Yuen-Mong's Revenge

by Gian Bordin

  As they talked, he realized how foolish his agitation had been. No, the free spirit of his Yuen-mong would never be bound by such covenants. He rose from his seat and took her into his arms. "I’m silly."

  "You said it, not me," she replied, smiling, offering him her lips.

  "But are you aware of the other implication of being the granddaughter of Chen Young?"

  "Do you mean that the killers of my parents could be my own family?"

  "Yes."

  "It will make no difference to me. Whoever did it will have to bear the consequences."

  "You are not thinking of killing, are you?" He was suddenly perturbed.

  "No, that would be too light a sentence… Destroy them, forcing them to live the rest of their lives reminded daily of their guilt."

  A sense of relief let him gain his calm again.

  That night, when he wanted to initiate love making, she held him back. "Atun, we might start a baby, and I would rather wait a while longer. We cannot do it for the next few days."

  He felt touched by her openness. Kissing her, he whispered into her ear: "There are many other ways to give pleasure. I don’t have to be inside you."

  "For both of us?"

  "Yes, for both of us."

  "Then teach me."

  He smiled at her directness. No fuss or long deliberation, but decisive action — that was the woman he loved.

  10

  "Old Earth, Old Earth, this is Vishnu. Do you copy? Over."

  They were nearing old earth on a direct approach course. Atun had to call twice more before he got a response.

  "Vishnu, this is OE control. We copy. What do you want? Over."

  "Permission to land. Transmit protocol. Over."

  Again it took a short second before the answer reached them. "Not so fast. What class ship? Over."

  "PA4, private. Over."

  "Haven’t seen one of those in years. On its last leg? Want to dump it here? Over."

  "No."

  "Landing fee 12,000 credits. How do you pay? Over."

  "Cash, in gold. Over."

  "Gold? Where do you come from. Over."

  "You would like to know, wouldn’t you. No luck. You accept gold? Over."

  "Sure we do, but it will cost you twenty percent over the official rate. Over."

  "You mean twenty percent below. Over."

  "No, more. Over."

  "No deal. We’ll bypass you. Over."

  "Atun, but we want to land there," Yuen-mong whispered.

  "Just wait, he’ll back down." He winked. "Getting gold at the official rate is too good a deal."

  There was a moment of silence before Old Earth control came back. "OK, you can pay at the official rate. That’s final. Over."

  "Accepted. Transmitting ship ID. Send landing protocol. Over."

  There was no response for several minutes. "ID not legitimate, not on our list. Looks fishy. Will cost you more. Over."

  "Ship was lost. Check twenty years back. Over."

  "Come in anyway. We’ll settle on the ground. Protocol coming. Roger, out."

  Almost an hour later they set down, close to the foothills of the Aoraki Alps on the southern island of Aotearoa, 30 kilometers west of Otautahi. The brief historical sketch in their system’s atlas said that this was the new city of fewer than 100,000 people, built farther inland from Christchurch, after that city drowned in the rising ocean levels of the 22nd century. Its economic base was mainly agricultural exports, including wines, as well as tourism.

  By the time they had shut down the engine and put the ship on park, ground control had checked their ID in the ‘ships lost’ file, and wanted to know where they had recovered it. Atun had little choice but to tell the truth.

  "Aros?" questioned the sole port traffic controller. "Is that where the gold comes from?"

  "You said it, man. The Aros ring is just dripping with gold."

  "That’s not what the reports say."

  "Well that is what it looked to us in the evening sun, but you’ll just have to find out yourself, won’t you?"

  There was a short silence, then the controller came back: "I just remember that a Palo mineral exploration team reported they lost a manned shuttle there recently. That you?"

  "Yes."

  "Better report back to your company."

  Atun knew that, according to the regulations, traffic control at the first port of contact was in fact supposed to do that, but maybe on Old Earth they were somewhat more lax about such things. However, they showed no lack of formality when it came to pay the landing fee. That had to be settled before they were given clearance to have the ship serviced and receive permission to leave the port.

