Legends II - Legends of Love by Nicole Mayer

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Legends II : LEGENDS OF LOVE. (3/9)
by Nicole Mayer

Alonzo Solace wandered down the path, his eyes focussed on the heavens. The sky was blue, an intense, brilliant shade that inspired so many dreams. But Alonzo was not watching the sky. His vision lay beyond the false colour refracted by G889's atmosphere. He was looking towards the stars.

After so many years, Alonzo Solace was going back up. He supposed he should be smiling, and racing ecstatically home to tell Julia the news that he was accepted into the fledgling Pilot's Association and assigned a mission. Yet Alonzo was suddenly, surprisingly, afraid.

He had discussed his piloting license renewal application long and hard with Julia. After nine years of being grounded, it was obvious that he couldn't just go straight back into it. Even if piloting was in his blood.

It had been his entire life, Alonzo realised. And after crashing on G889, that life was taken from him and he had to discover a new way to cope. He nearly hadn't, and only much later had Alonzo thanked the Terrians for saving him from himself, and his own nightmares. The man shuddered, recalling those dark days.

Yet those days were long gone. He had a life here on G889, a beautiful wife he loved very much, and children. Children! Back in his flying days, Alonzo never dreamed he would be a father. He would have laughed at the thought.

Now, Alonzo Solace was a changed person. The past nine years of his life had been devoted to the planet : the trek to New Pacifica, building a city, and then building more towns as they fought for survival on a strange, new world. Most surprising was the fact that he'd overcome his homesickness for the stars, and accepted the planet-bound way of life as normal.

All that was about to change. Alonzo wasn't quite sure what had re-inspired the love of space inside him. Perhaps it was the fact that there was less and less for him to do each day; or maybe it was loneliness while Julia was at work, and his children absorbed in each other or the Terrians.

Sometimes, Alonzo couldn't help but feel jealous of the bond Lissa and Ethan Solace had with the Terrians. It was stronger than his own, and the twins sometimes seemed wise beyond their years. Most of all, it appeared that as they grew older, they didn't need him quite as much.

But the stars were always there. And now, finally, he had responded to their call. Alonzo wondered how he would feel when he finally sat in a pilot's chair again. Happiness would definitely be a part of it, but also, he was afraid. The last time he'd piloted a ship it had devastatingly crashed.

Alonzo knew it wasn't his fault, but he couldn't shake the feeling that he could have done something more. It was a guilt he'd managed to suppress for so long, but now it wanted to rear its head again. And the only way Alonzo would ever conquer his demons of the past would be to face them, and face the job as a pilot.

He was accepted. They already had his first mission assigned - a short tour to one of this system's inner planets. Because of G889's unique status as perhaps a sentient planet, the residents were unwilling to mine and abuse its resources too much. And many minerals and compounds were desperately needed for the rapidly expanding townships. Planet G885 promised to be abundant with these resources.

Additionally, the residents of G889 had already decided to expand and learn about their neighbours, for knowledge would give them more leverage when the final showdown with the Council came. If it ever did.

There was no backing out for Alonzo now. The contracts were signed, and the preparation for the expedition already underway. Besides, he *had* to face flying again. If he didn't do it now, Alonzo doubted if he ever would. He just hoped that Julia wouldn't be too upset.

Alonzo would be away for a month or so - a time that was once nothing to him, but now could be an eternity. He would miss his family terribly, but Alonzo sadly realised that perhaps some time apart would be good for Julia and himself. They had been fighting too much, too often, over inconsequential things that they didn't really care about.

Alonzo sighed. He loved Julia more than anyone else, ever, but didn't quite know what had gone wrong with their relationship. Someday, he hoped, they would be able to put all the trouble behind them.

For now, though, his future lay amongst the stars as it always used to. Alonzo felt a glimmer of excitement rise within him. He was going back up.

"Alonzo!" he heard a voice call. Dragging his attention from the sky, he focussed on the beautiful young woman running towards him.

"True! Hi!" he returned. She raced up to him, breathless.

"Did you hear the news?"

