FWFW 3 - 67

The morning after he’d spoken to Issa and given away two, apparently great, treasures to help Tiladia’s cause, Maria Rios paid a visit to Morgan’s tower. He met her in the little study with the map table, and the two of them sat in the chairs in front of the desk. He hadn’t spent much time in that room, and he had the thought that it would be nice to fix it up and have someone fix the map to be relevant to this world.

“So, how are things going? I’ve hardly spoken to you since you’ve been back!” Maria sipped her coffee, which she’d brought with her, along with a cup for Morgan. It was rich and had a generous splash of cream in it.

“I’ll answer that, but first, you have to tell me where you found coffee beans!”

“The Contribution Store. More and more options open up as we advance the town. There are a lot of plants and seeds available from Earth now. Well, let me take that back—they’re available from somewhere. They could be analogs from very Earth-like planets or things created from the information the System stole from our minds or the ship. Who knows where the System gets the things it puts in the store?”

“Well, it’s a pretty nice treat. I used to be an addict—six or eight cups a day.”

“Hah, happy to help you feed that particular demon! So, how are things?”

“Um, well, what do you want to know? Things are hectic! You know about Issa and the babies, right?” Maria nodded, and he continued, “Well, she’s been nothing but incredible, but we’ve decided to get married, and we’re talking a lot about the future, so, yeah, it takes up a lot of time. Then there’s Ykleedra and her sisters . . . and brother. Did you hear about him?”

“Yes, Ykleedra told me all about it. The whole thing is horrifying. I think it’s good that you didn’t hurt him, but I hope you’ll seek guidance from the council and some behavior specialists in the colony about what to do with him. Do you think he can be rehabilitated?”

“I really don’t know! I can’t get much out of him. Whatever magic his people worked so that the males of their species would be born with advanced genetic memories or whatever—it seems to have made them very emotionally unstable. I appreciate your suggestion, though, and I think that’s a great idea. I’ll bring it up at the next meeting. Maybe we can get a team of specialists to work with him. We could at least figure out if he’s beyond help, if what they’ve done to themselves is something we can’t help.”

“I’m glad you’re open to the idea. Ykleedra told me something similar about him, about his emotional instability. Speaking of her, Morgan, I’m here to ask your permission about something.” Maria set her cup down on the desk and leaned forward.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, I was speaking to that Captain Gella fellow from the big airship. You know about the party they’re throwing tonight, right?”

“Oh, I’m sure I’ve heard about it a time or three,” Morgan chuckled.

“You’re not going?”

“Nah—things were kind of tense when Issa and I left his last get-together, and I’m not really interested in hanging out with those people again. Issa’s very wrapped up in a project, too. She told me she was glad to stay home.” Morgan shrugged.

“Well, I was speaking to him, and I mentioned that I’d been coming to your tower regularly to give lessons to Ykleedra. He was fascinated at the prospect of a, as he put it, ‘civilized Yovashi.’ He practically begged me to bring her to the party tonight.”

Morgan had a sinking feeling; every bad VR he’d watched where someone “different” was mocked in “polite” society ran through his head. “I don’t think that’s wise. Those people have very deep-seated feelings about Yovashi. What if they mock her or, worse, what if one of the crew freaks out and attacks her?”

“I think the experience will be good for her, Morgan, and she’ll be able to leave anytime she gets uncomfortable. I’ll stay by her side the whole time, I promise! Don’t you think it would be good for Gella and his crew to see that all Yovashi aren’t murderous cannibals? That, at least the females, shouldn’t be hunted to extinction?”

Morgan thought about it, imagining Ykleedra’s glee at being on an airship and eating fancy foods among people she admired. It sounded nice, but he was still apprehensive about how the people on the airship would behave. “Gella said he wanted her to come? Did he offer any assurances?”

“Yes, of course! He swore that he’d prepare the crew and that no harm would come to her.”

“All right, I’ll tell you what: You can take her, but I’d like her home early. How does two hours sound? That should be enough for her to see the sights and sample some things, and then she’ll be able to leave before everyone starts getting drunk.”

“Perfect, Morgan! I agree—that would be just right for her.” Maria’s face lit up with excitement as she continued, “I’m going to come early so I can help her get ready. She has such beautiful hair, and I love her silver robe, but I wonder if there’s something else she’d like to wear!”

“I’m not kidding, Maria. I’ll fly over and get her if she’s gone more than a couple of hours.” Morgan’s voice was stern, but he was smiling, imagining Ykleedra sampling hors d’oeuvres. He’d made plenty of mistakes in his life, and he felt like he was making one now, but he trusted Maria and her judgment and decided to let go of his paranoia. She had a level head and had done a lot to impress Morgan in the past months.

“I can see you aren’t kidding, Morgan, don’t worry.” She said with a snort. “No need to draw that sword or spread your wings threateningly!”

