The image was Ketheria.
The crowd on the roof stood motionless. Even Switzer stopped and watched the miraculous event. The mirror image descended upon her and merged with Ketheria’s physical form. She did not fight it; in fact, she breathed deeply and smiled as the transformation completed.
Ketheria was the Scion, not me. The Ancients’ Treasure was the identity of the Scion. Of course the treasure could buy a million starships. The look on the faces of those watching told you that they had just witnessed the event of the millennium.
Ketheria looked up and smiled. Then the very physics that held the stars in the sky seemed to fail — in other words, all hell broke loose.
Switzer grabbed Ketheria with his bad arm, and the crowd gasped.
“Put her down,” Theylor demanded.
“I came here for a treasure and I plan on taking one,” he replied.
“Switzer, don’t,” I pleaded.
Switzer looked at me. “If you’re coming, then I advise you to come now.”
Theylor was near me. “You are the Tonat, Johnny Turnbull. You must help her. The Scion must stay with us.”
“You knew?”
“I know now. You must believe me. Do not let her get on that ship. Now that her identity has been revealed, she is at tremendous risk. Your sister is not even of age yet — she must still experience her awakening.”
I didn’t know what Theylor was talking about, but my desire to leave Orbis had weakened enormously.
“Switzer . . .” I turned to reason with Switzer, and everything around me went silent. I had been bubbled. I turned inside the green fog to see the Chancellor running toward me, his right arm outstretched. Theylor was arguing with him, but the Chancellor now had his sights set on Switzer.
Max had broken free from Athooyi and ran toward me. She banged her fists on the security bubble, her face streaked with tears. She turned and grabbed one of the Chancellor’s aides, but he pushed her away.
Switzer hoisted Ketheria in his arms, her feet dangling just below his knees. She did not resist. Another wormhole pirate swung a rope to Switzer. He grabbed it while firing at the Chancellor. He hit the Chancellor’s aide on the first shot.
If Switzer got on that ship, I would never see either of them again. Why wasn’t Ketheria resisting? The thought of Ketheria leaving without me ignited that feeling inside me once again. It was as if a rope had been tethered between the two of us and something had pulled it very taut. The closer Switzer got to the ship, the tighter the rope felt, only now it was ripping my skin with each tug.
I jumped out of the bubble.
I pictured myself behind Switzer, and then I was there. Only, Switzer was on one of the ropes, halfway up to the ship. I scrambled to grab on to something and caught Switzer around the neck.
“What the . . . ?” Switzer cried out.
He strained to see who was on his back.
“Nice trick,” Switzer said when he saw me. “Couldn’t you have waited until we were inside?”
“Don’t drop her,” I warned him.
“Then grab the rope and get off me!”
Theylor was watching me. That new sense of myself, the one that had brought me to this point, was screaming at me not to get on that ship with Switzer. I stared at my friend and nodded. I hoped he understood. I hoped he was right.
“I’m sorry, Switzer. It’s different now. There are things I need to understand first, and I believe people around here are going to start answering my questions.”
“Don’t be a fool, split-screen. They just want to use you!”
“We’re not getting on that ship.”
With one motion, I kicked the gun from Switzer’s hand and latched on to Ketheria. Then I jumped. Instantly we were next to Theylor. The Keeper was already ready, reaching out with his right arm, and Switzer was bubbled before he even realized we were gone. With Ketheria out of the way, the guards fired upon those remaining, and the wormhole pirates were subdued before Switzer’s new green cell hit the ground.
But those now on the roof were more interested in the Scion than in a captured wormhole pirate. They rushed toward Ketheria. Athooyi was shoving the other Citizens and ordering his guards to do the same. I shielded my sister from Athooyi, waiting for a barrage of insults from him. Then Athooyi’s guards circled Ketheria and turned to face Athooyi and the mob. The creatures began to morph, but instead of turning into fierce beasts, their bodies stretched upward and thick silky robes replaced their flashy garments. Soon four Nagool masters were protecting my sister and me from Athooyi and the mob that was now on the roof. Throughout the crowd, some were screaming; some dropped to their knees and shielded their gaze from the Nagool masters. Athooyi suddenly turned to run. Before he was able to take a single step, he was bubbled.
“What is the meaning of this?” demanded the Chancellor. “Where is the treasure?”
“The treasure belongs to the Universe,” Theylor replied.
“Security! Take everyone into custody,” the Chancellor ordered.
The guards rushed the Nagool masters, and Theylor motioned toward the device on his wrist. Instantly a half-dozen Space Jumpers appeared in the crowd. The Citizens on the roof screamed and shrank back from the Space Jumpers as they moved toward us.
“Have you gone mad, Keeper? Do you want another war?” the Chancellor spat.
“Right now I only want some room,” Theylor said calmly.
“No one is leaving here until I am satisfied.”
“I am not interfering with the efforts of the Trading Council. You may prosecute the wormhole pirates as you see fit.”
“It’s him I want!” the Chancellor bellowed, pointing at me.
I felt someone’s hand slip into mine. It was Max. She was at my side.
