The Namura Stone

Title:

THE

NAMURA

STONE

(BOOK 6 IN THE AMMONITE GALAXY SERIES)

by

GILLIAN ANDREWS

Dedication:

There are elements inside your body

That survived a supernova.

And atoms within you

Which have lived since time began.

Be proud, Namuri;

You are unbounded.

Walk tall; hold your head up to the sky.

Be humble, Namuri;

You are unbounded.

Think of what will endure.

(A Namuri chant)

Chapter 1

SIX WAS SITTING looking at the Emerald Lake on Xiantha. He gave a deep sigh. He couldn’t see why Diva was so determined to go back to visit the Namura clan on Coriolis.

“You already saw where they lived,” he said. “What sort of a welcome do you think they are likely to give you, anyway? You are still a meritocrat, remember? As I recall, meritocrats are their least favourite people.”

“I have to go back. I want to talk to that old woman – the one who officiated at Petra’s funeral. There was something about her … something that I have to know.” Diva gave a rueful smile. “I am not even sure myself.”

Six stirred. “We’ll both go.”

She shook her head. “No. If you go then the whole dynamic will be different. I don’t think she will talk to me in front of a man.”

“Yes, but look here, Diva. Last time we went back to Mesteta, your famous cousin Tartalus nearly killed me. I am not too keen on your taking Raven over on your own. He is still making trouble, from what I hear.”

Female eyes flashed in his direction. “Are you suggesting that I can’t look after my own daughter?”

He held up a hasty hand. “No, no! Just that you might not have taken into account Tartalus, is all.”

“Tartalus will not be a problem; that I can guarantee you.” There was steel in her voice. “But I do have to introduce Raven to her grandparents, and it really ought to be before long. Coriolan law states that she should be given the emblem of succession before she is 2 years old. After all, she will inherit the meritocracy one day. You did say you didn’t want them to come here.”

“No kidding! Your mother still sounds like a walking dictionary, and your father can hardly bear to bring himself to look at me. You know what he thinks of Kwaidian no-names.”

She made a face, and they sat for a few moments in silence.

Another thought occurred to Six. “Why don’t you take some of the other children? If you have to go at all, that is?” Six stared out of the open doors of the house at the Emerald Lake, contemplating all fifty of his children, who were currently enjoying their two weeks holiday with their real parents. The screams and laughter coming from the water’s edge were deafening. Luckily they were being supervised by five of the Donor Headquarters staff, so Six and Diva could find the time to speak in private.

“You know I can’t. The Xianthan panchromes took long enough to give us special dispensation just for Raven and allow us full custody of her. Otherwise I wouldn’t even have been able to take
her
. In any case, you know what my parents are like. They can’t understand how we came to have fifty children in the first place.” Diva looked over in the direction of the towering Xianthes thoughtfully. “I wouldn’t want to overload them. Now that we know that the heir to Coriolis is to be Raven, then she is the only grandchild they should get to know, at least at first. I’ll go when the weather gets colder, in a few months.”

Six peered gloomily out into the bright Xianthan sun. “I shall miss you.”

Diva grinned. “You will have to try to keep out of trouble while I am gone, no-name!”

“I like that! I never get into trouble.” He thought for a few moments. “Well, hardly ever.” Lazily he leaned over to give his wife’s hair a short tug. “I love you.”

Diva retaliated with a light punch to the upper part of his arm. “I love you too. But stop trying to control what I do. Just because we live together doesn’t mean you get to decide what I do, or where I go.”

“Perish the thought! With such a cranky wife I wouldn’t dare!” Six treated her to one of his insouciant grins.

She gave him a look. What do you mean, cranky? I am so not cranky! Not ever!”

Six raised one eyebrow. “Never,” he agreed politely. “You are the sunniest person I have ever met.”

Her eyebrows nearly met in the middle. “Stop fooling around.”

“You never listen to me anyway,” he told her. “You will get yourself into trouble and then I shall have to come and rescue you.”

“I can look after myself.” But she gave him one of her rare smiles. “Though I know you would come if I did need you.”

He nodded, suddenly sobered by the thought of her being in danger. “I would rather die myself than lose you.”

“Then I can rely on you.”

“Always.”

She stood up and grabbed his hand. “Let’s go for a swim. Race you down to the shore!”

He scrambled up. “I’ll win,” he said laconically.

“You wish!” And she set off towards the water as fast as her slim, tanned legs could take her. Six stared after her, enjoying the view of her darting in and out of the trees, moving so fast that it seemed she hardly disturbed the vegetation around the house the Xianthans had built for them. His heart swelled; he wondered if he had any right to be this happy.

She had realized he was still standing in the doorway and stopped to shout back to him.

“Hey! Come on! Or do you give up?”

Six threw his head back, suddenly feeling all the exuberance of happiness on a hot summer day well up inside his body. He spread his arms out, took a deep breath of the balmy air, and then set off in pursuit of his wife, who was already half way to the shore, but no longer, he saw, running full stretch.

His feet kicked up the sand on the beach as he caught up with her, and he threw a Kwaidian tackle, pinning her to the ground. They crashed down together, giggling. She pummeled him back. “See? I let you win!”

“I know you did. But I would beat you anyway. Anywhere, anytime.”

She struggled. “You would not!”

He held her down. “I won’t let you up until you acknowledge that I am stronger and faster than you are.”

She tussled against him again, but he had taken good care to hold both of her hands down. She narrowed her eyes and transformed into the warrior she was, right in front of him. “Let me go!”

He shook his head. “Not going to happen. You have to acknowledge me as a superior.”

She tried to kick out at him, twisting her whole body suddenly, very nearly dislodging him. “Will not!”

