Chapter Thirty-Two: On The Way To Calmag
The Astorian mother ship that belonged to the Clan of Chloe family
was named the Roccon after Shalila's father. Shalila had taken her closest
family members and friends on a combined vacation and mission to planet Calmag.
Shalila was hoping to form an alliance with the Calmagians against Lord Frieza.
Shalila and Dirkan had been planning for years to avenge themselves and the
entire galaxy against the evil warlord, and they had been perfecting their plans
to destroy Frieza and free the universe from his iron grasp for a long time.
They had not forgotten what Frieza and the Saiyans did to the Korin and all of
its occupants.
The mother ship was circular-shaped and gigantic with many windows;
it was actually a traveling space station, equipped with enough food and
equipment to supply the occupants for three years, should they not be able to
return home right away. The space station was entirely self-sufficient, and the
engines were perpetual-motion machines. The ship was gold and red, with fifteen
floors, seventeen ports, five cargo bins, twenty escape pods and numerous
corridors and bridges. The ship was like a small planet, with its own supply
rooms, lounges, recreation rooms, hospital wings, training rooms, gravity rooms,
and even one floor reserved as an artificial park and forest, with real trees
and flora.
The occupants besides Shalila and Dirkan included Gorna and her
family, Raakon's family, Cletos' family, Gracina's family, and Bajal and Alora,
who were now married with a little girl named Rina. Shalila had decided to take
both Gorna's family and Bajal's family, something she rarely did because she
preferred to leave one or two close heirs to the throne behind in case something
should happen to her and the others. Aijal, her second oldest son, had been
left to rule Astoria in her stead until she returned.
Tayla, of course had come, along with her brothers, Arlon and Lukan.
The three Meatians had also joined them, along with Reccor, Bendros and his
brothers, Mykia, Dalantra, Homina, Toria, Marya, and various servants who were
to wait on the royal family. Each family member had been allowed to take one
personal servant with him or her, and one personal servant only. The other
servants and Laborers were to take care of all the ship's needs. Gohan and
Hazel, also married now, were taking a vacation, and they were also with their
family; they had a little girl named Aurora and a little boy that Gohan had
insisted on naming after his deceased brother, Mantros. Little Mantros and
Aurora were already powerful little children, destined to become warriors like
their father. Mantros was four and Aurora was two.
Tayla was twelve years old now, Riccan was nine, and Arlina and Jaca
were thirteen. Veal, Lelina, Petalia, and Fayra were fourteen years old, and
Rojal was seventeen. Kekron was sixteen years old, Nikon was seven years old,
and Tila and Tayka were now five years old. Arlon was twenty years old, and
Lukan was now nineteen. Neither of them had a mate, nor did they plan to take
any anytime soon. They were both enjoying bachelorhood, and even more so
because there was no pressure on them to produce heirs, as there was with Gorna
and Bajal. It was important for the firstborn and the second born of any Clan
leader to produce children, and they were forbidden to become Priests and
Priestesses because they were too close to inheriting the title of Gran or
Granden. Priests and Priestesses could not rule Astoria or a Clan because they
had take vows against mating or fighting.
It had been two weeks since the Roccon had left Astoria for Calmag,
and the children were now enjoying some free time after finishing their training
and studies for the day. The Astorian children in the Clan of Chloe did not
have a formal school; instead they met with various Clan members and other
teachers for certain times of the day who would train them intensively in what
each child needed to know. Classes were small, and there was plenty of
individual attention given to the students, ensuring a quality education ten
times greater and more comprehensive that the education taught on Earth.
Astorian children had to study harder than Earth children did, but they learned
and retained knowledge at a rate ten times faster than the children of Earth
did. All Astorians have photographic memories and many of them had high I.Q.
levels of four hundred or more.
They were in the ship's Youth Lounge, where Astorian children and
their friends could go to play video and other games, train in private gravity
rooms, read and entertain each other. Sometimes the children went to nap
briefly in private napping rooms, or they ate at the juice and tea bar in the
Youth Lounge.
Hazel had taken her small children into the Youth Lounge, and she
released them into the large indoor playground that included swings, slides and
ball bins. She left them there, knowing that their nursemaids would keep an eye
on them for a little while. She sat down a velvet-covered chair, watching her
two children, a mixture of Human and Astorian, playing happily together with
Nikon, Tila and Tayka. Tayka was the bossiest child on the playground, and she
ordered everyone in her age group about, even her older brother, Nikon.
The other children considered themselves too old for the playground,
so they sparred with each other, played games, or stood around and talked.
Tayla and Riccan had invented a new game a week ago called "Escape the Saiyans"
or "Escape from Frieza", depending on the mood of the children. It was an
advanced, combined game of tag and hide-and-seek, with some children playing the
Saiyans or Frieza and the other children playing regular Astorians. Even Rojal
and Dedron, who usually considered themselves too old for many games, played it
because they thought that it was a good training exercise.
Riccan was playing the role of Prince Vegeta, and Kekron and Kiran,
Bendros' brother who had joined the older children just now, were playing Nappa
and Raditz. Tayla pretended that she was Shalila, and Lelina played Tayla, and
the other girls were other Clan of Chloe fighters. Petalia played Gorna, a
perfect role for her because she was as peevish as her aunt. Rojal played
Frieza, and Dedron played King Vegeta.
Tayla had wheedled Arlon, Lukan and Ham into playing also, and Arlon
and Lukan played Saiyans while Ham remained a Meatian. The smaller children
started to join them, and they demanded to be allowed to play, so they were
assigned the roles of various Saiyans or Astorians.
But Tayla decided that the game was not complete yet. "We need a
Dirkan. Who's going to play Dirkan, my husband?"
The other children discussed this amongst themselves, but those who
could play a good Dirkan did not want to give up their current roles, and the
other children were too young to be able to play Dirkan well. Fortunately,
Bendros strolled into the Youth Lounge at that moment. Tayla smiled widely
then.
"There's our Dirkan!" she declared happily.
Bendros was stunned and confused by Tayla's declaration, and before
he knew it, Tayla had convinced him to play her husband, Dirkan.
"But what do I do in this game, Tayla?" Bendros asked her because he
had just learned about the game from his brother, Kiran. "How do I play?"
"All we do is fight Frieza and the Saiyans. All you do is fight
them and stay by my side because I am Shalila Chloe and you are my husband, the
Namek Commander Dirkan," Tayla commanded. Bendros shook his head in amusement,
but he agreed to indulge the girl. He knew of her obvious crush on him, but he
didn't take it too seriously, not yet anyway.
Tayla and her peers dressed in costumes that they had either made
themselves or had their servants or parents make for them, and Tayla gave
Bendros a red cape similar to the red cape that Dirkan often liked to wear.
The entire space station was divided into three parts, one-third
"outer space", the second third "Planet Vegeta" and the third part "Astoria".
The three parts were then divided into various areas and planets and Astorian
moons.
