Vari's Choices

by Laura Jo Phillips

  By the time Vari was finished speaking all three men were staring at her with a mix of pride, surprise, and confusion. She waited tensely for the questions she knew were coming.

  “Are these just random interests of yours, or is there a specific reason?” Declan asked.

  “There’s a reason,” she said. “But as much as I want to share that with you, I can’t. It’s like I said before. I need to get permission. I’m sorry.”

  “There’s no need to apologize, Vari,” Declan said. “Of course we’ll wait until you’re able to tell us whatever it is you want, or need, to tell us.”

  “Thanks,” she said, relaxing enough to reach for her pastry again.

  “Well,” Kai said, setting his napkin down beside his plate, “the more we learn about these Doftles, the more obvious it becomes that we don’t know a damned thing about them.”

  “That’s the truth,” Declan said with a grimace. “We have duties to attend to for the next several hours, but we’ll find time later to review the data reports we’ve received pertaining to them. That should give us time to ask you, Vari, for answers to our most pressing questions.”

  “Anytime you want,” Vari said. “I think I’m going to relax today. Until I meet with Lanok to practice with the new dairi, anyway.”

  “That sounds like an excellent idea,” Declan said. “Will you have dinner with us tonight?”

  “That depends.”

  “On what?” Declan asked, puzzled.

  “On what you have planned for dessert.”

  “You, of course,” Declan replied with a grin.

  Chapter 9

  Vari awoke from a sound sleep and sat straight up in the ginormous bed of the master suite, where the men had brought her after dinner. She blinked sleepily as she tried to determine what had awakened her.

  “Pandora?” She spoke silently, not wanting to wake the men sprawled around her. “Is that you?”

  “Yes, it’s me. I need to talk to you.”

  “Where are you?”

  “Outside the door. Shall I wait in our room?”

  “No,” Vari replied. “Give me a moment.” She climbed off the bed, taking care not to wake up the men. She picked up a discarded t-shirt from the foot of the bed that, from the scent, belonged to Kai. She slipped it on, noting that it covered her to just above her knees. She glanced quickly at the men to see if all critical body parts were covered. “Come on in,” she told Pandora.

  There was a moment of silence, then a tiny light hovered in front of Vari’s face. “You want to remain in here?”

  “Yes. If I leave they’ll wake up, and I’d rather not disturb them.” She walked over to the small table and sat down on one of the four chairs surrounding it.

  “All right,” Pandora said, settling on the table in front of Vari.

  “What’s the matter?”

  “I need to tell you something.”

  Vari swallowed hard. Never in all the years Pandora had been her companion had she seen her so sad. It took only a moment for Vari to understand why. “The Leaper is within your range.”

  “Yes.”

  “I’m ready,” Vari said after a long silence. “Tell me.”

  Pandora took a deep, shuddering breath. Then she began to talk.

  A few minutes later Vari was struggling to hold her sobs in check as the tears streamed down her face. “Vari, what’s the matter?” Declan asked from the bed.

  Vari could only shake her head, unable to speak.

  “I think I’ll go back to our room now,” Pandora said.

  “You can stay here if you want, Pandora,” Vari said silently since speech was beyond her at the moment.

  “Thank you Vari, but I think I'd rather be alone if you don't mind.”

  “Of course I don’t mind. Try to get some rest.”

  As soon as Pandora was gone, Declan got out of bed and pulled his pants on, then approached Vari. “Tell me what’s wrong, Vari, please,” he said in a soft voice. For some reason, that caused her to start crying uncontrollably. She barely noticed when Declan lifted her out of the chair and cradled her close. She turned her face into his chest and let the tears come without fighting them.

  Declan looked up when Kai and Jay both climbed out of bed. “Declan, what’s going on?” Kai asked as they approached.

  “I don’t know,” Declan replied, looking down at the sobbing woman in his arms. “I woke up to find her sitting here at the table talking with Pandora. After Pandora left I asked Vari what was wrong, and she started crying.”

  Declan crossed the room to an area where four deep, cushioned chairs sat in a circle. He sat down in one with Vari in his arms, while Kai and Jay pulled on their pants before taking two of the others.

  “I’m worried, Declan,” Kai said after a few minutes. “Vari does not strike me as a woman prone to hysterics.”

  “She is not hysterical,” Jay said somewhat sharply.

  “Then what is it?” Kai asked.

  “Can’t you feel it?”

  Kai frowned, then turned toward Vari and tentatively reached for her feelings. His eyes flew to Declan’s, then Jay’s. “Grief,” he said, shocked.

  Jay nodded, and after a long moment, so did Declan. None of them spoke again while they waited for Vari’s tears to run their course.

  When her sobs quieted, Kai got up and went into the bathroom. He returned with a cool cloth which he used to pat gently at the tears on Vari’s face. When she opened her eyes and looked up at him, he felt the depth of her sorrow as an almost physical blow.

  “Thank you,” she said in a hoarse whisper, reaching up to take the cloth from his hand. She used it to wipe the tears from her face, then held it against her swollen eyes. After a few more moments she sighed deeply, removed the cloth, and looked up at him.

