{"id":592,"date":"2024-08-03T05:54:30","date_gmt":"2024-08-03T09:54:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/?p=592"},"modified":"2025-01-28T23:38:39","modified_gmt":"2025-01-29T04:38:39","slug":"the-changeling-game-chapter-52","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/the-changeling-game-chapter-52\/","title":{"rendered":"The Changeling Game, Chapter 52"},"content":{"rendered":"<style type=\"text\/css\">\ntt {\nfont: .857em menlo, monaco, consolas, monospace;\nmargin: auto;\n}\nh2 {\ntext-align: center;\n}\nh2.chapterhead {\nmargin-bottom: 2em;\ntext-align: center;\n}\n  .nowrap {\n    text-indent: 0;\n    display: inline-block;\n}\n<\/style>\n<p><b>Title:<\/b> The Changeling Game <small>(Formerly <i>Identity Theft<\/i>)<\/small><br \/>\n<b>Author:<\/b> Ardath Rekha<br \/>\n<b>Chapter:<\/b> 52\/?<br \/>\n<b>Fandom:<\/b> <i>Pitch Black<\/i> (2000); <i>The Chronicles of Riddick<\/i> (2004); <i>The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury<\/i> (2004)<br \/>\n<b>Rating:<\/b> M<br \/>\n<b>Warnings:<\/b> Adult themes, controversial subject matter, harsh language, violence<br \/>\n<b>Category:<\/b> Gen<br \/>\n<b>Pairing:<\/b> None<br \/>\n<b>Summary:<\/b> Good-byes are always hard, but this is the hardest one Jack has ever had to face. One final moment alone can reshape a life.<br \/>\n<b>Disclaimer:<\/b> The characters and events of <i>Pitch Black,<\/i> <i>The Chronicles of Riddick,<\/i> and <i>The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury<\/i> are not mine, but belong to Universal Studios.  I just <i>wish<\/i> I were in charge of their fates.  No money is being made off of this.  I\u2019m writing strictly for love of the story.<br \/>\n<b>Feedback:<\/b> Absolutely, the more the better!  Shred me, whip me, beat me, make me feel grammatical! I post \u201crough,\u201d so I can always use the help. \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n<input type='hidden' bg_collapse_expand='6a8e6c17237f00029916294' value='6a8e6c17237f00029916294'><input type='hidden' id='bg-show-more-text-6a8e6c17237f00029916294' value='Long post is long. Click to read the story.'><input type='hidden' id='bg-show-less-text-6a8e6c17237f00029916294' value='Hide the story again.'><button id='bg-showmore-action-6a8e6c17237f00029916294' class='bg-showmore-plg-button bg-green-button  '   style=\" color:#D9ECFB;\">Long post is long. Click to read the story.<\/button><div id='bg-showmore-hidden-6a8e6c17237f00029916294' ><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"chapterhead\">52.<br \/>\n<u>Without Saying Good-Night<\/u><\/h2>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cHe\u2019s doing it again,\u201d Izil said, beginning to laugh.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cShh! He\u2019ll stop if he realizes you\u2019re laughing at him,\u201d Tafrara scolded. \u201cEveryone. Keep going.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan was struggling to keep a straight face as he lowered his body toward the ground, bending his right leg back and straightening his left leg out in front of him, right arm lifted and curved behind him while his left arm extended toward his ankle. Jack and Kyra tried to focus on replicating his pose\u2026 while Sebby did <i>too.<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cDear <i>God<\/i>, I can\u2019t believe I\u2019m not allowed to record <i>this\u2026<\/i>\u201d Izil gasped.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Three of Sebby\u2019s back left legs were bending back, their right mates stretched forward. His remaining legs were held out for balance as he positioned his pincers\u2014and antennae\u2014in a mirror-image mimicry of Ewan\u2019s arms. Although he wobbled a little, he was holding the pose.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The little crustacean had apparently decided that <i>he<\/i> wanted to learn Tai Chi, <i>too.<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cThis is the cutest thing <i>ever<\/i>,\u201d Kyra whispered.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack felt like she was going to burst with emotion. Pride and love warred with the urge to laugh for hours at how adorably silly Sebby looked\u2026 and with a powerful ache at the knowledge that, as with Ewan, this was probably her last evening-day with him for years, possibly ever.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cIt is very cute,\u201d Tafrara agreed. \u201cNow keep your focus on Zdan and let Sebby focus on him, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Word was spreading. Izil had stopped for a moment to send out a message on his comm. Some members of the family had emerged onto their balconies to observe the session, and after a moment, Jack could see Lalla and Safiyya watching from the dining room doorway.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cWe won\u2019t be doing any more of the moves where you have to lift a leg off of the ground,\u201d Ewan murmured as he shifted to another position. \u201cI don\u2019t want him to fall over.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cAgreed,\u201d Tafrara said as she corrected the way Jack was holding her right arm.