Science Fiction Originals Vol 3 Part 5

Releasing him, she stood and looked one last time at the room full of toys. The prince was a monster, but the kingdom had been wondrous.

"You are ugly!" screamed Rahman from his place on the floor. "You're mean, ugly, and you smell bad!

You're stupid, a girl, and nothing but a dummy! I hate you! I hate you and wish you were dead!"

Silent Her turned away and faded into the shadows as she returned to the female wing. That night, as she cried, she felt her heart shatter.

Weeks later the household stood in the courtyard before the entrance to the main house, autumn's chilly morning breath upon their necks. The men stood in a loose half-circle around Duman Amin. The women and girls of the household stood in a black cl.u.s.ter at the foot of the stone staircase.

Rihana was standing with the wives of Onan, Nabil, Jamil, Majnun, and Isak. Even the wife of the heathen gardener, Toi, was there. The five kitchen scrub girls huddled by themselves, and no matter how Rihana urged them to relax, they stayed to themselves and kept the fear in their eyes.

Majnun and Isak stood with the women, but not with their wives. Between them they guarded Duman's second wife, known to the women as Hedia. All of the servant men were there, but none of them would be going to the ceremony.

Silent Her looked up at her mother. Isak was holding Hedia's left arm while Majnun held the right.

"By Kamil's ice," cursed Duman Amin. "This is barbarous." He glanced at Razi Itef, his secretary. "The orthodoxy raises its toothless old head to let out one last senile wheeze for the purpose of seeing if it can make the rest of us jump. It is nothing more than that."

"I see we are jumping nonetheless, minister." Silent Her's father glared at Razi for a split second, then he snorted out an angry laugh. "That is not a lie on your lips." Duman paused to look through the main gateway. "If the first minister wants to make a parade out of this farce, where is he?"

"It shouldn't be much longer, minister. The prime's secretary said they were just pa.s.sing Yo'el when he called." Razi looked at his watch. "Perhaps I should get your wrap, sir. You already look chilled and the ceremony will be held outdoors. If they plan readings in addition to all of the speeches, it promises to be quite an ordeal."

Duman grimaced and faced Razi. "Tahir Ranon will get in there with at least an hour of regressive wind, you may be certain." He nodded and sighed. "A wrap would be very sensible. Thank you for the suggestion."

Razi c.o.c.ked his head at Nabil, and Duman's head servant bowed and hurried up the stairs. While Duman waited, he frowned and walked over to the women. Silent Her and the others bowed deeply at his approach.

He held up his hands. "Listen to me."

They stood erect and Duman looked at them one at a time. When his gaze reached Silent Her, he paused. His eyes blinked, then he addressed them all. "I want you to understand that the ceremony through which you are about to be put is something I and the Reformists have opposed for decades. It is a ceremony that humiliates everyone; men as well as women. It would not serve the will of Alilah any less to have a witch doctor dance about to summon dust demons."

The faces of some of the women carried worried looks. "The worst that might happen to you at this thing is a chill, sore knees, or a troublesome case of boredom. Is everyone dressed warmly?"

Some of the women nodded in response. Duman's glance fell upon his second wife for an instant. "I'd hoped I could spare you this." He shrugged and faced all of the women. "I wanted to spare all of you.

However, because of the border incident with Bahai, the orthodoxy has the nation on a fundamentalist jag. It will pa.s.s, and until it does pa.s.s, all we have to do is to make certain that foolish courage doesn't have us getting caught up in the hysteria of the moment. Meanwhile we have some sand to eat. Our first minister, Mikael Yucel, will eat his share, so we must eat ours. The women of both of our households will stand the ceremony along with the household women of the rest of the cabinet members."

Nabil arrived with Duman's gray coat with the black fur collar. As he was helped on with his coat he said to the women, "I just want you to know that I oppose this."

A shout from the wall signaled the arrival of the first minister's party. After a moment the glossy maroon nose of the first limousine entered the gate followed by a trail of fourteen limousines, each one the same maroon color. The vehicles all had tiny flags mounted on their fenders. The flags were white with a golden starcross in the center of each one.

Silent Her turned around and saw two of the scrub women signing at each other.

"Did you hear what he said?" signed Zel to Joina. "It makes my blood boil."

Joina nodded and signed, "Tahir will scour these stains from Alilah's hem one day."

"May G.o.d touch his eyes-"

Rihana turned Silent Her around and signed, "It is impolite to present your back to the first minister."

The girl reached into Rihana's sleeve so that she could sign against her skin un.o.bserved. "Zel and Joina are angry at my father."

"They are orthodox," answered Rihana.

"Should we tell my father?"

"Your father knows."

Silent Her frowned as she thought of something. Again her fingers moved on Rihana's arm. "If they are orthodox, should they be finger-talking? I thought the 'doxies didn't allow finger-talking."

