What scared him off? So much pain…
After Talokta’s abrupt departure, Leah angrily needed to put him out of her mind, and put the remains of the wine to good use. She was in no mood waiting for any babysitter, besides, she wanted to be alone, perhaps independently explore a little. The mix of pain killer and drink made her feel more than capable of finding her own way back to her quarters.
Rather clumsily, she stepped out of Talokta’s quarters, and literally stumbled into two huge solid pillars.
“Oops,” exclaimed Leah, bouncing back two steps, “I am in land of the giants!”
The guards regarded the female for a moment before they remembered their manners. They quickly bowed, and formally introduced themselves.
“Montava and Chotar,” she repeated a little slurred. She studied them thoughtfully. They were the same height, similar build, usual uniform. Montava had blond streaks in his hair that was neatly tied back, and he possessed the most gorgeous grey eyes. Whereas, Chotar’s hair was short, spiky, and dark with matching midnight black eyes.
Hmm, not bad, very cute.
Both oozed raw male masculinity that, in her unabashed state, turned her on.
Both men looked knowingly at each other. Their Commander had given them a dossier on their queen, along with a stern warning not to let her out of their sight. “Human beings were generally undisciplined and therefore unpredictable.” They, like all their fellow warriors knew about the legend of the Chosen One and knew her reincarnation was not smooth.
The two men thrived on challenges, and both were equally experienced enough to know not to take anything for granted. The last thing in the world they would want would be feeling the wrath of Talokta, let alone the Supreme Ruler.
Here was, up close and personal, the legendary Queen Leah reincarnated and drunk. This task was going to be to be too damn easy.
Chotar cleared his throat. “By order of Lord Talokta, we are to accompany you to your quarters, remain with you and upon landing, to escort you to Casus Belli.”
Leah, feeling playful, giggled at their formality. “Be careful, boys. I have awesome powers. I may beat the crap outta—”
She stopped, realizing she was wasting her time. These guys had no sense of humor and were definitely no diplomats. The look in their eyes–she was not drunk enough to see how much they found their current assignment as rather, foreign. No matter what her title, or what she symbolized. To them, she was a mere female.
“Fine,” she stated bluntly. So, two more stiff asses to deal with.
She received no reaction from either. So they do not mind read.
She glanced at the varying symbols tattooed on their well-developed upper arms. “So which one is in charge,” she slurred, as scornfully as she could. She felt Chotar’s hand press lightly on her shoulder, guiding her out and a whisper close to her ear, “Not you, your highness.”
“Yes, but who do you guards answer to?”
“In Lord Talokta’s absence we are in charge.” Montava interrupted with a menacing look in his eyes.
Leah decided to shut up while she was practically hoisted and marched between the two unyielding male structures.
She flopped on her bed and felt the blanket of sleep start to wrap around her. Her two stiff assed giants stationed themselves outside her doorway. On one occasion she had asked Talokta why he did not simply use security cameras and save on man power. He insisted she must always have guards at the ready for her ultimate protection.
She heard a couple of snide chauvinistic thoughts emitted from her new companions’ minds. Her mind reading gift could be a curse at times. She knew that Talokta was a master at flexing his mental muscles and could block any unwanted noise whenever he wished. Perhaps he, or better still, Cemel could show her how to enable the “off” button. She heard one of the men state “Kalu” and left, they were going to take shifts.
Nothing more than glorified babysitters. Yeah, that’s cool guys, I agree, I don’t like it either.
No way was she going to put up with this!
The following morning, after copious amounts of fresh water, and popping some tablets that Talokta had stated would help after any overindulgence of their beverages, Leah decided she would slip out of her quarters and have a quick tour around the ship. She was still feeling peeved towards her two new escorts and their attitudes. Last thing she wanted was a pair of overgrown hominoids watching her every move. She smiled wickedly as her mind juggled different ways she could play tricks on them and maybe get them into trouble. Of course they were answerable to Talokta. They had to be, absent or not. She glanced toward her open doorway; there was no force field now. Talokta had told her she was free to go anywhere escorted and had deactivated it after her proclamation from “meeting” with Cemel. She peeped cautiously around the doorway. Strange, she thought there would at least be one guard.
They probably think I am in bed with a hangover, a weakling…easy to handle.
