by Holly Barbo
The young man nodded. “I understand. Yes, that is our job, but what if something goes wrong? By putting most all of First Financial’s capital into one project, we could lose everything if Pharma’s project goes bad!”
The older man sat back in his chair in exasperation. “Listen. You come highly recommended from Raj’t. You’re the brother of his new son-in-law, but I won’t be questioned by you. Let me assure you with information that will not be repeated outside of this room.” T’flon leveled his piercing gaze at his assistant until the younger man nodded.
“It doesn’t matter if Chemedco Pharma’s project succeeds or not. Our investments are covered by a default insurance that the Council of Elders’ financial division set up. Well… we guided them into structuring that fund to hedge our bet that an investment will pay off. All of our loans, even the inconsequential home or business loans like the milliner’s, have that insurance. If our clients pay their loans, we get our money back with interest. If they don’t—we get our money back with insurance. We win either way. We still only have a limited amount of funds that the Council has issued us. Pharma is using it. And if their big project succeeds under the time limit for the loan, we’ll get a big bonus, as they have agreed to give us a percentage of the profits. Our job is to make money! The more we make, the better we are. If we make a lot, we get rewarded by our shareholders.
“Let’s take the milliner’s business as an example. She was making payments on her loan. Everything was fine. But we needed more liquid funds for the Pharma project, so we closed her loan down. Without her loan to use during slow times of the month, she had to close her business. Since we have a greater likelihood of making money with Chemedco Pharma, it behooves us to put our money there.”
“But sir, what about the milliner? She still owes us some money but doesn’t have a business to earn the money to pay us back!”
His boss shook his head. “Listen! It doesn’t matter. That’s her problem, not ours. The loan has collateral. Frequently, it’s a home. Sometimes they own the building their business is in. If she can’t pay back the loan, we’ll have the property to sell. We don’t lose money with any transaction. There. Is. No. Risk. Now let’s get back to these ledgers and stop discussing inconsequential things.”
As the two bent their heads over their books, they didn’t hear the soft swish of skirts as Pos’et moved away from the door and down the stairs.
When the young woman reached the sidewalk, she raised her arm, signaling her car that she was ready to depart. The sleek silver steam car pulled alongside and, throwing the gear into park, the chauffeur leaped out and opened the door for her. Inside was her lifelong friend. Both women had graduated from school with honors. Pos’et in accounting and Sh’ar in pharmacology/chemistry, and neither were taken seriously by their families. Pos’et’s skills were seen as an asset for keeping household accounts and was married off to her much older husband. Sh’ar managed to choose her own husband but wasn’t allowed to use her training in the family business. At twenty-two years of age, they had their whole life ahead of them and commiserated at the restraints.
Pos’et settled beside her without a sound. When the luxurious vehicle moved into traffic, she turned to her companion, who was watching her expectantly. “Sh’ar, just what is the big project your father and Chemedco are working on?”
The woman raised her brunette brows. “I really don’t know. Father never tells me anything about the business even though I’m qualified. He can’t adjust to the fact that I’m a female. My William has been working long hours on something for Pharma, but he won’t discuss it. He’s such a dear man! He’s trying so hard to prove to Father that my choice of a husband was a good one. I tell him it doesn’t matter, but he wants to be accepted by our family and peers.” She reached out and touched Pos’et’s hand. “You’d better tell me what has you so upset!”
Pos’et took a deep breath and relayed what she had just learned. “I know that T’flon married me to be a decoration, so I strive to be what he expects and keep him happy, but there are things happening on Myrn that are disturbing, including what I overheard. I’m sure you noticed how many businesses are closed. Somehow, that is related. I know it!”
Sh’ar nodded. “I’ll see if I can learn anything from William.” She looked up as the car pulled to the curb with a puff of steam. “Oh, we’re here.” She laughed. “I lose track of time when I’m talking to you.”
The driver gave the two ladies a nod of respect as they stepped from the car and made their way into the restaurant. He paused a moment before adjusting his driving goggles and pulled away from the curb. He had just enough time to relay to Jordan what he’d heard before he was expected back here to pick them up after lunch.
