"What was it that Dylan said to you?" Beka scrunched her face in
concentration.
"About what?" exploded in pique from the lips of the three men.
"Excuse me." Beka realized that she had made a leap in logic that had left the men struggling in a quagmire of uncertainty.
The Lady Kodiak surveyed the men who had obediently taken seats at her bidding. Tyr, she would start the explanation with Tyr. She caught his eye, then sauntered over to him, never breaking eye contact. Now he was completely confused. She couldn't possibly want to seduce him in front of his son and friend? Beka pursed her lips and threw him a kiss, then sat in his lap.
"Think back to your conversation with Dylan. What did he say we had to do to figure out who the traitor was?" She slid an arm around his neck.
"He said that we had to figure out who appeared most oblivious to the current climate." Tyr buried his face in her neck and growled. Now, he understood the connection.
"Would somebody let us in on the less than obvious?" Harper whined.
Tyr raised his head long enough to order Harper to explain to Tamerlane how stars were born.
"Father, every child in nursery school knows how stars are born." Then he snapped. "What has that to do with our traitor?"
Harper jumped up excitedly. "I get it now. You are wrong." He pointed his finger at The Kodiak and his lady.
"Harper," Tyr thundered.
"All right, OK," he settled back in his chair and turned his attention to Tamerlane. "I think your mum and dad are wrong. But he is bigger than me, heck, they are both bigger than me, so I will humour them."
Tamerlane hung his head. They had gone mad. The people he most trusted in the universe were certifiably insane.
Harper cleared his throat and asked, "What is the most common type of star in the universe?"
"Every child knows that they are the red dwarves." Tamerlane said contemptuously, reminding Beka and Harper of his father, although Tyr missed the similarity.
"Yes, boy, you are right," said his father. "They are small and red and they live a very long time."
Beka continued the lesson, "We know that interstellar dust plays an important part in the birth of stars."
"That's the scientific explanation anyway." Said Harper with a sigh.
"And you three have another explanation? Something you can prove, but haven't bothered to?" Tamerlane was certain they had gone mad. "Harper, why would you keep a new theory a secret? That isn't like you to hide your genius from the world."
Harper noted the mocking tone with a grimace, then answered Tamerlane's question with one of his own, "Do you know the translation of Mong Ruad?"
"From stars to your daughter - won't anyone give me a straight answer." Tamerlane rolled his eyes.
"Answer the question, son." Tyr prompted softly, not wanting to exasperate the boy any more than he already was.
"I know that Macha was the name of a queen of Ireland, but I don't know what Mong Ruad means," the boy conceded.
"Red-haired," explained his stepmother.
"Red dwarves? Red hair? Interstellar dust?" Tamerlane jumped out of the chair and began to pace around the room. "What has any of this to do with Goneril and the traitor, or Admiral Hunt for that matter?"
"One day you will sire my children," Harper whispered, "She didn't say father and she didn't say you would be her mate."
"That was childish imagination." Tamerlane paused in his pacing. "I didn't take it seriously."
"But you should son." Tyr surprised them all with his admission.
Beka called to Tamerlane, "Come sit at our feet. I shouldn't have left the explanation to these two. I will make sense of all of this, I promise."
Tamerlane put his trust in Beka and sat at the feet of his parents. Harper settled back in his chair, as if he expected to be there a long time. Tyr closed his eyes and rested his forehead against Beka's back for a moment.
"We have told you the stories of Trance Gemini's second sight. How she returned from the future to reshape the universe."
Tamerlane nodded.
"Ten years ago, we learned that she had defied her people, not once, but twice. The first time was in her purple princess stage. You have seen the holograms, when she had the tail?"
All the men nodded.
"Her second transgression was her return from the future. She saved the universe, but lost her freedom as a result."
Harper took up the story; "I had asked her to marry me, about ten and a half years ago. She turned me down. With regret, I add. But she did ask me to father her child. We couldn't reproduce - incompatible biology. But she was a medical whiz and I was a boy genius."
