Ancient Hunter

I was aware of the scrutiny I was under as I told Xenai the reason I was here. “I couldn’t contact the Keepers so I came here to find what happened to them.” I found myself telling her about finding the remaining Keepers as holos.

“I see,” Xenai muttered thoughtfully. “I guessed you’d be here and I tried to find you.” She rubbed her forehead. “Trying to find you with my mind was a task beyond me. And the damn circle frustrated my efforts to get into the cavern. I just couldn’t use it to enter.”

Secretly I was glad of that it meant it was linked to my Keeper DNA or anyone with Keeper DNA that had it awakened like I had. She would have known how to enter she had walked through my mind.

Xenai rubbed her forehead again. “Bloody migraine isn’t helping much.”

“You need anything?” I asked her concerned for her health.

“Coffee.” She gestured to the shuttle’s cramped kitchenette.

I made her a coffee and handed it to her.

“Thanks,” she said as she took a sip.

“What happens now?”

“I go back to my ship.” She looked at me. “You will call me if you need help?”

A thought occurred to me, I hadn’t asked because I hadn’t wanted the answer. “My team, well my former team.” I wasn’t sure what my status was with the Alliance.

“Staking out your apartment and that of your troublesome Enari friend.”

Enari was the former name of the Valkyrie. The captain of the ‘Marco’ the explorer ship from Earth had called them Valkyries. The Valkyrie of course proudly took it as their own.

“She was very vocal in her objections to our presence.”

“Ljufu will be she is pure Valkyrie.” Which I wasn’t truth be told I was anxious to get going, I had to find the Keepers. “You sure you’ll be ok?”

“Yes, now get out of here. I need to sleep for a while.”

I exited the shuttle to find Thorda waiting for me.

“Please keep an eye on Xenai I’m worried about her.” I was starting to sound like some old mother hen. That wasn’t me and I wondered how I’d changed and when did it happen? I had too much on my plate to worry about that now.

“I have been, she was worrying about you.”

I had seen how badly it had affected her. “And don’t let her do that again. I’m not that important.”

“To her you are. She thinks of you as her sister.”

“Isn’t that what Admiral Komana says everyone under her is, her family?”

“That’s different,” Thorda said. “This is different it’s a T’Arni thing. What the Rhosani did to us was unforgivable. We can’t afford to forget. Whole families slaughtered or tortured on a whim.” She shivered. “Being forced to do things against your will.” Thorda looked directly at me. “I’m glad you killed one.”

“I didn’t he killed himself. It was a case of being captured or dying he if I can call it a ‘he’ chose death.”

Thorda shrugged. “It’s still a win for us. The Rhosani can’t reproduce so everyone dead is one less in this galaxy or theirs.”

I hadn’t known that.

There were two Marines guarding my shuttle as we approached. They saluted smartly on the sight of Thorda.

“You are relieved of duty,” Thorda told them with a salute.

The Marines saluted back. “Aye ma’am,” they said in unison.

Thorda turned to me once the Marines were out of sight. “This is where I leave you.”

“You’re not going to arrest me?” I asked her directly.

“I’m not Gant the Ant!” Thorda replied.

“Gant the Ant,” I repeated, I know I was trying to cut down on repeating others’ words but I couldn’t help myself.

“Lieutenant Gant he’d have you in restraints and on the way back to the Terran Empire before you’d have time to blink.” She thrust out her hand in a friendly gesture. “I think this is common amongst the Humans.”

I shook her hand unsure what she knew about the Keepers and my involvement with them. “I’m not fully Human,” I admitted.

“Oh?” Thorda looked surprised.

“I’m part Valkyrie.” I wasn’t going to tell her about my Keeper DNA that would complicate matters.

“That explains a lot. Anyway good luck.” With that she turned and walked back to the ruins.

I entered the shuttle and sat down at the controls. I powered it up and flew back to the city. Traffic control must have tracked my progress. Ljufu waiting for me as I landed at the shuttle port. Someone from the rental company would pick it up later. She strode over to me as I exited the shuttle my pack slung over one shoulder.

“Well?” she said to me.

“It didn’t go the way I planned,” I said being honest.

“I bet that was down to the damn TCA.”

“The Alliance wasn’t the problem.” Alliance was my name for the Terran Confederacy Alliance.

“Then what?” she demanded.

