Part Eight by Iona Laing.

Chapter Twenty-two.

The Princess and Magni Porarinn reconvene their meeting.

“So Magni, what changed you from being the poster boy for Masonville to becoming so disenfranchised that you seek asylum with Granaria, inevitably placing a price on your own head?”

“I tried to encourage Asta to join me away from the flats we lived in, I made enough for us both to live comfortably, but she wouldn’t hear of it! She wanted to emulate our mother’s life commitment of helping others, and I couldn’t persuade her to change her mind, I am ashamed to say that we sort of fell out for a few annuals, and I only had sporadic contact with her, oh how I wish I could change that, but it’s too late now!

But, Princess, it was a lot of little things to start with. One of the things we studied as junior army officers was Masonville’s military history and we were given access to all sorts of information. Why campaigns were fought, how they were fought, tactics, technology, and even the history of individuals! So, being naturally inquisitive and proud of my father, I looked up his military history. At first it was like reading my own life story, he was a talented athlete, in his case he was into field events, throwing the javelin especially but he was a decent middle-distance runner too in his early days. Then, I looked up where and how he died. That was the first time I started to have doubts about how great and special Masonville was and just how privileged the officer class were!

During one of the innumerable border disputes between our nations, my father was a Lieutenant and was given a mission to go behind enemy lines, to gather information on troop strength, which units they were facing, and what reserves were in place, the usual thing at that time! Trench warfare, where it was basically a stalemate unless you were lucky to spot an enemy’s weak spot. Nothing that unusual for a junior officer of the time, leading a platoon of roughly twenty men, hoping to get there and back with a prisoner or two! In one piece, probably to do it all again the next night.

Well, one night it all went wrong, someone triggered an alarm probably, or made a noise of some sort, who knows, all that the reports said was that the enemy, yourselves, opened fire on my father’s patrol, pinning them down in no man’s land as often happened. The reports stated that, eventually, peace slowly settled down and my father was able to bring most of his men back into their own trenches. It was at this point that my father realised that two of his men were still stuck in a shell hole seemingly afraid to move. These were a couple of new recruits, twin brothers, who were in their first few months of service.

My father was about to go out to these lads, seventeen they were, probably scared senseless, to bring them back to our own lines.

However, his regimental commander, a man by the name of Vigi Signi! Yes Princess, the very same Vigi Signi who is now president of Masonville, forbade my father from mounting a rescue mission. My father protested, whereas Signi insisted that it would teach further patrols to be more careful, and to not give their positions away. My father reiterated that these were two young lads, still learning the trade of becoming good soldiers, Signi, spoke an order to his second in command, Lukki Brandr, and yes Princess, the man who is now the presidents right hand man, General Brandr! Moments later, a mortar barrage plastered the boys’ position, and that was the end of them. My father apparently jumped up onto the top step of the forward trench, where he called these two lads names, but to no avail!

Now, this is where it gets a bit confusing, the official report states that my father spun to face our lines, and was shot in the back by a sniper from Granaria, but, I have spoken to several men from my father’s platoon, who swear that he was facing forwards when he was shot in the back, by someone from our side! The name that was mentioned most often was Brandr!

From that point on, I started paying greater attention to what was happening at home. What I had treated as either unfounded rumours, or circumstances that occurred to people who didn’t apply themselves wholly to the work of Masonville, I learned were in fact, purposefully downtrodden, as I had heard from time to time.

I was having to be so very careful, to protect myself from association with undesirable persons, and then I heard my sister Asta had been arrested. I managed to get to find where she was being held and went to visit her, I was shocked beyond belief when I finally got to see my sister!”

Magni sat slumped in his chair, unable to look up at the Princess. Slowly he raised his head as gentle tears slid down the side of his nose from the corners of his eyes.

“My beautiful, dear, sweet, Asta, looked so different. Locked in a windowless cell, her long golden hair had been roughly shorn short, and was now mainly grey. Her beautiful face was deeply lined, etched with many worries, she’d a pale almost transparent skin, with deep, dark rings around her sunken eyes. She could barely move when I was finally allowed access to see her.