“I must protect the Scion,” Theylor said. “I offer that we move these individuals to a private chamber where we can satisfy the needs of the Trading Council.”
The Chancellor glanced at the Space Jumpers before mumbling, “I doubt that’s possible now.”
“For the sake of the rings, I ask you to try,” Theylor said.
Nugget was released while Ketheria and I were in the custody of the Trading Council. Ketheria was ecstatic to see him. It only reminded me that Charlie was gone. Despite every effort by Theylor, the Council refused to hand us over to the Keepers to bear witness to the ceremony planned by Rose and Albert, Charlie’s two closest friends on Orbis. My only consolation was that Cala would now face the Council for the murder since Charlie was a Citizen.
It was difficult for me to comprehend Charlie’s death. I think my mind simply believed I would see Charlie again, but it wouldn’t happen. At least Ketheria had Nugget. Secretly, I worried that I had become some cold, hardened machine, since Charlie’s death hadn’t affected me as deeply as it did the others; at least, I felt that way. I loved Charlie, but the emotions I felt over his death were eerily similar to the way I felt when I had learned of Switzer’s supposed death. Was that what it meant to be the Tonat?
Theylor told me that Switzer was being held in the Center for Science and Research and that many Citizens wanted to see the wormhole pirate dead, especially when they learned that he had once been a knudnik. I didn’t know how to feel about that. During the Chancellor’s Challenge, I had somehow grown to respect him in a weird way. Switzer had taken control of his life. He was living the life of a free man, but then again, that had only landed him in one of those pale blue cells somewhere on Orbis 1. I often thought about the moment I had jumped with Ketheria and left Switzer to be bubbled. What if I had crawled into the ship with him and then jumped to safety with Ketheria? If I could do it all over again, I think I would have done it that way. I don’t know why I wanted Switzer to be free, especially since he was partly responsible for Charlie’s death. Somehow I felt that a part of me, a part of all of us, was locked inside that cell with Switzer. If he were free to roam the stars, then that part of me would be out there with him. Instead, he was in prison, and I was
still a knudnik. That concept and my actions were slowly eating away at something inside me. The feelings kept me awake at night in my sleeper while we waited for the Trading Council’s decision. It was worse than thinking about Charlie’s death.
The Nagool masters had come to visit me with Theylor to inform me about the Council’s decision. Theylor explained that they had been working with the Keepers for many rotations.
“You mean you’re a spy?” I asked.
“You might say that,” he replied.
“Monitoring Athooyi was necessary for us to see if anyone was ever getting close to the Ancients’ Treasure. We always knew what was in there.”
“Did you know it was Ketheria?”
“We had our suspicions after the staining. That is why we placed you in Charlie’s custody.”
“It was you who gave him all that wealth?”
“With the help of the Nagools,” Theylor said.
“The Citizens are very secretive on Orbis 3. This was the only way to stay close. I was scoping your entire match. Because you were a softwire, it made it very easy for me to know what Captain Ceesar, or rather Switzer, was up to. He would never have gotten off that roof. The fact that you and Ketheria were with him only slowed us down a little. We did not want to hurt either of you.”
I tried to accept his statement. I told myself that Switzer would not have gotten off that roof no matter what I did, but my reasoning rang false.
“What’s going to happen to us now?” I asked.
“The Chancellor is not a believer. He is also extremely upset about his match. A lot of money was lost, and the Chancellor is partial to his chits,” Theylor informed us. “They disqualified you, and since you left the labyrinth unusable, they had to disqualify Banar’s team, too. That left the only remaining team victorious.”
“Riis’s team?” I said.
“How did you know?”
“Just a guess,” I said.
At least someone is free now, I thought. Riis got her wish. A dangerous way to go about it, but I was very glad I never had to face my friend in the labyrinth. At least something had worked out for the best.
“The Trust told me that it was very dangerous for the Scion if her identity was revealed.”
“This is very true,” Theylor agreed.
“But the auguries are very clear. We cannot intervene in the life of the Scion prior to the awakening,” one of the Nagool masters added.
“And when is that supposed to happen?” I asked.
“Soon.”
“Until then, the Council demands that you and your sister finish out your work rule,” he said. “And we must abide.”
“Are you kidding me? That’s impossible.”
“But she has her Tonat,” Theylor said, resting his arm on my shoulder.
“But I never accepted that. I never chose,” I told Theylor.
“There is still time,” he whispered.
“Never chose what?” Max said as she entered my room with Ketheria. Theodore was with them. He was limping, with a strange contraption around his leg, but at least he was smiling. At least he was still alive.
“He means that we have not yet chosen your new Guarantor, I’m afraid,” Theylor interrupted.
“Oh,” Max said, and sat next to me. “We still have to do that stuff?”
“I’m afraid so,” Theylor said. “It is the only way they will release JT and Ketheria. The Trading Council wants things to remain the same.”
I looked at my sister, and she said, “I doubt things can ever be the same around here now.”
PLACES
Center for Impartial Judgment and Fair Dealing (IJFD): Along with other important functions, the IJFD center acts as the Earth equivalent of a courthouse.
