The Vulpirans' Honor: The Soul-Linked Saga

by Laura Jo Phillips

  “Are you all right, Honey?” Vikter asked, startling her. She spun around and saw all three of them standing on the patio just outside the door, expressions of concern on their faces. “I apologize,” he said quickly. “We didn’t mean to frighten you.”

  Honey shrugged, sensing their worry and, for once, not fighting it. She was too damn tired and confused. “I’m fine,” she said, instantly deciding that she preferred to discuss Michael’s request with the Vulpirans instead of the Lobos. “I’d like to discuss something with you guys though, if you have a few minutes.”

  “Of course,” Vikter said at once. “Why don’t we sit?”

  Honey knew he didn’t want to sit. They wanted her to sit, and at the moment, she had no objection. She walked across the garden and sat down on one of the deep patio chairs with a sigh.

  “Are you certain you’re recovered?” Vikter asked. “You seem tired.”

  “I am a little tired, but otherwise, I’m fine,” Honey replied. “I slept until after noon today, then Jareth came and checked me. Which reminds me, Vikter, I want to thank you for helping me yesterday. I wouldn’t have been able to help those babies without you.”

  “I was happy to help,” Vikter said while Lance and Hunt positioned chairs for the three of them in a circle with Honey. “What you did was amazing, and the sacrifice you made, the pain you suffered, touched all who witnessed it. We were all grateful that we could help, even in such a small way. It is difficult for a room full of warriors to stand back helplessly when a crisis is unfolding before their eyes. I’ve been asked to extend the thanks of all of those present yesterday for allowing them to assist you.”

  Honey smiled, enjoying the unfamiliar feeling of warmth and acceptance that Vikter’s words gave her. It had hurt, more than she could ever have imagined. She’d healed unborn babies before, but only those with birth defects, and only when she could do it without anyone knowing about it. She’d been shocked when the burns began transferring from the babes’ skin to her own. Nothing like that had ever happened to her before.

  Then she remembered what she had to do, and the good feelings faded. This was going to be so embarrassing, but there just didn’t seem to be an easy way to say it.

  “Michael wants me to call in the favor offered by the Lobos for helping their babies,” she said quickly, not quite daring to meet their eyes.

  “What does he want?” Vikter asked.

  “He wants a permanent position here, on Jasan,” she replied. “He wants to stay here.”

  “And you, Honey?” Vikter asked. “What do you want?”

  “I like it here,” she admitted. “I think it would be a perfect place for Nica to grow up. She won’t have to hide who she really is here.”

  “You are hesitant,” Lance said.

  “Yes,” she replied. “I helped those babies because they needed help. Not so that I could get anything in return.”

  “Everyone knows that,” Vikter said. “And you don’t have to call in any favors for Michael. We already planned to offer him a position here. The reason we are here now is that we wanted to check on you and Nica before we leave.”

  “You’re leaving?” she asked, trying to hide her disappointment.

  “Just for a couple of days,” Vikter said. “We’re going to Berria to discuss offering Michael a permanent position with the Council. When we return, we will bring him back with us.”

  “There’s something you should know,” she said, wishing she didn’t have to say this, but knowing Michael expected her to. Besides, they needed to know this before taking the matter to their Council.

  “What’s that?” Vikter asked.

  “When Terien learns that Michael won’t be returning, the first thing they’ll do is withdraw his credentials.”

  “Why would they do such a thing?” Lance asked.

  “To try to force him to return,” Honey replied. “Or punish him for leaving. Take your pick. They pulled mine before we left.”

  “I do not understand,” Vikter said. “Why would a government pull the credentials of its citizens?”

  “In Michael’s case it’s because he’s brilliant. There are not a lot of brilliant scientists on Terien, and never one like Michael. The Terien government likes claiming Michael as their own, especially with the reputation he’s building for himself and, by extension, Terien. That’s why they let him travel all over the Thousand Worlds. But they’ve made it quite clear that while they allow him that freedom, there are strings attached. If he ever decides to defect from Terien, they will pull his creds so fast he’ll be lucky to get a job as janitor anywhere else in the Thousand Worlds.”

