Chapter 8
It seemed that we were called to the Dining Hall more quickly that night, and when we arrived I realized that it was true. For the first time I arrived for my meal when the room was still half empty. Theoretically I could have simply sat down at any table, as none of them were yet full, but out of some warped sense of habit I followed behind Partov, moving once again to the center of the room.
"What's she doing here?" Dimal snarled at Partov. She was sitting with two other women from Norei's 'following'.
"Swan, I think you've met Dimal." Partov said dryly. "Do you know Karaht and Merei?"
"No, I haven't had the chance." I replied. "It's very nice to meet you." Karaht and Merei simply stared at me, as if they couldn't believe what they were hearing. Dimal continued to glare.
"I… I want to speak with Norei again." Partov said, casting a quick glance at me. "I think there might be something we are overlooking."
"We haven't overlooked anything." Dimal spat. "She's a spy. No one else in this place has regular meetings with Lord Zoltar!"
"Isn't it a little obvious to make her a spy?" Partov asked. "She's an offworlder; she's the first person we'd suspect. If Lord Zoltar truly wanted to place a spy amongst us, wouldn't he choose a Spectran?"
"I don't presume to know what Lord Zoltar is thinking." Dimal hissed. "But I know that whatever she is telling him, it can't be good."
"Norei, I need to speak with you." Partov said, as the platinum-haired woman sat down.
"It looks like you haven't been sufficiently circumspect in your behavior today, Partov." Norei noted coolly, her eyes sweeping over me with disdain.
"I want to discuss things again." Partov insisted, although her voice quavered. "I think we need to reconsider matters."
"Norei! I…" Fanel was rushing over to the table, but she stopped speaking the moment she saw me sitting there. Quickly she sat down next to Norei, whispering furiously. Norei's face blanched and her eyes grew wide. She turned her head to stare at me, assessing me with her icy gaze.
"You're sure?" she asked Fanel, and the woman nodded.
"Weckor told me as a warning." Fanel replied. "He insisted that she was dangerous and urged me to stay away from her."
"Interesting…" I could almost see the wheels turning in Norei's head. But what information had Fanel passed on about me? Most importantly, was it true, or false?
"I want to talk to you." Norei ordered. It was clear that I wasn't being given a chance to turn down this 'generous' offer.
"I'm right here." I reminded her, taking a bite of my food. "You can talk now."
"No." Norei shook her head. "This is… a private matter. We can't let it become public knowledge."
"Oh, so it's okay to falsely accuse me of being a spy, but this, whatever it is, is 'private' information." I muttered sarcastically.
"Just meet with me in the Gymnasium this evening." Norei snapped, but then she paused for a moment. "Unless you have another meeting with Lord Zoltar."
"Not as far as I know." I replied airily. "But then again, you should ask Fanel. She seems to know about my schedule before I do."
Norei did not rise to the bait, but simply nodded curtly in acknowledgement of my words. The remainder of the meal passed in silence, and I was forced to wait for whatever it was Norei wanted to discuss.
I ate quickly, then found myself twiddling my thumbs, waiting until the time allotted for dinner was over. It was of small comfort to realize that Norei appeared equally impatient. Apparently this matter truly was something she wanted to keep private.
After we were called out of the Dining Hall, we were once again led to the Gymnasium. The moment I stepped through the door, I was accosted by Norei.
"Over here." she jerked her head toward the corner of the room. I followed her, noticing that the other women appeared to be giving us a wide berth. No one bothered us or moved to approach our position.
"Is it true?" Norei demanded, the moment we were 'alone'.
"Is what true?" I asked sarcastically. "And even if I told you the truth, would you believe me? After all, I am a 'spy'."
"Can't you be serious for once?" Norei appeared frustrated. "Your attitude astounds me; it gives me doubts. Yet the rest of it fits. The fact that you're here at all, the way you fight, the interrogations by Lord Zoltar, the outrageous things you say… it's true, isn't it?" She paused briefly before speaking again.
"You're a member of G-Force."
"Yes."
I watched her mouth fall open, her eyes widening, then narrowing contemplatively. For an instant I regretted telling her the truth, but then I realized that I really had had no other alternative. After all, the guards knew, and since they apparently 'communicated' with the prisoners to some degree, it wasn't really a surprise that the information had leaked out. Even Norei's 'secrecy' right now was hopeless. News like this would pass quickly amongst the small prison population. It was destined to be common knowledge within a day or two.
"You don't deny it?"
"What would be the point?" I shrugged. "You all hate me anyway, I might as well be damned for something that's actually the truth."
