Chapter 3 - The Arrival
Before they entered orbit around Kandor, Onara left Talyn on her ship. She told Crais she needed to make preparations for their arrival planetside. He knew she was hiding something, but he didn't feel that he was in any danger so he let her go without argument. All he could do was wait for her to signal him with landing coordinates.
It was about two arns before he heard from her. "Bialar, I am transmitting you the coordinates of the repair facility. You have been cleared through planetary security and can proceed immediately."
He still had no alternative, so he and Talyn proceeded to the surface. As he broke through the clouds he saw the most beautiful city he had ever seen. It looked more like it had grown straight out of the earth rather than something that had been built. Most of the buildings appeared to be made of marble, marble streaked through with many different colors. Some of the largest buildings had incredible elaborate towers that seemed to defy gravity. The most amazing thing about the city was the amount of open space. There were parks and squares scattered throughout. Many of the buildings had rooftop gardens. It was truly breathtaking. Crais was glad that Talyn could pilot himself to the landing coordinates. Crais was completely distracted be the surroundings.
He was impressed by the size of the repair facility. It could easily handle a ship of Talyn's size. If they had a material compatible with Talyn's hull the repairs should not take long at all. As far as Crais was concerned, the less time he spent planet side the better, even if he was under cover. Talyn picked up on Crais's concerns and was getting anxious. "No, Talyn. We will land. I do not believe Onara means us any harm. Until your starburst arm is repaired, we are vulnerable. This is the safest course of action."
After guiding Talyn into the hangar, he disembarked to find Onara. She was waiting at the entrance to the hangar. She was no longer wearing the utilitarian jumpsuit she had worn earlier, but was clothed in a diaphanous green dress the nearly matched her eyes. She looked regal. He also noticed she was not alone. She was accompanied by four soldiers who were dressed like a ceremonial guard, but projected an air of expertise.
"Am I under arrest?" This was blunt, but he wanted to know where he stood. From the look on her face he knew that was the wrong question to ask.
"No. They are my honor guard." It was Crais's turn to look perplexed. "I cannot hide my identity from you any longer. My father is King. I have made a game of 'escaping' from the palace every now and then. I had planned on being gone longer than I was, but I could not ignore your cry for help. While Talyn is being repaired you will be my guest at the palace. I think it will be safer that way."
Crais looked around now and realized that he was being watched by the repair facility workers. Some eyed him curiously and others watched him suspiciously. He wondered how they felt about Sebaceans. Probably the same as most of the others he met in the Uncharted Territories. They seemed to equate being Sebacean with being Peacekeeper. Those were always places to leave quickly and watch your back while you were there.
He and Onara were escorted to a ground car. He had the impression that he should wait to ask questions. He resigned himself to watching the scenery. It was really quite pleasant. It wasn't too hot to be uncomfortable and he could see that many of the buildings had ornamental friezes. Obviously art was highly valued by the Kandori. When they arrived at the palace he was surprised. It was built of a cream colored, green flecked marble, but it's exterior was surprisingly spartan. There was little in the way of carvings on the facade. The building architecture was the same graceful semi-organic style that was found in the rest of the city.
The car came to a stop in the main courtyard. They were escorted into the palace and through a maze of passages. Crais did his best to remember the route they were taking. He was pretty sure their escort was being purposefully circuitous to prevent him from quickly escaping. The interior was more elaborate than the exterior. There were tapestries and portraits hanging from the walls. In between were alcoves with statuary or vases perched on pedestals. Many of the ceilings were frescoed. Those that weren't mimicked the sky. He initially assumed the sky was painted on the ceiling, but changed his mind when he saw the clouds move. He could only assume they were proceeding towards the throne room.
Finally, they came to two of the largest doors he had every seen. They were ornately carved and guilded, at least he assumed they were guilded. He thought there was a fairly strong possibility that they were solid. At the far end of the room was a dais with a fairly modest throne. Of course in this case modest is relative term. Seated on the throne was a man of regal bearing who could only be Onara's father. He had the same green eyes and red hair, though his was closely cropped, but there was a definite family resemblance.
The page announced their arrival. "Her royal highness, Crown-Princess Onara. Bialar Crais, Sebacean." He had never been uncomfortable with who he was, but everyone in the throne room was now staring at him. He was extremely self-concious of the fact that he was definitely underdressed. At least he had cleaned all the grime off his hands.
Onara proceeded straight to the throne. He had no choice but to follow in her wake. From the behavior of the other members of the court he gained the impression that this was not the first time Onara had brought a strange alien home with her.
As she reached the dais she performed a low curtsy, Crais following her lead bowed at the waist. "Father, this is the man I rescued. He has the most remarkable ship. It is a young leviathan, but different from most. He has no pilot."
