A minute passed before Kibi worked up the courage to ask directions. She didn’t want to bother anyone who looked busy, so she waited for the first creature who appeared to be off-duty. It turned out to be a sleek, furry mammal that walked on all fours and had feline teeth that could have made quick work of a donkey or horse.
“Um . . . hello . . . um . . . do you have a moment?”
The animal’s muscles rippled with strength as he sat on his haunches in front of Kibi, bringing his head level with hers. “Toran Takil, at your service, beautiful monkey mammal.”
Kibi swallowed. “And . . . you are very . . . handsome. On my planet, mountain lions roam the land, and you remind me of them. But they are not sapient. At least . . . I don’t think so . . .”
The powerful animal gazed into Kibi’s eyes, and her rambling faded away.
She felt nearly mesmerized, caught up in his penetrating glance. Her knees
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began to shake.
Seeing her mental state, he curled his lips slightly. “How can I help you?”
Kibi struggled to compose herself. “Um . . . I need to find dock C-Thirteen, and move a deep-space response ship. Do you . . . know where that is?”
The large animal yawned. “Sounds like one of Kerloran’s little confidence-building assignments. You are new here, or I’m a kitten.”
Kibi smiled nervously. “Very new here. I can’t even find my own ship!”
“I am free, and would be happy to guide you.”
They followed three corridors and four or five ramps, but Kibi was so focused on her guide that she paid little attention to the turns they made or the signs they passed. As she walked along beside the sleek, powerful animal, she felt an unusual warmth fill her body. Soon they arrived at a comfortable little room with soft seats and a clear boarding tunnel that bridged the short distance to the golden ship. An intense desire to impress Toran Takil welled up inside Kibi.
“Um . . . I’d be very honored if you’d . . . come with me.”
The huge cat curled his lips, then stretched forward and licked Kibi’s neck, sending chills all throughout her body. Somehow she managed to get through the boarding tunnel without stumbling over her own feet, and he followed closely.
Driven by some deep need to look as good as possible to the animal watching her from the passenger area, words came to Kibi’s mind that she had heard others say, but had never spoken herself.
“Manessa, short-range sensors, please, and the docking tunnel chart.
Warm up anti-mass one and maneuvering thrusters.”
Several consoles came to life with the requested functions. The chart flashed onto the main bridge screen and the pilot’s three-D display.
“Close hatch, hull diagnostic, retract boarding tunnel. Select docking controller channel.”
“Greetings, Manessa Kwi,” a raspy insect voice said as an image of stick-thin legs and compound eyes appeared at the navigator’s station.
“Hello, I’m Kibi, and Kerloran asked me to move the ship to C-Fourteen.
No station control needed.”
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“This must be the shortest trip I’ve ever approved!”
Kibi
grinned.
“The docking tunnel is clear, and your destination is about forty meters to your right.”
“Thank you, Satamia control. Manessa Kwi closing.”
Kibi sat down at the pilot’s station for the first time. She glanced back at Toran Takil, saw his sparkling animal eyes watching her intently from the passenger area, and touched the symbol she knew would raise the flight control. “Manessa, release docking clamps.”
As soon as the blue and purple fingers let go, she nudged up the anti-mass drive until she could feel the ship floating, then eased the flight control forward. Adrenaline filled her veins, and her heart throbbed in her chest. She felt more confident and alive than she could ever remember feeling.
Glancing at all her view angles, Kibi found the docking tunnel completely empty. She cleared dock C-Thirteen, hoping her guest couldn’t see her trembling.
Kibi grinned from ear to ear as they covered the forty meters to the next dock, and could feel the presence of the male cat every second of the journey.
Finally she brought the ship to a stop, nudged it into the docking fingers, and breathed deeply when Manessa announced the ship secure.
“Manessa, shut down all systems and extend boarding tunnel.”
Kibi was out of the pilot seat in a fraction of a second, and a heartbeat later stood before Toran Takil, breathing heavily but trying to look calm and confident.
“I am impressed,” the cat said, and licked her on the neck again.
Kibi shivered and grinned with pleasure.
“Would you like to get some cold drinks with me, and I’ll show you my favorite place in the station, a place few people know about, and fewer still ever go.”