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan was gazing directly at Sebby as he changed positions, moving extra-slowly and carefully to make sure the cat-sized crustacean could follow along comfortably. His suppressed laughter had given way to even more powerful emotion, and Jack could tell that he was going to treasure this experience for the rest of his life.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cSebby really is quite intelligent, isn\u2019t he?\u201d Tafrara murmured by Jack after a while.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cHe is, yeah. I swear, he understands everything we say,\u201d Jack answered as she tried to mirror Ewan\u2019s latest movement. \u201cSometimes I think I understand what he\u2019s saying, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cMuch more than a pet, to be sure.\u201d Tafrara nodded, a sad smile on her face. \u201cWe will miss him. The house is going to feel so empty without the three of you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cJust the three of them?\u201d Ewan asked, bringing his hands into a new position that Sebby promptly imitated with his pincers.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cYou call us <i>all the time<\/i>,\u201d Tafrara laughed.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cSee if I will <i>now<\/i>,\u201d he mock-grumbled at her, straightening up to stand, fully balanced, on both legs, bringing his hands together and bowing at all of them\u2026 and especially at Sebby, who bowed back with his pincers touching.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">It was their last Tai Chi session with Ewan. In another hour, once they had all showered and changed, it would be time to leave for the send-off party. The day had flown by faster than Jack liked.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Her fire bush was planted, Ewan helping her get it properly situated in its special location while, all around them, his family worked on redesigning the rooftop area to make the bush into the centerpiece of a new, magical garden. It had been loud and chaotic enough that any hope of continuing her narrative, telling the story of the capture and escape from the <i>Kublai Khan<\/i>, had been lost. She might manage to tell Kyra that part before <i>they<\/i> parted ways, but Ewan wouldn\u2019t hear it unless\u2014<i>until<\/i>\u2014she returned in several years\u2019 time.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Her last hours with him were slipping away. Soon there would be a throng of well-wishers wanting to spend time with him, people who knew him far better than she did. They might not get to spend any more time with each other at all once they arrived at the party.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Somehow she was simultaneously dreading their good-bye and fearing she was going to be cheated out of it.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cThere\u2019s no way he wouldn\u2019t say a proper good-bye to you,\u201d Kyra told her as they prepared to shower, Sebby eagerly bouncing as he watched them change into their bathrobes. \u201cYou\u2019re worrying way too much.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack sighed and nodded. \u201cI know. I just\u2026 hate that time\u2019s running <i>out<\/i> like this. I know we didn\u2019t plan to stay much longer than this anyway, but\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cNow it\u2019s real,\u201d Kyra said, belting her robe. \u201cAnd it sucks. When I was little and visited my mom\u2019s family, I always hated it when the visits ended. I always was afraid I\u2019d never see any of them again. Eventually, I was right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack winced. Kyra\u2019s mom seemed like she\u2019d originally come from some pretty normal people, before she\u2019d decided her gifts were satanic and had followed her husband into\u2026 not to put too fine a point on it, but into a <i>cult.<\/i> If she and Kyra had stayed on Earth instead of setting out across the stars\u2026<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u2026Jack would never have found her way here, not at this time, maybe not at all. And, if Kyra had never left Earth later, in one of the Star Jumpers that came out in ensuing decades, would she have managed to find a happy life there? Most of the textbooks at Jack\u2019s schools had claimed that there was no happiness to be found on Earth by then, although her father had told her that things hadn\u2019t been that simple. But Kyra might never have seen a <i>green<\/i> world\u2026<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">She had a sudden memory of her overnoon dreams, of hiking and hiding in a huge forest, sometimes with Kyra and sometimes <i>as<\/i> Kyra\u2026 with Riddick beside her\u2026<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Had those even been <i>her<\/i> dreams?