Chapter 16 – Urgent Return
"Ch'lia!" Zucanno Om Lis Malu spoke as she entered my Admin building office. "I need your help."
"With what?" I wondered.
For the life of me, I couldn't think of anything that the Kendite Matriarch could possibly need help with.
"One of the dispatches Helva brought," she explained, pacing back and forth. "There is an important vote coming up back on Pun Ch'lar."
"When?"
"Three days from now," the Kendite Matriarch muttered, shaking her furry head. "None of our ships can make the journey that quickly."
"Then, there's no choice," I responded, picking up my satphone.
My first call was to Kara, gold Glinalth's rider.
"How soon can you get here?" I asked over the phone.
"In almost no time at all," she replied, more than a little curious.
"Gear up in your spacesuit," I told her, nodding to the Kendite Matriarch. "I'll meet you out in front of the Admin building at Landing. See you soon!"
Breaking the connection, I dialed a different number.
"Robinton Cove," Ryeena answered.
"Ryeena, I need you at Landing, stat," I told her.
"What's up?" she wondered.
"The Kendite Matriarch needs to return to Pun Ch'lar," I explained.
"You want me and Sylene to take her?!" my friend gasped.
"You up to it?" I chuckled. "You won't be going alone. I'm sending Kara and Glinalth with you to act as your guide."
"We'll be right there!" Ryeena excitedly exclaimed.
"Gear up in your spacesuit," I told her. "Meet us in front of Admin, See you soon!"
"Your surgery assistant, isn't she, ch'lia?" the Kendite Matriarch asked.
"She wanted to make the next jump back to Pun Ch'lar," I chuckled, turning the satphone off before clipping it to my belt. "We'd better hurry."
Opening a nearby cabinet, I grabbed a pair of QE2 radios then rushed out of my office, the Kendite Matriarch right behind. We paused briefly in one of the utility rooms on the way so that she could don her own spacesuit for the journey between then hurried outside.
Out in front of the Admin building at Landing, a crowd was gathering around the two queens as Kara mounted her dragon and Ryeena did hers. With a quick boost from Sylene's foreleg, the Matriarch was able to seize Ryeena's gloved hand and was quickly pulled astride Sylene where Ryeena made absolutely certain that the Matriarch's safety harness was firmly and securely fastened to Sylene's riding straps.
Once her passenger was taken care of, Ryeena fastened her own safety harness to Sylene's riding straps.
"Ryeena!" I called.
As she turned my way, I tossed her one of the QE2s. She nimbly caught it, switched it on, and did a brief radio check. The glowing green rings on the front of each let us know the radios were now synchronized.
"I'll be monitoring from here," I explained as Ryeena donned her spacesuit helmet. "Check in at each stopover point. Call me if anything on Pun Ch'lar goes south."
Ryeena gave me a thumbs up, tucking the radio into one of her spacesuit's leg pockets. Then she turned to Kara astride Glinalth and gave her a second thumbs up. With a nod of acknowledgement, Glinalth took off, Sylene close behind. The two dragons beat quickly higher into Pern's sky, vanishing between once they deemed they had sufficient room.
Check-ins at each stopover point went without a hitch. The Kendite Matriarch actually seemed to be enjoying the trip.
When they finally arrived on Pun Ch'lar, Ryeena radioed, "We're here! We're actually here! I can't believe it!"
There was no mistaking the excitement and thrill in her voice.
"The Matriarch can give you directions to where she needs to go," I responded, grinning at her infectious excitement. "Be sure to call if you need anything."
"Roger that," Ryeena radioed back. "And Dana, thanks for giving me the chance!"
"You're welcome," I chuckled as I keyed the radio. "Now get going. You've got work to do!"
Half a continent away from where the dragon pair and their passengers had arrived on Pun Ch'lar, a heated discussion was rapidly deteriorating in the parliamentary chambers of the Kendite Hegemony. Leading the dissent was a black furred Kendite looking remarkably like one of Earth's jaguars.
"We can wait no longer!" the one known as Lynxano bellowed, pounding the table with his furry fist. "We must vote now!"
"Without the Matriarch?!" the Kendite known as Pumax countered. "Are we then to go to war with the races of the galaxy?!"
"Bah," Lynxano scoffed, waving his paw dismissively. "Cowards all. We can put an end to the Federation's interference in our lives by bringing their weak worlds to their collective knees."