She had become a nurse like our mother and had become more and more involved with the more downtrodden members of our society. She’d run clinics for those without access to medical treatment! This despite warnings to cease such treatment from those who ran her hospital.

Seemingly, she took drugs and first aid items that were out of date from her hospital’s waste bins to use at her unofficial clinics. Last annual she was arrested and charged with providing aid to the enemy! THE ENEMY! They were OUR OWN people!

She had a summary court hearing and was found guilty and sentenced to death! It was all academic anyway, she’d contracted a virulent form of lung disease and was dying. I tried everything I could to get her sentence changed, to at least get her out of the cells, so she could die in peace. Brandr, to keep me quiet and away from whatever was happening at home, sent me here.

Then, three weeks ago, I finally had official confirmation that my dear, sweet Asta had died nearly six months ago!

“I had already realised that I had been lied to my entire life, and I had willingly allowed their lies to form the basis of my “Poster Boy” lifestyle, that all my ideals and beliefs were based on falsehoods. Someone, somewhere, has got wind of my investigations, and I have been warned that, upon my return to Masonville, I would be meeting with a suitable fatal accident. So, I was all prepared to go home and continue my sister’s legacy of standing up for others, until such a point that the powers that be could conveniently erase me from the scene.

When, it struck me that I could, perhaps do more for my fellow Masonville citizens, by providing yourselves with as much information as I can, before I return home to join the underground fighters and bring the likes of Signi, and Brandr plus the rest of their cohort down to their knees, or die in the attempt!”

Silence overtook the room for a while, before Princess Aryn sat forward, resting her arms on the table separating the two of them.

“Wow Magni, that is quite some tale, no wonder you wanted to seek asylum within Granaria. You have given me a lot to think over, I need to undertake some checking of my own you understand, but I shall be back with our decision of what to do with you at the earliest possible moment, thank you for sharing what has obviously been a traumatic recollection of past events!”

“Thank you for listening Princess. I fully understand your need to verify events, as much as you can. I wish to impart to you everything I can think of that will be of benefit to Granaria, and which will then, indirectly benefit my own people. But once I have related everything that I think will be of benefit to you, I still wish to return to Masonville, and continue the fight for the emancipation of all its people from the oppression they have lived under for far too long!”

“I understand Magni, I really do, leave it with me and I will be back with our response sooner rather than later! In the meantime, is there anything you want?”

“Yes Princess, would it be possible for me to have some paper and writing materials, plus a few books to read and help me pass the time?”

“Certainly Magni, I shall make those available to you shortly!”

They both stood and Magni came to attention, and clicking his heels together, bowed formally to the Princess. She offered her hand in leaving and once Magni was once again sat at the table on his own, he folded his arms and stooped down and resting his head on his forearms he quietly cried for the sister he felt he’d betrayed!

Chapter Twenty-three.

It was now almost six days since the events that had triggered this latest period of anxiety within Granaria. Six days of frantic activity, where artifacts had been recovered, six days since many lives had irretrievably been altered, and almost every day since those explosions someone somewhere, had had their view of the world changed.

Up in the infirmary, the two survivors of the canister rescued from the foothills, were slowly adjusting to longer periods of consciousness. It seemed neither knew much of their previous lives, nor could they explain the nature of the canister in which they had been found. Neither of them seemed to recognise each other, although one of them seemed to vaguely know the other individual, which was a little surprising as they looked to be almost identical twins. Neither of them knew their names, so the staff had decided to call them Kress and Kriss.

Both were troubled with severe headaches and strange dreams and visions that those charged with their care struggled to understand.

The belongings of both were similar to each other, but bore no relation to anything that was normal for Granaria, nor anywhere else on Villiar, their clothing bore marks which could be names, or rank insignia, who could tell?

The closures seemed sticky in some way, as one tab seemed to consist of thousands of tiny hooks that would grab onto another element that seemed to be of small hairy loops. What would have, presumably, been wrist watches had various symbols that seemed to alter via a set pattern before they seemed to rest and go through the whole process again. Other symbols, such a red heart symbol only seemed to react when placed back on the owners’ wrists. But for now, all their possessions had been locked in the infirmary safe.