Rihana's lips parted in a wry smile as she answered, "In their case it's all right because they're doing it themselves. Pay attention now to the first minister."

Duman waited beside the first car as Nabil opened the door. The first minister stepped down from his limousine and Silent Her was disappointed at how short he was. Since he was first minister, that made him more important than her father. She had expected him to be taller than Duman. The first minister's face carried a troubled look.

Her father stepped forward, took Mikael Yucel's hand, kissed it, and held it to his forehead. Upon releasing his hand, Duman kissed the first minister on both cheeks. Silent Her looked up at the house. Rahman was looking down at her, his face filled with hate. She looked away and the chauffeurs of the last five limousines opened their pa.s.senger doors and took their posts.

Nabil began a.s.signing the women to the last five cars and Silent Her became light-headed at the prospect of being off the estate. Where might they go? What might they see? She followed Rihana into the limousine and instantly her nostrils were caressed by the smells of leather and aromatic woods.

She was seated between Rihana and the ancient woman she remembered from the burying of Duman's mother. She placed her hand upon Rihana's arm and pressed, "Who is she?"

Rihana signed that the old woman was Duman's aunt Leeba, and to remember that Leeba wasfeebleminded and not to ask her anything or she'll begin crying. Isak entered the compartment followed by Hedia and Majnun. Duman's second wife sat down facing her daughter, the guards sitting on either side.

Silent Her saw that her mother was staring at her. She lowered her gaze to her mother's hands. Hedia signed, "You are my child. I heard you cry out when you were born. I know you can give voice."

Hesitantly the girl signed back, "They say you are mad. They say I should not go near you because you will hurt me. They say I should read nothing you sign to me."

"You can give voice."

"I cannot. I have tried. I cannot give voice."

Hedia's fingers repeated, "You can give voice."

Silent Her sat still for a long time, looking at her mother's long, delicate fingers. When the cars began moving, she signed to her mother, "You never gave me my quiet name."

"After you were taken from me, the one time I saw you, you ran from me."

The girl's eyes widened. "Do I have a quiet name?"

"Yes."

"What is my name among women?"

Hedia's hard mouth softened slightly as she signed, "Your quiet name is Lilith. Lilith was Adam's first wife.

She demanded equality with Adam, and when Adam would not consent to this, she left him. Adam then received Eve from G.o.d and together they founded the race of men and pliant female creatures. Lilith went on to found the race of women."

"Are they allowed to do that finger-talking among themselves?" asked Majnun.

Isak shook his head and answered, "Not in my limousine." He shrugged and smiled. "But, then, this is not my limousine." Majnun's voice grew more serious. "This is Duman's limousine, and without disrespect I say that with him women may do anything they please."

Lilith looked into her mother's eyes and signed, "Thank you for my name, Mother."

Hedia's fingers signed, "Never forget: I heard you cry. You can speak. Lilith, you can give voice back to the race of women."

Lilith looked to her left to see Rihana looking back at her. Duman's first wife studied her for a moment, glanced at Hedia, and turned her gaze toward the pa.s.sing hills and fields.

As the caravan entered the limits of Joram City, it was joined by black-and-tan-clad cycle riders who escorted the first minister's party to the ceremony. The streets were wide and lined with majestic cotton flower trees and curiously silent crowds. The limousine stopped and Lilith felt a flutter in her stomach as Rihana led her out of the car.

The crowds were made up of nothing but men. Their faces carried neither humor nor pity. She looked up from the rows of masks to the tall gleaming buildings.

There was the sound of drums, and the beat seemed to reach inside her soul, calling up things ancient and strange. The sounds echoed from the steel and gla.s.s faces of the surrounding office towers as the ghostly sounds of blue wood flutes came from the crumbled remains of the old ruin before them. Lilith held Rihana's hand as the women from many important households formed a black column as they entered the old temple walls.

It seemed strange to be inside a building yet be able to look up where there should have been a ceiling and see the sky and the tops of other structures. The temple ruin itself was little more than the partial remains of a few honey-colored stone pillars and walls. The blackened arch through which they had entered was the only complete opening in the structure.

Inside and to the left of the arch was a bronze statue of a woman holding a finger before her bound mouth.

She knew that the woman was Angerona.

There were white-colored areas on the walls, and she pressed her fingers into Rihana's arm as she signed, "What is the white?"

"The heat of the fire bleached the stone," answered Rihana upon Lilith's arm.

"When was the fire?"

"The temple was destroyed over three centuries ago by Magda and the Sword of Justice during the Female War."

"Women did this?"

"Magda and the women set the entire world aflame."