Just then, the chamber doors slammed open, three spacesuited individuals marching into the room. One was clearly Kendite. This one stopped in front of Lynxano before removing its helmet.
"So, this is what you've been plotting behind my back," the Kendite Matriarch growled, removing her gloves so that she could use her claws if necessary. "I should've known you'd try something like this, little Lyn."
Lynxano bristled at the name; demeaning because it implied he was still a cub.
"How… how did you…" he hissed, his own fury barely contained.
Behind the Matriarch, the other two in spacesuits removed their helmets, revealing Kara and Ryeena.
"Humans?!" someone in the chamber gasped.
Keying the QE2 she held, Ryeena whispered, "Dana, we have a situation here."
"Acknowledged," I instantly replied.
"How can you be here?" Lynxano demanded. "Our fastest vessels would've taken six months to make the trip here from Pern!"
His answers were twin roars from just outside the windows.
"Some of the humans on Pern have bonded with dragons," the Matriarch replied, gesturing to the windows. "Amazing creatures biogenetically engineered by none other than the human, Kitty Ping Yung!"
"The one who studied with the Eridani?!" yet another council member gasped.
"The same," Zucanno Om Lis Malu replied. "Their dragons can teleport vast distances, covering in about an hour what our FTL vessels would've taken nearly six months to traverse."
"Impossible!" Lynxano argued, waving a paw in a cutting motion.
"Then how do you explain my being here?" the Matriarch casually asked. "I only just received your dispatch via the Courier Services vessel, XH-834, a few days ago, informing me of the vote that was supposed to happen a few days from now. But you couldn't wait, could you?" Glaring at her adversary, she added, "You've always craved power, wanting to force your will on others. That is not our way, Lynxano."
"It will be when you're dead!" he roared, pulling out a blaster.
He never got a chance to use it. The crimson beam of a different blaster, a Federation weapon, broke the tableau, striking Lynxano and sending him flying backwards!
"Glad you could make it, ch'lia," the Matriarch said, smiling as I stepped up beside her, the barrel of my own blaster still steaming as I aimed it at Lynxano.
Struggling back to his feet, fury like a fiery volcano in his eyes, he faced the Matriarch and I, growling, "I'll kill you both!"
The big stained glass window on the side of the parliamentary chamber exploded inwards, showering those in the room with shards of glass. My lifemate, Tarnaa, hovered briefly, giving those astonished council members beneath her time to scramble clear before she settled to the floor with a resounding thud. She had eyes for only one in the chamber… the one who had threatened the Matriarch and me.
Hesitating only a moment in surprise, Lynxano's rage exploded, a guttural howl coming from his lips as he raised his blaster. He wasn't fast enough. Fueled by a fresh load of firestone, Tarnaa spouted flame so intense that it reduced the hapless Kendite to ashes within seconds!
Those in the chamber hastily backed away as Tarnaa swung her head around, her eyes as blazing red as my own. Zucanno Om Lis Malu walked up to her, smiling as she did.
"Thank you, my friend," she told Tarnaa, patting her on the neck.
I am glad we were in time, she silently replied, rubbing her muzzle against the Matriarch's cheek.
When Zucanno Om Lis Malu's eyes grew enormous in surprise, it wasn't hard to guess that she, like Keymon, could hear dragons!
As am I, my golden friend, she silently replied, smiling as she nodded to me. My thanks to you and your rider.
Raising her massive head so that she could observe the council members around her, Tarnaa said aloud, "My lifemate serves the Matriarch. Who here stands with them?"
In a singularly loud cry, every remaining council member rose to their feet, paws raised in the air as they shouted in unison, "We do!"
As I put my blaster away and scanned the crowd, I noticed something and, judging by the smirk of a smile on her face, so had the Matriarch. Given the shock of our arrival and the terrifying way Lynxano had been dealt with, quite a few of the attending Kendites had messed themselves. They were going to need time to change into fresh clothes before the parliament could proceed.
"We will reconvene this meeting in the morning at oh eight hundred," the Matriarch spoke, her voice carrying clearly around the chamber. "Till then… dismissed!"
Those who had soiled themselves hurried with great haste to leave the chamber. Those who remained slowly approached our little group.
"Angel Zero One, what's your status?" a familiar voice coming from the QE2 radio Ryeena held demanded.
Gesturing for Ryeena to give it to her, the Matriarch accepted the device, keyed the mike, and replied, "All is well, Admiral Morgan. Just a brief little skirmish on our arrival."