Alonzo shook his head. "I've been busy at the new flight centre all day. What's up?"

True gave a huge, exasperated sigh. "What *hasn't* happened today!" she exclaimed. "Bess had her baby. She nearly died. Julia saved her, and it's a boy and they're calling him John...." True was prepared to babble on for hours, but Alonzo neatly interrupted her.

"Bess nearly died? How?"

"Oh," True gasped, "and I guess you don't know about Devon, either!"

"Devon?" repeated Alonzo. "Devon Adair?" True nodded.

"You mean...oh...I haven't thought about her in the longest time..." Alonzo felt his heart sink to his feet.

"We *all* forgot about her, Alonzo," whispered True sorrowfully. She stared at the ground and the guilt on her face was evident.

Alonzo was feeling that very same guilt. Devon Adair had been one of his close friends on the Stations, and then on G889, she had practically been a part of his family. All of Eden Advance were his extended family.

"I can't believe it," said Alonzo, repeating a statement said so many times by other people that day.

"Neither can any of us," commented True. "Devon did *so* much for everyone, it was her who inspired us to come to G889 in the first place!"

"I know," murmured Alonzo, remembering the time when Devon had nervously come to him, searching for any pilot crazy enough to take them twenty-two light years from home. She was so full of spirit and determination, and he owed her so much.

"What are we going to do?" Alonzo suddenly snapped. If True noticed the harsh tone in his voice, she didn't say anything.

"We're going back as soon as we can. I didn't tell you yet, but Bess had all of the same symptoms as Devon did, so as soon as Julia and Uly have any kind of diagnosis, we're going."

"Count me in," vowed Alonzo. He would do almost anything for his friend.

"Great," said True. "I'm going too, so is Uly, and Julia." The teenager's brow furrowed as she thought of something else. "What about Lissa and Ethan? I mean, it's going to be really tough travelling all that distance again."

"Why not fly it?"

True stared at Alonzo in disbelief. "You really think that we'll be allowed to borrow the air-ship for a rescue mission of that distance? You *know* we've barely got enough fuel to keep it running." The young woman knew much about strained resources, having had to make do for most of her life.

"You're right," Alonzo admitted. Their small city was still lacking in many resources, another reason why the mission to G885 was so important. He'd been carried away with the idea of *his* new mission, almost believing it was like the old days when everything was available at his fingertips.

Wait a minute. His mission.

"Damn!" Alonzo suddenly swore. "You're going back for Devon right away, aren't you?"

"Yes," began True.

Alonzo kicked at the ground. "I can't go. I can't go back for Devon. I just signed a contract," he tried to explain. "I feel so awful about this whole thing!"
True looked at him, tears of understanding in her eyes. "You still miss her," she stated.

"Yeah."

"She'll be back," True suddenly promised. "We'll save her, and bring her here to New Pacifica. I'm sure she'll understand why you couldn't be there."

Staring again at the sky, Alonzo wondered how his life had become so complicated in the matter of one day. He was heading for the stars, Julia was heading across the desert, the children - what would they do about the children?

But he could live with all of that. Devon Adair, his friend, was the important topic. There would be good to come from this, Alonzo was sure of it. He would cope, they all would cope, and finally, bring Devon home.

"No," Uly shook his head again. Sighing, Julia called out, "Next!" wondering if this arduous process would ever end.

Searching for others with signs of the mysterious disease that had afflicted Bess was harder work than either of them had guessed. A tall man strode in and crashed heavily into the chair.

"I've got important things I should be doin'," he grumbled.

"We won't be long, Mr, uh, Monsoon," Julia replied in her most professional tone, rapidly checking the medical records in front of her. She glanced at Uly, expecting to see the same quick shake of the head, but this time was different.

Uly frowned, and stepped closer to the man. Cocking his head to the side, he exclaimed, "I can hear it!"

"Are you sure?" asked Julia, suddenly excited. She ran her diaglove over the man's body, but not surprisingly, the readings did not change.

"Yes," replied Uly. Smiling at the tones, he wondered how such a wonderful noise in tune with the planet could kill people. "Okay, I'll need to modify the scanner," muttered Julia, more to herself than anyone else. She punched a few buttons, but could see no change in the data.

