"With such restrictions in place, it is no surprise that the primitive Makt'ama have managed to achieve celebrity status within the Empire. Due to their limited population, and their protections, almost every member of the Empire can name most, if not all, of the members of the main Makt'ama tribe. Should any find their way into the galactic community, they might be surprised to find themselves with almost no privacy. They may also be surprised to find themselves unfit for a galactic lifestyle. With any luck, even they could find a place within our society. Or would they even be able to understand what our society looks like?"

Excerpt, On The Glory Of The Imperium, Chapter 4, "The Protections of Member Species"

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I waited, straining to hear what was being said. Across the tent, the shaman sat, gnawing on a Jeht'ama bone. She looked up suddenly, and I felt as if she might be reading my mind.

"I would not be so worried, Ta'vu. Your brother will either be welcomed back, or he shall be turned away. And despite your father's anger, even he could not turn his heart to stone."

Before I could respond, the chieftain entered, follow closely by Ta'vu. I regarded him, his strange clothes. "Desert fatigues," he had called them. A gift, he had said, from the people he had found beyond the desert. The tower had called to him, he had said. What does that even mean?

They sat at the feast. I watched as my father dug into the meatiest portions with reckless abandon. With some surprise, I found my brother followed my example, avoiding the meats of the Jeht'ama. Instead he pulled a small bar of something from a pouch on his "fatigues" and began to nibble.

"It's not like you to be so timid, brother. Are you ill? Has your time away been troubling for you? Was it something you saw at the Tower?"

He looked up suddenly, surprised. Then the moment passed. "No... Well, actually, I think it might be easier to explain if you saw it."

He looked to my father, and waited. I followed his gaze, and watched as the chieftain made a visible effort to maintain his composure. "You brother has asked for a hunting party. He wants to lead a group back to the Tower. He thinks he knows the way, despite no one in our history ever making the journey." He sighed. "I have refuse."

Ta'vu stood suddenly. "I can't stay, I have to go back! With or without!" He stormed from the tent, pausing for a moment stare at Ne'va. Then he was gone.

The chieftain stared after him, then spoke. "Ne'va, go to him. I know you were close." I was thankful he didn't look my way. "He plans to leave in the morning, but for now, make sure he has everything he needs."

She left the tent, and the shaman began to speak. "I was wondering how long he would stay. He has changed, our son, and I am unsure if it was for the better. Ta'vu, what do you think?"

"I don't know, but..." I searched for the words, trying to soften the blow as best I could. "If he intends to make the journey to the Tower, I would like to join him."

The chieftain jerked, surprise clear on his face, but the shaman just laughed. The two shared a glance.

Finally, the shaman spoke. "Perhaps it is time for you to know your stars? I read them, did you know? On the night you were born, I read the stars to determine you fate. I knew this day would come." Her eyes unfocused, and she seemed to grow younger.

"The elder was born under the light of the Tower. His fate is guided by the motion of the stars. I knew he would find his place away from the tribe. And the younger was born under the light of the companion. You will be a capable leader, one day. But for a long time, the light of the Tower will over shadow the companion. You will follow him. I knew you would."

My father interrupted. "There is more, but perhaps the full reading is... inappropriate. We will discuss it later, but for now... Are you sure? Will you go with him tomorrow?"

"Yes. I'll travel with him to the Tower. And beyond. Where ever he goes, I will follow. And one day, I'll return." I turned to the shaman. "And on that day, I shall choose my path within the tribe."

She nodded, and pointed out of the tent. "Then go to him, and prepare. The journey will be filled with strange things, and you must be ready."

I left, and searched for my brother. He had left the tribe a full year ago, so it took me a moment to think where I might find him. In the end, there wasn't anywhere else he could be. I found him in Ne'va's tent. I stood outside, listening to them.

"... And I don't blame you. He is not a child, anymore. We weren't anything serious. You can live you life with who ever you want," he was saying.

"You don't understand, I thought you were never coming back. And he was there. And it tears me up, knowing that if I had just waited, you would be coming back!"

