Home
It hung against the backdrop of stars, peridot and azure and a rich, glowing gold. The world they'd never seen - but knew intimately, as lover, mate, parent. Home. It spoke to them, sang to them, filling them with a deep yearning, a sense, finally, of rightness, of completion. And in twelve hours, ship-time, they would descend to reclaim it.
The hash'shavven on Omani - disorientated, traumatised and terrified - had been shuttled up to Nappa's flagship and settled in large, comfortable, communal suites. They'd been fed, and those that needed it had been tended - gently, carefully - by Feeodoreean and Saiyan medics. And Jeice, Radittsu at his shoulder, had spent the first sixty hours of his people's freedom visiting each of them, speaking with them, reassuring them, explaining that they were going Home… Radittsu had been silently impressed. Jeice had been tireless, and selflessly confident, creating bonds, comforting the frightened, soothing the hurt. It reminded the big Saiyan of those first days with the freed zn'hre on R'ren'nkh'ia, although the hash'shavven's response to Jeice had been wholly positive. They knew who he was, and what had happened to him, even before they met him, greeting him with awed affection, almost reverence. Radittsu suspected Veiyan had had something to do with that: the rest was their natural empathy with each other. It was beautiful to see. But something puzzled him. They'd taken a break for a meal, and for Jeice to rest a while - this whole state of affairs was weighing on him, and he still hadn't fully recovered from the trauma of what the Saiyan, for want of a better term, was calling his 'awakening'. Radittsu held him, stroking his hair gently, and risked asking the question that had been troubling him. "Aijin? Where are the children?" The little alien froze, his eyes filling with tears, and turned his head away. "The Omanir killed them all. Cleared out the nurseries when the fleet first approached." Radittsu stared - then grabbed Jeice to him. *I'm so sorry…* Jeice slumped against the broad chest. *I'm glad we killed them.* So was Radittsu, but hearing such a thing from Jeice, who worshipped life, was worrying. Although, under the circumstances… Then he frowned to himself. Leteetza had had that young Thinker - Meron, that was the name - research the Omanir before the campaign began, and report back to Zha'haabron. They knew that the Omanir habitually trained hash'shavven as slaves and then sold them, at very high prices; they hadn't known that most of the trade was to offworlders. The Omanir themselves kept only the best and most skilled of their slaves. They were valuable. So why the fuck would they kill the children? Radittsu didn't believe it. He'd have to contact Manzano back on Omani, later, have him organise some sort of search or investigation. And there must be records, somewhere, of the slaves sold and their owners: they'd have to be tracked down and freed. One way or another. Jeice had dozed off in his arms, his breathing slow, his face relaxed in sleep: Radittsu limped with him over to their shared bed and lay down to try to get a little rest himself… half an hour later he gave up trying to find a position that didn't make everything ache and resigned himself to staying awake until he could spend a couple of hours in the bathing pool - the only place he could feel comfortable at the moment. He missed Zha'haabron. And Leteetza. And Hijau, and his children, and the rest of the family. Even knowing Jeice wouldn't be with him, he couldn't wait to get home.
