Damascus, Syria, [April 14th in Enderverse]
The elevator they had ridden up into the building had dropped them off in, of all things, a garden, lush like a jungle. The courtyard was glassed over, keeping it moist, preventing anything from being given up to the dry desert air.
Sitting quietly on a stone chair in the middle of the garden was a tall, slender man, his skin the deep cacao brown of the upper Niger where he had been born. He had long legs, clad not in the business suit that had been the uniform of westerners for centuries now, but in the robes of a sheik. His head was not covered, however And there was no beard on his chin. Still young, and yet also now a man.
"Alai," Petra murmured, softly.
He chose that moment to turn and look at them. His brooding expression softened into a smile. But it was not the boyish grin that she had known when he bounded along the low-gravity inner corridors of Battle School. This smile had weariness in it, and old fears long mastered but still present.
Karla looked him over, comparing this male now to the the boy she had known through Ender's memories. His psychic scent suggested power, one that went beyond the temporal and political power he'd been given. Not Craft by any means, but...charisma, perhaps? Alai was the kind of male that made you want to believe in him, to trust in him. Beneath that power was a warm kindness backed by a steely resolve.
She smiled at him. "Peace," she murmured.
Ben's lips pursed. Ender had used that word with him, dammit. And what Alai was wearing looked way more comfortable than his stupid khakis, now wrinkled almost beyond help.
He crossed his hands over his chest, raised his eyebrows and waited.
Alai's own mouth quirked, the moment the word left Karla's mouth. "Salaam," he returned.
"Salaam," Petra echoed, as well, shooting Karla a grateful look.
"Stone girl," Alai continued.
"Hi," said Petra.
And then there was another silence.
"I'm glad to see all of you are okay," Alai said, at last.
Karla was never one to let a good silence last long. "I assume you know why we're here," she said, amusement threading through her voice. "All of the reasons, I guess."
There was no way she wouldn't recognize the psychic scent that mingled with Alai's. And with all the security precautions that had been taken before they'd been led to this room, Karla doubted that their identities were in doubt. "We thank you for your hospitality, Prince," she said, awarding him the Kaeleeran title.
Ben wasn't feeling at that grateful, personally, but he was trying not to be abominably rude.
"Why did you bring us here?" he asked, keeping his voice even. Since no one on this entire planet had done something purely out of their interest in being helpful, he didn't think the answer was going to be "because Ender was here, missed you and wants to go home."
Karla gained a nod that radiated quiet acceptance of her thanks. Ben, though, got an answer.
"Two reasons," he said, "The first being that two dear friends asked for my help and protection, something I have not been timely with."
"You've done well by us already," Petra said, quietly.
"I wish I could have done more," he said, simply. "The second is that I've heard rumors of another such friend returning to us, and your presence here confirms it. While I commit myself to helping him however I can, I thought it only decent that I offer his friends hospitality."
"You're saying you haven't seen said friend, then?" Karla asked lightly, eyebrow arched. "Had any contact with him at all?"
"And we'll know if you're lying," Ben pointed out softly. Well, the kind of soft like the sound a knife made unsheathing was soft.
Alai's mouth, if anything, quirked as he looked at Ben. "You've seen our world," he said. "If I had any information to share, I would not do so if it endangered my friend. But rest assured that he's one of the most self-sufficient men I know - have a little faith."
"Alai," Petra spoke, interrupting, "You've been keeping a lot of secrets from us." And not just any knowledge he might have about Ender.
"None that will remain secret for much longer. Some known by too many already."
"Well then, if that's the case, let's just skip to the grand reveal," Karla said, her voice getting an impatient edge. She plunked herself down on the air, propped her chin in her hands, and gave Alai and expectant look.
Ben shot Karla a slightly wry smile. Not exactly a way to stay under the radar, sitting in midair. He'd noticed that Alai hadn't said straight-out that Ender wasn't here, so he reached out into the Force--a quick questing out for that familiar and much-missed presence.
"I'm sure there's some way that Karla and I could be useful to you," he added, "should that be necessary. Faith only gets you so far, after all."
Alai, for what it was worth, seemed mostly unphased. Petra's eyes widened, though, and she left the two of them to find her way to Alai's throne, sitting down beside it, and peering back at them.
There was some hint of Ender there - but wherever he was, it was not within close range.
"We'll see if that is true," he said. "My interests are currently drawn into several directions. You are merely a part of it."
