Sacred Trust (20 page)

Mom dying in a freak accident had left him devastated for years. So, this relationship might be a good thing for him. Perhaps for both of them. And I guess it didn't matter, since we needed someone to stay behind anyway.

“However, I think your plan should not be put into effect until tomorrow morning,” said my Dad. “You're all looking tired. I'm starting to think the transporter takes a toll on our bodies.”

“You may be correct,” said Ruen. “My limbs feel weak, and I'd welcome dinner showing up any moment.”

I looked at Eonus. This decision made me grouse inwardly as I was anxious to get a look at the tunnel above us to see how it differed, if at all, from the tunnel we were familiar with—not wait till morning—but I suspected I was also not at my top physical form. So I supposed a night's rest wouldn't do any harm.

After we returned to the main room, the first dinner tray started to exit the food slot. We gathered our food and proceeded to the tables. I put my tray down and jammed my hands down on my hips. “Hey! We need paper and pens. We need to make up some entertainment. This confinement is boring, boring, boring.” My voice got louder and louder, as I spoke.

The ambassadors stopped what they were doing and stared at me for a moment, and then they returned to their meals, my Dad shaking his head at my ill-mannered behavior. In a few moments, my wishes were fulfilled. A stack of paper and writing instruments arrived by transporter on an empty table.

“See how well that works,” I said. Pleased with my accomplishment, I returned to my meal.

“Too bad, your previous screaming fit, demanding we be let go, turned out to be unsuccessful,” said Ruen. “Otherwise, I would suggest you try that again.”

I frowned. Was Ruen trying to annoy me? I studied her face. No, I didn't think so. The smile that tried to escape led me to believe she was giving our captors a message. The ambassadors' reactions to the wink I gave her remained mixed.

“I am going to draw up the game I told you about,” said Ruen. “Does anyone want to help?”

We returned our dinner trays to the slot, and then we all gathered around one table. At least the stools were mobile; the tables were bolted to the floor. Ruen spread some paper out, and Eonus got busy, being the artist of our group. To keep the rest of us occupied for a few moments, Ruen explained the rules and had the rest of us make some game pieces.

One run through of Ruen's game was enough. Although it reminded the ambassadors of what we'd previously revealed, ninety minutes of play proved to be their undoing. No one could beat Ruen at her own game.

Three snack trays arrived—one for each race, I assumed—but we wouldn't let our parents eat. Belatedly, they remembered our comments about drugs.

“I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm tired,” I said. “It's been an eventful day. Why doesn't everyone take their turn in the amenities room, and then we can turn out the lights?”

Ruen took my hint, and went to the amenities room. The others followed suit.

Eonus and I waited until last. “Okay. We will now take our turn in the amenities room,” I said.

After Dad realized what I'd said, he spluttered. Ilandus had a knowing look on her face—perhaps because her son looked a bit uncomfortable.

Deal with it
, I thought.

The next morning we devoured our breakfast in a hurry. With Dad and Raen staying behind to look after the food slot, Eonus, Ruen and I packed up our bags. For some strange reason, the three of us had been abducted when we were again carrying our school bags. A peculiar thought, but one that might mean something.

It now took us just moments to remove the grate and assist each other up into the tunnel—we'd done it so many times—and let Ilandus look around. Everything was new to her.

“What do you want to see first, Ambassador?” I asked.

“Ilandus to you,” she said, while giving me a knowing look. I guess being intimate with her son made me a family member. What a weird thought.

She then continued with “Old, but need new.”

My best guess from my interaction with Eonus, was that she wanted to see what we'd explored before, but realized we needed to move on. We had no idea how many days we would be held captive this time, but our parents had been given our previously discovered information via our debriefing a day ago, and by our board game.

“So, let's go as fast as we can to the bow. There should be elevator access there. If there's no one around, then we can try and take the elevator to another level. What's the worst that could happen?” I asked.

“Different skin,” Ilandus said. “Not albino. If seen...”

“That may not be a problem.” I told her about the yellow-skinned ‘albino' we had seen. “There may be others with not such white skin.”

No one responded to my comment. We all had fears of what might happen to us if we were discovered by our captors, but I think we all decided to keep our fears to ourselves as if voicing them would make them come true.

The four of us jogged quickly along the walkway to the ship-like bow. Ilandus kept up with us quite well. She did make us stop for a moment at each area so she could get a quick look at what we'd already seen. It didn't take us long to realize this was the same exact tunnel we'd explored during our last captivity.

When we arrived at the elevator, we held back around the corner until the corridor cleared.

“How are we going to know if someone is going to come out of the elevator when we want to go in?” asked Ruen. “Maybe it is not an elevator. Maybe it is ...” She stopped talking. I didn't want to know what she had been about to say.

Good question. We thought for a moment.

“My gown similar,” said Ilandus. “Go first.” She pulled out her gown from her bag and slipped it on over her clothes. It was indeed a close approximation to the female garments we'd seen on our previous trip. So letting her go first would be a viable action. However, was putting an ambassador at risk a good idea?

Before I had a chance to air my thoughts, Ilandus left our little group. We watched her stroll up to the door and press a button. And I mean strolled—she had all the moves.

I couldn't see which button she pushed. The elevator had two—presumably up and down.

The doors opened and Ilandus waved us over, after peering inside. No one was about, so we piled in, and started breathing again.

“Which way are we going?” I asked.

“Down,” said Ilandus, pointing at one of the buttons.

I had no problem with her making that decision; we only had two ways to go anyway. But I did have a question. “How do you know that means down?”

“Similar character,” said Ilandus.

So had we been captured by Basilians after all, despite the belief albinos were nonexistent in their historical records?

When we arrived at the next floor, Ilandus looked out and then motioned us to follow her. We scurried around the corner and out of sight of anyone on this level—we hoped.

