by Kyle Larson
Amelia heard a knock on her door. She had just finished a bowl of fruit, steamed green vegetables, and Venusian pumpkin seeds. Her eating had become very clean, as Teve insisted she and Kelvin only eat vegetables and seeds during their training. He occasionally offered them whole-grain bread, but their diet was pretty strict. Amelia didn’t mind. The fresh food was much better than the stale ration packets on the Monarch.
“It’s open,” she said, as she poured herself a big glass of a fruit smoothie she had leftover from the morning. It was her dessert.
She hoped it was Kelvin and maybe he’d reconsidered trying to contact Aren, but it was Teve. Amelia became nervous when she saw the expression on his face. He looked nervous. It was strange to think, he didn’t look much older than her, yet he was over two-hundred years old. His own parents looked nearly the same age as him. Even though Amelia had been on Venus for weeks, so many things seemed so fantastical and unreal. The basic environment defied everything she’d been taught about the physical human condition and limitations.
“He’s gone,” Teve said. “I really hope he doesn’t do anything foolish.”
“There was part of me that hoped you’d go after him,” Amelia said, followed by a large gulp of her smoothie. “He tends to get foolish when it involves his family. Whether it’s going against his parents' wishes or trying to believe there’s some good left in his sister.”
“Then why do you follow him, Chapman?” Teve asked.
Amelia felt insulted. “I don’t follow anyone. I believe in him and I believe in the Nine Kingdoms. I do this for me and for them. I thought you of all people would understand most of us don’t bow to crowns.”
Teve was impressed. What he said was meant as a challenge, and Amelia responded exactly as he’d hoped.
“You don’t need to explain yourself to me. I don’t know you, but I understand you. You’re good and you’re strong. Your friend Kelvin is going to need you, Amelia. Your strength is selfless, I just don’t think you know it yet. You’ll realize it when you’re older. You remind me of my brother, Karna, before he lost himself.”
Amelia didn’t know what to say. She’d never heard Teve use her first name, let alone compliment her. At least that’s what she thought it was. Amelia had become accustomed to mild condescension in everything Teve said, so she looked for it in those words. Teve seemed like he paid her a genuine compliment.
“What happened to your brother?” Amelia said. She hoped to take the subject off of her. “Is he the one in the pictures and paintings I see?”
The air seemed to leave the room as soon as she asked the question. Amelia could tell Teve went deep into his mind to consider whether or not to give her an answer. She thought about taking back the question and apologizing, as it was apparent the subject was sensitive.
“May I?” Teve asked. He motioned to a nearby chair. Amelia nodded and he took a seat, as she sat on the couch across from him. “These people –– the Wanderers –– we had something like them here on Venus, a long time ago. They wanted to end the Gravity Warriors and take down the government my parents helped build. It started out as a peaceful movement and my parents were able to have a discourse, and for a short time, they actually considered stepping down from the government. The Gravity Warriors were firmly against it, but my brother, Karna, sympathized with the ones who wanted to end my parents rule. The more time he spent with them, the more time he began to share their views, until one day they became his.”
Amelia was surprised how similar Teve’s brother sounded to Aren.
“My brother and a few other Gravity Warriors joined the movement. At the same time, the movement, which didn’t even have a name, became more aggressive towards my parents. A few of their more prominent leaders called for attacks against my parents to remove them from power. It was ridiculous, as they stood no chance against the Gravity Warriors, especially my mother and father, who had fought of armies with only the two of them. Then my brother and the other Gravity Warriors broke into this very Archive and started to train their own soldiers, giving them the same powers you and I have with the Sanctuary Spring. These powers are a privilege, and my brother gave them out to charlatans.
“When my parents discovered this, we brought all of the Gravity Warriors here to stop them. It was the beginning of a terrible war that lasted for years. No one else in the Nine Kingdoms was ever aware of it. Maybe some of your ancestors or the Sellwoods, but very few knew of it. We were able to take many of them peacefully in the end, but we did lose lives. Those lives haunt our people and it is why we are so resistant to war. One of those lives was my brother.”