This was how the game actually worked: those playing Frieza, his
minions, or the Saiyans were supposed to chase after those playing the Astorians
and capture them or kill them. No ki attacks were allowed because it would be
dangerous to the ship and its occupants, so the children had to settle for
sparring or shooting each other with plastic guns filled with various types of
plastic plunger-like darts that were substitutes for ki attacks. These darts
would leave washable ink spots on the children's costumes, and if a child
received five ink spots in one game, he or she was considered "dead". For a
while, they had been using water balloons to substitute as ki attacks, but the
water balloons caused messes all over the ship, and that part of that game had
stopped completely when Riccan had accidentally hit the real Dirkan with a water
balloon that had been meant for Kekron while Dirkan had been meditating. A
soaked Dirkan had been furious, and after that water balloons were forbidden on
the ship, especially after Shalila and some of the other adults had nearly
slipped on the various puddles of water left throughout the ship.
There were "safe areas" and "neutral ground areas" throughout the
ship that the players from both sides could go to and rest without the fear of
being "captured" or "killed", where they could stay for only ten minutes at a
time before having to leave again. If you were hit with five "ki attacks" you
were considered "dead", and if someone managed to grab both of your ankles or
both of your wrists, you were considered "captured". If someone was "captured",
they were taken to one of the two "Prisons" which were the two largest ship
utility rooms and the "prisoners" had their wrists tied up lightly with cloth
strips. Sometimes rescues were attempted, or the "prisoners" tried to escape
themselves.
The game began with "Prince Vegeta" (Riccan) ordering "Nappa"
(Kekron) and "Raditz" (Kiran) to capture "Princess Tayla" (Lelina) and "Superior
Gran Shalila" (Tayla). "Tayla" and "Shalila" gathered fake cardboard swords and
prepared their dart guns to fight the "Saiyans". Rojal, as "Frieza", warned the
"Saiyans" that if they messed up this time, he would blast them into the next
dimension. Dedron, as "King Vegeta" laughed and told "Prince Vegeta" that he
would not be allowed to rule Planet Vegeta and that he would cut off his supply
of chocolate sugarplums forever, if he failed.
"No! Not my chocolate sugarplums!" "Prince Vegeta" wailed in
horror. "I'll see that Tayla and Shalila are captured, I promise!"
The "Saiyans" started fighting the "Astorians", and each side either
took prisoners or "killed" them. After a few hours, the "Astorians" were
losing, and only "Dirkan" (Bendros), "Shalila" (Tayla), "Lektron" (Nikon), and
"Gorna" (Petalia) were still free. "Dirkan" had taken three hits, "Shalila" two
hits, and "Lektron" and "Gorna" four hits apiece. The four fighters were hiding
behind some boxes in the first cargo bin, concealing their ki levels.
Suddenly, "Prince Vegeta" and "Frieza" jumped out from behind some barrels in
the cargo bin and began to attack with their darts. "Lektron" and "Gorna" were
hit for the final time, and now they were both "dead". The "dead" had to walk
to the "Morgue" which was actually the second cargo bin. The "dead" had to stay
there until the game was over. The game would come to the end when all of one
side had either been captured or killed, but prisoners often escaped, so the
game could continue on for several more hours.
Only "Dirkan" and "Shalila" were left in the game on the "Astorian"
side. Three "Astorians" were still alive, but they were now prisoners, and the
"Astorians" had no prisoners themselves. "Dirkan" and "Shalila" had decided to
try to rescue them from "Nappa" and "Raditz".
"Shalila" had managed to capture "Nappa" by seizing him by both of
his ankles unexpectedly, and "Dirkan" battled "Raditz" who shot him with two
more darts. If "Dirkan" was hit one more time, he would be "dead" and "Shalila"
would be alone to fight the villains herself.
"Shalila" tried to march "Nappa" to the "Astorian Prison", but
"Nappa" somehow managed to free himself from the cloth strips and run away.
"Nappa" then shot "Shalila" with a dart, so now she had three ink spots on her.
"Dirkan" had managed to shoot "Raditz", but "Raditz" managed to shoot "Dirkan"
back, and now "Dirkan" was dead. The three prisoners, "Tayla", Ham, playing
himself, and Arlon, playing himself, tried to escape, but "Raditz" captured
"Tayla" and shot Arlon twice. Ham tried to help "Tayla", but "Raditz" killed
Ham, who had already been shot four times before one last fatal time. Ham was
now "dead". Arlon managed to deliver a fatal dart to "Raditz", and "Raditz" was
now dead. Arlon was one ink spot away from death, and he went to find
"Shalila."
"Shalila" had managed to "kill" "Nappa" and "Frieza", but she was
now facing "Prince Vegeta." Both of them were one ink spot away from death
apiece, and "Vegeta" managed to kill a "dying" Arlon with a final dart. It was
down between "Shalila" and "Prince Vegeta", the last villain alive.
And then "Shalila" delivered the fatal blow to "Prince Vegeta", and
he was now "dead". "Shalila" crowed happily because her side had
won, even though only she and "Tayla" were still alive. She went to free
"Tayla" and the game was over.
Kekron, a true technical wizard, was making improvements on the new
gravity room that Shalila hoped would help the children train better. Tayla and
the other fighting children couldn't wait to use it, although Shalila had told
them it would be some time before the gravity room was perfected, and that they
had to be careful using it. No children under nine years old would be allowed
to use it.
The trip to Calmag would take two more months, but there was plenty
to keep the children occupied until then. Tayla and Riccan were sparring, and
they were both disappointed that no ki attacks were allowed, but they understood
that it would be too dangerous. Dirkan had assured them and the other warrior
children that soon the training rooms would be set up to where ki attacks would
be allowed, as long as they weren't too intense. Until then, Tayla, Riccan,
Rojal, Nikon, Jaca, also a warrior, Dedron, Arlon and Lukan would have to be
content with the frequent sparring matches that happened all over the ship.
Finally, after dinner, the children and adults settled themselves in
the Recreation Room before bedtime. Shalila and Dirkan were not there, for they
had gone off to their private suite for some time alone together. Dalantra, an
excellent seamstress, was embroidering a handkerchief, and Mykia was braiding
Tayla's hair. Tayla was studying an anatomy book, and Lelina was studying
chemistry. Dedron and Rojal were arm-wrestling, and Riccan and Nikon were
asleep on the futons. Tila and Tayka were asleep in their mother's lap, and
Gracina was eating a chocolate sugarplum. Petalia was admiring herself in her
ivory hand mirror and trying to flirt with Rojal. Fayra was watching Dedron,
admiring him, and hoping to get his attention, but both Rojal and Dedron were
oblivious to Petalia and Fayra.
Finally Petalia decided that it was time for her and Fayra to take
action.
"I have an idea," Petalia whispered to Fayra, as she smoothed her
sky blue caftan with a white sash, "why don't we make Rojal and my brother
jealous?"
"How?" Fayra asked, who was not very bright, but a good painter,
like the Artisan she was.
"Simple," Petalia told her contemptuously. "We flirt with the
handsomest men on the ship who are not our relatives."
"Who?"
