by Amy DuBoff
The councilwoman nodded. “Very well. Ryan Dainetris, step forward to receive your Mark.”
At the front of the podium, the machine that had extracted Ryan’s blood sample folded back inside and was replaced by another contraption with a curved acrylic platform the size of Ryan’s forearm and another metal component arching above.
“Place your left hand on the device, palm up,” the councilwoman instructed.
Ryan put his wrist in position. A needle plunged down from the upper arch into his skin, and then other components began to whir as a purple light passed over his wrist. With the passing of the light, the emblem of a flower began to take shape, glowing slightly just above the surface of his skin. Within seconds, the imprinting was complete and the light deactivated. The Mark was completely invisible to the naked eye. He removed his arm from the device.
The councilwoman folded her hands on the desktop. “Congratulations, Ryan Dainetris. May you have a long and prosperous reign.”
“Thank you,” he responded. That’s it? I’m an official Dynastic Head now?
“Regarding the previous matter,” the councilwoman continued, “I vote to confirm Raena’s nomination as Sietinen heir.”
Next to Ryan, he could see Raena fighting to keep a grin at bay.
The other council members confirmed the nomination, as well.
“The request has been ratified,” the councilwoman stated. “Do you have any other business to present?”
“No, that’s all. When will these changes become public record?” Cris asked the council.
“Meeting minutes will be filed in the morning,” the lead councilwoman replied. She looked to the councilman standing in the corner. “I suspect other news will travel more quickly.”
“I hadn’t anticipated a Priesthood mole on the council. We’ll have to act fast,” Cris said to Ryan and the others. “Faster than we’d planned.”
Ryan placed his right hand over his wrist bearing his new Mark. “Then let’s do it—tonight, before the Priesthood has all the details.”
Raena nodded. “I agree.”
“Your parents are going to hate we’re doing this without them…” Cris said.
“They’ll understand,” Raena replied.
Ryan took a deep breath and addressed the council. “Thank you. I’ll try to be a good leader for Tararia.”
The council members inclined their heads and the councilwoman smiled at him. “May the stars be with you.”
* * *
As soon as Raena had handed over custody of the rogue councilman to a complement of Tararian Guard soldiers, she raced with her grandparents and Ryan back to their shuttle.
“I can’t believe a councilman would be stupid enough to pull a gun on us!” she exclaimed while they ran. “Was that all him, or was he acting directly on the Priesthood’s orders?”
“No way of knowing,” Kate replied. “But I’m certain I don’t want to be anywhere near here.”
Cris grimaced. “If we weren’t already, we’re now officially at the top of the Priesthood’s hit list. Once we get back to the estate, we’ll have to hunker down and ride this out.”
The shuttle was parked on the roof of the administrative building in a government-dominated district of Sieten along the northern shore of Lake Tiadon. At the late evening hour, the other stalls for visitor crafts were empty, granting Raena a clear view across the flat rooftop. She glanced at the Sietinen estate perched on the hillside above and was surprised to see half a dozen crafts circling.
“Should those be up there?” she asked aloud, pointing toward the ships.
“Stars!” Cris breathed. “Those look like Tararian Guard.”
“Why would they be circling like that?” Ryan asked.
“No idea.” Cris pulled out his handheld from his pocket and initiated a call using its holographic video projector.
Marina answered after three seconds. “Bomax, Cris! What did you say during that meeting?”
“Just what we planned—except for the part where one of the councilmen tried to pull a gun on us,” he replied. “Raena took action.”
“Well, the four of you are wanted for questioning,” Marina explained. “If that’s how it happened, then there shouldn’t be a problem.”
“If a councilman was compromised, then we can’t trust the Tararia Guard, either. There’s no way I’ll risk a meeting with them,” Cris told her.
“Is Ryan confirmed?” Marina asked.
“Yes, all the documentation will be filed in the morning,” Kate said from next to Cris. “We just need a day. Try to get the Tararian Guard to back down.”
