Chapter 1 - The Lapse
Chapter 2 - A Past Life
Chapter 3- Old Friend
Chapter 4 - Pirate Spy
Chapter 5 - Dream Factory
Chapter 6 - Pirate Colours
Chapter 7 - The Ruse
Chapter 8 - The Other Face
Completed below =============
Chapter 9 - Reflection
Lumar sat on the thin mat cross legged with his eyes closed. He had remained perfectly motionless in the Hall of Silence for some considerable time. This was one of his favourate places within the temple, a unique room dedicated to the use of non-verbal discussion. Beside him were a small paper pad and pen, both items that had for the most part disappeared with progress, and considered old relics of a bygone age whose memory resided in museums as antiques of a less civilized age.
Only, as one aged Goner scholar liked to point out, “If the power ever goes out we’ll be buggered. It’ll all be over bar the screaming at the end.”
Lumar could see his point, he also reflected that the older a Goner became the more at liberty they were to express themselves without being tethered to the correctness of language. In this hall discussions had to be held using the written word thus disabling the most vocal from dominating the floor and allowing everyone to express a view, though the size of each piece of paper on the pad limited the wordage and thereby encouraged participants to concisely express their view. Strictly governed there was a penance for the utterance of a single word or any view that expanded beyond a second sheet of paper unless permitted to do so by the chair of the meeting.
As the stazuras passed he heard the occasional movement of robes and soft bump of padded soled shoes. In all this time he never moved or twitched a muscle, while he recalled and replayed every moment of recent events to see if at any time he could have prevented the incident. He dismissed out of hand the thought that if he had never talked or tried to help Mim she would have been better off, or at least still alive. It was not a question in his mind that he did wrong by at least trying to help someone that clearly needed it. Somewhere inside the cold voice of reality assured him that, as a working slave, she looked as though her owner had decided she had already reached the end of her useful working life. What her original motives were for suggesting that they eat in that establishment would always be unclear to him, ‘maybe she just wanted to prove to him she could still entertain.’
There was a nagging feeling that somehow he had been setup and the pirate, Gobran, certainly knew who he was from the moment he stepped onto the station. The former pit fighter had declared that he was nicknamed ‘The Butcher’ and Creed remembered that he dominated the pit fighting ring for several Jazuras after he, himself, had been liberated by Paranid special forces. Gobran deliberately provoked him by suddenly refusing to sell the slaves then calmly and casually activated their termination codes right in front of him. He remembered the look of shock in the pirates dying eye’s when he said, ‘I am and always will be the best that has ever fought in the pit.”
Other questions came to mind, ‘dressed as I was why wasn’t I turned away, and why did the man at the desk not refuse to allow Mim entrance?’ Again he could only speculate that Gobran might have told the man to allow him and any street girl in with ‘special permission’. Perhaps Gobran had even sent word around that the girls should try to hit on him and then direct him towards the restaurant. This thought sent a chill coursing through his body, the pirate could have being trying to find one way or another to provoke him. With this thought pieces dropped into place while he reflected on each minor effort that failed to get a desired response; from the assault in the office to the gross overcharging for the pirate colours. He could only assume now that Gobran was looking for a trigger and it was all with total disregard for who might die in the process, but not until they stood face to face did he succeed, at which point Gobran had never seen Creed fight to understand his technique and know how to prepare himself.
This, he decided, had been a quickly and poorly conceived idea based simply on vanity. From the very first moment he stepped on the station, wheels had been put into motion that would have led to someone dying. The basic rule of the pit was never to expect to walk out alive. He felt a wave of deep and residing sadness that, despite his efforts to put it behind him, once more his past had reared its ugly head. Everyone would know that it was Creed on the station and although he tried to behave in a manner that befitted Lumar, he had failed.
While he contemplated this he spent time rationalizing what he meant by, failed. He remembered a passing comment from one of the senior Goner teachers, “People can only truly learn, if they can reflect on the mistakes they make and realize how not to repeat them.” Lumar wondered if he would be able to see the signs next time, or even if he would stop and question what was going on around him and more importantly, could he by his considered actions turn a course of events to end in a way that was conducive to the peaceful Goner way. He considered one of the many debates held about the principle of destiny and remembered the closing statement, “If our destiny has been written from the moment that time began, and we wait for it to reveal itself then we will achieve nothing in our lifetime. At which point the revelation will be that to sit and wait was our destiny. Those who seek, those who do and the ones that challenge are the ones who discover the real path to the true light.”
