“These are hovercrafts. You have to take a licensing exam to drive them and they allow you to get in the mountains quicker. There’s no wheels, so they work over ice, snow, or the ground. They use an electromagnetic pulse to hover and we’ll have to tweak it if we bring them to Ragnis Crystal. We can probably find a way to make them a little safer, but then it would be less fun.”
“Should we be on this with you pregnant?”
She winked at him and climbed on one that was the same color green as her pod. “Get on the back and wrap your arms around my waist. Jovin officially started teaching me to drive when I was twelve and the legal age, but I know how to hack into the starting system and start one illegally. I started sneaking down here and learning to drive since I was nine. We won’t get into an accident.”
“Did you get caught?”
“Several times. You’ll see why I kept doing it anyway when we get going. Put this on.”
She handed him a helmet and goggles and put her own pair on. The hovercraft wasn’t like her pod. It was loud when it roared to life and kicked up off the ground. She pressed a button and the entire thing shot forward so fast Elan couldn’t help tightening his arms around her. Cendian pods weren’t as smooth as Isolde’s, but they weren’t as bumpy as the hovercraft. Isolde controlled it like an expert, avoiding rocks and maneuvering over hills.
Before he knew it, he was towards the top of a tall, snow-covered mountain surrounded by majestic, straight trees with rough bark. He pulled off his helmet and adjusted his hair. The trees had a smell, it was strong, but pleasant. He didn’t know if it was the strange needles like branches or the sap he could see on the bark.
“Come out, Soelva! I can feel you.”
Isolde had described Soelva as a species of bear, but when Soelva came out the clearing, she was unlike any bear he had ever seen. She had to be at least nine feet tall with fur the same black color as Isolde’s hair. Her nose was the same color red as Isolde’s lips and her claws looked just as deadly as Tati’s. Both Tati and Soelva were larger than other animals in their species and they shared traits with their humans. Tati’s eyes were red like Elan’s and Soelva’s nose was red. Elan wondered what it meant.
“Gentle king, it is nice to finally see your face.”
“Why do you call me the same thing Tati does?”
“That is what we all call you.”
“What does that mean?”
“There is no time for that now. I am speaking to both of you now. When you get to Ragnis Crystal, there is a blue fruit there. It is called the Night Guava. Isolde must drink juice made from it until she gives birth and Elan, you must drink it too. All thirty-two of you born that night must drink this and you must keep it a secret until we tell you otherwise.”
“No, Soelva. Not until you tell me why,” Isolde snapped. “I’m not drinking the juice of some mysterious fruit while I’m pregnant until I know exactly what it’s doing to us.”
Soelva chuckled. “That fruit has a twin that used to exist on Cendis and Avala. It’s how the Cendian and Avalians look the way they do now. There was a purpose for these genetic changes. The genetic markers for hair and eye color in all of you have a dampener on them you cannot find in tests. Elan is not meant to have white hair and red eyes and Isolde is not meant to have black hair and green eyes. The fruit will help your children and it will remove the dampener. It will also unlock several other dampeners.
In time, you will introduce the fruit to the rest of the people and you will have a diverse population again.”
“Why did all of you feel the need to change us on a genetic level? What are we, Soelva?”
“I have a feeling you will refuse unless I tell you things you are not meant to hear yet. The humans that left earth didn’t leave because of the doomsday clock. They left before the clock was ever invented. They left during a major world war. You would know it as World War II. The Avalians came from a cold place that meant to remain neutral during the war and the Cendians came from a hot desert climate with their own military. The humans that came from Avala were developing a space program in secret, as were the humans that came from Cendis. It was well beyond the science of its time and they had help from external forces.
“The humans that left on their ships left for different reasons. The humans from the cold place thought the war meant the destruction of the planet and fled for greener passage. The people on the ship were hand-picked for the type of people they wanted on the planet they ended up at. Logical, calm, and intelligent people.
“The desert people had a strong belief in their god and believed in omens. The intent was to follow who they viewed as cowards into space and end them. Everyone who signed up was sure it was a suicide mission, but there were volunteers. People to make a settlement if they found a home.
“As you can imagine, there were certain flaws in their theories. Humans did not actually start exploring space for another ten years or so, so the ships were built from ideas and just enough help to get them off earth. They realized once they got into space, they made certain miscalculations. The desert people and the frozen people worked together instead of destroying each other. They came to a truce when they found Cendis and Avala.
“They knew before they landed these planets may not be livable, but they could not stay on their ships anymore and would die anyway. The ice people helped the desert people land with the understanding they would never speak again, but the desert people hated the ice people. They blamed them for the faulty ship and having to go on this mission. They vowed in secret to attack the other planet once they could figure out how.
“The changes you know, they were made for a reason. The ice people were fair, with light hair and light eyes. The desert people had bronze skin with dark hair and dark eyes, but when a child was born with green eyes, they thought the child blessed. They feared punishment from a red-eyed god.
