Tallyn entered the council's echoing hall, where pink quartz pillars, veined with gold, flanked a broad swathe of silver-speckled black marble floor. They supported a high domed roof covered with intricate mosaics of ancient Atlantean legends, picked out in different kinds of quartz. He approached the twelve elderly men who sat at the back of the hall, his boots ringing on the floor. Within the three-sided square the elders formed, he stopped and bowed to the man in the middle, a thin-faced individual with piercing dark eyes, who sat upon an elevated chair.
"I believe I have found the golden girl child," Tallyn announced.
"Do you? And who is the boy?" Vargon spoke in a rich, strong voice not quite in keeping with his elderly looks.
Tallyn knew the elders had already viewed holofilms of the two humans he had brought back, so his knowledge came as no surprise. "He's her brother, First One, and, although he's not mentioned in the prophecy, I believe he's her guardian."
Some of the council members turned to whisper to each other. Vargon glanced at them, then addressed Tallyn again. "As you say, it's not mentioned in the prophecy that the girl would have a guardian, but I see no harm in it. Certainly they are perfect, when all the others are sickly and dying."
"Yes, First One."
"How do they feel about their capture?" Vargon enquired with the unhurried assurance of an elderly tortoise.
"They're not happy, and they'll be even unhappier with the tests and implants you mean to implement."
Vargon rubbed his lips. "Can't be helped, I'm afraid. Anyone would object to being poked and prodded, but we've been quite polite about it. We could have kept them under heavy sedation until we were finished. They're lucky they know as much as they do. Others would not have been so gentle with them."
"Considering who she might be, I think we should try to treat them well, Vargon."
"Yes, well, you do tend to think an awful lot, don't you, Commander Tallyn? They're almost primitives. What do they know?"
"I know that if she's the Golden Child, our fate rests in her hands, and that's not something to be taken lightly."
"No, of course not. See to it that they're treated well, Commander. I'll leave it up to you. Just don't break any rules, okay?"
Vargon waved a dismissive hand, and Tallyn bowed and swung away, leaving the council chamber. As usual, his encounter with the council left him frustrated and a little angry. He found their inflexible, inscrutable ways a great impediment to his wish to communicate more fundamental issues to them.
The council was not known for considering the feelings of others, other than being polite when confronted. The rights of primitive aliens, however, ranked low on its list of priorities. This was strange in a society that was supposed to be free and just, but then, sometimes those rights were reserved for the members of its own race.
At the end of a long passage, he entered another vast hall pillared with white quartz. A fountain played a gurgling tune, surrounded by exotic plants with curling leaves of red and purple. Creepers scaled the columns and trailed streamers of pink and yellow flowers in cascades of colour. The people who populated the hall strolled or hurried past, while many sat on stone benches and chatted. Blue-green moss-like grass covered the floor, and a clear crystal dome let in shafts of sunlight.
Tallyn walked outside, squinting in the white sun's familiar brilliance. Frilly-leafed trees, festooned with flowers, jostled at the edge of the clearing in which the council hall stood. Wild herbivores grazed the lush grass, glancing up with twitching ears. Birds filled the calm air with bright songs, and in the distance, another building blended cunningly into the environment. Compared to the dying world he had saved the humans from, this was paradise, and he hoped they would enjoy it.
With a sigh, Tallyn headed for a row of disk-shaped public access craft. He chose one and climbed into the glass dome atop the disk. As he settled before the controls, he wondered again why the council had waited two days before seeing him. He had thought news of a potential Golden Child would make them demand an immediate report, but then, they probably had daily updates from the team of doctors that attended the humans.
They had been sedated since their arrival, so they knew nothing of the barrage of procedures being carried out on them. That was probably just as well, he reflected. He pressed the joystick's stud, and the craft drifted up. So far, they had undergone many of the tests he had warned them about, and were due to be released in a few days. He guided the craft towards the medical facility where they were.
At the underground building, he parked the craft and marched along well-lighted corridors to the humans' rooms. They had been placed in robotic cocoons that monitored their functions, technicians and doctors attending them. Tallyn entered Rayne's room and gazed down at her. She looked pale and a little gaunt under the harsh lights, one side of her head plastered with regeneration jelly. Tubes entered her nose and probes poked from her skin like obscene spines.