<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Weird. She\u2019d also visited with the <i>Apeiros<\/i>, who had lots of questions about the story she\u2019d been telling and the world she had described. That \u201cdream\u201d was as vivid as waking memory. But hiking with Riddick\u2026<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The images were impressionistic. He always wore the same thing, the clothes she\u2019d shown him wearing on the crash planet. Sometimes she\u2019d felt as if she was playing his role, walking beside Kyra and mimicking the way he\u2019d said things, speaking with his voice and wearing his form. Other times, she\u2019d seen everything from Kyra\u2019s perspective as they explored the forest together. At times, he had rescued Kyra from her oppressive life at the Enclave. But sometimes, the massacre had taken place, Riddick had rescued her from the aftermath, and they were hunting the men who had hurt her and murdered her mother, together, as a team. Sometimes he killed Red Roger for her, sometimes they killed him together\u2026<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack hadn\u2019t \u201cdriven\u201d any of the dreams. She\u2019d been an observer, a passenger, as a dreaming Kyra spun out scenarios in which her time in the wilds of Canaan Mountain had <i>not<\/i> been spent alone, but in the company of a deadly partner.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">But, Jack told herself, at least Kyra hadn\u2019t ended up mired in any nightmares. <i>That<\/i> was good\u2026 wasn\u2019t it?<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Sebby danced in the shower with each of them as they washed up for the party.  When they emerged from the bathroom, fresh clothes were waiting for them on the bed, along with two of Lalla\u2019s wigs. Tonight, they wouldn\u2019t be \u201cDihya\u201d and \u201cTislilel,\u201d who were allegedly still too ill to attend. They would pose as two college friends of Ewan\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The dresses were beautiful, colorful beaded kaftans belted at the waist. They were obviously expensive, and Jack had almost protested when Takama had shown them the garments earlier.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cNone of that,\u201d Takama had said before she could draw in a breath. \u201cYou know that we hoped to adopt both of you somehow. Let us at least have one occasion where we bought our \u2018daughters\u2019 something lovely to wear.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">In spite of her earlier claims, that had visibly touched Kyra even more deeply than Jack; Kyra, after all, was the genuine orphan of the two of them.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Kyra\u2019s wig was curly and auburn; Jack\u2019s was dark blonde, shoulder-length, with bangs. When she settled it on her head, she felt a weird sense of predestination. This was a look she could see herself wearing in reality\u2026 and suddenly <i>wanted<\/i> to.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Especially, she thought, if Ewan liked it.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cWhat are our names again?\u201d Kyra asked as she belted her brilliant maroon kaftan.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cYou\u2019re Gwen, and I\u2019m Mercia,\u201d Jack told her as she secured the wig\u2019s clips into her hair the way Lalla had shown her. \u201cTafrara had two college friends who visited a lot, who had those names and hair like we\u2019re wearing, so it\u2019ll be easy for them to remember our names.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan, she knew, wouldn\u2019t have any trouble keeping his facts straight.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cIs anyone gonna buy that we\u2019re Ewan\u2019s age?\u201d Kyra was attaching her wig\u2019s clips to her own braided-back hair.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cMaybe with you. I\u2019m supposed to have started right when he was graduating. That\u2019s the cover story, anyway. They\u2019re not gonna say much, though. Hopefully nobody will ask or care. It\u2019s just in case.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Lalla and Takama arrived with a small banquet for Sebby just as they finished getting ready.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cYou two look <i>perfect,\u201d<\/i> Takama said with a smile. \u201cAlmost like the real Gwen and Mercia. This will be easy to remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">As Sebby settled into what might be his final dinner at the <i>ait Meziane<\/i> house, Jack and Kyra followed Takama and Lalla down to the garage.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan, garbed in his military uniform and devastatingly handsome, waited by one of the large, elegant transports that the tribe seemed to have several of. The four olive trees were still resting in the all-terrain vehicle\u2019s bed, and no one had gathered near it. As they approached him, Jack found herself feeling very glad that she already knew how much Ewan cared about her, or she might not have found the nerve to talk to him. He looked <i>light-years<\/i> out of her league.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The expression on his face, however, was admiring. \u201cDon\u2019t you look lovely, \u2018Mercia,\u2019\u201d he murmured. \u201c\u2018Gwen.\u2019 I hope you two will be riding with me?\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cOf course they will,\u201d said Takama. \u201cWe wouldn\u2019t dream of depriving you of a moment of their company.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ouch. The subtext, that it would be his last chance to see either of them for a long time, was <i>barely<\/i> below the surface.