Chapter Six

 

Fairen's veiled presence filled his audience chamber with forbidding as he turned his head to study Reliant's assembled crew. Fairen had foregone the fiery torches and subdued lighting, and Tassin assumed this was because the session was to mete out justice and punishment, not intimidate a confession out of someone who might be a criminal. She, Tarl and Sabre stood beside the dais, not far from Commander Shrain. Tarl sported a black eye and swollen cheek, but seemed quite proud of them. Grundel's battered face bore testament to his beating, and Tarl sneered at him at every opportunity. The animosity between the two techs surprised Tassin somewhat, and seemed to puzzle Sabre.

"Today you will be judged." Fairen's deep, distorted voice boomed across the room with chilling dispassion. "If there is one amongst you who feels himself innocent of the charge of disobeying my decree, come forward now."

A fat, bald man in a white uniform and two younger, similarly clad men came to the front of the assembled crew and bowed. The bald man said, "I'm the chief engineer, My Lord, and these are my assistants. We knew nothing about the order to capture the rogue cyber."

Fairen rose and approached the edge of the dais, removed his right glove and stretched his hand out. "Come closer."

The three men approached and knelt, bowing their heads.

Fairen sighed. "Stand up."

They obeyed, looking nervous, and Fairen held his hand up to each of them in turn, then returned to his throne and settled upon it. "These three are innocent of the charge. Remove them."

Two guards escorted the engineers out, and silence fell. Fairen surveyed the group again. "The rest of you are guilty. The penalty for disobeying an Overlord is death. However, I said I would only punish you as much as you harmed Sabre, if I found him alive. Although you tried to hide him from me, that stands. I consider thirty lashes with a laser whip each to be a just punishment for the injury and pain you caused him. Let the sentence be carried out, then release them."

Commander Shrain gestured to the guards, who herded the enforcers out. As the door slid shut behind them, Fairen removed his hood and rubbed his face, looking tired.

"When they're released, I'll take you to Omega Five, Sabre."

"Thank you, My Lord."

Fairen stood up. "Call me by my name."

Sabre smiled and inclined his head, looking a little embarrassed, and Tassin shot him a teasing smile. Tarl elbowed him with a grin, and Sabre gave him a shove that sent him staggering sideways. Fairen laughed and stepped down from the dais.

"Lunchtime, I think."

 

***

 

Tassin gazed at the peaceful blue and white globe in the screens with a smile, a deep sense of homecoming warming her heart. The Scorpion Ship had completed its translocation mere moments before, achieving in a few seconds what she and Sabre had been trying to do for months. She stood beside Fairen in his private lounge, sipping a mild-flavoured drink, and Sabre leant against the bulkhead next to a screen, also armed with a fruit drink. Fairen had invited them to join him for refreshments before they left the ship, and Tarl sat on a stool at the refreshment counter, clearly ill at ease.

"Home, at last." She sighed.

"This time nothing will stand in your way," Fairen said.

"Thank you, My Lord, for all you've done for us."

"You are welcome. I'm glad you're returning to your home, where I hope you'll be happy, but I'm sad to see you go."

"Come with us." She looked away when he raised his brows. "For a visit."

"I cannot leave my ship."

"Why not? You can do as you please, surely?"

"It's considered dangerous."

She shook her head. "There's nothing dangerous on Omega. Not in Arlin, and besides, Sabre will protect you."

"I haven't walked on a planet for... ten years."

"Then it's high time you did." She shot Sabre a coy glance. "I would like to invite you to our wedding, if only I knew when it was. Perhaps if you came with us now, Sabre will propose."

Sabre snorted. "Don't count on it."

"I will not be an accomplice to forcing his hand," Fairen rebuked her. "He'll do it when he's ready."

"But will you come anyway, just for a short time? I'd like to show you my kingdom."

Fairen shook his head. "I'm afraid I must decline. However, when your wedding day is decided, I will attend it."

"That will be wonderful."

"On the condition that I will be incognito. You cannot tell anyone who I am."

"But My Lord, if I introduce you as a commoner, that's how you'll be treated."

"Then you may introduce me as a noble."

"Of course. Thank you."

Fairen smiled. "Your gentle wiles won't work on me, Queen Tassin. Shame on you."

She grinned. "Sorry. Do Overlords marry?

"Some have, yes."

"Then perhaps you'll meet a nice girl when you visit. There can���t be too many to choose from on this ship."