Petalia smirked. "Why, Aunt Alora's nephews, of course." She was
talking about Bendros, and his brothers Herkon and Kiran, who were twenty-two,
nineteen, and fifteen.
"But they're not Clan of Chloe," Fayra, who was dressed in a lacy
pine-green caftan with a gold caftan, protested, "although they are all very
handsome."
"Exactly, and I intend to flirt with Bendros," Petalia declared.
"Doesn't Tayla like him?" Fayra asked.
"She does," Petalia admitted, "and if Bendros was the heir to the
throne, I would try to make him my husband instead of Rojal. But I could have
Bendros if I wanted to. You know, maybe I should go after him after all, just
to make Rojal jealous, even though I intend to become Superior Gran someday."
"But Bendros is not really interested in you," Fayra pointed out
tactlessly. "And the only girl in our age group he seems to notice is Tayla."
"And do you know why, Fayra?" Petalia asked. Fayra didn't, so
Petalia continued. "Tayla is bold, Fayra, very bold. She puts herself directly
in Bendros' path, forcing him to notice her. Tayla is no fool, Fayra. She
knows what she is doing. When she gets old enough to take a husband, she'll
have Bendros eating out of her little hands."
"If Tayla and Bendros were to get married, Tayla would become the
Gran of Sahara someday," Fayra said thoughtfully. "Tayla would be in a powerful
position, as a Gran."
Petalia became quiet then. The gears in her crafty mind started
spinning. Finally, she spoke, "I could care less whether Tayla lives or dies,
but she is much stronger than she was when she fought against those horrid
Saiyans five years ago. She could become a powerful ally to me, if I were to
marry Rojal and become Superior Gran. She wants Bendros, we both know that, and
I want Rojal. So, maybe Tayla and I could help each other; I could help her get
Bendros, and she could help me get Rojal."
"I don't think that Tayla will agree to that, Petalia," Fayra
objected. "For one thing, Tayla and Rojal do not get along as it is, and you
and Tayla are not exactly the best of friends either, although she is cordial to
both of you. How do you intend to pull this off?"
Petalia ignored the question, for she had not thought out all of the
details yet. "Just summon Tayla to me at once, Fayra," she ordered Fayra, as if
Petalia were already the Superior Gran. Fayra reluctantly did so, although she
didn't think that Petalia's plan was going to work.
A minute later, Tayla, with her hair now braided for bedtime, so
that her hair would not be snarled in the morning, came back with Fayra to the
small white table where Fayra and Petalia were sitting.
"Sit down, Tayla," Petalia told her warmly, and Tayla did so
reluctantly, for Petalia was as snobbish towards her at times as Rojal was.
Tayla, however, tried to be extra nice to her because Petalia's mother, Farla,
had abandoned her and Dedron five years ago. Petalia and Dedron had not heard
from their mother since she had fled Astoria with their Uncle Jaypros. As far
as the siblings were concerned, their mother was dead to them. Their father,
Cletos had not been the same cheery man he had been after his wife left. Cletos
barely paid attention to his children any more, and his siblings and grandmother
were handling more and more of his parenting duties.
"What do you want, Petalia?" Tayla asked her slowly.
"Well," Petalia began cordially, "You like Bendros, right? As a
potential husband, perhaps?"
Tayla blushed; her face was redder than her scarlet caftan with a
gold sash. Shyly, she nodded.
"Well," Petalia began again, "I like Rojal." Tayla gagged at this,
and Fayra laughed out loud before she could censor herself.
"Fayra!" Petalia snapped. "Enough!" Fayra quieted down
immediately.
"Why do you like Rojal?" Tayla asked Petalia directly. "He's not
very nice to anyone except for his mother and Dedron."
Petalia debated on whether she wanted to tell Tayla the full truth
about why she truly wanted Rojal. She cared about Rojal to a certain extent,
but she cared about his title even more. Finally, she decided to let Tayla know
the entire story. "Because he's the heir to Astoria's throne, and I want to be
his wife and the Superior Gran," she told Tayla bluntly.
"But do you love him?" Tayla asked. "Nama says that you shouldn't
marry someone that you don't love. She says it's not fair to either party
involved."
"Great-Nama herself didn't love Granpappa Bajal when she married
him," Petalia pointed out to her. "They just got married 'cause their marriage
was arranged by their parents when Great-Nama was born. She really wanted to
marry Dirkan the first time, but Dirkan insisted that she marry Granpappa Bajal
because our people expected it, and Dirkan couldn't give her any children. So I
am 'arranging' my marriage to Rojal, so to speak. Love is a ridiculous thing
anyway; look what it did to our family. My whore mother ran off with Uncle
Jaypros because of 'love'. And now my father sits and stares at walls all of
the time because he still loves our mother, even though she is a slut and an
adulteress. I'll never forgive Farla Chloe for that, never!" Petalia's voice
betrayed tears.
Tayla already knew the full story, but she knew that Nama had grown
to love Granpappa Bajal, and they had been happy together. And Nama had been
able to marry Dirkan in the end, after all. Tayla wished that she could have
gotten to know her grandfather; Nama, Dirkan and her siblings were always
talking about how brave and strong he had been. She offered Petalia her lace
handkerchief, which Petalia reluctantly took. Tayla pitied her.
"Love's a wonderful thing," Tayla tried to console her. "Just
because your mother ran off with Jaypros, doesn't mean that love is bad. You
can still marry someone that you love. I don't think that it's a good idea to
marry someone just to become a ruler-"
"But aren't you trying to get Bendros to like you, so that you can
become Gran of Sahara someday?" Petalia asked brusquely.
"No, I'm not," Tayla said sincerely. "I just want Bendros to like
me because he's nice and brave and strong and very handsome, too. It doesn't
matter to me that he's going to become Granden of Sahara one day. I just like
him because he's-well, you know, him."
Petalia contemplated this for a moment. She knew that Tayla was
right, but she still didn't believe that love was really worth it. The pain of
her mother running away with Uncle Jaypros was still too fresh, even five years
later. Petalia spoke again, calling her mother by her first name, "Maybe, but
Farla broke Pappa's heart when she ran away with Uncle Jaypros, and she loved
him at one time. Pappa still loves Farla, even though she doesn't deserve it.
Farla is nothing but a whore, even if she was my mother! Love makes people hurt
others, like Farla hurt my father!" Petalia lost control of her emotions then,
and the tears began to flow. Fayra and Tayla were awestruck.
Tayla wished she knew the right words to say to Petalia to help her,
but she had never been through what Petalia and Dedron had been through. She
just stood up and went to her niece and awkwardly put her arms around her
shoulders, carefully avoiding Petalia's coiffed hair. She knew that Petalia
would likely rebuff her, but Tayla had to do something, since she could not find
the right words to ease Petalia's pain.
Surprisingly enough, Petalia didn't tell Tayla to leave her alone,
or shove her away. Instead she just sat there, the tears flowing down her
cheeks. "I hate her! I hate her for leaving us! Pappa doesn't love us anymore
because of her. He talks to Dedron sometimes, but he doesn't even look at me
anymore because I look like Farla too much. He hates me!"
