Seven Sisters

by Eileen Troemel

  Seven Sisters

  Eileen Troemel

  Seven Sister

  © 2020 by Eileen Troemel

  Published by Stone Publishing

  A division of Stone Enterprises

  Cover by Dream Covers by K&L

  Proofreader Phil Williams

  All rights reserved. No parts of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without written permission from the publisher, except by reviewers who may quote brief excerpts in connection with a review.

  Acknowledgement:

  Laura who read this even though I don’t think it’s her kind of book and encouraged me to continue when I was at a point where I planned to drop the project. Virginia who read it and said more aliens. Alicia who read it and helped with finding contractions.

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Epilogue

  Prologue

  “Mother,” Mycos said standing in their front entry. Hylatian language was musical and sounded like a song, even when the participants disagreed “It is superstitious.”

  “It is tradition for the newly named head of the Hylatian family to go to the soothsayer on Legama planet,” Mylana said handing him his warmest jacket.

  “You cannot name me head of the family,” Mycos said concerned he could not fill his father’s shoes. “I have not found my mate. Without a mate, I cannot ensure the continuation of our family.”

  “You must go,” Mylana insisted determined to follow tradition. “Gregor will go with you. Do not argue. Do as I tell you for once in your life.”

  “But mother,” Mycos objected as she bundled him into his jacket.

  “Do not argue, please,” she said exasperated with his stubbornness. “Your father’s dying wish was to see you settled. I am trying to honor his wish.” Tears gathered in her eyes as she fussed with his jacket.

  “Mama,” he held her close. “I will go but you and I both know the council will not honor your choice.” He kissed the top of her dark head. No gray showed even though she was too old to bear more children.

  “Sir,” Gregor said. “The transport is ready.”

  “Fine,” Mycos said reluctantly. “Fine. I am coming.”

  ***

  In the mountains, the soothsayer lived in a complex of interconnected caves at the peak of Manaji mountain. Covered in trees almost to the top, the entrance to her cave lay hidden in the last line of tall Procera trees surrounded by a lower layer of Surrexen bushes which produced the popular bacas, a succulent orange fruit legend said helped see the future. The soothsayer foretold each head of family’s fortune for a millennium. Each soothsayer was a woman. She bore children but took no mate. Men of power and status vied for the privilege to father her children. She chose them based on her intuition and visions.

  Mycos, at twenty one, didn’t believe in her power or her ability. As a woman, she needed to bear more children and find a mate. It was the duty of every woman to ensure their race continued.

  He strode into the dark room with Gregor, his father’s Custos or lead guardian. His father died less than a month previous. The grief their family suffered ripped a hole in Mycos’ heart. Following tradition, after three days his mother named the new head of the family – him. His family supported her decision, but he’d been surprised. He’d felt certain one of his older brothers would have been chosen. He was the youngest and unmated. They were all mated save him.

  The cavern, warmed by steam and lit with candles, held a round table in the middle. Two chairs sat opposite the woman. A baby in her belly and one in her arms, she handed the one in her arms to a servant. He took the child with great tenderness and care.

  “Sit,” she said. “Both of you.”

  Uncommon for a guardian to be included, Gregor scowled at the invitation. One did not argue with the soothsayer. “Give it to me,” she demanded. The seeker always brought a personal item. Mycos brought his medallion. His grandmother gave it to him before she died. He wore it daily to honor her.

  She held the medallion looking past the two men. She dropped it on the table. “Give me your hands,” she demanded.

  A rare request, Mycos wasn’t sure what to think as no man was allowed to touch the soothsayer unless she requested. He reached out his hand, his left hand. Gregor reached out his right. She held tight to the hands, rocked back and forth, hummed. “Oh. Yes,” she said. “I see. I see so much.”

  Releasing their hands, she stood. “Wait here,” she commanded.

  Gregor and Mycos sat and waited. “What do you think it means,” Mycos asked at length.

  “Unknown, my lord,” Gregor said.

  “It is foolishness,” Mycos grumbled.

  “If it were foolishness, we would not have continued to do it for more than a thousand years,” Gregor said. “Be patient.”

  “Patience is not his strong suit,” the soothsayer said as she strode back into the room. “You are a good choice for the head of your family but you will have a difficult time of it. You will need to appoint one of your brothers to care for the family businesses while you are away. The one who is newly mated would be best.”

  “Why? If I am the head of the family, why would I have my brother take over those duties,” Mycos asked.

  “You will be busy,” she said. She lay the large tome of star charts on the table. “Our worlds are dying. Our race is dying. Until this moment, I saw no solution. You have brought the solution.”

  “In what way,” Mycos asked leaning forward.

  “You will travel. You will travel to another world to find the seven sisters. You will bring the seven sisters here and they will help bring our race back to life,” she said.

  “Star travel? Star travel is tedious and tiresome,” Mycos said. “I do not see how seven women will help our world.”

  “Not women,” she said. “Seven sisters. They will be young and vital. They will be broken but not. There will be one. There will be one who nurtures them. She is vital to you and to us.”

