"Just until the playground, sweetie. Okay?"
"K," Allegra relented.
One of the surprising things about their daughter was her willingness to compromise. Not on everything, but at least on what was not overly important to her.
That was very mature for a child as young as her, and it was just one more way in which her intelligence shone through. She understood more than anyone suspected, or more than she should at her age, and Syssi was careful with what she said around her.
"Eluheed said the special trait was genetic," she said. "Not all of his people had it, and it needed to be activated, just in a different way than ours. So far, I see more similarities than differences."
"The absence of fangs and venom is a big difference," Kian said. "I assume that there are many more differences, but he's bound by vows not to reveal them, which is very convenient."
Syssi looked up. "You don't believe him?"
"I believe he's telling the truth as he knows it." Kian steered the stroller around a pebble in the path. "We know who made all the humanoids in this part of the universe, and I assume their methods didn't differ much from one planet to the next."
"We also know that they liked to experiment," she said. "That would account for some variations."
"True," Kian agreed. "What bothers me is that he didn't know about the gods or about Anumati, but since his people obviouslyhad interstellar travel capabilities for him to get here, there was no way the gods didn't find out about it and make themselves known. If one of their created species had developed that kind of technology, they would have either absorbed them into their empire or destroyed them."
"Maybe the gods don't know about Eluheed's people?"
"How could they not know? Nothing happens in this galaxy without them being aware of it."
Syssi chewed on her lower lip. "Maybe Eluheed is from a different galaxy, or maybe his people developed a secret technology that is not detectable by the gods, or both."
"If they did, I would love to get my hands on it," Kian said. "It would open defensive and offensive capabilities that could potentially save us from the Eternal King's whims. It could be the difference between the continuation of life on Earth and its end."
"We should talk to Aru," Syssi said. "Maybe the rebels know about this."
Kian shook his head. "We vowed not to reveal Eluheed's secret."
"We don't have to tell Aru everything. We could just ask hypothetically. Say we're curious about whether there were other species in the galaxy with advanced technology that the rebels knew about."
"If he knew, he would have told us already. Aru is a junior operator, and he doesn't know much. The only reason he was entrusted by Ani for this mission was his telepathic connection with his sister on Anumati. Ani, on the other hand, would know if such a technology existed."
"But she's still on her tour of the colonies, and your mother has no way to contact her when Aria is not with her."
"Bird!" Allegra pointed excitedly at a sparrow hopping along the edge of the path. "Daddy, bird!"
"I see it, sweetheart." Kian's voice softened the way it always did when he spoke to their daughter. "It's a sparrow."
"Spah-wo."
"Close enough."
The playground came into view, a colorful oasis of slides and swings and climbing structures. Several Kra-ell mothers were there, their children playing on the jungle gym.
Kian pushed the stroller to one of the benches dotting the perimeter of the playground. "As fascinating as Eluheed's origins are, right now we need to focus on Khiann."
"I know." Syssi crouched in front of Allegra and removed her blanket. "Which complicates summoning a vision." She released the buckles and helped Allegra down. "Do you want to go on the swings, sweetie?"
"No. Gym." Allegra dropped her doll in the stroller and dashed toward the children playing on the jungle gym.
"Should we follow her?" Syssi asked.
The Kra-ell children could be wild sometimes, but Allegra was already immortal and quite resilient, and Syssi didn't want to be a helicopter mother who always hovered over her child and didn't let her develop confidence and independence. Not that Allegra was deficient in either. On the contrary. Their daughter was sometimes recklessly confident and independent.
"She'll manage on her own." Kian sat on the bench and patted the spot next to him. "Besides, with me around, the kids won't dare to do anything too wild."