  He did not like that the weighing of the gold was watched by more than a dozen curious bystanders who had probably never seen a quarter kilogram of gold. He was afraid that this would inevitably attract them to the attention of people he would rather have kept at more than arm’s length.

  The first thing they did was to upload the latest navigation atlas, as well as renew all recycling systems. The guy who filled their water units proudly announced that this was the best water in the entire galaxy. Better than Aros water? mused Yuen-mong silently.

  They also planned to restock their catering unit, but she wanted to check out first what was on offer. Although there had been no choice but to eat what the ship carried, she disliked the artificial taste of the various flavoring condiments. She wanted real, natural food.

  While the ground service crews did their work, they made sure to keep a close eye on them. Atun found time to look up his credit balance. It was still intact, 20,000 higher than the 30,000 credits he thought he had. The Palo Exploration Company must have made another few salary transfers. However, since Old Earth had no HST link and relied on the updates from the monthly courier run, they would only be able to pay small amounts from his account.

  * * *

  It was late afternoon before they could lock the ship, arm it against illegal entry, and take the old electric ground shuttle into the city. They were the only passengers, but then Old Earth received few intergalactic ships, and they only saw two huge cold-store freighters and several old air-bound craft on the ground. He was surprised that the shuttle had a human driver. On Palo all public ground transport was fully automated. The driver told them that his was the last trip to or from the port until the following morning, since no further incoming local short-haul passenger craft were scheduled.

  The first twenty or so kilometers were through peaceful pastoral farm land with herds of cows and flocks of sheep.

  "Look all these animals. What are they?" Yuen-mong cried excitedly.

  "The black and white or brown and white spotted ones are cows, the wooly ones are sheep, and over there are a few horses, used for riding."

  "Look, they have young ones. How cute."

  He loved her unashamed pleasure and smiled.

  "Don’t you laugh. I have never seen any mammals, except humans."

  "I don’t laugh at you. I love it when you show your excitement."

  "Good. I will then. Have you ever ridden a horse?"

  "No. There are very few on Palo. I’ve heard the soil doesn’t suit them."

  "Let’s see if we can go for a ride before leaving Old Earth."

  "OK if you wish."

  "Yes, indulge me a bit until I’m a seasoned traveler. I have almost two decades of experiences to catch up on."

  He put an arm around her shoulders and hugged her. He felt happy.

  The city had a small-town, provincial character. It looked quaint, old-fashioned compared to the cities on Palo, like movies depicting life on Old Earth, and then he remembered; this was Old Earth. Many areas looked run down. They let themselves be dropped off at the Park Hotel Chateau Otautahi, one of few high-rises in town. It gave a reasonably respectable impression.

  As they entered the hotel lobby, he in a sports jacket and Yuen-mong in one of her mother’s pant suits — both the latest fashion twenty ye
ars earlier — he immediately noticed that everybody looked at them in a funny way. He even overheard some comments along the line: "Look at their outfits. Where do these two come from?"

  Yuen-mong gave him a knowing look. He had halfway expected her to react embarrassed, but she seemed amused. Will anything ever faze her? he mused silently. He presented his credit ID and got some local cash. They were assigned a room on level 19, just below the penthouse, offering superb views toward the mountains, stretching all along the western horizon. Going up in the elevator was another first for Yuen-mong, and she grabbed his hand when the elevator accelerated.

  She inspected their room facilities thoroughly and was intrigued by the king-size bed. She guessed that the big spa tub in the bathroom was for taking a bath and immediately began shedding her clothing.

  "Come," she exclaimed, "it’s big enough for both of us."

  So they spent their next half hour submerged in hot water, massaged by the jets, her back against him. After a while, he noticed that she had fallen asleep in his arms and a warm glow swelled in his heart.

