Harper couldn't tell how late it was, the moons never seemed to move and the sky didn't seem to be getting any brighter. It had been about two hours since they had set up camp and went to sleep. Harper tried to get rest but he would go in and out of fits of sleep, but he couldn't keep himself that way.
"Is something wrong Harper?" He heard Rommie's soft voice next to him.
"No, I just can't sleep," he replied, sitting up. "So, what do you think of this place Rom-Doll?"
"Its an interesting planet," she mused. "Quite different than any other planet that was ever in the Commonwealth. If we could get them in the Commonwealth, it would be very advantageous for us."
Harper just looked at her.
"That's not what you meant was it? Yeah, I suppose that the people here are a little strange, but then are all the other planets we visit. None of them are alike."
"Yeah, but, how many other races can control quantum physics?" Harper asked.
"None that I know of," Rommie paused for a moment. "Is that what's bothering you?"
"Yeah," Harper said, lowering his head. "I just don't like the thought of how all this works. I don't understand it!"
"We all know how you don't like not understanding things," she smiled.
"I've been trying to talk to Kael about it, but I never can seem to catch him."
"Why don't you go talk to him now? He's over there," Rommie said, pointing towards a hill. "He's just been standing there for about an hour now. I wonder what he's doing…"
"I'll go find out. Thanks Rom-Doll!" Harper said, leaping up. Before he headed over to Kael, he gave Rommie a peck on the cheek. Rommie just stood there, stunned.
When Harper reached the top of the hill, he saw that they weren't really in a clearing but on the edge of an outcrop. The view was amazing; lights of a large city could be seen sparkling across the far horizon and even though the moons lit the night sky with great intensity, hundreds of stars could be seen across the dark blanket of sky.
At the edge, he saw Kael. Kael was just standing there, looking out over the bluff, his hand playing with something around his neck.
"Hello Mr. Harper," Kael said, without even turning around as Harper made his way towards the edge.
"Hey Kael," Harper said, walking up to his side.
"I'm sorry that I snapped at you earlier," Kael said, lowering his head. "I understand that this is all new for you; you don't understand…you don't like that…"
"It's okay," Harper replied. "Why can't-"
"I just explain?" Kael said, cutting him off. "It's complicated. I try not to get into it too much…it reminds me too much of when I was in the Academy."
"You were in the Academy? I thought it was a military academy. No offense, but you don't look any bigger than I do."
Kael smiled, "They made exceptions for me. My…talent was greater than most, they didn't want to loose such a prized student because of physical limitations. Heck, I was admitted into the Academy when I was fifteen, which by the way is very young for such a prestigious acknowledgement. I had a pretty good career going for me. Now, four years later, I have enough knowledge to unravel a complex temporal paradox in less than five minutes, and look at where I ended up." He paused for a moment. "You think it's beautiful don't you?" He asked, waving his hand at the scene in front of them.
"Yeah. I guess," Harper replied. "It kind of reminds me of the few peaceful nights that I had when I was on Earth." Harper chuckled.
"I hate it!" Kael said, turning away from the cliff. "This place, this government, this planet, I hate it all! I just want to get as far away from this planet as I can!"
Harper turned around to look at him. His shoulders were shuddering, he was still holding whatever it was that was around his neck.
"What is that," Harper asked, pointing to Kael's closed hand, trying to divert the conversation to another subject.
"Oh, this?" Kael asked, opening his hand to show Harper. It was a small pendant on a small silver chain. A clear, blue crystal was the center of it. The crystal itself seemed like a normal piece of glass, other than it emitted a dull glow. "This, Mr. Harper, is what my planet calls a Talmrin."
"A what?"
"A Talmrin," Kael gave a small smile. "It's an energy crystal. That's how we use our powers, by taking energy from the surrounding area and using it to bend physics to what we want it to be. Well, that and a lot of mathematics and formulas. You wouldn't believe the amount of theoretical physics you would learn by going to the Academy!"
"So, you need one of those things to be able to do…whatever you do?"
"No. Actually, a Talmrin is usually given to a student who is first starting to learn their powers. It prevents them from drawing in too much energy. If we do, we can destroy ourselves. Our bodies are different than of your people. The energy we collect goes through our nervous system, that way we have direct control over it. Unfortunately this has dire consequences on it, it tears it apart. We're capable of regenerating our nervous system over time, but we can still be, lets just say 'overloaded.' After we learn how to control our powers though, we usually just cast off the Talmrin. I hope that has answered some of your questions."
"Yeah, thanks. But, if you don't need that…Talmrin thing, then why do you keep it?"
"I'm not really sure," Kael answered, turning the Talmrin over in his hand. "I guess, because it's the only thing that my parents left me. It's the only thing that I have left of them…"
"I know how that feels…losing your whole family. Except mine was killed right in front of my eyes. That's a terrible sight to remember."
"Yes, but do you know how it feels, when your family is stripped away from all of society that you used to be a part of? Respected, then condemned? Your brother, killed in the middle of the street, because he didn't agree with what the government was doing? Your parents, put into exile because of their child's failures? To be training as an elite, then, ending up killing your own parents, without even knowing that you did until it was too late?" Kael's voice had become unstable, his breathing rapid.
Harper stood in silence as Kael attempted to regain his composure.
"You see," Kael started, his voice extremely calm, "the Academy always thought that it was important that all students learn how to use weapons blindfolded. That way, if we were ever unable to see, that we would still be able to fight, they also did this so we could practice our telepathy. When I took my test, I knew something was wrong, I just didn't know what…I was young and stupid then. I did it perfectly though, I hit the targets, just like I was supposed to, perfect aim I may add. When I took off my blindfold…I saw…my parents were the targets…"
Harper tried to find words, but couldn't. Although he had seen his own parents killed, he wasn't the one who pulled the trigger.
"Even if the government was taken away and peace was restored here, would you still want to leave?" Harper asked, after a long silence, unsure if he should even say anything at all.
"Yes, Mr. Harper, I would."
"Kael, you don't have to call me Mr. Harper you know."
"I was doing it out of respect. How would you like for me to address you?"
Harper thought for a moment before answering, "Just call me Seamus."