  “Why?” Mycos asked wary of bringing children to their worlds. Outsiders were rarely welcomed.

  “She is your mate,” she said. She turned pages in the book. “If you can win her, you may be able to bring more than the seven here but the seven will be vital to the healing of our world.”

  “If she is my mate, she will be with me,” Mycos said.

  “No,” she said. “She does not come from a world that has learned to recognize their mates. It is a young world with little knowledge in the ways of the heart. You will have to win her. You will have to persuade and please her. You cannot force or coerce her. She must give herself willingly. If she does not, it will ruin us.”

  “She will not recognize I am her mate,” Mycos said. “How will I get her to join with me?”

  “You must go to her world and discover their customs,” she said. She stopped turning pages. “Here. You must go here. Find the woman, bring her and her six sisters with her. They will be in your care, you will be father and brother to them. You will be lover to her.”

  “How will I find her on a world that has not a clue on how mates come together,” Mycos asked.

  “You will,” she said. “You must not isolate yourself. You must walk among the people.”

  Mycos looked down at the book. The third planet from a yellow sun. A blue planet in a section of space avoided for the primitive nature of the occupants. “This world has not even been into space,” he said.

  “You must go there. You must be there before a decade is over or you will not get the se
ven sisters and our people will slowly and painfully die out,” she insisted. Standing she left the book on the table. “He must go with you. You must take trusted men from all the families. Strong men, determined men, who will be loyal to you. You have four years to gather these men. You already have some of these connections, he has others. Join forces and save our people,” she said.

  “My lady,” Gregor said. “Why must I go? I protect the family.”

  “Your mate awaits you on that world,” she said simply. “You must go.”

  Gregor scowled deeply. He didn’t have the position or the power to have a mate. “How can I a lowly servant gain a mate?”

  “Go here,” she said. “Help him bring the seven sisters. You will be a kindly uncle to them. You both must go.”

  Mycos stared at the planet on the page of the book. He didn’t believe in the soothsayer but if his mate lived there what would he do to find and join with her? “Yes, ma’am,” he said knowing he’d go to the farthest reaches of the universe if it meant finding his mate.

  Chapter 1

  “Ooof,” Lydia expelled air as she bumped into the tall man in the street. One of the aliens, one of the tall dark aliens who landed three months ago to make their world better. She glanced over her shoulder as strong arms held her tight against a strong male body. “Sorry,” she murmured as she hurried away, fear driving her from arms that felt safe.

  Lydia scurried around the corner, down the alley. Evasion, escape were key at this point. The two boys, teenage boys following her, wanted her. If they got their hands on her, she would be dragged back to the hidey hole of their gang. She’d had run ins with them before and knew what their gang did to other street girls like herself. She didn’t see the dark alien follow her, didn’t sense danger from him. Six years on the street, she knew danger. She knew when to run, to hide, and to fight.

  One of the boys jumped in front of her, grabbing her arms, holding her with a sneer. “Thought you’d escape again,” he growled in her ear, pulling her closer.

  She punched him in the diaphragm, heard his woof of air, heard him grunt in pain. She turned to escape him only to have the other boy grab her. How had she missed him? She turned into him, her body already there. Stepping nearer him rather than trying to escape, she took him by surprise. He grinned as his arms wrapped around her thin body. Her knee made sharp contact with his groin, he dropped to his knees clutching himself and moaning. The first boy grabbed for her but she threw a quick jab at his nose. Blood spurted making him clutch his obviously broken nose.

  She ran. She ran away from them in a direction perpendicular to where she wanted to go. She took to the streets, the busy ones full of workers and shoppers. Looking back, she saw no one, felt no one pursuing her. She hoped she lost them but dare not risk them following her back to her safe place.

  ***

  The girl in his arms smelled of home and the streets. She bumped into him, not on purpose but in desperation to escape the two boys pursuing her. He wanted to keep her, hold her, but she bolted from his arms. He needed to go to an appointment. Instead he turned to follow her. Seeing the boys boxing her in, he wondered if she would be grateful if he saved her.

  She saved herself. He chuckled as he saw her take both out with simple but effective defensive moves. The boys were no match for her. He followed her scent. He had it now, knew she feared they would follow. He let her get ahead of him, out of sight but he continued to follow. She wound through the busy streets, through the foot traffic on the main thoroughfares until she felt safe. Her scent changed as her panic and fear subsided. He knew the moment she felt safe from pursuit. He still followed.

  The tall buildings of the inner city thinned to shorter squat buildings. The clean streets gave way to grime ingrained in the buildings and the streets. Repulsed by the filth and decay, he followed her scent, catching glimpses of her thin body. On a corner, he saw her stop, stand still for moments. She shifted her clothes, taking off a jacket, turning it inside out so it was a different color. The brisk fall breeze in the air hinted at winter with its frigidity. She shivered without the jacket. She took the cap off her head, letting down shoulder length auburn hair. Her hair so different and unique - it hit him in the gut. He wanted to sink his fingers in it.