“The desert people were given red eyes and fair hair and the ice people were given dark hair and green eyes. This was done in the hopes if they ever faced each other again, they would see parts of themselves in their foe. They would realize they were all out here alone and needed to work together for both societies to flourish. Centuries passed and punishments were given waiting for humans to figure this out for themselves. An intervention was made the night all of you were born and all of you are more than we could have hoped for.”
Elan had to take a second to take all that in. That was totally different than what they had been taught. They had always been told humans fled earth shortly before it’s destruction sometime in the year 2050. Where did that story come from anyway? Isolde wasn’t buying it.
“They didn’t even have solar cars in the forties! They couldn’t have made a ship like the ones we have on Cendis and Avala then!”
“They had help, little warrior. Help was given in every continent on earth and they didn’t listen. It was a dark time for humanity and even we didn’t know if you would destroy yourselves. We reached out and tried to help some of you escape the destruction.”
Isolde’s arms were crossed and she was glaring at Soelva like she would have attacked her if she weren’t a huge bear. “And does earth still exist? Why not just send us back?”
“None of you would assimilate back into earth. All you know is twisted history that has been passed down. Earth is very different now. The governments are corrupt and World War III and IV already reduced several countries to barren wastelands. Would you prefer returning to a war-torn planet you know nothing about or to start over on Ragnis Crystal and create something better.”
“What am I, Soelva?” Isolde shrieked. “You created us, what are we?”
Elan rushed over to hold her, but angry tears were flowing down her face and he knew exactly how she felt. Soelva was finally answering some of their questions, but she was telling them everything they knew was false and whatever she really was, they had been meddling with humans right down to their genes way before the night they intervened when Elan and the
rest of them were born.
“Tiny warrior, none of this was said to upset you. Answers will be given to all of you when all of us are together again on The Voyager to Ragnis Crystal. Punishment was not just given to humans. All of us that speak to you, we have been punished too. If you want answers sooner, get all of us together with all of you on The Voyager and you will know everything.”
Isolde was starting to struggle and Elan had to tighten his arm around her. She might have been too angry to read through the lines of Soelva’s statement.
“Isolde, I think what Soelva is trying to say is that they might have been punished for what they did to the humans before us and the reason she and Tati don’t always give us the information we ask for is because they might be going through tests too. They can’t give us the answers we want until everyone has passed, even them. Maybe us boarding the ship and making the jump means all the tests are done.”
He’d never seen her cry before, but she practically sagged in his arms. “They aren’t, Elan. If we aren’t human, then the Dysdaimon aren’t either and they could come for us at any time. They’ll either already have a blink drive or we know they are smart. They’ll find a way through the wormhole. Even if they don’t come for us on Ragnis Crystal, we’re leaving people with no military. They’ll try to divide us and attack Cendis and Avala at the same time to draw us out.”
“Listen to your instincts, little warrior. They’ve always served you well and will continue to do so. It is not good for you to get so upset. Go home and be with Elan. I promise, answers will come.”
Elan didn’t think Isolde let herself cry very often, but she quickly composed herself and went back to her hovercraft. She pulled her helmet and goggles on where he could hardly see her face anymore.
“Let’s just go, Elan. I just want to get back to my bedroom and feel your arms around me.”
Chapter 46
Avala was almost exactly like Cendis. All of the slaves wanted to come to Ragnis Crystal and almost all of the population aside from maybe four hundred citizens on each planet chose to stay behind. Isolde was still on Avala with the others trying to arrange the ships and migration. People seemed to think they should be first aboard The Voyager based on their social status, but they had all agreed that wasn’t going to happen. It rankled the high born on both planets, but essential workers would be going over first.
They had already made the announcement and asked people to put forth their names if they had a certain skillset, even if it was only a hobby and not their regular jobs. The first round of migration would have all of the bond animals since Isolde desperately wanted to know what she was and several of the others did too. It would also have wood crafters, blacksmiths, physicians, farmers, and several machine operators. Half the cargo ships would be devoted to carrying belongings and the other half would carry any type of tools, machinery, and seedlings they would need.
She thought it was still too soon, but it had been three weeks since the day Tati informed her she was pregnant and Fjola insisted she see the physician. Once Elan heard that, he started nagging too. All the doctor could do was confirm at this point and if they set the moon on fire that night, she already knew Tati was right about her being pregnant.
She took a break like everyone asked and got prodded by the doctor. It was the same physician who prescribed her the capsules she took with her and he kept asking if she changed her mind or just forgot to take them. He confirmed what they all already knew and sent her on her way with supplements. She wasn’t even sure if she was supposed to take them since she had been instructed to drink or eat the Night Guava. She didn’t want to change her children’s DNA while they were in the womb and she thought it was something more than that.