He grinned. “Of course, being a girl, you can’t do much about it!”

That was the last straw. The Coriolan girl gave another enormous contortion and succeeded in unbalancing him. The next thing he knew she was on top of him, and her Coriolan dagger was at his throat. She gave an exultant laugh, her white teeth glistening against the blue sky behind and beyond her.

“You are mine!” she crowed.

“Body and soul,” he agreed. “You waltzed into my heart with your insults and your threats when you were only 14. Nothing has changed.” He lay still, having had no intention of dominating her in the first place.

She bared her teeth again. “Admit my superiority, Kwaidian!”

“I can hardly do anything else, not when you are sitting astraddle me like that, now can I?” he retorted. “Stands to reason!” He moved, and the point of the knife pricked his skin. “Here! Watch what you are doing! You nearly took a lump out of me then.”

“No more than you deserve,” Diva informed him, but she stood up and put her dagger away. Six saw that at least ten of his children had approached and were staring at the two of them with solemn interest.

“Just playing,” he said hastily. “Practising.”

Diva grinned and turned to face the inquiring eyes. “Your father is in need of much practice!” she said, then walked smoothly into the water of the lake and began to swim outwards, leaving Six to stare after her, goaded.

He looked around at the children surrounding him. “What? It’s no good looking at me like that! Just wait until you all are old enough to find wives. It isn’t easy to keep them happy, let me tell you!” Then he resigned himself to being covered over with mountains of sand by twenty little hands, enjoying the sun beating down on his face.

NOT FAR AWAY, on the canth farm, the man who spoke to canths looked up to see who was approaching, and a broad smile illuminated his face.

“Girl who found the past!” he exclaimed, scrambling to his feet. “This is a real pleasure. Are you sure you should be here? I believe your baby is due at any time now?” The Xianthan turned to Ledin and gave a tiny bow in his direction. “Man who witnessed the future, it is very good to see you again, but do you think it is wise for your wife to travel so close to her confinement?”

Ledin put the magsled they had used for the journey over into stationary mode and helped Grace down onto the beaten earth of the canth farm. “We were in Eletheia when Arcan asked us to come over, so we borrowed a sled. We set off earlier because I didn’t think Grace should be transported when she is so close to giving birth. We have come because Arcan is worried about the canths. He thinks the Ammonites might attack, might try to force them into going to Enara. He wanted to discuss it with the canths, and he also wanted us all to be here.”

The canth keeper pressed his lips together. “The canths will never give in to the Enaran animas. They regard this as their home now.”

Grace looked worried, too. “Yes, and Arcan can’t be everywhere at once, can he? —Anyway, Canth keeper, could you call the canths? The orthogel entity will be here soon. He has gone to get Six and Diva.”

“No need.” The Xianthan indicated behind her, and she turned to see a group of the equines approaching. The canth keeper busied himself opening and closing gates to let them through, until there must have been about sixty animals in the central corral.

Ledin stood, waiting for the others to arrive, regarding his wife out of the corner of his eye. It
was
near her time now. Sellite women took longer than Kwaidians to gestate a baby, but by his count she had been due last week. It was all very well for Grace to laugh off his worries, telling him that the baby would come in its own good time; he couldn’t help but be concerned.

There was a sudden movement in the air and Arcan appeared, bringing Six and Diva, whose long hair was still dripping with water.

“We had just been swimming,” she told them, “The morphics not here yet? What’s going on, do you know? Grace, you look wonderful, but it is awfully near your time isn’t it? Arcan, you shouldn’t have told her to come today.”

Grace grinned. “Try keeping me away! I didn’t want to miss out on what has happened. I’m pregnant, not incapacitated.”

Diva gave her a hug, rather gingerly. “Can’t say as I blame you. What on Sacras is going on, Arcan?”

“I will let you know when we are all here.” The orthogel entity seemed somewhat preoccupied. “I don’t want to go over it twice.”

Diva frowned, but refrained from saying anything further, and Six strode over to where Ledin was standing. The two Kwaidians exchanged a knuckle touch and arm clench. Then they fell to one side, chatting together amicably about recent happenings on Kwaide.

The man who spoke to canths bustled up to Arcan. “Orthogel entity,” he acknowledged, in a tone of deep respect. “You honour Xiantha with your presence.”

A light flickered through Arcan and he greeted the Xianthan with a slight nod.

The canth keeper looked concerned. “Is there anything you need?”

“I am afraid there is little you can do to help.”

Now the Xianthan looked at Grace, his forehead wrinkled. She had to agree with him. Arcan certainly did seem to be very troubled.

At that moment the two trimorph twins arrived, together with the visitor bimorph. They seemed to be on the point of greeting all the others when Arcan pulsated and darkened.

“You three are late. Can we get started now?”

The visitor went momentarily transparent. “Of course. Sorry.”

Ledin held up one hand. “Err … If you don’t mind …?”

They all looked at him.

“… It’s just that … I think we would be more comfortable” —he looked briefly in the direction of his wife— “under the shade of that Eletheian tree, over there. If you don’t object, that is?”

Diva nodded immediately. “Of course. It is far too hot to stand in the full sunlight at this time of day. Good idea.”

“Very.” Arcan wasn’t keen on full sunlight either; his natural habitat was the dark side of Valhai.

They all stepped back towards the dense Eletheian tree; the bipeds huddling under its welcome shadow and the canths surrounding it with some curiosity. Ledin found that, despite the importance of the occasion, he was only listening with half a mind. The other half was concentrating on Grace, who seemed a little pale.

Six trod heavily on his foot, and Ledin started. He turned a look of righteous indignation on his friend, who was making urgent signs that he should pay more attention.