  She slipped down an alley. He waited and allowed her to get ahead of him. He didn’t want to spook her. He needed to see where she went. “Sir,” Gregor said his bodyguard and head of his security.

  “We follow,” Mycos said. “I want her.”

  “There are cleaner women to be had,” Gregor said not seeing anything special about one small woman.

  “Yes,” Mycos smiled, “But not more interesting ones.”

  “Yes, sir,” Gregor said.

  ***

  Lydia slipped into the alley, walked in the shadows of the alley and away from the tenements. The tenements were an upgrade to her domicile but one beyond her means. She headed further out, along the alley towards the old industrial park. Old factories falling into decay. Empty buildings dying along with the society she’d spent her first twelve years growing up in.

  Lydia shook her head. She refused to think of the time before the streets. It wasn’t productive to think of the small apartment, the parents who died in the plagues, the life before the group home. Oh the state tried to provide for her and the millions of other orphans. Stacking her and a couple dozen other teen girls into a house meant for four or five people with a man to take care of them. Except he hadn’t. He’d raped some of the girls. Lydia fled before he did the same to her. She swallowed hard and determinedly pushed the memories away.

  She’d fled to the streets. Streets with no safety, no security and only danger. She’d learned to fight, to steal, to take what she needed. Even while it bothered her because her parents taught her stealing was wrong. She reminded herself every time she was forced to steal that her parents were gone along with any sense of safety they provided.

  With a final look behind her, around her, she stepped into the broken factory and listened. “Nic,” she called softly. “Nic, it’s me.”

  ***

  Mycos watched as the girl stepped closer to the falling down factory. She stopped, called too softly for him to hear. He scowled, if it was a man, he would be annoyed. A tall girl, younger than her, he thought, stepped into the opening. Her hand jerked in a subtle movement he might have missed had he been closer. Five small girls launched themselves at the girl, she scooped up the smallest, hugging her close.

  “Sir,” Gregor said surprised.

  “Yes,” Mycos said shook his head, surprised the soothsayer was right. “It’s as we were told. Call in the men.”

  “Will we pick them up,” Gregor scowled. “The humans will not like it.”

  “No,” Mycos said. “We will let the humans do it but we will take all of them. We must have all of them.”

  “Yes, sir,” Gregor said.

  “I will make arrangements,” Mycos said. “How long do you think you can keep them safe and remain undetected?”

  “Three days, sir,” Gregor said. A message dispatched to his men meant they would arrive in minutes to set up a perimeter around the girls. Their girls.

  Tearing his eyes from the scene, Mycos looked at his man, “I will let you know when we are ready. You will remain in place to make sure the human police do not harm them.”

  “Yes, sir,” Gregor said.

  ***

  Lydia rocked Abby. At six, Abby was their newest addition to their group. She was too small to survive the streets, shouldn’t have been on the streets but life wasn’t kind. Lydia was the only one who could stop her screaming through the night. So she rocked her. Sitting on an overturned desk, she held the small, too thin girl on her lap, rocked back and forth humming some song she couldn’t remember the words to.

  A scrabbling sound worried her. Was that movement? “Nic,” she whispered. They were in an inner room. She’d been on watch but Abby started to cry. Nic lay on the floor wrapped around Hannah
who at nine always got upset when Abby did.

  “It’s just rats,” Nic grumbled but she sat up. “You want me to wake them?”

  “Yeah,” Lydia said. Some instinct told her they were in trouble. Something was out there. Someone was out there. “Let’s go to the other place.”

  After three years with Lydia, Nic trusted her instincts. Lydia’s instincts saved them more than once. Nic shook Heidi awake. At eleven and with nearly a year on the street, Heidi slept lightly. Sitting up she saw the tension in Lydia and immediately gathered blankets. She took Abby by the hand, gripping her hand tightly, reassuringly. Abby clung to her. Rachel and Dani woke together, they were twins in nearly everything but looks and birth. Rachel was dark skinned, dark haired and dark eyed. Dani had blond hair, which they kept hidden under a dark cap, blue eyes, pale white skin. The two were ten and inseparable.

  Lydia motioned for silence. She sensed something. If asked, she couldn’t say how she knew but someone was out there. They moved, silently, stealthily. The cold of the night hit like a fist in the face as she led them out of the building in which they’d spent the last few days. The dark night enveloped them but she kept to the shadows. She swallowed hard when she saw the police cars, the wagon. A sweep, a damn sweep. The cops couldn’t be trusted. She’d seen them rape just as much as the gangs did. She needed to get her girls out of here, away from them.

  Keeping in the shadows, she led them towards the back of the factory. There was a tunnel down into the sewers. If they made it down there, they could escape the sweep and the frigid wind. Pausing to make sure no one followed, she waited while the police hunted. Fear choked her, froze the breath in her lungs. She knew, somewhere deep inside her, she knew they weren’t going to escape.