Shadows of Golstar (61 page)

“He
rationalizes his flawed judgment. Anything could have gone wrong. It was only
phenomenal good fortune that the Outsider survived.”

He
nodded, “I agree. However, fortune or not, look at what he has achieved thus
far.”

“Perhaps,”
She said looking down at her hands. She had noticed they were tightly clenched.
A thought occurred to her and she looked up at Talin. “But the last attack,
what about the last attack? Sharné was almost killed! His own daughter! Under
his guise as the Leader, he claimed it was unsanctioned and blamed another for
it. Did he also mention this attack?”

“Yes,
and even if had he not, I know he was not responsible. He was genuinely frantic
with worry over Sharné when he first heard about the attack on the
Light
Saber
. He seemed completely surprised by it. I know him too well to believe
his reaction was feigned.”

“But
you cannot deny that he was your closest friend,” She said.

“No,”
he sighed. “I cannot.”

“Then
could not your friendship and loyalty for him blind you to his true state of
mind?”

“At
one time perhaps, but no longer,” he said, looking at his hand on the table. As
with Lauren’s hands, it too had closed into a tight fist. He looked back up at
her and said, “My past friendship is not a factor. The Grand Patriarch told me
the person responsible was a minor colonel in the military.
 
He said with some pride, he had killed the
man himself.”

She
was silent on hearing this latest revelation, thinking back on the dramatic way
in which the ‘Leader’ had ground the symbol of the man’s rank under his heel.
The Grand Patriarch killed with his own hands. She had underestimated him all
along. With this thought, she suddenly felt exhausted, the recent events
seeming to have finally taken their toll. She was weary of the politics, the
plots, the lies and the wasted deaths. She was tired, tired of it all.

“You
should leave now, Talin. You have risked far enough on my behalf and I can
never repay you. Were it not for you, I would have been arrested long before
now.”

He
shook his head, his voice gentle, “I was only trying to protect the one person
who could oppose him within the Ministry. I could not simply stand by and allow
the Grand Patriarch to continue with his mad agenda and not protect the
strongest voice of sanity remaining within the government.”

“And
for that, I thank you. However, it must not be discovered that you helped me.
You should leave.” She looked down at her hands again, her voice falling to a
bitter rasp, “We have lost, Talin. Mad or not, he will have his victory. But at
least you will be free. It is important that someone of your standing remain at
large. You hold the truth.”

Talin
nodded, “Yes. He has had his victory, at least as far as silencing the
opposition, the opposition whom he knows of. I am sure he too believes he has
succeeded, that all the major hurdles have been removed. However, that belief
will be his ultimate undoing. To this, I vow.”

She
looked at him, a question on her face.

Talin's
expression was thoughtful, “Yes. He can have this victory, but for the moment
only. He has yet to complete his plan. Its ultimate goal has yet to be
achieved.”

“What
are you saying, Talin?”

The
Guardian turned harsh, “Only that there remains a chance, a very real chance
the Grand Patriarch may not realize his final goal. His scheme is far from
being completed. His complex stratagem is constructed around a single dynamic.
Take it away, the plan collapses and he loses control of the situation.”

“You
are talking about the Outsider.”

“Yes,”
Talin agreed. “This Janus Owens is the keystone to the Grand Patriarch’s plan.”

She
looked at him intently. “What are you saying?”

“You
were adamantly against bringing in the Outsider...”

“Of
course,” her voice hardened. “When the Grand Patriarch first broached the
subject during a Central Assembly some years ago, I was horrified. It runs counter
to the Founder’s tenet in the Book of Light. As you well know, one of the ‘Six
Pillars’ is Self-Sufficiency. To have the Outsider here, within our borders, is
nothing less than blasphemous.”

Talin
knew of her deep religious beliefs. He would have to tread carefully if he was
to gain her full support. “I too was against bringing in someone from the
outside,” Talin replied. “But now that he is here…”

She
looked nonplussed. “Talin, I do not believe what I am hearing! Are you
proposing to go through with the Grand Patriarch’s mad scheme? How can you even
contemplate such a thing?”