"Ambassador Sterling?" he radioed.
"Alive and well, Admiral," she responded, nodding to me. "We are grateful for her timely assistance… and that of her lifemate, Tarnaa."
A chuckle came across the QE2 radio as Admiral Morgan declared, "I was right about you, Sterling. The Star Service made a big mistake letting you go. Well done, Ambassador. Well done. Wolfhound out."
As the rest of the Parliament members filed out, the Matriarch stepped up to me, a curious expression on her furry face.
"I have only one burning question," she whispered, our eyes meeting. "How did you get here so quickly?" Gesturing at Kara and Ryeena, she added, "It took us nearly an hour just to get here!"
"That will take some time to explain," I replied, glancing about the room.
The room was well equipped with all manner of furniture so we pulled up some chairs to sit on while I recounted the story of how Weyrwoman Lessa had gone back in Time to bring the five missing weyrs forward in Time to fight the current Threadfall.
"It took me the same amount of time as you to get here," I spoke, finishing my explanation. "Once here, Tarnaa and I jumped back in Time to the moment just after Ryeena called me on the QE2."
For a long moment, Zucanno Om Lis Malu was silent, regarding her friends from Pern.
"We all know the risks of 'timing-it'," Ryeena chimed in, laying her hand on my knee. "Dana's work with the chronoarchs is always reminding us of the dangers."
"It is strongly discouraged by all dragonriders," Kara added, nodding to me, "except in the most extreme circumstances."
"A wise precaution, ch'lia," the Matriarch finally remarked, smiling as she laid a furry paw on my shoulder. "That… time… spent with the chronoarchs has served you well. My thanks."
"What will be done about Lynxano?" I asked, more than a little worried.
"In spite of his treachery," the Matriarch replied, glancing over at the pile of ashes where her fellow Kendite had so recently stood, "he will be buried and given the honors any Kendite would be due. It is the way."
"Dana, there's something I don't understand," Ryeena spoke, meeting my gaze. "We all heard Tarnaa speak out loud."
"Can't your dragons normally do that?" the Matriarch wondered.
Kara shook her head. "Till now, none of our lifemates have been able to speak aloud."
"Until we heard Golanth following the AIVAS blast," Ryeena continued, meeting her fellow queen rider's gaze. Turning to the Matriarch, she added, "Golanth had been seriously wounded when some of our Southern felines attacked him. We were afraid he'd never fly again."
"So what happened?" the Matriarch wondered.
"Two unexpected aspects of our dragons' abilities to teleport," I replied, picking up the explanation. "Are you familiar with the terms 'quantum jumping' and 'quantum ergokinesis'?"
"Receiving knowledge from different dimensions," the Matriarch answered, "and traveling transdimensionally. What does this have to do with your Golanth?"
In answer to that question, I filled the Matriarch in on the story of how I'd been receiving images of a queen dragon doing physio on another dragon and how I'd used the unexpected dragon ability to teleport across dimensions to bring Chlorith to our reality to help Golanth.
"Truly astounding, ch'lia," the Matriarch softly spoke, rubbing her chin. "How does this relate to Golanth being able to speak?"
"The Dana from Chlorith's dimension had been gifted with the Eridani protocols," I replied. "I believe their Dana had used those protocols on Golanth while she and I were doing the restorative surgeries on F'lessan's dragon."
"Then how do you explain Tarnaa's speaking just now?" Kara asked.
Smiling as I gazed over at my lifemate, I told them, "Just after the AIVAS building explosion, I was visited by Concordantrix Zigrill herself."
"The leader of the Eridani?!" the Matriarch exclaimed, her eyes enormous.
"She had been one of the psionics examiners back during my Academy days," I explained, feeling a slight blush in my cheeks. "While the other examiners had found nothing remarkable in me, she had somehow sensed my heretofore unknown sensitivity to our fire lizard and dragon companions."
"How could she know that you would one day come to the very planet where your gift would do the most good?" Ryeena couldn't help asking.
"Having found someone with such a remarkably specific gift," the Matriarch mused, "she must've been secretly keeping an eye on you."
I nodded. "She was pleased that, once I had reached Pern, I had used my gift to help our winged friends."
"By the First Egg!" Kara hissed. "She passed on her knowledge of the Eridani protocols to you, didn't she?"
