11. The Resistance
Eventually, Andie must have drifted off because the next thing she knew, someone was gently shaking her arm. She bolted upright in alarm, disoriented and scared. But it was just Randa.
“We’ve arrived,” Randa told her. “Let me help you out.” Her muscles groaning in protest, Andie stepped out of the transport into a dimly lit alleyway. Tall stone buildings towered over her on either side. The sun was just beginning to rise, illuminating the trash piled along the buildings and the crumbling appearance of some of the stonework. Clearly this was not a prosperous area.
She didn’t have time for much more than a glance around though, before Randa led her into an open doorway to her right. It led into a dimly lit hallway. Their pilot stood behind them and shut the door, dropping a heavy bar into place. Andie winced at the sound. Had she left one prison just to enter another? Drawing a deep breath, she stumbled after Randa, who was already striding down the hall. At the first door, she stopped and pushed the door open.
“This room will do,” she told the taciturn pilot. “Bring us something to eat, please. Tell Thane I will be in to see him shortly.” Andie registered Randa’s tone of authority with surprise. She no longer sounded like a timid servant. In fact, her accent was far more like the guests that Jaory had invited to his estate than that she had used with Andie all these months. Obviously there was more to Randa’s story than Andie had guessed. A little warily, she followed Randa into a room bare of furniture or decoration except for a table and some chairs. There were no windows either. They barely had time to sit at the table when a knock at the door announced the arrival of the meal. The man silently placed two bowls of stew in front of them both and left a plate of bread. Then he swiftly retreated from the room.
“Go ahead and eat,” Randa invited. Andie eagerly started to taste the stew. She was starving, and the food smelled delicious.
While she stuffed her mouth with coarse dark bread dipped in stew, Randa asked her what she wanted to do now.
“I don’t know. I need to get home, but I don’t know how to go about it,” Andie said between mouthfuls.
“I thought so. The only way we could get you back to Zenith would be by paying smugglers to take you. There are two risks involved—first, Jaory could offer a reward for you, in which case the smugglers may simply turn you back over to him. Second, if he has not offered a reward and the smugglers agree to take you to Zenith, they would probably land in the forest somewhere far from your home. You would have to take your chances finding your way to a settlement.”
Andie considered this carefully. She was pretty sure she could make it to a settlement once she was on Zenith. But to risk getting returned to Jaory? Andie shuddered at the thought. No, she wanted to make sure that she would at least get to Zenith safely.
“What about going to the capital?” she inquired hopefully. “Doesn’t the Union have an embassy or an ambassador here?”
Randa laughed ruefully. “No, there is no official Union presence on Corizen. All our dealings with your people usually happen in space.” Andie’s stomach sank heavily. What, then, was she going to do?
“In time, Jaory might lose any interest in you. It may be safer if you give it some time,” Randa suggested. Andie sighed in despair. More than anything she wanted to get home. However, she couldn’t face the possibility of going back to Jaory’s. Anything was better than that.
“What are you going to do, Randa?” she asked.
“I have friends that I will tell you about in a minute. But first, tell me what you know of Corizen, of the government here.”
Andie thought for a moment trying to recall what she had learned over the months. “You have a king,” she answered hesitantly. “He rules the entire planet.”
“Anything else?”
“Um, you have a strict caste system,” she added. She knew that one well from her time living at Jaory’s.
Randa nodded. “A fairly recent caste system,” she clarified. “It was only put in place a little over a century ago to benefit the supporters of the King after the last civil war.” She waited expectantly for anything more Andie had to add. Andie frowned in concentration.
“Well, I remember hearing once from my father that it wasn’t very easy to live on Corizen because of the king,” Andie hazarded.
“Your father was right. Life here on Corizen is very hard. The king does rule all of the planet, but his ‘advisors,’ the Noble caste, do a lot of it also. Jaory, for example, is lord of all of the Blue Plains. Corizen has been forced into a very harsh subjection to just a few greedy rulers. It has been very much to our disadvantage,” Randa said, her voice tight with anger.
“We do have some of the conveniences that you have experienced growing up. Of course, we have running water and infrastructure in the cities. But it is all provided by the labor and money of the poorer classes while the wealthy live in ease. It is difficult to live so near others who have so much, as you do as Citizens. It is easy for the King to tell us that the Union is to blame for all of our problems. It gives people a target, distracting them from the more obvious targets in our own upper castes,” she continued. Andie listened in fascination. She had experienced hostility just because she was a Citizen from the moment she had arrived, and the Denicorizen hatred of all things from the Union was legendary back home, but she had never considered that the Denicorizen king himself might be creating that. She had always just thought of the Denicorizens as violent people. She leaned forward, eager to understand as Randa continued on.
“However, some of us desire freedom and an end to the caste system. The Nobles have a right to be prosperous, I have no doubt of that. However, I believe that we—all the people of Corizen—should have a say in the laws of our country. I also believe that the upper castes should shoulder an equal burden with the taxes, rather than leaving it to those who can least afford it. So I have become part of an organization that is working for those goals. We simply call ourselves the Resistance.”
