Harry's Sacrifice (30 page)

Someone got the idea to call in representatives of the Alvian legal system and everything moved quickly from there. The judiciary currently had no representative on the High Council, which was seen as very suspicious as the stories of the human prisoners came to light.

Alvian justice moved very swiftly, and the lawyers and advocates who arrived as the word got out had things moving along at an unprecedented pace. Judges were called and made decisions on the spot. They ordered the locks made to work in both directions on doors to those they believed unlikely to cause disruption. They allowed families the freedom to take their children to the recreation areas above ground during daylight hours. They allowed communication between non-violent prisoners via com consoles installed in their quarters.

All of these immediate orders went into effect while the bigger cases revolving around their imprisonment were being prepared for the open court. The vast majority of court proceedings were open in Alvian society and unprecedented numbers of citizens wanted to view the trials. Not only was the building where they were held filled to capacity, but the trials were being broadcast for all to see.

Major Rollins was called as a witness to the Alvian military’s actions against Breeds in the wild. He was even able to provide recordings of captures, which were corroborated by the actual soldiers involved. They didn’t lie to protect themselves. They felt no shame or remorse. They simply told the truth, in the typical Alvian way, helping the humans build their case.

Cormac was amazed by the swiftness of the justice dispensed. By the end of the day, the fate of over a dozen human families had been decided. They stayed in the city for now, in their cells, which now opened and closed at their discretion. Major Rollins and his friend, Darcy, stayed in the pens with them, talking to them about the outside and what the humans had rebuilt, letting them know they had a place to go should they want to leave the Alvian city.

Roshin had proven her worth over and over, getting the feed out to her contacts and allowing the Alvian populace to see what was going on when the Council would have kept them in the dark. The Council themselves had been shut up in closed session for hours until finally, after the evening meal, the Council Chambers themselves were stormed by a group of Alvian soldiers, acting on authority of the judiciary.

Once the warriors and legal system was set into motion, it didn’t take long for the tide to turn. Every Councilor was taken into custody pending investigation. The free broadcast of Hara’s every move resumed, but other things were broadcast as well, such as interviews with Ronin and discussions with some of the winged
Zxerah
, as well as some of the human Brethren.

It was as if the Alvian people had been awakened. Their curiosity was aroused and feeding on all the new information being disseminated. Calls for a vote were increasing as the people lost faith in the Council. Historians reminded people of the old system of government where a single leader was advised by the Council and a murmur built into a clamor, people wanting to execute their democratic right to decide what form their government should take and who should be running it.

It was well past midnight when Hara finally took Percival’s many hints and left the pens. People were free to move about down there now, which was a good start. Cormac followed behind the small group that followed the ancients, which consisted of Harry, Roshin and Caleb as well.

Some of the
Zxerah
acted as protectors and honor guards. Ronin had stayed behind, organizing his people—many of whom were helping the newly freed humans adjust.
Zxerah
were used to dealing on an equal basis with humans and were best suited to interfacing with those who’d been held.

They all trooped up to Caleb’s apartment first, making sure the ancients were safe and comfortable. The
Zxerah
would guard them while they slept, as they had the night before. Then Harry led the way back to his place. Cormac, Roshin and Harry were all exhausted from events of the day, but nobody moved toward the bedroom, collapsing instead on the couch as Harry went to the dispenser and got hot drinks for them all.

“That was quite a day,” Harry observed absently, slouching against the back of his well-cushioned chair.

Roshin murmured agreement as she sipped her tea.

“I never thought to see this day,” Cormac thought aloud. “I have studied Breeds as much as the Maras would allow, but I had no idea the extent of the secrecy that had been employed to hide what the scientists were doing.”

“How does that make you feel?” Harry asked quietly, but somehow Cormac felt the hidden import of the question.

Cormac thought for a second. “Disgusted.”

“Sad,” Roshin put in. “The Council has been lying to everyone for such a long time. I don’t think anyone will just let that go. Even if they can’t feel, they know right from wrong. What we saw today was just plain wrong.”