"There are none,” he said. “The servants of an Overlord are precluded from trysts with him."

"By whom?"

"By us."

"Ah. Then how do Overlords find a wife?"

Fairen glanced at Sabre. "Is she always this curious?"

"Usually more so."

Fairen turned back to Tassin. "Overlords who have families will invite single peers to social gatherings, where they may meet their daughters."

"A rather limited selection, if I may say."

"Yes, but of a suitable social rank. Ordinary women tend to be in awe of an Overlord. To have one court them would be... a rather intimidating experience, I think. Fortunately an Overlord can sense when a woman's feelings for him are genuine and not inspired by respect, but, even so, the daughter of another Overlord is a more suitable spouse."

Tassin nodded, considering. "Then I would like to make you a proposition, My Lord. If you come to my country incognito, the girls you meet will get to know you for who you are, not what, and therefore you'll find a genuine love from a far larger selection."

Fairen said, "I appreciate your offer, but I must point out that I'm only fourteen, and as yet I don't find girls particularly interesting."

"I do tend to forget how young you are. You have the bearing and composure of an adult."

"But not the interests." Fairen hesitated. "As you said, the selection of Overlord daughters is limited, so we do have another way of finding a mate. This ship is equipped with surveillance instruments capable of finding a sicle parasite on a bunhound, for obvious reasons. Sometimes, Overlords have been known to use this to find a girl they find attractive, who they will then arrange to meet."

"They go down to the planet?"

He inclined his head. "If they so choose. It's not encouraged, but as you said, an Overlord may do whatever he or she wishes, including visit a world, but not as an Overlord, you understand? That is forbidden."

"Of course. Overlords never leave their ships."

"Exactly."

Tassin gazed at the planet. "I'm sad to leave you, My Lord, but I'm eager to go home."

"Naturally." Fairen turned to Sabre. "A shuttle is waiting for you." He dug in his pocket and took out another silver bracelet. "You broke the emergency beacon again, so I had another made. Perhaps I should make a few spares. Anyway, this one has a one-way transmitter, so you can send me a brief message. Like the wedding date."

"I didn't break it, Grundel did," Sabre said.

"Hold out your arm." Fairen snapped the new bracelet onto Sabre's wrist and removed the old one. "Try not to break this one."

Sabre nodded, then glanced at Cyber Two, who stood off to the side in an immobile guard stance. "What do you intend to do with him?"

"I thought he might come in useful as my protector, since you won't be here. He's not much fun, though. At least he'll be well treated here, and I will have my techs see if they can find a way to release him. Do you think that's the best thing to do, or would it be kinder to euthanize him?"

"No, keep him. As long as he's treated like a human being, his life won't be so bad."

"You know I will."

"Yeah." Sabre sighed. "We should go. Tassin is eager to go home, and I'm quite keen, too."

"Of course you are."

Sabre clasped his shoulder. "If ever you need my help, or just want to talk, I'll be here for you. I'll be glad to see you again. I wish you could come with us now and live a normal life."

Fairen smiled. "So do I."

"Why don't you then? Who would stop you?" Tassin enquired.

"I'm needed here. I have a calling, and it's not a bad life. Loneliness will always be my lot, and even on a world such as yours I'd be an outcast, uncomfortable around people, sickened by crowds. Being an Overlord has its advantages."

"Well, the invitation will always be open."

"Thank you."

Sabre put his arm around the boy's shoulders. "Come and see us off."

Fairen led them along the corridors to the shuttle, Sabre at his side, Tassin and Tarl following. At the docking port, soldiers carried their packs aboard and Tarl entered it at their heels, but Tassin hesitated in the doorway.

Sabre turned to the young Overlord and gripped his shoulders. Despite his intimidating ebon attire and escort of stone-faced soldiers, Fairen seemed like nothing more at that moment than a sad, lonely boy saying goodbye to a beloved older brother. He was paler than usual, and sorrow shadowed his eyes.

"This is just so long," Sabre said. "You know where I am, and I'll expect regular visits whenever you're not blowing up some disobedient planet, okay?"

"We still have to have that trial by combat to decide who is more in the other’s debt."

Sabre smiled and ruffled the boy's hair. "True. We’ll have to do that sometime soon. But hey, you could come visit us every week. Whenever you feel like it. I want you to. You're like a kid brother to me."

"Really? Would you want a kid brother like me?"

