The Triple Rising — Chapter 6

Such is the price of the bonding bracelet

All was dark in the Lifecycle lab when Semylyn quietly pressed open the door. The only sound was the low hum of sleeping technology. She stepped inside the dim blue glow produced by the equipment’s indicator lights and took a steadying breath.

This was her second home. She’d chosen it as the location for her apprenticeship three years ago. Unlike the more streamlined labs in the Science domain, the Lifecycle lab enjoyed a freer, less rigid atmosphere. Med Labs studied medicine, Earth Labs studied environmental sciences, Chem Labs, and Star Labs, all centered around a defined curriculum. The Lifecycle lab studied life.

Plants of every shape and variety cluttered the lab’s countertops. There were aquariums filled with the most fascinating fresh and seawater life, from the tiny albino plankton reservation to the largest aquarium, which presently housed a one-finned, music-loving porpoise.

She went to the far wall and pressed the circular panel to brighten the lights. As they came on, the shadowed recesses revealed the technology therein which began to hum and whir as it awoke for her.

Semylyn felt proud ownership of the Lifecycle lab, and rightly so. After completing her two years of apprenticeship, her father had told her to choose an area or project she wished to oversee, a place she could exercise a relative amount of authority as part of her Guardian training. She’d chosen and been granted oversight of the Lifecycle lab.

She picked up a spritzer and watered the plant life that threatened to overtake the far counter, rearranged the flora, and plucked a few dead leaves as she waited for her father.

She thought about the former lab overseer with whom she worked, a somewhat grizzled older man named Heth. He’d worked in this lab long before her activation. On her first day as the Lab’s new Overseer, he’d surprised her with a warm, and welcoming introduction.

“We have been given an opportunity, my friends,” she remembered him saying to the gathered lab crew. “This young woman will be our next High Guardian, and aren’t we always complaining the higher-ups don’t give our Lifecycle work enough attention?”

The four other researchers glanced at each other and smiled in agreement. “Well,” Heth continued, “Now we have our very own High Guardian to impress! Let’s do the best work we can for her, and make a name for the Lifecycle lab!”

“You’ve done great things here, Semylyn,”

A voice broke through her reverie and she spun in its direction. Her father stood at the doorway, looking over the lab’s interior. Semylyn followed his gaze and felt a swell of satisfaction. The procedural and equipment upgrades she’d implemented had heightened the Lab’s potential.

“I’ve been happy here,” she offered.

“I knew you would be. Did I ever tell you that I did my apprenticeship here, under old Heth?”

Semylyn blinked in surprise. “I didn’t know that,” she answered and Omree chuckled.

“He gave me quite a time, I assure you. But you’ve done well here, Every time I see Heth he comments on how you’ve got this place in shape. It was partly based on his recommendation we chose the Lifecycle lab as a location for phase one of the Sun-Dweller project.”

Semylyn blushed with pride, even as she straightened her shoulders in surprise. “The Sun-Dweller project? Here?”

“Let me show you,” he gestured her forward.

Semylyn followed his lead to the back of the lab, through a tall archway next to the porpoise tank.

The large, cylindrical room, which only this morning had housed Heth’s desks and a dizzying array of clutter, displayed six capsules, each large enough to fit a single occupant.

“This is the first step in the Sun-dweller plan. These capsules will keep our visitors safe while their physiology is acclimated to Sitnalta’s environment.” Omree moved closer to the first capsule.

“Perfect,” He murmured as he gently probed the capsule’s hardware and peered under the egg-shaped cover.

Anxiety tore at her insides as the waiting capsules brought the unbearable reality of their stated use into stark clarity. She pressed a trembling hand on the smooth surface of the capsule’s cover and pushed as if that simple gesture could ward off her growing apprehension.

At three years of age and with the death of her mother, Omree had become a single parent to her. She could only remember the two of them, Omree and herself, working together, walking together, learning, and talking. He was a wise leader and a good father. The thought of letting him down was a dread worse than death.

“Are you frightened, Semylyn?” he asked suddenly.