Trying to Make Sense
Kes slipped the little leather-bound book into the cargo pocket on his thigh. The story was titled Sunstones, and it was a handwritten version of the creation story, but the ending was different from the usual fare. It said the Goddess’s staff had actually touched two very small navorites and that they had been imbued with a tiny bit of her holy power. At the end of the story were drawings of some navorites. It seemed to be a harmless variation of the story, except he knew that M’nacht’s fossil and his were two halves of one of the navorites sketched there. He guessed that M’nacht’s purchase of this unexpected little book was what triggered the home invasion and beating. Yet none of this answered the questions that buzzed in his head.
He’d been at the shrine for four days and still didn’t understand. He rose from his seat on the craggy outcropping near the back of the shrine and climbed down to the garden. Sola was gathering some mid-season fruit and looked up when he approached.
“Sola, I’m still confused. I accept what you and Bareed have told me. I certainly can’t refute the hand of the Goddess in what has happened. I would be a complete fool to do so. Just the circumstances around me being here are outside of normal occurrences. It is proof of her power. Thinking over what you have told me and what little information is in the journal M’nacht found, I am left with more questions than answers. I need answers. With what happened to M’nacht… who would do that to an old man? I don’t know what game they’re playing, but it’s deadly serious. I can’t ignore all of this… but I don’t understand it and I’ve been trying to. Where can I go? Do they follow me until I turn and fight? Do they follow me until they capture or kill me? Who is behind me… trying to find me? Why? I assume it is the Sunstone, but why? There are more pieces missing than present! I sense there are several dangerous ones that I haven’t discovered yet. I’m afraid even to begin to piece this together, yet I am aware with every heartbeat that I need to have answers yesterday!” His hands fisted as he struggled to keep from yelling.
Sola put her basket down and walked over to the pitcher of nectar that was always nearby. She poured both of them a cup, then leaned against a tree at the garden’s edge. “Kes, you are important as you hold the Mother Stone. Whoever it is that is searching probably doesn’t know much but suspects that the existence of Sunstones is more than an almost-forgotten legend, and sees them as either a threat or a power they can use. M’nacht must have inadvertently triggered their attention by some action. I can only assume that they want the Sunstones. Because of your link to M’nacht, they are most likely looking for you. Whatever it is that’s going on, their determination indicates that the Mother Stone was found just in time. If you can’t solve this puzzle… if you give up or are captured… I believe there are ramifications that can affect all of us. If you have no confidence in yourself and what you can do, then at least have faith in what you believe in and call truth. You can’t go back. There is no future behind you. You must go forward. As one of the Goddess’s chosen ones, you can go through the gate. Why don’t you go sit by the pool? Perhaps the Goddess will bring you some answers.”
Kes nodded. Acknowledging Sola’s reasonable assessment, he swallowed back his frustration and went back for his pack and the journal. He w
anted both with him if he was going to be at the holy spring. In awe that he would be alone beside the golden pool, there was a part of him that wanted to study it and take notes.
Going through the gate for the first time was an eerie experience. He could feel the currents of energy that kept the petals and leaves spinning in their slow downward spiral. It was like nothing he had ever felt before. Somehow, it was invigorating and at the same time felt like a loving caress he remembered his mother giving him. He knew that sensation was only because the Goddess accepted him. He had hidden in the shadows of Bareed’s home when a pilgrim had visited two days before. The man had a sick child and was desperate to pray directly at the pool’s edge. He wanted to be within touching distance of where the Goddess was known to appear. But the energy at the gate wouldn’t let him past, rebuffing him every time he tried to force his way through. His desperation and despair were palpable. Sola soothed him with the nectar and gave him a small flask of it for his sick child. There’d been at least one person making the pilgrimage to the shrine every day. Usually the prayers were about an illness in the family or for guidance relating to financial hardship: the loss of a home, business or the need for their children to work in the factories.
