Too Close to the Sun (The Sun 1) (17 page)

Nicoli held his hand out to her. “Shall we?”

Her hand fit perfectly in his. Leading her off the shuttle, he paused outside the hatch to look around. The small encampment lay at the far end of the landing field and it was surrounded by - nothing; kilometers of nothing in all directions.

Still holding hands, they followed after their host, who was already heading across the landing field.

“Who you were is no longer important,” Tomas said once they’d caught up to him. “You are Reborn," - he emphasized the word - "and we ask that you not discuss your former identities while you’re here. You’ll be given an identification band.” He held up his arm to show them the small metal band around his wrist. “And you'll be asked to select a new name. This is a fresh start for all of us.” He smiled over his shoulder, then continued on.

When they reached the first small building, they found another young man waiting for them. He had the same blond hair and pure complexion as their guide and greeted them with an equally warm smile as he handed Tomas two identification bands.

“These are your identification bands.” Tomas handed them each a band and showed them how to strap the bands around their wrists.

“Please wear them at all times during your stay," he continued. "We have tried to emulate the primitive environment of our new home, but it is necessary to retain some of our technology for security and tracking purposes. With these bands, you should have no trouble gaining access to all areas of the colony. Should you lose your band, come back to this gate for another.

“Now, in these two rooms," he continued, waving toward two doors, "you'll find clothes. No one wears robes beyond this point. Men's clothes on the right and women's on the left. After you've changed, please join me back here."

Nicoli was about to offer to wait outside her door while Kiera changed clothes, thinking she might be worried at being separated from him, but she simply pulled free with a muttered "be glad to get rid of this robe" and disappeared through the door on the left.

Feeling Tomas' gaze on him, Nicoli headed through the door on the right.

Two trunks sat in the middle of the room. One contained an assortment of shirts and the other contained pants. Shoes lined the far wall. There was nothing special about the clothing; it was similar to the kind worn by most traders.

The sound of raised voices arguing caused him to change quickly and hurry back out into the main room where he found Kiera wearing the shirt and pants he’d given her back in the donor room She was glaring at Tomas and the air around them fairly crackled.

"Did I miss something?" Nicoli asked.

"He won't let me wear these clothes. He's insisting I wear this sack." She held up a rolled ball of fabric and thrust it at Nicoli who took it automatically.

"The women of Rebirth do not wear pants," Tomas said in a way that led Nicoli to believe that he'd delivered this statement many times before. "If it's a question of being unfamiliar with how to wear it, I can provide assistance."

"The hell you will," Nicoli growled, placing his palm flat on the other man's chest when he stepped forward. If that smiling bastard thought Nicoli would let him anywhere near her, then he was making a fatal mistake.

Tomas' eyes widened, first in what looked like fear and then indignation. "Then
she
," he emphasized the word, "should change clothes immediately. Anyone not willing to obey the rules will be sent to recycling. There is a long list of citizens hoping for a place in Rebirth."

Nicoli gave Tomas a stern look as he took her by the arm and moved off a short distance to speak to her privately.

"Did he touch you? Harm you in any way?"

"No," she said.

"Then do us both a favor.” He shoved the dress at her. "Put the damn thing on. We can't afford to draw attention to ourselves."

For half a second, she glared up at him and he braced for an argument. Then she muttered something under her breath and, snatching the dress from his hand, disappeared into the changing room.

Tomas and Nicoli waited for her in stony silence. When she reappeared, Nicoli gave silent thanks to the Harvesters for their archaic rules. The simple gown accentuated her figure and was provocative in ways that more revealing clothing could never be. Nicoli's gaze wandered over her in great appreciation - until he noticed her glaring at him. With effort, he forced himself to look at Tomas.

"Now," Tomas continued in the same pleasant tone he'd used before, "what names have you selected for yourselves?” He looked first at Nicoli who saw no reason not to use his actual name.

"I am Nicoli and this is Kiera.”

Tomas gave the information to the other young man whose fingers typed away at a virtual computer keyboard. Nicoli knew he was entering their names into the system, but it didn't matter. By the time the Holocaust virus ran its course, there would be no recoverable data left.

A moment later, the young man finished and at his nod, Tomas turned back to them. "Please follow me. I’ll give you a quick tour before we head to the main hall for dinner. We have a special treat tonight. Brother Joh’nan will give us an update on our new home world. Very exciting.”

He led them out the back exit of the building and it was like stepping into another world. The colony before them was laid out in a large square and they were standing in front of one of the many identical stone structures lining the perimeter. In the very center of the colony, separated from the surrounding structures by a wide, packed-dirt walkway, was a larger building which Tomas identified as the main meeting and banquet hall.

Except for the scattering of modern technology - like the space shuttles, security wrist bands and lighting towers placed at the four corners of the square - the entire complex resembled the primitive villages found on his home planet of Althusia - two centuries ago.

“What are they doing?” Nicoli asked, seeing several different groups of people involved in various activities throughout the colony.

“Our old jobs and roles are not applicable to this new life, so everyone must learn new ones. The men in this first group, for instance, will be warriors and protectors. Therefore, they are learning to fight.”

The first group consisted of tall, well-muscled men divided into two opposing teams, each man wielding a weapon unlike anything Nicoli had seen before - a
three
-bladed sword.

“What type of weapon is that?” he asked.

“Warring blade,” Kiera muttered before Tomas could respond.

