Ontogeny

Chapter 1b

"Yes, it's true," the King then said. "The Brigadier says there is hope."

"I do not wish to give you false hope, though," said the Brigadier. "Hope is all it is. There is a chance, though, and I will pursue it the length and breadth of the world if necessary. There is no length to which I will not go to save Her Highness."

"I know you will," she said, her cold hands clutching tightly at his. "You have no idea how my heart leapt with joy and relief just knowing you are here. You will save my daughter, I know you will. Thank Those Above for you." She lifted her hand to touch his cheek, then hurried off down the corridor. Not back to her chambers, as the King would have preferred, but to the courtyard to see the Princess and look upon her for the first time in weeks with something other than despair.

☆☆☆

"We're leaving again? So soon?" Malone stared up at the Brigadier's face as he trotted beside him, struggling to keep up with his long strides. "The men are tired. They were looking forward to spending some time with their families."

"Can't be helped," replied the Brigadier.

He hurriedly explained the situation and the younger man cursed softly. The Princess was loved by the entire kingdom. "Yes, of course," he said, a set look of determination appearing on his face. "The Princess... I saw her once, you know, at her declaration parade. I was just a few feet away from her as her carriage went past. I didn't really have colour vision yet but I could still see how beautiful she was. I can't imagine someone wanting to hurt her."

"Politics," said the Brigadier gruffly, and there was a whole conversation in that one word. He was a simple man really, Malone thought, allowing himself to fall back a step or two behind his superior officer. The world he lived in was an uncomplicated one. There were his superiors, whom he obeyed and to whom he gave his unconditional loyalty, there were the men under his command, from whom he expected the same, there were criminals and the enemies of the kingdom, whom he hunted ruthlessly and tirelessly, and there was everyone else, whom he mainly ignored. That was his whole world. There was no room in it for complexities like politics, or even friendship. Malone himself was, he suspected, the closest thing the Brigadier had to an actual friend. Even family relationships seemed alien to him.

"Have you ever thought about having a child?" he asked hesitantly.

The Brigadier gave no sign of having heard, staring thoughtfully ahead along the crowded street and glaring at the occasional passers-by who jostled them with their elbows. His mind was already out in the wild, Malone knew. Thinking ahead to all the challenges that faced them. This was a mission that might well take years of his life, and good preparation was essential.

Malone repeated the question, this time louder, and the taller man looked down at him. "Hmm? Not really. Raising a child properly takes two people. I mean, look at you. I've done my best by you, but in the five years since your parents died you're barely more human now than you were then."

"I'm not sure I want to be fully human," Malone replied. "I'd miss my sense of smell too much. Right now, for instance, I can tell that a herd of garbage pigs passed this way just a couple of hours ago, and that one of them was still half rat. Has anyone ever adopted a pig, do you think?"

"I dare say someone has, sometime. Possibly a pig farmer who spent too long in close proximity with them until they began to show human traits. The law says you can't eat them then, so his options would have been rather limited." A small man with a grimy face and tousled hair bumped into him and the Brigadier grabbed his wrist before he could escape into the crowd. He retrieved his pouch from the pickpocket and sent him on his way with a clout to the head. "Bloody cities. I'll be glad to be out of here."