+++++++++++
Priests moved through the chamber and without opening his eyes he could tell how many, whether they were male or female and even how much they weighted. He found himself picturing the priests and priestesses and several he had the distinct impression that he knew and could put a name too. At one point he knew he was surrounded by a circle and heard the scratching of pens on paper as a written discussion took place around him. All the while he never moved, not even when someone held a mirror under his nose, he could tell it was a mirror by the way the pattern of light shifted against his lids.
In the slow heart beats he contemplated time and some area of his mind had kept track of its passage. Four stazuras passed and stiffly Lumar rose from the mat. Around him lay pieces of paper that had not been there when he arrived and he let them lie. He had reflected on the past and now the future lay ahead of him and no messages of sympathy or condolence would change its course.
In the corridor he met into Tinn and could tell he had been loitering for some time.
“Brother Lumar,”
Lumar said did not respond but turned and headed towards the medical centre. The young priest trotted along beside him, “Brother Lumar, Brother Noah told us about your terrible loss and I, the other Brothers and Sisters in the order want you to know that we are here for you.”
Lumar stopped dead and once again he felt as if cold fingers closed themselves around him. The young priest went on a few steps before turning round in surprise, and Lumar said in a low voice, “The girl who I brought here, is .. she .. alive?”
Tinn looked unsure of himself and hesitated, “I .. I think so.”
“Brother Tinn, some advice, this might not be the best time to be anywhere near me.” With that Lumar continued towards the medical centre leaving a somewhat shocked and perplexed Tinn standing in the corridor. He arrived with presence to be met with a look of surprise from a group of Sisters. Somehow his arrival had managed to induce a sense of fear in all of them, despite being dressed in unthreatening Goner robes.
“Brother Lumar?” The eldest of the sisters said with an air of caution.
“The answer to that question depends on your answer to this one, did the girl live?”
“She is very weak, the surgeons had to rebuild a considerable amount of her lower left side. Recently they were forced to perform another operation as micro shards were found in scans. We still have no clear indication if she will survive,” She said hurriedly, “We did send a note.”
Lumar wondered how much Noah had said about this strange woman that had suddenly turned up and how much might have filtered through from other channels. He forced himself to appear relaxed and said, “I’d like to see her.”
“Yes, Brother Lumar right this way.”
They went to a sterile room packed full of equipment and Lumar wondered if every conceivable life support system had not been packed around the stark white bed. Under the sheets was the woman he only knew as Candy. Arms and face as pale as snow rested against the sheets.
He approached the right side of the bed and looked down then picked up her hand and said, “And I don’t even know your real name.”
She neither moved or stirred and Lumar once again became a statue, soothed by the rhythmical low pulse of the heart monitor, his eyes flickering open at the perceived sound of any minor abnormality and soon he could measure his own heartbeat with that of the monitor.
Always aware, he knew people moved in and out of the room, whispered voices and frantic conversations happened around him and all the while he held her hand. Just as he had held his mothers hand as she lay dying on the floor from the beating her slave owner father had given her, but then he had felt the cold chill of death creep thought her body to forever change his life.
===============
A voice cut through the shadows that haunted his mind, “Brother Lumar, you are needed.”
His flicked open and annoyance danced dangerously on the periphery of his sudden mood, with careful reverence he placed Candy’s hand on the bed sheets and with a terrible sense of reluctance let it slide between his fingers. All he could find to say was, “This had better be extremely important.”
“That will depend on your definition of extreme, Brother Lumar.”
He turned to look at the young Sister that had been given the task summoning him away, and in her naive smile he knew that Noah had specifically chosen her not simply from the fact the Old Goner knew he would not hurt her, but also from the knowledge that she also knew nothing about him to be afraid. In the time since he returned he wondered how many rumours now ran rampant and unchecked through the temple. He refrained from his immediate response to reply, “And did they tell you why I was needed?”
“No Brother Lumar, just that you are.” There was an emphasis in her voice that he recognized.
“I’m sorry little Sister, but you have not introduced yourself that I might address you properly.”
“I am Sister Gwendal, Brother Lumar.”
“Sister Gwendal,” Lumar hesitated with several additions he could make all of which would be a polite or impolite refusal, but he said, “But it is my wish that you tell me where this meeting is to be held but wait here in my stead and if anything should happen then come and fetch me as fast as you can.”
The girl looked uncertain and then nodded, “Okay, Brother Lumar.” He dropped down on one knee and took her hands in his, she said, “Your hands are cold.”