  “I apologize,” she said, her voice still hoarse from her tears. “For waking all of you, and for crying all over you, Declan.”

  “There is no need to apologize,” Declan said. “We are concerned, however, by the source of your grief. Would you like to share it with us?”

  “I’m afraid I have to. I’d like to wash my face first.”

  Declan helped her to stand up, then immediately placed a hand on her back when she wobbled a bit. She steadied herself and walked slowly to the bathroom and shut the door.

  “This is going to be very bad,” Jay said softly.

  “It is,” Declan agreed.

  “I’ll call the cafeteria and have them send up a pot of herbal tea,” Kai said. “It’ll soothe her throat. Do you want anything?”

  “Water,” Declan said and Jay nodded. Vari came out of the bathroom after Kai finished his call, wearing a sleep tee and shorts set that she’d left in the bathroom earlier. Her hair was combed and her expression was calm, though there was nothing she could do about the redness of her eyes.

  She sat down in the remaining armchair and pulled her long legs up, placing her hands on her knees and resting her chin on top of them in a position that frankly startled the men. It amazed them that anyone could fold themselves up like that, or that she could possibly be comfortable.

  “Pandora has little real magic apart from what you’ve already seen,” she began in a soft voice. “But there is one other thing she can do which is highly classified for her safety more than mine.”

  “You have our promise that we will never reveal anything you tell us to anyone without your express permission,” Declan said solemnly.

  “I know that, Declan,” Vari said with a little smile. “I’m just…I don’t know…leading up to this, I guess.”

  “Then lead up all you need to,” he said gently. She nodded, then thought a moment before speaking again.

  “Pandora and I are bonded for reasons that I’m not at liberty to explain right now. She’s been with me since I was five. In the beginning we had to stay quite close to each other, and for a long time I was the only one who could see her.

  “Now, we could be at opposite ends of a ship the size of
the Leaper without any problem. But, the further apart we get, the more substance Pandora loses. At her furthest limit she has no physical body, and no ability to communicate. She can, however, see and hear.”

  Declan understood at once. “She went to the Leaper.”

  “Yes. She had to wait until we were within her range, which occurred a couple of hours ago.” Vari’s hands curled into fists beneath her chin as she braced herself for what she was about to say. “About one thousand of the Leaper’s passengers, those deemed too old or infirm to work, and everyone with a disability of any kind regardless of age, have been rounded up and killed.”

  After an odd, strained silence she looked up to find three sets of glowing eyes staring at her. She gasped softly, instantly recognizing her error. Lowering her feet to the floor she stood up, keeping her movements slow.

  She went to Kai first as he was youngest, placed her palm against the side of his face, grateful that she could touch him. She leaned in close. “Let it go, Kai,” she said in a low voice, stroking her thumb lightly against his cheek which, she was surprised to discover, soothed her as much as it soothed him. She continued speaking, knowing it wasn’t her words but her voice that he needed.

  When she felt his jaw relax beneath her hand and saw the glow leave his eyes, she leaned down and kissed him gently on the forehead. Then she moved to Jay, and finally Declan, touching them, speaking calmly, patiently nudging each of them away from the edge of a blood rage. When their eyes no longer glowed she returned to her chair to wait for them to regain the remnants of their composure.

  A knock at the door broke the silence, startling her. “I ordered some drinks,” Kai said, rubbing his face with both hands before getting up to answer the door. He brought a tray in and set it on the table. “Vari, would you like hot tea or cold water?”

  “Hot tea would be wonderful.” He poured her a mug while Jay handed a bottle of water to Declan and took one for himself. Kai handed her a steaming mug of tea, then sat back down with a bottle of water.

  “I’m sorry,” she said when they were all seated again. “I should have led up to that more carefully.”

  “Please don’t apologize,” Declan said. “You stopped the blood rages before they got too far along, and for that we’re grateful.” Vari nodded while silently promising herself to be more careful in future.

  “Are your sister and friend well?” Kai asked.

  “So far, yes.” Vari paused, fighting a new round of tears at the thought of what the Doftle would do to them if they discovered who they were. Jay handed her a box of tissues from a side table. She thanked him with a smile and blotted her face.

  “It seems the Doftles haven’t paid too much attention to the passengers aside from those above a certain age. Pandora thinks it’s because there are only six of them.”

  “Did you say six?” Declan asked in surprise.

  “That’s what she said,” Vari replied. “She saw three of them in Control, and she heard a couple of different people say that there were three more below decks. She didn’t have enough time to verify that.”

  She saw the curiosity on the men’s faces. “She can only remain that far from me for so long, and it’ll be a couple of days before she can attempt it again.” She shrugged. “I don’t buy it, though. Taking the Leaper with a group of twelve is arrogant, which the Doftles are. Taking the Leaper with a group of six is stupid, which the Doftles are not.”

  “Knowing there are three in Control is important,” Declan said. “We’ll expect another three elsewhere, and we’ll plan for twelve.” He looked at Vari and asked the question burning in his mind. “How did they manage to round up so many people?”

  “The way they do everything,” she said bitterly. “But I don’t want to tell you guys. It’s bad.”

  “It’s all right,” Declan said. “We’re not that delicate, Vari, and besides, we’re prepared.”

