Emergence (25 page)

“It already is. Xisa needed to train you, so she instructed my idelfada to have all those books for you to read, and to give you a reason to read them. This book,” she said, holding it up, “is my doing. When you and my idelfada visited me, I could tell immediately you both were idelfada. For that to be, both of us must die, and while I can accept death, I was beginning to understand that Xisa was something different and darker. So, I parceled aside a kernel of my memory, and hid this book in it. If my memories were copied and inserted into an idelfada, I wanted to see in an imperative would go with it. Your possession of this book confirms that.”

Applause came from the living room.

“What’s that?”

Esoica sighed. “The end of something good.”

Esoica helped Melissa into the living room, where they sat on a couch in front of a visual stalk. An image of the Freilux preened under it with Xisa at his side and Toby in bonds, and thousands upon thousands of Imathrins standing behind, cheering. Asil knelt nearby in chains, next to the two hlenna. Melissa buried her head in her hands, wailing.

“We must rescue them!”

“We can’t, now. Your original is too powerful, and the Freilux still holds the Sphere.”

“
For the crime of insurrection
,” cried the Freilux with glee, “
I sentence this man do death!
”

Melissa and her mother watched as Toby was executed to the cheers of the crowd. When Xisa reached up to kiss the Freilux, Esoica turned it off.

Melissa moaned and cried, and Esoica held her tightly long into the night. They had a small memorial for Toby, and once Melissa was calm again, they sat at the small kitchen table, looking out the window onto where Toby once trained with his soldiers.
“Is this all my family is?” muttered Esoica. “How did it all go wrong?”

Melissa took a deep breath and held back tears, feeling anger replace the unending sadness. “One day, we will bring Toby back. I will get Asil back. One day, we will kill the Freilux, and perhaps without his influence, Xisa will remember how much she loves her mother.”

Her mother scoffed. “How do you know she loves me?”

“Because I do,” said Melissa, as she kissed Esoica’s cheek. 

THE END