"And there were a lot of empty test tubes on board Andromeda." Tyr rumbled.
"Once we had the baby started, we needed a surrogate. That's when Anna's ambition met Trance's need and I acquired a wife."
"Anna was the surrogate." Tamerlane interrupted. "And that is the reason that Macha says out of Trance."
"Well she is only ten, and Nietzschean tradition doesn't have a way of explaining that she emerged from Anna, but has no biological connection to her."
Tyr interjected, "Our people manipulate genes, but turn their noses up at surrogacy. One of our many contradictions."
"The sort that the Nietzschean Messiah may face?" "I'm afraid so, son."
"Is Macha incapable of natural childbirth?" asked Tamerlane. "Is that why she used sire?"
"We won't know for a few years, but I thought it best to prepare for the worst, since she lives in a baby factory." Harper sighed.
"What has this to do with Red Dwarf stars?" Tamerlane was like a terrier on a rat. He would not let go.
"Trance had a trick that she used - infrequently - but that I witnessed once." Beka took up the tale. "She would blow what looked like a dust cloud out of her mouth."
"A very special cloud, able to undo manacles and other good things that saved our lives." Harper jumped in again.
"Don't tell me!" Tamerlane's jaw dropped. "Interstellar dust."
Tyr nodded, "Trance's people begin as interstellar dust, then transform into red dwarf stars. For trillions of years they witness the foolishness of all the other species in the universe."
Beka softened his words, "They watch benignly, until a maverick like Trance comes along."
Seamus Harper finished the story, "Trance must return to her stariness very shortly. We knew it was going to happen eventually. What we didn't consider is that her original agenda, to set the universe right, still occupied her. Knowing that she had run out of time, she forced our hand. She is behind everything, the traitor, Goneril, the kidnapping, the rumour of a pretender - everything."
Tyr and Beka stood in unison. Tyr spoke - his hand on Beka's shoulder, "She was never wrong Tamerlane, out of Freya, by Tyr, the Reincarnation. We can no longer put off the inevitable. I'm sorry, son, but we must disclose your true identity tomorrow."
The end.
"About what?" exploded in pique from the lips of the three men.
"Excuse me." Beka realized that she had made a leap in logic that had left the men struggling in a quagmire of uncertainty.
The Lady Kodiak surveyed the men who had obediently taken seats at her bidding. Tyr, she would start the explanation with Tyr. She caught his eye, then sauntered over to him, never breaking eye contact. Now he was completely confused. She couldn't possibly want to seduce him in front of his son and friend? Beka pursed her lips and threw him a kiss, then sat in his lap.
"Think back to your conversation with Dylan. What did he say we had to do to figure out who the traitor was?" She slid an arm around his neck.
"He said that we had to figure out who appeared most oblivious to the current climate." Tyr buried his face in her neck and growled. Now, he understood the connection.
"Would somebody let us in on the less than obvious?" Harper whined.
Tyr raised his head long enough to order Harper to explain to Tamerlane how stars were born.
"Father, every child in nursery school knows how stars are born." Then he snapped. "What has that to do with our traitor?"
Harper jumped up excitedly. "I get it now. You are wrong." He pointed his finger at The Kodiak and his lady.
"Harper," Tyr thundered.
"All right, OK," he settled back in his chair and turned his attention to Tamerlane. "I think your mum and dad are wrong. But he is bigger than me, heck, they are both bigger than me, so I will humour them."
Tamerlane hung his head. They had gone mad. The people he most trusted in the universe were certifiably insane.
Harper cleared his throat and asked, "What is the most common type of star in the universe?"
"Every child knows that they are the red dwarves." Tamerlane said contemptuously, reminding Beka and Harper of his father, although Tyr missed the similarity.
"Yes, boy, you are right," said his father. "They are small and red and they live a very long time."
Beka continued the lesson, "We know that interstellar dust plays an important part in the birth of stars."
"That's the scientific explanation anyway." Said Harper with a sigh.
"And you three have another explanation? Something you can prove, but haven't bothered to?" Tamerlane was certain they had gone mad. "Harper, why would you keep a new theory a secret? That isn't like you to hide your genius from the world."
