Stardust Dreams (35 page)

"I may agree with your
logic about Voyager, but there's no question in my mind that he is involved in
this somehow. All I can say is he'd better be taking good care of Cherry no
matter what else he's up to."

"I'm sure he is,"
Rom said as he walked around the desk and helped Aster to her feet. "And
knowing Cherry, I'm sure she'll make sure he gets her back here before the baby
comes."

Aster narrowed her brows at
him. "You may as well know, I've already decided I am
not
going
into labor without Cherry."

Smiling, Rom gave her a
hug. "It would be interesting to see how you manage that, but we still
have about two weeks left. She'll be here."

"She'd better be, or I
promise you, Gallant Voyager will pay dearly."

Aster blocked Rom from
reading the true source of her anxiety. He would probably be hurt if he
realized just how important it was that Cherry be with her when their child was
born. Rom was a part of her, but he was still a Noronian, someone who belonged
there. No matter what else happened, she would always be a stranger.

In the latter months of her
pregnancy, she had become dependent on the knowledge that Cherry— one of her
own kind—would be there to stand by her and the baby. Cherry's absence would
create a void that no one, not even Rom, could fill.

Bessima listened to the
evening news in her motel room as she dressed to go out. Las Vegas was the
perfect reward to herself after her spectacular performance in San Francisco. She
had heard of this place, but only visiting it could make it real to her.

There was so much she
wanted to see and do in the United States—such an erotic mixture of advanced
civilization and primitive violence. She had been avoiding the country for fear
of being caught, but now she was beginning to believe that this was the place
she belonged. Her choices for power and entertainment were unlimited, and her
chances of discovery were much slimmer than she had imagined.

Of course, she was not fool
enough to abandon her mission or the timetable; the princess could be on her
way this very minute. Yet the independence she had experienced this last year,
combined with the heady sensation of ultimate power, had her hoping that the
plan had fallen apart.

According to the schedule,
Gallant Voyager should have gotten to Lore by now and the princess and her
council would be in the process of judging his fitness as their new leader. Assuming
he accepted his responsibilities once they were explained to him, a messenger
then would be sent to Illusia letting them know the invasion of Terra would
move ahead as planned.

The princess should be
arriving with the new sovereign and her troops in Washington, D.C., in fifteen
days, and the main Illusian force should be no more than a few days behind
them. Bessima intended to be at the rendezvous point as agreed, but she was
going to take her time getting there.

Cherry's fighting skills
earned her the privilege of tagging along behind Gallant rather than being
assigned to a more useful task in the lower caverns. The princess had readily
accepted his explanation that one of his personal slave's duties was to guard
his back. The rough-woven sack she was given to wear, however, announced her
menial position to anyone observing their passage.

As they were given a tour
of the underground village, Cherry had to keep reassuring herself that Gallant
was only acting out a part, and that if she ever wanted to get back to Earth,
she would have to trust him and behave like an obedient slave.

One enormous cavern was
used as the training field for the soldiers, and an impromptu demonstration was
put on for their new sovereign. For several hours, men fought men, women fought
women, and women fought men. They battled with and without lethal weapons. Cherry
watched in awe until the first gush of blood poured from a knife wound. After
that, she kept her eyes downcast and tried not to think about what each grunt
and cry signified.

"How many trained
soldiers are here on Lore?" Gallant asked after the winners were duly
congratulated and dismissed.

The princess seemed to grow
an inch as she answered, "We are almost one thousand strong. Our men and
women have taken their responsibility to reproduce as seriously as they have
trained to fight."

"I don't wish to
minimize your efforts, Cousin, but how do you plan on conquering Terra with a
mere handful of followers? An illusion of strength will only last so
long."

With a laugh, she said,
"Let us return to the main hall as we talk. The council will be gathering
now to eat, and we have something very special planned for afterward." As
they started walking, she explained how they intended to take over Cherry's
home planet without having to raise a single weapon—although they would be
ready to do so if necessary.

Cherry was glad she wasn't
permitted to speak because she was rendered speechless by the explanation. Gallant
managed to hide his shock under a thick blanket of skepticism. "And
exactly when am I supposed to be making this grand appearance as the Supreme
Being to whom all Terrans will automatically bow down?"