Ti'ani and Le'leen were at something of a loose end. Dadda Raditts' and Jeice had gone, the Ssii'iin was busy with the Council and with Za'rayne and Ra'vahn, maazi had 'dittsu and 'jiita to look after, papa was wrapped up in Jagung when he wasn't helping dadda Zhak look after the little ones, and Hijau could hardly get away from Guard Headquarters. Lessons were being cut short: the weather was bitterly, bitterly cold, and while it didn't bother them, it hurt their zn'hre siblings to be outside the suite - and in any case, 'rayne wasn't there, and lessons weren't so much fun without her. It wasn't that the hybrids weren't being cared for - it was more that there simply weren't enough adults around at the moment. Or enough things to do to keep everyone occupied and out of mischief… The pair were in one of the spare rooms, gazing dispiritedly out at the snow. Le'leen sighed. *Do you think anyone would mind if we went outside for a little while? I'm going to start smashing things if I have to stay inside much longer.* Ti'ani nuzzled his neck. *Yes, I think they'd mind. If they knew about it.* Le'leen blinked and stared at his twin. *You think we should sneak out without anyone knowing?* *Well, not quite. We should tell someone where we're going, so they won't all panic when they find us missing.* Le'leen inclined his head. * Not 'haabron - he'd tell papa or Dadda Zhak.* Ti'ani grinned. *Quite right too! He's supposed to do the right thing - he'll be king after his papa. But anyway, he's 'busy' with Kobis right now...* *Heh… We could tell 'haavok. Or 'honee - they wouldn't tell anyone.* *No, they'd just want to come with us and kick up a fuss when they couldn't.* Le'leen growled quietly. *Who, then?* *'raadiin?* Le'leen considered this for a moment, then nodded. And *called* his machii into the room. The young warrior slipped in and closed the door quickly, for once without 'fallon following at his heels, and smirked at the hybrids. "Right, what're you planning?" Le'leen snorted. "That obvious, huh?" 'raadiin chuckled. "'fraid so… You're going out, aren't you?" Ti'ani blinked. 'raadiin could be too perceptive at times. "Only for a little while. Only into the grounds." The zn'hre sighed. "Wish I could come with you…" "You need a break from 'fallon?" The hostling blinked, then shook his head. "No. I just need a break from the suite. I can only stand so much sparring with Kiraz indoors - I really need some space. Room to move, let off some energy." Ti'ani regarded his machii appraisingly - realising with a jolt of surprise how… grown-up he was looking, leanly muscled and a head taller than the hybrids. He'd let his hair grow long again, too, and wore it in a complicated plait down his back to his waist. The smirk on his lean, wide-eyed face was a perfect duplicate of Kiraz' at his most impudent. He was, the hybrid realised with a sudden yawning feeling in his stomach, very attractive… Luckily Le'leen was talking, and 'raadiin hadn't noticed Ti'ani's blush. "We won't be long - couple of hours at most. Would you mind?" 'raadiin appeared to think it over, then grinned. "Nah. You go ahead, I know you can look after yourselves. Better than any of us." Le'leen hugged him: Ti'ani bit his lip to force down what he thought, uneasily, was jealousy. "We owe you. Thanks." "Heh. I'll let you know when I need a favour in return."
*Right. What's the matter?* They had, of course, gone much further than the palace grounds, and for much longer than a couple of hours - in Ti'ani's case following Le'leen blindly - and were now watching the snow fall on the slow swell as they crunched along the frozen beach. Ti'ani glanced at his twin uneasily, but it was simply no use trying to hide or deny anything from each other. He sighed and lowered his eyes, and *opened* to his sibling… Le'leen stared wide-eyed for a moment - then burst out laughing. Ti'ani glowered. *It's not funny.* Le'leen managed to choke himself to a halt and grabbed his twin into a hug. *I know it isn't, really. It’s just… you and 'raadiin? It's difficult to imagine.* *Hey, I didn't ask for this. And it doesn’t have to mean anything. Does it?* *I guess not. Though I'm hardly the person to ask! 'haabron would be more help." Ti'ani blanched. *I couldn't! I don't want anyone to know. And anyway, it might just be nothing. You know, one of those strange hormone things 'rayne talked about.* *She was talking about females, skai'tan. Hassinan and Saiya-jin females at that.* Ti'ani frowned. *I know. But since no-one knows much about us yet, perhaps we have them too?* Le'leen shook his head bemusedly. *Want to ask Vinas? He's most likely to know. Or be able to find out. Maazi wants us to see him for a checkup anyway, once he gets back from Hassina.