"Don't do that to yourself. I love you, always have, and you know he does too. And if you love him, then you didn't betray me. Like I said, we weren't serious. And I told you the choice would be yours."

"But I love you! I always have, and I should have been willing to..."

I waited, listening to them argue back and forth. For a while, I considered interrupting. Eventually, during a lull in the conversation, I shoved my way in. "Hey, what time are we leaving in the morning?"

They jumped, startled by my sudden appearance. Then my words registered, and they reacted.

Ta'nu reacted first. A smile spread across his face. "You will be joining me tomorrow? Really? Brother." He reached out and embraced me. "Oh, brother. I had so little hope, but I knew, I just knew, that you wouldn't let me down." He turned to Ne'va. "And you? Will you join us, where you wouldn't join me?"

She shook her head. "I have responsibilities now. I must stay here. But I will be here, when you return." She made to leave, but I grabbed he shoulder.

"No need to leave, I have much to do. You two," I said, pointing between them. "You must reconcile. I know how much your separation hurt Ne'va. I can only guess how you feel, brother. This is the only night you have. Use it." I turned and left them. With any luck, I thought. I might just make a good chieftain.

The night passed swiftly, and soon it was time to leave. Ne'va and Ta'nu embraced for a moment, before turning away from each other. I noticed how neither looked back.

As we made our way from the canyon mouth, I looked up to the Feral corpse I had hung there a couple of days ago. It was disgusting, the desert scavengers had begun to feast on it. I turned back to our path, and resumed walking.

We didn't talk much, and several days passed before we reached the mountains separating us from the Tower. At first, I wasn't sure if Ta'nu wanted us to climb or go around, but he soon indicated a cave. "Through there. I stumbled upon it on my first trip through here." He took two steps before stopping again. "Leave your rifle here, at the mouth of the cave. Take only your spear."

I nodded, having been warned about this before we left. According to him, we couldn't take the rifles any farther than the mountains, but we still needed protection, so we had prepared a couple of spears. I hefted it. With so little wood in the desert, we had never been very focused on spear making. We had prefered to take the rifles from the Jeht'ama, because they rarely, if ever used them against me.

It was another point in the Jeht'ama's favor, but again, the tribe had just considered it convenient. I made a point to ask Ta'nu his opinions later.

Soon, though, we emerged into an open space. I paused, staring at the walls. There was no ceiling, and I could see the Tower stretching far above me. We were very close. But that wasn't what caught my eyes. Along each wall, were some form of strange rock formations. Up and down, and from one end to the other, regular shapes were repeated. The scent of Jeht'ama was strong, but I couldn't seem to figure out where it was coming from.

Then I saw here. A single Jeht'ama, stood in the middle of the space, facing us. I was surprised. She was wearing something similar to Ta'nu's "fatigues." I turned to him, and saw him staring at me. "What is this?" I asked.

He just smiled, and asked "Are you hungry?" I nodded. Our supplies had been carefully planed, but we had run out of food before we had reached the cave.

I became worried. "Did you plan this? Ta'nu, what is going on?"

He stepped forward, raising his spear. I followed him raising my own, but with every step, I grew more anxious. "What is this place? What is going on? Answer me!"

He stopped within arms reach of the small creature, and I noticed how it hadn't moved. It was just standing there, eyes closed. is it asleep? I looked between it and my brother, growing more nervous with each moment. "Brother, I don't like this. I don't-"

Then he raised the spear. In an instant, my body moved, even before I knew what I was doing. My spear slashed forward, catching Ta'nu across the wrists, knocking the spear from his grasp. I stood there, watching him recoil from the blow.

Then I understood. We lived in tents, and wore the hunting wraps. We considered these to be signs of our intelligence above animals. But we had never considered the Jeht'ama to be people. Suddenly, the rock formations were similar to our tents, perhaps the Jeht'ama lived here. And the wore the "Fatigues" instead of wraps. And they carried rifles instead of spears. This had been what Ta'nu had wanted me to see. All my suspicions suddenly screamed in my head. The Jeht'ama are people, just like us!

I turned to the small person, and noticed she was smiling at me.

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"I told him you would figure it out."