“We will not harm Anu,” he reassured me. Guilt settled in my mind that I’d just warned off my mate and friends from a computer program. It wasn’t rational.
“There is nothing in this room that we could take, Anu. The room is empty,” Rema said. Skepticism settling deep into the lines of his pretty face. It wasn’t a good look for him, and I wanted to smack him.
You look but do not see, Neldre. Not that it matters, you are not permitted to see.
I stepped away from Ohem and did a circuit around the room, looking into the glass at random intervals. I couldn’t see anything. I frowned at my feet.
“Am I permitted?” I asked Anu
Yes, Rijitera. All access is granted. You may see whatever you wish. You need only ask.
I approached the table in the center of the room. It was the same material as the door. Smooth silver metal. The others gathered around it as well. Ohem’s arm snaked around my side and I leaned into him, letting his heat soak into me, soothing the nerves that were flaring up.
“You said you were waiting? Why? What is this place?” I asked.
This is the Archive. All Rijiteran histories and technology are stored here. It was the last thing the few survivors of Ara`Ama did. They tasked me with safeguarding the Archive until a Rijitera returned to retrieve their lost heritage. I have been waiting for five-thousand two-hundred years and eighty-four days.
My heart kicked into high gear, drumming in my chest like it was going to burst out and run a marathon. I hadn’t much cared that my people had lost so much when Ohem had first told me about it. But hearing that all our history had been saved, that the survivors of the war had taken time out of fleeing to make sure that everything we were was preserved, made me want to howl with joy. I was out of breath, shaky.
“All of it was saved?” I whispered to Anu.
Yes. All. There is a message left for you to see. Would you like for me to play it now?
A tear rolled down my cheek. “Yes.”
A holo screen shimmered into existence above the table, and a golden Rijitera faced me. She was larger than any I had ever seen. She had gold armor on, parts of it covered in blood, with a gold circlet around her brow. Her black eyes bore into mine.
“We are dying.”Her voice was deep and guttural, the form of her jaws perfect for the language of our people. There was a slight delay and then her words were translated into common for the others.
“I am Empress Yenes. The last of my line. The others have succumbed to the wasting disease set upon us by the Orixas. At’ens has come here in the guise of diplomacy and left us with death.”
I sucked in a breath, looking at Ohem. That was not the version he’d been told. My mate was staring at the Empress with a stricken expression.
“At’ens has taken the coward’s way. Instead of meeting us in war and dying like a true warrior, he has used a weapon that kills all without a chance to fight. A disease that attacks the very cells of the body, killing the victims quickly. Even with our superior genetics, the virus has taken its toll in only six months. Millions have died. Our scientists have been working on a vaccine to administer to the survivors. We have been partially successful. We won’t die from it, but it must run its course. Only a few thousand of us remain. Mostly children. We must leave our sacred Mother for another planet.”
Her face took on a feral light, and she snarled, her long fangs white against her gold fur. “We are destroying all that we have built. No enemy will ever touch our great works. We have set termination for this evening. All histories, technology, buildings, art, everything that has made us the greatest civilization until this point will be destroyed. Only this Archive will remain, deep under the Palace. Our vast collection of DNA for genetic research will stay here as well. Anu will guard it. She is our most sophisticated AI yet. We take nothing with us but what we need to survive. We are weak now and cannot afford for At’ens to find us. Our ships will take us to the farthest reaches and we will wait and grow strong again. May the Golden Light of the Mother forever shine upon you, Rijitera. Learn all you can from our history. Use our technology. Be Reborn.”She bowed her head and gold seeped from under her skin to cover her head in a helmet like some ancient Egyptian god, complete with navy blue wings just below and behind her ears.
The video ended.
Ohem was shaking. I drew in a shuddering breath and placed my hand on his arm. He flinched from me.
“Ohem?” I said, uncertain.
He bowed his head before looking at me, the glow of his eyes dim. “Has nothing my family ever said been truthful? The histories we have state At’ens led a great army to battle the Rijitera and won after years. The entire Unity is based on this story.”
That is incorrect. There was no war. At’ens came to make demands veiled as diplomatic trade deals for Rijitera technology. We refused. He came again, leaving us a gift. A box, said to contain a single large jewel, to signify that there were no grudges held. When it was opened, there was a beautiful gemstone inside. Less than a week later, people started getting sick. Six months after that, they were dying. In a year, most of the Rijitera on Ara`Ama, the Mother, the planet you now stand on, were dead. The disease even killed the wildlife on the planet. You are all infected.
Ohem closed his eyes. “And the purge afterwards? At’ens history tells of the hunt for survivors. Of us destroying all that mentioned or belonged to the Rijitera.”
No. The Rijitera destroyed all that was left. The only survivors were those that escaped the plague on the last ships, bound for the outer reaches. At’ens conquered the planet without a single shot fired. What he was left with was a wasteland. There was nothing for them to use. No technology. No art. Nothing. We made sure our enemies were the victors of a dead planet. All of our colonies were destroyed. Planets were broken.
Aga and Rema stepped away from the table, coming to stand next to Ohem. Both males placed a hand on his back in support. My mate was furious. His Izi blazed brighter as Anu talked. He trembled with rage by the time she fell silent. I had both arms wrapped around him. My face pressed against his chest.
“You are not your family, Ohem. You are fighting to make things right,” Aga said.
Ohem grunted. “Somehow, Aga, that does not make me feel any better, but I thank you for your words.” Ohem took a breath and fixed his eyes on the table.
“Do you have the capabilities to tap into interplanetary feeds brought by the soldiers here?” He asked Anu.