Harper noted the mocking tone with a grimace, then answered Tamerlane's question with one of his own, "Do you know the translation of Mong Ruad?"
"From stars to your daughter - won't anyone give me a straight answer." Tamerlane rolled his eyes.
"Answer the question, son." Tyr prompted softly, not wanting to exasperate the boy any more than he already was.
"I know that Macha was the name of a queen of Ireland, but I don't know what Mong Ruad means," the boy conceded.
"Red-haired," explained his stepmother.
"Red dwarves? Red hair? Interstellar dust?" Tamerlane jumped out of the chair and began to pace around the room. "What has any of this to do with Goneril and the traitor, or Admiral Hunt for that matter?"
"One day you will sire my children," Harper whispered, "She didn't say father and she didn't say you would be her mate."
"That was childish imagination." Tamerlane paused in his pacing. "I didn't take it seriously."
"But you should son." Tyr surprised them all with his admission.
Beka called to Tamerlane, "Come sit at our feet. I shouldn't have left the explanation to these two. I will make sense of all of this, I promise."
Tamerlane put his trust in Beka and sat at the feet of his parents. Harper settled back in his chair, as if he expected to be there a long time. Tyr closed his eyes and rested his forehead against Beka's back for a moment.
"We have told you the stories of Trance Gemini's second sight. How she returned from the future to reshape the universe."
Tamerlane nodded.
"Ten years ago, we learned that she had defied her people, not once, but twice. The first time was in her purple princess stage. You have seen the holograms, when she had the tail?"
All the men nodded.
"Her second transgression was her return from the future. She saved the universe, but lost her freedom as a result."
Harper took up the story; "I had asked her to marry me, about ten and a half years ago. She turned me down. With regret, I add. But she did ask me to father her child. We couldn't reproduce - incompatible biology. But she was a medical whiz and I was a boy genius."
"And there were a lot of empty test tubes on board Andromeda." Tyr rumbled.
"Once we had the baby started, we needed a surrogate. That's when Anna's ambition met Trance's need and I acquired a wife."
"Anna was the surrogate." Tamerlane interrupted. "And that is the reason that Macha says out of Trance."
"Well she is only ten, and Nietzschean tradition doesn't have a way of explaining that she emerged from Anna, but has no biological connection to her."
Tyr interjected, "Our people manipulate genes, but turn their noses up at surrogacy. One of our many contradictions."
"The sort that the Nietzschean Messiah may face?" "I'm afraid so, son."
"Is Macha incapable of natural childbirth?" asked Tamerlane. "Is that why she used sire?"
"We won't know for a few years, but I thought it best to prepare for the worst, since she lives in a baby factory." Harper sighed.
"What has this to do with Red Dwarf stars?" Tamerlane was like a terrier on a rat. He would not let go.
"Trance had a trick that she used - infrequently - but that I witnessed once." Beka took up the tale. "She would blow what looked like a dust cloud out of her mouth."
"A very special cloud, able to undo manacles and other good things that saved our lives." Harper jumped in again.
"Don't tell me!" Tamerlane's jaw dropped. "Interstellar dust."
Tyr nodded, "Trance's people begin as interstellar dust, then transform into red dwarf stars. For trillions of years they witness the foolishness of all the other species in the universe."
Beka softened his words, "They watch benignly, until a maverick like Trance comes along."
Seamus Harper finished the story, "Trance must return to her stariness very shortly. We knew it was going to happen eventually. What we didn't consider is that her original agenda, to set the universe right, still occupied her. Knowing that she had run out of time, she forced our hand. She is behind everything, the traitor, Goneril, the kidnapping, the rumour of a pretender - everything."
Tyr and Beka stood in unison. Tyr spoke - his hand on Beka's shoulder, "She was never wrong Tamerlane, out of Freya, by Tyr, the Reincarnation. We can no longer put off the inevitable. I'm sorry, son, but we must disclose your true identity tomorrow."
The end.