“Unfortunately,
I do not see that we have any real choice.” He saw she was about to interrupt
and he held up a hand to forestall her protest. “Just indulge me for a moment,
Lauren. There are a few things you might not have anticipated, things that may
modify your stand on this.”

“I do
not see what could possibly change my mind.” She frowned. “I think the Outsider
should be eliminated before he can cause any more trouble.”

Talin
shook his head, “Unfortunately, it is far too late for that. By bringing the
Outsider within our borders, the Grand Patriarch has already set the wheels in
motion that could lead to our destruction.” Seeing the disbelief on her face,
he quickly went on, “Lauren, the opportunity to prevent the potential
catastrophe was lost when Janus Owens entered our system. In fact, the Grand
Patriarch was counting on this.”

“Explain,”
she demanded.

“A
clock was started when Golstar’s message requesting Janus Owens was sent to
Confederated Planets.”

“Wait,”
she said. “The Outsider was not contacted directly?”

Talin
shook his head.

She
said, “The Preservers were never given the details. We were told in general
terms of the ruse to get the Outsider within our borders. I assumed this Janus
Owens had been contacted directly and lured here in secret on the promise of
great wealth.”

“Sadly,
this was not the case. The Grand Patriarch kept many of the details to himself.
I found out about his message to Confederated Planets only after it was sent.”

“I do
not believe it! Not even he could be so mad!”

“It
is true, Lauren.” His voice was as grim as she had ever heard.

“Incredible!”
She was shaken to her core.

“Yes,
it certainly is. It was his intent all along to pique Confederated Planet’s
curiosity. He has always believed that another excursion by our enemy was
coming. By his actions, he has ensured it will occur sooner rather than later.”

“But
why…”  She stopped abruptly. “I begin to see his twisted logic.”

He
nodded, “Once the message was sent, the era of non-interference from
Confederated Planets ended and if our culture is to survive, we have no choice
but to go through with the Grand Patriarch’s plan.” Talin stood up and looked
down at her. “In his madness, the Grand Patriarch has left us no choice. Janus
Owens must fulfill the purpose for which he was brought.”

She
sat mute with thoughts reeling, trying to grasp the enormity of what Talin had
said. Why had they not foreseen this?

As if
reading her mind, Talin said, “You are wondering how this came to be. How could
one man, granted the single most powerful man in our society, was able to do
such a thing without anyone raising more than a few tokens of resistance?” He
reached into an inner pocket of his coat and threw something against the
flagstone fireplace.

Her
eyes followed the object as it struck the stone and fell to the floor. She
stared at the ornate headband lying on the hearth; its central jewel had become
dislodged and had fallen close to the fire. Mesmerized, she watched reflections
from the blaze dance on its faceted surface. Finally, she looked up at him. She
did not hide the accusation in her eyes. “I cannot believe you would do such a
thing. It is the signet of your standing within our society. You have broken
it.”

He
shook his head. He knew he was taking a serious risk. “That may have been true
once, but no longer.”

“You
are wrong, Talin. Our signet bands provide necessary protections, so we may know
the hard truths, to govern effectively and with wisdom.”

“As
we all have been told over the long centuries. Lauren, you must listen
carefully. What I have to say is painful, but you must know the truth.”

“What
truth?”

“You
know, through the still-functioning mechanisms within the Sanctuary, the Grand
Patriarch still has limited access to the Controllers’ technology, do you not?

“Yes.”

“What
you and others do not know is that the Sanctuary includes controls that can
alter the functions of the Symbols of Light. He could modify the indoctrination
filters. The jewels’ protocols have been drastically changed along with the
messages provided by the Symbols of the Light.”

Her
expression changed to one of fear, “In what way?”

“The
Grand Patriarch is manipulating the minds of the Council… all of them. He
rejected what he viewed as disruptive dissent, as he puts it. He claims it is
for the good of the people, to preserve the Way.”

“I
cannot believe that even
he
would contemplate such an action.”

“Believe
it, Lauren. He wants only deferential puppets to carry out his bidding. Rather
than judiciously filtering the benevolent messages of faith, hope and virtue
for the Light of the Way, the signet bands have instead focused newer messages
of unquestioning obedience to the Grand Patriarch.”