“I’m so sorry,” Amelia heard herself interrupt.
“I was the one who killed him,” Teve said. He remembered the explosion. One moment he’d been looking into the rage of what his brother had become, and the next moment his brother was engulfed in a ball of flames. The heat incinerated him and his body vanished. There was no trace of him, other than the person they remembered.
“What happened?”
“We fought. I went to confront him because everyone who fought for him had surrendered, except for one person who got away. There was no way their movement would win, so I wanted to offer Karna a way back. He would be punished and be in prison for a time, but everyone involved would be given a second chance. We are a forgiving people, especially to our own. When I got there, Karna called me weak and he attacked me. We fought for hours, both of us trying to find a weakness in the other. When I finally found his, I knocked him to the ground with a hit so hard from my staff it knocked him unconscious for a few seconds. I used those few seconds to catch my breath, but I didn’t notice he’d taken out an explosive charge to use against me before he went unconscious. He opened his eyes and glared at me, with more hatred than I’d ever seen, and before I could take if from him it exploded. He was vaporized from the heat in less than a second.”
Teve looked toward the floor as he recalled the story. It had been at least ten years since he’d spoken of it, and before that, almost never. This was the first time he’d been able to discuss it without his voice breaking. Teve still blamed himself, but he’d learned to live with his guilt. One day, he hoped he’d be able to forgive himself. He’d seen a sadness come onto his mother’s face the day Karna died, and it never left. Maybe the day that sadness left Tendai’s eyes it would be the day he forgave himself.
“You didn’t kill your brother,” Amelia said.
“I don’t recall asking for your opinion,” Teve said.
“Well, I don’t care. No one usually asks for my opinion. You didn’t kill your brother and you did what you had to do to protect your family and your planet. I’m sure you saved as many lives as you could.”
The wounds of that conflict healed for everyone else, except the Dubak family. There was always an emptiness to each day without Karna. Many people tried to do what Amelia was doing now, to get Teve to let go of his guilt. That wasn’t something that Teve was interested in trying again, as he had many times. It always came back. All he could do was accept it and hope that someday that guilt would leave him.
“There’s no use in arguing. As I said, when you’re older, you’ll understand,” Teve said. “You mentioned that you wished I went after Sellwood right now, as he shoots up through the Venusian atmosphere like an ancient rocket ship. I don’t go after him because this is something he needs to do, on his own terms. This is family, and I’d only be interfering. You think he’s being foolish, no?”
After hearing Teve’s story, Amelia was slightly nervous at how to respond, but there was no use in not being genuine with Teve. He’d shared his story, so the least she could do was give him an honest answer.
“I do. Aren Sellwood made her choice, a long time ago. She attacked her people, is now allied with an organization that killed her people. She’s ready to start a war for a cause I don’t believe she fully understands. If she was ever going to surrender or change her mind, it would have been years ago.”
<
br /> A mobile in Teve’s pocket chirped at him. He fetched it and activated the screen, taking a few moments to study the message before sharing it with Amelia.
“Well, I guess we’re going to find out soon. Looks like he’s in contact range and trying to establish a link with her ship.”
Amelia believed, but she wasn’t going to be able to tolerate much more of the salvage operation Kelvin was trying to do on his sister.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
KELVIN LOOKED DOWN and couldn’t believe how high up he was. The upper atmosphere of Venus was actually warmer than the surface and high in oxygen. Kelvin felt great and looked down. It felt like something out of a dream. He was so high up he could see the curvature of the planet on the horizon. The sun was beginning to set –– a giant red dome descending. The rays were much stronger than Kelvin ever felt, but they were pleasant, not hot.
“The ship Earth Navy Intelligence place her on is called the Empress,” Mara said, as Kelvin came to a stop. “I’m trying to make contact now. There’s a good chance she’ll recognize it as your encryption, but it’s almost certain she won’t be the only one listening to the conversation. Assume the Wanderers are listening, probably Venus, too.”