* His twin grimaced. *More needles…* Le'leen chuckled, twining his tail around his sibling's. Ti'ani shivered, his eyes widening. *Oh…* *What?* *That feels…* Startled, Le'leen pulled his tail quickly away, blinking at the unfamiliar *feeling* that trembled through his twin, then regarded Ti'ani sombrely. *I think we'd better speak to the Ssii'iin. It's time we were heading back, anyway.* *I am not telling anyone about this.* *But…* *No, 'leen. I'll deal with it by myself.* Le'leen sighed his exasperation. *All right. For now. If I *feel* it getting too much for you I will interfere. Understand?* Ti'ani glowered for a moment - then nodded reluctantly. Le'leen would *experience* everything he felt or thought, and it was asking too much to expect his twin to put up with any emotional discomfort. After all, they'd only recently learned how to *shield* from others, and were enjoying the *tranquillity* too much to willingly give it up. Le'leen swatted his twin's rump with his tail. *C'mon, let's get back. I'm hungry!*
Nappa had a problem. Well, actually, no, that wasn't strictly accurate. Nappa himself had no problem: as far as he was concerned he'd be perfectly happy to let his forces loose on Home. They were more than willing to get down there and kill the Omanir. But the planet had seven moons, in various orbits: at least one was visible at any given time from anywhere onworld. Vejiita, and Zha'haabron, wanted the minimum of harm done to the planet. But moons plus Saiya-jin meant ouzaru, and that meant death and destruction on a fairly large scale. And the Commander had thought that the hash'shavven would want to reclaim their planet for themselves. Vejiita - and later Radittsu - had disabused him of that idea. Under no circumstances did the Saiya-jin-no-Ou want the hash'shavven to come to any harm - and Radittsu wanted their return to their own world to be as peaceful and happy an event as possible. Nappa delayed the invasion for ten ship-hours while he tried to find a compromise. Finally it was Melocoto who pointed out that the Omanir were mostly holed up in their cities - their cities: the hash'shavven had none, had never built anything onworld - and if they just let the troops loose they could get rid of the majority of the Omanir and the artificial structures in one swift military action. Nappa gave the order… The Omanir fought hard and surprisingly well, but the result was a foregone conclusion. It helped, of course, that once the Ghrakigh Soutan had seceded from Omani he'd refused to allow any more Omanir onworld: the planet was sparsely populated, with only five main cities and a handful of small towns. And once the ouzaru had smashed and blasted their way through the urban areas, Nappa recalled them and ordered a force of ki-skilled R'ren'nkh'ia-jin to reduce the ruins to bare earth once more. The whole exercise took just eight hours: by the time Jeice woke from a brief, exhausted sleep Home belonged to the hash'shavven once more.
There were a few Omanir left of course, hiding out in the forests, or en route between townships: a force of R'ren'nkh'ia-jin would remain onworld to guard the hash'shavven until the planet was cleared. And Vejiita had given orders that a couple of destroyers remain in orbit for the time being, in case any Omanir allies felt inclined to attempt any sort of retaliation. But otherwise the planet was ready for them. The flagship descended to the edge of the planetary atmosphere before opening the shuttle exits and allowing the now-naked hash'shavven egress: erecting a ki shield came naturally to the aliens, protecting them for the short distance down to breathable air. Jeice led them unerringly down and across to a vast, dusty green open plain, with Radittsu following in the rear; there they landed and stood in silence… The Saiyan watched, fascinated. Again it seemed as though sparks flared out from Jeice to his people - but this time they were green and blue. And the parched grass below his slender bare feet slowly turned a deep and vibrant green, the colour spreading out from him like a ripple in a still pool. As it reached the rest of the hash'shavven the metamorphosis picked up momentum, speeding outwards at a rapidly increasing rate. Radittsu blinked as it flowed under and past him, and reached down to pluck a long blade of fresh new grass, the sharp green fragrance a startling contrast to the arid dust of a moment ago… The ships in orbit later reported that the phenomenon spread around the planet with terrifying speed. New trees grew steadily in deforested areas, swathes of barren moorland became green again, dry plains erupted into oases brimming with verdant health. And suddenly there were flowers, huge fragrant blooms and modest blossoms bursting with sweetness, and the air thrummed with life.
