|
|
Homeworld Return - blackjack
:: 05/05/01 ::
Chapter 7
Jakare Ga'alet did not talk to others much. She had always been known as a loner - or more accurately, a lone wolf. Everyone knew that she was undoubtedly one of the best fighter pilots of the fleet, a title which earned her immense popularity, but despite this she had never even bothered to carry on a social life. She could handle a Sickle better than anyone in the fleet, but talking was something that she was not good at, so she took great pains to avoid it. She could not bear for others to see her faults - and such simple things as public speaking! It was nothing compared to piloting a fightercraft, much less with any competence, and yet she had never felt comfortable in front of a crowd.
Her surrogate social life consisted of reviewing statistics, fixing broken ships, and watching vids with her eleven brothers and sisters. As with any family, there were six of each sex, all born at the same time. They were the same age, and since they had nearly identical genes looked, talked, and acted nearly identically. There were differences, but all subtle - Jakare was the best fighter pilot, her brother Generis had the best mind for strategy, her sister Aanri was the best at speaking. Jakare envied Aanri, and in return was envied for her piloting skills. Aanri had often jokingly wished that she was Jakare, and Jakare had responded in kind - only she had not been joking all those times.
And now she was about to be catapulted even further away from anyone that she had made even a small social connection to. She had been called to the front to fight against those who called themselves Som'taa.
She was gathering her things, her meager possessions from the room that she shared with her five sisters, when her favorite brother, Eyarae, wandered in. She flashed him a quick smile, but did not stop picking up various disks and tiny toys that she had owned since her childhood. He stood in the door frame, silent, for a long moment. She felt his eyes upon her turned back, burning into her skin.
"Jakare-" he started, but stopped himself. She half-turned and looked at him.
"What is it, Eyarae?" she asked as calmly as she could. He was crying, she saw, his eyes moist from fresh tears. This was not like him. Eyarae was always the calmest, most mature of the family. If he was reduced to this from her leaving, she could not bear to think of what Ierya, the most emotional of them all, must be like.
"We've been talking," he said softly, motioning toward the other room, the one that he and Jakare's other brothers shared. He took a step into the room. "I know that it doesn't really make a difference - orders are orders, after all - but…" he sniffed and she saw a glistening drop run down his cheek. "...I'll miss you."
"Oh, Eyarae…" she said softly, and hugged him tightly, despite the fact that he was a full head taller than her. He was shaking, she noted with terror. Had they really grown so close to her? She had thought, after all the quarreling and fights that she had started, that they would be glad to have her gone. But this was totally unprecedented. "Eyarae, calm down," she tried, but he still trembled. She decided that she would use another approach. "Look, come on. You've got to look at it a different way." He sniffed and pulled slightly out of the embrace. She let him drift away, but they were still comfortingly close. She mustered a weak smile, and he tried to mirror it but had little success. "Now, think about it this way," she muttered quietly. "I'm not leaving long. It's just a short tour of duty. Once the Som'taa are gone, we'll have a whole new home, right? And I'll be waiting for you there."
He smiled a bit more at the vision. "Yeah," he said quietly, smile fading a bit. He wiped his eyes. "But… what if you're… if you're killed?" A whole new set of tears appeared in his eyes, but she jumped in immediately with what she hoped was comedic bravado.
"What? Me?" She grinned as best she could. "I'm the best fighter pilot ever! You think some lowly race with a stupid name is gonna take me down? Ha!" He smiled a bit, and she returned to being serious. "Hey, now listen to me." She gripped his arms. "Listen. If it makes you feel better, I promise that I'll come back."
He looked impassive, apparently soaking up her vow, and then broke into a grin, wiping away the tears. "Well then, you're gonna be he only one here, because once we win we're heading to a new planet!" He laughed at himself.
She laughed along with him. "Yeah! So… so I'll be waiting for you once we win."
He hugged her again. Slowly, he walked about and picked up her bags while Jakare followed, taking a final tour of her room. Then, silently, she swept out to say goodbye to the rest of the family.
* * *
An hour later, Jakare stood outside her former domicile, staring at the closed door, bags at her feet. Fresh wet trails carved their way down her face as she stood motionless, staring at the closed door to her former life. Everything was gone - she had been ripped away from it all.
She tried to stop the flow of tears, but with no success. She knew that this had been foretold, that she had to go and fight the war that had been spoken of by her ancestors so long ago. But she could not help weeping for her lost life.
She would return, she vowed silently to herself, as she had promised Eyarae. She would win the Som'taa world, for future generations as well as her own. She would do her duty.
Silently, she wiped away as many tears as she could and picked up her bags. Then, slinging the largest of them over her shoulder, she took a final look at the door to her old life before she walked away.
<< Homeworld Return: Chapter 6 <<
>> Homeworld Return: Chapter 8 >>
|