"That's not true," Tayla finally said, "He just doesn't know how to
deal with this anymore than you do. Parents don't stop loving their children,
you know."
"But how would you know that, Tayla?" Petalia asked curtly, "No
offense personally, but you never had parents. Your parents died when you were
a baby, so how do you know anything about parents?"
"Well," Tayla began slowly, "I do have parents now, in a way. Nama
and Dirkan are the mother and father that I never had. I'm glad that they got
married. I consider them my parents even though I don't call them Mamma and
Pappa. Gracina is also like a mother to me. Sometimes parents don't
necessarily have to be your real ones. I wish that I could have met my parents,
and at least you have had yours. I wish I could make your mother come home,
Petalia, but I can't. To this day, we don't even know where they are."
Petalia found herself confiding in Tayla, as she never had before.
She had greatly envied and disliked Tayla because she was jealous of her
potential beauty and popularity. She had snubbed and put down Tayla in hopes of
getting Rojal to notice her and like her. Rojal and her brother, Dedron were
often mean to and about Tayla, and Petalia had went along with them, so that she
could get their liking and approval. But there had been times when Petalia had
wished that she and Tayla could get along better. Tayla stood up for herself,
and she had a fierce temper, but she also had a kind and forgiving heart. Even
the smallest kindness towards her was enough for Tayla to be friendly with
someone, even someone like Petalia.
"I'm wondering if it's my fault that Farla left us," Petalia
murmured sadly. "Maybe I or Dedron did something to make her leave us for Uncle
Jaypros. Maybe if I had known, I could have talked her out of leaving us."
"It's not your fault," Tayla told her. "Farla is a grown-up, and
grown-ups are supposed to know better than children do. Farla knew it was wrong
to leave her family, but she did it anyway. You and Dedron and Cletos did
nothing to deserve this. Farla and Jaypros are to blame, not you or anyone
else."
Petalia nodded through her tears. "I'm afraid that I'm going to be
like her one day, and I don't want to be, not anymore."
"Farla had some good things about her," Tayla told her positively.
"Just live up to the good in her and forget the bad."
"I don't know what good there is in Farla now," Petalia spat
bitterly, as Shalila approached the table where the three girls were sitting at.
Shalila started to speak, but Tayla shook her head pleadingly at her, and
Shalila nodded. Tayla had grown much wiser and stronger since her two-year stay
at Kami Orchida's. Tayla had matured greatly under Kami Orchida and Toria's
training, and she had been greatly affected by them and their occasional
visitors, who were also filled with wisdom and advice. Tayla had been sad to
leave Kami Orchida and Toria, but she was glad to be with her family once more,
for she had still missed them all so much. And Toria had come with them.
"There has to be good in almost anyone," Tayla told her, seeing that
Nama was going to allow her to handle this. "You loved your mother at one time,
so there must have been something that you liked or loved in her."
"Well, she always did sing so pretty, and she taught me how to dress
well and look nice," Petalia admitted.
"And that's something to go on," Tayla told her. "Keep your good
memories of her. I wish I could say that she's coming back, but I can't. But
you still have the Clan of Chloe, and you know that we won't abandon our own."
Tayla patted her shoulder, and Petalia laid her white-gold head on the white
table and closed her eyes, much calmer now.
"Thanks," she murmured gruffly, and then she fell asleep
immediately, her head on her arms on the table. Fayra stared at Tayla in shock,
for Tayla had said almost the exact things that Great-Nama or any other
knowledgeable adult in the Clan of Chloe would have. Was Tayla really only
twelve?
Shalila approached the sleeping Petalia and kissed the girl's
forehead, smoothing the white-gold coif. She then easily lifted Petalia into
her arms, as if Petalia were no heavier than a large pillow, and laid the girl
over her shoulder. "She will be alright now," Shalila told Fayra and Tayla, as
she carried Petalia to her bedchamber.
Later that night at 11pm (according to Astorian Galactic Time, which
the Astorians always went by whenever they traveled in space or stayed at home),
Tayla quietly knocked on Nama and Dirkan's bedroom door. The door was unlocked,
and Shalila and Dirkan were still awake. The royal couple was lying in an ebony
bed with red and gold paisley bedcovers made out of silk and Astorian hair.
"Come in," Dirkan called, sensing Tayla's ki signature. The
automatic door rose up after Dirkan had pressed a button on his nightstand.
Tayla walked into the room slowly, and Shalila moved closer to
Dirkan on the bed, so that her granddaughter could fit onto the bed with them.
Tayla snuggled closer to Shalila and rested her dark head on her chest. Shalila
embraced her; Dirkan laid his arm across Shalila's waist and turned towards her
and Tayla. He squeezed Tayla's hand.
"What's on your mind, kid?" Dirkan asked her gruffly, but with a
twinkle in his black eye. "Shouldn't you have been in bed by now?"
"I'm not tired," Tayla murmured, her drowsy voice betraying her as
she spoke. "Just wanted to know if Petalia was going to be okay."
"I think that she will be," Shalila told her positively. "She
seemed calmer than she has been in a long time, and she is sleeping now like she
hadn't slept in years."
"I don't think that she really has, poor girl," Dirkan said
sympathetically. "Neither has her brother or her father."
"Do you think that Farla and Jaypros will ever come back?" Tayla
asked suddenly.
"I doubt it," Dirkan told her. "We have scouted around, and there
are no signs of them to be found anywhere."
"Do you think that they're still alive?" Tayla asked.
Shalila and Dirkan grew quiet then, although Tayla had not been the
first to ask them that. "We don't know that for sure anymore, dandelion,"
Shalila told her finally.
"Nama, do you think I was right about Cletos still loving Dedron and
Petalia?" Tayla asked worriedly.
Shalila hesitantly nodded, although she had been deeply worried
about the way Cletos had been neglecting his children for the past five years.
Cletos barely acknowledged his children these days, and when he did, it was only
Dedron he paid attention to. Petalia looked too much like Farla, and Cletos
seemed to try to avoid his own daughter, much to Petalia's secret despair, which
was not so secret because Shalila had noticed. Shalila decided that she was
going to have a long talk with Cletos the next day; it was time for Cletos to
stop moping and mourning his loss, so that he could move on with his life, for
his children's sakes. She had offered to grant Cletos a divorce from Farla, but
oddly enough, Cletos had refused. Cletos had to start being a father again, and
Shalila was determined to see that it would happen.
She kissed Tayla's brow and told the girl, still her favorite, how
proud she was for helping Petalia. "Now it's time for bed, dandelion," Shalila
told Tayla firmly.
"Not tired," Tayla yawned, and Shalila laughed.
"Your body's saying otherwise. Now off to bed," Shalila insisted,
trying to suppress any more laughter.
"Yes, Nama. Goodnight!"
Tayla yawned again, and she kissed and hugged Shalila and Dirkan
goodnight, just before dragging herself out of their bed. She crept out of
their room and stepped outside of their door after it had risen.
