The ceremony to honor Nani Terra opening Earth’s portal was being held at the same garden as the Kiamoni Purge ceremony. After, there would be a ceremony and celebration held on Earth too.
Amber was the only other human in attendance, though John believed he sensed others in a small building nearby, probably in control of the event’s production. She was walking around and mingling with attendants, stuck to the side of Plumb-hair, whereas he was standing at attention in formation with Oli close to the portal hub.
In a class on nav points, John had asked if Earth would have its own. The instructor was certain it wouldn’t. The Peerless had to heavily guard their nav points and it was a better strategy to only have quick access to Earth by portal.
Nav points, also called jump beacons, allowed spaceships with jump capacity, and it was very rare for a ship to lack such capacity, to quickly travel to any beacon within a certain range. Without a nav point, it took a very long time to travel through space.
With the Perpetual Motion MJ Engine Mark IV, the Peerless had the fastest ships in the sector, both in terms of acceleration and maximum speed. Their ships could almost reach 50 light years per standard year traveled, but it took time to build up to that speed as well as time to decelerate.
In practice, ships outfitted with this engine usually peaked at 28 light years per standard year traveled, but if all nav points were ignored and a great distance traveled without jumping, speeds close to 50 light years could be attained.
Access to nav points, at least the ones utilized in this sector, couldn’t be restricted. Everyone could use any of them. Constructing one near Earth would be strategically unwise and take too many resources to construct and defend.
Gani itself didn’t have a nav point. It employed internetworks, which allowed ships to travel quickly through restricted and controlled space using hops instead of jumps. At least half the worlds in the Peerless Empire were connected by these internetworks.
When Peerless ships were to return to Gani, they’d jump to the main Peerless nav point located near the planet Ma Aom and its moon, Fe An, where the city of Victor was located. From Fe An, it only took the better part of a week to travel to Gani through the internetworks system, whereas flying normally between the two systems took well over half a year.
John stopped ruminating on space travel as Nani Terra arrived and the ceremony was to begin. He was hoping the Oli in his formation were to be honored, and since he was formed up with them, he’d be honored too, and possibly awarded some credits. He wanted a lot more of them and there weren’t many ways to earn them during academy, at least usually, disregarding the old crone’s new hobby.
Nine currently held the First in Class position, the main way to earn credits while at academy, though the position only awarded three. John still wanted those three and a lot more besides.
Before the ceremony began, the formation of Oli was ordered to head through Earth’s portal along with Amber and some others. That was a surprise to John. He wouldn’t even get to watch the ceremony, and he wanted news of his planet and his people to prepare himself ahead of time. As things stood, he was being pulled in different directions with conflicting desires.
Half of John wished he’d enter the portal and see a smoking ruin – his people having given such a ruthless war in defiance of their new masters that there was little left for the Peerless to rule over. The other half of him hoped there was plenty left of Earth and his people for him to eventually save.
Half of John was excited he was going back to his world and could see with his own eyes how his people were fairing. The other half of him was ashamed he’d be paraded in front of his people as a shining example to model themselves after, how they too could be so rewarded and honored if they fully submitted to their new masters, accepted the yoke upon their neck, and only adjusted it to sit more comfortably.
After being ushered through the portal, John was separated from his formation, brought to a stage, and placed next to Amber. There was a large crowd of beautiful, happy people in front of him. He hoped they were pretending. The men and women were segregated and present in about equal numbers. How peaceful and content they seemed truly bothered him and his stomach churned. He had to ignore the crowd in order to clamp down on his anger and disappointment. He again hoped they were only just pretending.
It took some time, but John inched closer to Amber and touched her hand with a finger. Holding her hand would be too much. He knew they were being watched. He searched for her mind and attempted to pull it into his own, a difficult feat made more so with only the light contact he was making.
After a long and rough battle, his willpower eventually won, though it was a close thing, and Amber stood in his mind. She immediately began to cry and rushed to hold John, her arms going right through his waist. She said, “Oh, my love, I wish I could hold you. Seriously, you made yourself way too tall in here. This is ridiculous. My head only goes up to your belly.”