Jena and Rusan, who were still residents of the infirmary due to the severity of the wounds and injuries suffered by Jena at the hands of her captor, had taken to having short walks up and down the infirmary ward. On each lap they would stop and talk to these two females if either were conscious.

Both Kress and Kriss were sat at a table by the beds, when approached by Rusan and Jena. Jena was moving stiffly still but was still struggling with some of her wounds that had remained heavily infected, and which, despite every treatment available to Princesses Ayne and Urna refused to heal, both were quietly worried.

Young Jena had got to all of them from the Queen downwards, and all were desperate to see her make a full recovery. But, despite the indomitable spark she seemed imbued with, all were worried that their young friend was not going to make it, Rusan was especially concerned.

Feeling especially tired on another of her laps of the infirmary, Jena sat at the table with Kriss and Kress.

“You look a bit paler this morning!” said Kriss as she glanced at the young woman sitting across from her.

Jena had always spoken to them both when they were awake, and she seemed like a lovely young girl, but it was obvious that her health was failing.

Kriss placed the back of her fingers on the girls forehead, it was obvious she was burning up. Just then Kriss groaned out loud, clasped her head and dropped to the floor.

Jena was horrified that she had somehow hurt this woman and Rusan led her slowly back to her bed.

“I’m sorry Rusan, I’m so, so sorry, honest, I didn’t mean to hurt Kriss, I don’t know what happened?” whimpered Jena.

“I’m sure it wasn’t anything you did Jena, both of them have illnesses of their own, so don’t you worry, just concentrate on getting better, now you lie down and rest up, okay?” And Rusan kissed her surrogate daughter's head as she glanced back up the ward at the activity around Kriss.

Later that afternoon Kriss woke up and looked around her with a greater degree of animation to her face and movements. The Princess Ayne approached her bed.

“Well hello Kriss, you look a little brighter this afternoon, how are you feeling?”

Kriss looked at her for a moment, before shaking her head.

“Hello Princess Ayne, my actual name is Karin, I remember that now, but tell me, where did you find me?”

Over the next few minutes, Ayne briefly told Karin what had transpired over the last few days and weeks. Karin looked across to the resident in the bed next to hers, who was also deeply asleep after collapsing with yet another powerful headache.

“I’m not sure exactly what is going on, but I entered an escape capsule with my husband Raul, not someone who looks like my sister! But tell me, did you find a large, bright green pack with a large white cross printed on it?” asked Karin.

“No, err, Karin! We decided, once we had extricated the two of you, to reseal it until such time either of you could show us what was safe to touch and what should be left well alone. The capsule is under armed guard in the rear of the Palace!”

“The Palace?” asked a stunned Karin.

“Yes, this is the infirmary, which is part of the Palace compound, it was felt you would be safer here than in an ordinary hospital until we knew more about the two of you!”

Karin looked down the infirmary ward, down towards Jena who was looking even more ill than when she remembered seeing her this morning.

“Tell me Princess, what anti-biotics have you administered to that girl?”

“Anti-biotics Karin? What on earth are antibiotics?”

Karin threw the bed clothes off and slowly shuffled down the ward to Jena’s bed.

“Please Princess, let me see Jena’s most troublesome wounds, this is important!”

Rusan, taking the initiative, pulled Jena’s bedclothes down her body and pulled Jena over onto her right shoulder and side, Jena murmured with the discomfort of being moved. Princess Ayne undid the rear ties of Jena’s gown and lifted one of the dressings from across Jena’s buttocks, revealing a suppurating sore, that was red, angry and seeping yellowish green goo. Karin pulled a face and again felt Jena’s forehead.

“Please Princess, I promise I will explain, but I need you, or someone with authority to get down to the capsule, and when entering, immediately to the left you will see a large door, open that and inside you should find two large green backpacks, both with white crosses on them, I need them up here, now! Please Princess, every moment counts, then I promise, I will explain everything to you!”

Princess Ayne looked this woman in the face for several seconds, before turning on her heel and running to the door she called over her shoulder “Two packs you say?”

