The Star View (The Totality Cycles Book 2) Read online

“Not you, too,” he groaned, scowling. “First everyone made fun of me because I was short and underdeveloped! Now you’re going to make fun because I’m...!”

  Vespa Karaci’Tiv laughed her teasing laugh, and a platter heaped with food glyph-sparked in front of him.

  “You’re so easy!” she chortled, waving her vuu’erio tennae at him. Had she gotten shorter? “So easy to get a reaction out of, especially when you’ve just woken up. Eat, before your vuu’erio curl up and shrink away from you digesting your own body! And stoop when you go outside, you don’t want to brush the bottom of Algna Suprum – you might put out the Guhan-sunform!”

  “Go buzz off a Limb, Kara,” he growled. She laughed and went away.

  Vespa Kareni’Tiv appeared and grinned, plucked at his taut deshik. Had she gotten shorter, too? “I’ll make you a new set, until you learn about manipulating the Living Glyph,” she said mildly, apparently her own commentary on his size. She glyph-sparked an extra platter and went back to join his father.

  Kreceno’Tiv grabbed both the platters and stalked back to his suite. One was empty before he was halfway there.

  He mulled over her words as he went. Easy?

  Easy to manipulate, was the underlying message beneath.

  I’m easy to manipulate...? he blinked and realized that that was unacceptable. I can’t be easy to manipulate if I’m going to be in one of the Ministries! he thought, looking down at the second empty platter. He had barely gotten halfway to his suite, and he had eaten everything on both. He did not even remember what had been on the platters.

  Sighing and turning around, he took them back to the food area, where his mother was waiting with a third platter. He felt foolish, vuu-blitzed, as if something should be occurring to him but was not. Then it hit him – had Vespa Karaci’Tiv’s jibe at him been a test? A subtle message that he needed to start getting his emotions under control, and not wear them for the world to see?

  He looked up, or rather, down, into his mother’s eyes, and saw that he had intuited correctly, and that he had come to the realization just when she expected him to.

  “So work on it,” she said, waving an admonishing vuu’erio at him, as if they had been talking about it all along, and he wondered if the glyph of his thoughts had been so apparent.

  Apparently, he thought angrily and ironically, but trying not to let it show as he projected the glyph of assent and accepted the platter. And then he wondered why he persisted in coming to the food prep area and waiting for others to make platters of food for him, when he could do it himself, wherever he was.

  “That, you need not change, yet,” Vespa Kareni’Tiv said, a laugh in her voice. “Otherwise, your father and I would never see you. And yes, your thoughts are transparent, but only to me because I am your parent. You can be quite inscrutable, sometimes. Before long, you will be inscrutable all the time. Stay a little scrutible for a while. But – only for a while.”

  He smiled. “Is that even a word, much less a glyph?” he asked, playfully chiding, waving his vuu’erio tennae at her.

  “It is now,” she said, smiling and waving hers back and projecting the glyph for inscrutable, modified. “Go enjoy the turn, soon you’ll be too busy for even a bad joke. And glorious natal-turn, to you. We’ll have our Famiya celebration later.”

  View Six

  Ro-Becilo’Ran was in his suite when Kreceno’Tiv went over, hailing his friend’s parents as he ran past the opening to their entertainment room.

  “Hello, Kreceno’Tiv!” Ro-Becilo’Ran’s mother, Thynnu Hatani’Ran, called after him. “Glorious natal-turn!”

  “I didn’t know World-Trees could walk,” his father said drolly, and Kreceno’Tiv groaned on the inside. But he was careful, now, not to let it show so plainly on his face.

  Ro-Becilo’Ran was lounging when he went in the open port, but his friend looked up with a smile as he took one of the comfortable seats that conformed to accommodate his elytra-pace. Then his friend’s eyes widened.

  “Glorious na... Oh ha, did you grow more over the dark-turn?” he asked, sitting up.

  Kreceno’Tiv sighed. “Come on, let’s have it. I’m a World-Tree in the making, blahsay blahsay blah.”

  “No, seriously, in truth!” Ro-Becilo’Ran stood, and he did seem just a touch shorter, to Kreceno’Tiv. “Your deshik is straining to cover you, and your kwats – oh ha, by the Roots of the World-Tree, why did I look? Aaaarrgghh!” His friend fell back to his rest-pad, holding his eyes and vuu’erio tennae, as if struck blind.