  Vari hesitated for just a moment before realizing that if she didn’t tell them now, they’d think she didn’t trust them. “They accessed the Leaper’s manifest, so they knew exactly how many people they wanted to eliminate. Then they threatened to begin killing one person per minute, starting with the children, until the people they named came forward.” Vari paused to calm herself a little. “I don’t actually know if they killed any of the children or not. I asked Pandora not to tell me.”

  “That’s good,” Jay said, his voice a little hoarse. “If you knew, we’d want to know, but it’s just as well that none of us have to deal with that at the moment.”

  “I agree,” Vari said, then moved to a safer topic. “They came from within the Leaper itself.”

  “Within the ship?” Declan asked in surprise.

  “Pandora listened to a conversation between two of the Doftles in Control. One of them was sending another to the hold to fetch something they’d forgotten from the container they were in. It seems to confirm the rumors she heard a few people discussing.”

  “You’re right,” Declan said. “If they hid in shipping containers, it’s very likely that there are more than six of them. One container would be big enough to hold twice that many.”

  “If it’s true, it means there’re no Doftle ships around the Leaper, otherwise they would have simply transported over,” Vari said. “That’s good news. We should send that information to the Ugaztun.”

  “We will,” Jay said. “What else did Pandora tell you?”

  “The passengers are allowed to come and go as they please so long as they don’t cause trouble, and don’t try to gain access to Control or any other secure area. The service personnel have been ordered to continue their jobs with the same warnings.”

  “That makes sense,” Declan said. “Those people have to eat and sleep, and not even sixty Doftle could hope to guard and care for so many. Allowing them to take care of themselves is the only option if they want their prisoners alive when they reach their destination.”

  Vari agreed. “Pandora heard Shanti’s friend, a tech engineer named Geoff who works on the Leaper, talking to a couple of other crewmen. He said that he’s checked several dozen communication devices belonging to passengers and every one had a shattered crystal, just like Ata suggested. Geoff said every hand terminal, vid terminal, transponder, and vox on the Leaper is inoperable. The entire security system has also been disabled.”

  “It helps to have confirmation that they won’t be able to track our signals,” Jay said.

  “With the security system down, we won’t have to worry about the security cameras either,” Vari said. “I was concerned about that since they’re in every public area of the ship including all corridors.”

  “What about the ship’s officers?" Declan asked. "Any idea where they’re being held?”

  “The Doftles killed the Captain and most of the officers. Those remaining are obeying their orders to the letter.”

  "Just as you predicted," Kai said.

  "I wish I'd been wrong," she murmured. Vari sipped her tea while watching the men carefully. She’d edited some of the things Pandora had told her in an effort to prevent them from slipping toward blood rages again, but they were still struggling.

  Declan and Jay had their fists clenched tightly against their thighs, while Kai sat with a bowed head, his eyes squeezed shut. She was relieved when, a couple of minutes later, Declan’s hands relaxed and he reached for his water, downing it in a single gulp. Not long after that, both Jay and Kai began to relax as well. Then they sat silently for a while, apparently deep in thought.

  Vari didn’t interrupt them. She finished her tea, then got up to pour herself another cup from the pot. There were several more water bottles on the tray, so she handed each of the men a new one before taking her tea back to her chair.

  Finally Declan focused on her. “I’m not complaining, but we were a little worn out last night and slept when we should have been reviewing those reports. I think we need to do that before returning to sleep."

  "Is it normal for you to get so l
ittle information?" Vari asked.

  "Good question," Jay said. "And one I can’t really answer. This is the first time we've encountered a need for more information than we've received on a subject we're called on to deal with."

  "Since this is a diplomatic vessel, I assume you wouldn’t normally be called on to deal with this situation. Is that right?”

  “Yes, that’s right,” Jay said. “But, from what we’ve learned from you the past two days, the Doftles are much like the Xanti in that they’re basically everyone’s problem.”

  “Yes, that’s what I thought as well,” Vari said. “Which is why it troubles me so much.”

  “Do you suspect someone of deliberately under-informing us?" Declan asked.

  "Maybe,” she said. “I know you’ve been under informed. That’s obvious. Other than that, we don’t have any facts to go on.”

  Vari sipped her tea, reviewing what she was about to say carefully before opening her mouth. “You guys aren’t going to like what I have to say next.”

  “Thank you for the warning, Miraku,” Declan said.

  “If there’s a deliberate attempt being made to keep you guys in the dark about the Doftle, then there’s a Doftle spy at work somewhere. It’s either someone on the Bihotza who has access to the reports before you see them. Or, there’s a spy on Jasan working for whoever compiles the reports.”

  “Demii,” Kai said in a low voice. “I was really hoping you weren’t going to say that.”

  “If it helps, there’s a really big problem with my spy theory.”

  “Which is?” Jay asked. He’d already thought of one problem and was curious to hear what she’d come up with.

  “Tampering with data is a risky business. There are too many safeguards and protocols in place to prevent just that sort of thing. Given your rank and position, I think it’s safe to say that anyone caught tampering with your data would earn a very long stay on a very distant prison planet for a very long time.