  * * *

  The last rays of light were fading when they went out in search of an eating place. For the first time in months, he became aware of Yuen-mong’s limp, when several people turned to look at her. He would have to tell her about it.

  As they walked down the street, studying the old-fashioned printed menus displayed outside restaurants, a sudden howling made them turn. Across the street, two guys were manhandling a woman in high heels, wearing only a halter top and a short, tight skirt that barely covered her bottom. One of the guys was slapping her face. Atun immediately guessed that the girl was a sex worker and tried to shepherd Yuen-mong away from the ugly scene. But without warning, she bounded across the street, and he heard her shout: "Leave her alone!"

  The taller of the guys let go of the girl, eyeing Yuen-mong with a lewd grin. "Want to work for me, honey? But not in this outfit. Did you steal this from your grandmother?"

  What followed happened so fast that later on he could never properly piece it together. The guy yelled out, blood spurting from his nose, and then the other crumpled to the ground, holding his groin, hollering.

  "Don’t show your ugly faces in this street again. Away! Now!" She kicked the one on the ground.

  It reminded him of her stance when she had held a whole clan of savages in check. The two only took another look at her and ran down the street.

  "Are you hurt?" Yuen-mong bent down to the smaller girl.

  But rather than answer her, the latter whined: "And who’ll be looking after me now? Will you do it?"

  "What do you mean, looking after you? They were hitting you," replied Yuen-mong.

  "They are also my protection," whimpered the girl, tears ruining her heavy makeup.

  By that time, Atun had reached Yuen-mong and whispered: "Let’s go. I’ll explain later."

  Reluctantly, she followed him. They walked the gauntlet of gawking people and entered the first restaurant. Called ‘Chez Pierre’, it advertised genuine French cuisine.

  "Did I do something wrong?" she asked when they were seated.

  "Yes and no. You mixed yourself into a quarrel between a sex worker and her pimp."

  "Sex worker? Pimp? What are they?"

  He explained. By the end, she let out a short laugh and said: "Now I get it why she complained. But what I don’t understand is why do men pay for sex and why would women offer it for sale?"

  That too took a lot of explaining.

  "On Aros they steal women from other tribes and rape them; here they force them to sell themselves," she commented, "not really that much different."

  "The difference is that the savages on Aros are primitive and easily scared; these men here are unscrupulous crooks who don’t shy away from killing anybody who gets in their way. That pimp could want to take revenge and hire somebody to kill you. So, please, Yuen-mong, be more careful. This is not Aros."

  "Don’t tell me that life on Aros had fewer dangers. They were just different and all deadly."

  "Yes, I know. But you don’t yet know the ones here. Please, let me guide you."

  "Are we switching roles?" Her eyes lit up briefly in amusement. "I promise I will ask, but I won’t promise not to act."

  The waiter brought them the menu card and told them the specials of the day. Yuen-mong immediately seemed to catch on what the card was for. To his surprise, she called the waiter back and asked him to recommend a local specialty. He suggested that they try mushrooms in a garlic and blue cheese sauce as a first course, and as the main the rack of lamb with tart red currants, a specialty of the house, served with new potatoes and tender beans, together with a bottle of local Sauvignon Blanc. She loved the French baguette and the fresh butter the waiter brought with the wine. It’s her first real bread and butter! he mused. He had never seen her eat that much, and she beamed after every bite. And he had to admit that he had never eaten a better meal himself.

  * * *

  "That is what I call food. That meat even beats wader thighs," Yuen-mong remarked, offering him a happy smile, as they walked hand-in-hand back to the hotel. It was the crowning conclusion to an eventful day, that had begun with putting down Vishnu at the space port. For the first time in over three weeks she sensed again the mental murmur of several distinct human minds against a background of emanations from unknown creatures. The quality of the latter had a similar character as nature on Aros, while the human component was less chaotic than the minds of the savages, more purposeful, like a multiple of Atun’s mind at the time she had first met him. After opening the ship’s door, individual minds separated, and she could attribute them to the various people on the ground, sensing mainly bored curiosity. She copied Atun’s greeting by also waving a hand. In fact, she intended to copy his behavior, at least initially until she felt more secure with the customs of these advanced worlds.