She slipped down the corridor but about six meters from her door, she heard a booming voice from behind her, “Leta Ou!” She knew it meant “stop” in Trimadian. So, she carried on, pretending she did not hear. Just to her right was an intersection, she ducked around and picked up the pace to gleefully lose him. She dashed down another adjacent corridor, but to her dismay Chotar appeared several meters ahead, closing in, brandished his gloctol, and prepared to fire. Leah froze. Before her next breath, she felt heat in her back. A deadly soft voice spoke, “I suggest you obey my order your highness, or I will fire.” Shocked, she slowly turned to face a grim faced Montava. She glanced at his weapon. She knew it would be set to stun but after seeing how poor Pete suffered, she decided not to push him.
“I–I just want to have a look around before I leave here. That’s all.”
Both men harnessed their weapons.
Chotar sneered, “Do not ever disobey either of us again, we will shoot you without warning, is that clear…your highness!”
Leah was angry, not for their words, or their actions–they had a job to do. But, it was the snide tone that got to her. It made her remember just why, back on Earth she worked for herself–no one told her what to do! A million expletives came to her mind, but what came out of her mouth was a simple. “I’m sorry. I will never disobey you again.”
The men looked smugly satisfied.
She was so close to lashing out to slap the smirks off their faces. But why give them that satisfaction.
Until next time.
She waited for the reaction. Like the night before; there was none.
Chotar, smiling broadly, glanced at his partner. “I think we can assist your Royal Highness with a look around.”
After a few hours of what was a whirlwind, or more like a tornado tour, Leah had had enough. The ship was enormous. The last place they took her was the ship’s bridge, which they called the control center–the only place she really wanted to check out. But, she was so tired, mentally and physically, she could only lean on the entrance and peek in the door. They had run her ragged, up and down, round and round and that was including utilizing the lift system. She thought that she was physically fit. These specimens were a cut above the rest. She almost begged them to take her back to her quarters, her feet were so sore. She was close to tears, but she could not let them see that. When they finally did return, she almost collapsed on the floor. She could just feel their satisfaction basting her. Well, if there is one way to keep the spoilt female bitch of a queen under their thumb–wear her out.
“I surrender,” she exclaimed to herself, as she threw her shoes on her bedroom floor envisioning a bath. These guys were good and played her well, trying to break her. Nothing they did warranted a complaint. If she did, she would probably never earn their respect, in fact she did not think that was possible due to her sex. All during her “tour,” their manners were impeccable and they had treated her cordially and respectfully. They knew damn well she was stubborn and would not give in easily. So they were pretty
proud of themselves. Yes, they had won this round.
Leah recovered during a well earned soak in her permanently warm sweet scented bath. She had delightfully discovered a fluffy white robe amongst her wardrobe.
Yeah, this was the fastest flying hotel in space and still comes with guest bathrobes. Would they notice if she threw it in her luggage? She giggled.
Wrapped warmly in her new robe, she settled on her sofa, feeling rather ravenous. As if her mind was read, a servant had appeared outside her doorway talking to her minders. “Yes, food.” Leah breathed as she spied a large food tray with a mouthwatering aroma. She gloriously felt her tummy rumble.
Chotar walked in and bowed. “Your highness, we took the privilege to organize a meal for you in your quarters.”
“Thanks,” Leah was not listening–she was positively drooling as her newly recovered legs took her to her dining table in anticipation. But, when the servant entered, Montava detained him and did something, rather extraordinary. He ran the top of his hand slowly over the tray, until he seemed satisfied. She took a guess he must have scanned her food for anything that should not have been present. But his action, accompanied by such a serious expression, gave Leah the hysterics, and she promptly disappeared to her bedroom. Montava, concerned, checked on her. He was perplexed when he saw her sitting on the bed with her hands over her face making odd, snorting noises.
“My lady, are you alright? Are you hurt?”
Leah looked up with tears in her eyes and squawked, “Don’t mind me. Ahem, yes, I’m fine.”
He saw that she was laughing and could not help but smile, due to its infectious nature, even if one does not have a clue what the person is laughing about.
“When I saw your hand hovering…ha ha ha…and your expression. I knew it was a security precaution, but I’ve never seen that done before, except at the movies and well, it just looked so funny.”
That was a pivotal moment. Both parties acknowledged a reasonable sense of humor. She knew they were under pressure from Talokta, and be all business, and Leah had in a way, chipped a little of the ice away.