"So you have been watching us," Petra murmured, squinting up at him.
"Part or whole, I'm pretty sure we can be useful anyway," Karla said. "Alternately, you could just let us know about Ender and we'll get out of your hair, thus allowing you to focus on your other issues. If you have been watching, you at least know that Ben and I are the least danger to him. And can possibly help him with whatever he needs."
Though it didn't feel like Ender thought that way--otherwise, he wouldn't have left them without a word. But she wasn't going to say that.
And neither was Ben, who had carefully repressed that potential rejection. "But we won't fight a war for you," Ben said quietly, looking straight into Alai's eyes. "We have nothing invested in this world. We just want Ender and to go home again."
"I have no intention to start a war with anyone," Alai replied. "The Muslims have renounced military jihad. The only purification and redemption we attempt is of the soul."
Petra eyed him. "Do all wars have to be holy wars?"
"No, but unholy wars damn all those who take part in them." He smiled at Karla. "As I said, what information I have can't be disclosed. Yet. And as long as Achilles lives, I doubt Ender will be inclined to return to where the enemy knows he is."
She shot a glance at Ben. That sounded an awful lot like hinting at Ben's, ah, former profession. "So once he's dead, we can see Ender? Did you have any plans for how such an eventuality can be brought forward?"
Ben was wondering how much of Ender's note was really meant to make Ben stay home and how much was manipulating him here so he could take out Achilles. At this point, he wasn't sure if he cared.
"I can think of a few ways to change those circumstances," Ben offered, voice steely.
"Then your thoughts might be useful when our last guest arrives," Alai said, his voice quiet ease in comparison to the both of them.
"He has armies," Petra said, flatly, "I know you have operatives who'll shoot a gun if you tell them to. You don't need them--"
"We’re prepared to use force to defend ourselves if we’re attacked," he interrupted. "I will help you as much as I can. But it's up to Bean."
Petra just shook her head, her own eyes steely as she obviously parsed use force to defend ourselves for what it was. An easy excuse to start a war.
Alai's smile quirked further. "But you must all be tired."
"I'm so glad you--" Karla started hotly, but was interrupted by a tiny ding that no one else could hear.
She turned to Petra and smiled. "Congratulations," she said.
Ben shot Alai a very quick "save me" look before remembering that he didn't like Alai very much and schooling his face back to neutrality. "Petra might need a nap, but I don't sleep much," he said. And Ben had learned the hard way about trying to tell Karla when she might need to rest.
For the first time, Alai looked surprised. "Petra--?"
"It took?" she shrieked said, staring at Karla with big eyes. "Unless that's some weird witch thing I don't know about."
Karla nodded, her reservations about Petra's age momentarily cast away. "It took," she said, grinning like a loon. Her eyes were focused on Petra's stomach. "I can see it, tucked up and safe against the wall. Already drawing nutrients to grow."
Yes, Ben decided this was still a Very Strange Conversation. "When will Bean arrive?" he asked Alai again.
Because talking war was where Ben was comfortable. Talking about babies? Not so much.
Petra's normally stoic demeanor fell away as she hurled herself at Karla, grinning.
Alai chose not to make note of it beyond a vague smile. "Soon enough," he said, facing Ben instead. Talking war, yes. "He ran into some trouble before we could get to him." Potentially lethal trouble.
Karla was a bit surprised by the hug, but that didn't stop her from returning it. "My fee for my services is a promise to never paint the nursery pink," she teased. "No matter how much Bean begs."
"What kind of trouble?" Ben asked, ignoring the conversation he didn't want to hear.
"He walked into a firefight," Alai said, casting a look over towards Karla and Petra, leaving them to the hugging and Petra's quick sense of getting her composure back about herself, making a mocking crack or two about getting the baby professionally dressed, too. "One of our drivers picked him up afterwards - we're not sure who made the first move. Possibly the Chinese, but it might well be the Hegemony right now."
"Also, I feel the need to point out just how excellent 'Karla' is as a name," Karla teased quietly before her attention was snagged by Alai's comment about a 'firefight.' She'd been friends with Triela too long to think he meant that Bean had suddenly picked a habit of putting out housefires or the like.
"Was he injured?" Karla asked, all cool professionalism.
"I'm sure Alai would have mentioned that right away if it had been the case," Ben said, blue eyes focused on Alai's face. "Wasting time in small talk otherwise would have been needlessly cruel."
