T Southwell - Prophecy

"Pity nobody told us about it," Rawn muttered.

"Unfortunately for you, we don't interfere with primitive cultures. The destruction of a good, living planet like yours is a great shame. There aren't that many of them around. Many intelligent races come from worlds whose atmosphere we would find toxic. Most have a metabolism that burns hydrogen, since that's the most plentiful element around, and generally found in all atmospheres. They're able to live very comfortably in an atmosphere like yours, but we can't survive in their air, which often lacks sufficient oxygen."

Rayne stared at him, the sheer eccentricity of his words leaving her dumbstruck. She would never have considered a metabolism that burnt hydrogen, but why not? It was just as combustible as oxygen, and far commoner. Tallyn, surprisingly, looked a little embarrassed by her scrutiny, and glanced away. Rayne mused that this was one of the few emotions she had seen him express, apart from the stiff, rather false smiles he apparently forced himself to make. She wondered if all Atlanteans, or, indeed, alien races, were as reticent as him, or if smiling was just not an Atlantean expression, but one he put on for their benefit.

When the silence grew pregnant, Tallyn rose and made a vague gesture. "We should find a shuttle to the surface, if you're ready?"

Rayne sat forward, attracting his attention. "Do Atlanteans smile, usually, Commander Tallyn?"

He looked surprised. "Yes, they do. It's a natural expression of friendship or joy, same as you. Why do you ask?"

"Because you seem to have trouble with it in our company."

"Ah. Well, we hardly know each other. Naturally things are a little strained."

"No." Rayne frowned. "It's something else, which you're not telling us. What's waiting for us on your planet? A battery of tests and experiments? Perhaps ones you don't altogether approve of, so you find our company unpleasant because you feel guilty?"

"There will be a few tests, naturally, and a lot of vaccinations. You won't be allowed to mingle with the populace until your immunity to our diseases is established. It's for your own good. Our diseases would kill you otherwise. We still have a few that can't be eradicated, unfortunately. No harm will come to you, I promise."

"Even if I'm not this Golden Child in your book?" She enquired. "What happens to us then, Commander?"

"Nothing. You'll be welcomed into our society, given jobs and a house. Eventually you'll find mates and settle down."

Rawn demanded, "What if we don't want to do that? What if we don't like your world?"

"Then it'll be up to you to decide what you want to do, but I'm certain Rayne is the Golden Child, in which case, she'll be well cared for before and after the prophecy is fulfilled. She'll be a heroine, after all."

"Unless I fail," Rayne pointed out.

"Then you won't have to worry about it. You'll be dead."

"Well that's just great," Rawn said, rising to his feet with a scowl.

Tallyn raised a hand. "Please bear in mind that if you'd remained on your own world you'd have perished horribly within the next five years, anyway."

Rayne rose and took hold of Rawn's arm. "It's okay. Leave it."

Tallyn glanced at an instrument with luminous alien characters on the wall. "It's almost time to go down to the surface. All your questions will be answered, I promise. Not by me, I have many duties to attend to, but a first contact officer will be assigned to you. Now, if you wish, I can take you to see the bridge before we leave."

Rawn glanced at his sister and shrugged. "Yeah, that would be great."

Tallyn led them to the lift they had arrived in, and they ascended a long way before stepping out into a gloomy room. Soft illumination revealed the floor, chairs, and table edges. Other light came from dim images and hundreds of tiny crystals. Men sat at the various consoles, concentrating on data that scrolled up before them, ghostly in the gloom. Rayne's gaze was drawn to the massive screen that dominated the far end of the room.

It held an image of an orb swathed in pale clouds that swirled in bizarre patterns, reminding her of Venus. Patches of pale green or dark blue could be seen through thinner areas, but mostly the planet shone like a vast pearl. An alien sun blazed with a brilliant, almost white light.

Tallyn said, "Atlan is the fourth planet of this system. It has five moons of various sizes, and is a lot larger than Earth."

Against the inky backdrop, ships in orbit shone like stars, and further out, several space stations glittered. A few closer ships had strange, spiky shapes, and the moving lights of shuttles seemed to crawl past. Tallyn waited while they absorbed the astounding sight. Rawn studied a nearby ship, clearly fascinated by its strange shape and lack of symmetry.

"That's a weird looking ship," he commented, pointing it out to Rayne.

Tallyn followed his finger. "Not at all. Compared to some, that one's ordinary."

"Who are they?"

"Those are Wellans, from the planet Predantia in the Urmanian system. If you're curious about them, I'll introduce you to some. Now it's time to go."

They followed Tallyn back into the lift, which shot downwards, judging by the flicking counter next to the door, the only measure of their progress, since there was no sensation of descending. When it stopped, they stepped out into a vast room where a sleek grey vehicle was parked on a smooth metallic floor. As they approached it, a young Atlantean with blond and brown hair emerged and saluted Tallyn. He eyed the humans, who studied him with equal interest.

Tallyn returned the man's salute. "This is Egan, our first contact officer. He speaks your language, and will be your guide and liaison."

"Will we see you again?" Rayne asked.

"Of course. I'll visit you as often as I can, and if you wish to see me, just tell Egan."

They boarded the shuttle and strapped into comfortable seats, then it headed for the alien planet.

Tallyn entered the council's echoing hall, where pink quartz pillars, veined with gold, flanked a broad swathe of silver-speckled black marble floor. They supported a high domed roof covered with intricate mosaics of ancient Atlantean legends, picked out in different kinds of quartz. He approached the twelve elderly men who sat at the back of the hall, his boots ringing on the floor. Within the three-sided square the elders formed, he stopped and bowed to the man in the middle, a thin-faced individual with piercing dark eyes, who sat upon an elevated chair.

"I believe I have found the golden girl child," Tallyn announced.

"Do you? And who is the boy?" Vargon spoke in a rich, strong voice not quite in keeping with his elderly looks.

Tallyn knew the elders had already viewed holofilms of the two humans he had brought back, so his knowledge came as no surprise. "He's her brother, First One, and, although he's not mentioned in the prophecy, I believe he's her guardian."

Some of the council members turned to whisper to each other. Vargon glanced at them, then addressed Tallyn again. "As you say, it's not mentioned in the prophecy that the girl would have a guardian, but I see no harm in it. Certainly they are perfect, when all the others are sickly and dying."

"Yes, First One."

"How do they feel about their capture?" Vargon enquired with the unhurried assurance of an elderly tortoise.

"They're not happy, and they'll be even unhappier with the tests and implants you mean to implement."

Vargon rubbed his lips. "Can't be helped, I'm afraid. Anyone would object to being poked and prodded, but we've been quite polite about it. We could have kept them under heavy sedation until we were finished. They're lucky they know as much as they do. Others would not have been so gentle with them."