Close Remembrance (30 page)

Korum got to his feet as well and extended his hand in a human greeting. “Hello, Dan.”

“Korum, it’s good to see you as well,” Mia’s father said, shaking his hand. He was more reserved than he had been with Mia, and Korum knew her father was still partially on the fence about their relationship. Korum couldn’t blame him; if he had been in the human’s shoes, he wouldn’t have been nearly as accepting of someone taking his daughter away.

“Where’s Marisa?” Mia asked when everybody sat down again. “Is she coming?”

“Yes, she should be here in a few minutes,” her mother replied, still beaming with happiness at having her daughter home. Mia was glowing as well. Watching them, Korum was more convinced than ever that he had done the right thing in reaching out to the Elders. His charl would’ve been miserable if she’d had to watch her parents aging and withering away, knowing all the while that Korum had it in his power to prevent that from happening.

“Can I offer you some tea? Maybe some fruit?” Ella asked, addressing Korum. “Are you two hungry? I made a delicious beet salad yesterday –”

“I’m all right, thank you,” Korum said, softening his answer with a smile. “We ate just before we came here.”

“I’ll take some tea,” Mia said. “But don’t worry, mom – I’ll get it myself.” Getting up, she walked toward the kitchen, leaving Korum by himself with the two older humans.

Ella and Dan Stalis were watching him strangely, almost expectantly, and Korum had a sudden flash of intuition. They thought he and Mia were getting engaged – and likely expected him to ask them for permission, in the old-fashioned human way.

Korum felt an unexpected flicker of regret for letting them down. That wasn’t why he and Mia had come today at all, nor had the idea ever occurred to him before. As far as he knew, no Krinar had ever married a human; it just wasn’t done that way. By claiming Mia as his charl, Korum had already made a commitment to her – even if she didn’t necessarily view it the same way.

To his relief, the doorbell rang again, diffusing the awkward moment. Both humans got up and hurried to the door, letting their older daughter and her husband in. Mia came out of the kitchen as well, a broad smile on her face.

Korum stood up to greet them as they walked into the door. He kissed Marisa on the cheek and shook Connor’s hand, genuinely glad to see the young couple. Mia’s sister was just beginning to show, her trim figure rounding out with the baby, and she looked radiantly happy.

At the light brush of his lips against her cheek, Marisa blushed, her fair skin as sensitive as Mia’s. Korum suppressed a smile. He knew human women found him attractive, and he rather liked having that effect on them. It was better than having them cringe in fear, as they sometimes did because of what he was.

Connor didn’t seem to mind his wife’s reaction, smiling as calmly as before. Korum couldn’t understand his placidity. If Mia had blushed at the touch of another man, that man’s lifespan would’ve been numbered in minutes. Humans were definitely more laid back about such matters; some males were as possessive as the Krinar when it came to their women, but the majority were not.

Mia greeted them next, and then everybody walked back to the couch area.

“All right, baby sis,” Marisa said, taking a seat on the sofa. Her husband pulled up a chair next to her. “Tell us what’s going on.”

Mia took a deep breath and Korum squeezed her hand for encouragement. “I’m immortal,” she said baldly. “I can now live as long as Korum – and if you come with us to Krina, you might be able to also.”

For a moment, there was complete silence in the room. Then everybody started speaking at once. In the cacophony of voices, it was impossible to hear any specific question. Only Dan Stalis was quiet, leaning against a table and observing the proceedings with an expression of mild curiosity on his face.

“You’re not surprised,” Korum said, looking at Mia’s father.

“No,” Dan said. “I’m not.”

“Why not?” Korum asked.

“Because it makes all the sense in the world,” Dan Stalis replied. “How else could you and Mia be together? She has never talked about a future with you, yet she never seems upset when we bring it up. How could that be when she loves you and wants to be with you? And besides, you cured my migraines with nothing more than a small capsule. It’s not that big of a stretch to think your people could cure other things, like cancer or heart disease.” He paused for a second. “Maybe even aging.”

Korum smiled, involuntarily impressed by the human.

“Dan, you never said anything to me.” Ella’s tone was bewildered. “In all the times we discussed Mia, you never once voiced these suspicions to me!” Her voice rose at the end, her eyes narrowing as she stared at her husband.

“It was never anything more than a guess,” Dan said soothingly. “Ella, sweetheart, I didn’t want to get your hopes up in case I was wrong.”

“So are you now a K?” Marisa was looking at her sister with a shocked expression on her face. “Do you drink blood too?”

“Wait,” said Connor, “can we go back to the part where we can all be immortal if we go to Krina?”

Mia opened her mouth to reply, and Korum squeezed her hand again. “Let me try to explain, my sweet,” he said, “and then we’ll answer any other questions your family might have.”

Everybody fell silent, staring at him, and he continued, “We do have the means of curing cancer – and aging and any other maladies that may plague humans. The way that’s done is by the insertion of nanocytes – nanomachines that mimic the functions of cells in a human body. They clean up any and all ongoing cellular damage and allow for rapid healing of injuries. That’s all they do; there’s no transformation from one species to another.

“Mia has these nanocytes in her body. I gave them to her a couple of months ago. And you’re right, Dan. That’s the only way we would be able to be together longer term.”

Korum paused and surveyed the room. “The reason why Mia didn’t tell you about this earlier – and why you’ve never heard of this before – is something called the non-interference mandate. It’s set by our Elders. We’re not allowed to do anything that would significantly alter the course of natural human progress. That’s why we don’t share our technology or science with you: because doing so is forbidden. The only exceptions to that rule are humans we call charl: those like Mia, with whom we enter into serious relationships.”

“But why?” Connor asked, frowning. “Why have that mandate in the first place?”