Later, much later, when Radittsu came back to himself, he found himself on his knees, tears streaming down his face. He had no really clear memories of the dance, just that it was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen, redolent of grace and joy and hope and life. Jeice was standing before him, his own eyes brimming, both hands extended to help the Saiyan to rise. *Aijin, hasshkaen… from our souls, from the soul of our world, we thank you.* It hurt to stand, but Radittsu hardly noticed the pain from his hip. Holding Jeice's hands he gazed around himself in absolute wonder. Even the richest jungles on Vejiitasei had never had this depth of colour, this intensely luminous vibrancy. He pulled the little alien gently to him. *Koi… Thank you. Thank you for allowing me the honour of sharing this with you…I…I don't…* Jeice chuckled and kissed him. *You and the Ssii'iin, Leteetza, Vejiita - the whole family - have made this possible for us. We and our world are reunited. We will never let ourselves be parted again.* His smile faltered for a moment. *We now have the power to ensure it will never happen.* *And we will do all in our power to make such action unnecessary.* Jeice smirked wryly. *On condition we join the Alliance. As partners.* Radittsu paled, his breath catching. *Aijin…* The hash'shavven inclined his head, his eyes mischievous. *Don't be troubled, hasshkaen. I knew all along that's what the king wanted.* He gestured at the verdant growth around them, the glorious green mantle of Home. *And we can hardly refuse, can we, not after all the Alliance has done for us. However…* He grinned broadly. *We will not ally with the Saiya-jin.* Radittsu blinked, confused. Jeice stroked his face. *We will ally with the R'ren'nkh'ia-jin. And our dealings with the Empire will be moderated by the High King and his council.* The Saiyan stared blankly. Then his lips twitched as he fought back laughter. Jeice grinned. *It's good to laugh.* And Radittsu did, loud and long, finally brushing a hand across his face and smirking at the hash'shavven. *Ah, koibito - you sneaky little…* Jeice's eyes twinkled. *Not sneaky, hasshkaen. Just… prudent.* Radittsu hugged him affectionately. *I'll speak with Zha'haabron. I'm sure we can sweeten Vejiita. Somehow. Let's face it, he doesn't want to lose you. That places you in a very strong position.* *And we aren't really asking very much. We will be happy to assist the Empire as and when needed - within reason, of course.* *Of course…* Radittsu sighed, his smile fading. *We're going to miss you.* Jeice eyed him sadly. *And I will miss you. All of you. More than I can say. But for now I am needed here. There's much still to do.* *Anything we can do to help…* *Thank you, my friend, but this we must do for ourselves…*
Radittsu gazed sadly down at the lush green world from orbit. He'd left soon after those last words with Jeice, not wishing to prolong the agony of parting. And to his surprise it came very close to agony, too - he simply hadn't recognised how much a part of the family Jeice had become in the short time he'd been with them. The terrified, abused little slave he'd been at that first meeting had blossomed like his world, bringing so much love and compassion and healing with him. And though he tried not to be selfish, the Saiyan couldn't help but wish with all his heart that Jeice was coming back to Vejiitasei with him…
Ti'ani and Le'leen had made their way slowly back to the city through the heavily falling snow, very *aware* that they were in trouble. Papa was furious with them for not telling him they were going out - well, that wasn't anything to get too alarmed about, papa's anger never lasted. More scary was their maazi's fury with them for sneaking out in the first place and, secondly, not taking a guard with them. It was pointless *arguing* with maazi that they could hardly have had the peace and quiet they'd so much wanted if they'd had to have a guard trail along after them, she just wouldn't listen to that sort of logic. And the fact that the twins were now very skilled indeed in a fight didn't outweigh the fact that she still saw them as her little hostlings, even though she now had 'dittsu and 'jiita to worry about. The twins had gazed helplessly at each other, shrugging. What was it with