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The shadows were growing long and the sun was nearing the horizon as they drove down toward the shore, heading south as they went, away from the spaceport. For a moment, Jack was surprised.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cOh,\u201d she realized aloud. \u201cOf course you didn\u2019t land at the spaceport. Not with what had just happened there.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cNo, non-emergency traffic was extremely limited, but I was able to get special permission to land at Menara Field.\u201d Ewan told her with a smile. \u201cThe field is run by friends of the family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cIt\u2019s not the one where that airshow was held at, is it?\u201d  That would be crazy.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan laughed. \u201cNo, that was in New Fes. Fortunately.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cHe means,\u201d Tafrara snickered from the front seat, \u201che\u2019d never have gotten to the Tomcat if he\u2019d had to get past <i>locals<\/i> who <i>knew<\/i> him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cI still have no regrets,\u201d Ewan laughed.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cAnd the send-off party\u2019s at the field?\u201d Kyra asked.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cThey have a lovely facility, yes,\u201d Tafrara replied. \u201cWe wanted to be able to say, if anyone inquired, that we couldn\u2019t accommodate anyone past those we had already invited. In case a certain person was still trying to get a look at the two of you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The airfield, larger than Jack expected given her own visits to air shows on Deckard\u2019s World, was home to a variety of aircraft, and had a few landing pads for the occasional small spacecraft. As they walked toward the main building, Ewan pointed out at one of the pads. A small fighter, elegantly designed for both air and space, was poised on it, being fueled.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cThat\u2019s my bird. I\u2019ve been training in her for the last six months.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cIt\u2019s beautiful,\u201d Jack said, wishing she could go for a ride in it.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan must have heard it in her voice. \u201cPerhaps one day, I can take you flying,\u201d he whispered, just barely audibly\u2026 and in Arabic. Words calculated for her alone. No one else but Kyra was close enough to hear, and <i>she<\/i> couldn\u2019t understand Arabic.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">It was as close to a promise as either of them dared make. She met his eyes and saw a wistfulness in them that mirrored what she was feeling.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cOkay, you two. Don\u2019t make <i>me<\/i> play chaperone here,\u201d Kyra muttered.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cSorry.\u201d Ewan gave her a rueful look.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cI forgive you.\u201d Kyra favored him with an arch smile. \u201cThis time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan put his arm around Jack\u2019s sister and gave her a hug, kissing the top of her head. \u201cThank you, \u2018Gwen.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">She snickered. \u201cYou realize you just kissed Lalla\u2019s wig, right?\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">He was, Jack reflected, one of the only men in the universe whom Kyra would allow to <i>do<\/i> that. She trusted him absolutely. And, because she felt an equally absolute lack of attraction to him, their relationship had genuinely fallen into a sibling-like domain. He made a far better older brother for her than the one she\u2019d been born with.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack hoped Kyra wouldn\u2019t have to wait <i>too<\/i> long to return to him and the rest of the family.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">An elderly man greeted them at the building\u2019s entry, clapping Ewan on the back as he welcomed them inside. A corridor with ordinary office doors stretched out in front of them, but through another door to the side\u2026<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u2026there was definitely a party in full swing.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The large room was <i>full<\/i> of people, who cheered and shouted welcomes the moment they spotted Ewan. Most of the men and women were his age or slightly older, people he had gone to school with or worked with, in all likelihood. Jack spotted General Toal and a few of the officers from the garden party mingling among the revelers. Robie was in the crowd, looking just one eyepatch and parrot away from an ancient Disney pirate captain. Most guests wore colorful Moroccan garb, but only a few of the women wore hijabs or shaylas, and Jack spotted just one woman in a full chador.