The Significant (35 page)

      
“It is,” Isa admitted. “And that is why
it is essential. The only way to govern people is by proving that you have
power over them, and the way you do that is through fear, even if it is
surreptitious. Trid instills fear in the classes about what could become of
them if they do not do their part in society. Trid gives the others in Anon,
and on all of Tiao, something to fear.”

      
Kailynn stared at Isa in disbelief, the
words cutting her deeply.

      
“You won’t do anything to help the Trids
because you’re trying to
control
everyone?
You’re trying to
scare
them?”

      
“Humans need a form of governing,” Isa
said strongly. “Otherwise, what is to stop anyone from doing harm to others?”

      
“Why would they want to do harm to others
if they have access to everything they need?” Kailynn challenged.

      
“When it comes to the average person,
you’re right,” Isa agreed. “Most humans would not wish harm on others. Many would
do anything to help one another. That is the way human beings are made as a
species. But not all humans are like that. And when a human manipulates, they
gain power over others and then that breeds discontent in other humans. That is
why there needs to be a structure to keep everything in line.”

      
“That doesn’t make sense,” Kailynn said,
shaking her head. “Because then
you
are the one breeding discontent, aren’t you?”

      
Isa sighed heavily.

      
“Society is far more complex than that.”

      
“And I’m just too stupid to understand
it?”

      
“I never said that,” Isa defended gently.

      
“You didn’t have to,” Kailynn hissed,
standing and walking to the guest hall. Her mind was clouded and she needed a
few minutes to gather her thoughts before she continued the discussion.

      
“Where are you going?”

      
Kailynn did not answer. Isa was
immediately on her feet, following the Significant.

      
“I did not mean to upset you,” Isa said.
Kailynn almost started jogging when the door to the guest hall opened. She went
to the room she had when she stayed there and entered, turning around to press
the lock button as it slid shut, barely shutting before Isa’s face could be
seen on the other side.

      
Kailynn turned her back to the door and
leaned against it, sliding down to sit on the floor, desperately trying to
control her tears.

      
“Kailynn…” Isa said, pressing her
forehead to the door. “Please, come out and talk to me.”

      
Kailynn leaned her head against the door,
listening to the Golden Elite’s voice. Kailynn knew she was tired and her tears
had upset Isa, but she was also upset and confused. She had never felt so
conflicted in her life.

      
“Kailynn.”

      
“Not now,” Kailynn choked. “I can’t do
this right now.”

      
Isa was silent for a moment.

      
“What you said earlier,” she started,
“that you wanted me to be safe, I want the same for you.” Isa pressed a hand to
the door. “Seeing you in this much pain hurts me greatly, and I want to do
whatever I can to help. But you have to understand that politics is a very
dangerous and very delicate game. I have to plan every move very carefully.”

      
“Please, Isa,” Kailynn pled, “don’t make
this about politics.”

      
“It
is
politics,” Isa insisted. “I can help you, Kailynn. But it would require
deception on both our parts. And deceiving Venus is no easy feat, nor is it
safe.”

      
Kailynn’s brow creased in confusion and
she hesitated before speaking.

      
“Deceiving Venus?” she whispered. “We’re
already deceiving her.”

      
“I mean lying to her directly,” Isa
clarified, “not keeping information from her.”

      
Kailynn turned around to face the door.
She was silent, trying to understand what the Elite was planning. She stared at
the door, her mind going blank.

      
“What are you talking about?” she finally
murmured.

      
Isa sighed, closing her eyes and bowing
her head.

      
“I will admit that I have been trying to
think of ways to keep you close to me without raising suspicion.”

      
“You knew I wouldn’t stay all the time,”
Kailynn said.

      
“I did,” Isa agreed. “Nonetheless, I felt
that it was necessary I do everything in my power to keep you safe, and to plan
for your safety in future situations.”

      
“What kind of future situations?”

      
“As many as I can consider,” Isa said.
“If I were to be killed, or replaced, or if we were to go to war with Gihron.”
She paused, once again placing her hand on the door. “The fact that you agreed
to have an emitter chip tells me that you are willing to stay close to me.”

      
Kailynn hesitated, not sure how to
respond.

      
“Kailynn, please,” Isa said. “I do not
want to discuss this through the door.”

      
The Significant took a deep breath and
closed her eyes, preparing herself. She had no idea what Isa was planning, and
the uncertainty made her feel powerless, a sensation that made her
uncomfortable.

      
She unlocked the door and it opened.

      
Kailynn leaned against the door, sniffing
back her tears as she crossed her arms over her chest.

      
“What do you have in mind?”

      
“First, I want to tell you that this is
not a command, nor an order. You are, of course, free to go as you like. But I
will always do what I think is best to keep you safe,” Isa started. Kailynn
nodded shallowly, her jaw clenching. “You are not the only one who has been
confused about what is going on between us. In all honesty, I do not believe I
have ever felt this way before, and it perplexes me.” Isa’s eyes softened. “If
it were possible, I would have all of Trid granted citizenship and cleaned up,
but I cannot convince Venus. I have tried for many years. She will not be
persuaded. The only way she could be swayed is if she came to believe that
Trids were a greater danger of social upheaval than as a tactic to keep the
classes in place.”

