Hidden Empire - Kevin J. Anderson [189]
Otema caught her breath, delighted. She had been thinking of how she could break down the task for green priests back on Theroc, but it hadn't occurred to her that Ildirans could just as easily share in the dictation. A reader was not required to be engaged in telink—after all, none of the acolytes on Theroc had yet taken the green.
"That is a perfect idea, Rememberer Vao'sh. Your method would make the reading of the Saga go much faster."
With a sigh of anticipation, Otema looked at the stack of scrolls and documents Vao'sh had just delivered. She scanned the symbols and was surprised to notice a mention of the mysterious Klikiss robots. She recalled reading another long portion of the epic narrative, searching for more detailed information about the vanished race, but the insect civilization had vanished before the beginnings of Ildiran recorded history.
She turned quickly, glad to see that Vao'sh had not yet disappeared down the corridor. She called him back. "I have a question, Rememberer. I realize that I have read only the smallest fraction of your Saga, but I have found little information about the Klikiss robots. Didn't Ildirans uncover the first ones on a mining moon somewhere? I have seen several of the robots here in Mijistra, and I know there are others throughout the Ildiran Empire."
"Klikiss robots have also visited the Hanseatic League," Vao'sh said, his expressive facial lobes coloring into different shades. Otema did not yet know how to interpret all of the alien skin signals.
"True, but the Ildiran Empire is so much older. Do you have any more stories about them? Why is there so little information about the Klikiss race? They were once an important civilization, just like yours. Were the Klikiss gone before the Ildiran Empire was formed?"
Vao'sh looked puzzled, considering how best to answer her question. By his reluctance, Otema realized that the historian had not often considered the fundamental question.
"The Klikiss and their robots are part of a different tale," Vao'sh finally said. "A history all their own. Perhaps they have no role in our story, or yours." He backed away, his skin lobes flushing an unusual range of colors. "Or perhaps that part of the tale has not yet been written."
86 NIRA
The view from the crystal balconies of the Prism Palace was spectacular. Prime Designate Jora'h took Nira up to an observation ledge beside the rushing gurgle of upward-flowing streams. He left his bodyguards inside so that he and the lovely Theron woman could have a few moments to themselves.
"This is one of my favorite places," he said.
Nira took a few moments to catch her breath. "It's...beautiful." Jora'h reached out to touch her arm, then held her hand. She let his grip linger there.
Atop its commanding hill, the Prism Palace overlooked the far-flung skyline of Mijistra. Sinuous glasslike structures crept toward the horizon, like ripples on a pond. The tall Palace towers rose high, surrounded by spherical domes of the governmental ministries. The viewing ledge thrust out at an angle with the support stalks bent inward so that as Nira stood on the transparent shelf with no obvious support beneath her feet, she seemed to be floating off into space with Jora'h at her side.
Rising steps of land on the citadel hill led up to hemispherical platforms and domes that supported the Palace. Seven major streams, all of them cut into perfectly straight channels, converged to a single central point.
The Prime Designate said, "The original designers of the Prism Palace wanted to show that all things, even the laws of nature, flow toward the all-seeing and all-powerful Mage-Imperator." Jora'h lowered his voice and smiled warmly at her. "Unfortunately, I defy that concept—for all of my thoughts flow toward you, Nira."
Laughing with embarrassment, she squeezed his hand. At the archway behind them, the ferocious-looking bodyguards seemed completely unconcerned by their