Proving His Worth

Edthin woke up in the darkness, not daring to move for fear of waking Kathryn. He moved his eyes blearily for a moment, tilting his head slightly so he could see the time on the chronometer, and gave a frown. There was no more putting it off. He leaned in and kissed the Amarrian woman carefully, causing her to give a murmur. He gave a small smile and stood silently, padding across the room and collecting his clothing that had been discarded earlier. He moved into the hallway and fetched his travel bag up from the lounge, where he also collected a discarded sock. He slipped into the bathroom in the hall and set the bag down, opening it up and pulling out the contents, humming to himself softly. And then he took a shower.

One of the leftovers of his training was the ability to, with a little effort and perhaps a lot of time, assume any race his master or mistress wanted him to be. With a bit of makeup and some creative work, he could assume the racial features of almost any race, assuming they didn’t ask him to get naked and take a shower. He selected a bit of the paling makeup and pulled the stopper out, beginning to go to work. Over the course of half an hour he went from a somewhat plain looking not-quite-Gallente to a full blooded Udorian. Enough to fool anyone who didn’t know he had been born with enough mixed blood that they had to use wooden test tubes whenever they got a blood sample. He began to pack his things again, pausing at the door of the house and taking the time to scribble out a quick “I love you” message, setting it in the kitchen.

- -

Less than an hour later, a minor functionary for the Amarrian Hedian Colleges historical department sat on-board a InterBus shuttle, hands tucked neatly in front of him and briefcase beneath him, stashed beneath the seat. He politely declined the drink, though he did accept the snack (Some sort of wheat based wafer with salt on them), and then sat back and closed his eyes. They wouldn’t be arriving for another few hours but he knew that he would feel every second, since he was going back to the place that had been burned so severely in his memory it had taken a neural remap to help him get over it.

He wondered briefly, what had happened since that fateful night what seemed a millennium ago, though was really not even a half dozen years. That night the Ministry of Internal Order agents had swarmed down on the house, blowing quite a hole in the wall of the room above his cell. His original body, tucked away in a secure place, still bore the scar from that day. A slight one below his eyes where he had taken a bit of flying rock to the face, and further ones on his body when he had stumbled into a firefight between the agents and a pair of guard drones. As he rested on the not quite comfortable seat, he heard the screaming and the yelling and the gunfire all over again. He gave a small smile as the captain announced a gate jump.

He was going home.

--

The atmospheric vehicle pulled into a gentle bank as it circled what seemed to be a rather busy Amarrian estate. Professor Vydrie of the Amarrian Hedion University Historical Department frowned a bit. The estate seemed far to busy for what it should be. He leaned in a bit and tapped the driver on the shoulder “What exactly is the Estate used for now?” he asked.

The driver looked at him and then down at the Estate “I believe it’s a convent now sir. They help feed the locals and give them work.” The professor frowned and sat back as they circled in and landed before the gates. Not actually necessary, but he had instructed the driver to land there. He was going to be as polite as possible. He tipped the man in the local currency as he slipped out of the car, taking up his briefcase.

He moved to the gates and inside, looking around at the grounds. They were carefully irrigated and rather nice, though at the same time they grew practical plants. Vegetables, roots, and a few fields of wheat dotted the ground, all tended by common Amarrian people. He saw women moving among them in uniform, offering water or helping with the work, and he approached one carefully “Excuse me sister…?”

She looked up from where she was adjusting a hose, blinking in the sun “Can I help you?”

“Ah, I’m looking for a certain item of historical value? I’m from the Hedion University and we found a trail that lead us here.” He said carefully, clutching his briefcase in front of him.

“A historical object? Ah…I believe you should speak to the mother superior.” The nun said quietly, standing up and wiping her hands on her apron. She began to walk towards the main building. The professor looked around, taking in the grounds. Much smaller then he thought they would be, but still quite large. They moved through the new doors into the main house, and he gave a pause in the hall. He closed his eyes as he looked around “I assume the mother superior is housed in the holders old business area?”

The sister looked at him in surprise and nodded as they waited for an elevator “Why yes, that’s correct. How did you know there was a holder here before?”