"Maybe you need to use something else," suggested Uly. "Your diaglove is set to measure biological readings, but this is something else. Something to do with the planet..." Uly's voice trailed off as he closed his eyes to hear the song more clearly.

"Music," declared Julia. "Okay, we'll get an modulating oscilloscope in here."

"Would someone please tell me what's going on?" demanded Mr Monsoon. "All I know is you're doing a standard test on every poor sucker in the city."

Uly took the initiative. "Sir, you're the first person we've seen all day who shows any trace of a rare condition that could result in death."

Mr. Monsoon's dark face instantly paled. "You're telling me I'm gonna die?"

"It's easily treatable," hastened Uly. He hoped he was telling the truth. Julia returned to the room, carrying a different device. "We're just not sure of the cause yet," Uly finished.

"And with your help, sir," continued Julia, "we can learn exactly about this condition and make sure it's not a problem again."

Connecting the oscilloscope to her medical scanners, Julia began carefully analysing the readings. Nothing, yet. Running the device through different frequencies, she finally caught sight of a tiny waveform.

She was picking up subharmonic frequencies in the man's blood! Uly was right, it was nothing biological at all. The phenomena was more mechanical than anything else. But how? she wondered.

Uly moved to stand beside her, staring at the dancing patterns. "It's the music," he asserted. Following the oscillations on the highly sensitive scanner with his eyes, he noticed something. "The song is weaker than before," Uly declared.

"You're right," agreed Julia. "The vibrations in his blood are gradually slowing." The equipment was showing minute differences in the amplitude of each wave.

Mr. Monsoon stood up abruptly. "Will someone please tell me what's going on?"

Julia spoke calmly, hiding the growing excitement and triumph beneath the mask of a doctor's face. "Something has set up vibrations in your blood," she said. "It's resonating at a molecular level, and it's very difficult to detect. Tell me, Mr. Monsoon, have you been exposed to anything out of the ordinary lately? Have you been near any high frequency equipment?"

Mr. Monsoon shook his head. "Nope, nothing like that," he said. "I work in the hydroponics area."

"Hydroponics, hydroponics..." mused Julia, but she couldn't see any connection.

"Julia," broke in Uly, "it sounded like the planet itself," he reminded her.

"What about a surge of, say, electricity from the planet?" She searched the man's face for any signs of memory.

"I stay right away from storms," Mr. Monsoon declared. "And I don't go in the caves that much, except for that one time, oh, about a month ago," he revealed.

"Which caves?" asked Julia.

"The new ones we found recently, you know, with the first safe planetary travel system. The spider tunnels," he explained. An idea began to dawn on Julia.

"Did you go through it?" she asked.

"Yeah, I had a job on the East Coast. Helping set up the new colony and all that."

Bess had gone through that tunnel about three months ago, at the official opening when Morgan, as Administrator, had declared it safe. And Devon...she had been one of the first to ever travel through a cross-dimensional tunnel!

"That could be it!" she told Uly. "The tunnels!" He knew she was right. They still weren't sure how they worked, but it made perfect sense that travelling at such a speed through the heart of the planet could set up planetary vibrations within a person.

Julia stared at Mr. Monsoon, and he grew a little anxious under her penetrating gaze. "Have you experienced any headaches? Any dizziness?" she asked. He shook his head no.

"If you don't mind, I'd like to run a few more tests," Julia said. "You've been very helpful so far, and I think we can figure this thing out!" She and Uly smiled excitedly at each other. Finally, there was a solution.

"So you're telling me," repeated Danziger, "that every time we go through one of those tunnels the planet starts singing in our blood?"

Uly laughed at the simplified explanation. "Something like that," he conceded.

"Then why aren't people dying all the time?" asked True, frowning. "It made Devon and Bess sick, didn't it?"

Julia began to explain in her clear voice.