      
“…what does that mean?”

      
“It means that the Trids would have to
spark some discomfort in the classes, particularly in Anon,” Isa said. “Venus
monitors the population as a whole to monitor stability. If the Trids were the
protest, to show the horrid poverty that they are forced to endure, to show the
sick and injured and the number of orphaned children, there might be a push to
build schools and to assist the district from the upper classes.”

      
“No there wouldn’t,” Kailynn scoffed.
“Everyone looks down on the Trids.”

      
“That is because the Trids have had to
resort to criminal behavior,” Isa said. “It’s a complication in human
psychology. There is a sense that anyone who breaks the law, even so much as to
steal food, deserves whatever punishment they receive.” Isa sighed heavily and
shook her head. “It will not be an easy task, nor will it be fast. It will take
time and careful persuasion. We would have to start with basics, such as
healthcare and schooling.”

      
“
How
,
though?” Kailynn pressed. “You expect to get up and make a speech about that?”

      
“No.” Isa shook her head. “I would need
your help to play a very dangerous game with Venus.”

      
“Play a game with her?” Kailynn asked
incredulously.

      
“That’s all I do every day,” Isa said. “I
know the rules very well. If you are willing, we can set forth a plan that
might help the district as a whole and could, potentially, keep your brother
off death row.”

      
“Would it set him free?”

      
“I doubt it,” Isa said honestly. “He will
likely spend the rest of his life in prison.”

      
“In Uren?” Kailynn choked.

      
“No,” Isa said, shaking her head. “He was
caught in the main Anon district. He’ll be sent Ikurah. There, he will get a
cell where he will be fed, kept warm, and perhaps even educated in a trade so
that he might be able to work, even though he will not be set free. But that is
only if I can keep him off death row.”

      
“How do we do it?”

      
“I would take you on as my advisor,” Isa
said. “You would be employed under Rayal in the Syndicate Intelligence Agency.
You would be my authority on Trid.”

      
“How can you get that past Venus?”

      
“Carefully,” Isa chuckled brokenly. “I
would have to tell Venus that Rayal was the one who scouted you for this
project, after the incredible loyalty you showed me during the three plots on
my life that you have, unfortunately, endured.”

      
Kailynn dropped her head.

      
“Then, we would stage an operation that
will start the chain of events leading to rallies in Trid. They will have to be
peaceful and properly timed,” Isa said. “The details will have to be decided,
but only if you agree.”

      
Kailynn closed her eyes, remaining
silent, her arms crossed over her chest.

      
“It will save my brother?”

      
“If you trust me, I will do my best to
spare him of the death penalty,” Isa said. “You have my word.”

      
Kailynn sighed heavily, looking over
Isa’s face and shaking her head.

      
“Why are you doing this for me?” she
whispered. “I just…ran to you and begged you not to kill someone who tried to
kill you. You have no reason to do it other than…”

      
“Other than for you?” Isa completed when
Kailynn did not continue. “Because I care about you and I don’t want to hurt
you?”

      
Kailynn swallowed hard. “I feel like the
leader of the planet shouldn’t be so easily influenced by one person.”

      
“That is why I was created as an Elite,
and not a human,” Isa assured.

      
“You don’t act like any other Elite.”

      
“Have you spent time with many?” Isa
tried to jest.

      
“I’ve heard that statement from a lot of
people,” Kailynn said, ignoring the joke. Isa smiled.

      
“It’s true,” she said. “I’ve always been
different.” She took a deep breath. “However, I have also been called the best
Elite Tiao has had in three hundred years.” She shrugged. “I still don’t know
who judged that, but,” she looked at Kailynn, her smile growing wider,
“sometimes, change is the healthiest thing.”

      
Kailynn swallowed hard and stepped
forward, grabbing Isa’s face and pressing their lips together in a kiss. She
felt the heat of the Elite’s lips, the softness of her skin under her fingertips,
the power that engulfed her whenever she was close to the Golden Elite.

      
She continued to kiss the Elite whenever
she turned to look at Isa as they made their way to Isa’s bedroom. When the
door closed, Kailynn quickly helped Isa out of her clothes, pushing her gently
until the Elite fell back on the bed.

      
Quickly shimmying out of her pants as Isa
backed her way up the bed, Kailynn climbed on top of the Elite and kissed her
again, becoming desperate. It was as if the anxiety of the previous days, the fear
and worry that consumed her every moment since learning of the plot on Isa’s
life, rushed forward.

      
She was desperate for reassurance that
Isa was alright. She had spent so much time agonizing over what it would be
like if Isa was killed that the reality had not yet hit her that Isa was safe
and alive.

      
Her body blanketed the Golden Elite, her
hands running over Isa’s body as she kissed her eagerly.

      
When she felt cloth under her fingers,
Kailynn stopped and backed away.

      
Her fingers lingered on the edges of the
bandages around the wound in Isa’s shoulder. She stared at the gauze, her mind
going blank, thinking about the way Isa’s body recoiled from the wound and the
horror that ran through her when she thought Isa had been killed in front of
her