Plus, deep down, she was feeling extraordinary lonely, especially since Talokta had left. Strangely, since she had left her Earth life behind, she craved company. She should have spent some more time with her teammates and checked on Pete, but she had once more forgotten about them.
She went back to her living area to eat, and timidly asked her guards if they would join her as she was literally going out of her head with boredom.
Chotar stated, “It is forbidden for guards to mix with high ranking dignitaries.” Leah replied jovially, “Does that cover extremely ancient queens, too?”
Looking a little startled, he stammered an undecided, “Yes,” but smiled back at her.
“Can we at least talk to each other?”
“Of course, if that is what you wish,” said Montava matter of factly, “but we must stay at our post.”
They arranged the furniture so she could sit, eat, and chat to them, without encroaching on their sworn duty. It was a start.
For a good hour, Montava, Chotar, and Leah exchanged their experiences and learnt what life was like on each other’s planets. It was good for Leah to get a perspective from relatively ordinary Trimadians, though they were far from civilians.
At first, they were still very formal, just like Talokta was during his “stiff assed period,” and polite out of courtesy to the fact she was their queen, and it was a new experience for all involved. Leah laughed to herself. They don’t let down their guard!
With a little encouragement and a few pertinent questions, they soon were chatting away, quite happy to enlighten their queen with their experiences and conquests. These soldiers were as professional as you could get.
Both had been involved in many battles and were hands on when it came to planning strategies of war. After hearing their exchange, she began sensing that these two men were not ordinary Trimadian guards. She ascertained they were, in fact, Talokta’s right hand men, equal in rank to the Supreme Ruler’s Verone Elite, and always accompanied their master wherever he went. Except for now. Their explicit orders were to guard and under no circumstances let her out of their sight, whether she liked it or not.
So, if they had shot her, they would have been acting under Talokta’s orders. If it came down to any compromise to her security, she knew what their orders were. Leah had to ask it, though she was embarrassed to do so. “So you guys would defend me to the death and all that stuff?”
“Of course, that is our duty.”
Leah was not so sure she wanted that on her conscience and made a mental vow to learn to take care of herself no matter what. She concluded that an independent and somewhat stubborn streak was common for both Kate and Leah. As the Trimadians were a warlike, aggressive race, then she would, as soon as practically possible, learn their style of hands-on combat, self-defense, and how to use the weapons at her disposal. Divisions had trained her to a degree, what would training be like under this lot? Would they allow her to train? There was no way this queen was going to be a pampered poodle.
She looked away. “I hope it never comes down to that.” She looked at the wine and decided to refrain that night.
Leah had changed her mind about the two men.
But nothing had changed the fact she still had to prove herself.
Just before they excused themselves from her quarters, Montava had pressed a code on a wall panel and in a very James Bond like scene, one side of her lounge wall folded inside out to reveal a bank of monitors and a computer console. Of course, this was Talokta’s quarters. She smiled, talk about a quick change of décor. It gave new meaning to a feature wall.
She gasped, there it was, her destination–Heliostronus, still light years away, and according to the computer, touchdown would be tomorrow morning. Jesus!
They had, amusedly left her to use most of her remaining hours on board to study up on the planet’s statistics and the Nextraprime galaxy in general. Heliostronus was similar in size to Jupiter and even had a reddish tinge with darker patches around it. It looked like a huge eyeball with tiny forbidding pupils staring at her. However, it was certainly no gas or “liquid” planet.
The atmosphere was consistent with Earth and comprised of magnetic poles, upper and lower hemispheres, but only one quarter was water and the rest land. Most of the land was desert. Would it be like Frank Herbert’s Dune. Ha! Recycled pee and giant worms.
So enthused, and now far from bored, she did not even bother going to bed, and fell asleep on the sofa. Despite her late night, she woke early. Both guards had gone, but the force field was activated. She grinned. Hmm, once bitten. It was time to get her belongings organized.
She packed her backpack full of the assortment of make up and accessories that Talokta had lavished on her. The problem she had to tackle now was what she should wear upon her arrival. She had not come prepared for ceremonies or banquets, and of course, the beautiful gold cream gown was ruined during the Marone incident. It had been preserved for six thousand years and she managed to destroy it after mere hours. That had upset her deeply.