To disguise Kes and make him look like he’d been working at the shrine for months, Sola had rubbed a herbal bleaching cream into his hair before braiding it into a mass of small spikes in the fashion of an acolyte. He’d taken to wearing, over his own clothing, a flowing shirt in the Goddess’s color tones of gold and russet. Coupled with his deepening tan, Kes didn’t resemble the young scientist of a week before. But he always stayed out of the way, not wanting to draw any undue attention.
He settled beside the golden water and looked into the smooth surface. He began to murmur his prayers to the Goddess, first thanking her for the blessings he had and appreciating her choosing him for this task. Kes stopped and organized his thoughts. In a voice barely above a whisper, he asked to be shown what he needed to do. He didn’t understand his role and feared his ignorance would prevent him from performing his task… whatever it was. After a while, the young man’s thoughts stilled, and he began the soothing task Sola usually did. Reaching into the nearby basket, he began to dip the prepared rhamats into the blessed water. He was on his fifth one when he heard the hiss and chug of an approaching steam car. It was too late for him to disappear beyond the garden or house. Kes picked up his pack and scanned the area for a place to hide. He heard Sola’s soft voice as she passed near the gate.
“There’s a hollow between the tree and the rocks, where the ferns grow tall.”
Kes had just enough time to crouch in the shadowed niche before the steam car crested the hill. Bareed stepped from the house and moved toward Sola in the open area before the shrine.
As the steam car came to a stop, the two passengers climbed out and paused as they surveyed the area. One stepped to the goggled driver and said something in a low voice before turning to Sola and Bareed.
Bareed gave them a smile and bowed. “Welcome to Navora’s holy shrine.”
The tall blond man didn’t return the smile. His stare was cool and appraising as he examined both caretakers. “How long have you lived here? Are you part of the shaman sect? Are there any other people living here?” He walked over to the gate and reached out to grab the floating petals and leaves. With a nearly inaudible gasp, he yanked his hand back and instead turned to go through the gate archway to the golden pool beyond, only to be rebuffed by the Goddess’s energy again. Snarling, he turned back to Sola. “Turn off your tricks! I’ve been sent to search all out-of-the-way shrines for contraband and fugitives. The Council has heard of shamans stirring up trouble and spreading falsehoods. Citizens are restless and discontent, and it is because of you charlatans!”
Sola was a bit taken aback at his hostility, but when she answered her voice was calm and clear. “We are neither shaman nor charlatans but are caretakers for this shrine for Navora. It is a hereditary position, and my grandfather and I serve only the Goddess. We know nothing of discontented Myrn citizens or the happenings beyond this duty and shrine. As for the energy of the Goddess’s gate…” The young woman shrugged. “It is Her power and we can’t turn it off any more than we could turn off the sun.”
The man’s lip curled and his manner was threatening as he moved so close Sola could feel his body heat. Bareed took a step nearer, but when he spoke, his voice was calm. “You are welcome here as are any pilgrim who travels here for blessings or to pray.”
The man pushed Sola toward Bareed and she staggered, falling at her grandfather’s feet. “Stay out of my way. I have orders to search here!” He motioned to his companion, and his driver got out of the car and stood guard over Bareed, who was struggling to help Sola to her feet. The two men pushed into the home, and the two caretakers could hear doors slamming and things breaking. When they came out, they headed toward the garden but there was no place to hide anything. The blond man whirled again toward the Goddess’s gate.
“How do I get back there?” he demanded.
Bareed tilted his head at the man. “Navora’s energy doesn’t allow anyone to pass through but her chosen caretakers.”
The man growled under his breath as he whirled upon Sola. He grabbed the young woman and held her against him.
Bareed yelled, “Let her go!”
Behind the ferns, Kes struggled. He wanted to jump up and defend his friends and hit the arrogant son-of-a-rock-mite but there was a pressure holding him in place. A breeze touched his face as he silently implored the Goddess to let him go.