“I don’t know,” Korum admitted. “There are many theories, the most popular of which is that the Elders are still conducting their experiment in regard to your evolution. They were there to see the beginning of your species, and they want to see how you turn out with minimal interference from us –”

“What do you mean, in the beginning? Just how old are these Elders of yours?” Dan interrupted, looking at Korum.

“Old,” Mia answered for him. “Very old. Like ten million years old.”

Mia’s father visibly paled. “Ten
million
years old?”

“Yes,” Mia said. “When Korum said they were there for the beginning of the human race, he wasn’t kidding. Two of the Elders were actually in charge of overseeing our evolution way back when. Right?” She looked up at Korum.

“Yes, exactly,” he confirmed.

“So if there’s this mandate in place, why are you telling us about this stuff now?” Mia’s mother asked, looking confused. “And what was that you said before, about going to Krina?”

“I petitioned the Elders on your behalf,” Korum explained. “To have you undergo the same procedure as Mia. They didn’t exactly agree to it, but they made a very unusual request: to see Mia and your family in person.”

“The Elders want to see
us
?” Ella Stalis looked like she was about to faint.

“Yes,” Korum said. “They want to see you and Mia in person.”

“Why?” It was Dan again.

“I don’t know,” Korum said honestly. “I wish I could tell you.”

“So let me get this straight . . . They want us to come to Krina, but they don’t guarantee that they will give us these nanocytes?” Connor asked, his frown deepening. “They’re asking us to leave our lives behind on the remote chance that this might happen?”

“Yes.” Korum didn’t bother to sugarcoat the situation.

“What would happen if you disobeyed these Elders?” Marisa asked, her slender hands twisting together. “If you broke the non-interference mandate?”

“It depends,” Korum said. “If it’s just a minor infraction, it results in a loss of standing – that’s something like our reputation – and there are frequently financial and other penalties. If it’s something more serious, then it’s treated as a criminal offense on par with murder.”

“Oh,” Marisa said faintly.

“So let me get this straight,” Dan Stalis said. “You’re giving us the possibility of having an infinitely long lifespan, but only if we go with you to another planet.”

“Yes.”

“And what would happen if we refuse?” Connor asked, a stubborn look on his face. “What if we don’t want to uproot our entire lives to fly off into space?”

Korum shrugged. Truth be told, he wasn’t certain what would happen if any of Mia’s family decided against accepting the Elders’ invitation. In the normal course of events, if humans found out something they shouldn’t have, they would have a portion of their memories erased. But this was different, and he didn’t know what guidelines applied in this case.

“No, Connor, you can’t refuse,” Mia said, glowering at her brother-in-law. “Don’t you understand? If the Elders grant our request, you and Marisa – and your baby – would be able to live for thousands of years. How could you refuse something like that? And, mom, dad, you guys will be young again. Wouldn’t that be awesome?” She cast a pleading glance around the room. “Please, don’t make me watch you all die because you’re scared. Korum is offering you a shot at immortality. How could you turn that down?”

Chapter 22

The next two weeks passed in a flurry of preparations for the departure. Mia’s parents, Marisa, and Connor each requested a leave of absence from their jobs and put their finances in order. Of them all, Connor seemed the most hesitant, though Marisa convinced him that they had to go – if only for their baby’s sake. After many discussions, it was decided that if the Elders didn’t grant them immortality, then they would come back to their regular lives – after first signing an agreement not to reveal any confidential information about the Ks. If the petition succeeded, however, then Lenkarda would be their new home, just as it was for Mia.

To alleviate any concerns about her sister traveling during pregnancy, Mia spoke to Ellet and had her examine Marisa one last time. “She’s perfectly healthy,” Ellet reassured them, “and routine space travel shouldn’t pose any issues. Now if she went off exploring new galaxies, I would be worried, but a simple trip between Krina and Earth – that’s the safest thing there is these days.”

Mia called Jessie and spoke to her, explaining that she would be away for a while and won’t be coming back for the school year. Jessie wasn’t the least bit surprised, though she did cry when Mia said she didn’t know how soon she would return. Since Mia couldn’t tell Jessie the real reasons for the trip, she had to let her think it was Korum’s business taking them away.

“Can Jessie come too?” Mia asked Korum after that heart-breaking conversation. “I know you said family only, but she’s like family to me –”

“No, my sweet,” Korum said regretfully. “The Elders even balked at Connor coming along. I had to work very hard to convince them that a brother-in-law is the equivalent of a real sibling. If Connor’s parents had been alive, I don’t think it could’ve worked – that would’ve been too many humans to get an exception for.”

Mia swallowed. She hadn’t realized how close she’d come to losing her sister, who would’ve likely chosen to stay behind with her husband. It was the first time Connor’s lack of family was in any way a plus. Mia had always felt sorry for her brother-in-law because his mother, a single parent, had passed away from breast cancer seven years ago . . . but now that fact may have enabled Mia’s family to stay together.

Adam prepared a bunch of notes and recordings for her to take to the mind lab on Krina. “Don’t forget to give it to that apprentice,” he told Mia. “It’s got everything I could find in Saret’s files about memory loss and softening. It’s not much – he must’ve destroyed most of the data before – but it might help them figure out your condition.”

“Thanks, Adam.” Mia smiled at the K. “It was awesome having you for a partner.”

Adam grinned, white teeth flashing. “Right back at you, partner. Ping me when you guys land and settle in; I’d love to hear how your meeting with the Elders goes.”

“Of course,” Mia said. She knew Adam had a very good reason for wanting to know the outcome of Korum’s petition: his entire adopted family was human – as was the mysterious girlfriend he never talked about.

* * *

“Saret is going to be on the ship with us,” Korum told Mia as they walked on the beach the evening before their departure. “The Council wants him back on Krina so the Elders can try him themselves.”