The Astorian mother ship that belonged to the Clan of Chloe family
was named the Roccon after Shalila's father. Shalila had taken her closest
family members and friends on a combined vacation and mission to planet Calmag.
Shalila was hoping to form an alliance with the Calmagians against Lord Frieza.
Shalila and Dirkan had been planning for years to avenge themselves and the
entire galaxy against the evil warlord, and they had been perfecting their plans
to destroy Frieza and free the universe from his iron grasp for a long time.
They had not forgotten what Frieza and the Saiyans did to the Korin and all of
its occupants.
The mother ship was circular-shaped and gigantic with many windows;
it was actually a traveling space station, equipped with enough food and
equipment to supply the occupants for three years, should they not be able to
return home right away. The space station was entirely self-sufficient, and the
engines were perpetual-motion machines. The ship was gold and red, with fifteen
floors, seventeen ports, five cargo bins, twenty escape pods and numerous
corridors and bridges. The ship was like a small planet, with its own supply
rooms, lounges, recreation rooms, hospital wings, training rooms, gravity rooms,
and even one floor reserved as an artificial park and forest, with real trees
and flora.
The occupants besides Shalila and Dirkan included Gorna and her
family, Raakon's family, Cletos' family, Gracina's family, and Bajal and Alora,
who were now married with a little girl named Rina. Shalila had decided to take
both Gorna's family and Bajal's family, something she rarely did because she
preferred to leave one or two close heirs to the throne behind in case something
should happen to her and the others. Aijal, her second oldest son, had been
left to rule Astoria in her stead until she returned.
Tayla, of course had come, along with her brothers, Arlon and Lukan.
The three Meatians had also joined them, along with Reccor, Bendros and his
brothers, Mykia, Dalantra, Homina, Toria, Marya, and various servants who were
to wait on the royal family. Each family member had been allowed to take one
personal servant with him or her, and one personal servant only. The other
servants and Laborers were to take care of all the ship's needs. Gohan and
Hazel, also married now, were taking a vacation, and they were also with their
family; they had a little girl named Aurora and a little boy that Gohan had
insisted on naming after his deceased brother, Mantros. Little Mantros and
Aurora were already powerful little children, destined to become warriors like
their father. Mantros was four and Aurora was two.
Tayla was twelve years old now, Riccan was nine, and Arlina and Jaca
were thirteen. Veal, Lelina, Petalia, and Fayra were fourteen years old, and
Rojal was seventeen. Kekron was sixteen years old, Nikon was seven years old,
and Tila and Tayka were now five years old. Arlon was twenty years old, and
Lukan was now nineteen. Neither of them had a mate, nor did they plan to take
any anytime soon. They were both enjoying bachelorhood, and even more so
because there was no pressure on them to produce heirs, as there was with Gorna
and Bajal. It was important for the firstborn and the second born of any Clan
leader to produce children, and they were forbidden to become Priests and
Priestesses because they were too close to inheriting the title of Gran or
Granden. Priests and Priestesses could not rule Astoria or a Clan because they
had take vows against mating or fighting.
It had been two weeks since the Roccon had left Astoria for Calmag,
and the children were now enjoying some free time after finishing their training
and studies for the day. The Astorian children in the Clan of Chloe did not
have a formal school; instead they met with various Clan members and other
teachers for certain times of the day who would train them intensively in what
each child needed to know. Classes were small, and there was plenty of
individual attention given to the students, ensuring a quality education ten
times greater and more comprehensive that the education taught on Earth.
Astorian children had to study harder than Earth children did, but they learned
and retained knowledge at a rate ten times faster than the children of Earth
did. All Astorians have photographic memories and many of them had high I.Q.
levels of four hundred or more.
They were in the ship's Youth Lounge, where Astorian children and
their friends could go to play video and other games, train in private gravity
rooms, read and entertain each other. Sometimes the children went to nap
briefly in private napping rooms, or they ate at the juice and tea bar in the
Youth Lounge.
Hazel had taken her small children into the Youth Lounge, and she
released them into the large indoor playground that included swings, slides and
ball bins. She left them there, knowing that their nursemaids would keep an eye
on them for a little while. She sat down a velvet-covered chair, watching her
two children, a mixture of Human and Astorian, playing happily together with
Nikon, Tila and Tayka. Tayka was the bossiest child on the playground, and she
ordered everyone in her age group about, even her older brother, Nikon.
The other children considered themselves too old for the playground,
so they sparred with each other, played games, or stood around and talked.
Tayla and Riccan had invented a new game a week ago called "Escape the Saiyans"
or "Escape from Frieza", depending on the mood of the children. It was an
advanced, combined game of tag and hide-and-seek, with some children playing the
Saiyans or Frieza and the other children playing regular Astorians. Even Rojal
and Dedron, who usually considered themselves too old for many games, played it
because they thought that it was a good training exercise.
Riccan was playing the role of Prince Vegeta, and Kekron and Kiran,
Bendros' brother who had joined the older children just now, were playing Nappa
and Raditz. Tayla pretended that she was Shalila, and Lelina played Tayla, and
the other girls were other Clan of Chloe fighters. Petalia played Gorna, a
perfect role for her because she was as peevish as her aunt. Rojal played
Frieza, and Dedron played King Vegeta.
Tayla had wheedled Arlon, Lukan and Ham into playing also, and Arlon
and Lukan played Saiyans while Ham remained a Meatian. The smaller children
started to join them, and they demanded to be allowed to play, so they were
assigned the roles of various Saiyans or Astorians.
But Tayla decided that the game was not complete yet. "We need a
Dirkan. Who's going to play Dirkan, my husband?"
The other children discussed this amongst themselves, but those who
could play a good Dirkan did not want to give up their current roles, and the
other children were too young to be able to play Dirkan well. Fortunately,
Bendros strolled into the Youth Lounge at that moment. Tayla smiled widely
then.
"There's our Dirkan!" she declared happily.
Bendros was stunned and confused by Tayla's declaration, and before
he knew it, Tayla had convinced him to play her husband, Dirkan.
"But what do I do in this game, Tayla?" Bendros asked her because he
had just learned about the game from his brother, Kiran. "How do I play?"
"All we do is fight Frieza and the Saiyans. All you do is fight
them and stay by my side because I am Shalila Chloe and you are my husband, the
Namek Commander Dirkan," Tayla commanded. Bendros shook his head in amusement,
but he agreed to indulge the girl. He knew of her obvious crush on him, but he
didn't take it too seriously, not yet anyway.
Tayla and her peers dressed in costumes that they had either made
themselves or had their servants or parents make for them, and Tayla gave
Bendros a red cape similar to the red cape that Dirkan often liked to wear.
The entire space station was divided into three parts, one-third
"outer space", the second third "Planet Vegeta" and the third part "Astoria".
The three parts were then divided into various areas and planets and Astorian
moons.