“Ah, I am from the historical society miss…it’s our job to know such things.” He gave a small smile. He didn’t want to be flirty.

The woman nodded and shuffled him into the elevator, where they chatted idly about the convent and the university. It was a little flirty but nothing to bad and he got a smile from her as he moved into the sister superiors’ room, waiting politely near the door as it closed behind him. The sister superior was an older woman, beautiful in a more mature way. He had a flash of his own love and shook his head lightly. The sister superior stood.

“Ah, welcome. You must be from the historical society.” He nodded, and she continued “Well, I was surprised…I didn’t think anything of any cultural value remained here”

He gave a brief smile “Well miss, we have some information that says there may be some rather archaic devices located in some of the lower levels, starting at sub level one…”

The sister seemed to pause in the process of picking up a stylus and nodded “Of course…where he kept the…property. Right. Yes I’ve ordered that area sealed off to spare some of the locals and sisters a terrible shock. Some of the devices down there are quite esoteric.”

She saw the professors left eye twitch a bit “Yes well…his position was unique in the trade. Do I have permission then mother superior?”

“Of course, of course. We are happy to help…ah, I believe I shall come with you, since the other sisters who are aware of the unique history of this place are all busy…” she stood and stepped to the door, work left on her desk. She was in the uniform and a practical pair of boots, which the professor approved of on many levels. He moved with her back to the elevator, and the mother superior slipped a key into the elevator panel, unlocking the bottom areas buttons. As they slid down, the professor leaned against the wall, clutching his briefcase. The woman looked at him with concern.

“Just a bit of motion sickness…elevators always seem to cause me to go a little funny. My apologies.” He murmured as he moved for the door. He paused on the threshold, legs frozen. The lights were off but he didn’t need them on, there were low windows on the walls that let in a small amount of dirty light. Even that light was unneeded; he could have followed this hall by memory. He looked around and ran a hand over some holes in the wall “A gun fight…”

He moved down the hall, the mother superior following along a little surprised. He peaked into a few rooms, which the mother superior very pointedly avoided looking into “We didn’t remove any of the pieces. Most are bolted down, after all…and I’d rather not order any of the sisters or locals down here to remove them in any case….”

“Yes, that may have been for the best…” he stopped in front of a heavy wooden door, the bolt and part of the lower door missing, looking like they been taken off by weapon fire. He pushed the door open and stared into the musty darkness at the small cell. Carved from the dry desert rock itself, it didn’t get much simpler then this. The window was barred and the glass had been smashed opened. The walls, the floor, were made of stone, and the ‘bed” was a carved out hole in the wall with a moth eaten blanket.

Eventually he heard the nun speaking ‘Professor? Professor!” she almost shouted into his ear. He shook his head slightly and looked at her. Her eyes were narrowed. He cleared his throat and adjusted his tie “Sorry…just…this is an unholy feeling place…I’ll be glad to get out of her as swiftly as possible.” He moved into the cell and narrowed his eyes at the wall near the door. Yep, there they were “Here we are. These shackles, if our information is correct, date back almost all the way to the original founding of the colony. Do you mind…?” he set his briefcase down and pulled out a hammer and chisel. The woman shook her head.

“Right then…the funds should already have been transferred to your convent, consider it a donation from friends.” He concentrated on getting the shackles from the wall. The sister watched him curiously as he carefully removed them from the wall, stuck them in a large sterile package and slipped them into his briefcase, which now clinked when he moved it “Wonderful. Truly wonderful. You’ve helped me and the university very much today sister.”

She looked him up and down, eyebrow raised slightly. He felt a tug on his heart. She then nodded “Right. Certainly. Will you be needing transportation or…?” The professor shook his head.

“No, thank you, I’ve arranged for transport. They should be on the way right now.” He said, moving past her into the hallway and towards the elevator “This has been an excellent trip. Though I am eager to get above ground again.”

“Of course, Professor.” She said carefully, face rather blank. As he stepped from the elevator on the floor above and turned, she nodded at him “Good luck with whatever you shall do with those sir.”

He nodded at her, before moving to the outside. He gave a small wave to the sister who helped him, who waved back, and slipped into the back of the aircar. He let out a sigh and shut the door “To the capital, thank you…”