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would give us a few words, please."
Tsedenbol stood up, and walked to the far end of the table with a slight limp.
He turned sharply and faced her, at a brace. Short, stocky arms rigidly at his
sides, his eyes never left Yesugen's, and seemed to glow as he spoke.
"You are our Empress, our Commander, and our lives are yours to command. There
are no families in our lives, no offspring, only the clones of our bodies who
come after us. But when we are born, we have the memories of all who have gone
before us, those who have fought bravely for the preservation of
Meng-shi-jie."
At first, his voice had quivered with nervousness, but now, as he looked into
Yesugen's eyes, it was a growl.
"I remember my death day in the first war of independence. I remember my
foster mother pinning the
Order of Mandughai on my chest when I was in hospital after the second war.
And I remember being a man with one leg after the third war which finally rid
us of Lan-Sui. Each night, I live those lives over in my dreams. I have fought
the pirates. I have fought the rebellion against Mandughai the First. Both
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times I died in battle. Now, in this life, I bear the scars of battle against
The One who comes from The
Mother, and now She is our ally. That memory will be there when I come again.
"I am bred for war. I am a soldier. It is my purpose, my reason for being. My
life is The Corps. Thirty-
one of my bodies rest with comrades in one of the caverns you would turn into
pleasure parks. Will we still be there when you're finished? Will you throw us
away?"
He paused, and there was a horrible silence in the room. Everyone except
Yesugen was looking down at the table in front of them.
"If my Empress orders me to take the spade and dig in the dirt, then I will do
it. I will follow her orders and move the dirt, but inside of me I will be
dead. I will no longer be a soldier, but a digger of dirt. My purpose will be
gone and the brave memories of my line will end with me. I will be dead
forever."
He looked at Yesugen now with terrible intensity, and what she felt inside him
brought her near tears.
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"I speak for all my comrades, Ma'am. We will follow your every command, but
please don't do this to us."
A pause, and Yesugen let it drag on.
"Thank you, Sergeant," she finally said. "You may leave, but please wait
outside for a moment."
He left. Kabul smiled faintly at her. The rest were still looking down at the
table.
"Our troops will remain where they are. You will have to find others to build
your pleasure parks," said
Yesugen. "This meeting is adjourned."
All of them left without saying a word, or looking at her.
"They will be after me tomorrow," said Kabul.
"And you will listen to them," she said.
They left the room, and found Tsedenbol standing there. Yesugen went to him,
leaned over and put her arms around him, holding him close, and whispering
into his ear, "Brave soldier of mine, your memories are safe. Now you have a
ship to catch, and good hunting!"
He grinned at her. "Thank you, Ma'am. You can rely on us!"
They left him standing there, still grinning, as they went to Yesugen's living
quarters to prepare for bed
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after the long day. They undressed each other, saying nothing, and slipped
naked into bed, Yesugen nestling against him, Kabul's arms going around her,
hands stroking shoulders, arms, the swelling in her stomach that was still
hidden when she was dressed.
"We'll have to do something about this soon," he said, patting her stomach.
"Mother will announce our marriage next week," she said. "I've reminded her
twice, and now she's written it down. She's not well, Kabul. I worry about
her."
His hand moved down her arm, and over to a breast. "She should stay inside
more. The constant dust isn't good for a person her age."
"Then you tell her. She won't listen to me." Yesugen tilted her chin, and
kissed him softly. "I think she deliberately put you into my life, you know.
She's very fond of you."
"I'm in her debt," he said, and kissed her back, his hand moving again. "And I
love her daughter with all my heart."
"As I love you," Yesugen murmured, and then she gave herself up completely to
him again.
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- Chapter 9
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- Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE: MORTALITY
Yesui returned to her rooms in a downcast mood, for the happenings of the day
had been her first experience with death. Juimoshu had died quietly in her
sleep at the age of eighty-five, and the royal family had attended her funeral
in the mountain vault that was the mausoleum for all past nobility and royalty
of Shanji over its two thousand year history.
Yesui had only met Juimoshu a couple of times, but had touched her mentally
and heard the stories of those days when her mother had first come to the
Emperor's city. She'd not felt close to Juimoshu, though her mother considered
the woman a dear friend, and thus they had attended the funeral.
The vault was deep in the mountain, beyond the Moshuguang laboratories and the
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