Principles by E.J. Russell

Author:E.J. Russell [Russell, E.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Reality Optional Press

Torian

In the end, I asked Darej to bring us a couple of extra buckets of water and the soft, scented soap necessary in a society where cutting one’s hair was tantamount to being a criminal, and keeping that hair in hundreds of tiny braids was de rigueur. I’d needed the distraction of washing Zal’s hair while he scrubbed himself ruthlessly, because his report of the encounter with the clerk made me decidedly nervous.

“Why do you think he had such an odd reaction? Was it guilt? Shock? Hostility?” I asked as I massaged Zal’s scalp.

“I expect it was nothing more than— Shite, that feels good.”

“Mmmm.” I decided not to mention that I was releasing a trickle of energy through my fingertips to compensate for reduced chrysocite chip exposure. He’d left his cloak behind at my suggestion, and I didn’t want him to suffer for it.

“When you run into someone in a place you don’t expect, sometimes it takes a moment to recognize them, even if they’re somebody you’ve known for years. And Natin and I haven’t seen one another since before I left on my first circuit.”

“If you say so.”

But I couldn’t shake that feeling of wrongness as we both dressed in clean clothing and ate our meal far too quickly than its excellence deserved. The stew was thick and hearty, the bread fresh, and the dulaberry tart that Darej delivered with a shy smile was better than anything I’d ever tasted. But then, food in the Lab was formulated for maximum nutritional value with minimum effort as nobody in the Lab considered cooking an efficient use of their time, and our food on the trail had been limited by what I could gather and Zal could hunt.

Jocosa had promised us what she’d called a more worthy meal for our supper, but every time I thought about supper, I couldn’t avoid thinking about what had to happen before we arrived at that point.

This audience with the Trine, their assessment, their verdict was the fulcrum on which my life balanced. Zal accepted that my abilities were the result of science, not magic, although the concept of science still gave him pause. I had seen the look on his face when I’d heated the bath water, evidently still struggling to fit technology into his world view, a worldview that didn’t even have a printing press.

Zal had weeks of getting to know me, and if he could still doubt, I stood no chance with strangers. I vowed silently not to reveal any but ordinary abilities to the Trine.

My conflict alert pinged again. Definition: ordinary; refine parameters.

Ah. That was a problem, wasn’t it? I still wasn’t entirely sure what constituted ordinary, particularly for a Moon-born. Would the Trine have that information at their disposal? If so, I would be at even more of a disadvantage.

Look what had happened when I’d tried to soothe myself with a song. Just as Zal had done, the Cock & Bull’s staff and customers had reacted as though they’d never heard anyone sing before.

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