“And
yet I do not seem to be affected.”

“To a
degree, you have been, as have we all. It is only by virtue of your own natural
resistance you escaped much of the indoctrination. To the chagrin of the Grand
Patriarch, you, I and a surprising number of others within the Council have not
fully succumbed to his attempts at mind management beyond that affecting the
general populace. As you know, even they are beginning to show mild signs of
rejection. How else would the resistance movements gained momentum?”

She
was genuinely horrified. “It is outrageous! Such a thing cannot be permitted.
The ruling class’ minds must remain crystal clear so that they may govern
judicially. It is for the good of the people; their souls bathed in the light
of the orbs, and given proper guidance through the benevolent aura of the
Light. The grand vision of the Founder cannot be fulfilled otherwise.”

Talin
shook his head, “As long as he remains in control, we are all at risk.”

“Then
we must stop him! The original orb protocols need to be immediately
reestablished and if necessary reinforced for the good of all!”

Owens
nursed a cup of strong coffee, trying clear the lingering cobwebs from his mind.
He yawned widely and his rubbed dry, itchy eyes. He spent a restless night
rehashing his abbreviated meeting with the Grand Patriarch. His mind twisted
around the many still-unanswered questions, crowding out any possibility of
sleep.

He had
finally given up on getting any rest and instead spent most of the night
prowling his suite of rooms, rehashing his experiences on Selane. It wasn’t
hard for him to guess the possible consequences resulting from of his exposure
to the Controller. Golstar’s reaction was likely to be severe once they found
out that he knew about the concealed centers of alien technology. He could only
hope their hidden agenda would override their usual lethal response to a
violation of their laws. In any case, in his present circumstances, there was
nothing he could do about it.

He
yawned once more and wondered if he would ever sleep again. Even after taking a
quick shower, he was still not fully alert. He had dressed in clothing provided
by one of the omnipresent stewards and was again back in the room where he had
first met with the Grand Patriarch. His normal curiosity was tempered by the
uncertainty of his situation. He could only hope this next meeting would at
least provide some explanations before he was carted off to the firing squad.

He
absently took another swallow of the dark, strong brew and continued his
fruitless musings surrounding the original intent of Golstar. So far, the Grand
Patriarch provided no new information. He was still in the dark as to the true
reason he was brought to Berralton. All he really had to go on were the few
facts he had gained since the attack and a whole lot of conjecture. He was both
tired in body and of being kept in what seemed to be a perpetual state of
ignorance.

He
shook his head ruefully and gazed at his surroundings. He again idly noted the
room’s furnishings. The Victorian influence could clearly be seen. The Founder
must have been real a fan of the period.

He
was finishing his third cup. The caffeine was just starting to kick-in, when
the ponderous door creaked open and the Grand Patriarch entered. He was
followed closely by two tall men in military uniform. They fluidly took up
positions on either side of the door as the Grand Patriarch continued into the
room. Owens took note that the men carried large, lethal-looking
side-arms. 

The
Grand Patriarch motioned for Owens to stay seated and then eased himself down
into the chair he had used the night before. Without an apparent signal, a
steward magically appeared bearing a tea service and an artfully arranged
platter of pastries. The steward served the Grand Patriarch a cup of tea and a
pastry. He then departed.

The
Grand Patriarch ignored his tea and took a large bite out of the flaky turnover.
Without a word to Owens, he quickly finished the pastry and took up his cup of
tea. Looking over his steaming cup, he eyed Owens. “I understand you slept
poorly. Were your accommodations unsatisfactory?”

Owens
wasn’t particularly surprised to find out his room had been bugged. “Actually,
the suite was quite luxurious. Generally, I don’t need a lot of rest.” He
thought a moment, and then continued, “But even so, the situation I find myself
in…” his voice took on wry tone, “…is not exactly one that lends itself to a
restful night’s sleep.”

If
the Grand Patriarch was preparing to respond, he was interrupted by the arrival
of Sharné. She entered the room and Owens stood. He noted her pale complexion
and the hint of dark circles around her eyes. Obviously, he wasn’t the only one
who had spent a restless night. However, in spite of her obvious fatigue, Owens
could not help but admire the beauty that the weariness couldn’t mask.