“You think I haven’t been trying that?” Marina groaned. “Hold on, let me see if I can get any more details about what they want, specifically.” The holographic image went dark, replaced by a small VComm logo.
“It’s probably me,” Raena said. “I did openly use telekinesis—while the code I cited is valid, I hadn’t actually seen the gun at the time I acted.”
“I believe the members of the council will back up our story,” Cris assured her. “My worry is that the Tararia Guard’s presence now is an excuse to get close to us rather than them just doing their due diligence.”
“Agreed,” Kate said. “It’s only been ten minutes since we left the chamber. For them to already be assembled means that they were on their way before we even entered the council chambers. This is a setup.”
“What do we—”
Before Raena could finish, the ships circling the Sietinen estate broke from their flight paths and began heading straight for the administrative building.
The holographic projection sprang to life. Marina’s face was flushed. “Go for the hidden entrance,” she instructed and the call disconnected.
“Fok!” Cris exclaimed and ran full-speed for the shuttle.
What’s going on? Voicing her question wouldn’t get them any closer to safety, so Raena kept it to herself.
She reached the shuttle a second after Cris and sprinted up the ramp, followed by Ryan and Kate.
“Strap in,” Cris instructed as he secured his own flight harness in the pilot’s chair. “This may get dicey.”
“They wouldn’t actually fire on us, would they?” Ryan asked while he snapped the buckle on his harness. “The city—”
“Nothing is out of the question,” Kate replied stoically from the co-pilot’s chair. “But we won’t let it come to that.”
A hum filled the air as the shuttle powered up. Cris directed the craft from the ground and pointed it toward the oncoming ships.
Raena gripped her flight harness with both hands, trying to keep her breathing even.
“It’ll be okay,” Ryan said in her mind.
She forced a nod.
“Brace yourselves—I need to dial back the inertial dampeners to get full flight controls,” Cris said.
Sudden g-forces pinned Raena against the back of her seat as her grandfather accelerated the shuttle to arc over the oncoming Tararia Guard ships.
The ships scrambled to intercept, but Cris quickly dove the shuttle downward, causing Raena’s stomach to rise into her mouth. She felt herself lifting off her seat, then a moment later lurch to the side as the shuttle entered a barrel roll. Wincing, she squeezed her eyes shut as the harness dug into her shoulders, willing the spinning to subside.
When the sensation of tumbling ceased, Raena opened her eyes to look out the front cockpit window. They were headed straight for the side of the hill.
We’re going to crash! A cry caught in her throat. She reached out through her bond to Ryan, sending him one final message of love.
The hill rushed toward them, details of tree limbs and leaves coming into focus—and a door, slowly sliding open beneath the foliage.
Raena heart leaped. She looked over to Ryan and saw him shaking his head with relief.
But they weren’t safe yet. The door had not yet fully retracted, and the final meters were closing fast.
The nose of the shuttl
e cleared the opening, but halfway inside, the narrow wing on Raena’s side clipped the door.
Raena lurched forward in her seat, then was slammed to the left as the shuttle spun sideways and skidded to a halt.
No one moved.
“Ugh,” Raena groaned, reaching up to her head. She felt intact, if somewhat sore and dizzy. “Is everyone okay?”
“That’s the last time I let you pilot,” Kate said to Cris, releasing her harness.
“Fine up here,” Cris replied to Raena’s question.
“Yes, are you all right?” Ryan said, alarm pitching his voice.
Raena followed his gaze to the right and saw that a gash had opened up in the side of the shuttle, ending a mere meter from her seat. “Wow, that was close.”
“We need to get out of here,” Cris said, joining them in the main cabin. He forced the side door open using the emergency release. “I’m not sure if the outer door will close properly after that impact.”
“I’m sorry for snapping at you,” Kate told him. “I know there wasn’t any clearance.”
“No worries.” He hopped out of the shuttle and held out his hand to help his wife down.
