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Question of Faith
Epilogue
Artemyn saluted crisply as Cameo's ship landed, waiting patiently outside. "Congratulations," he said, extending a hand to first Cameo and then to Psikaris. "I think you'll find that everything is still in order. I look forward to getting back to Vencury."
For an instant Cameo thought he saw a flicker of disappointment cross the younger man's face, but let it pass. Lunar society was built on advancing one's career through the demise of another. If Artemyn wasn't gunning for his job in the long run then Cameo would be surprised. Such a man might even help Cameo's own career, providing incentive to keep up the hard work and not get too comfortable. Besides, he was in far too good a mood to let anything bother him at the moment. He and Psikaris would be home soon, and they could unwind from an interesting adventure.
"Luna wants to see you before you go home. She won't admit it, but I think she's missed having you around," he heard his secretary, Erillis, pipe up, as she disentangled herself from a massive hug to Psikaris. Okay, so maybe he couldn't unwind. Yet.
The throne room was nearly empty when he got there. Luna sat on her massive throne, while Amok lay curled at her tiny feet. Along with the usual compliment of guards, there was a royal Lunatak and a Control officer present, and both nodded cordially to Cameo as he entered. "We'll continue this conversation later. I need to speak with my air commander," Luna said. The control officer seemed about to protest, but left with little fuss. "Aftermath of the Aristarchus mess. Control wants access to his holdings before the trial. They're insisting that he can't use a Psion lawyer too, if you can believe it." Cameo could. He'd suspected more than one Psion of using their powers in a courtroom. "You managed to survive, I take it. I expect you to resume your duties tomorrow. Not much has happened since you were gone, but we'll go over it anyway."
Cameo couldn't stop smiling and nodded. Luna was welcoming him home and congratulating him in her own way, and he let her know it was appreciated. There was a lot to discuss, analysing Mutant activities, and the strange loss of a wealthy couple travelling between moons. Still, nothing looked urgent, and he was grateful. It really was good to be back.
Tug Mug wheeled to his room, staring at the transmission from his home moon. He had enjoyed his stay on the Royal Moon for a good week since the trek had ended, but he had duties on Third Earth, as part of the governing body, and they wanted him to accompany a shipment of beer, along with a weapons system that they had developed. There was a faint hope that it could be used to repel Mumm-Ra if he decided to attack New Lunis. There was nothing else holding him back, so he began packing. Psychro would need to be going back soon too, and Tug Mug wanted to see how his relationship with Chilla went.
"You're leaving?" Psikaris asked. As promised, Cameo was back at his desk in the control tower overlooking the landing pad the next day. She, on the other hand, had the day off to get up to date.
"Yeah. Graviton ship, so you know the cooking's going to be greasy," Psychro replied. There weren't going to be many passengers on the flight, mostly crew delivering goods and picking up others. He'd seen Tug Mug's name on the manifest and been pleased. Black Tiger was also on the flight, and he was curious as to why.
"You take care of yourself out there. You don't have your little sister to protect you?" she said, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.
"And you let me know if Cameo isn't taking care of you. I'm not too far away that I can't come back at a moment's notice. Screw Tycho and Luna if they don't like it. You're the best family a guy could ask for." The levity in his voice faltered. "You are going to be okay, right?" He took her hand in his, patting it. They'd known each other too long, long enough that they didn't need words to convey meaning.
"I will. There's going to be some adjustments, but I'll be fine. I had a nightmare about it last night, but I've always been pretty good with my dreams. Make sure you're back in time to see the twins when they're born."
Psychro chuckled warmly. "Nothing could keep me away. I just don't want to be there in the delivery room." He pulled her to her feet, hugging her tightly. He was going to miss his sister, but he actually felt reasonably comfortable that Cameo wouldn't screw it up too bad. "I love you."
She held him for a long time, allowing the tears to come. "I love you too," she said, and knew that she wasn't the only one crying.
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