Chapter 17: The Crush — Part 1

Quet and Chen sat across from each other at a table at The Point of Entry. The Heavens were quiet, and communication proved easy. “Why are we sitting together?” Quet asked, sounding not in the least bit angry.

“Because Pearl told us to get a table for four, and to wait for her.” Chen said. “I don’t know why, but I am inclined to listen to her, and I must say the more I am around you the more I get the feeling we might have been chums.”

“I don’t understand it.” Quet grumbled under his breath, sucking down a beer as if it were water and burping loudly.

“Don’t let that beer become an excuse to attack me, sir.” Chen said, drinking his own with equal relish.

“I am done fighting you.” Quet said between finishing sips.

Pearl and Sissy sat down at the small table, Sissy drinking a beer, Pearl sucking a White Russian from a coconut shell. “I for one am glad to hear that, Master Quet. As you are the only person at this table with your memories intact, will you please take some time to explain to Chen how I failed him, how I failed you, and how in hurting each other we kindled a war that smolders to this day.”

Quet closed his eyes and let his head drop, remembering. “The war today has nothing to do with us.”

Quet looked hatefully at Chen, longingly at Pearl, and for the briefest moment lustfully, perhaps with a hint of jealousy at Sissy. “Chen and I went to war for you. We destroyed planets fighting for your love. We killed many a mundane soul in our raging battle to win your graces. In the end, even though I beat Chen, you chose to be with him. The two of you made a son, who has grown into the inept but loyal Master Yoshi. For years I hunted for you, thinking Chen dead, longing to repair the damage done in my youth. When I found you, it was in his bed, with him underneath you, and my thoughts turned to murder. In my rage I sought to kill Chen, I sought to kill you. It was the passion of hate, erupted from seeing you straddle him in your attempt to give him another child that caused me to attack. You sought to protect Chen at the cost of your own life, and in that battle of wills, I hit you with so much power and rage that you should have died the final death. In so killing you I sought to kill Chen, but Chen lived, and despite all evidence to the contrary, you also seem to have survived. I failed six times to end him, though each time I got to him, he lost more of his memories, more of himself. His memories turned to impressions and intuition, his understanding of the universe became less focused, until, on the sixth try, I sent no more assassins to hunt him, because, I realized, rather stupidly, that without his memories, I had pretty much killed him already.”

Quet let one tear fall from his eye, but did not pause in his emotions. “When that moment passed, some many centuries gone, and I realized I had killed you and what that really meant, when I was left alone with the child of the woman I loved and the man I hated, I sought solace in Amber, and in return got a beating. She took the child, and her troops leveled my cities and left my people starving and homeless. Men, women and children were at the mercy of her troops. None of my people were safe from her, body, soul, or mind, and so I surrendered fully to her rather than let them be harmed again. The treaty I signed kept me on Sholm as a prisoner, and made Amber my keeper. My discovery of your being alive, even though Chen was also alive, brought back those memories, and I swear to you, no matter which person you choose this time, I will never raise a hand to hurt you or Chen again.”

Pearl remained calm, despite the distress Quet’s story brought her. Quet had said such horrible things, though some instinct told her that he was probably glossing over the worst of it.

“How many worlds?” Sissy asked.

“What?” Quet’s voice held some contempt for Sissy, but he managed to quickly control it.

Sissy sounded impatient. “How many worlds did you destroy while fighting Chen?”

“Four worlds were exhausted of resource. Three were badly damaged. They have all been restored over the last several thousand years.”

“How many lives ended in your war?” Sissy asked, her face pale with terror.

“Not counting microorganisms, perhaps as many stars as there are in our galaxy, perhaps only half as many.” Quet mumbled, “I was young, I did not value life as I struggle to now that Pearl is alive again.”