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Within moments, Ewan had been swallowed up by the crowd. Everyone wanted a chance to talk to him before he left for Qamar. Jack could hear him switching flawlessly between Arabic, French, and Spanish as he went, favoring each conversation partner\u2019s first language. Tafrara showed up a moment later to lead Jack and Kyra to the food tables, where a fascinating array of options made Jack resolve to try a small amount of everything at least once over the course of the night. Kyra gave her a wide-eyed look when she caught that thought.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cYou are <i>definitely<\/i> getting ready to grow another two or three inches,\u201d her older sister whispered to her. \u201cPossibly on the <i>spot.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">As always, Jack noticed, the alcoholic beverages that would have been ubiquitous on Deckard\u2019s World were entirely absent. Instead, Maghrebi mint tea dominated, along with glasses of orange and pomegranate juice, avocado \u201cjuice\u201d that Jack already knew from experience was more of a <i>smoothie<\/i>, <i>raib<\/i>, and even a few cups of <i>nous nous<\/i> despite the hour. Small tables dotted the room\u2014there didn\u2019t appear to be an area for dancing\u2014and many of the guests had already filled plates and congregated around most of them.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">With a filled plate of her own, Jack settled in to people-watch, trying not to think about how few hours were left until Ewan\u2019s launch window opened and he left Tangiers Prime. Many of the men and women his age seemed to be using the party as an impromptu reunion, chatting in Arabic about what each of them had been doing in the last few years. Most seemed to be pursuing graduate studies of some kind. Several of the women\u2014all distressingly beautiful\u2014were staying close to Ewan and hanging on his every word. His warmth encompassed all of them.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Any of them, she thought heavily, might be his future wife. Any of them would be a more appropriate choice than a thirteen-year-old girl with a massive crush and four and a half years to go before she was even <i>legal<\/i> on Tangiers Prime. She\u2019d been deluding herself, reading too much into Ewan\u2019s kindness and brotherly affection. When she came back, she would have to be prepared to just be his little sister or young cousin, and to accept whoever he\u2019d married as family, too\u2026<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cYou seem to be lost in some sad thoughts,\u201d a deep voice rumbled beside her. General Toal sat down next to her.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack nodded, swallowing. \u201cYeah, saying goodbye is hard.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cYou can return one day, \u2018Mercia,\u2019\u201d he told her, his voice gentle. \u201cGoodbye does not have to be forever. I know that there will always be a welcome for you here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">It suddenly occurred to Jack to wonder if Riddick had ever planned to return to Helion Prime, and what he would think if he did and she was gone. But then, no promises of <i>any<\/i> kind had been made there, and neither he nor Imam had ever particularly cared to ask if she had plans that conflicted with the ones they apparently had contrived for her. Hopefully, if he did come back one day to find her long gone, he\u2019d accept it as an inevitable outcome of their choice to exclude her from decisions about her own fate.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Just as she, she told the ache lodged in her chest, would have to accept whatever she found when she returned to Tangiers Prime one day. Nobody here could put their lives on hold just so she could go off and grow up first.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Full dark had fallen, and some of the guests were already departing. Ewan made sure to speak to each of them one more time as they left.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cIs it almost time already?\u201d she asked General Toal, suddenly feeling stricken.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cNo, child. Not yet. But part of the event is something that most of the traditionalists among the Muslim contingent would be uncomfortable with.\u201d He nodded at the departing guests, all of whom, Jack realized, were dressed in more conservative Muslim attire.\n<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cWhat part is that?\u201d she asked as Kyra sat down next to her.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cA bit of <i>Scottish<\/i> traditionalism,\u201d Cedric said, joining them. \u201cWhich all are welcome to partake in, if their faith allows them to. The Ceilidh.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Kyra looked startled for a second. \u201cThe Kaylee?\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">A friend of hers, Jack remembered, had worn that name, and had died a terrible death.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cCeilidh\u2026 C-E-I-L-I-D-H,\u201d Cedric explained. It <i>did<\/i> sound like he was saying <i>Kaylee<\/i>, though. \u201cIt\u2019s a traditional Scottish dance. We haven\u2019t had a chance to hold one for a while, and I think Ewan\u2019s looking forward to it. So we let all of the guests know that it would be one of the final events of the evening.