“I see you’ve been familiarizing yourself with the new ways. Very commendable.” Tomas nodded approvingly before continuing along the walkway.

Nicoli gave Kiera a curious look. Seeing it, she shrugged. "It just came to me. And that's not all. This whole place looks familiar. I feel like I should know it.”

“It’ll come. Don’t try to push it.”

Tomas led them past a second group of men. They weren’t as muscular or tall as the men in the first group and instead of swords, they used long handled instruments to dig and turn the barren soil.

Beyond them, a group of women dunked clothing into a fabricated, in-ground water source. Other women stood nearby, cradling wrapped bundles in their arms.

“What are those women doing?” The woman asked.

“Some of them are learning to wash clothes in creeks, while the others are holding babies. Not real ones, of course, they’re simulated. No one has successfully given birth yet, but we keep trying.” Tomas smiled. “As a woman, you will be trained to the best of our knowledge in the proper methods of running a home and rearing children.”

The sound of shouting drew Nicoli's attention to a group of women gathered in the corner of the colony. They stood with their heads down while a group of men paced before them, stabbing the air with their hands and hollering at them.

“What's going on over there?” He asked.

Tomas’s face lost its smile. “That is the more unfortunate part of our program. Those are our latest recruits and they are undergoing initial acclimation training. It is difficult to understand a culture where men are in charge and women must obey unconditionally. While such an environment is hard on all of us, it is especially difficult for those citizens who have chosen to go to the New World as females. If recruits cannot learn to accept their new roles, they put the entire program at risk of exposure. So we must make sure they accept these cultural norms by subjecting them to hours of submissiveness training.” He shook his head. “It is not a pleasant experience, but necessary."

He walked off, leaving Nicoli and Kiera to follow after him. As they rounded the next corner of the colony, Nicoli paused to study a group of men and women who were sitting on the ground, covering themselves with handfuls of dirt. "What are they doing?"

“Learning to tolerate dirt.” Tomas held up his hand to stall some anticipated protest. “I know it's disgusting, but I assure you it's safe. These new bodies of ours are quite resistant to germs and disease.”

Tomas glanced up at the setting sun. "They'll signal the end of the workday soon. When they do--"

A loud gong sounded, interrupting him and he smiled, waving a hand as if to say, "there it is.” The groups of men and women around the colony stopped what they were doing and started walking toward the main building.

"For now, the main hall serves as the primary living facility as well as the dining hall. Shall we join the others?" Tomas invited.

Once inside the main building, they proceeded down a wide corridor until they reached a large banquet room. At the very center of the room, an immense metal banquet table was already set with plates. Beyond it, embedded in the far wall, a large viewing screen looked out of place in the otherwise rustic setting.

One by one, people entered the room and took their places at the table, sitting in an alternating male-female pattern. At Tomas’ gesture, Nicoli and Kiera joined them, making sure they sat so as not to disrupt the pattern. After everyone was seated, Nicoli counted twenty-five couples in all.

When his gaze fell on the woman to his left, she favored him with a knowing smile while her gaze openly roamed down his body. Surprised by her forwardness, he awkwardly returned her smile before turning his attention to Kiera on his other side.

“I guess the submissive attitude doesn’t extend to dinnertime,” she muttered, letting him know she'd seen what happened.

At that moment, the large doors on either side of the viewing screen opened and several men carrying large platters of food appeared through them. Nicoli heard Kiera's stomach growl.

“Hungry?”

“Yes. I can’t remember the last time I ate.” She gave him a quick wink to let him know the play on words had been intentional, making him smile.

The aroma of roasted meat and vegetables filled the air as the platters were passed down the table so everyone could serve themselves.

“I wonder where they got the meat?” Nicoli mused aloud, staring at his plate of food.

Kiera’s fork stopped midway to her mouth as she looked over at him. “What do you mean?”

“I haven't seen any animals, have you?”

She lowered her fork, a sick look stealing over her face. “You don’t think these are,” she leaned closer to him so she could whisper, “donors, do you?”

He didn’t want to tell her that was exactly what he’d thought. Just then, Brother Tomas stopped by, leaning down between them to talk.

“How are you doing? I hope you’re hungry. This was all flown in from our new home, just so you could get used to the taste. I realize you’ve never eaten meat before, but I think you’ll discover it’s not unpleasant.” He smiled at Nicoli while letting his hand rest a little too familiarly on Kiera’s shoulder. “Enjoy yourselves.”

When he walked away, Kiera leaned toward Nicoli.

“Do you think it's safe to eat?” She was looking at the piece of meat still impaled on her fork.

Nicoli glanced around at the other diners. They were all eating without hesitation. “It's unlikely they'd go through all the trouble of transferring their people into new bodies just to poison them in the end.” He pierced one of the pieces of meat on his plate and held it up. “I’ll go first. That way if something happens, it’ll happen to me.”

She shook her head. “And get left here alone, no I don’t think so. I'll go first.” Before he could stop her, she’d put the meat into her mouth and started to chew. “Ummm. This
is
good. You should try it.” Swallowing, she stabbed another.

Nicoli watched her lips wrap around the meat and pull it from the fork. His throat suddenly dry, he picked up his glass and took a swallow of a pleasantly sweet liquid. Setting his glass back down, he looked across the table and forced his thoughts away from the erotic images filling his mind to more important matters. He needed to find a way to get back to the shuttle. Time was running out.