A doctor came to his side. "Commander Tallyn. Good of you to visit us again."
"How are they?"
"In excellent health."
"You've finished the implants, I see."
The doctor nodded. "Yes, yesterday. Their immune systems are responding well to the vaccines, and our tests are almost finished."
"When will they be released?"
"In a few more days, if the council approves. We want to wait for the implants to heal so they won't have headaches."
Tallyn glanced at the pasty-faced doctor, hating him and his entire breed. Technicians were devoid of caring or compassion, the sort that would perform torturous and often useless experiments on helpless animals if it was allowed. The man's hair was almost monotone, indicating his low cast.
"How thoughtful of you," Tallyn muttered.
"Well, the council members thought -"
"Spare me." Tallyn raised a hand. "I know what the council ordered, and it had nothing to do with thoughtfulness. You'll inform me when they're ready to be awakened, then I'll take over their care. Do you understand?"
"Certainly, Commander."
"And under no circumstances are they to regain consciousness while you lot are poking them with needles."
"Of course not."
"Good." Tallyn left, angrier with himself than the doctor. At times like this, he wished he did not have to follow the council's orders. It would have given him immense satisfaction to release the humans today. He was responsible for their predicament, and knew they would blame him for whatever was done to them. As he headed for the exit, he consoled himself with the fact that, had he left them on their world, they would have suffered a far worse fate.
Rayne woke with a pounding ache just above her left ear. Grimacing, she sat up and rubbed the tender area. Swinging her legs off the soft bed, she gazed around. The room was furnished with the same sparse, functional furniture and pale walls as the ship. Rawn snored on a bed across the room, and she stood up, fighting a wave of dizziness. He woke with a snort when she shook him, and clutched his head with a grimace as he sat up. She wondered if she looked as pale and gaunt as he did. Odd that he rubbed the same spot she had. She looked around as the door opened to admit Egan, who wore a broad smile.
"Have you slept well?" he enquired.
Rawn frowned. "How long were we unconscious?"
Egan looked a little uncomfortable. "Five days. It was necessary to carry out the tests and vaccinations painlessly, you see."
"What did they do to us?"
"Nothing harmful."
"Did any of the tests include sticking red hot pokers in our heads?" Rawn snarled.
"Ah, you have headaches." Egan dug into his pocket and took out two apparently empty plastic bubbles, which he held out. "Here."
She took the bubble and studied it. "What am I supposed to do with this?"
"Oh, here, I'll show you." Egan took the bubble and held it under her nose. "Now, breathe in."
As she did, he popped the bubble. A strange, numbing scent invaded her nose, and the pain in her head vanished. Rawn popped his bubble and experienced the same rush of relief, judging by his blissful expression. Egan was eager to bring them whatever they wished, and they sat down to a gourmet meal followed by party snacks and tasty treats they had never dreamt to taste. It distracted them from the unpleasant aspects of their situation, and when they were full, they went back to sleep.
The next day continued the trend, and Egan answered questions willingly, but they had no way of knowing how truthfully. He brought them holofilms and played the helpful host, but Rayne disliked his condescending air and stilted speech. The food restored their strength and the films were educational, but the rooms had no windows and the door was locked. After several fruitless hours trying to open it, they gave up.
The following day, Rayne demanded to see Tallyn, and Egan balked. He claimed the commander was busy, and would be for some time. Rawn gripped Egan's his collar and almost lifted him off the floor, evincing a reluctant promise to try to contact Tallyn. It took another day and several more threats before Tallyn came, and when he did, Egan looked unhappy. Then they learnt that the commander had come of his own accord, to check on them.
When Rawn told him about their request, Tallyn's brows knotted, and Egan was subjected to the commander's icy glare. "Who ordered this duplicity, Ensign?" he demanded.
"The council, sir."
"Of course. Who else? Inform them that I'm taking the humans to my dwelling, where they can stay for the time being. They can't be kept in this… prison."
"But sir, they have to be monitored."
Tallyn's brows rose. "They've been immunised, and they're fully recovered from the ordeal, it seems. Why must they be monitored?"
"The council ordered -"
"I'll deal with the council, Ensign. Dismissed."
Egan, who had a pale complexion with a silvery sheen, turned an interesting shade of pink, then retreated.