"Alai. Tell me," Petra said, urgently. "That stupid legume."
"He is fine," Alai said, "I'm not sure there's much that could really touch Bean. We've got him."
At least that meant Petra wouldn't have to hold herself back when it came to taking Bean to task about letting himself get caught in a firefight. Karla knew from experience how frustrating it was when a good rant kept getting sidetracked by concern.
Of course, 'fine' didn't necessarily mean 'uninjured,' but Karla decided now wasn't the best time to point that out.
"So we're looking at naps or pleasant chatting--" a kinder way of saying 'pointless smalltalk' "--until Bean gets here?"
"Thrilling," Ben said dryly. "I'm sure Alai has other things to keep him occupied and he doesn't want us wandering off on our own, right?"
"You are free to leave if you have other plans," Alai noted. "You're guests, not prisoners here. And you're free to explore this side of the complex, of course." He smiled at Petra. "Most of the rooms are public spaces, offices, things like that. My quarters amount to a simple bedroom and this garden, so you can rest assured that if you stay, it'll be in quarters identical to the Caliph's."
"I feel as if I’ve been swept away into one of Scheherazade’s stories," Petra said, lightly.
"We keep a sturdy roof. You have nothing to fear from rocks."
"You think of everything," said Petra.
Alai glanced from Petra to Karla and back. "And we have an excellent doctor on call if you need him."
Karla sniffed disdainfully. Alai probably hadn't meant that to be a slur against her abilities but that didn't mean she had to like it.
"This garden is beautiful," she mentioned, only a little grudgingly. "I wouldn't mind a chance to look around." Part of her hoped she'd find something that needed improving while she did. Karla was like that sometimes.
Ben shrugged a shoulder. "I need to meditate anyway. I'm getting out of practice." And Anakin would give him an earful about it when they got back if he didn't find a way to seek equilibrium. His eyes went right back to Alai's face. "You'll let us know if something changes."
It wasn't really a question. Or a request.
"I will let you know," Alai agreed, "Unless the information would be a danger to us all. I have no intent of withholding what I can give."
Petra's mouth set into a line. She finally walked forward again, and knelt down, leaning her head on Alai and finally holding on a little bit. He didn't seem surprised.
[NFI, NFB, OOC makes the snow melt--trufax! Preplayed with the ever-amazing endsthegame and the always-enchanting momslilassassin]
Sitting quietly on a stone chair in the middle of the garden was a tall, slender man, his skin the deep cacao brown of the upper Niger where he had been born. He had long legs, clad not in the business suit that had been the uniform of westerners for centuries now, but in the robes of a sheik. His head was not covered, however And there was no beard on his chin. Still young, and yet also now a man.
"Alai," Petra murmured, softly.
He chose that moment to turn and look at them. His brooding expression softened into a smile. But it was not the boyish grin that she had known when he bounded along the low-gravity inner corridors of Battle School. This smile had weariness in it, and old fears long mastered but still present.
Karla looked him over, comparing this male now to the the boy she had known through Ender's memories. His psychic scent suggested power, one that went beyond the temporal and political power he'd been given. Not Craft by any means, but...charisma, perhaps? Alai was the kind of male that made you want to believe in him, to trust in him. Beneath that power was a warm kindness backed by a steely resolve.
She smiled at him. "Peace," she murmured.
Ben's lips pursed. Ender had used that word with him, dammit. And what Alai was wearing looked way more comfortable than his stupid khakis, now wrinkled almost beyond help.
He crossed his hands over his chest, raised his eyebrows and waited.
Alai's own mouth quirked, the moment the word left Karla's mouth. "Salaam," he returned.
"Salaam," Petra echoed, as well, shooting Karla a grateful look.
"Stone girl," Alai continued.
"Hi," said Petra.
And then there was another silence.
"I'm glad to see all of you are okay," Alai said, at last.
Karla was never one to let a good silence last long. "I assume you know why we're here," she said, amusement threading through her voice. "All of the reasons, I guess."
There was no way she wouldn't recognize the psychic scent that mingled with Alai's. And with all the security precautions that had been taken before they'd been led to this room, Karla doubted that their identities were in doubt. "We thank you for your hospitality, Prince," she said, awarding him the Kaeleeran title.
Ben wasn't feeling at that grateful, personally, but he was trying not to be abominably rude.
"Why did you bring us here?" he asked, keeping his voice even. Since no one on this entire planet had done something purely out of their interest in being helpful, he didn't think the answer was going to be "because Ender was here, missed you and wants to go home."