“Where are we?” Raena asked as she followed her grandmother out.
“Emergency access—or exit—for the estate,” Cris explained.
“I heard about these tunnels,” Ryan commented when he was on the ground. “They never gave us any specifics.”
Cris smiled. “Secret in the strictest sense of the term.” His smile faded when he looked down the tunnel toward the entry. “Shite, the door is still open. I don’t know if the shield is up yet. Let’s move.” He took off at a quick jog into the darkness.
“Shield? Raena questioned telepathically, as not to disrupt her breathing at the brisk pace.
“We have a defense shield around the estate,” her grandfather clarified. “It’s offline most of the time, but when Marina told me to head down here, I think it’s because she was in the process of activating it.”
“How effective is the barrier?” questioned Ryan.
“Enough that the Priesthood won’t be able to get in without an express invitation. But, that also means we’re not getting out,” Cris replied.
Raena’s brow knit. “But what about meeting with the other High Dynasties? We were supposed to call a session tomorrow.”
“It doesn’t have to be done in person,” Kate told her. “That would have been ideal, but a video call will have to do.”
They ran in silence for the remaining kilometer before the tunnel broadened into a bay with berthing for a dozen shuttles and a set of double doors at the back, which appeared to be for an elevator.
Cris stopped outside the doors. “True loyalties are about to be shown. That display with the Tararia Guard was quite public—some may question us. Make no assumptions about our friends.”
“What about Marina?” Raena asked. I can’t imagine my own grandmother would turn against me, but…
“There was a time when I wouldn’t have been sure,” Cris said, “but now I trust her with my life.”
Kate nodded her agreement.
Ryan cracked a smile. “The five of us against the world.”
“Or universe, but who’s keeping track?” Raena jested back.
“And on that note, we have one more important order of business.” Cris activated a panel next to the large metal doors, which parted.
Rather than the elevator Raena had expect to see, there was a room filled with crates, obscuring the side walls. Along the back wall, however, the bottom steps of a switch-backing flight of stairs extended into the room.
“Stairs, really?” she sighed.
Cris grimaced. “I figured there was an elevator, but I’ve never actually been down here before. It’s only forty flights. But hey, I’m the old guy here—I should be the one complaining, not you young people.”
Kate shook her head, then sighed as she crossed the room and began jogging up the stairs. “Stop dilly dallying.”
Raena rubbed her hands on her quads and began the long ascension up the stairs. After ten flights, her legs were feeling the burn from scaling the taller-than-normal steps. By the halfway point, she was starting to feel winded, but she was relieved to see the others were also slowing down. The last fifteen stories were a grueling haul.
“Almost there,” Cris encouraged between labored breaths.
“I hate stairs,” Raena moaned.
Cris chuckled. “We’ve all earned some extra cake for dessert.”
Ryan smiled. “Why didn’t you say so sooner?”
Panting and exhausted, they finally reached the door at the top.
“I swear, if this is locked…” Kate reached out for the handle. She gave it a yank but it didn’t budge. “You have to be kidding!”
Cris laughed. “No, that’d be too perfect.” He stepped up next to her and sent a low-intensity telekinetic probe. “Well fok.”
Raena leaned against the smooth concrete wall of the stairwell, thankful for the cool surface. “No way I’m going back down those stairs.” She telepathically reached out to Marina, searching throughout the Sietinen estate for her.
Her grandmother’s consciousness was far above the subterranean tunnels, busy in a heated engagement with an administrative aid.
“We need your help,” Raena implored, looping her paternal grandparents and Ryan into the telepathic link.
Marina cut her in-person conversation short. “Where are you?” she formed the question in her mind for Raena to read.
“The stairwell at the top of the back entrance tunnel. It’s locked.”
Surprise filled Marina’s mind. “Oh, I unlocked the elevator access. I thought you’d take that.”
Raena shook her head with disbelief and glared at her grandfather.
