The Search for Ulyssa

by Heidi J. Leavitt

  ♦

  Since Jon had reported Tiran’s comment about the day, Kendra decided to check the bio park first. There wasn’t much to see, not in the dead of winter, but the weather was even warmer today than a few days ago. Kendra drew in a deep breath of fresh air as she headed down the main path, reminding herself how nice it was to be outside. Granted, she was outside all the time, since she had to walk all over the place in the complex, but usually she was in a hurry and didn’t even notice her surroundings.

  After a quarter of an hour of fruitless searching through the paths along the raised garden beds, she spotted her cousin wandering down the walk that passed through a small grove of bare, spindly fruit trees. She hurried around a huge tree trunk, hoping to catch Tiran before she disappeared out of view again.

  When she had nearly reached her cousin, she called out, “Tiran! I have been looking for you everywhere! Have you heard what happened?” Suddenly, her foot came down on a patch of ice hidden by tree shadows and she slipped, her arms flailing. Her cousin caught her arm and helped her stay upright.

  Dina’s mental laughter rang through her head. Too bad Bren wasn’t here to see it. For once he could tease you about clumsiness, she chuckled. Kendra ignored her.

  “Sorry,” she said, trying to get her breathing back to normal. “I’ve been racing around, trying to find you. You won’t believe it—Morek-Li Damato was assassinated!”

  “What? You can’t be serious!” Her cousin looked around nervously, as if assassins from the Brotherhood might suddenly leap from behind the tree trunks. “What happened?”

  “A bomb in his transport,” Kendra explained soberly. “He was heading from his house to a Congress session. Everyone is saying that the Brotherhood did it.”

  I wish we could meet the Oman of the Brotherhood, Dina said thoughtfully.

  Are you crazy? Why? Kendra was appalled. He sounds like a monster.

  “The lousy Brotherhood,” griped Tiran. “I don’t understand them. Why do they have to go around killing people?”

  “But how bad is it going to be now?” Kendra worried. “Bad enough that my parents will want me to come home?” That was her biggest fear. She couldn’t leave yet; they’d had no chance to look for Ulyssa yet.

  Tiran’s opinion was that it wouldn’t change anything. After all, Kendra’s parents knew about the threats to Uncle Casey’s life, and they still let her come. Kendra bit her lip but didn’t disagree. She had basically forced her parents to go along with her decision against their better judgment.

  I’ll make my case to Aunt Andie, decided Kendra. She’ll support me, even if my parents want me to come home.

  Probably, Dina agreed. She always was the most reckless member of the family. It’s a miracle that she’s survived as long as she has.

  You think it’s reckless for me to stay here?

  No, not exactly. But I worry. There’s something else going on here that we don’t understand.

  When they reached the Ambassador House, they found that it was cold and dark.

  “Aunt Andie must be out,” observed Kendra, her heart sinking. She’d hoped to start working on her aunt right away.

  “I wonder if she’s heard the news,” Tiran said. “My mom knew President Damato. She’s not going to take this well,” she warned. Kendra grimaced. That didn’t bode well for convincing her aunt to support her decision to stay on Corizen.

  While they made themselves something to eat, Kendra fretted to Dina about what course of action to take. In the end she decided that she’d better include the news of the assassination in her next comm home, but treat it like it wasn’t as big of a deal as it probably sounded from any interplanetary news feeds.

  Maybe the news feeds won’t cover it at all, Kendra hoped.

  I wouldn’t hold my breath, Dina said.

  Well, just in case, we should look over the readings that Bren brought. I know it’s not much, but it’s all we have, and we’d better do what we can while we still have time, Kendra decided.

  Let’s head over to the library. That way we can look at maps of Roma if needed, Dina agreed.

  ♦

  Convincing Tiran to go to the library was ridiculously easy. All Kendra had to do was ask.

  “OK!” Tiran said brightly. “Maybe Markus will be working tonight.”

  “Ohhhh, Markus,” Kendra teased. “You sound like you like him, Tiran.”