It was down to either dark blue jeans, which were comfortable, clean, and casually smart, or a set of her OBF fatigues. She had no choice. It would have to be the jeans and a t-shirt. Huh, first impressions, eh. At least she had the make-up.
She went to open her wardrobe and did a double take. Hanging up, neatly presented, as if straight from the drycleaners was the gold cream gown! She stared at it, not believing her eyes, then, gingerly examined it. Not a trace, rip or burn mark could be found. Could it be a replacement? No, she knew it was not. For some reason her heart began to pound heavily. It was not there last night when she was rummaging around. She closed her eyes and smelt it, stroking the gorgeous material.
Thank you!
She checked herself in the mirror for the last time. Not too bad. When she was finally ready, she donned her matching shoes and
went back into the lounge. Montava and Chotar had already arrived and were quietly waiting for her to emerge. Their discipline got sucked into the vacuum as they brazenly eyeballed her. Leah knew she would have to get used to that. But she was not sure if it was a good thing or not. A good few seconds passed as they silently appraised her. Once more remembering protocol, they simultaneously bowed low. Chotar finally spoke, “Your highness, Lord Talokta wanted you to watch this as he felt it would be of interest, please.”
He indicated for her to watch the monitors. The view on several of the monitors had changed.
Leah inwardly gasped.
“Is this happening now!”
“Yes my lady, please sit.”
Montava grinned at her astonishment, “Yes, deceleration began late last night.”
Leah lowered herself on the sofa. “Of course,” she murmured without taking her eyes off the monitor.
The monitors allowed her to see every detail of the landing as the vessel approached the surface. It was so weird and though it was an optical illusion, the ground rising toward the craft was coming too fast, she gasped and braced herself for the impact. But the ship kept going down, down into blackness. Lights flashed on revealing a huge tube that was engulfing the ship. They were going underground. She was so glad she had put some deodorant on.
When they finally touched down on terra firma, it was a non event; their dampeners made it imperceptible. Another thing she had noticed, ever since she boarded, was the lack of engine noise, the bare silence. She was so wrapped up in her own little world; she should have concentrated on learning more about the ship and her surroundings.
Imperceptible, hmm, good name for a ship. What a way to travel. She wondered how much Virgin, United, or any Earth airlines would pay to have just one of these ships—their soul? During her hearty conversation the night before, she had asked what names they called their ships. All ships had Trimadian numerical and symbolical registrations. However, the domain ships were also named after the fleets. They simply called their one, The Sotoid.
Now it was time. She felt wistful leaving her quarters behind. She had grown accustomed to living there. Her anger toward Talokta’s previous behavior never lasted. In fact, she wished Talokta was with her, but felt it would be inappropriate to say anything. She hoped she would see him soon.
Deep down, she knew the Trimadians were not her enemy.
She was their queen. These warriors would die for her.
As they escorted her to an exit, she wondered if the latest Twin Turbo Bentley was waiting outside to whisk her away!
Nothing like this would ever happen if she were just plain old Kate.
She had been advised by Talokta of the absolute need to adhere to certain etiquette procedures anytime she was not alone. He had gravely told her to treat guards, servants, civilians, anyone, with a formal detachment. But deep down it just was not in her nature. Her own somewhat bubbly, feisty personality was to blame for that. Was that Leah’s nature as well? God, it was so confusing at times! She decided she should not think about what qualities each personality possessed and just outrightly accept herself for what she was.
But she needed friends, especially in this alien, scary world she was entering. Even during her independent, generally unsociable life on Earth, she still met up with friends. Loneliness was nipping at her heart and making her depressed.
As far as Leah could tell, she and her two bodyguards were the only ones that left the ship. She asked them about her team, and they told her they would be delivered separately but they would not go into any more detail.
A lift took them to the ground and huge doors slid open. Leah held her breath, expecting thousands of people to greet them. There was no one, no entourage, only her two giant companions. She felt disappointed, and even more strangely, relieved. She did not have a chance to check out her surroundings before they whisked her into a waiting stubby bullet shaped vehicle that was hovering just over the ground. It reminded Leah of the cartoon series The Jetsons. She watched Chotar press a series of buttons with Trimadian symbols embossed, that looked similar to the ones on the escape pod on Talokta’s ship. A tiny camera like device silently appeared out of the side and scanned the guard. It instantly disappeared and a seamless door slid open. Chotar stepped inside while Montava stayed close to Leah. Chotar signaled to Montava, and he in turn gestured to Leah to enter.
