Without Rhythm (The Lament) (30 page)

"Yes. Um... this way?" She pulled Clark to the side bodily, or tried to, which didn't work very well, earning her a hug instead. He didn't hold it long, but it was warm enough.

"We can cuddle later, I meant, please come this way, both of you?" They could claim it was for secret hugs later if they needed too, it wouldn't take long.

They just got to the back of the ship, which took a few minutes to do, but showed that no one was around to hear them.

"I overheard Dovish talking, we have him prisoner, he was a spy the whole time, smart as anyone. But... It was pretty clear to me that Tammy left out some information. That isn't the important part, or, well, it might be, but somehow someone knew that there were High Councilors on The Conscript. They were planning to take out the entire ship to get to them. I don't know if that's very hard to find out, but..."

Saran nodded.

"Hard enough not to have come from just anyone on the ship. I'll vouch for everyone on board myself. That means that we have someone at the High Council giving out information. Or that I'm wrong about some of my friends. I hope not, but either way this is a much bigger mess than it was a few minutes ago and that was plenty."

Then, without any discernible rhythm at all, the woman started pacing. When she finally spoke it was a low thing, words that weren't meant to carry at all.

"Clark, I'm putting you in charge of finding the spy. I'll get the whole council to sign off on it, even if it might be one or more of them. They'll know your coming at them, but there's not a lot we can legally do about that. Emergency act is in affect anyway, but do what you have too. Bard Pran... I...
Apprentice Bard Pran
..." She stopped talking for a long time, then held out a single hand and told them both to wait there. The woman ran off, but didn't come back for a long time. A very long time, almost three hours in fact.

Clark spoke to her, asking about every part of her adventure. She didn't embellish it, which, Bard or not, he seemed to get without being told.

"I saw the aftermath after all. I'm willing to bet that the ones that got away will swear they faced an army of Guardians in the dark. You didn't finish your story for them? We should do that soon, don't you think? Horrible to just leave poor Dovish hanging like that, not knowing who he really faced. Then again, maybe it's better that way. You can go and try to talk him into helping us. That's a shame there. I kind of liked Dovish. Simple fellow, but he tried hard. Well, not much to do for it now."

They chatted off and on, mainly watching as the night closed about them, a heavy sense of tiredness closing over Pran as she waited. After a while she forgot what she was waiting for and almost just went in, but Guardian Saran came around the corner just as she took a step. That got the woman to stop and throw up her hands.

"Just Saran! Don't rush in and kill me." She sounded happy enough, considering everything.

"I made an arrangement for you Pran. In the morning we'll head to Alpha Seven, and from there you and your friends will go on to the capital. It's out of the way, but it will let us put you in proximity of whoever gave away the information about the High Councilors on the scene here. It means some changes to plan, but you can adapt." She looked at Clark and did something strange, raising her chin just a little. It got his attention and he returned the gesture. It was so subtle Pran nearly didn't catch it.

"New assignments all around. You're going to take your Judge and her fellows with you, then act as part of Bard Clarice's guard while Mara and the others heal. If they do. Your main job will be to watch Bard Clarice's new apprentice. Bit of a wild card, but I started talking up the idea and Bard Gina got on the line and seconded it thinking the idea was real. It doesn't hurt to have both a High Councilor
and
the current Bards' Councilor's mother speaking for you. Gina told her that you were as good as any she'd ever heard and if she didn't take you on it was a crime against society. That's a bit to live up to, Bard Gina is notoriously harsh."

Before Pran could really let that sink in she realized what it meant.

"I'm supposed to help find a spy?"

"Exactly. It could be anyone too, so no telling. The work will mainly go to Clark and Mara, but you're the one that will have to get them into place. It will be... different for you, I think. Are you willing to help?"

Pran almost said no. She almost told the woman that it was too much and too big a responsibility. She wasn't a Guardian and it felt like a trick, getting Clarice to take someone like her on as an apprentice without even hearing her play or seeing her artwork first.

It was almost too much.

But the capitol city would have other things too, like the best Doctors for her friends, and other things she couldn't even imagine. Contacts... and workshops that she could use. Maybe even enough funds to buy materials? It was a dream and she shook her head, trying to keep to the parts she could control.

"Yes. I'll do it. I don't know if I can, but I will." She shrugged. "I know, that sounds funny, but it's how I've lived my life. No matter what, I'll do my best."

It was Clark that put an arm around her shoulders, not exactly cheery, but not sad either.

"That's all any of us can do. I expect you to be the best Bard ever." He sounded very serious for a few moments, until he laughed.

Pran smiled too, exhaustion finally taking her, the drugs wearing off.

"Bard? That's the easy part. Being the best
Guardian
ever... now that one..." She started walking and then stopped without warning, the others parting around her instantly.

"How bad is this, really. I mean, if they had those vehicles and weapons, the beam lights, what else could they have? How many people are involved and what do they want?"

The older Guardian spoke first, her voice smooth and low.

"We're not certain. The facility had at least a hundred people in it, but they had room for many, many more. Over a thousand. Things looked used too, like they've been around for a long time. That shouldn't be possible, but it was there. We have to assume they have at least that many. A thousand. Maybe several times that, just waiting to go. Worse, some of them are clearly workers, rather than fighters. The ones you encountered seemed to be that type. Workers put to the wrong task. Fortunately for us. As for what they want...

"They want what that kind always wants. To take the best of the world for themselves and to make the rest of us slaves. That or dead. No matter what they claim and how fair it sounds, that they want freedom, or equality, or peace, they always end up trying to take it all for themselves and leaving everyone else scrambling for crumbs. No set of leaders has ever done anything else, other than ours."

Pran thought about it for a minute, just standing in place, too tired to understand anything very clearly. She nodded though, as if she understood and then shrugged, her eyes trying to close by themselves.

"Alright. I'm in."

She didn't have much of a choice after all. She hadn't ever had a lot, but being a slave didn't sound like a fun thing at all. It was bad enough being an apprentice.

Then they went inside, the ship having a strange quality to it that she hadn't expected. It felt like... She wasn't sure, but it seemed like it might be home.

That only made sense to her, since as soon as she got used to a place she'd have to leave. She smiled though, when she got to her cot and drifted off to sleep. She had friends and a real job. It was an improvement over even a week ago.

She slept peacefully then, for hours.

Before the nightmares came.