  “And you?” Vikter asked. “Why did they pull your creds?”

  “Insurance,” she replied. “If Michael defects, I don’t get my creds back unless I find a way to convince him to return.”

  “Is that what you want to do?” Vikter asked. “Do you want to return? Because if you do, we will not offer Michael a position here.”

  “Thanks,” Honey said with a wan smile. “To be honest, I hate Terien. They’ve interfered and manipulated in my life too much for me to feel otherwise. Michael wants to be free of them, and he wants to stay here, and I can’t see my way clear to standing in the way of that. No matter how much it scares me.”

  “Why does it scare you?” Hunt asked.

  Honey opened her mouth, then closed it with a soft snap. There were some things she couldn’t talk about, much as she wished otherwise. Vikter shook his head firmly at Hunt when it looked like he was going to push for an answer. Honey had been through enough the past two days and he did not want her pressed right now.

  “Honey,” Vikter said when Hunt subsided, “if you want your creds reinstated, it will not be a difficult matter. We have our own laws on Jasan, and they are not subject to the laws of any other world.”

  “Really?” Honey asked, her big blue eyes brightening so beautifully it made his heart skip a beat. “Do you really think I could practice medicine here without my credentials?”

  “Of course,” Vikter replied. “Doc is our medical expert on both human and Jasani physiology, so he’ll want to test your knowledge and expertise, of course. After that, it would be a simple matter that I am quite certain High Prince Garen would be most happy to handle personally.”

  “If I could practice medicine here, it would be fantastic,” she said. “Thank you.”

  “You need not thank us,” Vikter said. “In truth, we have done nothing.”

  Honey felt his sadness, and had the sudden urge to tell them things she had sworn to tell no one. Luckily, the door opened behind them at that moment, and Jackson Bearen stepped outside, preventing her from breaking her word.

  “The airfield just called,” he said to Vikter. “You’re ride is getting ready to leave.”

  “We’re on our way,” Vikter said, standing up. “He looked at Jackson for a long moment, asking with his eyes what he could not say aloud. Jackson nodded in understanding. It was enough. He would watch over Honey and Nica in their absence. The Vulpirans bowed to Honey in silence, then turned and left.

  Honey watched after them for a long moment in the fading sunlight, even after they’d long faded from view.

  “Honey, Doc called and asked if you would mind coming down to the infirmary in the morning,” Jackson said, wanting to give her something else to think about than whatever made her look so sad. “He’d like to talk to you.”

  “Do you know what he wants to talk about?” Honey asked.

  “Your guess is as good as mine,” he replied. “Why don’t you come on in. Hope says dinner is ready.”

  Honey nodded as she turned to look after the Vulpirans again, though all she saw was darkness. Then she got up and went inside.

  ***

  Xi-Kung was frantic. And frightened. He had an enormous problem and if he made the slightest mistake in solving it, he had a very short future.

  It had taken longer than he’d hoped for the data from the Receiver to compl
ete its upload. Then it had to be decoded, translated and analyzed for the important bits. He didn’t have time to sit through weeks worth of recordings that included long nights of the Messenger snoring while he slept.

  But Xi-Kung hadn’t been worried. Not then. He’d set the system to perform the necessary functions and checked to make certain that his captain had moved the ship as ordered once the final data burst had been received. Then he’d dined, and slept for a few hours. By the time he was fully rested and ready to review the material, it was ready for him.

  Unfortunately, his happy, confident mood did not last long. Within the first hour he knew that Xi-Tarq had completely and utterly failed in his mission. He had not disposed of the human female in charge of the new berezi house on the Dracons’ ranch, as ordered. He had not taken the female’s place, as ordered. He had not died as any good Xanti should when failing so completely in their given mission.