“They will not warm until she awakens, safe and alive. Like her, so much depends on this one small thing. Can you do this for me?” Gwendal looked from him to Candy and shrugged with a nod. Lumar gave the flinch of a smile, and said quietly, “Do not make the mistake of thinking this a minor burden, thousands of peoples lives depend upon the answer. Believe me the one who cares is not a nice person.” With that Lumar walked away knowing where it was that he would be expected without having to ask.
Lumar knew inside that he walked like Creed and was absolutely certain of his destination only nothing would or could stop him from reaching it. The tension in his face seemed to have manifested itself to the point that everyone swerved and veered sharply out of his way.
He reached the destination and saw the familiar forms of Korecmancketras and Caran but no one else was in the hall. He announced, “I understand you want to talk to me.”
“How’s the girl?” Caran turned towards him and despite the glint of metal in his face there appeared a genuine expression of concern.
“If that’s the only reason you asked me here, then you had better hope she doesn’t die while I’m gone,” Lumar said in a voice that he recognized as Creeds.
“No, that’s not the reason I asked you here, but I can help you.
“Will you help me get on the Anarchy Station to save a girl who’s been made a slave because my old ship was docked at Trantor.”
“Yes,” Caran replied all too quickly to Lumar.
“Then make sure Candy lives as you’re on my list. A place no-one will want to be if she dies.”
“I know,” Caran said and Lumar knew he meant it. There was something about the brutal Argon agent that made him different from the others and it was a matter of mutual respect. They were like two predators surrounded by a sea of onlookers,
Creed would kill Caran that much was certain but somewhere inside he knew he would be seriously wounded and before he could recover the scavengers would close in. There were reasons he hated Caran but they were not enough to make him want to take another side. Lumar said, “What do you have for me?”
A momentary lapse of reason - chpt 9 complete (18/07/06)
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A momentary lapse of reason - chpt 9 complete (18/07/06)
Last edited by Mercenary on Tue, 18. Jul 06, 08:21, edited 3 times in total.
Excellent reflection on the past events. Nice description of potential intrigues that may have led to the outcome we saw. The last quote is fabulous! Completely in tune with my outlook on life. I need to copy that out and keep it somewhere safe!
Looking forward to the continuation!
"have being trying" - been?
Looking forward to the continuation!
"have being trying" - been?
I like it, the way you make the sutble switches between Creed/Lumar is very good.-
Captain Chris sTc
- Posts: 991
- Joined: Fri, 6. Feb 04, 01:21
sweet. he's still got his inner battle going on. i guess we''l find out who wins, when the state of candy changes.
“If our destiny has been written from the moment that time began, and we wait for it to reveal itself then we will achieve nothing in our lifetime. At which point the revelation will be that to sit and wait was our destiny. Those who seek, those who do and the ones that challenge are the ones who discover the real path to the true light.”
is this yours or from somewhere else. It's very good either way and also very true.
little thing i noticed, about eh thrird paragraph in the second part.
"“Brother Lumar,”
Lumar said did not respond but turned and headed towards the medical centre."
is this extra ???
“If our destiny has been written from the moment that time began, and we wait for it to reveal itself then we will achieve nothing in our lifetime. At which point the revelation will be that to sit and wait was our destiny. Those who seek, those who do and the ones that challenge are the ones who discover the real path to the true light.”
is this yours or from somewhere else. It's very good either way and also very true.
little thing i noticed, about eh thrird paragraph in the second part.
"“Brother Lumar,”
Lumar said did not respond but turned and headed towards the medical centre."
is this extra ???
Thanks heaps! Great to have some more to read before going to sleep and luckily no dead bodies yet! 
I guess the young girl really will be shivering by now. Although she knows nothing about Creed, his words were anything but comforting. For the moment it seems as though Creed is getting the better of Lumar but it will really all depend on the girl surviving or not. After his mother and the other girl, losing a third person to a slave owner would fill him with a feeling of impotence which may cause more distress than the death itself.
Looking forward to the next chapter!
I guess the young girl really will be shivering by now. Although she knows nothing about Creed, his words were anything but comforting. For the moment it seems as though Creed is getting the better of Lumar but it will really all depend on the girl surviving or not. After his mother and the other girl, losing a third person to a slave owner would fill him with a feeling of impotence which may cause more distress than the death itself.
Looking forward to the next chapter!
Last edited by KiwiNZ on Tue, 18. Jul 06, 13:01, edited 1 time in total.