This was how the game actually worked: those playing Frieza, his
minions, or the Saiyans were supposed to chase after those playing the Astorians
and capture them or kill them. No ki attacks were allowed because it would be
dangerous to the ship and its occupants, so the children had to settle for
sparring or shooting each other with plastic guns filled with various types of
plastic plunger-like darts that were substitutes for ki attacks. These darts
would leave washable ink spots on the children's costumes, and if a child
received five ink spots in one game, he or she was considered "dead". For a
while, they had been using water balloons to substitute as ki attacks, but the
water balloons caused messes all over the ship, and that part of that game had
stopped completely when Riccan had accidentally hit the real Dirkan with a water
balloon that had been meant for Kekron while Dirkan had been meditating. A
soaked Dirkan had been furious, and after that water balloons were forbidden on
the ship, especially after Shalila and some of the other adults had nearly
slipped on the various puddles of water left throughout the ship.
There were "safe areas" and "neutral ground areas" throughout the
ship that the players from both sides could go to and rest without the fear of
being "captured" or "killed", where they could stay for only ten minutes at a
time before having to leave again. If you were hit with five "ki attacks" you
were considered "dead", and if someone managed to grab both of your ankles or
both of your wrists, you were considered "captured". If someone was "captured",
they were taken to one of the two "Prisons" which were the two largest ship
utility rooms and the "prisoners" had their wrists tied up lightly with cloth
strips. Sometimes rescues were attempted, or the "prisoners" tried to escape
themselves.
The game began with "Prince Vegeta" (Riccan) ordering "Nappa"
(Kekron) and "Raditz" (Kiran) to capture "Princess Tayla" (Lelina) and "Superior
Gran Shalila" (Tayla). "Tayla" and "Shalila" gathered fake cardboard swords and
prepared their dart guns to fight the "Saiyans". Rojal, as "Frieza", warned the
"Saiyans" that if they messed up this time, he would blast them into the next
dimension. Dedron, as "King Vegeta" laughed and told "Prince Vegeta" that he
would not be allowed to rule Planet Vegeta and that he would cut off his supply
of chocolate sugarplums forever, if he failed.
"No! Not my chocolate sugarplums!" "Prince Vegeta" wailed in
horror. "I'll see that Tayla and Shalila are captured, I promise!"
The "Saiyans" started fighting the "Astorians", and each side either
took prisoners or "killed" them. After a few hours, the "Astorians" were
losing, and only "Dirkan" (Bendros), "Shalila" (Tayla), "Lektron" (Nikon), and
"Gorna" (Petalia) were still free. "Dirkan" had taken three hits, "Shalila" two
hits, and "Lektron" and "Gorna" four hits apiece. The four fighters were hiding
behind some boxes in the first cargo bin, concealing their ki levels.
Suddenly, "Prince Vegeta" and "Frieza" jumped out from behind some barrels in
the cargo bin and began to attack with their darts. "Lektron" and "Gorna" were
hit for the final time, and now they were both "dead". The "dead" had to walk
to the "Morgue" which was actually the second cargo bin. The "dead" had to stay
there until the game was over. The game would come to the end when all of one
side had either been captured or killed, but prisoners often escaped, so the
game could continue on for several more hours.
Only "Dirkan" and "Shalila" were left in the game on the "Astorian"
side. Three "Astorians" were still alive, but they were now prisoners, and the
"Astorians" had no prisoners themselves. "Dirkan" and "Shalila" had decided to
try to rescue them from "Nappa" and "Raditz".
"Shalila" had managed to capture "Nappa" by seizing him by both of
his ankles unexpectedly, and "Dirkan" battled "Raditz" who shot him with two
more darts. If "Dirkan" was hit one more time, he would be "dead" and "Shalila"
would be alone to fight the villains herself.
"Shalila" tried to march "Nappa" to the "Astorian Prison", but
"Nappa" somehow managed to free himself from the cloth strips and run away.
"Nappa" then shot "Shalila" with a dart, so now she had three ink spots on her.
"Dirkan" had managed to shoot "Raditz", but "Raditz" managed to shoot "Dirkan"
back, and now "Dirkan" was dead. The three prisoners, "Tayla", Ham, playing
himself, and Arlon, playing himself, tried to escape, but "Raditz" captured
"Tayla" and shot Arlon twice. Ham tried to help "Tayla", but "Raditz" killed
Ham, who had already been shot four times before one last fatal time. Ham was
now "dead". Arlon managed to deliver a fatal dart to "Raditz", and "Raditz" was
now dead. Arlon was one ink spot away from death, and he went to find
"Shalila."
"Shalila" had managed to "kill" "Nappa" and "Frieza", but she was
now facing "Prince Vegeta." Both of them were one ink spot away from death
apiece, and "Vegeta" managed to kill a "dying" Arlon with a final dart. It was
down between "Shalila" and "Prince Vegeta", the last villain alive.
And then "Shalila" delivered the fatal blow to "Prince Vegeta", and
he was now "dead". "Shalila" crowed happily because her side had
won, even though only she and "Tayla" were still alive. She went to free
"Tayla" and the game was over.
Kekron, a true technical wizard, was making improvements on the new
gravity room that Shalila hoped would help the children train better. Tayla and
the other fighting children couldn't wait to use it, although Shalila had told
them it would be some time before the gravity room was perfected, and that they
had to be careful using it. No children under nine years old would be allowed
to use it.
The trip to Calmag would take two more months, but there was plenty
to keep the children occupied until then. Tayla and Riccan were sparring, and
they were both disappointed that no ki attacks were allowed, but they understood
that it would be too dangerous. Dirkan had assured them and the other warrior
children that soon the training rooms would be set up to where ki attacks would
be allowed, as long as they weren't too intense. Until then, Tayla, Riccan,
Rojal, Nikon, Jaca, also a warrior, Dedron, Arlon and Lukan would have to be
content with the frequent sparring matches that happened all over the ship.
Finally, after dinner, the children and adults settled themselves in
the Recreation Room before bedtime. Shalila and Dirkan were not there, for they
had gone off to their private suite for some time alone together. Dalantra, an
excellent seamstress, was embroidering a handkerchief, and Mykia was braiding
Tayla's hair. Tayla was studying an anatomy book, and Lelina was studying
chemistry. Dedron and Rojal were arm-wrestling, and Riccan and Nikon were
asleep on the futons. Tila and Tayka were asleep in their mother's lap, and
Gracina was eating a chocolate sugarplum. Petalia was admiring herself in her
ivory hand mirror and trying to flirt with Rojal. Fayra was watching Dedron,
admiring him, and hoping to get his attention, but both Rojal and Dedron were
oblivious to Petalia and Fayra.
Finally Petalia decided that it was time for her and Fayra to take
action.
"I have an idea," Petalia whispered to Fayra, as she smoothed her
sky blue caftan with a white sash, "why don't we make Rojal and my brother
jealous?"
"How?" Fayra asked, who was not very bright, but a good painter,
like the Artisan she was.
"Simple," Petalia told her contemptuously. "We flirt with the
handsomest men on the ship who are not our relatives."
"Who?"