  She’s certainly smitten, agreed Dina.

  “I don’t! Not like that. He’s just so friendly and so much fun to talk to,” Tiran defended, her cheeks darkening. Kendra rolled her eyes.

  “Yeah, right. That’s why you always want to go to the library in the evening. Just to help me with my homework, right?”

  You probably wouldn’t go to the library nearly so often to study if Bren didn’t meet you there, Dina inserted slyly. Kendra mentally groaned.

  The amount of work I have to do has nothing to do with it? she retorted.

  “Oh come on, Kendra, he’s old enough to be my father,” Tiran said, in her most I’m-trying-to-sound-innocent-but-failing-miserably-tone. Kendra restrained herself from rolling her eyes again. She couldn’t understand what Tiran saw in Markus, but there was no accounting for other people’s tastes. Snobby Aceline seemed to like repulsive Hugo, after all.

  “You’re right about that!” Kendra agreed. “Too old for me, no matter how nice he is. Well, wait here for a sec, and I’ll go get my backpack.” Then she headed up to her room, stuffing Kip’s scanner and the tablet with Kip’s notes into her backpack. Hopefully she would remember how to interpret the readings like he had taught her.

  ♦

  At the library Tiran left her at a research station, and Kendra pulled out her scanner. She plugged it into the terminal and waited. Kip told her that the program would automatically categorize the qualian energy readings taken by strength. The higher the number, the more likely that the scanner had detected the actual presence of a shadow. But any living being that had been shadowed for any length of time would also register, though the numbers would fall into a different range. There was no way to test a structure for qualian energy residue, which meant that what Dina and Kendra hoped to find was evidence that someone had been shadowed or was being shadowed. Or barring that, plants or animals nearby that had been affected by regular exposure to qualian energy. People generally spent time around the same kinds of places; if they could get close enough to someone in person, Dina should be able to communicate with whoever it was. Someone who could tell Dina where Ulyssa was.

  In other words, Kendra admitted nervously to herself, their whole plan hinged on finding more alien isithunzi living here on Corizen. It was both a long shot and a terrifying prospect. There was no guarantee that if there were isithunzi here, Dina would be able to contact them, nor was there any guarantee that they would be friendly to an outsider.

  Kendra shoved her fears down and looked at the tablet. Her previous readings were still all that showed. They had surreptitiously scanned Aunt Andie and Uncle Casey and Tiran, but the scanner had given error messages. Apparently they were just too close to the shield inside the complex. She tapped her fingers on the desk impatiently.

  Finally, the tablet blipped at her, and she touched the screen. For a moment she compared the numbers to the notes Kip had left. Then she rechecked her numbers, and then triple-checked them. Butterflies churned in her stomach. The numbers were too high to indicate a residual of qualian energy.

  Dina confirmed what Kendra’s brain was having trouble accepting. There was an isithunzi there at the warehouse that night! she said eagerly. She didn’t sound as surprised as Kendra though.

  You expected to find one?

  I thought it was possible with the atmosphere that Bren described, Dina admitted. A strong isithunzi could have an influence there, especially if people were already inclined to such thoughts on their ow
n.

  Do you think it was Ulyssa?

  Dina was silent for a moment.

  I don’t know.

  Kendra couldn’t quite summon the excitement she thought she’d feel. Instead, her palms grew clammy as the cold fear wormed its way up her spine. The humans weren’t alone on Corizen either.

  ♦

  Kendra hung around the library for a while longer, looking up maps and trying to gauge the location of the warehouse where Bren had taken the measurement. There wasn’t much way to tell. On Zenith the scanner was configured to note its location based on global coordinates. But it couldn’t do this for Corizen. All she had was Bren’s vague description of where they had gone.

  This is no use, Kendra complained as she closed yet another map of downtown Roma. This only marks streets and major landmarks. Nothing on here tells me what kind of buildings there are.

  You’re going to have to get Bren to give you a better description of where he found it. If we can just get close enough to the general area, I should be able to communicate.

