Legacy's Ghost

Episode 41: Prisoner Inside These Walls

I stare after Magnus, the LA Trinity, in a daze as he prowls out of the Receiving Room after our meeting.

A member of the Trinity thanked me.

The doors close with a thud before Edmond reaches out, touching my arm. "Are you okay, Atan?"

I nod, still unable to utter a word. I grip the armrests of my wooden chair, wound tight, like every muscle in my body is clenched. And yet, to see Magnus' expression when he thanked me? That'll stay with me forever.

"Gamma will be here in fifteen minutes. Do you have any questions about what Magnus told you before she gets here?" he asks.

"He wants to make me a weapon." I finally turn to study Edmond's features. To see if what I got from our meeting is wrong.

Edmond nods, his lips pinched into a thin line.

"But not just to fight the Swarm off. He wants to kill them all off. Kill the entire species."

He nods again.

"If we do that, how does that make us any better than the explorers on Earth who turned people into slaves, wiped out entire races, and took all their possessions? Won't we be reliving the history we're trying to fix?"

A slow smile fills Edmonds face, until his eyes are shining and I can see practically every single one of his straight white teeth. "You've been reading!"

Heat fills my cheeks and I lift a shoulder. "I don't have much else to do. And when I got a tablet, I couldn't help it. I wanted to see what I'd been missing. It kind of sucked me in." I shrug again. "There's a whole lot I haven't learned yet."

"But you're learning. That's what's important." He squeezes my arm. "And you're applying it. Right now. How could you make that connection with what Magnus wants and the Earth explorers if you hadn't learned it? Lots of the TAGs can learn. Few will apply. It's what will keep them from becoming true Trinity material."

"Why aren't you Trinity?" I ask Edmond.

Both his brows shoot up and he smiles again. "I was one once. For a short time. But one of the members died. And as you know, if you lose one, the entire Trinity must step down. But since this is a lifetime calling, we stay on as advisors to the TAGs and to the new Trinity until we pass."

He lets out a wistful sigh. "I'm the last remaining emeritus Trinity."

"You never got married? Had your own life?" I ask.

He shakes his head. "As you will soon understand, when you become Trinity, it is a lifelong commitment. It's the sacrifice you make for your colony."

I stare down at my hands. "Not that I'd ever thought I'd have a girlfriend—or even a wife—when I was scrounging for food before Edmond found me, the idea of being loved by someone is appealing." I look up at him and ask, "Is it hard?"

Edmond chuckles and shakes his head. "I don't think you understand what we've been trying to tell you, Atan. You're already Trinity." His face clouds and his smile drops. "I'm sorry, son, but you don't have a choice anymore. It's time to quit dwelling on what might've been and start focusing on what is."

I rear back like he's smacked me in the face. The understanding of his statement is almost as painful as a real blow. Yes, I'm Trinity—whatever that means. But I've also lost my freedom. I may have a gift and a power that people would kill to possess, but at what expense?

Before, I was a willing prisoner of the monastery because I was afraid of what others would do to me outside its walls. Now I'm a forced prisoner in the name of Legacy Colony government.

A guard steps forward, his footsteps making a heavy thud with each step, drawing our attention.

"Trinity Gamma is here, sir," the guard says to Edmond.

Edmond inclines his head. "Send her in."