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cMost strict observers of Islam follow a prohibition against men and women dancing together,\u201d General Toal added. \u201cFor many of them, even watching that take place would be deeply uncomfortable. American square dancing has many of its roots in the Ceilidh, I\u2019m told.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Kyra, of course, had been born in America, and Jack had been born on a world that fetishized all things American.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack grinned. \u201cMy grade school taught us how to square dance. I don\u2019t know how similar it really is, but I\u2019m in.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cMy parents always said dancing was sinful,\u201d Kyra said after a moment, a mischievous smile spreading over her face. \u201cI wanna try it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cGood,\u201d Tafrara said from behind them. \u201cWe can show you the steps. It\u2019s really not hard at all.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">More than half of the guests had departed, and the tables were being moved to the edges of the room. Once anyone who might object had left, Tafrara and Izil began showing Jack and Kyra various steps and telling them their names.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cI\u2019m never going to remember all of this,\u201d Kyra groaned, even as she copied Tafrara\u2019s footwork perfectly.\n<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack, who could remember all of the names and the steps that went with them, was privately convinced that, in spite of that, she was going to end up stomping someone\u2019s foot in a moment of pure klutziness.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cDon\u2019t worry about it,\u201d Tafrara laughed. \u201cGo with the movement and let it carry you. We\u2019re not doing competitive performances here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cThere are <i>competitive performances?\u201d<\/i> Kyra gasped.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cPeople will make anything into a competition,\u201d Ewan said, joining them and casting the light of his smile on each of them in turn. \u201cAre we ready? I\u2019ve been waiting for this all night.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The next thing Jack knew, he had taken her hand and led her out toward the center of the room. Kyra, hand in hand with Izil, followed. Other pairs joined them.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The elderly proprietor who had greeted them stepped up to a microphone, drawing everyone\u2019s attention. He would be their caller, he told them. Many of the remaining guests seemed comfortable just observing as the dance got underway and Jack discovered, for the first time in her life, that bagpipes really could produce gorgeous melodies.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">It was hard not to get lost in Ewan\u2019s eyes when he was her partner, and she was always afraid that <i>his<\/i> would be the foot she tromped on. But he was an expert at the dance, and it never happened. She was whirled from partner to partner, sometimes dancing with Izil, sometimes Usadden, then Cedric, Robie, even General Toal\u2026 and then back in Ewan\u2019s arms where time stopped once more. It <i>was<\/i> a lot like square dancing, although many of the calls were completely different. Whirling through figures felt almost like spinning through the spangled darkness with the <i>Apeiros<\/i>, but with <i>him<\/i> alongside her. She wasn\u2019t sure how long it lasted, but she found herself wishing it would never end. Finally, however, the last of the songs ended and both the other dancers and their audience began to clap. She did as well, feeling a mixture of breathless exhilaration and forlorn longing.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Safiyya handed her a glass of something sweet with a hint of a grassy flavor to it, which Jack found herself almost <i>chugging.<\/i> \u201cWow, what is this?\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201c<i>Aseer kasab<\/i>,\u201d Safiyya told her. \u201cSugarcane juice. A good refreshment for after such strenuous exercise.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan was circulating again, and Jack realized that now he was saying his goodbyes to <i>everyone,<\/i> sharing hugs and claps on the back as he went. It was almost time.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cOn the way back to the <i>ait Meziane<\/i> house,\u201d General Toal said from beside her, \u201cI have a small present for you and \u2018Gwen.\u2019 We spoke of it the other day.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">That reminded her. \u201cDo you know if it could help me stop talking in my sleep? I\u2019m worried about what people might hear me say.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The General raised his eyebrows. \u201cAs a matter of fact, it does help train for that, too. I will show you the settings for that\u2026 as well as the settings for what we discussed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Out of the corner of her eye, Jack could see Ewan in earnest conversation with Kyra. The moment she dreaded was getting closer and closer.