Chapter 3
The city of Flaxen dominated the western coast of the mostly wooded northern hemisphere of the planet Larson. It had been built like the ancient cities in the galaxy, instead of sprawling skyward, it spread out over many kilometers. Established as in industrial city, it not only contained the busiest ports on Larson, but Flexons were proud to note that they had the busiest cargo port in their corner of the galaxy. Daily, thousands of ships landed, unloaded their cargo, were reloaded and took off to all points of the galaxy. The intergalactic traffic made Flaxen a very liberal city, a place for all races to intermingle with each other in peace, with one single goal: making a profit.
Despite its huge population, Flaxen didn't contain many tall buildings. Other than the commerce and government centers, the tallest building rose only a mere fifty stories, the Religious Center. Erected in the center of the city, it had a very broad base and tapered off as it rose, ending in a very neat point, exactly one square meter in area. From this area a tall cross slowly rotated, seemingly keeping watch on the entire populace. On the top floor of this building sat the girl with the green eyes next to the hooded tunic dressed man. They sat in front of a large desk, looking at the back of a slim figure that had his back to them as he looked pensively out the glass wall into the eastern side of the city. The view was marred by speeding traffic of transport and passenger ships flying back and forth in an almost constant stream.
They waited to be spoken to before they opened their mouth, as they had been trained to do. When the figure turned to face them, the expression on his long face was not what they had expected. Having searched so long for the source of the 'ripple' in their energy nets, they had expected to see their leader a bit more enthusiastic or happy. The expression on his face did not contain any trace of either. Concern and worry reigned there.
"Are you sure?" he asked in a metallic voice. His voice matched his build, slender and compact but strong. "There cannot be any mistakes again."
The girl looked into the yellow glowing eyes and nodded. "There is no mistake Master Sir. He's the one we've been looking for."
"We've been through this before and each time we have been sure until we bring them here and find out that we were mistaken. Time is running out."
She held her breath. "Master Sir, I had a personal encounter with him earlier today."
The eyes studied her before they turned to the figure sitting next to her. He cleared his throat. "Master Sir, it was not what we intended. He sought her out. We didn't disobey your command. Our intention, as instructed, was purely recognizance but the boy had other ideas. He is the one."
"He? Human?"
They both nodded. "Young and very powerful." she spoke. "He has no clue as to what he can do but learns quickly. I was amazed at his learning ability. There is no doubt this time, Master Sir."
"And what makes you so sure of his learning ability?"
The girl cast a quick nervous look at the man sitting next to her. She turned back to her leader. "Master Sir, he was trying to get into my head. He finds me attractive. I prevented him from doing it but in the process, he discovered his ability to hear others thoughts. He was in pain, I showed how to block them out."
Master Sir's fist struck the desk hard, startling the girl. The man continued staring beyond the leader through the glass wall behind him stoically. "I specifically forbade you to interfere with his mind! I don't want him contaminated!"
"Master Sir, there was no other way. I didn't coax him in anyway. All I did was show him what he could do. I didn't interfere with his free will."
"It is true, Master Sir. I observed from a safe distance, undetected by him. She had to show her ability so that her words became credible."
"Master sir, we had no other choice. The others were failures because we were not allowed to test them in the field. Had we been able to do that, we would have wasted less time."
As soon as the words left her lips she regretted them. She recoiled as if being struck when Master Sir eyes flared up. "So you're now a better leader than me?"
She shook her head vehemently. "Of course not Master Sir, please, that's not what I'm saying. What I meant is that we were not sure of the previous ones. This one, we are sure of."
Master Sir stood up straight and looked around the room, breathing calmly. The glow from his eyes dimmed to their normal intensity. He turned to the man and favored him with a sour look. "How can I imprint not only the importance of this mission as much as the delicacy in which it must be handled?"
"With all due respect, Master Sir, you're not dealing with amateurs. We know how to do our job and we do it very well."
"Have you forgotten the market episode?"
The man shifted in his seat, all of his muscles tense. All three knew he carried more than one blaster, along with a few blades and never took them off, even though no weapons were allowed in the leader's office. He was the only exception. "I did as was instructed. Its discovery was not my fault. In fact, although short lived, we extracted very valuable information from it. Like were he lives."
"Relax. I'm not blaming you for its discovery. Our spies should've anticipated that. However, they were impeded. Which, my friends, it illustrates how careful we have to proceed. She is alert now, the boy's mother, and her precautions will intensify."
"I take great pride in my work."
The glowing yellow eyes intensified, casting the long face in a ghastly yellow silhouette. They dimmed as he took a deep breath. "I was not offending your vanity."
Master Sir turned his attention back to her. "Ronja, you know you're on your last chance here. You've been a tad reckless most of your life. I'm very fond of you but I will not tolerate another mistake of this magnitude. You're one of my favorite disciples, however, there will be no hesitation in your execution if you fail me again."
Ronja looked down on her hands as she nodded. Although she had always understood that the Cause took priority over personal feelings, it always pained her to be reminded of it. "Of course, Master Sir. That has always been understood. I'm only doing my best for you."
He smiled at her. He had been called many things but never a liar. He sincerely loved her above all his disciples but their cause trumped everything else. "Not for me. For the Church – always for the Church for I too answer to a higher power."
"What would you like us to do now?" the man asked in an uneasy tone. Although he had been with the organization for most of his adult life, he never really believed in their Cause. He didn't know what it was and didn't care if he ever found out. He was a paid enforcer and that is as far as he intended it to go. When he heard conversations turn to higher powers, he found it best to extract himself from such discussions.
The yellow eyes focused on him. "Surveillance. I don't want to scare him. He should want to come here of his own free will. Ronja, that's where you come in. You have to get close to him and show him the path he must follow. But don't coax him. He can't be tainted or he wont be as good to us as it has been prophesized."
The man stood up. "That doesn't sound like a job for me. I'm not a babysitter."
The slender figure motioned for him to sit back down. "Relax Arme. I need you in the vicinity of this human boy. The mother could pose a threat to the Cause. If anything happens where there's a danger of losing him, you will bring him in. He may not be a big use to us against his will but I will not allow him to join the enemy. He will die before that happens."
Arme nodded. Although he didn't like his assignment, he had done much worse jobs for the Church. Babysitting a human boy would be akin to a vacation.
"Not even close to a vacation." Sir spoke. "You understand that Master Skywalker is coming here in a few days. He's after the boy. The fact that he must resort to a ridiculous excuse as to mediate a trade agreement proves the importance he himself has placed on him. He is coming to take him to his academy. We can't allow that to happen!"
Arme took a deep breath in attempt to control his temper. "I told you many times that I don't like you people getting in my head."
The skinny man stood straight, eyeing the visitors seating in front of him. "You have always had a bad temper, Arme, but disrespect me again and you wont live to repeat it. You're the best at what you do, and you have certain privileges that no one else even dreams of, but I won't tolerate insolence."
Arme cleared his throat and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Master Sir. It's one of my flaws that I can't seem to get control of."
The leader smiled. "Along with your ego. Precisely why you're the best. Besides, I wasn't in your head. That was written all over your face. We have to take this very seriously. We have searched for many years for this boy and now that we have found him, we must not lose him. Do you understand?"
Ronja nodded. Arme only stared back into those glowing yellow eyes. "I know it's important to you and the Church and that is all I need to understand. The boy will be closely watched, you can count on that Master Sir. I'm not employed to believe, only to do my job."
The leader chuckled. "Is there no hope for you young Arme?"
All three of them knew it was a rhetorical question.