  Only if the isithunzi is still there. What if it was just shadowing a local visiting the rally?

  Maybe they regularly hold rallies.

  That is such a long shot I don’t even want to think about how much time we’d waste trying to stake it out. Not to mention that we still have the minor problem of traveling through the shield. How are we going to do that, Dina?

  We’re going to have to do it sometime or another. You aren’t planning on living the rest of your life in this complex.

  Kendra carefully stowed the scanner back into her bag and then erased her browsing history before signing off the terminal. She’d been hoping that Bren might show up, but at this point she resigned herself to cornering him in the morning before class. She set out into the reading stacks, hoping to come across Tiran.

  I think we should try building up a tolerance to the shield, Dina announced.

  What? Really?

  Every day we’ll go as close as I can stand without major problems, and then we’ll see how long I can make it. Then we’ll work on making that distance gradually closer and the duration longer.

  Until we can pass through the gate without losing you, finished Kendra. It was worth considering. People could build immunities to all kinds of things; maybe Dina could build an immunity to the nuclear shield.

  Where in the world is Tiran? Kendra grumbled. It had been a long, exhausting day, and she was ready to finish it up. However, she couldn’t find her cousin anywhere. She couldn’t find Markus either. Finally, she stopped at the checkout desk. It was the supervisor tonight—a stern man who ignored Kendra pointedly when she politely coughed to get his attention. For several minutes, she tried every subtle method she could think of to signal the man that she needed help. Even her “Excuse me?” in a low, library-appropriate tone went unheeded.

  Exasperated, she walked around the desk until she was directly in front of him and dropped her bag with a loud thunk on the counter right in front of his face. His eyes jolted upward, and he met her gaze with a hostile glare.

  “Yes?” he said through gritted teeth.

  “Have you by chance seen Tiran Morten? I was supposed to walk home with my cousin, but I can’t find her anywhere.” Kendra tried to keep her voice sweet and friendly. Even with this crusty old snob, surely honey was better than a hammer.

  “I am not a babysitter, young lady,” the librarian grumbled. “It is not my job to pay attention to the whereabouts of irresponsible teenagers.” Irresponsible teenagers? Kendra wanted to thump him over the head with one of his dusty history tomes.

  Well, maybe honey with a dose of the hammer, Dina suggested.

  “I know, but if you happen to know where she is, that would ease my mind a lot. Otherwise I’m going to have to notify security. They would search the library for her. She’s the ambassador’s daughter, you know, and they take threats to her safety seriously.” Kendra tried to keep her tone light, though her threat was clear. From the horrified look on the night librarian’s face, he took her meaning. He didn’t want security officers tromping through his domain, shouting and disrupting everyone.

  “She left a while ago,” the crusty old man admitted. “I was not at the desk, but I saw her leave while I was sorting books in the intake area.”

  “Thank you!” Kendra said pleasantly. “She probably went home, then. No need to call out security.”

  ♦

  Back at the Ambassador House, Kendra let herself into the silent entry hall and dropped her bag so she could shrug out of her coat. When she went to hang it up on the coat rack near the door, she realized that Tiran’s winter coat was still missing.

  So she didn’t come home, Dina observed. Where would she go on a night like this?

  It’s freezing out there, agreed Kendra, rubbing at her fingers. Maybe she went to the rec hall? But even as she thought it, Kendra knew that was unlikely. Tiran almost never went to the rec hall at night, and in all the time since Kendra had moved here, Tiran had never gone there alone. Maybe she just didn’t take off her coat at the door, she suggested. She’s probably upstairs.

  Kendra headed into the kitchen, intending to get something warm to drink before she went upstairs. She abruptly stopped short under the archway that led into the dining nook. Her aunt was sitting at the kitchen table, her head buried in her arms.

  “Aunt Andie?” She hesitantly moved closer, putting her hand on her aunt’s shoulder.

  Her aunt looked up, her eyes swollen and her cheeks streaked with tears. “K-Kendra,” she said shakily, swiping one cheek and then the other. “I didn’t hear you come in. Sorry.” She drew a shuddering breath. “Did you hear the news about Morek-Li Damato?”