“And you were instrumental in getting the word out,” Cormac pointed out. “I’m very proud of your actions, Roshin. You are a credit to the
Zxerah
.”

Roshin looked at him with an eager sort of pleasure in her eyes. Cormac liked that he’d been able to make her feel that kind of response. He wanted to spend the rest of his days finding ways to make her smile. To make her feel good emotions. To give her pleasure.

“I thought you did a great thing when you looked up the next cell’s records, and by your action encouraged everyone else to do the same,” she complimented him in return and he felt his chest swell with her approval. He liked the feeling.

“You both did great jobs today,” Harry said, drawing their attention. When they both looked at him, he went on. “I know I’ve been difficult to deal with since this whole relationship started, and for that I am sorry. I always thought I’d find a human mate, but now I know why you were put into my life, Ro. And even you, Cormac. I’ve been less than gracious about accepting two Alvians. I didn’t really understand why it was shaping up this way until today.”

Harry leaned forward and took one of Roshin’s hands. Cormac immediately heard the Hum he had grown used to hearing whenever either of the men touched Ro’s skin.

“You two were meant to be here, at this time, doing the things you are best at in order to help free my people. I always thought I had this grand destiny, but I see now it’s not mine alone. You two are part of it. A big part of it. Today would have gone a lot differently if either of you had not been here.”

“I’m sorry I’m not human,” Roshin offered quietly. “But I can’t change what I am.”

“I don’t want you to,” Harry was quick to reply. “I’m learning there’s a big difference between what I thought I wanted and what I have and never want to let go. If you can forgive a stubborn human, I know that you’re my true mate, Ro. And if Cormac has to be part of the deal, then so be it.”

Harry’s smile and wink at Cormac let him know Harry intended the last remark to be humorous. Cormac laughed. Harry’s acceptance—in words and not just actions—meant a lot to Roshin and, therefore, to Cormac. If Roshin wasn’t happy, Cormac wasn’t happy. And he was astute enough with emotion now to realize that Roshin would not be happy unless both men were in her life and happy to be there.

Too exhausted to do anything other than sleep, the three of them went to bed a few minutes later. They were awakened only a few hours later by an insistent chime from the outer door of Harry’s apartment. Harry grumbled as he got up and went to see what was going on.

Cormac heard the murmur of voices from the outer room and decided to get up and see what warranted a rude awakening before dawn. Cormac came awake quickly when he stepped out of the bedroom and found a contingent of warriors surrounding Harry.

“What is happening?” Cormac demanded in a stern voice.

How dare the soldiers interrupt their sleep and accost Harry in his own home. If this was some attempt by the last vestiges of the Council to quell opposition, they would have to get through Cormac first.

But when Harry turned to Cormac, he had a satisfied smile on his face. Cormac reevaluated the situation, taking another quick glance around at the warriors. Behind the tallest was a human, who was clearly part of the group. Not warriors, but
Zxerah
. Cormac relaxed the tiniest bit.

“While we slept, the city was abuzz. Not just this city, in fact, but the whole Alvian population of Earth. A vote was called for and cast. They have voted nearly unanimously for Hara to lead them and restructure the government as it was in days of old. The High Council is to be replaced by an Advisory Council, like it was back on Alvia Prime.”

“This is amazing news.” Roshin’s voice came from just behind Cormac. She’d dressed and joined them on silent feet.

“Agreed,” Cormac said. “But why the early wakeup call?”

“Hara wants us,” Harry replied shortly, shrugging. “He was awakened an hour ago with the news and has apparently already begun to make decisions and issue orders. He dispatched these
Zxerah
to wake us and escort us to him in the old Council Chambers. As we well know, that man does not let any grass grow under his feet.” Harry chuckled. “I guess we’d better make ourselves presentable and see what he wants.”