Kibi could think of no words to say, but nodded quickly and smiled.
As they followed ramps and corridors again, Kibi dug deep into her courage and placed her hand on the large feline’s back. He didn’t seem to mind, so she kept it there as they made their way through the station. From
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that moment on, she had no awareness of where she was, other than beside a beautiful and powerful animal who excited her more than anyone ever had.
At a low table somewhere among the leaves of the station tree, Kibi knelt on the soft floor close beside her new companion. She could feel his body heat, and sensing that he was comfortable with the closeness, she snuggled even closer.
The cold drink was probably delicious, but Kibi barely tasted it, and hardly noticed when they rose and wandered on.
Deep in seldom-used parts of the station, they followed narrow ramps and eventually arrived at a cozy patio among thick tree branches. A little fountain bubbled, and a dark doorway stood at the far end of the patio, but otherwise the area was empty and quiet.
Toran Takil sat on his haunches and looked at Kibi. She grinned and breathed rapidly. He stretched close, licked and nibbled her neck, and let her feel his teeth without breaking skin.
Kibi sighed and giggled as shivers of pleasure shot through her body.
“I am Toran Takil, citizen of Nebador,” he began. “I stand and work beside the highest powers of the universe. I go where the bravest people fear to tread. I solve problems that planetary colleges and governments cannot even understand. Kings and presidents sit before me and ask my advice.”
Kibi suddenly felt an icy chill replace her previous warmth.
The large feline continued in a softer voice. “If you want to play games with your heart, and other people’s hearts, then you should return to your backward little planet as fast as you can. If you have any intention of becoming a citizen of Nebador, then you need to do some serious growing up, right now.”
Kibi swallowed hard and tried to blink away tears, but felt too ashamed to wipe them.
“The next time I look into your eyes, Kibi, I want to find an equal, a citizen of Nebador, strong and true. Right now I see a silly little girl. Beyond this fountain is a doorway. Within are powerful teachers who can guide you on the journey from . . . where you are . . . to where you could be, if you are willing to do the hard work.”
With those words, Toran Takil licked Kibi’s neck one last time, then turned
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and walked away.
Kibi wrestled with her emotions for many minutes, knowing she was now the biggest fool in the entire universe. But somehow, she also guessed that Toran Takil would not tell a soul what she had done.
Eventually she managed to pull herself up straight. As she looked around the patio, she saw no sign of the big cat, and knew in her heart she would not see him again . . . at least, for a long time.
Kibi knelt down at the bubbling fountain and washed her face. When she looked up, she saw a little sign beside the door on the far side of the patio.
Standing and going close, she read it.
Psychic Development.
She thought of Mati and her difficult decision. She wondered if Sata and her avian companion were becoming good friends. She tried to imagine Boro fishing with the bear. Finally, she thought of Ilika, and shame filled her mind and colored her face again.
After several deep breaths, she stepped through the doorway, not knowing what she would find within.
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Deep Learning Notes
To what extent do you think the situation was Toran Takil’s “fault” (error, mistake), and to what extent Kibi’s “fault”?
What is the difference between “fault” and “responsibility”?
When the cat licked Kibi on the neck, what meaning did that probably have to him? (You may wish to take a moment to think about normal cat behavior.) What meaning did it appear to have to Kibi?
Did the situation in this chapter have a good purpose and outcome, or would it have been better avoided?
In general, in your opinion, is it better to avoid temptations, or to experience and overcome them?
The author has often been asked why he used the term “Psychic Development” instead of “Psychological Development.” The reasons are many, all pointing in the same direction. “Psychological” has to do with the STUDY of the psyche (soul or mind). It implies a detached, academic approach to an intellectual understanding of something held at arm’s length.
“Psychic,” on the other hand, while still essentially about the soul/mind, encompasses all the mental functions, including those that science has not been able to understand, sometimes not even acknowledge. It also implies a very direct, personal, hands-on process that someone studying “psychology”
would not get. The Psychic Development program in Nebador would be most analogous to the training found in an elite monastic community, such as the legendary Shaolin Temple in Henan, China.