"Generally, the vibrations aren't a problem. They slowly dissipate over a couple of months, until the person is functioning normally again. But for some people, the vibrations set up standing waves within their bloodstream, and these waves compound over time until the vibrations begin to affect the inner organs. The constant drumming causes eventual failure of the person's heart, lungs, and other vital organs, and that's when we see all the symptoms. Certain people are more susceptible to the phenomena - I think it's to do with the ratio of major artery length within the body to the person's height and weight. Both Devon and Bess are small women."

"So are you," True pointed out to Julia. "And you weren't affected."

Julia sighed. "There's still so much we don't know about it," she admitted.

"But the phenomena is very rare," concluded Uly. "Think of all the people who've used the tunnels, and only two have been affected so far."

Danziger shook his head in disbelief.

"So why didn't you hear the 'singing' the first time?" asked True suddenly.

Uly frowned. It was a question he had deeply considered, and could only come up with one plausible explanation. "I don't think I was fully connected to the planet yet," he said. "As I grow older, I notice more things, and the Terrians show me more. I guess we -Ijust didn't know enough back then."

"So all we had to do was replace Devon's blood and she would have been fine," Danziger stated, returning to the original purpose of the conversation.

"Not fine," cautioned Julia. "Bess is still very weak. It'll take a while for her heart to recover from the competing vibrations. And I suspect that Devon's condition could be worse."

It pained her to say the words aloud, but Julia felt it was her duty to warn everyone. For Bess, her pregnancy had aggravated the severity of her symptoms, but Julia recalled just how badly damaged Devon's system was. And for Devon, they had kept her conscious in the dangerous condition for so much longer.

"We still have to go back for her," declared Danziger with conviction. Everyone agreed wholeheartedly.

"I'm coming, Devon," he whispered under his breath. She was everything to him, and always had been. He knew that now.

"Can you believe it, 'Lonz? Can you believe we forgot her?" Alonzo sighed heavily. Julia's constant guilt was really beginning to annoy him, along with her determination to go on a several month long journey when she had a couple of young children to care for.

"I still think another doctor should go. Or one of the assistants. Surely some of them can perform the procedure? It should be simple enough. Julia, I know how much this means to you. Devon was a wonderful friend to both of us, and I want to go more than anything, but this contract...." Over the past few days, Alonzo had rationalised his duties and sorted his life into neat categories. Now if only he could convince Julia to stay behind, everything would be fine.

"Sure, you can't escape your duty, but you expect me to give up my responsibilities!" returned Julia. "I'm not going to hand Devon over to a bunch of strangers!"

"We'll see her when she gets back," reminded Alonzo. But Julia's eyes flashed angrily at him.

"Devon was *my* patient," she reiterated. "More than that, she was my friend. I owe it to her to be the one to bring her out of cold sleep. God knows, she's been waiting long enough."

"She was my friend too," said Alonzo, now getting a little annoyed. "But does that mean I would abandon my children when they need me the most? We discussed this a long time ago, Julia. If one of us had to go away, the other would stay with Lissa and Ethan."

Alonzo glared at his wife. "Your being there won't make too much of a difference. Everything's changed and Devon's not going to just fit back into your life like nothing's happened," Alonzo realised. "It's been eight years!"

"That's why *I* have to be there. Honestly, Alonzo, you can be so damn cold hearted!"

"You're the one with the frozen heart," he shot back. "What about the kids, Julia? Pretty soon, they're going to forget they even have a mother!"

That hurt her, and Alonzo knew it. He just couldn't face the idea of being separated from his wife for so long. His mission would be over well before she got back, but not soon enough for him to join them. In fact, Alonzo's expedition began only shortly after Julia left. He would miss her. It was bad enough that she spent so much time at the hospital, but to be gone on a wild chase halfway across the continent was just too much.

Julia's voice was frosty when she spoke to him again. "I'm sorry, Alonzo. But this is something I have to do." Turning to face the window, Julia sighed as the gentle wind caressed her face. She could see Lissa and Ethan playing happily, their chubby threeyear -old faces laughing as they chased dancing leaves.

"Maybe we can go away on a family holiday when I get back," Julia offered. He was right, she would miss her family so much.