“Oh, come on! I only do that to bad guys!” Morgan laughed, then he lifted his coffee mug and took a sip of the liquid, expecting it to be lukewarm by now but pleasantly surprised that it was still hot. “Insulated?” he asked.

“No—Enchanted! Get used to it, Morgan. Our people are coming up with all sorts of amazing things!”

Maria left not long after that, and Morgan spent most of the morning practicing his sword forms in the dueling hall. He’d yet to find a sparring partner among the colonists, and he wondered if there were some sort of a job or help-wanted board. “Is there a newspaper?” The thought suddenly sprang into his mind, and he had to imagine someone was working on a printing press. As he wiped the sweat from his brow and stowed away his armor, he decided that there were too many things he didn’t know about First Landing.

He figured his visit with Maria was part of the source for the thought—if they had coffee now and enchanted mugs to keep it hot, what else was he missing? He’d seen plenty of new buildings, from restaurants to clothing stores, and he figured many interesting things were being made and sold that he had no clue about. “Time to remedy that,” he grunted, refastening his belt.

Bloodfang on his hip, he strode down the steps and out of his tower, walking purposefully toward Bronwyn’s Hill. If anyone could fill him in on the current projects and achievements of the people of First Landing, it was Alec Green. He knew just about everything about everyone, from their favorite drink to who they spent the night sleeping beside. Morgan laughed as he caught himself walking over the grassy field between his tower and the town proper. “What am I doing?” he chuckled as his wings cracked out and he launched himself into the air.

#

“You placed them?” Finneal asked Tanna as they watched the tall, winged warrior fly toward the town center.

“Yes. The wards are buried around the tower. They’ll activate at my command. I’ll wait until tonight when the party’s in swing, and we can be sure no one will be visiting him.” Tanna looked tired, her pale blue skin marred by deep purple circles around her eyes.

“You don’t look great. Are you sure they’ll work?”

“Yes, fool!” she snapped. “I’ve done them properly! They’ll stop anyone from entering that tower who’s under tier two, and they’ll specifically stop Morgan and Issa from leaving, no matter their current tier. I perfectly matched their Energy signatures.”

“I heard he has portals in that tower. They’ll stop those?”

“This again? How many times will you idiots bring this up? They won’t stop the portals, but they’ll keep Morgan or Issa from traveling through them. My wards will create a shell around that tower that stops any sort of travel, be it dimensional or physical.”

“That doesn’t make sense. He uses void-attuned Energy. You saw the portal he made when they returned! How can you stop him from connecting two disparate points of space? If we’ve gambled on these wards, and you’ve overlooked something so . . .”

“Enough!” Tanna snapped. “You can’t begin to comprehend what I’ve done, you fool! There will be no void Energy manifesting in that tower, not while my wards hold. Now be silent! Take your doubts and play with them in your quarters! I’m trying to enjoy the air after being cooped in my workshop for two weeks!”

“I always thought they called you the Ice Queen because of your affinities, but I can see it’s mostly because you’re a colossal bitch,” Finneal sneered as he walked away from her toward a nearby stairwell.

Tanna smirked at his words, not bothering to reply or even watch him walk away. She knew she’d won that engagement, as usual. When he resorted to name-calling and retreated with his “last word” thrown out, it was over in her mind. “A weak, preening, simpleton. Should he ever try more than words, I’ll deliver him a lesson that will alter his life.”

“He’s dangerous, Tanna.” Gella spoke softly, and he’d walked up to her side, similarly softly, and she almost jumped from the start. How had that portly, lustful dolt snuck up on her? Rather than give away her surprise, Tanna took a slow breath and forced a smile.

“Am I not also dangerous, Captain?”

“Yes, but I think he’s mad.” Again, the captain’s words were softly spoken; anyone more than a foot away would have trouble hearing them.

“Do you fear he’d hear you, even now? He’s long gone, Captain, no doubt harassing some crew member in a mop closet.”

“Perhaps, perhaps,” Gella said, drumming his fingers on the rail, looking out over the human colony. “I heard the tail-end of your conversation, and I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop. You were both speaking rather loudly. I’m impressed with your work, you know, and I’ve already given a report to ap’Gravin about all you’ve done while those other two lounged about.”

“Oh, dear! Are you still trying to earn favor with me, Captain? Well, as remarkable as your bootlicking is, the most impressive thing you’ve done, in all the time we’ve been on this tedious mission, is to make me not want to kill you. How exactly have you done that?”

“I don’t know. Persistence?” the captain chuckled, and Tanna couldn’t help the little thrill of amusement in her chest. He was simple, and he was weak, only tier-two, but something about his gruff nature and the way he kept coming back for more was intriguing. He never seemed daunted by her rejections, no matter how cruelly she teased him.

“Well, for your honesty, I’m going to give you some advice: write another missive to your lord, and give some praise to those other two layabouts. Make something up if you must. They’re cutthroat, and if ap’Gravin dresses them down for a lack of effort, they’ll find a way to make you suffer for it.”