Cris groaned. “It must have been hidden behind the crates.”
“Awesome.” Kate crossed her arms.
“Hey, but extra cake,” Ryan reminded everyone.
“I’ll override the door lock, give me a minute,” Marina told them and severed the connection.
By the time the lock released, Raena’s breathing had normalized and her legs felt considerably more stable.
The door opened into a corridor in what appeared to be the underground servant passageways.
“I know this place,” Ryan said. “It’s a straight shot to the residential wing that way, correct?” He pointed to their right.
“Sure is,” Cris confirmed.
They jogged down the halls and were fortunate to encounter no one in the seldom-used corridor. To Raena’s displeasure, they had to scale two more flights of stairs up to the main level of the manor, but after the forty flights earlier, two was a breeze.
Single file, they slipped out from the servant passage into the main corridor.
“I hate to even see what’s going on outside…” Cris walked over to the nearest window and peered through the glass. “Oh, this’ll be fun.”
Raena joined him and looked out. The Tararian Guard ships had resumed their circling over the estate, but they were now kept at a distance by a shimmering dome encompassing the entire Sietinen estate and extending a kilometer down the hill.
The click of brisk, heeled footsteps sounded from down the corridor, and Raena turned to see Marina approaching. Her face was still flushed, but her shoulders rounded with relief when she saw the four of them.
“You stirred up quite the mess,” she said. “I didn’t think it would escalate quite this quickly.”
“Now the Priesthood knows what we know, and come morning, everyone will learn there’s a Dainetris heir. We have to make our move,” Cris said.
Marina nodded and turned her attention to Raena and Ryan. “Are you two ready?”
Raena swept back her sweat-damp hair from her forehead using the back of her hand. “I feel so incredibly bridal.”
Her grandparents smiled.
“We’ll have another event and make a proper spectacle of it later
,” Kate told her. “Not to be un-romantic, but right now we just need the legal proceedings.”
“That doesn’t change that I love you,” Raena said privately to Ryan.
“And I you.”
“Lead the way,” Raena said. She took Ryan’s hand as she followed Marina back toward the administrative wing of the manor.
“Kaiden just called me in a panic,” Marina said as she walked. “Apparently footage of what’s happening outside has started making it to the major news outlets.”
“At least we’ll have witnesses,” Cris muttered.
“I’ll call him as soon as we’re done here,” Kate replied to Marina. “What time should we call the assembly?”
Cris shrugged. “As soon as possible, I’d said. 09:00?”
“Can the TSS mobilize in time?” Kate asked Cris.
“Knowing Wil, a two-hour lead time would be enough—thirteen should be more than sufficient. I’ll speak with him while you chat with Kaiden.”
She nodded agreement.
Marina led the group to a conference room just outside the core of the administrative center. Inside, a middle-aged man wearing a black robe was waiting for them.
Raena recoiled when she saw him. Marina is handing us over to the Priesthood, after all? Then, after giving herself a few seconds to study the man, she realized that he had no trace of abilities and his physical resemblance was not that of the red-eyed High Priests. Rather, this man was a judge.
“Good evening,” he greeted in a warm, deep tone. “I understand a wedding is in order.”
Raena looked down at her disheveled appearance. “Sure is.”
“We’re keeping this brief and to the point, yes?” the judge questioned.
Cris nodded. “We have a few other things to get to.”
The judge smiled. “I noticed.” He looked over Raena and Ryan. “Do you two come here today of you own freewill to be joined in marriage?”
“I do,” Raena and Ryan said in unison.
“Do you swear to be true to each other and to act in the best interest of the Taran people?” the judge asked.
“I do,” Raena and Ryan replied.
The judge held up a tablet, projecting two beams of purple light underneath. Raena and Ryan both pushed up their left sleeves to expose their Marks under the beams. The screen on the tablet lit up with the serpent crest of Sietinen and the flower emblem of Dainetris.