She
paused, looked at Owens then back at the Grand Patriarch.

The
Grand Patriarch motioned to a chair, “Good morning. Please, sit down.”

She
stared for a moment at the Grand Patriarch without expression, then gave a curt
nod and sat in a chair on the other side of Owens, away from the Grand
Patriarch. Owens hesitated before he too sat.

The
Grand Patriarch smiled at her benignly and asked, “Tea, Daughter?” She nodded,
not returning his smile and accepted a steaming cup. She took a careful sip of
the tea and looked over again at Owens.

The
slight crinkling of his eyes was the only outward indication of Owens’ mild
satisfaction at confirming his thought the previous night that the Keeper of
the Way also happened to be the Grand Patriarch’s daughter. Well, now there was
no question as to the meaning of the Grand Patriarch’s words the night before.

Returning
her gaze, he noted that outwardly at least, she appeared calm, but he couldn’t
help but sense some edginess about her. Her hand holding the teacup shook
slightly. She was trying to conceal it, but it was clear that she was
unsettled. He wondered if she was worried about his reaction on discovering she
was the Grand Patriarch’s daughter. Owens ignored her nervousness and nodded
pleasantly at her. “Good morning Sharné.”

A
small, relieved smile appeared on her lips, shedding some of the tenseness
around her eyes, “Good morning to you Owens.”

Watching
the change in his daughter’s demeanor, a small frown appeared briefly on the
Grand Patriarch’s brow. He set his cup down and looked speculatively, first at
Sharné, then to Owens.

Smiling,
Owens returned the Grand Patriarch’s gaze. He wondered if the Grand Patriarch
would comment on Owens’ apparent informal relationship with his daughter.

Instead,
the Grand Patriarch said, “First, a point of clarification.  Janus Owens,
you now understand that you were not brought into Golstar Empire for the
reasons my daughter conveyed to you. By your excursion on Selane, the pretext
for bringing you here has been thoroughly compromised.”

“That
wasn’t hard to figure out,” Owens said.

Ignoring
Owens’ comment, the Grand Patriarch went on, “The unforeseen circumstances by
which you ultimately came to be here have drastically affected the carefully
laid plans that were to govern your visit to Berralton. Understand this; I am
under no obligation to explain anything further, anything at all. Any additional
information will be provided you by my discretion alone.”

Owens
nodded.  

“However,
the immeasurable service you have rendered in keeping my daughter safe under
extremely trying circumstances has obligated me to satisfy, at least in part,
your natural curiosity. I should add the service that you are
about
to
provide Golstar is of even greater importance. So, in recognition of the roles
you have played, and will play in Golstar’s future, you will be told things no
one outside of the ruling families knows.”

 Owens
felt a momentary rush of relief. The charade was finally over, and at last he
might hear the truth, or at least part of it.

 The
older man looked directly into Owens’ eyes, and said with gravity, “As to your personal
disposition in Golstar, I am afraid there is no gentle way to put it. In light
of my recent discussions with Sharné, of her descriptions of your experiences
on Selane, to my dismay I find that you have become privy to some very
sensitive information... information that could be severely damaging were it
allowed to fall into improper hands.”

“Father…,”
Sharné started.

The
Grand Patriarch looked over to Sharné, silencing her with a look. Then he
looked back to Owens. “For that reason I regret to say that you will not be
allowed to return to Confederated Planets.”

Although
he had fully expected something like this, the Grand Patriarch’s bald statement
was a blow nonetheless. Owens wondered how long he might be allowed to live
after he fulfilled the mysterious additional ‘service’ the Grand Patriarch had
mentioned. If he survived, his prisoner status in Golstar would be permanent.
He tried to imagine what a life of imprisonment might entail. Perhaps death was
a better alternative after all. Neither scenario was particularly appetizing;
Owens decided to make a concerted effort at figuring out how to escape.

“As
you will remain our permanent guest, where you are concerned, secrecy is no
longer a necessity… something I believe you might come to appreciate later.”

Owens
hid another small feeling of relief on hearing there would be a ‘later.’