Andie stared at her deliverer in awe. Obviously Randa was more than the simple servant that she had taken her for. Randa paused and looked Andie directly in the eyes. She had a penetrating gaze, dark brown eyes burning with intensity.
“I would be so pleased if you would join us. At least until we can return you to your home planet,” she offered.
Andie thought for a moment. It wasn’t like she had much of a choice. Finally she shrugged. “All right. Count me in. As long as I am here anyway.”
♦
Life in the Resistance base was very different from life as Jaory’s pet servant. Andie soon learned that the building she lived in housed a factory, which was the cover for all the Resistance operations. Many of the workers were clandestine members of the Resistance, while some were not. The building had three levels underground, not easily accessible from the main factory floors, and it was in this secret area the local leaders of the Resistance lived and worked. Randa had found a small room for Andie on the deepest level, furnished as plainly as her room at Jaory’s, only without the elaborate bathroom. At first Andie hated it—as horrible as Jaory’s estate had been, she had still spent hours outdoors every day. Now she was perpetually stuck deep underground. With her pale skin, she stood out like a beacon. News of a Citizen in the city was sure to travel at light speed, and it was too much to hope that Jaory would never hear of it. So she tried her best to accept the situation as it was. Patience, she told herself every night when the walls seemed to be closing in. It’s just for a few months until Jaory forgets all about me. Hoping to keep the news from spreading, Randa kept Andie out of sight of all but the most trusted members of the leadership. She even changed Andie’s name. Though in private Randa continued to call Andie by her real name, to everyone else she was just “Sirra,” an old Denicorizen word meaning “quiet one.”
That first night, after the factory had closed down for the night, Randa showed A
ndie around the main floor of the Resistance base casually (it was the first basement level). Mostly it just looked like a big printing office. She explained that the movement at this time was mostly used to educate people about the tyranny they lived under. “Since most of our population is illiterate or only poorly educated, the first thing we have been working on is setting up small schools to educate the peasants and slaves,” Randa told Andie as they walked past a table where people were folding pamphlets. “In fact, that is what I was doing at Jaory’s. Out at the town, I set up a small clandestine school to teach people to read. When I had the chance, I taught one or two of the servants that I knew were willing to learn. I also taught you a little, if you’ll remember,” she reminded. “Best student I ever had,” she added with a smile. Andie seriously doubted that, but she knew that Randa was an excellent teacher. No doubt she had been successful in her mission to Kruundin Village.
“I taught them all I could and then it was time to leave, and I brought you with me. However, teaching is not all we do,” Randa paused. “We are also trying to get trade opened with the Union.” She glanced at Andie, her expression hopeful.
“The influx of money could possibly make our world more equal. But most of all, it would give our organization the chance to make powerful alliances with outside forces.” She stopped and turned to look back over the tables. Finally her gaze returned to Andie.
“This is why we need your help,” she stated quietly, eyes searching Andie’s face beseechingly. “If we are to become friends of the Citizens, we need a Citizen guide—for customs, language, contacts, anything you can help us with.”
Andie pondered what she was asking. Here were a people who desperately wanted equality and peace on their planet, and she was in a position to help. Of course it could be dangerous, but it also offered a possible way to get home eventually. Andie looked at Randa’s lined face and her fervently bright eyes. She obviously believed very strongly in this work.
“I will do what I can to help,” Andie promised. Randa pressed Andie’s hands between her own.
“In return, I promise that one day we will help you return home.”
♦
When it became clear just how much of a leader Randa was in this movement though, Andie began to wonder why Randa would risk so much just to open a school on the other side of the continent. Surely there were others who could do so? But snippets of overheard conversations confirmed her suspicions about the silent figures who stole into the headquarters at odd hours and left quite suddenly. There was more than just teaching going on in these village schools. They were also gathering intelligence, probably reporting on different prominent Nobles in the area. Soon Andie was pretty sure that was what Randa had been doing at Jaory’s.
It was so strange to discover that Randa was an intelligent, gifted force in this secret movement, instead of the timid servant Andie had known at Jaory’s. Randa’s husband had been one of the original founders of the Resistance, a successful businessman and landowner who had grown more and more dissatisfied with the King’s iron grip on his life. Her husband had passed away several years ago, but the other leaders had found her to be an invaluable asset. To the public, the grieving, wealthy widow had retired from view except for rare appearances. She still kept a home in Roma but spent quite a bit of time posing as a servant in various households on the other side of the world.
“I was an actress before I married,” Randa explained one evening to Andie as they met in Andie’s little room. She settled onto Andie’s bed and stretched her legs out. “I even picked up quite a bit of experience with costumes and makeup,” she explained. “That’s how I got the job at Jaory’s. He was looking for a free servant with some skill with hairstyles and makeup. All part of his plan to take care of his Citizen slave, once he acquired one. I had been at Jaory’s for only a month when those smugglers showed up with you.” Randa shook her head at the memory. Andie cringed. Even the memory of meeting Jaory for the first time made her skin crawl uncomfortably. She was desperately trying to control her fear when a sudden thought banished her cruel enemy from her mind for the time being. Her understanding of the Denicorizen castes was still hazy, but she was pretty sure that the wife of a businessman would not be Servile caste. Yet only a Servile caste member would be a free servant. Frowning, her eyes sought the small tattoo on Randa’s neck that proved her caste.