Karla gained a nod that radiated quiet acceptance of her thanks. Ben, though, got an answer.
"Two reasons," he said, "The first being that two dear friends asked for my help and protection, something I have not been timely with."
"You've done well by us already," Petra said, quietly.
"I wish I could have done more," he said, simply. "The second is that I've heard rumors of another such friend returning to us, and your presence here confirms it. While I commit myself to helping him however I can, I thought it only decent that I offer his friends hospitality."
"You're saying you haven't seen said friend, then?" Karla asked lightly, eyebrow arched. "Had any contact with him at all?"
"And we'll know if you're lying," Ben pointed out softly. Well, the kind of soft like the sound a knife made unsheathing was soft.
Alai's mouth, if anything, quirked as he looked at Ben. "You've seen our world," he said. "If I had any information to share, I would not do so if it endangered my friend. But rest assured that he's one of the most self-sufficient men I know - have a little faith."
"Alai," Petra spoke, interrupting, "You've been keeping a lot of secrets from us." And not just any knowledge he might have about Ender.
"None that will remain secret for much longer. Some known by too many already."
"Well then, if that's the case, let's just skip to the grand reveal," Karla said, her voice getting an impatient edge. She plunked herself down on the air, propped her chin in her hands, and gave Alai and expectant look.
Ben shot Karla a slightly wry smile. Not exactly a way to stay under the radar, sitting in midair. He'd noticed that Alai hadn't said straight-out that Ender wasn't here, so he reached out into the Force--a quick questing out for that familiar and much-missed presence.
"I'm sure there's some way that Karla and I could be useful to you," he added, "should that be necessary. Faith only gets you so far, after all."
Alai, for what it was worth, seemed mostly unphased. Petra's eyes widened, though, and she left the two of them to find her way to Alai's throne, sitting down beside it, and peering back at them.
There was some hint of Ender there - but wherever he was, it was not within close range.
"We'll see if that is true," he said. "My interests are currently drawn into several directions. You are merely a part of it."
"So you have been watching us," Petra murmured, squinting up at him.
"Part or whole, I'm pretty sure we can be useful anyway," Karla said. "Alternately, you could just let us know about Ender and we'll get out of your hair, thus allowing you to focus on your other issues. If you have been watching, you at least know that Ben and I are the least danger to him. And can possibly help him with whatever he needs."
Though it didn't feel like Ender thought that way--otherwise, he wouldn't have left them without a word. But she wasn't going to say that.
And neither was Ben, who had carefully repressed that potential rejection. "But we won't fight a war for you," Ben said quietly, looking straight into Alai's eyes. "We have nothing invested in this world. We just want Ender and to go home again."
"I have no intention to start a war with anyone," Alai replied. "The Muslims have renounced military jihad. The only purification and redemption we attempt is of the soul."
Petra eyed him. "Do all wars have to be holy wars?"
"No, but unholy wars damn all those who take part in them." He smiled at Karla. "As I said, what information I have can't be disclosed. Yet. And as long as Achilles lives, I doubt Ender will be inclined to return to where the enemy knows he is."
She shot a glance at Ben. That sounded an awful lot like hinting at Ben's, ah, former profession. "So once he's dead, we can see Ender? Did you have any plans for how such an eventuality can be brought forward?"
Ben was wondering how much of Ender's note was really meant to make Ben stay home and how much was manipulating him here so he could take out Achilles. At this point, he wasn't sure if he cared.
"I can think of a few ways to change those circumstances," Ben offered, voice steely.
"Then your thoughts might be useful when our last guest arrives," Alai said, his voice quiet ease in comparison to the both of them.
"He has armies," Petra said, flatly, "I know you have operatives who'll shoot a gun if you tell them to. You don't need them--"
"We’re prepared to use force to defend ourselves if we’re attacked," he interrupted. "I will help you as much as I can. But it's up to Bean."
Petra just shook her head, her own eyes steely as she obviously parsed use force to defend ourselves for what it was. An easy excuse to start a war.
Alai's smile quirked further. "But you must all be tired."
"I'm so glad you--" Karla started hotly, but was interrupted by a tiny ding that no one else could hear.
She turned to Petra and smiled. "Congratulations," she said.
