"You're to be confined to this ward. You will turn in your pass key and forgo your clearance level. You will not set one foot off this floor until we decide you may. If you may."
I tried desperately not to smile I was so relieved. That was a punishment? I'll take it! "I guess it's what I deserve," I said with as much contrition as I could muster.
His eyes sparkled but he kept his firm look. "And that's the punishment from me. Reginald will no doubt have his own. As will Ralph." The twinkle faded a bit, and I could see he was serious now. "You could have killed yourself, Jacob. When we heard you were doing the jump without gas..." He shook his head.
"But I've done it before," I defended.
"When you had a full staff of trained people around you in case something went wrong, at much lower speeds and certainly not for that long of a time period. They may seem like small things to you, but each of those variables had the potential to kill you. What did you have on X3 for support? If your vitals had truly been in jeopardy, who could help you?" He flicked his wrist. "A few drones and a passed out idiot. It was foolish."
I conceded. "I didn't feel like I had a choice."
"I know." That surprised me. "I'm not so unfeeling that I didn't see this happening. Of course you had to come as soon as you knew."
"Then why didn't you tell me?"
He sighed. "Even I have a boss, you know. And a greater responsibility. We needed you on Earth. We're so very close..." He shook his head quickly. "And even if we were not, or even if we had somehow gotten the carte blanc blessing from the IOC that's our impossible dream, we still would not have told you rashly. I understand we are a business, but you need to believe that our business is humanity, is people. That begins with our own. You're so young, Jacob. And you've already had one terrible blow. Could we deliver another so soon? That would have been irresponsible at the very least. We had third hand data, mostly from bots. We had to know for ourselves first. So it was determined that I would come up and monitor the situation for myself, and Reginald would try and speed up the last push for the bill that will grant allowance for deep space human procreation. We're so close. They were supposed to have the final hearing and then vote.
"What I am asking for is not your forgiveness. We've done nothing you need to forgive. I am asking for your acceptance of the facts, and your understanding of the difficult choices we had to make. I understand her importance to you. But you still underestimate your importance to human expansion."
After all the things I'd learned in that week, it wasn't the worst offense. I could grudgingly see his points, and I could live with it. I didn't like it, but if I started making a list of all the things I didn't like...
Christophe said all he had to say. I knew by the way he was holding himself that he did not expect or even want a reply. It was one of the things he just wanted me to hear and then think about. It's a pretty fair way to deal with a kid, I'll give him that. The subject was closed. He had his say, and I would have my thoughts. And between us, all was out in the open and settled.
I glanced at the window across the hall. "She hasn't woken up at all." I wasn't asking. I'd have known that, for certain.
"No." Again, I knew I could trust him for the straight answers. "She's very weak, according to the biostats sent by your mother." He looked uncomfortable for the flash of a second before he schooled his features into the standard, cool, in control Christophe. "The fah'ti has been closed."
He had said something like that already. "On their side?"
"And ours. We got a large bio reading and sent a probe. They found her. She had the fah'ti linked to some sort of holo on her person."
"They don't use holos." They didn't have to.
"It looked a lot like ours. Yours, I should say. Old tech, definitely something that would have been on the Condor, but highly modified. Bradley has been analyzing it."
"And it closed the fah'ti?"
"Yes."
"Good."
He looked at me without speaking. He was waiting for me to explain.
"They'll kill her, Christophe. That's the culture. She can never go back. Like me."
"Bradley theorizes that they sent her through, that they did it to make sure the fah'ti was closed."
Could they have? It would have fit their culture, had it not been the primary to the throne. "Not her. They would have sent a slave."
"I did not know they were a slave society."
I quirked and eyebrow. "What do you think Mother and Dad are?"
It was something he hadn't considered. "So she did this on her own."
That didn't make sense, either. It had to be one or the other, of course. Either or. But neither fit with the culture. "She was supposed to take the throne. Before I left she was in her final stages of preparation."
"Then she must have stepped down."
Why? I looked across the hall. Nurses hovered over her. She looked so damned small. "But that's not her. It's not. She's...she's always been so proud to be the next primary." That was such an understatement that I laughed at myself. "More than proud. It's not just something that was supposed to be her job or her future, it's...everything about her."
"Is that why the adornment of jewels?"
Christophe sounded interested, truly, deeply interested. I turned around. "Partly, though that's really only a symbol of wealth. Many Qitani do that type of decoration. The color blue, that's what indicates royalty. Mostly it's green gems. Some use fake ones of metal, which the real rich people laugh at but I think still look nice because it's all...shiny. Pearly. It swirls and shimmers different colors."
"Yes. She was wearing a suit of that metal."
"It's the only metal I've seen used on Laak'sa."
He quirked an eyebrow. "Is that so? Well, it's a very good one. Bradley has a team..."
Analyzing it. He didn't have to finish. "Right. I think it's nice. Everyone on the Condor did, too. But to them, it's just...metal. Like aluminum. Or tin. Boring, old, useless." I smiled at Christophe. "Too bad we don't have more of it, eh? People would kill to have a house that shines like rainbows."
Christophe gave a small laugh. "Who knows? Perhaps this will be a test for how good..."
What is happening to me?
The hairs on my neck stood up. Panic filled the voice in my head.
Stop! Stop at once!
I turned around and jumped out of my chair.
"Jake?"
I ignored Christophe and ran back into the room. Her eyes were closed. I could feel her, though, feel her pulse begin to race, feel her fear. She was waking.
I reached out to calm her. I'm here.
Jacob? Where?
Her voice was almost screaming, child like and terrified. I sat and put my hand on hers.
"Jake, what's happening?" Christophe was right behind me.
Who is that? What is happening to my self? I feel...such...pain...
And then she moved. Her forehead wrinkled in pain, her body twitching in aching spasms.
I tried to sooth her. Shh, it's okay. You made it and you're safe. Just stay calm, breathe in. I'm here.
Her eyes suddenly popped open. I ignored Christophe's gasp and stared into them, the eyes I never thought I'd see again. Calm. Cool. Deep violet and clear as ever. Her forehead relaxed. Her muscles eased. And for a second I felt her relief mix with mine in an almost overwhelming flood of calm. And then she narrowed her eyes into the familiar glare.
I should never look upon you again with your slow insolence!
And then I smiled, in spite of her anger. And when she continued to hurl insults at me, I threw my head back and laughed. It would all be okay. I picked her hand up and kissed it and she gasped out loud.