Inside the ruins there were strange men standing in solemn little groups. Every few moments a man would look at the women. The expression would always be hard, with narrowed eyes, a smirk, or a sneer. Lilith did not avert her eyes, but returned glance for glance. It was almost as though the looks from the men were insults, challenges, signs of some enigmatic victory. Lilith's fingers reached beneath Rihana's sleeve and moved on her forearm asking, "Why are we here?"

"The reason for this," signed Rihana, "is to paint us once more with Magda's guilt." "No more of that, woman!" hissed an angry voice. Rihana started and looked with astonishment at an elderly novice.

Rihana began signing back, "I only answered the child's-"

"No more! Keep your fingers still! I do not understand your wicked finger signs and no true son of the Enlightener would. Stop it now if you fear the fires of h.e.l.l."

The novice took a significant look at the first minister's party and returned his attention to Rihana. With three steps he came to a halt in front of her. Lilith saw that her father was looking at his first wife.

"Wife of Duman Amin, you know the Female Law. No female is allowed to read, no female is allowed to write. All of that business with the fingers is reading and writing. There will be no more of it, woman.

Especially there will be no more of it here and today."

When the novice returned to his post, Lilith looked for her father to see what he would do. Duman had an angry look on his face, but his anger was not directed against the novice. It was directed, instead, at his first wife. The look of anger transformed into one of confusion as Duman's gaze moved to his patron, Mikael Yucel. The first minister did not return the look. Lilith faced forward and the procession resumed its solemn pace.

There was an inscribed plate, green with age, that had been affixed to the remains of a stone column inside the temple ruins. To hide her fingers, Lilith again reached inside Rihana's sleeve and pressed her fingers against Rihana's arm.

"What do the words say?"

Rihana waited a long time before she placed her hand beneath Lilith's veil and rested it upon the child's shoulder. Hidden there her fingers answered, "It is man-writing. It is forbidden for me to read it."

"I know you can read it, Rihana. I've seen you in my father's library. I have seen you read the books there."

Duman's first wife looked down at Lilith, her face a mask. Rihana turned her face toward the bronze inscription and signed upon Lilith's shoulder: "Look upon Magda's monument And remember, oh men, Lest ye forget and again Fall victim to woman's tongue."

Women and their daughters crowded the cleared places on the floor as they knelt on the temple's hard, cold paving stones. Lilith could see that there were security guards everywhere. Far to the right her father and the first minister were standing with several more men. As more men arrived, they bowed, and the first minister nodded curtly at them.

Suddenly blinding white lights filled Lilith's vision. The child clung to Rihana's arm and buried her face in the folds of Rihana's dress. She felt Rihana's fingers on her shoulder. "They are lights for television cameras.

Don't let them see you are afraid."

Slowly Lilith withdrew her face from the security of Rihana's dress. Squinting against the lights, she sat back upon her heels and turned to look for her mother. Directly behind the household women, Hedia knelt between the two guards, Isak and Majnun. As did all of the men, the guards remained standing. Hedia had her hands folded in her lap and her eyes closed.

The drumming changed rhythm and the flutes stopped as Lilith saw a strangely imposing figure bow before the first minister and kiss his hand. Somehow the tall one made the simple token of respect an insult as he did it.

The person was a full head taller than the first minister, with long black hair streaked with silver. His high cheekbones and thin nose made his cheeks look sunken. His brows were black and heavy, and beneath them were dark eyes set too close together.

"Who is he?" Lilith asked.

"Tahir Ranon, leader of the Orthodox Party. He is your father's bitter enemy."

"Why would my father have enemies?"

"Your father wishes to change things. Tahir Ranon is opposed to change. That's why he is your father's enemy."

Lilith looked up into Rihana's eyes. A strange pride seemed to burn there.

"I do not understand."

Rihana moved her hand beneath Lilith's veil. "Duman Amin is opposed to allowing unwanted girl babies to be killed. He believes that the laws should be changed to allow women to read and write, and even to go to school to learn skills so that they may be employed as something other than servants and scrub women. He believes that women should be allowed to keep for themselves part of the money they earn. All this frightens the Orthodox Party."

The wind increased slightly, causing a haze of yellow dust to rise from the paving stones. Tahir Ranon moved to the raised center of the floor where the altar had once stood. He took his place there with severalother men, all of whom wore simple white caftans with dark blue outer robes that reached to their ankles.

They all wore the plain black fezzes that marked the priests of the Haramite orthodoxy.

Lilith watched a young novice walk through the kneeling ranks of women. He had a long thin stick in his hands. As he reached the end of one row and was turning into the next, his gaze made contact with Lilith's.

He pointed his stick at her.

"Don't look at me in that manner, girl. Keep your eyes down."

As her face grew hot, Lilith quickly looked down at her lap. She felt Rihana's hand on her shoulder. "It will be over soon."

The drumming stopped. After a moment a deep, resonant voice filled the ruined temple.

"In the name of Alilah."

"In the name of Alilah," responded the men.