  One stocky man stood out by his emanations, a mixture of suspicion and slyness, and she felt an immediate distrust. He introduced himself as the port traffic control officer, extending his right to shake hands, holding on to hers longer than necessary. It felt like being undressed. He invited them both to the port traffic building, "to pay their dues," he added, grinning, his gaze straying to her breasts again. She declined, wanting to stay with the ship until it could be locked securely.

  Initially, she thought that she was coming down with a cold or something. Every movement required an extra effort. Then she remembered that Old Earth gravity was about twenty percent higher than on Aros, and almost twice the one of Vishnu.

  Driving through the farmland filled her with delight, both in terms of what she saw and the mental emanations of the animal world. As they entered the city, the mental chaos gradually rose. Inside the hotel lobby, teaming with people, it reached fever pitch and she found it hard to take in what she saw. She longed for the rural scene they had just passed through. Even the uniform quiet, with only Atun’s presence, was preferable. She would have to learn how to cope with that, reduce it to a tolerable level and only let a selected few reach her consciousness or else she would go crazy. The relative quietness of the room allowed her to recover, and peace returned to her mind when she was resting against Atun, gently massaged by the waters of the spa pool, feeling his hands cup her breasts.

  When she heard the cries of the young woman, as they searched for a good restaurant, she acted on instinct, more in response to the nasty minds of the two men who seemed to get pleasure from what they were doing. It was like the repeat of a scene on Aros when three savages were beating two young girls who had just reached womanhood into submission. They too ended up with bloody faces, running away hunched over their groins. She was all the more surprised when she sensed the woman’s distress about who would look after her, in stark contrast to the two Aros girls who had smiled through their tears. She decided that from now on she would not react on instinct unless there was danger to either her or Atun. That too was different from Aros.


  One disconcerting puzzle remained. The minds that seemed to seek her out conveyed one of two emotions, either pity or disdain. Was it their clothing or something else? She would have to talk to Atun about it.

  Back in their hotel room she questioned him: "I get the sense that most people who look at me either show pity or disdain? Is it the clothes I wear?" She immediately sensed his own discomfort. "Atun, the truth!"

  "Yuen-mong, some of it is the clothing … and that you don’t wear any make-up."

  "Make-up? … Ah, face-paint. I noticed that some paint their faces like the savages when they sacrifice one of their own to the craw. But these are not the main reasons, true?"

  "No … it’s your limp."

  "My limp? Why?"

  "In all advanced worlds, people with physical handicaps are seen as inferior, either pitied or disdained."

  She raised her eyebrows. "Is that so?"

  "Yes. There are few things more highly priced than bodily perfection. No parents, except if they are very poor, would allow a child to grow up with a visible physical disability or blemish. They all would be corrected by surgery. Many people even undergo cosmetic surgery to make their faces more symmetric, give their noses or chins more pleasing forms, stretch the face skin to reduce wrinkles. Women reduce their breast size or have implants to give their breast the ideal shape, and even a shapely bum may have been created by surgery and implants."

  "Implants? What are those?"

  "Plastic bags filled with an inert gel that are inserted surgically to enlarge breasts or buttocks and to the touch feel like the real thing."

  She could not help laughing. It sounded preposterous, but she sensed that he was serious. "So they think that I’m only half human because I limp… Does it bother you too?"

  "It did initially, and I pitied you when I first met you, but no more. I’ve seen you run, I’ve watched you do t’ai chi, and your movements are pure grace and beauty. Through you I’ve learned that the handicap wasn’t on you, but in my mind, that it wasn’t you who should be pitied, but me for thinking so."