Two days later, the pair landed on the planet the coordinates
indicated. It was lush and green, and might have been called tropical if
it hadn't been a temperate climate. The sounds of birds and insects reached
their ears when they stepped out for a look around. "You're sure this is
it?" Trunks asked.
Endive glanced at him and shrugged. They were both wearing
the Saiya-jin armor again, she in black, he in blue. "One way to find out.
Let's go to the village we say indicated with the equipment."
Without even waiting for his reply, she lifted up into
the air and began flying towards it. He followed easily. He could outrun
her easily if he wanted to, she knew. He allowed her to set the pace. It
was nothing extreme. A knot of tension had formed in her stomach, and her
mind raced as she wondered what to expect.
She had little doubt that they were on the right planet;
the question was, was Amian even alive? Did he ever make it back to Ikomia?
She would find out if she had to circle this entire bloody planet several
times.
The two of them set down outside of the village. They
didn't want to alarm the natives by landing in the middle of it. She wasn't
sure what sort of reception they'd get, but they were about to find out.
Endive led the way into the village, her stride confident,
head held high. It didn't show that her pulse was quickening, her nerves
twanging. She could see a few of the natives outside. Males and females
that made her think that perhaps Amian had been typical of the race after
all. Tall and lean, the same iridescent skin, and thick manes of varying
shades of violet and blue and silver and black, eyes all startling colors.
They looked up curiously as she and Trunks approached,
but didn't show any signs of alarm. Endive stopped a little away and put
a hand on her hip. She tipped her head to the side as she looked around
at them, then spoke. "What planet is this?"
"Ikomia." The one that spoke looked mildly amused that
she didn't know. He was the eldest those present.
Endive felt like part of a weight had been lifted from
her chest. "Good. I'm looking for someone. An Ikomian named Amian. Do you
know him?"
They looked around at each other, then the eldest shook
his head. "No. But there is another village to the west where you might
ask."
She nodded, and without a word turned and strode back
to Trunks. He'd lingered back a bit, close enough to be in earshot, but
not close enough to be overly imposing. Or as imposing as he could be without
going Super Saiya-jin, anyway.
"Come on," she said, then took off. He followed, and they
quickly went to the next village.
* * * * * * * * * *
Endive was no longer so sure that Amian was alive,
or that he was on Ikomia if he was. She and Trunks had been to four villages;
so far, they'd turned up nothing but the suggestion to try another village.
She was losing patience, and whatever hope she had.
They set down in the fifth village. As before, Trunks
lingered behind her, letting her do the talking. She put on the same show
she had previously; the show of confidence, cool-headedness. The show that
nothing was wrong, that she wasn't feeling frustrated and high-strung.
There was one of the Ikomians outside working with an
animal of some type. She looked up at Endive's approach, and watched the
Saiya-jin curiously. "I'm looking for someone," Endive repeated just as
she had several times before. "His name is Amian. Do you know of him?"
Endive thought her own voice sounded bored as she spoke.
To her surprise, the female she was confronted with nodded.
"Yes. . . I'll go and get him." She turned and walked into one of the scattered
homes built around. They were probably two or three stories, painted varying
shades of blue, green, and white. Picturesque would be the right word for
them, Endive supposed.
The Saiya-jin female turned to look at Trunks.
He looked back at her, and she thought she saw a hint of a smile around
his lips. She reached into her sleeve around her wrist and unwrapped the
necklace with the crescent pendant on it. Since she had no pockets, she'd
wound it about her wrist for safe keeping. She held it in her hand, and
didn't realize how tightly she was holding it until she glanced at her
white knuckled hand and loosened her grip.
A taller male walked out of the house, with the female
beside him. Something about them, about the way they looked at each other,
the way they talked. . . Endive realized she was looking at the male's
mate. When he looked at her, Endive realized that she was, indeed, face
to face with Amian.
Thirty years. It had been thirty years.
He didn't seem to recognize her.
He had a few more lines around his face, and he might
not have been quite so lean anymore, but it was impossible to mistake him
for someone else. He stopped a few feet away from her, looking at her,
apparently waiting for her to say something.
A pair of children ran giggling out of the house and after
one another, apparently playing a game of chase.
She felt something like a shock go through her. She realized
that this was not the person she knew so long ago. Oh, he was indeed Amian,
but he was not the same Ikomian she met on the parasite ship.
This was an older, calmer Amian, one that had taken a
mate and had children. This was an Amian that exuded a sense of contentment
rather than a hunger for adventure.
She didn't know him. He didn't know her. They were each
looking a stranger in the face.
These thoughts passed through her mind in a matter of
seconds. He looked at her for a moment, and after she said nothing, he
opened his mouth to speak. Endive found her tongue then, and said, "This
is yours." She held the pendant out to him. Looking surprised, he reached
out and took it.
Endive let it drop before she was even sure he had it
in his hand, then turned quickly on her heel and strode towards Trunks.
She grabbed him by the arm and started walking away, speaking as she did.
"Come on. Let's get you home."