Alonzo hesitantly walked up beside her, and murmured, "I just feel like I'm losing you, doc."

"You won't lose me," Julia reassured. She gave him a hesitant kiss, but there were too many unresolved situations between them. Stiffly pulling back, Julia announced softly, "Well, I'd better go get packed."

"Yeah," replied Alonzo distantly, his thoughts in a whirl. He barely noticed her leave the room.

Danziger's dreams were haunted. Every night, he saw the darkhaired woman running from the shadows and crying out to him. But he could never quite reach her, couldn't save her, and ultimately, the darkness always won.

Sitting bolt upright in his bed, Danziger vowed, "Not this time. We'll save her." He couldn't fully comprehend just how he had managed to forget Devon's plight or how her memory had faded from everyday life. She was everything to him. Without her, his world was incomplete.

Another memory suddenly returned to Danziger and he jumped up. He snapped on the light and swung open the wardrobe. There, buried in the back, was a carton of things from the past. Digging deep, his hand finally closed on a tiny box and he reverently pulled it into the light.

Ever so slowly, he opened it. One single strand of dark hair lay nestled inside. "Devon..." he whispered, caressing the strand softly. His eyes glazed over as the memories flooded back.

True tiptoed past her father's doorway, but he didn't notice her. The young woman was worried. Ever since they realised their terrible mistake, True had noticed Danziger becoming more and more obsessed with the memory of Devon. True just hoped he wasn't expecting too much. She remembered that her father and Devon had liked each other a lot and romance had seemed destined. But that was a long time ago.

"I'm coming, Devon," True heard her father whisper. Feeling even more troubled but unsure of what to do, True slunk off down the hall, past Uly's room and to her own. She climbed back into bed, but sleep would not come for a long time.

"John, meet John," Bess declared proudly, holding up her tiny son. Danziger smiled at the name.

"He's a tough little guy, isn't he?" Danziger said.

Bess laughed as she realised that the baby had wrapped his hand around Danziger's pinkie. "Look, he's learning from you already!" she chuckled. "You never did know when to let something go."

Bess didn't realise how true to life her words were. She had no idea that such demons could entirely destroy a man's soul.

Gently caressing Bess' hair, Danziger said softly, "Well, he's got one of the best mothers in the universe to bring him up right. I'm so glad you're okay."

"I want to thank you for being there that day," said Bess warmly. "So does Morgan. We don't know what we would have done without you."

"Ah, it was nothing." Danziger casually brushed aside the praise, knowing he would have done the same thing a thousand times without thanks, because his friends were the world to him.

Danziger sat down on the chair beside the hospital bed. Bess offered him the baby, and he took hold a little apprehensively. John gurgled happily, and promptly spit up all over Danziger.

Bess laughed at Danziger's surprise. "He must like you!" she giggled. Danziger smiled wryly. "Haven't experienced this since True was a baby!" he recalled.

Casually patting Bess' arm, Danziger took a deep breath. He had to tell Bess what they were planning to do, and that he and True were going away for a while. He knew he would miss Bess a lot.

As nonchalantly as possible, Danziger began, "Did you hear that we're finally going back for Devon?"

Bess' face momentarily clouded. She, too, felt guilty for abandoning her friend.

"I heard," Bess said softly. "I just hope everything turns out okay."

"I'm sure it will," reassured Danziger. "Remember, it was you who made this possible! Not that it was good that you got sick," he added quickly.

Laughing again, Bess replied, "Well, I'm glad that some good came of this. And I have a wonderful new son...." Her eyes misted over as she returned her gaze to the child nestled in Danziger's arms.

"When you get back, I'll make sure the baby gets to know his Uncle John," Bess suddenly declared.

"You know I'm going?" Danziger asked, surprised.

"Of course, you *have* to go," responded Bess. "You loved her, didn't you?"

Danziger uncharacteristically blushed. "You knew that?" Smiling, Bess told him, "I think everyone knew that. Except the two of you. You were always both so stubborn...."

"Yeah, well this time I'm not letting her go," vowed Danziger. "As soon as she's well, I'll tell her how I feel. No matter what she says. I've waited long enough."