Despite its outside appearance, the vehicle, known as a Tremulus, had a luxurious, spacious interior with two seats in the rear and one at the control console. Leah and Montava sat in the two rear seats and Chotar did the honor of driving them. She likened it to being inside a tiny luxury jet on an underground railway. When she sat, she felt the seat automatically conform to the contours of her body. Again, she could not hear any engines. Amazing.
This time Leah felt a slight G force as the Tremulus sped down an underground road. During their journey, Montava informed Leah that this was how dignitaries were transported. The Tremulus could extend to hold several hundred beings if need be, at a simple push of a button or voice command.
“I will have to learn to speak Trimadian,” commented Leah.
Montava stated, “All Trimadians are taught English because of our ties with Earth,” he glanced at her sideways. “It is at the Supreme Ruler’s bidding.”
Leah felt very humbled, and it gave her a bit of a fuzzy, heady feeling. I must have been so important six thousand years ago, she thought. She wished she could remember her past, at least a consistent version. The last two days, she had no visions or dreams. It was almost as if she was back to “normal” life. She tried to focus her mind on Cemel and on what he could do to help her. But too many things were happening around her.
She also wanted to keep Montava talking. “Please tell me more. What is outside the fortress?”
“There is a city outside the fortress, the Necradome; this is where most civilians are born, raised, and live. They go about their normal existence like Graffites do on your planet. There are Host breeding facilities and servants and slaves are trained, traded, bought, or sold within the city. For security reasons, once selected slaves enter the fortress, they will never leave alive again. They spend their time serving the needs of the Supreme Ruler and his fleets. If they don’t, they are sent to the mines and will work until death.”
These guards were not trained to be subtle. Though Leah knew all this, hearing it so blatantly stated, she found it hard to hide her surprise.
Montava hesitated, had he told her too much? “I am sorry; please forgive me, I—”
“No, please. It’s okay, truly fascinating.”
Montava looked uncomfortable and remained silent.
Leah looked out of the small window; they seemed to be the only traffic on the underground route they were traveling. It was similar to driving in an underground, well lit tunnel. Judging by the blurry haze, she knew they were traveling at a tremendous speed.
“Have we missed peak hour? There is not much traffic.”
“This is our Supreme Ruler’s own personal road we are traveling on. For reasons of security, privacy, and freedom of movement, it is necessary. We can of course move anywhere below or above ground with security clearance, but if you wish to enter the fortress, unhindered, this is the only way. All supplies, food, clothing, and equipment, are always delivered from underground, away from the city entrance to the fortress. I’m not sure how much Lord Talokta has told you?”
“Please continue.”
“Of course my lady. We have a force field generated around the Fortress, reaching fifteen kilometers below our positions, designed to stop invasion from a full blown enemy attack to an insect getting through. Any party wishing to enter the fortress, must state their reason to the underlord who covers the area they dwell in. Permission must be granted from the senior guard on duty, and the subject must be escorted through the entrance. As soon as they are through, the doorway in the force field is instantly closed. If someone wants
to leave the fortress and go to the city, they must get permission again via the senior guard on duty.” Montava glanced at Leah wondering how much detail he should go into. “It is very strict, but with good reason. Even though the fortress has constant tight security, Trimadians as a whole never take chances. We have enemies who would do anything just to spend a few minutes inside, just to know a fraction of what technology we possess. We are a very proud and guarded race, Lea‑my lady.”
Leah smiled at the passionate sincerity. Get them talking about themselves and off they go. Still, a little knowledge and chatting could mean the promise of possible friendship, something she needed.
She smiled encouragingly for him to carry on.
Montava was on a roll. “Our Supreme Ruler is the Necradome’s overlord. There are ten other underlords situated in the city, they are mainly responsible for looking after the civilians and their activities in the city, and they can visit the fortress to represent any matter affecting the general public. Any rule amendments, matters of state, or war strategies are discussed inside the fortress. Regular meetings with the Verone Elite are held usually weekly to enable the smooth running of the Fortress, the fleets, and generally life on Heliostronus. Regular updates of possible worlds to further investigate are always a priority.”
Leah politely interrupted Montava to inquire why he never called the Supreme Ruler by his name.