“Yes Princess, both packs, quickly!”

Jena was gently laid back on her bed, and then, as Karin was just covering her with the bed sheet rather than the blankets she’d also been draped with.

As she looked down at the extremely ill young woman in front of her, she heard a bit of a commotion up at the other end of the ward. Upon looking up just as Kress sat up and stared around, looking more than a bit confused until she caught sight of Karin.

“Karin? Is that you Karin?”

Karin rushed, as much as she could, back to Kress’s bed.

“Yes, I’m Karin!” she answered more than a little confused herself.

“Karin, thank goodness you are alright, it’s me, Raul, but somethings wrong Karin, really wrong, I feel really very strange.”

“Raul? Is that really you Raul?” Karin answered distractedly, and a little more confused than Raul, if that was possible.

“I can’t believe it Raul, if that is you, tell me, just for my own peace of mind, where did we meet and why?”

“Come on Karin, you know that we met at The Sierra Foundation Building Repository, you were Karin Ross then, we were looking into a prophecy concerning The Planet Anmar!”

“Oh Raul, it is you!” said Karin as she threw her arms around her now twins neck. “I think you better prepare yourself for a shock, you know the error that changed Gary to Garia?”

“Yes, of course! . . . Oh my, . . . It’s happened again hasn’t it?”

“It certainly looks that way Raul, but please, come with me, we have a very sick girl at the other end of the ward who is going to need both of our first aid skills, she’s running a severe infection, and looks like she’s several badly infected wounds, come look, I’ve sent someone to see if our Medi-aid packs were transported with us. Come and look, see what you think."

As Raul slowly climbed out of bed Princess Urna appeared with two dressing gowns, to help cover their bare backs as their own bed gowns rear fastening, left a lot to be desired with regards to modesty.

As they had gently laid Jena on her face, the extent of her wounds became apparent to them both. They exchanged pained glances.

“Please, if you can, help her, she’s such a sweet, lovely girl who has been to hell and back, she deserves a chance at an ordinary life, so please help her!” begged Rusan.

“Well, provided our packs are here, we will do what we can, but we are not Doctors, just well-trained amateurs really!” answered Karin.

“We will do what we can, but tell me, who here has been treating her and what have you done so far?” asked Raul.

“I am the Princess Urna and myself and my sister, Princess Ayne who has gone down to your capsule, have tried everything we know. We are the top medical officers here in Granaria, but we know there is lots we don’t know! We have been pumping in fluids and pain relief; we have tried to keep the wounds clean and dry and treated them with sodium hypochlorite and boric acid!”

“So you haven’t given her any anti-biotics!” asked Raul.

“What are anti-biotics?” asked Urna, but before anyone could answer Princess Ayne rushed back into the infirmary.

“I rescued, . . both, . . your packs, . . . in fact, . . . here they are now, . . . Aryn and Caryn . . . . have carried them . . . the last four flights, . . . of stairs, . . . for me, . . . as I was struggling . . . for breath .. . under the weight of . . . . both of them who, . . . . while trying to rush . . . them . . . here!”

Aryn and Caryn placed both packs gently on the bed beside Jena, as they looked at both of Karin and Raul with surprise as they each grabbed a pack and started to extricate various items and tools.

“I’ll explain shortly!” said a hushed Urna, “It seems our two friends may be able to help Jena, and in ways that are foreign to us!” just then both the Queen and Pellinore rushed into the room.

Chapter Twenty-four.

Karin pulled a small tube from the pack and placed into Jena’s ear where it beeped, she exchanged a worried glance with Raul.

“Her temperature is forty-one point three degrees °C! But I don’t know how normal a temperature that is for here, time for a quick random sample!”

Turning to Rusan who was the closest to her.

“Let me check your temperature please, it doesn’t hurt, I promise!”

Within a matter of a munt or two Karin had checked the temperature of ten individuals within the room, including the Queen, her sister, four Princesses, two nurses, a passing herald and of course Rusan.