Ben shot Alai a very quick "save me" look before remembering that he didn't like Alai very much and schooling his face back to neutrality. "Petra might need a nap, but I don't sleep much," he said. And Ben had learned the hard way about trying to tell Karla when she might need to rest.
For the first time, Alai looked surprised. "Petra--?"
"It took?" she shrieked said, staring at Karla with big eyes. "Unless that's some weird witch thing I don't know about."
Karla nodded, her reservations about Petra's age momentarily cast away. "It took," she said, grinning like a loon. Her eyes were focused on Petra's stomach. "I can see it, tucked up and safe against the wall. Already drawing nutrients to grow."
Yes, Ben decided this was still a Very Strange Conversation. "When will Bean arrive?" he asked Alai again.
Because talking war was where Ben was comfortable. Talking about babies? Not so much.
Petra's normally stoic demeanor fell away as she hurled herself at Karla, grinning.
Alai chose not to make note of it beyond a vague smile. "Soon enough," he said, facing Ben instead. Talking war, yes. "He ran into some trouble before we could get to him." Potentially lethal trouble.
Karla was a bit surprised by the hug, but that didn't stop her from returning it. "My fee for my services is a promise to never paint the nursery pink," she teased. "No matter how much Bean begs."
"What kind of trouble?" Ben asked, ignoring the conversation he didn't want to hear.
"He walked into a firefight," Alai said, casting a look over towards Karla and Petra, leaving them to the hugging and Petra's quick sense of getting her composure back about herself, making a mocking crack or two about getting the baby professionally dressed, too. "One of our drivers picked him up afterwards - we're not sure who made the first move. Possibly the Chinese, but it might well be the Hegemony right now."
"Also, I feel the need to point out just how excellent 'Karla' is as a name," Karla teased quietly before her attention was snagged by Alai's comment about a 'firefight.' She'd been friends with Triela too long to think he meant that Bean had suddenly picked a habit of putting out housefires or the like.
"Was he injured?" Karla asked, all cool professionalism.
"I'm sure Alai would have mentioned that right away if it had been the case," Ben said, blue eyes focused on Alai's face. "Wasting time in small talk otherwise would have been needlessly cruel."
"Alai. Tell me," Petra said, urgently. "That stupid legume."
"He is fine," Alai said, "I'm not sure there's much that could really touch Bean. We've got him."
At least that meant Petra wouldn't have to hold herself back when it came to taking Bean to task about letting himself get caught in a firefight. Karla knew from experience how frustrating it was when a good rant kept getting sidetracked by concern.
Of course, 'fine' didn't necessarily mean 'uninjured,' but Karla decided now wasn't the best time to point that out.
"So we're looking at naps or pleasant chatting--" a kinder way of saying 'pointless smalltalk' "--until Bean gets here?"
"Thrilling," Ben said dryly. "I'm sure Alai has other things to keep him occupied and he doesn't want us wandering off on our own, right?"
"You are free to leave if you have other plans," Alai noted. "You're guests, not prisoners here. And you're free to explore this side of the complex, of course." He smiled at Petra. "Most of the rooms are public spaces, offices, things like that. My quarters amount to a simple bedroom and this garden, so you can rest assured that if you stay, it'll be in quarters identical to the Caliph's."
"I feel as if I’ve been swept away into one of Scheherazade’s stories," Petra said, lightly.
"We keep a sturdy roof. You have nothing to fear from rocks."
"You think of everything," said Petra.
Alai glanced from Petra to Karla and back. "And we have an excellent doctor on call if you need him."
Karla sniffed disdainfully. Alai probably hadn't meant that to be a slur against her abilities but that didn't mean she had to like it.
"This garden is beautiful," she mentioned, only a little grudgingly. "I wouldn't mind a chance to look around." Part of her hoped she'd find something that needed improving while she did. Karla was like that sometimes.
Ben shrugged a shoulder. "I need to meditate anyway. I'm getting out of practice." And Anakin would give him an earful about it when they got back if he didn't find a way to seek equilibrium. His eyes went right back to Alai's face. "You'll let us know if something changes."
It wasn't really a question. Or a request.
"I will let you know," Alai agreed, "Unless the information would be a danger to us all. I have no intent of withholding what I can give."
Petra's mouth set into a line. She finally walked forward again, and knelt down, leaning her head on Alai and finally holding on a little bit. He didn't seem surprised.
[NFI, NFB, OOC makes the snow melt--trufax! Preplayed with the ever-amazing endsthegame and the always-enchanting momslilassassin]