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cThank you, General,\u201d she said, trying to focus on the moment. \u201cI really appreciate everything you\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cIt is no more than I would hope anyone in my position would have the honor to do, child.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\"><i>Child.<\/i> The sum total of everything that had gone wrong on her run\u2026 no matter where she went, what she did, or how freakin\u2019 <i>tall<\/i> she got, she was still a <i>child\u2026<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">People were leaving in droves now. The room was emptying out\u2014<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201c\u2018Mercia?\u2019\u201d Ewan asked. He was standing in front of her, holding out his hand. \u201cMay I have a moment with you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\"><i>Here we go. Fuck\u2026<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack nodded, swallowing hard against the constriction suddenly wrapping itself around her throat, and took his hand, standing up.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan led her toward a door to one side of the room. Usadden began to follow them. \u201cWe need a moment alone. Please,\u201d Ewan said to his cousin.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack was aware of charged glances passing around. Then she saw Cedric nod. Ewan opened the door and drew her through, closing it behind them.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">They were in a small office. She suddenly realized that this was the first time they were alone, unchaperoned, since they had returned from Elsewhere.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cI\u2026\u201d Ewan said, stepping close to her, and then faltered for a moment. \u201cI don\u2019t even know your real name.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cAu\u2014\u201d she started, before his fingertips pressed against her lips.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cAnd you cannot tell me, not now. I can\u2019t know your name any more than I can know where you\u2019re going. One day\u2026 but not now.\u201d Ewan closed his eyes and took a deep breath, taking her hand in his and pressing her palm to his chest above his heart. His eyes opened again and locked with hers, capturing her. \u201cBut here\u2019s something <i>I<\/i> can tell <i>you.<\/i> Listen carefully, Tizzy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">He recited a long string of numbers while she gazed up at him in bewilderment.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cRepeat that back, please,\u201d he said when he was done. She did. \u201cGood. That comm code will reach me, no matter where you are in the Federacy, and no matter where I am. I will always have it. If you find yourself in trouble, if you need my help, regardless of where or when, use that code. You only have to leave the message, \u2018Tislilel needs you,\u2019 and I will come to you. I know we\u2019re forbidden to make any promises, but upon my life, I swear this. <i>I will come to you.<\/i> If I receive your call when I\u2019m on my death bed, I will still rise up and come to you. But I hope you will return to us before then, of course\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack couldn\u2019t speak. There were far too many things she wanted to say to him, most of which she didn\u2019t dare articulate. She was trapped in his eyes.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">He pulled her into a hug, wrapping his powerful arms around her and holding her close. She found herself clinging to him, wishing she never had to let go. He murmured something in Tamazight, too fast for her to even try to parse, but she knew she would remember every syllable.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cCome back to us when you can, Tislilel Meziane,\u201d he said in a shaky whisper after another moment. \u201cYou will always have a home and family here with us. No matter what happens, that will always be true.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Even if she could find her voice, she realized that she didn\u2019t dare answer him. No promises were allowed, even if she wanted to promise him <i>everything,<\/i> to tell him she was his forever\u2014<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The door opened. \u201cZdan?\u201d Robie\u2019s voice was gentle. \u201cIt\u2019s time. The window\u2019s opening.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Ewan released her, took her face in his hands, and brushed aside her bangs before kissing her forehead, much as his brother had the last time she\u2019d seen him. \u201cUntil we meet again, <i>ta\u1e25bibt-iw.\u201d<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">She rose up and kissed his cheek before he could pull away. It was a struggle not to begin crying as she forced herself to let go, and not to try to press her lips to his. His eyes, on hers, were intense and shining. She still couldn\u2019t get her voice to work, but she could see\u2014could <i>feel<\/i> all the way through\u2014that he already knew everything she was unable to say.