  “What?” Kreceno’Tiv stood and went to his friend’s reflective vuu-glass, and was stunned at his own appearance. The deshik was straining across his chest, and his arms and back, looking pitiably like it belonged to a younger sibling. The kwats, holding him a little uncomfortably, he had noted, were riding higher on his legs than they should. His other – attributes – were prominently emphasized, outlined by the straining, living fabric.

  Kreceno’Tiv looked at himself, bemused. I grew again. It had been known to happen, several minor growth-spurts that could occur in a single turn, once the major growth had taken place.

  “I – grew,” he said, gesturing his bemusement and confusion. What would Gotra Pelani’Dun have done if he had had this additional growth in Secondus? Glomed herself silly, maybe? He snorted to himself, not really amused.

  “Oh ha, didn’t you notice anything – different this turn? Nothing strange – popped out at you?” Ro-Becilo’Ran fell back again, laughing uproariously at his own humor. “‘I grew’ he says! Ha!” His vuu’erio waved in his mirth.

  Kreceno’Tiv sighed again, in exasperation, turned away from his reflection. “Are you done?”

  “Done? Oh ha, no, no, not by a long branch of the World-Tree! Go home and put on clothes that fit, Anin’Ma-son, before we go to meet the others! Only I get to make fun of you!”

  He could not help himself. He scowled, and stalked out of his friend’s suite and down through the domicive. His friend’s parents, seeing him again, wisely said nothing as he marched back to his own home.

  Only his father was there, standing in the food-prep area when he went in. Vespar- Drelano’Sev’Tiv turned a smile to him, then seemed visibly taken aback. Kreceno’Tiv found that he was looking his father directly in the eyes, now – they were now of a height, and almost of a size.

  “You grew,” he said, ingenuously.

  “That’s what I said, and Becil practically fell off Segela Miridum with laughter,” he complained.

  Vespar-Drelano’Sev’Tiv chuckled and came over to clap him warmly on the shoulder.

  “Give Ro-Becilo’Ran not another thought, Kreceno. He’s a good friend, but a jokester. Why don’t you find something to tease him about? But nothing too mean-spirited. If your mother hasn’t made you a new set of garments yet, you can borrow some of mine.”

  Kreceno’Tiv smiled, gestured assent. He went up to his suite and there, on his rest-pad, was a new set of matching deshik and kwats. Peeling the too-small garments off, he wondered how Vespa Kareni’Tiv knew how to size them for him as they writhed into place. He studied the glyph of his older ones, and saw that they were made to accommodate a certain range of sizes, but he had exceeded that range. This time, he inspected his image before he left his suite, and the new set of clothes fit him perfectly, but could not hide the fact that he was definitely taller, and possibly a little more developed. His face was just the tiniest bit broader, and his brow-plates were a little deeper-ridged.

  Will my voice change again, too? he wondered, heading back to Ro-Becilo’Ran’s domicive. Shrugging, he pushed the thoughts to the side. They were supposed to discuss their list of lectures in Tertius, and he remembered that he had thought of taking a class on the overthrow of the Malkia, and the Unification. Fortunately, Ro-Becilo’Ran was more than ready for more sober discussion when he returned.

  View Seven

  “So what lectures do we have to take?” he asked his friend once he was in Ro-Becilo’Ran’s suite again.


  “I have the list of lectures here,” Ro-Becilo’Ran said, turning a bit more serious. “We’re required to take Governance, World Nil’Gu’vua Types, Civilizations of the Totality, Solidarim Ministries, and Observances and Practices. I’ve listed us for all of them.”

  Kreceno’Tiv gestured gratitude, then remembered to project it. “Do they have Malkia Herstory, and anything on the Unification?” he asked, sitting across from him.

  “Let me check,” Ro-Becilo’Ran said, raising a vuu-brow at him. After a few moments he gestured assent. “Both,” he affirmed.

  “List me for both of them,” Kreceno’Tiv said, leaning forward.

  “Krece, they are advanced lectures!” Ro-Becilo’Ran protested.

  “Are there any prerequisites?” he asked.

  Ro-Becilo’Ran moved uncomfortably. “No,” he hedged, “but we’re going to be up to our vuu-brows in work from the others! The normal load is five lectures!”

