More on this book
Community
Kindle Notes & Highlights
“We tried, once, to be open to the world. The effects on the community were distressing. You see, many people believed that we were the Caretakers and began to demand of us more than we could provide.” “And you are not—” “We are not now, nor have we ever been, the Caretakers,”
“Their powers are far beyond us,” he continued. “So you have met them?” I asked quickly. He smiled. “I really couldn’t say.”
“Then I’m coming with you,” he declared. “Don’t.” I shook my head. “Don’t do this; don’t make me feel that I stood between you and your dream.”
I am permitted, I will return some day, after I have completed my assignment. You were right, Delarua. There are people depending on us to return, and it was a lapse on my part to persuade myself otherwise.” I glanced at the monk. He stood looking at us, as unsurprised as if he had known Dllenahkh’s mind before Dllenahkh had known it himself.
“Walk on water. Fly through the treetops. Farewell.”
“Telekinesis is a natural consequence of intensive psionic development,”
… we’ve got a long road ahead of us, me and Gracie. The influence went on for so long, they can’t just put things back the way they should be. Rafi’s all right, though. He—he’s more like you. Grace, you must promise me, if I can’t take care of him, if they try to take him from me, you’ll look out for him? Be his guardian? I’ll sign whatever I have to. I just want him to be with family.”
can anyone understand what it meant to me? To have had for however short a time the interest and attention of a man who was strong enough to walk away from me and strong enough to let me walk away from him—it might be too much to say it healed something in me, but it was a start.
remote village in the forest uplands had made an unheard-of effort to contact Central Government authorities.
“It seems they learned about your quest to find taSadiri brides for your homesteaders, and they’re impressed with your courage. They’ve submitted genetic samples as proof of their eligibility and wish to send a delegation of women to the Tlaxce settlement.”
“I may have neglected to mention that the injunction placed on us to say nothing to others on this matter is far
too strong for me to remove,” he said softly.
“But you have guessed correctly. I am grateful that they found a way to acknowledge our need without compromising their way of life.”
For Dllenahkh, it was more; he could now sense the latent connections that would lead them into that deeper communication shared by the people of the monastery.
have been thinking,” she said. “Delarua could benefit from some of the techniques of the basic disciplines.”
“Of course, but the fact remains, she can trust me while we remain colleagues and equals. Becoming her teacher would shift the balance of power, and I would prefer not to lose her friendship.” For I have already done too much to alter that balance. He was relieved that he could not speak of what he had done, because for all his good intentions, he felt strangely close to the edge of guilt. Healing Delarua had been unexpectedly exhilarating, partly due, no doubt, to the thrill of learning a new, nearly miraculous skill, but also perhaps akin to the transcendence of bonding with a mindship and
...more
Her hair was a cloud of silver foam growing back from her temples in tiny soft curls, then expanding up and out in fierce glory. Few crowns of the traditional mold could encompass it, but none was necessary when diamonds of all colors, rose and white and gold, sparkled freely throughout her tresses, transforming the cloud to a starry nebula. Her eyebrows were golden and perfectly shaped, each one a gentle, delicate arc. Dark pupils stood out starkly in sea-gray irises; long, light brown eyelashes framed all with a sleepy sultriness. Her look was forgiving of the ordinariness of others and
...more
A catalog of my own flaws began to scroll through my mind. The uneven texture of my hair, whose inability to decide whether to curl or ripple meant that a crew cut was the best out of a bunch of bad options. The mundane brown of that same hair. Flat, broad eyebrows strongly marking my face, eyes that needed the help of kohl to become remarkable. Thick bones and muscles that spoke of sturdiness rather than grace—ha, the irony! Cedar-brown skin that might have been just acceptable if it hadn’t been for the faint dusting of freckles across my nose and cheeks.
There was little chance of my getting to sleep in a hurry, what with all the adrenaline of the past few minutes, so I shifted a little closer to Fergus. He was putting away some of his gear and politely ignoring me, as usual. I’d long ago figured out that for a man like Fergus, a man who shunned unnecessary talk, I was a walking nightmare.