Even though she seemed most pleased to be reporting this information, the king did not appear to share her enthusiasm. In fact, he looked quite upset. Crais hoped this was over the fact that she had slipped away from her escort, rather than the fact that she had brought a Sebacean to court.
The king considered her briefly and then turned to examine Crais. He did not think he had been scrutinized that closely since he reported onboard his first ship. "Are you Peacekeeper?"
"No longer, your majesty. I left that life over two cycles ago." He figured it was best to get that out in the open.
"You left the Peacekeepers? I was under the assumption that once you were inducted into the Peacekeepers it was for life."
"I escaped from my ship when a rival had arranged to take it over. I was declared irreversibly contaminated and was to be tried and executed for treason. My ship is a Peacekeeper project that I have been keeping from them. I have found my life outside the Peacekeepers most fulfilling, your majesty." Given their disdain for the Peacekeepers he thought this would help him.
"Most interesting. My daughter has requested you join us for dinner. As you are her guest I have agreed to her request."
"Thank you, your majesty. Your hospitality is most gracious."
"The Chamberlain will see that you are escorted to your quarters. Daughter, I will speak with you." With this the king and Onara proceed out of the throne room through a small side door. Most members of the court were proceeding out the main door. A few were beginning to approach him, but the Chamberlain reached him first. He was quickly escorted to his quarters. On the way, Crais was told when dinner would be and that someone would come to escort him to the dining hall. He was also informed that the tailor would come by with suitable clothing for dinner. Crais was concerned about the clothing. He was sure it would be the local fashion, light silky material, something totally foreign to him.
He had two arns to go before dinner and nothing to do. He had been instructed to wait in his quarters. He detested this. They may not have put him in a prison cell, but he was a prisoner for now, albeit a well treated one. He almost felt as if he were being treated as a pet.
About half an arn after he was escorted to his quarters the tailor came by. As Crais had feared the clothes were in the local fashion. Fortunately, he did have a little selection. He chose matching dark blue pants and tunic. The fit wasn't bad and the material was actually quite comfortable. All he could do now was wait for his escort. His quarters had a balcony that overlooked and interior garden courtyard. In the courtyard was a pond with colorful fish. He found himself staring at the fish as they swam around the pond. He had no idea how long he had been doing that when he heard a knock at the door. It was Onara.
Before they entered orbit around Kandor, Onara left Talyn on her ship. She told Crais she needed to make preparations for their arrival planetside. He knew she was hiding something, but he didn't feel that he was in any danger so he let her go without argument. All he could do was wait for her to signal him with landing coordinates.
It was about two arns before he heard from her. "Bialar, I am transmitting you the coordinates of the repair facility. You have been cleared through planetary security and can proceed immediately."
He still had no alternative, so he and Talyn proceeded to the surface. As he broke through the clouds he saw the most beautiful city he had ever seen. It looked more like it had grown straight out of the earth rather than something that had been built. Most of the buildings appeared to be made of marble, marble streaked through with many different colors. Some of the largest buildings had incredible elaborate towers that seemed to defy gravity. The most amazing thing about the city was the amount of open space. There were parks and squares scattered throughout. Many of the buildings had rooftop gardens. It was truly breathtaking. Crais was glad that Talyn could pilot himself to the landing coordinates. Crais was completely distracted be the surroundings.
He was impressed by the size of the repair facility. It could easily handle a ship of Talyn's size. If they had a material compatible with Talyn's hull the repairs should not take long at all. As far as Crais was concerned, the less time he spent planet side the better, even if he was under cover. Talyn picked up on Crais's concerns and was getting anxious. "No, Talyn. We will land. I do not believe Onara means us any harm. Until your starburst arm is repaired, we are vulnerable. This is the safest course of action."
After guiding Talyn into the hangar, he disembarked to find Onara. She was waiting at the entrance to the hangar. She was no longer wearing the utilitarian jumpsuit she had worn earlier, but was clothed in a diaphanous green dress the nearly matched her eyes. She looked regal. He also noticed she was not alone. She was accompanied by four soldiers who were dressed like a ceremonial guard, but projected an air of expertise.
"Am I under arrest?" This was blunt, but he wanted to know where he stood. From the look on her face he knew that was the wrong question to ask.
"No. They are my honor guard." It was Crais's turn to look perplexed. "I cannot hide my identity from you any longer. My father is King. I have made a game of 'escaping' from the palace every now and then. I had planned on being gone longer than I was, but I could not ignore your cry for help. While Talyn is being repaired you will be my guest at the palace. I think it will be safer that way."