  Kreceno’Tiv frowned at him. “Since when have you been worried about my ability to do lecture-work?”

  “I’m not,” his friend protested, “I’m just... just don’t overload yourself, Krece!”

  He studied Ro-Becilo’Ran. Was it the self-professed envy, that was making him protest so, or was it some genuine concern, the reason for which he, himself, could not see?

  “Tell me why,” he said, “and I’ll think about it.”

  Ro-Becilo’Ran sighed heavily. “Krece, you are brilliant, the Ancient Hives know that there’s no denying that. But this is Tertius – we know nothing about the lecture styles or structure – what if you take too many and have to let one or two go? How would that look? Start slow, build up to it, please! At least have an idea of what we’re going to be facing, before you rush vuu-first into all the lectures you can take! Look, there is a grace period to take on more or drop to fewer lectures within the first ten-turns!”

  Kreceno’Tiv saw it – the tiniest hint of fear. Fear that he, Ro-Becilo’Ran, would not pass through Tertius successfully without Kreceno’Tiv. He had relied heavily on Kreceno’Tiv in Secondus, and did not feel that he could make it on his own.

  “All right,” he capitulated. “We’ll see how it is, and I’ll decide whether to take the extra lectures or not.”

  Ro-Becilo’Ran leaned back, relieved. “So tell me about your Tiphi lady,” he said, smiling.

  “The Tiphi Lady...” he let himself take on the Tiphir-induction as he thought about her. “She was the most stunning lady I’d ever seen, Becil. She had rainbow iridescent eyes, and white and yellow markings that I’ve never seen before. I nearly followed her right then and there.”

  “Nearly? Ro-Becilo’Ran raised his vuu-brows. “You mean – you didn’t follow her all around the Orm?

  “No,” Kreceno’Tiv gestured negation. “But I wanted so much to meet her, that I nearly did! But... I thought I had shamed my parents with my lack of control, so I resisted following her. I took on her colors, then shook them off, and we continued to my father’s suite.”

  “Shook off her colors. Oh ha, I’ve never heard of anything like that,” Ro-Becilo’Ran said, awed, gesturing to his study station. “Ever! I’ve been reading accounts... and I looked up the Tiphi Genus, and any unmarked male in the vicinity is automatically drawn to her. They can’t help it. They follow her until someone redirects them. There’s only one instance where a male did not, and... that was you?”

  Kreceno’Tiv shrugged. He did not want to belabor the point. It was probably a mistake to have resisted, but he had not known that he should not have been able to.

  “How did you do it?” Ro-Becilo’Ran asked, his eyes wide, and his vuu’erio tennae forward.

  “I don’t know,” he said, shrugging again. “I guess from ignoring Gotra Pelani’Dun, I learned to make Genus-induction go away. You have to disentangle it from your glyph, or keep it from touching your glyph altogether.”

  “Well you caused a sensation on the Orm,” his friend chuckled. “Everyone wants to know who could resist the Tiphi. I guess your parents have not released your given name. All it says is Vespa Tiv.” Ro-Becilo’Ran got up and led the way out of his parents’ domicive. Their friends were waiting to celebrate his natal-turn with them.

  Kreceno’Tiv felt relief at that – too much attention had been called to his gaff already.

  “Listen, Becil,” he said, changing the subject of conversation, “if I get the chance at all, over the next few turns, before Tertius, I’m going to try to find my top level of Nil’Gu’ua,” he said, as they headed out to the boulevard to glyph-conjure their transport constructs. “I’ll let you know if I get the chance. Cover for me?”

  “Of course, you know I will,” Ro-Becilo’Ran said, clapping him on the shoulder. “Just don’t grow anymore, all right?”

  “No promises there,” he mock-growled, as they sparked their transports into being.

  View Eight

  Being with his friends had depressed Kreceno’Tiv more than he cared to admit, even though it was his natal-turn. They had all paired off, and were well on the way to being true-mated. But he was still alone, bereft, denied both of the women he had wanted. One had left, having no choice. The other did not even know he existed. His celebration with his parents was more cheering, and now he was in his suite, preparing for sleep.