Montava did not blink an eyelid, “It has always been our way; a show of respect. To afford that luxury one must have direct permission.” He paused and added, “But you are an exception, my lady.”
Leah, quick as a wink, stated, “Well, you have my permission to call me Leah, please.” She caught a slight awkwardness that revealed inexperience in this situation. Leah studied the handsome, youthfulness of his face and added, “When we are alone, okay?” He looked relieved.
Just for that moment, she had the power.
“I am sorry, Montava, please go on.”
“Kalvich,” Montava said. Leah smiled. “Developed the city, so it is similar to your Earth’s history period of Feudal Society. The people pay homage and taxes to the underlords on behalf of Kalvich for their land and protection from possible invaders. Many planets now come under our protection from any threat.
“Our Supreme Ruler is very fond of the history of Earth, especially the medieval period of Earth. His dwellings are fashioned largely towards this period, as well as ancient Rome and Egypt. It sounds primitive, but let me assure you, that is where the similarity ends. Our technology is second to none.”
Now that definitely sounds like the words of Talokta, Leah thought amusedly.
Of course, Leah was aware of some of these facts he had openly told her, thanks to her in depth and sometimes lengthy conversations with his boss, but anything was better than sitting in stony silence.
To experience all this would be something else.
“You would require huge amounts of energy for your power needs. What is your source?”
“Our power source is now mainly generated by Zymergy, derived from Zymergillian crystals. Mined and manufactured only on Heliostronus. Our ships are also powered by the crystals. Several kilometers below Heliostronus are where all the generators are situated.”
“We are cleared and will arrive at our destination in one minute,” Chotar announced.
Leah noticed he had been speaking quietly in his native tongue to someone on a radio device, probably in the fortresses’ control room.
Leah closed her eyes. Her two stones were around her neck, she could feel them pulsate against her chest, to the rhythm of her heartbeat. She felt as if they were a part of her as much as she was a part of them. It made her feel pleasantly lightheaded.
Talokta had informed her she would need to give them to Cemel who was going to place them in a specially crafted bejeweled necklace.
Presented to her at her welcoming ceremony.
Everything was happening so fast. But she was slowly getting used to expecting the unexpected. Her head was whirling with the excitement of learning to use the stones, discovering her potential, meeting Cemel and Kalvich, and seeing if she could live up to her responsibilities, to meet and be accepted by the Trimadian people, and not necessarily all in that order.
Once more, the sensation of floating took over. She expected to see herself with her two well built companions, perhaps get to read them like the two human guards upon when she first entered Divisions. But she could only see dim light. The unwelcome sensation of nausea crept in.
“We have arrived,” Montava stated.
Leah quietly groaned. Her floating sensation had gone, but the nausea remained, and she felt very dizzy. She went to stand, and just like back at “The Divine Universe,” she blacked out and collapsed.
She opened her eyes, still sitting in her seat with Montava holding her hand. “Are you alright, Your Highness?” He looked far worse than she felt.
“I’m fine, I think. It’s not the first time. I think it is the excitement or just low blood sugar,” she joked.
“We must take you immediately to Casus Belli’s medical facility. Our Supreme Ruler’s own physician will meet you there.”
There was no arguing.
Both guards helped a grateful but weak Leah to her feet. Directly outside the Tremulus was an elevator lift, similar to the ones scattered over Talokta’s ship. When the door opened, a strange looking floating wheelchair, minus any wheels, greeted them. All over the chair were hundreds of little LED lights flickering.
“That was quick,” mumbled Leah.
“We are prepared for everything,” Chotar stated. “This device is used for moving the injured or sick.”
“It conforms to your body, and is very comfortable. I know, I have used it after I was injured in a battle,” added Montava.
Leah sat down and found he was not kidding. It was like floating on air. Those little lights were receptor sensors specifically designed for the organic body and conformed to her body similar to the Tremulus. Goodbye, La z Boy. If they had this back on Earth, patented, all the chair manufacturers would be out of business.
“I gotta have one of these,” Leah smiled weakly.
The chair hovered just above the ground. It too had quiet unseen engines.
I could so get used to this.
The lift door closed and Montava said, “Lab XN15, Bretchove.”
Leah was not sure if it was the sheer comfort of the chair or the dampeners on the lift, but she could not feel movement at all. Chotar saw her bemused expression and explained, “We are traveling around eighty miles an hour, the computer determines how fast depending on the destination and urgency.” He noticed her wide eyed stare. She did not mind the speed so much, but she was not in the driver’s seat.