Petalia smirked. "Why, Aunt Alora's nephews, of course." She was
talking about Bendros, and his brothers Herkon and Kiran, who were twenty-two,
nineteen, and fifteen.
"But they're not Clan of Chloe," Fayra, who was dressed in a lacy
pine-green caftan with a gold caftan, protested, "although they are all very
handsome."
"Exactly, and I intend to flirt with Bendros," Petalia declared.
"Doesn't Tayla like him?" Fayra asked.
"She does," Petalia admitted, "and if Bendros was the heir to the
throne, I would try to make him my husband instead of Rojal. But I could have
Bendros if I wanted to. You know, maybe I should go after him after all, just
to make Rojal jealous, even though I intend to become Superior Gran someday."
"But Bendros is not really interested in you," Fayra pointed out
tactlessly. "And the only girl in our age group he seems to notice is Tayla."
"And do you know why, Fayra?" Petalia asked. Fayra didn't, so
Petalia continued. "Tayla is bold, Fayra, very bold. She puts herself directly
in Bendros' path, forcing him to notice her. Tayla is no fool, Fayra. She
knows what she is doing. When she gets old enough to take a husband, she'll
have Bendros eating out of her little hands."
"If Tayla and Bendros were to get married, Tayla would become the
Gran of Sahara someday," Fayra said thoughtfully. "Tayla would be in a powerful
position, as a Gran."
Petalia became quiet then. The gears in her crafty mind started
spinning. Finally, she spoke, "I could care less whether Tayla lives or dies,
but she is much stronger than she was when she fought against those horrid
Saiyans five years ago. She could become a powerful ally to me, if I were to
marry Rojal and become Superior Gran. She wants Bendros, we both know that, and
I want Rojal. So, maybe Tayla and I could help each other; I could help her get
Bendros, and she could help me get Rojal."
"I don't think that Tayla will agree to that, Petalia," Fayra
objected. "For one thing, Tayla and Rojal do not get along as it is, and you
and Tayla are not exactly the best of friends either, although she is cordial to
both of you. How do you intend to pull this off?"
Petalia ignored the question, for she had not thought out all of the
details yet. "Just summon Tayla to me at once, Fayra," she ordered Fayra, as if
Petalia were already the Superior Gran. Fayra reluctantly did so, although she
didn't think that Petalia's plan was going to work.
A minute later, Tayla, with her hair now braided for bedtime, so
that her hair would not be snarled in the morning, came back with Fayra to the
small white table where Fayra and Petalia were sitting.
"Sit down, Tayla," Petalia told her warmly, and Tayla did so
reluctantly, for Petalia was as snobbish towards her at times as Rojal was.
Tayla, however, tried to be extra nice to her because Petalia's mother, Farla,
had abandoned her and Dedron five years ago. Petalia and Dedron had not heard
from their mother since she had fled Astoria with their Uncle Jaypros. As far
as the siblings were concerned, their mother was dead to them. Their father,
Cletos had not been the same cheery man he had been after his wife left. Cletos
barely paid attention to his children any more, and his siblings and grandmother
were handling more and more of his parenting duties.
"What do you want, Petalia?" Tayla asked her slowly.
"Well," Petalia began cordially, "You like Bendros, right? As a
potential husband, perhaps?"
Tayla blushed; her face was redder than her scarlet caftan with a
gold sash. Shyly, she nodded.
"Well," Petalia began again, "I like Rojal." Tayla gagged at this,
and Fayra laughed out loud before she could censor herself.
"Fayra!" Petalia snapped. "Enough!" Fayra quieted down
immediately.
"Why do you like Rojal?" Tayla asked Petalia directly. "He's not
very nice to anyone except for his mother and Dedron."
Petalia debated on whether she wanted to tell Tayla the full truth
about why she truly wanted Rojal. She cared about Rojal to a certain extent,
but she cared about his title even more. Finally, she decided to let Tayla know
the entire story. "Because he's the heir to Astoria's throne, and I want to be
his wife and the Superior Gran," she told Tayla bluntly.
"But do you love him?" Tayla asked. "Nama says that you shouldn't
marry someone that you don't love. She says it's not fair to either party
involved."
"Great-Nama herself didn't love Granpappa Bajal when she married
him," Petalia pointed out to her. "They just got married 'cause their marriage
was arranged by their parents when Great-Nama was born. She really wanted to
marry Dirkan the first time, but Dirkan insisted that she marry Granpappa Bajal
because our people expected it, and Dirkan couldn't give her any children. So I
am 'arranging' my marriage to Rojal, so to speak. Love is a ridiculous thing
anyway; look what it did to our family. My whore mother ran off with Uncle
Jaypros because of 'love'. And now my father sits and stares at walls all of
the time because he still loves our mother, even though she is a slut and an
adulteress. I'll never forgive Farla Chloe for that, never!" Petalia's voice
betrayed tears.
Tayla already knew the full story, but she knew that Nama had grown
to love Granpappa Bajal, and they had been happy together. And Nama had been
able to marry Dirkan in the end, after all. Tayla wished that she could have
gotten to know her grandfather; Nama, Dirkan and her siblings were always
talking about how brave and strong he had been. She offered Petalia her lace
handkerchief, which Petalia reluctantly took. Tayla pitied her.
"Love's a wonderful thing," Tayla tried to console her. "Just
because your mother ran off with Jaypros, doesn't mean that love is bad. You
can still marry someone that you love. I don't think that it's a good idea to
marry someone just to become a ruler-"
"But aren't you trying to get Bendros to like you, so that you can
become Gran of Sahara someday?" Petalia asked brusquely.
"No, I'm not," Tayla said sincerely. "I just want Bendros to like
me because he's nice and brave and strong and very handsome, too. It doesn't
matter to me that he's going to become Granden of Sahara one day. I just like
him because he's-well, you know, him."
Petalia contemplated this for a moment. She knew that Tayla was
right, but she still didn't believe that love was really worth it. The pain of
her mother running away with Uncle Jaypros was still too fresh, even five years
later. Petalia spoke again, calling her mother by her first name, "Maybe, but
Farla broke Pappa's heart when she ran away with Uncle Jaypros, and she loved
him at one time. Pappa still loves Farla, even though she doesn't deserve it.
Farla is nothing but a whore, even if she was my mother! Love makes people hurt
others, like Farla hurt my father!" Petalia lost control of her emotions then,
and the tears began to flow. Fayra and Tayla were awestruck.
Tayla wished she knew the right words to say to Petalia to help her,
but she had never been through what Petalia and Dedron had been through. She
just stood up and went to her niece and awkwardly put her arms around her
shoulders, carefully avoiding Petalia's coiffed hair. She knew that Petalia
would likely rebuff her, but Tayla had to do something, since she could not find
the right words to ease Petalia's pain.
Surprisingly enough, Petalia didn't tell Tayla to leave her alone,
or shove her away. Instead she just sat there, the tears flowing down her
cheeks. "I hate her! I hate her for leaving us! Pappa doesn't love us anymore
because of her. He talks to Dedron sometimes, but he doesn't even look at me
anymore because I look like Farla too much. He hates me!"