The
Grand Patriarch looked over again to Sharné. Her head was bowed, her face
hidden in shadow. A look of sadness momentarily clouded his face, and then
vanished. He turned back to Owens and said almost genially, “Now I am sure the
mystery surrounding our request and the true underlying reason for why you are
here has more than piqued your curiosity.” He was nearly beaming.

To
Owens, the Grand Patriarch’s abrupt shift in mood was unsettling. It would be
difficult to gauge how the Patriarch might react to anything Owens might say.
Provided Owens could keep a lid on his temper, it might be prudent to weigh his
words carefully before commenting. If he was to understand his situation
better, he needed the Patriarch’s willingness to provide the explanations.
“Yes,” he responded, “I’m very curious about why I, specifically, was chosen
and the real reason behind my being here.”

“You
will hear both, for they are inextricably intertwined. Without question, you
will find the explanations enlightening though perhaps not necessarily to your
liking.”

Irritated,
Owens couldn’t stop himself from commenting, “With all the attacks and my new
status as your prisoner, I haven’t found a lot to my liking. I don’t think
anything that you have to say can make things much worse than they already
are.”

Grand
Patriarch smiled grimly, “We shall see.”

Owens
went on, his voice becoming sharper, “For me to hear at last, your actual
reason for having me here would still be welcome. The fictional story your
daughter supplied simply had too many holes in the plot. I knew that something
was fishy at the onset, so the truth will be a refreshing change.”

 The
Grand Patriarch’s face hardened at Owens’ audacity and wondered briefly if the
man did not fully realize the precariousness of his position. Owens seemed to
be trying to show he was not intimidated by his circumstances, given his
insulting tone of his voice and words.  Did not he understand his life depended
solely on the Grand Patriarch’s good will?

Seeing
the Grand Patriarch noticeably stiffen, Owens tried to relax his own rigid
demeanor, “But regardless of my personal consequences, I do want to hear the
truth. I need to know the true reason for my being here. If, as you say, I’m to
play some role, one that is obviously very important to you and vital enough
for you to engineer this incredible effort, then at least an explanation is
owed me. ”

Owed,
indeed, the Grand Patriarch frowned at Owens’ words but conceded the point,
“Very well, you shall have your truth.” He paused considering his words. “There
were sound reasons behind the fictional scenario you were provided. It was a
cover story designed principally for your protection. It was to shield you from
information that would be dangerous were you to discover it”

Owens
nodded. “But with my unanticipated exposure to the Controller on Selane, the
need for such a contrived shield ceased to be relevant.”

Sharné
chose to answer, “I am afraid you are correct, Owens. It was never foreseen
that together, we would experience the horrendous attack on the
Light Saber
.”
She looked at him sadly. “Nor did my father ever contemplate our setting foot
on Selane…” She shook her head, “Which allowed you… and me the opportunity to
learn one of Golstar’s most important secrets.”

“So,
we landed on Selane,” Owens directed his comment back to the Grand Patriarch.
“You can at least acknowledge it was out of pure necessity. We didn’t have any
real choice in the matter. If we hadn’t taken refuge on Selane, I seriously
doubt either of us would be talking to you right now.”
 
His voice took on an earnest tone, “I hope
you understand that it was due solely to your daughter’s resourcefulness, we
are both alive, now sitting before you. Without her, I would be dead.”

“Indeed,”
the Grand Patriarch acknowledged gravely. “Never doubt that I
am
truly
thankful you both survived the incident. However, though it may have been
unavoidable, the fact remains it was
most unfortunate
. The fiction you
were given was only part of a
carefully laid
plan and as I
mentioned before, it was designed to shield you from knowledge that is
dangerous… dangerous to Golstar. The mutiny and attack, coupled with your recent
experiences on Selane completely undermined its intended purpose and unraveled
a very carefully constructed plan. Had the unforeseen attack not occurred, the
plan would have succeeded, and you would not be in the position you find
yourself in at this moment.”

The
unfairness of Owens’ predicament kindled resentment in Sharné. Her father’s not
so gentle admonishment of their landing on Selane threatened to fan it into
open hostility. Nevertheless, she held back a biting remark, knowing it could
be just the excuse for which her father was waiting to have her ejected.