“Pardon me my lady, but we do tend to take these things for granted.”
Around thirty seconds passed, and the lift door opened without a command. Chotar touched the back of the chair, and Leah was in motion.
They headed down a corridor that had the cleanest, gleaming white tiles and walls that Leah had ever encountered. There was a hint of Ylang Ylang and Lavender essence in the air. Was that possible here?
“Is this a hospital?”
“This is all new, especially modified for ease of your transition,” Montava stated.
“So what does it normally, or should I say what did it normally look like?”
“Our Supreme Ruler has the ability to make alterations inside the Fortress whenever he wishes–such greatness is his power. The last time I was here, the corridors were dim, lit up by fire torches at intervals. Great art works and tapestries lined the walls. He does have a penchant for the medieval look. You will see.”
“So you were telling me.”
They eventually turned into a large room, which was bathed in warm lemons and blues. The room seemed large until Leah realized the walls were moving. Moving! Upon closer inspection, the walls seemed to be liquid. Have I g
ot a fever? There were no furnishings but the “room” gave her an incredible feeling of peace and relaxation. To Leah, it made her think of the summer evenings she spent down by the river Nile. Huh, River Nile?
Passing through another door, the scene changed. Gone was the peace and strange surrealism. It was solid wall-to-wall computers and electronic gadgetry that would send Divisions’ scientists and techno wieners into a frenzy. Definitely some type of medical/scientific facility.
“I guess we passed the waiting room, or moving room more like.” Leah whispered to herself.
Montava took up post by the doorway and Chotar guided Leah into the room. A figure that was standing over a computer screen became aware of their presence and came hurrying towards them. Chotar bowed to Leah and took his place opposite Montava.
“Your Highness.” the man bowed deeply. “It is an honor to finally meet you, though I suppose you would prefer it under better circumstances than in a medical facility. My name is Doctor Ventrowe, at your service.”
Dr. Ventrowe was of less than medium height and build, not fabulously tall and muscular like the Trimadians she had come to know. What he did possess was a strikingly weird orange tinge about his skin. Too much carotene in his diet!
Leah felt a shiver of apprehension.
“Well, to be honest I am feeling better. I don’t want to trouble you.”
“I must examine you, as fainting and nausea, I can assure you, are not good signs. The examination will take less than a minute.”
“Wow, word travels fast around here. I didn’t even have to wait an hour or more to be seen.”
Dr. Ventrowe looked mortified. “Is that what it is like on Earth? Surely the patient would die if that was the case.”
“Well, mainly of boredom.”
Dr. Ventrowe spun on his heel and hurried over to a desk where he unlocked a cupboard using a keypad and produced a pair of gloves. He slipped them on, hurrying back to Leah.
“This won’t hurt a bit!” he said with a cheesy grin, well, she assumed it was a type of grin. “Sorry, I just had to say that. I have been studying your television programs on medical dramas and I am very relieved that they are only for entertainment purposes or the state of the human race would be, let’s say, not good, ha ha ha.”
Was this guy trying to be a comedian? Leah hoped he was not a quack. She’d never liked doctors, be it human, and now alien.
He had some sort of forced animated cheerfulness about him that was, as far as Leah was concerned, annoying.
Ventrowe lifted his gloved hands and put them an inch above her head, rotating back and forth, moving his fingers as if he were a hairstylist washing his client’s hair–without any physical contact. After ten seconds, he hurried over to the computer he was working on when Leah first entered and studied his results on the monitor. He grunted his acknowledgement, removed the gloves, and put them back in the cupboard.
He came back over to Leah “You are dehydrated and your hemoglobin levels are low, which, as I understand is quite typical of female humans.” Leah nodded. She could understand that.
The orange tinged doctor hurried to a large glass refrigerator and produced a bottle with pink liquid inside. He then hurried over to a bench, rummaging around for something, muttering under his breath, throwing items on the floor as he went. Finally, he found it, a small dispensing cup, and poured about five mils of the liquid into it and handed it to Leah.
“Drink up, my lady, please.”
Leah was feeling a bit on edge with the rather offhand actions of the doctor. His rushing around and general attitude didn’t soothe her nerves much. His bedside manner needed a little smoothing.