"Who wouldn't? Ah no," Sabre shook his head when Fairen's face fell. "You know me better than that. It has nothing to do with your being an Overlord. I wish you weren't one, then you could come with us."

Fairen looked a little ashamed, and Tassin was amazed by how his sadness at Sabre’s departure had stripped away his pride to reveal the true person behind the Overlord's mask. Her respect and affection for him grew, and the poignant moment saddened her too.

Sabre patted Fairen's shoulder and turned to enter the shuttle. He paused beside Tassin to glance back and raise a hand. Fairen made a slight gesture, then swung away and marched off as the shuttle doors slid shut with a wheeze and clunk. Tarl already sat on a couch in the luxurious passenger area, and Sabre sank down on the sofa opposite.

Tassin settled beside him. "You like him a lot, don't you?"

"Yeah."

"I think he loves you like a big brother."

"Yeah, I think so too."

She slipped her hand into his. "I hope you're not too sad to have to leave him to be with me."

"I wish we could have traded Tarl for him."

Tarl looked up. "Oh, thanks."

"Wouldn't you like to be an Overlord?"

"Not particularly."

Tassin smiled. "He's joking."

"I know."

"No I wasn't," Sabre said.

She sighed. "In a few years’ time, girls are going to swoon over him."

"What girls? He lives in a damned city ship with servants who won't even talk to him. Did you know that there are between one hundred and fifty-four and one hundred and fifty-six thousand people on that ship?"

"So many? How do you know?"

"I told the cyber to count them, but I had to walk around a bit. That ship is one hundred and forty kilometres long, fifty-three point eight kilometres high and ninety-eight kilometres wide."

Tarl frowned. "And it came up with such an inexact figure?"

"No, it came up with one hundred and fifty-five thousand, four hundred and fifty-two, but since many of them were moving around, and there are a few areas that are impervious to my scanners, it couldn't be exactly right. There are also seven thousand, two hundred and eighty-one children and four hundred and forty-seven pregnant women."

"An entire space-faring race dedicated to serving the Overlords," Tarl mused.

"With complete, unshakeable loyalty."

"Pretty amazing."

"The translocation generators are two kilometres in diameter and three point five kilometres long, and there are six of them. The four standard drive engines are five kilometres long and three kilometres wide, and the engines are not included in the overall size of the ship."

"You mapped the entire ship?"

Sabre shrugged. "I was curious."

"What about weaponry?"

"Seven four-kiloton laser cannons, two mounted in the front, two on each side and one at the stern. The main gun is a heated plasma particle disintegrator, and there are four more particle disintegrators mounted in the arms, as well as twenty-four two-kiloton laser cannons. It also has four solar wing generators, five shield generators, a worm drive engine and eight capture beams."

Tarl nodded, looking shaken. "They do say Overlord Fairen's ship is one of the oldest and most powerful."

"It's over twelve hundred years old."

Tassin gazed at the screen, which showed a dark forest approaching. "We're nearly there."

Sabre glanced up. "They're dropping us in a remote area, not too far from your castle. We can walk from there."

She squeezed his hand. "Dena will be so overjoyed to see you. She missed you almost as much as I did. She had horrible nightmares of you drowning in darkness."

He cast her a shuttered look that made her wonder what she had said wrong, then glanced away, frowning. “I can’t actually think of a better way to describe cyber control than that.”

“Drowning in darkness?”

He nodded.

“She started having them about a week after you left, and they continued for almost six months.”

He nodded again, curtly, and she looked down. “I guess that’s when you were at Myon Two.”

“Around about then, yup, I would imagine.”

The shuttle touched down with feather-light precision, and after a minute the door whined open. Two soldiers went to stand outside it, and Sabre rose and gestured for Tassin to precede them. She walked down the ramp into the cool, brisk air of a spring night, glad that Fairen had given her a new black leather jacket to replace the one she had lost on Nemesis. She drew in a deep breath and savoured the sweet scents of night flowers and leaf mould.

"We're home," she whispered, tears of joy stinging her eyes. "We made it."

Sabre took the packs from one of the soldiers and slung them over his shoulder, then took her hand. "Yeah."

Tarl cleared his throat. "Maybe we should move away so they can take off?"

Sabre led them into the forest, where they turned to watch the shuttle rise and shoot away into the sky.

Tassin smiled up at him. "Well, which way?"

He pointed, and they set off through the trees.