"It's your fault I'm here."
"What?" The accusation came out of nowhere, slapping me in the face.
"I heard about G-Force… about you; that there was a woman fighting with them. It inspired me. I wanted to help defend my homeworld against the Federation invaders. If their women could fight, then so could I."
"Wait a minute. We never invaded…"
"It doesn't matter. I thought you had, at the time. I applied for training, and I was accepted."
"Training…" I thought back to the way Norei had fought: the movements she had made and their familiarity. "You're a Galaxy Girl."
"I was a Galaxy Girl." Norei corrected, her mouth stretched into a thin line. "I was eager to fight, eager to be out there… until I saw the missions to which I had been assigned. I was ordered to kill scientists in their sleep, kidnap children to make other men cooperate. It wasn't a fight… it was sneaking, spying, horrible acts of torture."
"So what happened?" I asked curiously.
"I was ordered to poison the water supply of a Federation town. Lady Mala wanted to 'encourage' the officials there to surrender." Norei revealed. "But I knew that before the poisoning was discovered, many people would drink the water and die. Not just soldiers, but civilians… children…"
"You didn't do it…" I guessed.
"I did it." Norei grimaced. "I had orders. But I passed on a message to the city leaders, letting them know what I had done, so that they could warn their people. I thought that it wouldn't matter. We still held sway over their decisions, as only we had the antidote."
"But I'm guessing it did matter."
"It mattered all right. I had disobeyed orders; even though I hadn't specifically been told not to inform the local authorities of what I had done, it was implied. Or so they claimed. I was shamefully discharged, and sent here."
"You were sent here for warning civilians?" I was shocked.
"I was sent here for questioning my superior and going against her wishes." Norei's lips twisted in anger. "As a member of a high-level military force, that is a treasonable offense. I was branded a traitor."
"I think I'm beginning to understand."
"You can never understand! You don't know the shame and degradation I feel, having been expelled under the worst possible stain of disgrace! My family has shunned me. They don't even speak my name. I am cut off from everyone I ever knew, and they do not even remember that I exist."
"You're right, I can't understand that." I agreed. "I don't have a family. My family is my Team: my Commander, my teammates. If they were to treat me as if I never existed, I would feel pain. I can only imagine what you are suffering." Norei eyed me contemplatively; the set of her face as if she were pronouncing judgment upon me.
"You want to escape from here." She stated it as a fact.
"I won't deny it." I concurred. "But 'want' and 'reality' are two separate things."
"You've resigned yourself to this hole?"
"Not at all." I smiled slowly. "But these things take time and information. Time I have. Yet my information is lacking."
"You're not entirely correct." Norei disagreed. "These things take time, information, and ability. I have access to the first two. But the third…"
"You want to join forces?" It was an interesting thought; certainly something I hadn't previously considered.
"I've been trying to train others… but most of these women have little fighting ability. Some have desire, yet they are unfocused, undependable. But you…"
"My situation is somewhat different, yes."
"So we'll work together." Her words came out as a statement, yet I could see the question in her eyes. It was clear that Norei was used to 'telling', and not 'asking'. Still, this was the best opportunity I had come across in my quest to escape.
"We'll work together." I agreed.
"Good."
"Who else knows about… this?" I asked.
"No one. Fanel is intelligent enough to suspect, but never ask. The others think I am only training them so that they can defend themselves against the guards' unwanted advances."
"But that's part of it."
"It's a nice side benefit."
"You realize that my 'identity' won't remain a secret for long."
"I didn't expect it would. I'm sure Fanel has told the others by now, and it won't be long before everyone knows."
"So why…?"
"If I make it seem like I wanted to keep it secret, then I had a reason for talking with you here, didn't I?" Norei smiled thinly. "It will be some time before we can speak again. I have to 'accept' you gradually. It would be too suspicious if we were suddenly conversing privately."
"Fair enough." I agreed, impressed by her understanding of the surveillance we were under. "And in the meantime, we can both be thinking of what options to discuss."
"I look forward to that."
"Good to know." I turned to walk away.
"Just one more thing." Norei hissed, grabbing my arm to momentarily prevent my departure. "Don't betray me. That is unforgiveable."
"I promised to work with you." I locked my eyes with hers. "I don't break promises. We're together in this." Norei's gaze searched mine for a long moment.
"I believe you." She let go of my arm.
"Well there's a first." I smirked. "I haven't uttered a false word since I got here, but you finally believe me."
"For now." Norei agreed.
