and so radiant that they had an unnatural glow around the outer edges. Barent had never seen anyone with eyes like that, certainly not on Earth.
And though her skin was extremely pale, it wasn’t the pure white of the original colonists and guards—nor was it one the host of other skin colors present in the prisoner population. And strangely, it had absolutely no sheen at all. Tana’s skin was perfectly matte, and seemed to absorb the ambient light. But perhaps most telling were her words. She had a peculiar accent when she spoke, and while Barent could understand Tana perfectly, her pronunciation was…well, odd. Barent’s intuition, and the evidence, led him to conclude that what Tana was telling him had to be true.
He’d been in cryo-sleep for more than half a millennium.
“The timer must have been faulty,” Barent said. “These chambers were only designed for a single use—for the trip out to this planet.” His face softened and Tana heard a somber tone invade Barent’s voice. “What is Le’sant like now?” he asked. “What has become of everything as I slept?”
“The city has grown much larger since your time, Sergeant Barent. But not much else has changed. The strong still prey on the weak, they all just go by different titles now. I’m afraid things didn’t turn out quite the way you’d hoped.”
“And the Wardens?”
“They’re still around. And they remain true to your memory. In fact, they’re the ones who sent me here tonight to…”
“To what?”
“They sent me here to free you, Sergeant Barent. But that’s not what they told me. They must have known that you were still alive when they snuck me in past the guards. But they didn’t care to share that information.” Tana shook her head and smiled. “The Wardens are much sneakier than I thought.”
Barent felt the outline of Corporal Ennis’ note in his pocket. “Then that much hasn’t changed, either.”
“It sounds to me like Ennis saved your life,” Tana said.
“I realize that. But if everything you say is true—and my instincts tell me it is—what the hell am I to do now?”
“I honestly don’t know, Sergeant. But I’m sure the Wardens have a few ideas, and I’m supposed to meet them not too far from here. What I do know is that the Collective sure as hell won’t be happy to have you back.”
Barent’s eyes went cold and his voice turned angry. “This Collective Ennis talked about, they still exist?”
“They do. And they control everything.”
“And exactly who are you ?” Barent asked.
“A thief. Your Wardens blackmailed me into breaking in here. They’re holding my girlfriend and my freedom hostage to guarantee my cooperation.”
“Girlfriend?” Barent remarked.
“Certainly homosexuals were not unheard of five hundred years ago.”
“Of course not, thief. In fact, it was the preferred orientation of the prisoners sent out to construct the colonies. And here on Torvus, after the second ship was lost, it was even encouraged as a passive form of birth control—because the sterility agent wasn’t 100% effective.”
Barent’s eyes went vacant for a moment, as if reliving a distant and unpleasant memory, and then he focused in on Tana again. “When the other colony ships didn’t show up ten years on, there was even talk about making it compulsory for the prisoners…along with some other less savory solutions to keep the population down. Regardless, my remark didn’t concern your sexuality, thief. It was a reaction to the Wardens taking hostages—and having criminals do their work for them.”
“First off, my name is Tana, not thief . And I’m not a crimin— Well I am, but—”
“You can explain yourself later,” Barent told her. “If the Wardens had to sneak you in here, then that means the guards outside are no friends of mine.”
“And how do you know that I am?” Tana asked.
“I don’t. But if you’d wanted me dead, you could have easily just placed a bomb on the
And though her skin was extremely pale, it wasn’t the pure white of the original colonists and guards—nor was it one the host of other skin colors present in the prisoner population. And strangely, it had absolutely no sheen at all. Tana’s skin was perfectly matte, and seemed to absorb the ambient light. But perhaps most telling were her words. She had a peculiar accent when she spoke, and while Barent could understand Tana perfectly, her pronunciation was…well, odd. Barent’s intuition, and the evidence, led him to conclude that what Tana was telling him had to be true.
He’d been in cryo-sleep for more than half a millennium.
“The timer must have been faulty,” Barent said. “These chambers were only designed for a single use—for the trip out to this planet.” His face softened and Tana heard a somber tone invade Barent’s voice. “What is Le’sant like now?” he asked. “What has become of everything as I slept?”
“The city has grown much larger since your time, Sergeant Barent. But not much else has changed. The strong still prey on the weak, they all just go by different titles now. I’m afraid things didn’t turn out quite the way you’d hoped.”
“And the Wardens?”
“They’re still around. And they remain true to your memory. In fact, they’re the ones who sent me here tonight to…”
“To what?”
“They sent me here to free you, Sergeant Barent. But that’s not what they told me. They must have known that you were still alive when they snuck me in past the guards. But they didn’t care to share that information.” Tana shook her head and smiled. “The Wardens are much sneakier than I thought.”
Barent felt the outline of Corporal Ennis’ note in his pocket. “Then that much hasn’t changed, either.”
“It sounds to me like Ennis saved your life,” Tana said.
“I realize that. But if everything you say is true—and my instincts tell me it is—what the hell am I to do now?”
“I honestly don’t know, Sergeant. But I’m sure the Wardens have a few ideas, and I’m supposed to meet them not too far from here. What I do know is that the Collective sure as hell won’t be happy to have you back.”
Barent’s eyes went cold and his voice turned angry. “This Collective Ennis talked about, they still exist?”
“They do. And they control everything.”
“And exactly who are you ?” Barent asked.
“A thief. Your Wardens blackmailed me into breaking in here. They’re holding my girlfriend and my freedom hostage to guarantee my cooperation.”
“Girlfriend?” Barent remarked.
“Certainly homosexuals were not unheard of five hundred years ago.”
“Of course not, thief. In fact, it was the preferred orientation of the prisoners sent out to construct the colonies. And here on Torvus, after the second ship was lost, it was even encouraged as a passive form of birth control—because the sterility agent wasn’t 100% effective.”
Barent’s eyes went vacant for a moment, as if reliving a distant and unpleasant memory, and then he focused in on Tana again. “When the other colony ships didn’t show up ten years on, there was even talk about making it compulsory for the prisoners…along with some other less savory solutions to keep the population down. Regardless, my remark didn’t concern your sexuality, thief. It was a reaction to the Wardens taking hostages—and having criminals do their work for them.”
“First off, my name is Tana, not thief . And I’m not a crimin— Well I am, but—”
“You can explain yourself later,” Barent told her. “If the Wardens had to sneak you in here, then that means the guards outside are no friends of mine.”
“And how do you know that I am?” Tana asked.
“I don’t. But if you’d wanted me dead, you could have easily just placed a bomb on the
Similar Books