They came to a stop since Kelvin didn’t want to risk breaking the atmosphere. It felt like he was almost in space. There was no way to guess his elevation, but it was higher than Kelvin had even been in his glider and diver back on Earth. The fact that he was flying had never been more apparent.
“Aren’s accepted the transmission, Kelvin. She can hear you. You can just talk normal, I’ve turned up the microphone.”
“Aren?” Kelvin said, softly.
“Hello, brother,” Aren said back, not nearly as soft. “I hear you’re down there. You wanna make this easy and get Queen Tendai to bring down that shield. She surrenders her power to the people and joins us, we can finish this by tomorrow night.”
Kelvin shook his head in disappointment. Aren sounded much harsher than the last time he’d heard her. It sounded like a lot had changed in eight months.
“That’s not going to happen, Aren. That’s not what I’m here to talk to you about. I’m here to talk to you about twenty-seven dead pilots. Don’t know if you’ve heard about that, but the Wanderers are now murderers.”
Aren didn’t respond. The wind was all Kelvin heard and her lack of response chilled him.
“It’s not too late, Aren. You can surrender, request asylum, and Earth Navy will bring you in. They’ll protect you from Riz and the Colonel. It’s not too late. You can still have a life that doesn’t have to be war.”
“Kelvin, you’re a child. You are a child lost in the stars, pretending to be some valiant prince who’s going to save humanity. Do you realize how self-righteous you are? We believe in freedom, Kelvin. What do you believe in? A throne or a title, and borders that only protect the true enemy, the Jovians.”
“What is it with you people and the Jovians? What have the Jovians done? Sure, they’re greedy and they keep their resources to themselves, but they’ve never murdered twenty-seven of our own people in cold blood. That’s what happened today.”
Aren started to laugh. “Someday you are going to look back on saying that and feel like a complete idiot. You’ll see their ways. You’ll see what they do. But first, we’re going to demonstrate what’s coming to them on Venus, unless Tendai brings down the shield. If she doesn’t, we’re gonna bring it down for her.”
The conviction in Aren’s voice made Kelvin very nervous. Aren didn’t sound like she was bluffing. There was no sorrow or remorse from the deaths Kelvin brought up, and that troubled him.
“The shield isn’t what you should be worried about. These people are ready for you and once the fight starts, it won’t stop until they say it’s over. I guarantee it. Aren, you have no idea what you are up against. If you’re not going to surrender, you should turn your ships around.”
Kelvin could see someone flying toward him in the distance. Whoever it was moved incredibly fast and held a giant staff, much larger than Kelvin’s.
“We have some surprises of our own. You’re going to come around, Kelvin. I know you will. Even if you fight against me now, I’ll forgive you one day. I think one day you’ll be an even greater Wanderer than me.”
Kelvin could see who flew toward him so fast. It was Queen Tendai, and she did not look happy. She flew at him like a bullet and then suddenly stopped, just a few feet from him.
“The conversation is over, Lord Sellwood. Now!” Tendai said.
Mara severed it immediately, not even waiting for Kelvin to respond. Kelvin realized how big a mistake he’d just made by contacting Aren. From Tendai’s point-of-view, he was in secret contact with the enemy. Kelvin was embarrassed that after all his hard work in training, this was the first time Queen Tendai had seen him.
“Queen Tendai, I’m so sorry,” Kelvin blurted out.
“What were you thinking, Lord Sellwood? She may be your sister, but she’s trying to hurt my people. People you said you wanted to stand with and help protect. Why would you do this?”
“I needed to try and save my sister. I can’t believe that she’s gone, not yet.”
Tendai looked at Kelvin with sadness and immediately understood the confusion he must have felt. She thought of the moments she felt that way about Karna when he’d turned against them. She wondered if she might have done the same thing.
“I understand. Come with me please, Lord Sellwood. I’d like to show you something.”