“Listen,” said John. “I have a plan to save you. It’s risky, but I won’t let you suffer any longer. When we go back through the portal, I’ll pull you aside to talk. Ignore everyone else. We can pretend to have a heated argument, or whatever you come up with and think will work. There are only two guarding the portal to Kiamoni today. When there aren’t many Exalteds around, we rush it. It only requires an infusion of essence to activate. You do that while I hold off the Peerless.
“As soon as it opens, we hold hands and enter together. Even Exalteds couldn’t sense me and my old friend Talker past a certain distance in the Nether. Due to how time flows, we’ll be far away before our enemies give chase. We found an old circle on a different continent. It’s in very rough shape, but there’s a broken portal there. I’ve learned how to fix and activate portals in one of my classes.
“If low-tier demons can survive the environment of the world that portal leads to, so can you. I don’t know where it will bring you, but you’ll be free of the Peerless blight and the suffering they subject you to.”
Amber stopped smiling, dried her eyes with the back of a hand, and asked, “Why does it sound like you plan on sending me through the…the second portal alone?”
John knelt to be able to look at Amber more easily. “Because I won’t be going. I made vows. I will destroy the Peerless. I will go back to them, take my lumps, continue pretending to be one of my enemies and, one day, save our people and topple their empire.”
Amber looked at John like he was mad. “Uh, no. You’re my boyfriend and that means something. It means a lot. It means we’re in this together. We stick together. We leave together. And if you think we’d have time to get the portal to Kiamoni open and get through before a zillion Exalteds stopped us, you’ve lost your mind.”
John grunted. “I didn’t say it was a great plan. And there’s a better chance of it working than you assume. You were desperate last we spoke. I put a lot of thought into this. There really isn’t a better way. It’s…this is the only way I could think of that had any chance of getting you free of them.”
Amber smiled beautifully as she said, “Thank you for thinking of me, my wonderful boyfriend. And…and trying. I love you so much. It’s a good plan but things have changed. Something…something really wonderful is a possibility now. We have to wait. Our old backup plan is now our only plan. We’ll have our own ship. We’ll be able to fly to the umpanians or the kaw’ns whenever we want to. But we can’t at first. I can’t tell you why now, but it’ll be wonderful if it’s true.
“There’s still a lot of issues. Some workarounds have been discussed if my carnal knowledge rule can’t be fixed. They really want me to be an Alii soon. Like, really bad. I have ideas for an Oliua and Meleua. You really, really, really need to start earning more credits or I’ll still have too many points and hafta buy other Oli.”
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Not needing to save Amber was a big weight off John’s shoulders. “What about Nine for your Oliua? He’s a good man, and mighty. And my friend. He is helping me learn math and science.”
After thinking it over for some time, Amber said, “That’ll change things and make this harder. My points…no, it…I think…can you trust him? We can’t trust any Oli or Mele, but we can trust them to be Oli and Mele. We can factor exactly what they’ll do into our plans. Can…would…you didn’t tell him our real plans, did you? Oh, I hope not.”
“No, I haven’t told him anything. He’d make a good Oliua. He’s very tough and he’s also smart like a Mele. He’s half a computer or something. A biosynth. I trust him much more than an Oli if it came to learning of our real plans.”
“I know what he is,” said Amber. “He’s kinda a big deal. His genetics…never mind that. It could work, but he’d have to be at least a Diamond to be Oliua. But my points…”
Amber trailed off to think. After a minute she said, “You’ll graduate before I become an Alii. Listen, this part’s gonna really suck for you. But it can’t be avoided. Have you heard what happens to Li graduates that refuse to be bought by a kauwa?”
“A little,” replied John. “Oli not belonging to a kauwa have to serve their Nani Heiau.”