Nodding in agreement, Bess said, "Just don't forget about me while you're gone!"

"As if I could ever do that," Danziger promised. "I'll always be around if you need me, Bess."

"I know."

A brief silence followed as each comprehended the truth of the words. They played with the baby and marvelled at the miracle that had brought him here. Eventually, though, it was time for Danziger to leave.

"I'll miss you," said Danziger sincerely, kissing Bess on the cheek.

"Me too. But don't worry, John," predicted Bess. Your journey is going to be wonderful."

"So off they went," wrote Bess. "In my mind's eye, I can still see them as they were that last morning. I felt so alive on that day, my first out of hospital. It was the last time our circle of friends was truly together in the sense of love that bound us all. Death was fast approaching and we did not know.

I can see True and Uly, trying to be calm and adult, but bouncing with an excitement that made us all smile. Walman, making up the fifth member of the expedition, kissing his girlfriend goodbye before he left. Alonzo clapping Danziger on the back and wishing him luck. Julia hugging her children and husband goodbye, and even though the embrace was a little strained, I truly believed the rift would not last.

Morgan was handing out ridiculous gifts to everyone. "This is for luck," he said, and even Ari, Lissa and Ethan were given some sort of small toy. It was as if we were having a party to say goodbye.

I shall never forget Julia's face as she waved from the vehicle. Her eyes were so full of hope and dreams of the future, as were Danziger's. But even then, his eyes held hints of shadows...a prophecy of what was to come.

That morning was one of the most joyous of my life. We exchanged bittersweet tears and wished the travellers the best of luck. Morgan wrapped his arm around me as we waved furiously, until finally the vehicles disappeared over the horizon.

I believed in my heart that when they returned, Devon would be with them, and our journey begun so many years ago would finally be complete. How wrong I was."

Gillian looked up from the page with confusion in her eyes. According to local legend, they never did go back for Devon. Was it possible that everyone had got it wrong? Or was Bess herself somehow mistaken?

But no, that couldn't be right. Everything Gillian had read so far concurred exactly with the sketchy 'official' records, down to the smallest detail of each child's name. Gillian presumed Bess had asked all of her friends to help her with the account, as intimate secrets of each were revealed.

Suddenly, Gillian didn't want to read any more of the narrative. Everything looked good at the moment. Sure, Julia and Alonzo were fighting, and Devon was still in cold sleep, but they were little things. Reconciliation was entirely possible between the estranged husband and wife, for Bess had often repeated how much they loved each other. And now that a cure for Devon's illness had been found, a desperate hope had arisen in Gillian's soul.

But they were destined to die. It was written in the history books, the terrible legends of a time long ago. Gillian did not want to know. She didn't want it to happen. So she would not read, could not read, because she was afraid of the future. Or the past.

Wandering the streets of the rapidly darkening city, Gillian found herself near the statue. She hadn't wanted to go there, but had felt compelled as the light faded. Now, gazing again upon Devon Adair's strong features carved in stone for eternity, Gillian felt guilty.

She hadn't touched the story in two days. Her life was empty and hollow, for Gillian felt detached from the real world. Nothing was real anymore except the past. And it was a past that Gillian would not let move on.

Gillian guiltily remembered Jessie Solace's disappointed words from that morning. The strange girl had again approached Gillian, but this time, her eyes were sad.

"You are forgetting our heritage," she intoned. "The cycle cannot end as long as you hide from destiny." Then, just as quickly as she had come, Jessie had disappeared into the crowd.

"I don't want to know, I don't want to know," Gillian coached herself, desperately trying to believe that what she was doing was right. There were no ghosts. Her visions were just figments of her overactive imagination. There was *not* a lost spirit wandering the darkness.

But as Gillian gazed at the statue, she could again feel the sad eyes upon her. If there was a chance that Devon still existed in between the planes of life and death, didn't Gillian owe it to her to help? The whole planet owed so much to Devon Adair.

And in her heart, Gillian realised that she must read on, and learn the awful truth.

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