"That's not true," Tayla finally said, "He just doesn't know how to
deal with this anymore than you do. Parents don't stop loving their children,
you know."
"But how would you know that, Tayla?" Petalia asked curtly, "No
offense personally, but you never had parents. Your parents died when you were
a baby, so how do you know anything about parents?"
"Well," Tayla began slowly, "I do have parents now, in a way. Nama
and Dirkan are the mother and father that I never had. I'm glad that they got
married. I consider them my parents even though I don't call them Mamma and
Pappa. Gracina is also like a mother to me. Sometimes parents don't
necessarily have to be your real ones. I wish that I could have met my parents,
and at least you have had yours. I wish I could make your mother come home,
Petalia, but I can't. To this day, we don't even know where they are."
Petalia found herself confiding in Tayla, as she never had before.
She had greatly envied and disliked Tayla because she was jealous of her
potential beauty and popularity. She had snubbed and put down Tayla in hopes of
getting Rojal to notice her and like her. Rojal and her brother, Dedron were
often mean to and about Tayla, and Petalia had went along with them, so that she
could get their liking and approval. But there had been times when Petalia had
wished that she and Tayla could get along better. Tayla stood up for herself,
and she had a fierce temper, but she also had a kind and forgiving heart. Even
the smallest kindness towards her was enough for Tayla to be friendly with
someone, even someone like Petalia.
"I'm wondering if it's my fault that Farla left us," Petalia
murmured sadly. "Maybe I or Dedron did something to make her leave us for Uncle
Jaypros. Maybe if I had known, I could have talked her out of leaving us."
"It's not your fault," Tayla told her. "Farla is a grown-up, and
grown-ups are supposed to know better than children do. Farla knew it was wrong
to leave her family, but she did it anyway. You and Dedron and Cletos did
nothing to deserve this. Farla and Jaypros are to blame, not you or anyone
else."
Petalia nodded through her tears. "I'm afraid that I'm going to be
like her one day, and I don't want to be, not anymore."
"Farla had some good things about her," Tayla told her positively.
"Just live up to the good in her and forget the bad."
"I don't know what good there is in Farla now," Petalia spat
bitterly, as Shalila approached the table where the three girls were sitting at.
Shalila started to speak, but Tayla shook her head pleadingly at her, and
Shalila nodded. Tayla had grown much wiser and stronger since her two-year stay
at Kami Orchida's. Tayla had matured greatly under Kami Orchida and Toria's
training, and she had been greatly affected by them and their occasional
visitors, who were also filled with wisdom and advice. Tayla had been sad to
leave Kami Orchida and Toria, but she was glad to be with her family once more,
for she had still missed them all so much. And Toria had come with them.
"There has to be good in almost anyone," Tayla told her, seeing that
Nama was going to allow her to handle this. "You loved your mother at one time,
so there must have been something that you liked or loved in her."
"Well, she always did sing so pretty, and she taught me how to dress
well and look nice," Petalia admitted.
"And that's something to go on," Tayla told her. "Keep your good
memories of her. I wish I could say that she's coming back, but I can't. But
you still have the Clan of Chloe, and you know that we won't abandon our own."
Tayla patted her shoulder, and Petalia laid her white-gold head on the white
table and closed her eyes, much calmer now.
"Thanks," she murmured gruffly, and then she fell asleep
immediately, her head on her arms on the table. Fayra stared at Tayla in shock,
for Tayla had said almost the exact things that Great-Nama or any other
knowledgeable adult in the Clan of Chloe would have. Was Tayla really only
twelve?
Shalila approached the sleeping Petalia and kissed the girl's
forehead, smoothing the white-gold coif. She then easily lifted Petalia into
her arms, as if Petalia were no heavier than a large pillow, and laid the girl
over her shoulder. "She will be alright now," Shalila told Fayra and Tayla, as
she carried Petalia to her bedchamber.
Later that night at 11pm (according to Astorian Galactic Time, which
the Astorians always went by whenever they traveled in space or stayed at home),
Tayla quietly knocked on Nama and Dirkan's bedroom door. The door was unlocked,
and Shalila and Dirkan were still awake. The royal couple was lying in an ebony
bed with red and gold paisley bedcovers made out of silk and Astorian hair.
"Come in," Dirkan called, sensing Tayla's ki signature. The
automatic door rose up after Dirkan had pressed a button on his nightstand.
Tayla walked into the room slowly, and Shalila moved closer to
Dirkan on the bed, so that her granddaughter could fit onto the bed with them.
Tayla snuggled closer to Shalila and rested her dark head on her chest. Shalila
embraced her; Dirkan laid his arm across Shalila's waist and turned towards her
and Tayla. He squeezed Tayla's hand.
"What's on your mind, kid?" Dirkan asked her gruffly, but with a
twinkle in his black eye. "Shouldn't you have been in bed by now?"
"I'm not tired," Tayla murmured, her drowsy voice betraying her as
she spoke. "Just wanted to know if Petalia was going to be okay."
"I think that she will be," Shalila told her positively. "She
seemed calmer than she has been in a long time, and she is sleeping now like she
hadn't slept in years."
"I don't think that she really has, poor girl," Dirkan said
sympathetically. "Neither has her brother or her father."
"Do you think that Farla and Jaypros will ever come back?" Tayla
asked suddenly.
"I doubt it," Dirkan told her. "We have scouted around, and there
are no signs of them to be found anywhere."
"Do you think that they're still alive?" Tayla asked.
Shalila and Dirkan grew quiet then, although Tayla had not been the
first to ask them that. "We don't know that for sure anymore, dandelion,"
Shalila told her finally.
"Nama, do you think I was right about Cletos still loving Dedron and
Petalia?" Tayla asked worriedly.
Shalila hesitantly nodded, although she had been deeply worried
about the way Cletos had been neglecting his children for the past five years.
Cletos barely acknowledged his children these days, and when he did, it was only
Dedron he paid attention to. Petalia looked too much like Farla, and Cletos
seemed to try to avoid his own daughter, much to Petalia's secret despair, which
was not so secret because Shalila had noticed. Shalila decided that she was
going to have a long talk with Cletos the next day; it was time for Cletos to
stop moping and mourning his loss, so that he could move on with his life, for
his children's sakes. She had offered to grant Cletos a divorce from Farla, but
oddly enough, Cletos had refused. Cletos had to start being a father again, and
Shalila was determined to see that it would happen.
She kissed Tayla's brow and told the girl, still her favorite, how
proud she was for helping Petalia. "Now it's time for bed, dandelion," Shalila
told Tayla firmly.
"Not tired," Tayla yawned, and Shalila laughed.
"Your body's saying otherwise. Now off to bed," Shalila insisted,
trying to suppress any more laughter.
"Yes, Nama. Goodnight!"
Tayla yawned again, and she kissed and hugged Shalila and Dirkan
goodnight, just before dragging herself out of their bed. She crept out of
their room and stepped outside of their door after it had risen.