Kelvin was a little relieved, but still kind of nervous. Tendai flew away, back towards the Royal Palace, and the sun continued to dwindle in the distance. He didn’t know what to expect, as he chased Tendai through the clouds. She was much faster than him and he could barely keep up. They descended on the Royal Palace and Queen Tendai lead him to an open balcony of one of the lower chambers. Kelvin touched down just after her. As soon as he was on the balcony, she tossed him a staff, which he barely caught. She stood with her own staff, which was taller than she was. It was in a battle position.
“First thing’s first, Lord Sellwood. Please show me what you’ve learned. I taught Teve, so I’d like to see how he taught you. Please try to land a strike with your staff.”
The staff fumbled in Kelvin’s hand as he moved it into position. He took a deep breath and then moved in on Tendai. She didn’t even raise her staff, she just dodged it effortlessly. Kelvin increased his speed and tried some tactics that came close to working on Teve, but he realized there was no chance he’d even come close to landing a blow on the queen. Tendai was the master of masters.
Suddenly, she blocked the staff with her bare hand and grabbed it from him. In an instant, the staff was tossed aside. It was Tendai’s way of saying the lesson was over.
“Adequate, but acceptable for such a short amount of training,” Tendai said. “You’ll do fine. I assume Lieutenant Chapman is at a similar skill level?”
“Something like that,” Kelvin mumbled.
“Follow me.”
The queen lead Kelvin into a dimly lit chamber off the balcony that looked similar to the interior of the Archive, but much more like a temple or holy place. There were several staffs and different uniforms of armor neatly hung throughout the chamber. It was all intricate and beautiful, but modest and minimalist, like everything Kelvin had seen on Venus.
“After we defeated the Saturn Conquerors, my master taught me and the first Gravity Warriors in this chamber, which used to be in the Archive you and Lieutenant Chapman train in now. When we built this Royal Palace, we brought every stone from that room to re-create this chamber. I was going to wait to do this, but I think it’s time we accelerated your training to include armor. I want you to take a suit for yourself and one for Lieutenant Chapman. Teve will recognize them and know that only I could be the one to give them to you.”
Tendai motioned to a nearby selection of matching armor. All the armor looked to be the same size, so Kelvin just grabbed two sets,
hoping they’d fit him and Amelia.
“Thank you, m’lady,” Kelvin said.
“There are some things you should know, Kelvin Sellwood. Things you should know about the Wanderers and their history with the Gravity Warriors,” Tendai said. “I had another son, who died long ago.”
Kelvin could see the words were difficult for Tendai. She was strong, but the pain was still stronger, and she could not hide it in her face. Her entire being ached to tell Kelvin what she thought she had to.
“I’m sorry,” Kelvin said.
“His father and I have made our peace with it. The loss is still there, but we carry on with our lives and find strength in our people,” Tendai said. “I know it is Teve who is still lost. He blames himself for Karna’s death. That was his name…Karna.”
“What can I do to help?”
“His father and I have a plan, but Teve’s going to need allies. Teve is going to need friends, of which he has none. His brother was his best friend, and since Karna’s death, he has shut himself off. He has his students, but no peers,” Tendai said, her voice strong with the concern of a mother. “King Etho and I plan to step down from the throne in the next year. We intend to nominate Teve to take our place, and I’ve no doubt the people of Venus will elect him to serve. Whatever happens here with the Wanderers, most likely he’ll come to the throne at the worst time for the Nine Kingdoms.”
“My intention has always been to be your ally. As soon as I take the throne, I’m willing to commit a portion of our navy to you or Teve. I’ll never forget what you’ve done for Amelia and I. Not only letting us fight with you, but preparing us for it.”
“There is something you should know about the Colonel. Before I tell you, I’ll need your word that you will not repeat this to Teve, and it’s probably better if Lieutenant Chapman didn’t know, at least for now. Do you agree to that, Kelvin Sellwood?”