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cCome,\u201d Robie said, putting his hand on Ewan\u2019s shoulder and steering him out of the room.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Kyra entered a moment later and wrapped Jack in a tight hug.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The family walked outside as a group a few minutes later. Ewan, now dressed in his flight suit and carrying his helmet in one hand and a duffel bag in the other, was striding across the tarmac, Robie and the elderly proprietor on either side of him. As they watched, he reached his fighter and spoke to both men for a moment. Robie put his hand on Ewan\u2019s shoulder, saying something. Ewan shook his head and then donned his helmet, climbing into the cockpit. Robie removed the ladder from the spacecraft\u2019s side, retreating with the old man as the fighter\u2019s engines lit up and it began to roll toward the runway. They watched, as a group, as Ewan took off, no one moving until the light from the engines, a star rising upward into the night sky, finally dwindled and vanished.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cTime to go home,\u201d Cedric said after a moment.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack felt strangely weightless and numb as they walked toward the vehicles they\u2019d come in\u2026 one family member short. Robie and the proprietor had cut across the tarmac and were talking to each other in Arabic as they approached.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201c\u2026known him since he was a little boy,\u201d the old man was saying, \u201cand I know he\u2019ll be fine\u2026 but I\u2019d still like to know which of those lovely young women had the <i>audacity<\/i> to break his heart tonight of all nights\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">Jack felt like she couldn\u2019t breathe.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cThat\u2019s none of your concern,\u201d Robie said, his voice suddenly sharp.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201c<i>Khara<\/i>,\u201d muttered Usadden. <i>Shit.<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cLet\u2019s get you girls home,\u201d General Toal said, steering Jack and Kyra toward the vehicle he\u2019d used to pick Jack up from the pier. \u201cI have something for the two of you\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cWhat is it?\u201d Kyra whispered to Jack as they walked with him. \u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">She still couldn\u2019t speak. Instead, she shared that moment mentally with Kyra\u2026 fully translated.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\"><i>Oh,<\/i> her sister replied silently. <i>Damn\u2026<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">They climbed into the back seat of the General\u2019s vehicle, where two wrapped boxes with <b>D.<\/b> and <b>T.<\/b> on them waited. Jack felt completely hollow.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cI will show you how to use them once we are back at the house,\u201d the General said as he drove them away from the airfield.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">She nodded, still unable to talk, wondering if she\u2019d manage to find her voice ever again. Kyra pulled her into another hug and held her as her tears finally slid free.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">An orange glow lit part of the night sky, reflecting against the clouds. They were driving toward it.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cWhat <i>is<\/i> that?\u201d Kyra asked as Jack wiped her face with the General\u2019s handkerchief.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">The glow was growing larger and larger, illuminating a column of black smoke\u2026 which was rising from the <i>Rif.<\/i><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-indent:1em;margin-bottom: 0\">\u201cIt would appear,\u201d the General said, sounding completely unsurprised and unconcerned, \u201cthat your old apartment building is burning to the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Title: The Changeling Game (Formerly Identity Theft) Author: Ardath Rekha Chapter: 52\/? Fandom: Pitch Black (2000); The Chronicles of Riddick (2004); The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury (2004) Rat","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"bgseo_title":"\u201cThe Changeling Game\u201d 52: \u201cWithout Saying Good-Night\u201d","bgseo_description":"Good-byes are always hard, but this is the hardest one Jack has ever had to face. One final moment alone can reshape a life.","bgseo_robots_index":"index","bgseo_robots_follow":"follow","footnotes":""},"categories":[9,21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-592","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fan-fiction","category-the-changeling-game"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=592"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1171,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592\/revisions\/1171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=592"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=592"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ardath-rekha.com\/wips\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=592"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}