Semylyn looked at him in surprise.

“I only ask because you have grown so pale and serene these last few days. I worry that you hide your emotions too much.” Omree’s old eyes filled with concern.

“I want to tell you I’m fine, but…” Semylyn began slowly, trying to stifle the tears that were once again threatening to choke her. “I’m afraid for Sitnalta. I’m afraid for the planet, how could I not be? But I’m determined to be all that you wish me to be.”

She made it through her little speech without dissolving into tears and felt immensely grateful.

Her father’s mouth tightened a little more.

She placed a hand on his arm. “It’s like Troyak said. If anybody will see us through this time of uncertainty, it will be you.”

Omree smiled regretfully and placed a warm hand over hers.

“Troyak is a good friend to you,” he said, “If things were different, he would be a good partner for you as well.” His voice lowered to a husky tone. “I’m not unaware of the depth of Troyak’s lov…feelings for you.”

Shock held her in its icy grip. Her father never spoke openly about her relationships.

“I hope he will be able to set aside his feelings when the time comes, for the good of Sitnalta.”

“What do you mean?” Semylyn asked, “What are you saying?”

“I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to upset you.” Omree sighed, “I just fear that not having a mother has left you…somewhat naïve about certain ways of life. I am sorry.”

Semylyn averted her eyes from her father’s, feelings of confusion boiling in her stomach. She had never heard her father talk like this.

Omree cleared his throat, giving his voice a more normal tone. “I’m about to forget the main reason I wanted to see you tonight,” he said, withdrawing a small box, two hands breadths in both width and length, from the deep recesses of his robe.

“As I consulted with the Warder earlier, he relayed some new information to me. I wish to share that with you now. Do you feel up to listening?”

Her expression stilled and grew serious with anticipation. “Of course, father. Please, tell me what the Warder said.”

“In the Mother City, long before the revolt that ended Atlantis’ glorious era, the last High Guardian died of a grave illness, leaving three grown children behind. The people of Atlantis split into opposing factions over who would take his place as the next High Guardian.

You see, the children of the High Guardian were triplets, three born at once, two males and a female, each felt the call of Guardianship. An agreement could not be reached over who rightly should take their father’s place.

A solution was presented to the three heirs by the Warder before the city descended into complete chaos. The Warder commissioned the construction of three armbands to be worn simultaneously by the heirs.

The bracelets were more than they appeared. They were interface cuffs, linking the Warder with each individual. In this way, the Warder could examine the emotional complexity and mental inclinations of the three heirs and choose the one best qualified to be the next High Guardian.

The three agreed at once, and after informing the city of the process, the ceremony commenced, first the two males, then their sister. Upon completion, an intense light flashed throughout the Warder Hall, leaving the three siblings unconscious on the floor, collapsed from the shock of the interface.

Four days and four nights, they watched over the siblings, and just when they began to fear the worst, something happened. On the band of one of the brothers, an emblem appeared, the High Guardian’s crest.”

Semylyn took this in.

“That’s an interesting story, father, but what does it have to do with what’s happening now?” she asked quietly.

“That is not the end of the tale. You see, while the two siblings not chosen were able to remove their band, the High Guardian was unable to remove his. It stayed on his arm, unalterably grafted into his flesh.

All would have been well, except for the side effects, dizziness, nausea, and blackouts. He grew weaker, slowly wasting away before the council’s eyes. He had never been prone to physical ailments before, so they could only conclude this was caused by the Warder’s bracelet. When they consulted the Warder, he confirmed their fears.

“To read the deepest part of the body, something had to be stripped away. His inner walls, that which protected him and shielded him, are gone, never to be replaced,” the Warder explained. “Without an internal stabilizing presence, a compliment to his spirit, his physical body is unable to protect itself.”

“What can we do?” The council begged the Warder to help them, “What use was it to name the High Guardian if the naming killed him?” The Warder gave them a solution.