The single recording device they had allowed inside the outer chamber last night had been joined by several others, Cormac noted. At least one of those little hovering bots had to be streaming live to the Alvian population. Aware of the scrutiny, Cormac said nothing, merely turning to reenter the bedchamber so he could get ready for the day. It looked like this was going to be another long, eventful one.

By that night, a rudimentary Advisory Council had been created. Surprisingly, Harry, Cormac and Roshin were all members. As were Caleb and Major Rollins. A few of the old Councilors had been found to be without fault and released. Hara had invited them to be part of his new Council, and all but one—Roshin’s old boss, Councilor Markus—refused in shame for having allowed the prior Council to go so far off the rails. They stated their reasons publicly and were hailed as sensible people, respected for their decision to step down and relinquish power.

Hara’s first executive order was an acknowledgement of equality for humans. He ordered that each and every prisoner’s case be reviewed by legal representatives within the next two days. Those that were found to be non-violent and had committed no crimes were to be freed. Those who had become violent after being imprisoned were to be examined and offered counseling. Those who had committed crimes were to have their sentences reexamined.

The judiciary was kept busy, but so was the scientific community. In the renewed spirit of openness, Hara ordered that all experimental findings be made available to the public. The details about the Avarel hybrid experiments were being widely discussed as were the findings on the genetic therapy that returned emotion.

Hara decreed that any Alvian wishing to try the experimental treatment be allowed to volunteer. Names were being taken and induction interviews were already commencing the world over as the lab techs were put to work preparing doses of the gene-therapy skin patches. The substance would be rolled out on a controlled basis and the recipients of the patches would be monitored and counseled at every step, but the amazing news was that over half the Alvian population had volunteered within the first two hours.

Hara sent out messages to the human settlements through Major Rollins, inviting representatives to peace talks. By mid-afternoon, a well-respected human named General Yeager had arrived, as had Jim, Gina and Grady Prime, who represented the Cheyenne Mountain NORAD installation and all the humans living in those old, underground fortifications all across the northern American continent.

Peace talks began and lasted until well after a shared dinner had been served inside the Council chambers. Every word was broadcast to every Alvian outpost as a peace treaty was created and signed. Officially, the conflict with humanity was at an end.

Cormac knew the bad feelings on the human side would linger a bit longer, but at least they’d taken the first step. And speaking of first steps, every one of the winged Alvian-Avarel hybrids had very vocally volunteered to take the skin patch that would return emotion.

A winged
Zxerah
who called himself Bill Sinclair had flown out of the wilderness and into the Northern City late that day, gathering a crowd as he flew directly to the Council Chamber demanding to be heard. Hara had welcomed him, and Cormac was unsurprised to see the way the
Zxerah
rallied around him. Bill, as he demanded to be called, identified himself as Sinclair Prime Past and testified before the new Council about the last assignment he’d been given by the old Council.

Public sentiment about the attempted assassination of Chief Engineer Davin was immediate and negative. Alvians, on the whole, did not condone secret assassination missions. Such things were thought to be barbaric and inhumane. The fact that Bill Sinclair had opted to flee rather than carry out his mission put him in a positive light and Hara’s decision to forgive his refusal of a direct order was thought fair and just.

Sinclair Prime Past was cleared of any wrongdoing and welcomed back into Alvian society, but he refused to resume his previous place in the hierarchy—and his name. He wanted to be Bill Sinclair forevermore, and Hara smiled as he acknowledged the change in his name for the record.

That spurred the new Sinclair Prime and all the other winged Brethren in the city to come forward and demand the genetic treatment. It was a show of unity—a way to stand with their former leader. It was clear to Cormac that Bill Sinclair was deeply touched by his men’s loyalty and bravery.

By the end of the day, all the winged Brethren had either been treated or were scheduled for treatment when the next batch of the skin patches was prepared. Labs were running overtime to turn out a record number of the skin patches at Hara’s order. He used the winged men’s decision as a way to introduce the idea of returning emotion to the general populace. He’d questioned Bill Sinclair about his time in the Waste among humans and his experiences with gaining emotions.