maazis that they worried so? Zha'haarak was the same with his hostlings… More alarming, though, was the fact that Zha'haabron was displeased with them - though more for causing his little bondmate and Leteetza concern than out of any fear for their safety. After all, the Ssii'iin had been primarily responsible for their training: he knew how powerful and competent they were. They'd better make sure they apologised fully and sincerely this evening. Even then it wasn't going to be pretty. Though to be honest, Ti'ani was almost glad to have something to focus on, rather than the strange feeling he got every time he thought of 'raadiin. Le'leen paused in flight, frowning, tail twitching apprehensively. Ti'ani glanced at his twin. *What is it?* *I'm… not sure…* He *scanned* the area for a moment or two, then nodded in the direction of the palace. *I don't know what it is, but there's something… Can you *feel* it? Like… like a cold draught?* Blinking, Ti'ani *focussed*, eyes half-closed in concentration. He shook his head. *I can't *feel* anything. Are you imagining it?* Le'leen shook his head, expression grim. *No. There's something there, and I don't like the *feel* of it one little bit.* *Do we get the grown ups?* *Wouldn't hurt to let them know…* Maazi and a very weary Hijau were in the suite. Maazi was simmering, refusing to listen to them, thinking this was just some ploy to delay the inevitable confrontation. Hijau took them much more seriously and *scanned* for himself - but he found nothing… Puzzled, Le'leen *reached* for the - whatever it was - again. It was still there, just as strong as before. He glanced at his twin. *Want to check it out?* *Think we should?* *No. But we're still going to, aren’t we?* Ti'ani sighed, then grinned. *Of course we are…*
They hovered some distance above the main entrance to the palace, kis suppressed, and watched the activity below curiously. Had Hijau organised some sort of Guard exercise? Five big aliens were making their way unobtrusively towards the big, well-guarded double doors, moving smoothly and swiftly, using every bit of cover available. For a moment the twins had thought they were Saiyan, but they didn't *feel* Saiyan. And they had no tails. He frowned at his sibling. Le'leen eyed him worriedly. *I don't like this.* *Me neither.* They moved a little lower, ignoring the rising wind shrieking around the buildings and driving the snow in waves along the ground. The aliens had reached the doors: the hybrids expected the guards to challenge them, even with the blizzard the Saiyans would scent them… Seconds later the aliens had each grabbed one of the guards and drilled a tight ki-blast right through their heads, killing them instantly. Ti'ani stared, open-mouthed, shocked rigid, then turned his head to meet Le'leen's horrified gaze. *…what…?* Mouth a grim line, Le'leen dived for the ground, eyes narrowed as he focussed tightly, gathering energy for a mind blast. Ti'ani took a second to *flash* a quick alert to a startled Hijau, then followed his twin… The foyer was a bloody mess: the aliens had killed the inner guards and several palace servitors indiscriminately, and were currently standing at the foot of the main staircase, apparently arguing quietly but fiercely about something if the tone of the guttural language was anything to go by. Le'leen snarled and headed straight for them. "Oi, you! What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Reflecting grimly that he really would have to have words with his sibling regarding charging in without thinking first, Ti'ani aimed what was intended to be a crippling - but not fatal - mental *shot* at the biggest of the aliens… Only to have it shrugged off. The being regarded him dispassionately for a moment - then sneered.
Grabbing his protesting sibling's wrist, Ti'ani blasted through the wall, intent on putting as much distance between himself and Le'leen and these - whatever they were - as possible while *screaming* a warning to whomever could *hear*. Realising as one of the creatures followed them that escape might not be an option. Realising suddenly that he could only *feel* the faintest tickle of the being's ki. Realising a moment later, eyes widening, that the alien following them didn't have any scent…
© 2002 October 27th Joules Taylor
