accents of satin and lace. It looked almost like a wedding gown.
“It’s … lovely,” said Karla. “Just lovely. But … did they tell you what happens … when you die? How will you know that it’s happened? That you’re gone … on the other side?”
Lille gazed out through the eaves. “Well, Alec says you feel something like a little shiver that goes through you like a thrill. He described it almost as if it were some kind of … like … an orgasm.” She giggled. “The Mentors then verify your freeing by checking your eyes. They have some kind of instrument that they shine through your pupils. Something about the reflectance changes. The light no longer bounces back, as if there is a void there, as Bern had always suspected.” She shot him a glare. “Oh, I haven’t been so excited since I … since I went to college … or when my Mum and Dad took me to France for a summer!”
“So, as I was saying,” said Bern. “This, eh … cottage … will become available.” He looked quite glum. “Lille won’t be coming back here. And neither will I.”
“What nonsense are you talking, Bern?” said Lille. “Of course you will stay here. Wherever would you go?”
“I thought perhaps I’d take the cue from James and do a little walkabout.”
“Oh, poppycock! When James comes back, you can all stay here together. Work with your Mentors, get your bodies in tune, not that you need any improvements, Karla my dear. But this old man of mine needs to get that bum leg of his finally taken care of, and whatever else I can convince him to refurbish.”
“But where will you go, Lille?”
“Not far,” she said. “Not far at all.”
“Free souls
stay within the inner wall,” said Bern. “Inside the Sanctuary. “Hemis, that’s us, we’re not allowed in after dark.”
“But of course I will visit you all right here, every day. And this is all temporary. Once you all free your own souls ….”
“If,” said Bern. “Not once. If. Don’t just assume it will happen, Lille. Especially with Karla. She’s so young still.”
“Not to be coy,” said Lille. “But we’ve talked about this many times … down below. Aren’t we all here … in the Liminality … for the same reasons? Hasn’t it always been our dream all this time to come to Frelsi? And now here all are … together. Can it have worked out any more perfectly?”
“I might have neglected to tell you, Lille, but … things are different now … for Karla. She’s finally free of her dad.”
“Oh. Well, in that case, the more power to you, dear. I’ll certainly miss you, if you ever stop coming. Though … I see that you’re here right now. Thing must not be so—”
“Oh my gosh, Lille. Don’t root for the poor thing to be miserable.”
“But … I never … I’m not—”
“I would gladly never set eyes on her again if that meant she was to have a happy … or at least a normal life.”
“As would I,” said Lille. “But … she’s obviously not happy, is she.”
“She’s working on it.”
“And what’s your excuse old man? Having too much fun in solitary confinement are you?”
Bern sighed. “I’ve told you. It may sound easy arranging an assassination in a prison, but it’s not. I’m not the most accessible prisoner. There’s the not so small matter of the guards. I happen to be on a suicide watch.”
“I’ve told you,” said Lille. “Alec is working very hard at getting one of his Facilitators into your facility. And until then we can still see each other. You can even visit me in the Sanctuary. I mean, in the daytime, when you’re not working.”
“I don’t know, Lille. This whole arrangement makes me a bit uneasy. I mean, assassins? Really? All these social castes, dare I say … apartheid? Something about it all seems very crass.”
“Oh, you’re making it sound worse than it really is. Everyone knows that being a Hemi is temporary. Let’s not fool ourselves. The process of becoming free is the only way to establish a permanent residence here. And this process … it is available to each and every Hemi. Everyone is assigned a Mentor. I don’t know why you’re so bothered by it all, it seems quite democratic to me.”