“You’re telling me that of the Sadiri who survived, there are diplomats and judges, pilots and scientists, nuns and monks … and jailbirds?”
“You are a land of true matriarchs. Is that why there is no king in your court?” Dllenahkh inquired. The Queen seemed delighted at this question. “There have been two in the past, but these days I follow the example of other women of my House and content myself with my attendants.”
the Queen became enthralled by the sound of the Sadiri language and pressed Dllenahkh to speak only in that tongue. Cymraeg is very poetic, even romantic, and Standard less so, though serviceable enough. Sadiri is absolutely perfect as a programming language, but when it comes to matters of the heart, it falls a little short. This became obvious when the tenor of the conversation began to change.
“That’s ridiculous. For what Dllenahkh and Joral are doing, those people should have Sadiri princesses lined up for them when they get back rather than speculating about every ragtag and bobtail they happen to work with.” Dllenahkh’s eyebrows went up, as expected. “I am not familiar with that phrase, but if the tone is any indication, I would have to say that you are hardly in that category.”
“Is there some other production we might attend which does not illustrate that dysfunctional pair bonding is endemic in most cultures?” asked Dllenahkh with heavy disapproval. I sighed and rolled my eyes. “Everyone’s a critic. Come on. Let’s go in.”
she was wearing one of the skimpiest dresses I have ever seen. Her legs were pretty much uncovered, and I have no idea how she managed to run so fast with so little support for her upper assets.
“Let’s just say that a ménage à trois can get really messy when it implodes. Give me a straightforward one-on-one any day, but city folk like to get creative—no offense to you, ma’am.”
“Oh, your dress! Your pretty dress!” Some women are like that about clothes. Skin heals, but a really good dress is irreplaceable. “I wasn’t even scratched,” I told her.
Nedda looked suddenly happy. “You can tell? Oh, that’s such a relief! One Zhinuvian great-grandparent, and I get smacked with the glimmer skin and the shiny hair and stupid attitudes from men and women. Funny thing, genetics. Actually, I’m mostly Ntshune; can you believe it?”
Just a bit longer on me, but that’s … ooooh, hey, you’ve got antigrav boosters in here! Niiice!” I threw caution, and my bra, to the wind, the former metaphorically, the latter literally.
I think it will be kinder for Tarik if I am not present when you walk in wearing that dress.”
“Nasiha asked me about medical techniques to prolong a woman’s years of fertility.” I raised my eyebrows, absently multitasking as I ticked items off the inventory on my handheld and yelled an order to the longshoremen. “Sorry, you were saying? Prolonging fertility? She’s quite young by Sadiri standards; why should she be worrying about that now?” “Oh, it wasn’t for her. It was for you.” I nearly dropped my handheld. “What? Why in the name of all … what business … me? What did I ever do to her?”
have you found yourself to be a bit … well …” I couldn’t use the word “emotional.” “A bit more vehement than usual, perhaps.” “Of course,” she snapped. “It is a natural consequence of the pregnancy. The maternal, protective urge must increase.” “Oh, well, as long as it’s natural,” I mumbled dubiously.
telepathic receptors in his palm was far above the average amount for Terrans. How does he come to be a servant in a household that seems to have taSadiri nobility and a Terran servant class?”
“I suspect you are not noble enough to marry nor yet common enough to bed,”
“Like to get your hands on some genetic samples?” he said in much the same tone that a Tlaxce City hustler would use to describe rare and reasonably priced merchandise that might or might not have fallen off the back of a freight car.
“Slavery doesn’t exist on Cygnus Beta,” I said sharply, not keen on being played for a softhearted fool. “Aren’t you paid wages? Every one of you must be registered on the Revenue and Pensions system. There’s no way the Master could get around that.” Elion’s mouth curved up in a cynical smile. “All you have to do is claim the credits appropriately. The cost of our food, our shelter, our clothing—somehow it all balances out perfectly.”