“Randa!” Andie gasped. “What happened to your caste tattoo?”
Randa reached a hand to her neck and absently rubbed. A slow smile spread across her neck. “We’re trying to abolish the caste system, you know. Why should I announce to everyone what caste I belong to? Besides, no one would hire me as a servant if they knew I was Gallant caste. One of Morek-Li’s first purchases from the smugglers was a nifty little Citizen-made machine that can remove tattoos without leaving a mark.” She shrugged. “Every time I go out as a servant I use a fake one. It doesn’t last forever, but no one has figured it out yet.”
Andie shook her head. Randa took such horrible risks! Even though she had been on Corizen less than a year, Andie knew that pretending to be a member of a different caste was a capital offense. Randa could get herself hanged for that. It wasn’t a pleasant thought. If something happened to Randa, what would happen to Andie? Randa was her security, her protection from a hostile world.
Helping Randa’s organization started with teaching Union Basic to the local Resistance leaders. Oh, what a challenging first few weeks! While Andie’s Denicorizen was better than ever, her Basic was growing rusty, and she never was meant to be a teacher. However, she was determined to do well and honor her promise, so she struggled on while her students struggled valiantly to learn from her.
Andie also gave Citizen culture lessons every week, where she shared a different aspect of government, history, literature, entertainment, or other areas that she happened to think of that would give the Denicorizens some understanding of Citizens. It was a tall order for Andie. She felt she was even worse at this than the language lessons, especially with history. Not to mention that the Union consisted of six Class I (or governing) planets, plus the frontier planets like Zenith. Andie hardly knew much about the other Union members. The only thing she felt comfortable talking about was the Armada, and she hoped that eventually her students would start to see it as mostly a peacekeeping and exploration force rather than a massive army bent on taking control of Corizen.
Randa and her friends asked who they should communicate with, and Andie gave them the name of Kelly’s mother. After all, she was the one who really wanted to open Corizen trade. Andie thought briefly about asking them to deliver a message to her that could be eventually given to her parents, but decided against it since she knew that the message, like all others, had to go through the smugglers and would certainly get back to Jaory.
Time passed rather quickly and Andie even began to make a few nodding acquaintances. However, it didn’t take long for her to start getting edgy. Being hidden all the time made her feel like a prisoner, even worse than at Jaory’s. Eventually Andie’s underground existence led to depression, and she moped about. Randa was concerned and probed for the reason, but Andie didn’t want her to think she was ungrateful for all her help. Andie wasn’t ungrateful—she was just having trouble adjusting to this new way of life. It was funny; she had made the transition to being a slave in Jaory’s house more easily, in a way. Of course that had required torture and brainwashing and medication. It had been a heavy price to pay. She still had nightmares about Oanni almost every night.
Gradually Andie got used to her new situation, although she was not exactly happy. She began to learn who some of the important people were and what they were doing. Jerrapo, Thane, and Wassim were Randa’s fellow members of the committee who ran the Resistance in Urok, the continent they lived on. Jerrapo was a fiery young woman who Andie learned was actually the niece of the King. The King thought she was dead, the work of his assassins. And
why did he order her assassinated? Apparently Jerrapo had complained to her brother, a devout Royalist, that the King could do a better job. Hence the assassins (to avoid the public embarrassment of charging a niece with treason). Jerrapo was as much a beauty as Andie’s sister, although in a different way. She had a chiseled face, full lips and high cheekbones. Her jet black hair flowed in waves to her waist if she let it down (usually she pinned it up for convenience). She stood an imposing six feet tall, towering over Andie.
Thane was an elderly man with fine white hair and grizzled cheeks. Andie liked Thane immensely, as he immediately welcomed her and treated her like a long-lost relative. Wassim was a middle-aged man who went around with a creased forehead and a grim face. Andie didn’t think Wassim was naturally austere, but the stress of revolution probably kept him grim. Morek- Li was the actual head of the movement, and he was quite an impressive man. Andie only saw him once when he visited Croask on a trip from the capital city. It was shocking to find out that the movement was worldwide. When Randa told her that they had people throughout the two populated continents, her jaw dropped open. This was a grand scale operation, not some minor uprising.
As Randa clarified, the main base was actually on the other continent, Gamba. Roma, the capital city and home of the King, was there. Apparently the movement was stronger on Gamba, simply because the closer one got to the King, the more people disliked him. But out here on Urok, things were a different matter because men like Jaory had too strong of control over the people, without being quite so personally disliked.
After a month, Andie was beginning to recognize most of the regular faces from the base. Many of the people she saw quite often, and of course, she recognized the students from her classes. Randa left to return for a short while to Roma, where as the respected widow of a prominent businessman and landowner, she had to make an appearance once in awhile. However, Andie was not lonely in her absence; finally, she had started to make a few friends.
The Legend of Sirra Bruche Page 16