  The worst news was that neither the self destruct system in Xi-Tarq’s makina, nor the one implanted in his worthless hide, had been activated as they should have been. Instead, both Xi-Tarq and his makina were in the custody of the bloody Jasani! On the Dracon Princes’ bloody be-damned ranch! And just to top off the entire mess, Xi-Tarq had not even disposed of the stars be-damned Damosion!

  Feeling sick, which was not a common sensation for a Xanti, Xi-Kung spent the next twenty hours painstakingly reviewing data as quickly as he could. He kept hoping to learn that the makina and Xi-Tarq had managed to self-destruct after all, but apparently he was not that lucky. Instead, he got nothing but more and more bad news.

  Xi-Tarq was ensconced in a specially constructed cell from which he could not possibly escape. The makina was stored in the same building, in a new research lab built for the sole purpose of learning every detail possible from the captured Xanti.

  Xi-Kung stopped the data replay at learning that particular bit of news, climbed out of his makina and began to pace his quarters. A captured, live Xanti! Just thinking of it made him want to sting someone to death. Several someones. And the makina! They had a makina. And not just any makina either. No. Of course not. It had to be one of the newest, streamlined, instant clone makinas of which there were only a few in existence, and which carried the highest loss penalty. He didn’t have a chance of coming out of this alive. Not a chance.

  A Ruling Female had just been exterminated for allowing a makina to be captured by the Jasani along with it’s dead rider. Xitura-Re’s execution, and by extension, the destruction of her entire brood, was the only reason he’d been given the prime territory of Jasan in the first place. He would not be so lucky as Xitura-Re. They’d just killed her.

  He crawled up the wall, across the ceiling and back to the terminal again, in an endless, frantic loop for hours on end as he imagined the painful and humiliating end he would be sentenced to for this. His dreams of glory were ashes in his mouth, slowly choking him.

  Finally, exhausted and resigned, he went back to the terminal and started the play back. He might as well listen to the rest of it. Much to his surprise, it turned out to be very lucky for him that he did listen to the remainder of the data. He learned something, toward the end, that he hadn’t realized at first. He went back and listened again, hope rising within him. Perhaps there was a way out of this mess after all.

  Day Five

  “Can I push the ringing button?” Nica asked Honey as they stepped onto the doorstep of Arima House.

  “Of course,” Honey replied, smiling as Nica stretched up on her tip-toes to reach the button. Her finger barely touched it, but she was a determined little girl.

  “I did it,” she said triumphantly as the bell chimed within the house.

  “Yes, you did,” Honey said. “You’re growing so fast, Nica.”

  The door opened and Berta stared at them for a moment in surprise.

  “Good morning you two,” she said, standing aside and waving them in. “I was planning to come down to the Bearens’ and see you in a little while.”

  “I’m sorry I didn’t vox first,” Honey said.

  “That’s quite all right,” Berta replied. “I’m happy to see you both. Have you had breakfast?”

  “Yes, we have, thank you,” Honey replied with a smile. “Aunt Berta, I wonder if you have a few minutes to talk with me?”

  “As a matter of fact, I do,” Berta replied, studying Honey’s face. She looked as though she had something serious on her mind. “Nica, would you like to go out to the garden and visit with Shellie?”

  “Yes, please,” Nica said. “Is it okay, Mana?”

  “Yes, Sweetie, it’s okay,” Honey said. “You be a good girl though, and mind Shellie.”

  “I will, I promise,” Nica said, already hurrying toward the glass doors that led out to the garden.

  “Shall we go to the blue sitting room?” Berta asked. Honey nodded, then followed her Aunt through the house to the room they’d used when she’d examined Hope. Once they were seated, Berta folded her hands in her lap and waited for Honey to begin.

  “Aunt Berta, I need to tell you something,” she said.

  Berta heard the seriousness in her voice and nodded slowly. “You may tell me whatever you like,” she said.

  “I asked Aisling not to tell you about me before I actually got here because there are a lot of things about my life that are not what they appear to be. You’re the only real relative I have, and I didn’t want to tell you things that were...well...not true.” Honey got up and began pacing nervously. “I wish that I could tell you everything, Aunt Berta, really I do. If it was only myself, I would. But there are others involved, and I’ve promised not to tell certain things.”

