Adventure stories; Prophecies -- Fiction; Science fiction; War stories
He opened his mouth to speak again, but interruption came from outside.
Sounds of struggle, and the cry of Doriza:
"Help me--help!"
I bounded to the door and tore it open, injuring the automatic lock. An
officer stood in the outer office, and two soldiers had Doriza by the
wrists. I made a lunge, knocked one of them spinning against a wall.
"What is this?" I roared. "She is my aide."
"Her arrest has been commanded," spoke up Elonie in a sullen voice.
"Who commanded it? I countermand it!" I faced the roomful of protesting
faces. "You call me Yandro, your leader from divine source. Let me say
that nothing will happen to Doriza except by my will."
Gederr spoke from the inner doorway: "Great Yandro speaks in riddles. I
had thought that he had no attachment for Doriza."
"Oh, you tried to make me a gift of her last night," I exploded, "but
that has nothing to do with the present case. Doriza lives. She remains
free. Understand?"
"Perhaps," mused Sporr, as if to himself. "There have been
accidents...."
"Come," I said to Doriza. "To my quarters." I faced the others again.
"Danger to her shall be answered by me. Is it understood?"
We rode silently in the vehicle, and came to the rooms set aside for
me. Once inside, I made sure that speaking tubes and televiso were
turned off. Then:
"Doriza! There are things I do not know. Tell them to me."
She hung her head. "They would have seen me dead, like the others, to
shut my mouth."
"And I saved you. Now speak. All I seem to find familiar is the name of
Barak."
She looked up again. "You remember the name?"
"Faintly. Vaguely. But what is happening just beyond my knowledge?"
She caught me by the forearm, her small, strong hands gripped like
vises.
"I'll tell you! Tell you everything! Those devils of the Council have
long exploited and drained Dondromogon--with lies about the First
Comers, and the exclusive use of science! The Newcomers are to be
trapped through you, the natives deluded through you! But you--you are
to die when your usefulness is through!"
"They'd do that?" I demanded. "After they name me as Yandro, their
legendary hero?"
"That's part of the great lie!" And Doriza was sobbing. "You aren't
Yandro--you're _Barak of the Newcomers_!"
V
I stared at her, astounded, shocked--and suddenly remembering things.
"Barak," I repeated foolishly. "Barak. Yes, I _am_ Barak. I--how did I
get here? Things are still so shadowy--but I'm beginning to recollect--"
"Try," she begged. "Try hard. It's the only way you can save yourself.
Let me remind you; this world called Dondromogon was settled long ago
by adventurers. For centuries their descendants built up a luxurious
way of living. Messages filtered back to the old home planet--Earth, in
the Solar System--"
"I remember that much," I told her. "Something about a group of chiefs
growing fat on the labor of the community, and killing those who
threatened to rival them?"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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