She looked over to her guards. Chotar walked to her.
“Can you scan this please?”
“Of course, your Highness.”
He held his hand over the liquid, just like when Montava scanned her meal on the domainship.
“That, isn’t necessary,” Dr. Ventrowe stated, demoralized.
Chotar ignored him and scanned the liquid. “It is fine.” He handed it back to Leah.
Leah drank it down. “Yuck. When will this take effect?”
“In a few seconds.”
“Geez, everything around here is so damn fast.”
Sure enough, he was right. Leah felt better and energized.
“It is just to balance your body’s fluid levels and boost the iron in your blood, a simple tonic that is all.”
“Thank you.”
“I was not a hundred percent sure if it would be a success for you, being human you know. We don’t get to experiment much on—”
He shut up when Chotar stepped forward with a menacing glare.
“Umm, well anyway, there is more that my examination produced.”
“Oh!”
“Your brain waves are quite extraordinary, even for a human, which is why you are fainting and feeling weak.”
“I thought you said it was because of dehydration and low iron levels.”
“That is the result of your growing brain activity. Your body needs more nourishment and fluid, especially to get your electrolytes up.”
“So what are you saying? The human brain only uses a small percentage of its capacity. Are you saying because I am a little different from most, I need more water, vitamins, and all that stuff?”
“Yes and no, you do need to nourish a growing body, however, as you are an adult human technically you have stopped growing. However, you are an exception as your brain usage is increasing beyond anything I have seen. I would need to do further tests.”
He saw the look of dismay on her face.
In an attempt to defuse the situation, he bent down and whispered in a mock just between you and me tone. “You are one of a kind, dear lady. Anyhow, I can tell you about some of the Cantals’ brains–large, holey, and purple. The gods–well, one can only imagine what they possess–multicolored I guess!” he giggled. “Now some of the Trimadians, well, they are different. Hee hee hee.”
Leah stared at him. What the hell?
Ventrowe felt the physical lash of her thought as if he had been sliced by a saber. It forced him to stumble backward. “I–I’m sorry, just a little joke.” His light orange complexion turned almost white as he cleared his throat.
“My computer readouts have confirmed it. I have studied the human brain only once before. Yes, you are not the first I have witnessed. But it has been discussed that as you are what they crudely term ‘the missing link’ anything was to be expected.”
Leah stared at him. He was unbelievable. Missing link! Here we go again, expect the unexpected–and damn it, the worst will happen! She’d had enough, but decided to play it cool and get as far away from Ventrowe ASAP.
“So is there a cure, doc?”
“You are in no physical or mental danger as far as I am concerned. However, the alchemist is more of an expert in this particular matter. As you are, well, special, medicine is not relevant to you. Nurturing the gifts you have inherited is your cure.”
Leah studied him sharply for a second, not sure, if he was for real or not. One minute he would insult her and the next he would brown nose.
“Doc, by the way, may I be so bold as to ask what ethnicity you hail from?”
“Oh, so sorry, I should have told you, I am a Septen.” He grinned, once more tried to defuse the situation. “You humans have taken away a lot of our technology over the years, and…” He shook his finger as if he were talking to a naughty child. “We have punished you guys by taking a few of your kind in exchange, fair is fair. HA HA HA.”
“Thank you, Doctor Ventrowe for your, service,” Leah seethed.
The Septen jumped. He may have gone too far. His fingers clasped together and he began to stutter. “You–You do realize I–I was only joking, er.” He bowed low. “Do not hesitate to call me if you think you need me.”
Leah stood up and the two guards came to aid her. “No, no.” She gestur
ed for them to stay away. “I can do this. I’m okay now.” She looked at Chotar and said under her breath, “Just get me far away from this obnoxious, overbearing, friggin’ idiot now!”
With that, they flanked her and led her out briskly.
“That guy is a fucking crackpot.”
“He is the Supreme Ruler’s top physician and has never let him down in the past,” Montava commented.
“Then Kalvich has pretty low standards. As I said, he’s nuts, the way he talked down to me, tried to be funny and belittled me. I find out his kind have been stealing humans for whatever kind of experimentation! Acting like he was joking, I wonder oooooh!” Leah’s pale face had regained its color, but she was beyond words she was so furious.
Both guards looked at each other. They would have to report this.
Chapter 31—The Mines of Heliostronus