Tallyn eyed the humans. "It's a good thing I have some authority over the more junior staff members."
Rawn said, "I was getting sick of that pompous little fart."
Tallyn appeared to riffle through a mental dictionary before understanding dawned. "An apt description. The council, it seems, intended to keep you in a comfortable, if sterile environment, but I think you'd rather see more of your new home."
"Damned right," Rawn muttered.
"Good."
The door opened for Tallyn, and he led them down a corridor where several white-suited men watched them pass, muttering and frowning. Rayne stepped out into the open air and gazed around at Atlan's alien beauty. The sun was a hot white spot beyond the glowing roof of clouds, and verdant landscape stretched away in every direction. Only an occasional tower broke the carpet of greenery, and the air was sweet and rich.
After a few minutes, Tallyn led them to a disk-shaped craft, and they sat in the two seats behind his. They skimmed away over the trees at an amazing speed, and Rayne studied the well-hidden buildings that nestled in the pristine forest below.
Rawn asked, "How can billions of people live in such a sparsely built up world?"
Tallyn glanced back at them as the craft swooped between two tall trees. "Billions of people don't live here. They live on fifty-two planets all over the galaxy. We're always colonising new planets, as long as they're not already inhabited by intelligent life forms."
"What about the animals?" Rayne asked, gulping as they skimmed past a tree trunk with inches to spare.
"We don't destroy the ecology; we live in harmony with it. The animals have no fear of us because they have no reason to."
"But we've been eating meat," Rawn said.
"That's grown in bio tanks, not from raising and slaughtering animals." He swooped and swung the hover car, oblivious to the growing discomfort in the back.
"Where are your factories, industries and so on?"
"Those are mostly underground."
Rayne gripped her seat. "How far is it to your house?"
Tallyn looked back at her. "Not too far." He shot them a brief smile, turning back in time to swerve around a tree.
Rayne released her white-knuckled grip on the seat as they passed the tree. A few minutes later, they landed in front of a rustic log cabin in a glade, and quit the vehicle. The cabin's door slid open at Tallyn's approach, and it appeared to be a lot larger inside than it had looked from the outside.
They passed through a long room that housed a heated swimming pool set amid rocks, ferns and palms. A transparent roof allowed sunlight to flood in, filling the house with cheerful warmth, and soft grey moss served as carpeting. Atlanteans, Rayne reflected, certainly seemed to like plants. They entered another spacious, sunlit room decorated in pastels and filled with alien foliage.
Tallyn handed out fruity drinks and flopped into a comfortable chair with his own.
Rawn settled on another chair. "How long were they going to keep us locked up in that damned room, anyway?"
Tallyn shrugged. "I don't think they had given it much thought. Once you were safe and installed in what they thought was a suitable environment, provided with food and entertainment, they thought they had done enough."
"I'd have thought they'd take better care of someone who might be their precious Golden Child."
"Rayne is only a candidate. One of four, I believe, that have been found on other worlds. If she's the one, she'll be accorded the respect she deserves, but until then she'll be treated just like anyone else."
Rayne asked, "What are the other girls like?"
"Mostly children, except for one older girl, but I believe you are the oldest."
"So there are another three planets dying right now, just like Earth is?"
"No, we've found five or six. One might be saved. Two girls were taken from one of them, and none were found on the other three."
"What are they like?"
Tallyn looked thoughtful. "The two who were taken from Hendis seem to fit the prophecy's description better. They're young, five and eight of their years old, and they have golden skin, hair and eyes. There's biological warfare on their planet, and the people are dying from a disease they unleashed. But the planet itself is not dying, and the prophecy definitely says 'the dying planet'.
"The other girl, who's sixteen, comes from a race of white-haired, brown-skinned people. She only has golden eyes. Her world is being destroyed by radiation released through the foolish testing of nuclear weapons, but again, the planet may recover, although grossly changed, and inhabited by mutated animals, mostly insects." He glanced at Rayne. "The council agrees that you're the most likely candidate, although Rawn fits the description better."
Rayne glanced at her brother, who met her gaze with raised brows and a teasing smile. She wondered what lay in store for them on this alien world, and how much they could trust their new benefactor. Although he seemed genuinely concerned about their welfare, she clung to the old habit of distrust that had served her so well in the past.