Whatever this level was devoted to, another tunnel supported travel and utilities. Apparently, each level had its own self-contained life support system.

We huddled there to consult. “This is a tram entrance,” Ruen said, pointing to a set of double doors. “Why not take the tram to its next stop?” she suggested. “Then we can get off and study the area in front of us. If you'll remember...” She looked at Eonus and me. “...there is an opening in the walkway—the access/egress points—at each stop. We can conserve our energy by riding the tram and get off anytime we want.”

All our walking and jogging had indeed taken a lot of energy. “But what if we have to pay a fare?” I asked.

“Let's just hope it is free,” said Ruen. “And just to be safe, let's find an empty car.”

“Go in first,” Ilandus again offered. “See anyone there.”

“There are no windows on this side, so the rest of us should be safe from discovery,” I said. This plan was a good idea, but I was apprehensive about putting Ilandus in danger again.

However, the strategy proved successful.

We hopped on am empty tram car. Ilandus was starting to make a fine spy. I couldn't wait to tell Dad and Raen.

The tram stopped at the junction of two sections, which made sense. The section to our left had two parts—one filled with machinery and the other comprised of closed tanks.

“The machinery could be for anything,” I said. “But what are the tanks used for?”

Everyone's eyes followed my pointing arm.

“Waste management,” said Ilandus.

Her suggestion sounded plausible. Perhaps this building was more self-contained than I'd realized, which made me wonder all the more how we fit in.

The machinery's function eluded us, particularly since the area contained a completely different type than what we'd seen on the upper floor.

The next section over—towards the center of our ship-shaped prison—contained greenhouses. These greenhouses looked about a story and a half high. Perhaps much taller plants were grown in these structures. It looked like crops had recently been planted.

Shortly, Ruen suggested we get back on the tram and go to the next stop. So that's what we did, in our stealthy way. Ilandus seemed to enjoy her role.

Next we encountered a section of ponds that stretched to the furthest wall. We had no idea what these were for.
It can't just be for swimming
, I thought. Perhaps some kinds of fish?

To the right of the ponds, there were two areas with unusual animals. The best descriptions I could find in my vocabulary were “miniature chickens” and a creature that looked like a cross between a “cow” and a “platypus.” Not pretty critters by any means.

I pointed to the mini chickens. “Ruen, do you have anything like those on Basili?” Although they had four legs, and their coloring had an orange hue, I still thought they looked like miniature versions of chickens.

“Yes, we have an animal the same size and shape but they're red and white. They are very tasty. I can usually eat a whole one.” Ruen smiled. Her attitude indicated she considered them a delicacy.

“What about those flat cows?” I asked.

“Well, I have never heard of cows, but these are called meeli. These are also very delicious. The animals before us are about a quarter smaller than the ones we usually ranch, though. So that seems strange. Someday I will take you outside Basik to see a ranch. There is a lot you need to discover about Basili's flora and fauna,” she said.

“Do the Arandi have similar animals?” I asked the Tatas, who were flanking me.

“Yes,” said Ilandus.

“Different colors,” said Eonus.

My conclusion was we all had similar food animals—humans and aliens, alike. Our dietary requirements were not unique. So far, we humans had come across no vegetarian worlds.

We got back on the tram and proceeded to the next stop. Ruen's suggestion of using the tram allowed our explorations to proceed at a rapid pace.

At this stop, we found more greenhouses and a small park with tents. Apparently, greenhouses existed on every level of the structure. What interested me the most were the playing fields and the outdoor theatre; at least, that's what I thought they were.

“Ruen, Eonus, do your worlds have theatres?” I asked.

“What do you mean?” asked Ruen.

I had to think for a moment to find the proper words. “I'm sure you have stories that are written down.”

Ruen nodded.

“Do people act these stories out in front of an audience? And I don't mean electronic media. I mean do you have people that perform the stories in front of a live audience?” Explaining what I meant gave me a headache.

“Yes, we do. Why?”

“Look at that stage with all the seating. I think it is an open-air Amphitheatre for performing literary works. What do you think?”

“You may be right. It does look similar to our outdoor theatres. Theatre is not my focus, though.”

However, I believed I had correctly determined its function. “Eonus, do you have theatres?”

“No.”

Come to think of it, any world that uttered one or two word sentences wouldn't be conducive to theatre productions. Why I had even asked?

Our next tram stop turned out to be at the opposite end from our initial foray onto the tram. In other words, the other end of the ship or whatever type of building this was.

At this point, we needed to be careful. With a tram terminal and elevators, the traffic would be higher. We took a quick look out into the center area. I thought I recognized a kitchen and eating areas. Then I viewed another area much like the school upstairs. But, in this case, perhaps the building housed offices. They didn't have the right feel for classrooms.

“We need to get back,” said Ruen. “We have used up a lot of our time. I suggest we take the elevator up to our floor, and then hop on the tram again. We will have to go around the far side of the building and then half way back down our side, but the tram should get us there quickly enough. And I have been counting the stops, so I know how many we need to pass on our way back.”

Again Ilandus did her thing with the elevator. Once we were back on the tram, I relaxed a bit. Our excursion had been tense, but we were on our way home.

Home?
An interesting concept for someone living on an alien world.

Ruen developed a slight glitch in her planning. Somehow she'd miscounted the tram stops to our destination. When we exited, we recognized where we were and knew it was just a short distance to our cell.

Upon our return, we were greeted warmly by Dad and Raen. Well, at least as warmly as they could without giving anything away to our captors.

I picked a table where we normally didn't eat our meals. “Let's spend a little time updating our game. I have some new ideas.”
Such subtlety!
Pleased with myself, I started a new page for our game.