“The Alliance is leaving,” I replied. It wasn’t the total truth. I was sure Xenai wouldn’t be leaving the system anytime soon.

“That’s news to me?” Ljufu replied gruffly.

I changed subjects. “What are you doing here?” I asked Ljufu directly.

“Making sure you are ok.”

“Ana know you are doing this?” I didn’t want to get between Ljufu and Ana.

“This is Clan business,” Ljufu declared.

I looked at her askance. “And Ana isn’t?” Ljufu had given up on returning to her Clan for Ana.

“You’re right Ana is part of my Clan, I gave my original Clan up to be with her.”

I heard the hurt in her voice. The longing to be part of a Clan, all exiled Valkyrie suffered from it in some form.

“I need to ask you a favour?” I said steering Ljufu back onto firmer ground.

“What is it?”

“I need to speak to the President.” I hoped that what I knew was correct. The First Ones appeared as the President and his Deputy. I didn’t want it to turn out like the Guardians on Melanos as fake images of my parents.

“Not possible he’s off world for the next couple of weeks.”

My heart sank. “What about his Deputy?”

“The Vice President is here but I can’t get you anything today. Tomorrow she’ll be free in the afternoon.”

“That was easy,” I said worried that it was too easy.

“I do have her schedule,” Ljufu told me.

“Ok if you can do that I’d be grateful.”

Ljufu gave me the eye. “How grateful?”

I felt suddenly uncomfortable.

“Enough for a hotel room?”

I felt really uncomfortable about that Xenai had told me what Ljufu thought about me, she’d been a player before she’d met Ana.

Ljufu smirked. “For Ana and I, you get to watch over Juliet I wouldn’t trust anyone else.”

That made more sense than what I’d originally envisaged. “I can do that,” I said to her.

“That’s settled then, want a ride?”

“To my apartment if its not too much out of your way?” I ignored her lewd suggestion she was joking with me. Ana her only one.

“Sure Gwen.”

I arrived home or the closest thing I had to a home I’d been travelling too long to settle anywhere. I put my pack away and walked to centre of my apartment. I’d take a shower later but for now I had a thing to do. I took a deep breath and concentrated I hoped beyond hope that this would work.

“Moon Shadow!” I called out. “I need you.” Probably not the best way of doing it.

A figure appeared in a long dress most of the Keepers had adopted she had long dark hair and my face but more angular. What startled me the most was Moon Shadow herself. I’d been expecting a green holo but what I was seeing was far from that. Moon Shadow looked as flesh and blood as I did. Although she had her wings tucked behind her back.

“Moon Shadow how…” I was at a loss for words I just pointed at her flabbergasted.

Moon Shadow looked alarmed. “Something wrong with my appearance mother?”

“I’m just shocked,” I spluttered out. “You’re not a holo anymore?”

“Holo oh you mean our projected images.”

“Yes that’s it,” I said relieved.

“Our images extend only as far the Cavern, your words not ours.” She frowned. “This language is so difficult to use.”

“But are you real?” I felt stupid asking a dumb question but I couldn’t take my words back.

“Real? This form, you made us what we are.” She stretched out her wings almost the expanse of the apartment. I stared at them and something clicked, my blood ran cold at the thought.

“Can I have one of your feathers.” I wasn’t sure if she’d comply.

“Of course mother.” Moon Shadow plucked out one of her feathers and handed it to me.

“Thanks,” I said. I couldn’t help staring at the feather.

“Is that all mother?”

“Yes, but thank you for coming.”

Moon Shadow smiled at me. I smiled back but my heart wasn’t in it. “I’ll be there for you, we all will when you call,” she assured me. At that she vanished.

I stared at the spot for a while. Turning the feather around in my hand I closely examined it. It was an exact match and style as the one from Davenport. Too much of a coincidence to be anything else. A chill thought ran through me making my toes curl. Placing the feather on the bed I stripped my top off I hadn’t changed it since I’d come back from the Cavern. It was as I dreaded there were two slashes in it. I walked into the bathroom and checked myself out in the mirror. I peered over my shoulder yep there were two scratches on my back matching the slashes in my top. Depression hit and I stumbled back into the apartment. “Who am I, what am I?” I questioned myself. Sitting on the edge of the bed I stared into space trying hard to gain control of my errant thoughts.