SAREIN
Alone in the Wild, by design, Sarein lived in a hollowed-out hiveworm nest suspended from a tree, a large organic structure that would have supported five families back on the main continent. Sarein had only bothered to clean out and convert part of it, which was all she needed for her own use. Her humble place was a far cry from when she had lived in the Whisper Palace on Earth as the Theron ambassador and as the lover of Chairman Basil Wenceslas. But she was comfortable.
She tried to be self-sufficient in her isolation, but she received occasional deliveries from the main city on Theroc, even some offworld supplies that she particularly desired.
When Sarein had retreated here in self-imposed exile, she’d done it for the new Confederation, refusing to be a constant reminder of the political machinations that had damaged the human race during the Elemental War. After the downfall of the Hansa, she could have been a gadfly during the formation of the new government, but she made a conscious decision not to meddle. She had already done enough damage. So, she removed herself from civilization, from history, and lived quietly in the wilderness for years.
During the crisis of the Shana Rei nightshade, Sarein had returned briefly to the fungus-reef city. She was tempted to stay, to make herself politically important again, but she had forced herself to pull away and disappear into the Wild once more.
Arita, her niece, was the only one who visited, whether or not Sarein invited her. Despite her cool façade toward the young woman, Sarein saw great potential in her and hoped to help wherever she could. Sarein decided that she preferred a personal connection instead of a grandiose power grab.…
Now, she opened the latest package of supplies she had just received. Preserved foods, a fresh power pack to run her home and electronic equipment, and culled summaries of important news events from across the Spiral Arm. Though she had taken herself off the stage, Sarein still insisted on remaining informed, especially with the brewing crisis of the Shana Rei.
At the bottom of the container, she was surprised to discover a note from Arita. Not a message transmitted through normal communications channels, not telink, not even a standard comm. This was an actual handwritten note, affixed to a much longer folded letter.
“Sarein, please try to find Collin among the green priests over there. Call for him, and the trees will hear. He will hear. Please deliver the attached letter to him. It would mean so much to me. This is too private for telink, which all green priests would hear.”
Sarein gave an indulgent smile. Young lovers sending secret notes. How charming! She imagined how difficult it must be to arrange a clandestine tryst when one’s boyfriend was a green priest. She let out a little laugh.
Once Sarein called for the young man to come to her, however, the other green priests would know about the relationship, especially Kennebar and his hermit green priests. She read the brief note again and nodded to herself. Arita had asked, and so Sarein would do it. Of course she would.
Arita’s longer letter was folded but not sealed. Sarein was tempted to read it. Was that what Arita secretly wanted? Or had she left the letter unsealed to demonstrate a level of trust? Sarein was moved by the thought; it had been a long time since anyone had trusted her like that. Sorely tempted, she unfolded the letter, then folded it again, before glancing at more than the first few words. She decided to let Collin and Arita have their privacy.
She stepped outside of her hiveworm nest and gazed into the dense worldforest, the green shadows that allowed her to hide and allowed her to think. She drew a breath and shouted into the empty wilderness, feeling a little foolish. Sarein had never asked for their help before, but she knew the trees would convey her message. “I need a green priest! Send Collin, please—I want to talk with him.”
Both wanting solitude, she and Kennebar’s group had kept their distance from each other. The green priests were aloof to her, implying that Sarein didn’t belong here in the Wild. She shouted again, just to make sure. “Send the green priest named Collin. It’s an important matter!”
Knowing it might take some time, depending on where the group was in the deep forest, Sarein went back into her chambers and called up the draft of her journal. She had been chronicling her past deeds for some time, wrestling with how much to reveal about the things she had done, how much to confess, and how much to excuse. She didn’t do it to fix her place in history, though her recollections might eventually prove valuable to historians. She wrote her memoirs partly to refocus her thoughts in case she might someday return to civilization.
Someday. Sarein was tired of feeling sorry for herself. She wanted the best for her world and for the human race. Maybe she could help again after all.…
She heard a rustle in the fronds outside and a slender young man with bright green skin scrambled down to her dwelling. “You called for me?” Collin said. He looked concerned, distracted. “Why would you want to see me?”
“This is from Arita.” She held out the letter.
Collin lit up. “Arita sent a note?”
“I don’t know why she didn’t just have a green priest transmit to you. That would have been more efficient.”
Collin blinked at her, eager to read the letter. “It’s another way to keep communications open.” He lowered his voice. “Telink may no longer be reliable. Something is changing in the worldforest, but the green priests are oblivious to it, or they deny it.” He looked up at her; she saw a frightened glimmer in his eyes. “Have you noticed anything?”
“I’m not a green priest. I’m not attuned to the forest the way you are.”
“No, but you may not be blinded by preconceptions either.”
Sarein pondered and looked past him into the dense, whispering forest. “There are times when the trees do seem more … ominous, but I’ve been alone out here for so long I don’t know what to think.”
Collin gave a serious nod, then finally unfolded the letter. His eyes darted back and forth as he read, then he smiled. “Arita is coming to the Wild again! Soon. She’ll travel here to do more scientific work.”
Sarein gave him a skeptical smile. “And also to see you.”
Collin said, “Yes … and also to see me. I’ll find her. We have to keep the lines of communication open.” He read the letter again, then handed it back to her. “I can’t keep this. Kennebar or someone else will find it. But thank you.”
“Happy I could help.”
After he dashed away into the dense fronds, she realized that this was the first accomplishment that had made her feel good in a very long time.