  Kendra nodded wordlessly.

  Another couple of tears leaked from Aunt Andie’s eyes. She closed them briefly. “Sorry,” she said again, her voice stronger this time. “I knew Morek-Li. Not well, but it brought back the past . . . and they emergency recalled your uncle to Tyre. He left about an hour ago . . .” Suddenly she seemed to realize that Kendra was alone.

  “Where’s Tiran?”

  “I don’t know.” Kendra scuffed one foot against the tiled floor. “We went to the library together, but she left before I did. I thought she came home.”

  Her aunt shoved her chair back and stood so abruptly that the chair tipped over backward.

  “She’s not here,” she said anxiously. “How long has it been since you last saw her?”

  “A couple of hours. I was working on a project at a terminal. We separated right after we came into the library. But the night librarian said that he saw her leave.”

  Her aunt brushed past her and pounded up the stairs. “Tiran?” she shouted. “Tiran?” Her voice echoed down into the living area. She sounded increasingly hysterical.

  My aunt sounds like she’s about to have a stroke.

  She’s worried.

  Yes, but why? It shouldn’t be that hard to find Tiran. What could possibly have happened to her in the complex?

  You are forgetting your family history. Dina’s tone was regretful. What your grandmother called the Armada curse. Your aunt has seen a lot of loss. Like your mother.

  That put it into perspective a little better. Kendra knew her own mother would be a complete wreck if she didn’t know where Berry or Erik was.

  She would be just as worried about you. Probably has been worrying herself sick over the last few years, Dina said. I could tell you some stories . . .

  Kendra strode back into the hall and pulled her coat off the hook, sliding back into the sleeves and zipping up just as her aunt came flying down the stairs again.

  “She’s not here,” gasped Aunt Andie. “I knew she wasn’t, but where would she be? What if they found her? What if they know? And Casey’s gone, I can’t even get hold of him, and what am I going to do?” Her hands w
ere shaking.

  She’s on the edge of a complete breakdown, Dina warned.

  “I’ll go to the security office,” Kendra said. She tried to make her tone as matter-of-fact and calm as possible, hoping it would help her aunt regain her composure. “I’ll tell them she’s missing, and they will find her right away, Aunt Andie.”

  “You can’t go out there by yourself!” protested her aunt.

  “But someone should wait here in case Tiran comes home, and I’m all ready to go, so it makes sense that I should run out.” Kendra pointed at her aunt’s lounge pants and bare feet. She couldn’t go out like that.

  Her aunt hesitated for a moment longer, and then she exhaled deeply. “Fine. But if you are not back in thirty minutes, I am coming after you.”

  Kendra pulled the door open.

  “Don’t stop to talk to anyone, especially any locals!” her aunt called after her. “Security only!”

  Glancing back at her aunt’s wild eyes, Kendra nodded. Then she headed back into the frosty winter darkness.

  ♦

  At the security office, Kendra explained the situation to the Armada soldier on duty. She entered Tiran’s name in the terminal and did a search. In the corner, a box popped up with a picture of Tiran and a list of personal details. Kendra wondered what her own file said. She remembered vaguely the visit to the security office her first evening in the complex. They had taken a series of photos, a short video of her walking, and her fingerprint and retina scans. The security office probably knew more about her physical characteristics than she knew herself. Life in the International Complex was safe, but there was no privacy, and no exceptions to the security rules. The Armada took the Brotherhood seriously.

  “The facial recognition software will sort through the video footage and locate her,” the guard explained while they waited. “If she is anywhere in a public area in a building in the complex we should find her quickly.”

  “What if she’s outside?”

  “We’ll catch her if she’s walking through any of the camera areas. The cameras don’t cover everywhere, but there is enough coverage that it’s impossible to get around the complex without eventually showing up on something. If she’s not currently in an area with camera footage, she will be soon. Or we can extend the search back an hour and get an idea where she went off camera.”