After the military had collected a list of names, they went through and started picking people. They were still in close contact with Sartika, Galih, Ace, and the others. If Elan didn’t know them, one of them did. They decided to take an equal number from each planet so no one thought they were playing favorites. The first migration would have a hundred Cendians and a hundred Avalians. They would be bringing eight ships to use for cargo. The next few migrations would hold more people, but they needed to use a large area of The Voyager to house all thirty-two bond animals. When she asked Soelva if there were others that just didn’t have a human to bond with, the only information she would give her was that there were only thirty-two.
That just added to Isolde’s million questions. If Soelva was old enough to know about the original humans, then the bond animals must be immortal or really hard to kill. Why were there only thirty-two of them left? Or were some continuing to be punished and left behind? She asked and Soelva said she would learn on The Voyager, just like she had promised.
The day finally came where they were meant to board and travel to Cendis to pick everyone up. Soelva and the others were waiting near the platform and scared every single person waiting to board. They knew the bond animals were meant to come, but they had never seen one before. Soelva found it quite amusing and kept sniggering in her head when everyone gave them a wide berth to board first.
Isolde knew about The Voyager, but had never been inside. Fjola had done well with the design. It was a mix of Cendian and Avalian and no one should feel out of place. After everyone boarded, she snuck back to her chambers with Elan. Fjola must have changed them after watching her on Cendis. Almost everything she loved about the planet had been added where it could. She grabbed Elan and pulled him onto the bed with her.
“Why are there beds if you have the blink drive?” he asked, nibbling on her ear.
“I think Fjola is trying to buy my forgiveness with this bed.”
“Well, we aren’t exactly going to have time to put it to use, now are we? We’re packing my bed and your mattress.”
“Yes, we will. It took five days to pack everything up on Avala. We’re going to have to sleep in here after your bed is packed up. Your bed is going to have to be dismantled, so they’ll have to start that the first day.” She started to tug at his tunic.
He chuckled and removed her hands. “You’re adorable when you pout, but we can’t right now. That blink drive is going to have us in Cendian airspace in seconds then it’s just a matter of landing. We don’t have time.”
“You’re already telling me no?” she teased.
“No, I’m telling you later. I’ll make it up to you. Listen, they are counting down to jump now.”
Before she knew it, they were landing on Cendis at the coordinates Galih provided. She stepped out to a crowd that missed them, but she expected to see Tati and the others. She called out to Soelva and was told they wouldn’t come out and frighten the people here. Isolde had no idea what Soelva was expecting once they got on the ship. They would eventually wander down to the hall and see her.
Tati and the other seemed to be avoiding them and they couldn’t go out to her area of the forest and talk to her because they were too busy organizing things. Everyone knew they would be getting answers once all the bond animals were together, but the Cendian bond animals had gone silent and weren’t answering anyone.
Everyone who had met their mates had taken them to meet their families. Surprisingly, only a few of them had unhappy parents that they chose their own mates and they were from another planet. Now that they were on Cendis, everyone had met all the family members of their mates. The unhappy parents had slowly come to accept it after seeing how happy their children were and they knew even if it had been standard, they couldn’t pick their spouse anymore.
Isolde knew what everyone was doing at night on the ship because the quarters were close together and she could feel a distinct buzz in the air at night. It was different than the electricity she felt around Elan. They talked and they both knew it was a different kind of bond than theirs being formed. It was obvious during the day that everyone was getting closer and were quite in love.
She thought Tati and the others might have some sort of beef with Soelva and the others, eve
n though they seemed to have been working together so far. She thought Tati might refuse to be on the same ship as them and whatever punishment they were going through wouldn’t stop. She hoped it didn’t mean they weren’t getting their answers.
It turned out she didn’t need to worry. Tati and the others were waiting the day everyone was meant to board to leave and everything was packed. Tati gave that same huffing noise when she found something funny when people looked afraid of her. They had different voices, but Tati and Soelva seemed to have a lot in common. The bond animals boarded first and seemed to know exactly where to go.
Isolde and the others patiently guided everyone aboard and when the ramp door closed, they all ran down to the hall the bond animals were staying in. The air was static and her long hair stood up like she had some sort of shock. Some of the electronics and computer systems in the room seemed to be shorting out a little. A voice came over the loudspeaker that take off would be delayed while they figured out some computer issues. She knew they meant from this room.
Tati and Soelva met each other, as did the other bond animals. They seemed to pair up. The large cats started rubbing their faces on the bears and winding themselves around them. Isolde didn’t know if she was getting dizzy and was going to faint, but Tati and Soelva seemed to blur together. She couldn’t tell where one ended and the other started. The blur seemed to get smaller, thinner, and a little shorter.
When the blur stopped, there was a woman standing there. She was tall, muscular, and had a fierce face. Her skin was darker than the bronzed skin of the Cendians. It was a dark shade of ebony and her hair was closely cropped. Her eyes were a startling shade of lilac. When Isolde looked around, there were sixteen people standing around, male and female, who were similar to this woman. They all had dark skin and faces of a warrior. Some wore their hair closely cropped and some had long, wild hair.
Child of Fire, Child of Ice-A Sci-fi Romance Series (The Waljan Chronicles Book 1) Page 36