  Tiphi Cav. Just thinking of her made him begin to have a Tiphir-reaction. Since seeing her he had begun digging into the Spheres for everything he could find out about the Tiphi Genus. And he ended up learning more about the Genii lines than he ever wanted to vuu, though, it was fascinating. But he felt, somehow, that he was not getting the full vuu, that the information was incomplete.

  Unable to resolve his feelings about the Tiphi Lady, or do anything about testing his Nil’Gu’ua levels, he went to the interlinks, checked on the discussion threads that he followed.

  :The Sad Hedonist

  :My happy turns of carefree dolor are over. The OSI will come for me, soon. Who can stop it? Who can say different? Where is the recourse against our own governing body? Now, all the things that I had not been meaning to do, I have no time to start. All the boring pursuits that I had eschewed now look like fascinations, and I wish I had done at least one of them. How has our world come to this? Why can’t our lives have true meaning, rather than this so-bad and so-worse choice, a life of idleness or enforced occupation? How can I call myself truly alive?

  Scowling, he went to the Criers.

  :We Cry For Ourselves

  :Every outcry has failed. Every protest has come to naught. Every avenue is cut off, so we have no other recourse but to cry. When solidarity fails, and the power is no longer in the hands of those governed, tyranny reigns, and will reign until we finally rise up as one and fight back. But we are all too scared, scared of the untapped power of those who have put themselves above us. We need a new Unification. A New rebellion. Until then, we can do nothing but cry.

  Disheartened, and not feeling any better, he went through his exercise regimen, cleaned up, and went to sleep.

  View Nine

  His chime woke him, and he rolled over with a groan.

  There were only four more turns before he was due to go to Tertius, and he had come no closer to finding out his upper limit of Nil’Gu’ua. Sitting up, he rubbed at his face. How to do it? How to use the Famiya Nil’aris without anyone knowing?

  He went through his workout and cleaned up, then wandered down to the food-prep area. The domicive was dark, and had the feeling of emptiness, its glyph devoid of something vital. He went into his parents’ salon, and as he turned to the wall view-glyphographic, it flickered to life.

  “Kreceno’Tiv,” his mother’s image said, smiling, “your father and I have to be at the Orm for a few turns. We will be back before you have to go to Tertius. Make good use of your time – and enjoy yourself!”

  He had the domicive to himself! Excited, he contacted Ro-Becilo’Ran. His friend laughed and wished him good Nilizing. Just as he was about to head to th
e Nil’aris, his mother stepped in through the front port.

  “Forgot my data node,” she said, smiling and hugging him as she went past. “You stay out of trouble, my dear Kreceno!”

  He hugged her back and waited for her to leave again. Then he decided to add an extra time-mark, before he made his first try. Excited, and nervous, he waited until his parents’ transport was completely away, then one self-imposed time-mark more, hoping that Vespa Karaci’Tiv would not come home unexpectedly. But she usually showed up in the morn, if she came, so he hoped to be guaranteed the domicive to himself for the turn.

  When the allotted time had gone by, Kreceno’Tiv went to the family Nil’aris, making sure that the mode was set to privacy. That meant that no record of what he did would be kept. He took a breath, then stepped inside and set the controls to null Nil’Gu’vua, something that few ever did. It was not a pleasant experience, being in a place devoid of Nil’Gu’vua, like being three-quarters blind, and bitingly frigid, but he forcibly quieted the humming of his wing-nets and fully engaged his tertiary retinas, letting his eyes go completely compound.

  The chamber seemed to darken, almost completely. He looked around, searching desperately, despite himself, for a hint of light, but it was not light but Nil’Gu’vua that he sought. Then he calmed himself, and reached out to the faint glow beyond the walls of the Nil’aris, grasping at what was missing. His feet and hands felt as if they had been dipped in just-freezing liquid. He began to pull, at that brightness, gripping the slippery-fluidity of it and drawing it to him.

  His head began to throb, but – but the space around him began to brighten. With it, warmth and life seemed to return to the chamber.

  I’m – I’m calling Nil’Gu’vua to me! he marveled, watching through pounding, fully compound eyes as Nil’Gu’vua slowly wended it way back into the void space. He stopped, once a thin layer of Nil’Gu’vua filled the chamber, and his eyes felt like they were exploding. He disengaged his tertiary sight, reengaged full Nil’Gu’vua to the Nil’aris. Then he painfully formed a glyph for pain medication, and applied Nil’Gu’vua to it.