  Berta frowned in confusion, but didn’t interrupt.

  “All I can tell you right now is that I have some secrets, big secrets, and that I will share them with you. All of them. The moment I’m free to do it, I will. I promise.”

  “I understand,” Berta said. “Don’t worry about it, Honey. Whenever you want to talk, I’ll be here. And until then, I’ll still be here. I don’t need to know all your secrets. I just need to know you, and Nica.”

  Honey stopped pacing and hugged Berta tightly. “Thank you,” she said softly. “That means so much to me.”

  “Don’t you worry,” Berta said, patting her on the back. “Everything’s going to be just fine. You have family now. Don’t you forget that.”

  “I won’t, Aunt Berta,” Honey replied as she released her and stepped back. “Well, I hate to run off so soon but I got a message that Doc wanted to see me this morning.”

  “Really?” Berta asked. “Do you know why?”

  “No, I don’t,” Honey replied. “I’m guessing he wants to thank me, which isn’t necessary. I’m fantasizing he wants to offer me a job.”

  “If he did, would you take it?” Berta asked.

  “Yes, I would,” Honey replied at once. Then she dropped her eyes and turned to pick up her purse. “I’d have to talk to Michael about it first, of course.”

  “Of course,” Berta replied, watching her niece thoughtfully for a moment. “Did Nica tell you that I offered to ask Doc to lengthen her hair?”

  “Yes, she did,” Honey replied, a little startled by the sudden change of subject. “I told her that I would allow it if the process is safe.”

  “Why don’t the three of us go on down to the infirmary together,” Berta suggested. “You can check it out and if you approve, Nica can have her hair returned to its previous length while you talk with Doc.”

  “All right,” Honey agreed, brightening. “Let me go get Nica.”

  “I’ll meet you out front in a few moments,” Berta said. She watched as Honey left to find Nica then hurried to her own rooms for her purse.

  ***

  The ranch garrison looked a lot like a small town with one main road lined with wood and stone buildings on both sides. The largest buildings were an armory, cafeteria, and barracks. There was also an inn, a restaurant, two supply stores, a couple of t
raining facilities, and a few buildings that looked new and vacant. They drove down the road between the two rows of buildings, then across a long, vacant area on both sides before coming to three more buildings set apart from the rest. These buildings were made of stone, rather than wood, and were much larger than the rest. The smallest of the three was the military headquarters. Beside that was the medical infirmary. On the far side of the infirmary was the new, imposing Research Center.

  Berta parked the ground-car in a lot behind the buildings and they walked around to the front where the main entrance, facing the gravel road, was located. The whole place had a cozy, old world village feeling that Honey liked. Berta nodded in agreement when she shared her thoughts.

  “It’s nice, but it’s really a military garrison, not a town,” Berta explained. “It started as an office and barracks for the guards that come in to guard the Dracons’ ranch from the Xanti. A few of the Arimas that have been found over the past couple of years have chosen to live on the ranch since it’s the safest place on Jasan right now. Especially those with children.”

  “And the Dracon Princes don’t mind?” Honey asked.

  “No, not that I’ve noticed,” Berta replied. “Whatever is necessary to protect the Arimas, the berezi, and the children is fine with them. For a very long time they had no Arimas, and no female children. Now that more Arimas are being found every day, the Jasani have a chance to be a real people again. And for reasons of their own, the Xanti are very much against that.”

  “That’s why there are no obstetricians trained specifically for Jasani, isn’t it?” Honey guessed.

  “Yes,” Berta said. “Until Lariah Dracon had her daughters three years ago, there hadn’t been a female Jasani in three thousand years. She just gave birth to triplet sons a couple of months ago. All Jasani children are born in threes, whether the mothers are Jasani women, or human women.”

  “Bearing triplets is not unheard of for human women, of course, but it can be dangerous for both the mother, and the infants,” Honey said. “I can certainly see why good obstetricians would be needed for that reason alone.”