People always think genetic analysis can do miracles. There was no global database yet. We were not connected to any galactic database. There was no guarantee that we could find a missing person file with matching DNA. I shook my head at the folly even as I heard myself saying, “Yes.”
Fergus turned on me, and for a moment I honestly thought he was going to hit me. “I was enslaved by the Zhinuvians,” he said. “What?” I said, my fury erased in an instant by utter shock. “They’ve got the best merchant fleet in the galaxy. Do you really think all their cargoes are legal? This kind of setup? Too familiar.
“Analysis proves that the Master of Kir’tahsg is the genitor of over ten percent of the domestics of his household,” I said coldly. “The Heir, who is yet young, has only managed to contribute two offspring to the general roll of servants. I cannot give you precise numbers. Some of the kinship lines were … complicated.” Qeturah blinked and turned her face away. “You would have had to run analyses on individual identified data to get that information,” she said quietly. “As civil servants and scientists we are only allowed to give aggregated results on genetic data unless there is a specific
...more
“It must. You’re ending your career for it.”
“Ever wonder if you’ve done the right thing?” I asked him finally. “Frequently,” he replied. “Legalities notwithstanding, to not wonder indicates a dangerous lack of awareness of the nearly infinite array of choices presented by life. More tea?”
I smiled in spite of myself. “Thank you, Dllenahkh, but y’know, I think that’s you, not the tea.” A faint smile curved his lips as he looked at me. For a moment, I saw … I don’t know how to explain it, but I saw just a man—not an offworlder, not a foreigner, nor even a colleague and a friend but just a man, relaxed, smiling, glad to be in my company.
I felt an odd, fragmenting sensation of suddenly perceiving something differently and having the whole world change as a result.
I hid a smile, wondering to myself how Dllenahkh had learned to stroke the female ego so well.
“An unusual piece,” he remarked. I realized that his hand had paused on the clasp, which was in the shape of a hummingbird. “Nasiha chose it for me.” “Most apt.” “Nasiha has excellent taste,” I agreed.
I stepped up to him, hovered on the edge of his personal space, then came closer. He eyed me warily but did not move, held, I think, by a curiosity stronger than any decorum. I stretched up on tiptoe, careful not to touch any part of him, half closed my eyes, and deeply inhaled the scent of him at the join of his neck and jaw. Then I stepped back and smiled sweetly. His eyes followed me, still wary but also alight with a sort of intrigued amazement. “If I may ask, why did you do that?” I felt—let me confess it—a little feminine thrill at the deepened tone of his voice. “Just checking,
...more
Do you know that there are about ten variants of the Sadiri word for “the right thing to do”? There’s the thing that’s right to do because it’s beneficial to all concerned. There’s the thing that’s right to do because it’s been done that way for the last seven generations. There’s even the thing that’s right to do because it will impress your superior. And they mostly get translated as—you guessed it—“appropriate.”
For a people who claim that deception is inappropriate, the Sadiri know how to spin a manipulative sentence or two, let me tell you.
“EEEEEEEE!” You know it’s bad when you’re falling to certain death and all you can think for your blessed last thought is Damn, have I got a girly scream. Thud. I collided not with the unforgiving ground but with a pair of strong arms and a broad chest, all connected to a form and face that I knew well. What the hell? Dllenahkh? I thought. “My hero!” I cooed as he swooped up into the open sky, carrying me safely. This is bad and wrong, I tried to say. Put me down, you idiot! I can fly for myself!
“So, you’ve been watching a lot of old movies.” I glanced up at Dllenahkh. “Tell me … you ever imagine me in them? Or rather … us?” There was a profound silence. Dllenahkh turned to face me fully, the expression on his face somewhere between alarm and embarrassment. “Why do you ask?” “Don’t be coy. Superhero catches falling girl. Rick says good-bye to Ilsa. That’s what I’ve been dreaming, and that’s what you and Joral have been watching!” He actually paled. “That would suggest that I have been influencing your dreams.” “Worse. I’m dreaming your thoughts!
