Insgar lived on Serena, her twin world. Many who retired from the service chose to dwell on the planet of their first transit. Sean doubted very much that he would ever select Cyrius as his home. Which was another thing the invasion had cost him, along with a decent night’s sleep.
Sandrine gradually weaned him off the drugs that had kept him under for almost seven days. He didn’t miss the grogginess. But his rest was now punctuated by nightmares of demons that chewed at his bodiless being and lashed him with green, electric fire. He spent his nights locked in battles he would never win, until he was drawn out by the chant of a woman who almost sang his name. Sean. He heard Elenya even when she was not around. And when she held him, she carried in her strength the drumbeat of life and the clashing cymbals of shared breaths, and above it all was the soaring joy of hearing her speak his name. Sean.
Insgar’s home was a rambling country estate, all on one floor, built in an open square with a vast courtyard at its center. Sandrine lived in a separate apartment in the back and was enormously happy with the arrangement. Insgar was a natural teacher and found in Sandrine a willing sponge. The doctor would have her choice of institutes for further study, if or when the time came.
The central courtyard held a formal garden, fountains, sculptures, and two small groves of blooming trees. Insgar spent many hours harassing the gardeners assigned to her flowerbeds. It was a happy home, filled with light and wind and space for reflection.
Dillon came every free day, often bringing Carey with him. He was preparing to enter the Academy, but for the moment he was spending time in the loft and visiting with their parents. Their parents showed mild curiosity over Sean’s absence but accepted Dillon’s excuse of a new temporary assignment. Sean tried to show interest in descriptions of their parents’ new homes. But it all seemed to be filtered through the knowledge that he had moved on. He was setting up a life of his own now.
Carver visited as well, and Josef, and both men carried with them the quiet pressure of the unseen hordes who urgently awaited the chance to speak with Sean. But he never saw them alone, as Elenya remained determined to hold the world at bay until Sean was ready.
But his idyll could not last forever, much as he might like to pretend the choice was his. Insgar was bossy by nature and tolerated no argument once her mind was made up. Which was how Sean found himself facing the prospect of dining with Elenya’s parents. He had already recognized that arguing with his host was a futile effort. So he agreed, but his sour countenance was enough to invoke her ire.
“You show that face to my guests, and I will make you sorry you still draw breath!” When angered, Insgar liked to raise her chair up high enough to glare down from imperial heights. “You think the aliens gave you a hard time? You wait, young sir! I will show you what real trouble feels like!”
“I said I’d do it.”
“Aye, and I am ordering you to do so cheerfully! Now show me your smile of greeting. Phah. Elenya, talk sense to this dolt.”
“Sean will do just fine by my parents.”
“He’d better, or he’ll find himself sleeping out in the fields! Listen to me, lad. The Ambassador and his wife are both powerful people. They will make you worthwhile allies.”
“Or dangerous adversaries,” Elenya said.
“That will not happen because I will not let it!”
“There is the small matter,” Elenya reminded the old woman, “of my having run away from home.”
“Ah, lass, I do like your spirit. You remind me of myself, back when I was still young enough to breathe fire. Now listen well, lad. What I am about to tell you will make all the difference in the world. When they arrive, you will greet them as a man in love. You will show them contentment and happiness. There is no wound, do you hear me, idiot? There is no lingering shadow. You will show them that all is well with you, because you and their beloved daughter are united against the world. And they will accept this because they must. No mention will be made of any past quarrel. If her mother brings it up, you will ignore the comment. You will show by example what the future holds. The four of you united. As a family. In peace.”
“You sound like my father,” Elenya said.
“Then he is a wise man indeed. Now go and fetch the tailor.”
The two ladies fitted him out like he was a doll headed for a display cabinet. Sean protested once, or tried, but the two women joined together and smashed him down with such force even the tailor winced. After that Sean held to what dignity he had left, and submitted because he had no choice.
They dressed him in a civilian’s counterpart to the dress uniform of a senior Assembly officer. The fabric was the most expensive available, similar to the grey sheath that Elenya wore. The color was one shade lighter than midnight blue, with darker seams running down both legs and forming his high collar and cuffs. But where an officer would use the attire as a backdrop for his or her medals, Sean’s garments were completely unadorned. Even the buttons were hidden. It was a severe and elegant declaration of who he would someday become. Elenya said he was almost too handsome. Even Insgar declared herself moderately satisfied.
The dinner was served in the torch-lit central garden. Sean had no way of knowing for certain, but he suspected the bevy of servants was Insgar’s strategy at work, reminding her guests that she was a woman of wealth and power she could flaunt. Which she did. The tablecloth was woven with jewels that caught the firelight, the service solid gold.
Sean had no idea what he was eating and had little appetite. But silence worked well enough for him. He responded when someone spoke to him directly, which Elenya’s mother never did. The woman was elegant and severe and highly intelligent, a trained observer who radiated disapproval and yet who was caught off guard time and again. It was all Insgar’s doing. The old woman punctuated every silence with a statement that rang with two hundred years of authority. How she was finally satisfied that she had identified a worthy successor. That thanks to Elenya’s guiding hand, Sean would grow into the adept ready to lead them where they next needed to go. On and on the comments came, until even the mother’s slow-burning ire was, if not extinguished, at least dampened.
When it was finally over and the guests departed, all Sean could think to say was, “Thank you.”
Insgar lifted her chair up to where she could look down upon him. “You had best live up to my predictions, or I will redefine the word misery.”
“I didn’t ask—”
“Oh, hush with your nonsense. Why must the youth of every generation be forced to relearn the lesson of responsibility?”
Sean started to point out what he had already done in that regard, but Insgar lifted her chin a fraction, a gesture so like Elenya he had to smile.
When Insgar was certain she had stifled his response, she conceded, “You really are a handsome lad when you stop with your pouting and your nonsense.”
“I don’t pout.”
Elenya moved closer and slipped her hand in his. “Sean, your pout could win prizes on several planets.”
“There, you see? I knew she was the one for you.” Insgar turned her chair about. “I suppose you two will be leaving me soon.”
“I want to show Sean my twin world,” Elenya said.
“There are several duties you both will need to perform first, mind.”
Elenya squeezed his hand, stifling another futile protest. “Sean knows, Mistress.”
“Well, come and visit with me when you’re done gallivanting.” Her voice remained firm even as she vanished into the shadows. “We have futures to plan. Two of them.”