“Well Raul, the average here is thirty-seven point two °C, with a range of a point or two either side of that, so it’s basically the same as for us, although I think our average has been bumped up a touch due to three hot and perspiring Princesses who have run upstairs with our packs, so it will be worth rechecking the average when they’ve cooled down! What did your blood pressure samples reveal?”

“Well the physiology here seems to be the same as humans everywhere, as the blood pressure across five samples is One hundred and Twenty-one over Seventy-nine, whereas Jena’s is only Ninety-four over Sixty-three. She’s one sick girl. Sepsis? Do you think?”

“It certainly looks that way Raul, and if it is, the sooner we start treatment the better, but I am not sure what we can do to cure her!”

“You’re better trained than I am Karin, what do you suggest?”

“First things first, let’s do the basics! Can we get all the windows open and see if we can get a bit of a breeze going, we need to strip her, and we also need bowls of cool water to bathe her with”

The two nurses on duty rushed to get the bowls of water and some washcloths, whilst everyone else opened windows but drew the shades to keep the direct sunlight out of the infirmary. Rusan withdrew her knife from it’s sheath at her waist and slit the sleeves of Jena’s gown so it could be gently removed from under her with the least disturbance. Partitions were arranged to protect Jena’s modesty from anyone entering the infirmary unexpectedly.

“I think Raul, given how sick she is, and even though we’re not one hundred percent sure that the physiology here is actually the same at ours, we treat her as if it is! We set up two new intravenous drips to get fluids into her, one including a pack of reconstituted whole blood! Then. hit her with every antibiotic we have available. I don’t think we have time for tests, even if the good folks here can perform such analysis. I don’t want to trust the automated Jeeves terminal on board the capsule either, always assuming we can get it to work. Then we dose her up with some heavy sedation and clean the worst of the wounds the best we can, after that, it’s up to the girl herself!”

“Okay, Karin, you’re the boss, even in this reality, I’ll get the drips ready to start!”

Then looking around at the sea of expectant faces, Karin asked for, clean, sterile bedding, some posts or poles to support the drips, bright lights and a means of raising the bed to make it easier to work on Jena, and some fans to try and reduce the girl’s temperature. Everyone, including the queen scurried around finding all the additional elements needed to care for Jena, such was the effect she’d had on all of them, even though they’d only known her for the few days she’d been amongst them, as well as the quiet confidence these two newcomers seemed to exude.

Once they’d managed to get a saline drip running into Jena’s left arm, they added several doses of anti-biotics to the saline infusion, whilst the new drip in her right arm had a concoction of several rehydrated blood products also being fed into her system, these infusions would be the first of several Karin felt Jena would need. While she was unconscious, Raul, Karin along with the Princesses Ayne and Urna worked slowly and methodically to deep clean the many wounds on the poor girl’s body. All wounds were treated with rapid healing creams from within the first-aid kits and then dressed.

The green first-aid packs fascinated both the Princesses, whose many questions were answered by Raul and Karin as they worked.

It was a long afternoon and well into the evening before Karin and Raul eased their aching backs and gently covered the sleeping form of Jena with a sheet. They had done everything they could to help this fragile patient who’d seemed to have had an influence on everyone she’d met.

The solar panels to keep the electrical equipment charged, had been out on the balcony all afternoon. This was to ensure there was enough electrical reserves to run all the portable equipment needed overnight to try to save Jena, although it seemed the capsules onboard electronics had kept the batteries fully charged.

Everyone was either slumped onto adjacent beds or nearby chairs, as a single low bulb illuminated the sleeping figure who looked as if she had a bit better colour to her than earlier in the day. Princess Aryn looked at the two newcomers.

“That was an amazing display of medical know how, knowledge that we can only dream about, that was a privilege to watch!”

Urna nodded in agreement.

“Our research is just beginning to hint at some of the things we have observed today, to see our dreams made real fills me with such hope and excitement!”

Karin gave a tired smile.

“You have to remember that we are both are only classified as first aiders, what you witnessed was what we would call basic emergency first aid in what could be a battlefield situation. All our team members had to undertake the same detailed training to be passed as fit to be part of our crafts crew. Our properly trained doctors have much greater skills than Raul or I myself possess, I just hope it is enough to help Jena, she seems a very lovely young lady.