“It’s kinda a punishment to…to ensure new graduates don’t hold out for purchase by a major or famous kauwa. The Aikapu says any member of the Nani Heiau…you know they don’t have their own kauwa? Well, they have the right to be ‘serviced’ by any of the boys in their heiau they want, but only once a year by the same one. Since the Peerless want everyone to view, uh, you know…sex, as the best reward, and all the Nani Heiau are super, super old, they usually don’t make anyone do that.
“Since Li can’t be forced into accepting a bid, the Nani Heiau save that right for any new graduate that rejects purchase. They also keep them busy performing all the…the duties and stuff no one else wants to do. They also get reports on any boys at risk of losing their way and, um, you know…provide legal and credit-free release by invoking their right on those guys.”
After a minute passed without John replying, Amber asked, “Do you realize what I’m telling you?”
John sighed and said, “It will cause issues if I deny them, but I will. I’ll refuse to couple with any of them, no matter the punishment.”
“Thank you, my love, but you can’t tell them no. Actually, since they just want those gross vagina boogers from you, maybe they don’t need…maybe you could, um, service those ladies without…you know, going all the way. Just, uh, with…you know what I’m saying. No spending credits though! Not one!”
The smile left Amber’s face before she continued. “You really can’t say no to an Alii, John, especially the Nani Heiau. Seriously, you can’t say no. Ever again. I heard about your tattletale incident. You can’t say no to any order by any Alii, even trainees. Those three credits were super important. Total credits earned but not held are only worth half the points. Remember, we hafta play our roles perfect. All the way. A hundred percent, my love.”
John’s guilt for what was happening with the old crone lightened. He wanted to tell Amber he had those three credits returned but didn’t want to talk or think about any of this now. He would tell her about the old crone at some point. It was no different than what was just said about the Nani Heiau, so he assumed she’d understand. It all just boiled down to doing whatever was required of him to eventually win.
“Unless they force the issue,” replied John, “I will satisfy them without joining with them. I will play my role to the best of my ability. I won’t say no to an Alii, but neither will I tattle. I take care of my own issues. I always will. None of the personas I’ve ever taken on have been tattletales, and none ever will be.”
“John! You’re not supposed to be a man! If this is gonna work, you gotta be a Peerless! And a perfect one. Please! You said you wanna destroy them. How are you ever gonna do that if you can’t even tattle on one of them? Come on! Please, just…just play along. Just give them what they want so we can get what we want, my love.”
John agreed with that, but only to a point. He was a Li now, he was one of his enemies now, and what Alii thought of him wasn’t as important anymore. He only needed them for credits, and they had to give him those when he earned them. The Aikapu was clear on punishments and tied Alii’s hands to those set punishments. If he graduated and avoided a handful of crimes, he’d always be fine.
Hyavod was proof of that, but the man had grown too careless.
For John’s plan to work, what Oli thought of him and how they saw him was what truly mattered. It didn’t even matter what Mele suspected, and he didn’t think they were even capable of suspecting his long-term goals.
All Peerless, especially Alii, saw themselves and the Peerless Empire in a very specific light. They couldn’t comprehend someone made Peerless, made one of their own, ever looking such a gift horse in the mouth.
It would be like a human of old Earth finding a fortune in treasure, enough to buy a kingdom with, and tossing it all deep in the ocean. Or an old man unearthing the fountain of youth and immediately reburying it. It defied comprehension.
And the view wasn’t wrong. In Rome, when some worthy slave was given freedom, citizenship, status, and means, these men were the most loyal to their empire.
To John, being the best of men meant always winning and never failing. His persona was now important for winning credits and being the ideal all Oli looked up to, respected, and wanted to emulate.
Oli made up the vast majority of Peerless. The Alii ruled, but only because the Oli went along with it.
Being a Li and protected by the Aikapu changed things. As John’s exam score proved, he knew the book and its contents well. If his goals brought him in conflict with an Alii, as long as it wouldn’t result in execution or exile to Palm, his goals would always take precedence over all else – including Amber’s plan.