Grinning shyly, I nodded. "She called me her student. Told me to make her proud before she vanished."
"So you secretly used those protocols on Tarnaa to give her the ability to speak," Ryeena concluded, smiling at me.
"I felt the pain in her thoughts when Tarnaa first heard Golanth speak," I whispered, tears coming to my eyes. "How could I not grant her wish?"
Still seated, I was surprised when the Kendite Matriarch came and knelt in front of me. "Mother Of Us All?"
"Twice now you have saved my life, ch'lia," she softly spoke, laying a paw against my cheek. "Time and again, though you were not born Kendite, you have demonstrated a heart and soul that is true to the Kendite way. Because of your heroic efforts to protect me, I wish to honor you in return. My family's name is De'Tenna, and I am Pumara De'Tenna. With your human and dragon friends as witnesses, I give you the name Liona De'Tenna… and adopt you as my daughter."
What?! My jaw fell open, tears flowing like rivers down my cheeks, my tongue suddenly unable to utter a sound; too overcome by what was happening.
"Oh, Dana!" Ryeena wept, throwing her arms around my neck.
"You… you… want me… as your daughter?!" I finally managed to whisper. "Zucanno Om Lis Malu, I… I am unworthy of such an honor!"
You are wrong, lifemate, Tarnaa quietly rumbled. Your Kendite brother, Keymon, would be the first to agree.
"Your dragon is right, ch'lia," the Matriarch quietly spoke, planting a tender kiss on my forehead. "Often has your brother, Keymon, spoken of you… and always in glowing terms. Come now, Liona, give your new Zucanno a hug!"
Sobbing openly, I threw my arms around the Matriarch's neck, hugging her tightly.
"Ko abal neko nu mobata an ki!" I whispered, my face flooded with tears. (I will make you proud of me!)
"Nu betara zot, ch'lia," the Matriarch whispered back, tightening her hug. (You already have, daughter!)
My new Kendite mother wasn't finished either. Pulling free of me, she turned to Kara and Ryeena, naming them honorary Kendites and adopting them into her clan. Poor Kara was flustered beyond words and all Ryeena could do was stare in amazement! The next day when the Kendite parliament reconvened at precisely oh eight hundred, Pumara De'Tenna, the Matriarch of the Kendite Hegemony, made it all official.
Kara, Ryeena, and I, and our three dragons, stayed on Pun Ch'lar long enough to see to Lynxano's funeral. Although the Kendite parliament declared that my actions and that of Tarnaa had been justified in protecting the Matriarch's life, it was still a horrible way to die. Now, as Pumara's daughter, I felt obligated to honor the Kendite funeral rites. I insisted on being a part of the service since it was my actions and that of Tarnaa that had brought about the end of his life. Perhaps in honoring those unique Kendite rituals, the cosmos might one day forgive me and my lifemate for what we'd been forced to do.
"You three had best be getting back," Pumara remarked as Kara, Ryeena, and I, bedecked in our spacesuits, boarded our dragons for the return to Pern. "While I found the whole experience exciting and refreshing, I think I'll take a slower fast cruiser on my own return. The sensory deprivation during each jump was a bit disconcerting." Then, grinning as she patted Sylene's neck, "I appreciate the running commentary during that time, my golden friend, but I think I'll leave the going between to those better trained and experienced in the phenomenon."
"You're being able to hear dragons, Zucanno," I spoke, helmet under my arm, "is a gift we thought was unique to the people of Pern. There may be another Hatching by the time you return for the embassy's opening. It would be interesting to see if the hatchlings might choose either you or my brother, Key."
"That would cause quite a stir in the Federation, wouldn't it?" Pumara chuckled, patting Tarnaa's side. "Still, to have one of these amazing creatures choose you as their lifemate…"
"You'd make a fine queen rider, Zucanno," I chuckled, every word sincere.
"Take care, ch'lia," Pumara spoke, a hint of a tear in her eye. "Safe journey, my children. We'll see you soon!"
Putting my helmet back on and securing it, I called to Kara and Ryeena, "You two ready?"
"Ready!" Kara instantly replied, giving me a thumbs up.
"Ditto!" Ryeena added, grinning broadly as she echoed Kara's gesture.
"Then, let's go home!"
As one, our three dragons leapt skyward, their great gossamer wings carrying us higher and higher into the Pun Ch'lar skies. Then, with one final wave to the Kendite Matriarch and her party, we vanished between.