"By this time, Bessima
will have warned the inhabitants all over the planet to expect you soon. The
precise moment is flexible according to when our fleet arrives, but now that
you are here, there is no reason to put off our departure. Preparations will
begin tomorrow. There is one small adjustment you will need to make
though."

"An adjustment?"

"The eye patch you
wear. Josep said it is not concealing any flaw and instructed Bessima to
project an image of you without it to make you appear less… evil. I hope you
can manage without it."

He shrugged, not willing to
let her know the reason he wore it. She might interpret his occasional
inability to control his illusions as a weakness. "If I must. But I'm
still not clear on the rest of the plan after the Terrans accept my
supremacy."

"It is quite simple. We
know where the twelve doorways in and out of Innerworld are. As soon as we
arrive, we will install explosive devices at each location, set to detonate if
anyone attempts to open one of the doors. The tunnel beneath would be destroyed
in seconds. In other words, we would have the power to seal the colony off from
the rest of the universe. Simultaneous to our arrival there, a message will be
delivered to the Ruling Tribunal on Norona and the Consociation, informing them
that Terra is under our control and we are holding Inner-world hostage."

It was immediately clear to
Cherry that Honor-bound was seriously underinformed if she truly thought it
would be that simple. Why hadn't Josep filled her in better?

Gallant nodded and stroked
his chin. "So far, so good. What demands will we be making?"

"We will allow limited
trade—controlled and taxed by us, of course—between Norona and Innerworld, if
they agree not to interfere with our rule on Terra; they will remove the
barrier around Illusia; and they will turn over control of the Consociation to
us."

They reached the main hall
before Gallant had a chance to form another question. Most of the members were
already at the table and the princess motioned for Gallant to take the place he
had had last night. Cherry didn't wait to be told to sit down behind him since
she wanted to remain as inconspicuous as possible.

The princess went on to
give Gallant more specific details of how the fleet of ships from Lore and
Illusia would set up a protective guard around Terra and how they expected to
maintain control once it was handed to them.

Cherry was under the
impression they had forgotten her presence until Honorbound suddenly snapped
her fingers at her.

"Girl! Come
here."

Cherry rose and took a few
steps forward, but stayed well out of her reach.

"Your master has given
us permission to question you, and since you do not know the hand language of
the slaves, I will allow you to speak. Josep has told us much about your
people, but he never mentioned that they have great strength. Is your fighting
ability typical?"

No!

Cherry blinked in surprise.
Someone had sent her a thought without physically touching her. As tempting as
it was to glance around the table to see if she could figure out who it was,
she carefully kept her gaze lowered and spoke in a humble tone. "No. I'm

. .
. very unusual.
My aggressive nature was one of the reasons I was sold into slavery to begin
with."

"In that case, would
you describe Terrans as a passive race?"

Yes!

Again Cherry sensed rather
than heard the words. "Usually, that is true." Based on what she'd
listened to so far, she added, "They're a very spiritual people. Religion
is very important to them."

Honorbound's face was a
picture of satisfaction. "Excellent." She asked Cherry a series of
questions about Terra's defenses, which Cherry swore she knew nothing of, being
such a lowly slave as she was. With regard to any extrasensory talents of her
people or their ability to travel through space, Cherry was able to answer with
complete honesty.

"Which country on
Terra has the most influence?" the princess asked.

Cherry hesitated, hoping to
be told the correct answer, but her mentor must have decided she was doing fine
on her own. "The United States of America—where I'm from."

"Are you then familiar
with the White House?"

"Of course. There's
where the President lives," Cherry answered in a childlike voice.

"And if this President
believes something, will the other countries believe it also?"

"I would think so,
yes."

The princess turned toward
Josep, nodded, then smiled at Gallant. "Your slave has answered honestly
and confirmed what I had already been told."

Cherry purposely did not
glance at Josep, but now she was almost positive that he had to be the one
feeding her and Gallant advice.
Why?
And if he could send thoughts so
easily without touching her, would he also be able to read hers, or, as with
Mar-Dot, was it only one way? She needed more information before she could
puzzle this one out, but with a loud clap, the princess ordered the food and
drink to be served, and that was the end of her interrogation as well as all
other discussion.