The incident with Tiny-face wasn’t planned but had worked out perfectly. And the reason it had worked out so perfectly was specifically because it forced John into conflict with two Alii trainees and the old crone.
All the student body was made to watch the flesh torn from John’s back a hundred times as he stood there silently and took it. He could practically read their minds as they watched and asked themselves, “For what?”
This Kahaka, this outsider, could’ve so easily avoided this lashing, avoided losing three credits too, if he only did what any of us would’ve done without a second thought and threw our brothers to the wolves as ordered. The Alii asked such a little thing of him, and he said no.
Why? He isn’t even one of us. Not really. He could’ve been praised by the Alii if he just gave them the little thing that they asked for. Instead of doing what any of us would’ve done and receiving praise for it, he said no and took a great punishment. Why? Nothing is more important than praise from our matriarchs, right? Right?
Maybe John couldn’t strip a pulse rifle down to build a communications device out of its components, but he knew more about warriors and how they thought than most. Actions spoke louder than words, and once a deed was witnessed, it wouldn’t be forgotten. The same indoctrination that made the Peerless warrior-caste so willing to spend their lives for their matriarchs and empire didn’t have to be undone, only shifted.
Regardless, John decided to take Amber’s advice now. He’d play along and give her what she wanted. “You’re right. I need to play along better. Going forward, I will tattle many times. I was wrong to have not done so previously. Thank you for reminding me.”
Amber gave him her brightest smile yet. “No, thank you, baby. I love you so much. And you…you don’t have to keep it a secret you’re holding out for my kauwa. They love that kinda stuff and think it’s great. Devotion to an Alii. They really love it. Did you see that one episode of…uh, I guess it’s still called a docuseries. The one about the Li that wanted an Alii so bad he was under his Nani Heiau for almost four years before she took pity and purchased him?”
“I did,” replied John. “They make us watch them all. And I hang around with Li, so I hear a lot of other stories too. Please don’t call me baby. I think it’s strange and dislike it.” He knew the term of endearment was common on modern Earth, but calling an adult a baby would never make any sense to him.
“Okay. Does it make you think of Lilly or something? Do you think she’s out there, John? She can’t be older than two. No, still under two, right? I didn’t see Baba or…or the president. Petar either. Anyone. I did recognize a buncha people though. Celebrities, actors, influencers. They all looked so happy.”
John grunted. “I’d bet all my possessions she took over that young girl in Nani Terra’s child group. She’ll definitely want to be an Alii since they’re graded so much higher, always very beautiful, and born into great power. I doubt she’s settling for a human body. Either way, there’s plenty of time before she’s grown enough to threaten us or our plans. We’re safe for a long while.”
It would be easy for Lilly to warp the rules that said Alii couldn’t dirty their own hands. She’d corrupt her Mele and rain terror down on whatever population she was tasked to fight and subdue, twisting the rules and torturing families for information and the like.
Unlike other Alii, she wouldn’t age past a certain point, and as she rose through the ranks of the Nani, she’d further corrupt the Peerless, twisting everything towards her own goals and ends, making an already evil empire far more so. She’d eventually hold the exclusive title of Nani Empress.
But only if John failed in his task. If he succeeded, there’d be no empire for her to subvert and rule over.
“I don’t even wanna think about that…b-word,” replied Amber. “I hope Baba’s okay. They won’t tell me anything when I ask about him.”
“I’m sure he’s fine. Before we left, you heard Nani Terra say they weren’t going to kill him. He was a slave before we freed him, so he knows how to placate masters. Have you heard anything about Stretch? Did he continue to fight?”
“No. He isn’t fighting. I heard he’s doing fine. Or the seed thing is. That’s gotta be true. The first thing I noticed when I exited the portal was the energy was super thick.”
Amber paused before saying, “I feel so bad for all the moms and kids the Eternal took. Held. Coming back down to Earth and finding out…this…all this. The Peerless. That had to really suck for them real bad. Especially for all the ones they consider defective.”