The big man rubbed up against Sola and whispered against the folds of her headdress, “Such a small waist for a shaman woman. I’ll bet you’re hot in those robes. My men and I can help you out of them.” His hand slid down and he squeezed her bottom as he rubbed her against his body. “Hmm. I’ll bet you are hungry to ride a man. Patience, my sweet rabble rouser. You will get me through that gate so we can complete my assigned search, then we’ll scratch your itch. Now turn around and assure your grandpa, or he’ll get hurt. He doesn’t look like he’s tough enough to live through a fight with us. Now be a good girl and do as you’re told.” In a single movement, he spun her around, so Sola’s backside was against him. He laughed low as he pressed her back against his growing staff. “Better talk to him, now!”
Sola raised her voice so her words rang clear to all in the area. “Bareed, be at ease. This man just wants to search beyond the Goddess’s gate and thinks I’m the key to letting him in. Both of us have tried to tell him that no one but those chosen by the Goddess can pass. That decision is Hers, not ours.”
Her grandfather sagged into his chair, all fight gone out of him. “So be it.”
The big man nodded and, holding Sola tight against him, strode to the energy gate. Every step rubbed her against his hardness, and he was thinking that, once through the energy field that had barred him before, he would have the pretty thing, then complete his search.
The breeze quickened and the petals and leaves spun in agitation. As the pair stepped directly beneath the arch, the man laughed with the success of his plan. Lightning snapped and Sola fell through the gate, lying stunned beside the pool. The big blond man was violently ejected, thrown back nearly to the hissing steam car by the force of the snapping energy in the air. Thunder crashed in the cloudless sky. The driver knelt beside the fallen man, and the third ran from Bareed’s side and looked down upon his companion. There were severe bruises from the top of his head to his knees and finger tips. The standing man turned to Bareed accusingly.
“What did you do? You’ll be arrested for assaulting Paul!”
“We did nothing but told you the truth. We’re caretakers of the Goddess’s shrine, not these shaman people you were talking about. Navora has always protected this shrine.”
A salt-tinged wind spun again into a forceful eddy. Leaves, twigs and grass were swept off the ground into the whirling tempest that began to roughly resemble a towe
ring woman, her hair whipping behind her. The cyclonic form spun on a direct path toward the visitors and their vehicle. The message was clear and the two men wasted no time in loading their companion into the car. There was a hiss as the steam built and the car chuffed into gear, speeding out of sight. As quickly as it had arisen, the wind died, leaving a clutter of debris in front of the shrine.
On shaky legs, Bareed rushed through the archway to Sola. Stiff, she slowly stood and turned toward the ferns… but Kes was gone.
Overlooking the Sea
It was the wind blowing tiny shards of rock against his face that woke him. Awareness came in slow increments at first, building to full understanding. It had happened again! Kes sat up and opened his eyes, surveying his surroundings. He was on a craggy cliff overlooking the sea, and there was a small domed building behind him. Nodding to himself, Kes got to his feet with care. He knew this place. The wind was quite strong here on Tempest Point, and it could knock him off his feet if he didn’t take precautions. His first goal was to get inside and out of the buffeting gusts. Making his way to the door, he turned the small crank that popped the latch on the numbered cubes. Each cube had a specific weight. He had to put them in the awaiting slots in a certain order. The pressure plate in each channel would register the weight and either release the lock on the door or spill the cubes back into the box. He had two tries or he would have to wait outside in the wind for ten hours until the box unlocked again. He hoped the code hadn’t been changed. His eyes lost focus as he thought of the last time he’d been there.
It had been mere weeks since his mother’s accidental death, and his father had kept young Kes with him as he went about his scientific duties. That particular day, M’nacht had joined them as they traveled to the most remote scientific annex on Myrn to check through old records for data they needed. On the way up the windy, unpaved road, M’nacht had explained that this place had almost constant storms, which made it undesirable for homes or businesses. The scientists had been able to buy the land at an extremely low price for their archival use. That day, M’nacht had also been given the task of resetting the lock code. Kes had been holding onto his father’s leg so he wouldn’t be flattened by the winds. M’nacht had given the child a wink as he asked, “What shall we set the lock code to, hmm? How about your birthday?”
