[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
"One less complication in your assumption of power," said Yesugen.
"He was my friend
! Doesn't human life have any meaning for either one of you?"
Yesugen laughed. "What hypocrisy! I suppose you were thinking about the
meaning of life when you ionized half of my southern battalion by the sea! You
came close to doing the same thing to the rest of our army, and the ships that
brought us here. You're certainly no pacifist; your words don't match your
deeds!"
Mandughai raised an eyebrow. "She has a point, Kati. You did what you felt
necessary to defend your people. I did what I felt necessary to bring them
together. We've both accomplished our objectives, but not without cost. I've
ruled for over forty years, and yours is just beginning. You'll see that
everything you strive to do will have a cost, and you'll be constantly
deciding how much you're willing to pay to meet your goals. The price can be
money, human misery, death, or the loss of friendships, even loved ones.
People will oppose you, undermine you, work behind your back to destroy your
visions, and much of the time you'll be alone. If you're lucky, a few will be
close to you, and even they will be potentially traitorous. The life of an
Empress is hard and lonely, often dangerous. Examine yourself, Kati, right
now, and ask whether or not you're ready for it."
Her words had been quick, and firm, like the admonition of a mother. Mandughai
leaned back in her chair, waiting for an answer. Her eyes darted to Yesugen,
who stood right behind Kati. Perhaps she'd been talking to both of them. Veins
throbbed at her temples, and were suddenly prominent on the great dome of her
forehead. She cupped her chin in one hand, and the glow of her eyes
intensified.
"Well?"
Still the superior in this group of three, but only by experience, for her
physical powers didn't approach
Kati's. All the conversations in the gong-shi-jie, the careful training, the
patience and encouragement of a mother to a daughter was clear in Kati's
memory.
"There were things you said you'd have me do when I was a woman. Have I done
them, Mandughai?"
file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/harry/Bureaublad...map/Glass,%20James%20
C%20-%20Shanji/0671577891__21.htm (7 of 12)5-1-2007 0:53:42
- Chapter 21
"Yes, you have, and more. More than I hoped for. You call me Mandughai, the
Empress, but it's you
who are the Empress of Light, the closest thing to the Mei-lei-gong we've
sought for so long. You're a miracle, Kati. I don't want to lose you, not
after the sacrifices that have been made to put you on the throne here."
Kati shook her head. "There was more to it than that. My people have
sacrificed their lives to solve political problems between you and Yesugen and
whoever else has seen Shanji as a world to be conquered. I don't care about
your political problems, Mandughai. I've done things for you, but now there
are things I want to do for my people, and I want to be free to do them
without threat from you or
Yesugen."
Page 213
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
Mandughai glanced at Yesugen, and smiled. "You've always been free, Kati. When
you will it, it will happen. We cannot stop you, but I ask for the privilege
to discuss things with you. You still have much to learn. I hope you'll listen
to me and to your father, but all decisions will be yours to make."
"Mengmoshu! Does he know I'm safe?"
"Yes, dear. He's on his way here right now."
"I didn't feel him," said Kati.
"Be glad for that. He was frantic with worry over you. He wouldn't show it
when there was danger, for fear of distracting you."
Kati sighed. "Then I'll bring the people together in making the necessary
reforms on Shanji without fear of another war with you?"
Mandughai nodded. "Our unfortunate war is ended, and there will be peace
between us." Her eyes again moved towards Yesugen when she said it.
"There's more, mother," said Yesugen. "Shanji cannot remain isolated as it
has." She stepped over to stand behind her mother, eyes red. "There must be
tangible relations between our worlds, for mutual benefit."
"What kind of relations?" asked Kati.
"Trade, exchange of technology, even people with special skills, that sort of
thing."
Mandughai watched Kati for a reaction, and smiled. "We can talk later about
this, but there is opportunity for you, Kati. With the calming of
Tengri-Nayon, we're emerging from our buried cities to build on the surface.
We'll have great need for building materials and new seed varieties for
surface crops. You have that, but you've lost your space-faring capabilities
for delivery. I intend to leave two
file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/harry/Bureaublad...map/Glass,%20James%20
C%20-%20Shanji/0671577891__21.htm (8 of 12)5-1-2007 0:53:42
- Chapter 21
shuttles here for you when we depart. They should give you a new start in
developing interplanetary and interstellar trade. You'll find we've come a
long way since the ships the Moshuguang tend in the mountain."
"That's most generous of you, Mandughai. Trade is an important part of my
program." Kati tried hard not to show her excitement, but her voice betrayed
it, and so did her aura.
"There are other things as well, but they can wait. I also want to talk to
your father. Yesugen, could you see if our other guests are ready to come in?
They have just arrived."
Yesugen frowned. "Yes, mother, but Kati and I must talk, soon."
"Of course, dear. In private."
Yesugen pressed her lips tightly together, then turned abruptly, and marched
out of the room, closing the door behind her.
Mandughai seemed to listen for something for a moment, then suddenly beamed,
leaning close and taking Kati's clenched hands in her own.
"Kati," she said softly. "At last I can touch you, see you face-to-face as a
person, not an image. All these years with you, and here you are, a woman, an
empress of both this world and the place of creation.
Who could know that by simply looking at you?"
Gently, she coaxed Kati's rigid fingers to relax, folding them out, and
stroking the palm of one hand with a thumb. She looked into Kati's eyes and
said, "Ah, that's what I want, not the red of wariness and suspicion, but the
green that links you to our common ancestors. My blood is in you, Kati. If
only you could have been my own child. You're a comfort to this old woman."
Kati's heart softened from the touch on her hand. "You're not so old," she
murmured. "Your hands are soft, and smooth."
"Yours are hard, and calloused," said Mandughai, "but now we touch, and are
real to each other, not phantom images or thoughts. We only have a little
time, and it may be we'll never see each other in person again. Kati, I want
to hold you for just a moment, if you'll let me. Please?"
Page 214
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
Mandughai stood up, and Kati with her, wincing from a stab of pain in her leg.
After sitting rigid, feet flat on the floor, her leg had begun to throb
fiercely. Mandughai took a short step and put her arms around Kati, pressing
against her with surprising strength, her mouth against Kati's ear, whispering
to her.
file:///C|/Documents%20and%20Settings/harry/Bureaublad...map/Glass,%20James%20
C%20-%20Shanji/0671577891__21.htm (9 of 12)5-1-2007 0:53:42
- Chapter 21
"My dear little girl, my Tumatsin, I'll always be with you, until my last
breath. Whenever you call, I'll be there, not as the empress of your
childhood, but as the woman who holds you like her own daughter.
From now on, I'm not Mandughai to you, but Abagai, the woman."
"Abagai," said Kati softly. Her hands had moved of their own will, and now
rested lightly on Abagai's back.
"Call me, and seek the advice of your father as you grow in experience. He
loves you with a devotion I'd not thought possible for him."
"I will, Mandu Abagai. I'll always seek advice, and listen to it."
Abagai squeezed her gently, then released her and held her by the shoulders.
"There is another you'll listen to, a man who also loves you and waits outside
now with great impatience."
"Huomeng! He's here?"
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