But what barbaric individual inflicted those wounds? And why? What would possess, . . I, . . I? Words fail me! Honestly!

I have read of such injuries in history books, I never ever expected to witness them first hand, I hope they have been suitably punished? I never thought to see such barbarity, such injuries, especially on one so young!” Tears were flowing down her cheeks; Raul was equally speechless and appalled!

Rusan spoke quietly as she continued to hold Jena’s hand and stroke her forehead.

“Don’t worry, he won’t ever hurt anyone else ever again!”

Princess Aryn, half smiled, half grimaced.

“No, Rusan saw to that herself! His death was too swift really, but needs must, Rusan acted in defence of some of our forces, and for that we all owe her a debt of thanks!”

Raul and Karin viewed Rusan in a new light, but Raul in particular, understood the need for swift action at times. Karin looked at Rusan and asked.

“Are you her mother? I see the way you interact, it’s beautiful to see such love between the generations.”

“Sadly no, I am not her mother, in the sense I did not birth her!” said Rusan softly, “But, I see her as one of my daughters, and I am as proud of her as I am of my other two girls!”

The Queen looked around the room and then spoke quietly.

“Well, on behalf of us all I want to thank the pair of you for all your efforts to help our Jena, I don’t have to tell either of you how much she means to us all, especially Rusan there, but, we’ll let Jena tell you her story herself, it is a powerful testimony of the life she has endured. However, if you don’t mind, could you tell us, who you are? Where you are from? What are you doing here? And just what in the world makes you so special to our neighbours in Masonville?”

Karin and Raul looked at each other tiredly, and both shrugged together.

“Actually, your Majesty, I am not sure either of us can answer all your questions to your complete satisfaction! To be honest, we are not exactly sure who we are, why we are here, nor what we’re supposed to be doing really. Others may be able to provide the missing information, but in many respects, we are even more confused than you are! You see, last time we knew for certain what was going on, we were under some form of aerial attack, and we just about made it into an escape pod! But then, we were husband and wife, male and female, Raul and Karin, now, we find ourselves in a strange place, with different levels of technology, looking for all the world, as far as we can tell, like twin sisters! So, we are hoping you can answer a lot of our questions too!” answered Raul to a stunned audience.

Karin couldn’t help but yawn, Raul looked just as tired.

“Would it be possible to have a bite to eat and a bit of a sleep before we tell you Karin’s and my story. I for one am shattered, plus, I am as curious about where we have ended up, and the obvious changes we’ve undergone as yourselves! I can only imagine how curious you all are about us, but we also want to ensure we help Jena to the best of our ability, and that’s going to make tonight a long one as it is! I just feel that we’ll all be able to understand events a bit better once we’ve had a rest.”

The Queen nodded her understanding.

“A good point, let’s arrange for us all to meet up here first thing in the morning, hopefully, given your efforts this afternoon, Jena will be a little better, and I am sure Rusan is just as curious about the two individuals who have done so much for her honorary daughter as are the rest of us.”

As they all stood Karin took her thermometer machine and took Jena’s temperature again.

“Forty point four °C, that’s promising, that’s the third reading in a row where her temperature has come down! Hopefully the antibiotics are working their magic!”

“Magic?” asked a confused looking Rusan.

“Sorry Rusan, it’s just a phrase from where I come from! Where something is quietly performing its task, saying “It’s working its magic!” is just a way of expressing that, whilst we might not fully understand how something does its job, we know there is a logical reason why something is doing what it is supposed to! It doesn’t imply that whatever it is, is a form of magic, just it’s something we may not fully understand or be able to explain.

Now I am rambling! I am so tired, so I shall shut up before I confuse you all even more!” Said Karin with a smile.

“No Karin,” said Rusan. “I do understand your explanation and thank you for all you have done for Jena, I know she’d want to thank you herself if she could!”

“Mmmm” came from the figure in the bed to the surprise of everyone in the room.

Slowly everyone either returned to their quarters, or their beds, whilst Rusan continued her vigil.