Crais looked around now and realized that he was being watched by the repair facility workers. Some eyed him curiously and others watched him suspiciously. He wondered how they felt about Sebaceans. Probably the same as most of the others he met in the Uncharted Territories. They seemed to equate being Sebacean with being Peacekeeper. Those were always places to leave quickly and watch your back while you were there.
He and Onara were escorted to a ground car. He had the impression that he should wait to ask questions. He resigned himself to watching the scenery. It was really quite pleasant. It wasn't too hot to be uncomfortable and he could see that many of the buildings had ornamental friezes. Obviously art was highly valued by the Kandori. When they arrived at the palace he was surprised. It was built of a cream colored, green flecked marble, but it's exterior was surprisingly spartan. There was little in the way of carvings on the facade. The building architecture was the same graceful semi-organic style that was found in the rest of the city.
The car came to a stop in the main courtyard. They were escorted into the palace and through a maze of passages. Crais did his best to remember the route they were taking. He was pretty sure their escort was being purposefully circuitous to prevent him from quickly escaping. The interior was more elaborate than the exterior. There were tapestries and portraits hanging from the walls. In between were alcoves with statuary or vases perched on pedestals. Many of the ceilings were frescoed. Those that weren't mimicked the sky. He initially assumed the sky was painted on the ceiling, but changed his mind when he saw the clouds move. He could only assume they were proceeding towards the throne room.
Finally, they came to two of the largest doors he had every seen. They were ornately carved and guilded, at least he assumed they were guilded. He thought there was a fairly strong possibility that they were solid. At the far end of the room was a dais with a fairly modest throne. Of course in this case modest is relative term. Seated on the throne was a man of regal bearing who could only be Onara's father. He had the same green eyes and red hair, though his was closely cropped, but there was a definite family resemblance.
The page announced their arrival. "Her royal highness, Crown-Princess Onara. Bialar Crais, Sebacean." He had never been uncomfortable with who he was, but everyone in the throne room was now staring at him. He was extremely self-concious of the fact that he was definitely underdressed. At least he had cleaned all the grime off his hands.
Onara proceeded straight to the throne. He had no choice but to follow in her wake. From the behavior of the other members of the court he gained the impression that this was not the first time Onara had brought a strange alien home with her.
As she reached the dais she performed a low curtsy, Crais following her lead bowed at the waist. "Father, this is the man I rescued. He has the most remarkable ship. It is a young leviathan, but different from most. He has no pilot."
Even though she seemed most pleased to be reporting this information, the king did not appear to share her enthusiasm. In fact, he looked quite upset. Crais hoped this was over the fact that she had slipped away from her escort, rather than the fact that she had brought a Sebacean to court.
The king considered her briefly and then turned to examine Crais. He did not think he had been scrutinized that closely since he reported onboard his first ship. "Are you Peacekeeper?"
"No longer, your majesty. I left that life over two cycles ago." He figured it was best to get that out in the open.
"You left the Peacekeepers? I was under the assumption that once you were inducted into the Peacekeepers it was for life."
"I escaped from my ship when a rival had arranged to take it over. I was declared irreversibly contaminated and was to be tried and executed for treason. My ship is a Peacekeeper project that I have been keeping from them. I have found my life outside the Peacekeepers most fulfilling, your majesty." Given their disdain for the Peacekeepers he thought this would help him.
"Most interesting. My daughter has requested you join us for dinner. As you are her guest I have agreed to her request."
"Thank you, your majesty. Your hospitality is most gracious."
"The Chamberlain will see that you are escorted to your quarters. Daughter, I will speak with you." With this the king and Onara proceed out of the throne room through a small side door. Most members of the court were proceeding out the main door. A few were beginning to approach him, but the Chamberlain reached him first. He was quickly escorted to his quarters. On the way, Crais was told when dinner would be and that someone would come to escort him to the dining hall. He was also informed that the tailor would come by with suitable clothing for dinner. Crais was concerned about the clothing. He was sure it would be the local fashion, light silky material, something totally foreign to him.
He had two arns to go before dinner and nothing to do. He had been instructed to wait in his quarters. He detested this. They may not have put him in a prison cell, but he was a prisoner for now, albeit a well treated one. He almost felt as if he were being treated as a pet.
About half an arn after he was escorted to his quarters the tailor came by. As Crais had feared the clothes were in the local fashion. Fortunately, he did have a little selection. He chose matching dark blue pants and tunic. The fit wasn't bad and the material was actually quite comfortable. All he could do now was wait for his escort. His quarters had a balcony that overlooked and interior garden courtyard. In the courtyard was a pond with colorful fish. He found himself staring at the fish as they swam around the pond. He had no idea how long he had been doing that when he heard a knock at the door. It was Onara.