Center for Science and Research: A building used for the research and containment of potentially dangerous individuals.
Center for Wisdom, Culture, and Comprehension: A learning center located on Orbis 1.
Cirroa: The home planet of the Solinns.
Core City: The capital city of Orbis 2, an industrial hub focused on processing energy harvested from the moons.
Crystal-Cooling Tank: An oceanlike tank used to cool the molten crystals harvested from the moons. Samirans drag the materials through the tank until they are ready for shipping or processing.
Earth News Café: A café built to commemorate the arrival of humans on Orbis. The common soft drink called Coca-Cola is served here.
Illegal Knudnik Auction: Located in the depths of Orbis 2, where nefarious creatures buy and sell knudniks without the consent of the Keepers.
The Illuminate: A learning center for the Citizens’ children on Orbis 3.
Ki: The larger of the crystal moons.
Krig: The home planet of the Choi before they fought with the Choisil and fled.
Magna: On Orbis 1, the beautiful city of the Ancients, who no longer reside on the Rings. The Keepers, who worship the Ancients, live below the city.
Nacreo: The capital city of Orbis 1.
New Arrival Processing Center: Where new arrivals on the Rings of Orbis are integrated into Orbisian society, receiving their translation codecs, Guarantor, and work assignments. Located on Orbis 1.
Palk: The home planet of Trefaldoors.
Rings of Orbis: Four planetlike rings that rotate around a wormhole. The rings were built by the Ancients over 90,000 rotations ago and were used to stabilize the wormhole. The Ancients used the wormhole to disperse the energy harvested from the moons Ki and Ta to distant parts of the universe. Each ring now serves a specific purpose to the multitude of species that inhabit the rings but no longer use the energy and the wormhole in the benevolent fashion of the Ancients. The first ring, Orbis 1, is used for governmental and business affairs and is greatly influenced by the Keepers. The second ring, Orbis 2, houses most of the mining and industry created by the moons Ki and Ta. The third ring is held exclusively for the use of the Citizens. It is an opulent ring where the Keepers have little influence. The fourth ring is comprised mostly of knudniks who make it their home once they have finished their work rule and apply for Citizenship. The rings hang in the natural Lagrange points created by the moon and the wormhole.
Spaceport: The center for space travel on each ring.
Spaceway: A mode of transportation that travels along the circumference of each ring.
Ta: The smaller of the two moons around the Rings of Orbis.
Toll Town: A small city hidden inside the crystal-cooling tank on Orbis 2 that houses runaway knudniks who are preparing their escape.
Trading Chambers: An area of commerce within a city. Trading Chambers can be a simple cart stand or an elaborate mall-like complex. F.O.R.M. (Forbidden Off-Ring Materials) are not allowed to be sold in Trading Chambers.
Tunnels: A network of drains and sewers honeycombing the underground of Core City and once used to fill the crystal-cooling tank.
Tromaine: The capital city of Orbis 3.
Weegin’s World: A recycling plant owned by Joca Krig Weegin, JT’s first Guarantor.
Zinovia: The home planet of Belarans.
PEOPLE
Ancients: A mysterious race, worshipped by many, who created the Rings of Orbis, but who disappeared almost 90,000 rotations ago. The Keepers are awaiting their return.
Arelions: Ruthless aliens that hunted the Samirans to extinction on their home planet.
Belarans: A war-obsessed race and a First Family on the Rings of Orbis. The Belarans are from the planet Zinovia. Belarans believe that they were the first sentient species in existence. Their fearsome appearance is the result of exposure to harsh conditions during frequent and extended space journeys. An eighty-year space trip is minor to a Belaran, as they are nearly immortal.
Centillians: A race of aliens whose skin is very valuable to some cultures.
Choi: This race is an offshoot from the Choisil and Choival. The Choisil saw the Choi as hideous and fought them off of their home planet, Krig, in a bloody civil w
ar. The Choisil genetically altered the Choi to permanently show the defeat of their ancestors: the wings of a Choi fall off during adolescent growth; the bony stumps left behind are far less beautiful than the miraculous butterfly-like wings of the Choisil.
Citizen: The term giving to the ruling class of aliens on the Rings of Orbis. Citizens control the economy on the rings but are not outside the scrutiny of the Keepers. The relationship between the Citizens and the Keepers is shaky at best.
Descendants of Light: A radical group of Keepers dedicated to controlling the Rings of Orbis in the true spirit of the Ancients.
First Families: Citizens whose ancestors were the first settlers on Orbis after the War of Ten Thousand Rotations.
Greeplings: Aliens with prolific breeding habits.
Guarantor: The term used by knudniks to identify the Citizen who feeds, employs, and gives them shelter.
Keepers: Keepers consider themselves the guardians of the Rings of Orbis. They are philosophers who protect the sanctity of the moons and wait faithfully for the Ancients to return. Although the Keepers control society on Orbis and monitor travel through the wormhole, it is the Citizens who control the economy. Most Keepers visible on the rings have two heads, but they are born with only one head. A Keeper’s appearance alters after his mating ritual.
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