Slave Empire - The Crystal Ship Read Free Page B

be able to stop it, but none of the
possibilities seemed more than slightly viable. She returned to the
ship to sleep, spending almost all her waking hours in Endrix’s
company. Sometimes she would just sit, thinking, and Endrix played
weird Sharvan music for her, showing her scenes from the long-dead
race’s past.
    Two days
later, while they discussed her life on Earth, Endrix made an
astounding statement.
    “ When the Atlanteans found you, they thought your brother was
your guardian, but I do not believe this is so. My masters surmised
that you would have a guardian, although it was not mentioned in
the prophecy. They also thought you would have a companion. I
believe your brother is your companion, a source of strength to
help you get through your transition from Earth to Atlan, but I
think the Shrike is your guardian.”
    She hesitated,
astonished. “What makes you say that?”
    “ He was on Earth at the time when the Atlanteans took you. He
saved you from a peril there, did he not?” She nodded, and he went
on, “Then he saved you at the slave market, and returned you to
Atlan. Now he has given you a ship to keep you safe and help you to
fight the Envoy, and I believe he will help you again.”
    “ He didn’t save me from the Draycon ship that tried to kill me
on Earth.”
    “ Actually, he did. The Draycons would have searched the house
to be sure they had killed you, but the Shrike chased them away. He
did not know what they were shooting at, but his appearance caused
them to break off their attack and retreat. By the time you
emerged, he was gone.”
    Rayne
swallowed a lump that threatened to block her throat. “I didn’t
know. I wish I had. How do you know all this? Were you there
too?”
    “ No. My presence might have been detected, and the Atlanteans
might not have rescued you. I have communicated with your ship,
which is the same one he used. He does not realise what he is, of
course, if, indeed, he is your guardian.”
    “ Will I see him again?”
    “ Probably,” Endrix replied.
    “ Will I ever see his face?”
    “ I doubt it.”
    “ I wish I had more time. I’m not going to survive my
confrontation with the Envoy, am I?” Hot tears stung her
eyes.
    “ If you defeat him, I believe you will survive. You must not
despair. That is your enemy. You must be strong.”
    She shook her
head, two tears making their escape down her cheeks. “How can I
defeat a super-evolved being? I’m just a girl from a backwater
planet that drowned itself in its own filth. I’ve got no special
powers, no vast intellect. I’m a healer. What can I do? How am I
supposed to kill this monster?”
    “ Perhaps you should not be thinking of how you can kill him.
That is against your very nature. It must be wrong.”
    “ What am I supposed to do then, befriend him?”
    The sphere
pulsed. “I sincerely doubt that is possible.
    “ Then what?”
    “ I do not know.”
    That night,
Rayne decided to return to Atlan. The dead planet depressed her,
and the constant discussions on the topic of the Envoy added to her
despondency. Although Endrix was capable of interesting
conversations on just about any topic, the coming confrontation ate
at her nerves, and had become the most common subject they
discussed.
    Endrix
encouraged her to leave, saying that time spent with her brother
would be good for her, and she should relax with friends. Rayne did
not bother to point out that she had no friends. Perhaps it was
time she made some. The prospect lifted her spirits, although she
would far rather have returned to the Shrike’s base and talked to
him. The memory of his insight into her private feelings stung her
pride, however, and she decided it would be better to try to forget
him.
    Rayne took her
leave of Endrix and returned to her ship, carrying the equipment
she had brought down. She ordered Shadowen to go to Atlan, and went
to sleep.
    When the ship
woke her, they were approaching Atlan, some eighteen hours later.
She remembered