“Commission another band. Make it identical to the first, and place it upon the arm of the one who would bond herself to the High Guardian. She will provide what he needs to survive, to lead his people. Mated for life, emotionally and physically to the very depth of their life force, never must they separate more than a bonding distance. Such is the price of the bonding bracelet. To resist this union, or attempt to mate with another would mean death. For as long as they honor this bonding they will thrive.”

So the Council did as the Warder instructed, and the High Guardian, who had already bonded to a young woman, took the bracelet and placed it upon his partner’s arm. It was as the Warder had said, for as long as High Guardian Jatar and his partner stayed together, they were happy, whole, and all of Atlantis prospered.”

Semylyn blinked. She looked at the box her father held, and slowly her hand came to her throat. “Are…are those…” Her voice weakened and tapered to a whisper.

“These are the bonding bracelets of Jatar.” Omree slowly removed the cover from the box to reveal two, identical silver bands. “The Warder has never instructed their use in Sitnalta, until now. Also, he has commissioned the construction of a second pair.”

Despite herself, Semylyn’s head shook in silent denial, and fearful tears spilled from her eyes. “No,” she murmured, glancing beseechingly up at her father.

Omree stared gravely back at her. The comforting smile she was accustomed to was swept away by dutiful resolve.

“I am sorry, Semylyn. We must do as the Warder has instructed. He has made it evident that to ensure the highest success rate for our plan, you, and Xerell’s son Troyak, must be bonded to two of the Sun-dwellers, with the bracelets.”

Semylyn took a step backward, then another, holding an arm out in front of her.

“No! I can’t!” she said, as her hip made painful contact with the corner of another capsule, “I would be imprisoned, connected to him in the most intimate and private way. What you ask is unthinkable. I can’t do it!” Her words slowed as she muttered, “I — would never be free.”

“Semylyn.” Omree reached toward his daughter.

She waved off his hand and retreated another step.

Her thoughts pushed a wave of revulsion through her body. Not just with him, But WITH him, intimately exposed. Mind. Heart. Soul. Forced to stay near him like an orbiting moon for the rest of my life!

Semylyn gestured toward the open box. “I cannot! I will not! You will make me his prison, and he mine! He will hate me. We will hate each other…”

The thought of what those bracelets meant induced a claustrophobic pressure that sucked the air from her lungs. She choked, gasping for air, her knuckled fist pressed painfully against her mouth.

Strong hands squeezed her shoulders, giving them a shake.

“Semylyn, you must get control of yourself.” Omree pleaded. “Remember your training.”

She closed her eyes and desperately searched for that one still spot inside her soul that only she could inhabit, her most secret place, a place to hide until the storm passed. Slowly, her heartbeat slowed and her lungs filled with sweet, life-giving air. She opened her eyes.

Her father stared at her remorsefully. “I am sorry…I cannot spare you this pain. The Warder insists it must be done as I described.”

The calmness of her voice surprised her, sounding as if it came from someone else. “Can you tell me why the Warder is adamant about this course?”

Omree looked up at her as he cradled the box in his arms.

“He said it was the only way to ensure the Sun-Dweller’s cooperation and the future of Sitnalta.”

Semylyn chewed her bottom lip. She could see the cold logic. How better to hold someone? Even if they could find a way out of Sitnalta on their own, the further away the bonded Sun-Dwellers went from Semylyn and Troyak, the sicker they all would become until death overtook them. The Sun-Dwellers would never leave.

She lifted her head and jutted her chin forward in a defiant tilt. “Is there any room for choice?” she asked, unable to keep the bitterness from her voice.

Omree met her eyes levelly. “If you deem it a viable one, you can deny the Warder’s command. You, the Sun-Dwellers, and Sitnalta would then be forced to accept the consequences.”

Semylyn closed her eyes. The answer was NO! How could she put a whole world at risk to save herself? She opened her eyes and looked at her father, seeing in him the same turmoil she felt. If the two of them knew anything, however, it was each other, and in that beat of time, they both knew which path she would walk.

Omree opened his arms to her and she rushed into them, the embrace he gave her not that of a High Guardian, but that of a grieving father.

To be continued

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