Dark Awakening: Echoes of Destiny (The Children Of The Gods #88)

69. Brandon

69

brANDON

B randon stood patiently in line to greet Ell-rom, Annani's half-brother. Despite the prince's Kra-ell heritage, the family resemblance between him and Annani was unmistakable. Some of it was in their facial features, but mostly, it was in their regal bearing that seemed ingrained rather than learned.

As the line inched forward, Brandon analyzed Ell-rom. The way he held himself, the tilt of his head as he listened to each new introduction, and the warm smile that graced his features all spoke of an innate nobility that transcended his lack of memories from his life on Anumati. The guy had the life experience of a newborn, but he must have subconsciously retained some of what he had learned.

It was fascinating to witness.

Ell-rom lacked Annani's intensity and palpable power, and he seemed like a mellow, affable fellow, but Brandon had a feeling that the prince might have some surprises in store for them.

For now, he was still unsure of his standing, dependent on William's ingenious device to communicate and learn the rules of conduct of the community that was adopting him.

He wore earpieces that translated English to Kra-ell for him, and the pendant hanging from a string around his neck translated what he was saying from his native Kra-ell into English.

Kian had informed the council that Ell-rom hadn't displayed any compulsion abilities, but just in case, Brandon had brought his own filtering earpieces. As he neared the front of the line, though, he pulled them out of his ear and tucked them into his pocket. After all, there was no need for them because the teardrop-shaped pendant was taking care of the translation.

Most of the village's residents didn't have compulsion-filtering, translating earpieces, which was a good thing given that Annani had just used compulsion to keep Ell-rom and Morelle's existence a secret.

Still, enough people had them. Every member of the council had been given a pair, and so had every Guardian. As far as he knew, no one had bothered to check whether they had been wearing them while Annani had done her thing or not.

Not that he was worried that any of them would harm the twins in any way, even if they had not been compelled to refrain from doing so.

Finally, when it was his turn, Brandon stepped forward and extended his hand with a warm smile. "Welcome, Ell-rom. I'm Brandon, the council member in charge of media."

Ell-rom's grip was firm but gentle as he shook Brandon's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you." He smiled and tilted his head. "Excuse my ignorance, but what does it mean to be in charge of media? I mean, I watched some television, so I know what media is, and I doubt the clan broadcasts its presence."

"We don't," Brandon confirmed. "What we do is promote the gods' ideals about democracy, equal opportunity, and the pursuit of truth through existing human channels. We encourage the production of movies and television series that depict the future we would like humans to have, and in the past, we published books on the subject. Regrettably, our message has lately been diluted by an avalanche of misleading and destructive propaganda promoted by bad actors. It's nothing new, but the easy accessibility makes it more difficult to fight these days."

The last part was a recent addition to his self-imposed job description, born out of a growing concern for the state of information and critical thinking in the Western world. Brandon had been increasingly troubled by the ease with which lies and the inversion of truth spread, even in supposedly advanced societies. He blamed it on failed educational systems that did not teach history and did not equip children with the right tools to think for themselves.

He was starting to think that it was being done deliberately. Children grew up and turned into ignorant adults who were incredibly easy to manipulate because they knew so little.

It was precisely what those in power wanted.

The prince's eyes lit up with interest. "That sounds like crucial work. Perception is everything, and when it is based on lies, the distortion can be catastrophic."

That was a very astute observation for a guy who had been awake for only a few weeks, but the prince probably remembered subconsciously things he'd been taught on Anumati.

"You are absolutely correct. I'm not a young immortal, and I have a lot of experience dealing with humans. It is a never-ending struggle." Brandon leaned closer to the prince's ear. "I blame the gods. I think that they genetically programmed humans to be easily influenced and manipulated, and in the absence of gods, other humans take advantage of the gullibility of the masses. I've been working on some new ideas to address the problem, especially with the younger generation of humans."

"What is it?" Ell-rom asked.

"I came up with a concept for a game that would reward players for discovering hidden truths with tangible prizes as a way to make critical thinking engaging and rewarding." Brandon glanced at the long line still waiting behind him. "I'll gladly meet up after you get settled and tell you more over a cup of coffee."

"I'm looking forward to it." Ell-rom extended his hand.

Brandon shook it. "I hope that your sister awakens soon and will join us."

"I hope so, too."

As Brandon stepped down onto the lawn, he intended to head to the buffet, but instead, his feet carried him toward the clinic.

After meeting Ell-rom, his curiosity about Morelle was piqued, and he wanted to take a peek at the sleeping princess.

The clinic was quiet, and as Brandon walked in, Julian and Hildegard looked at him with surprise.

"Brandon." Julian extended his hand. "What brings you here?"

"Not any ailment, if that's what you're thinking." Brandon shook the doctor's hand. "I just spoke with Ell-rom and was quite impressed by him. I know that his twin is unconscious, but I still think she should be welcomed into the community by an official representative of the clan."

Julian smiled. "Well, when you state it like that, we should form a line of well-wishers for Morelle like we are doing for Ell-rom. She can use all the stimulation we can throw at her." He started walking toward one of the patients' rooms. "She has been in a coma for too long."

Brandon frowned. "Was her condition worse than Ell-rom's when they were found?"

"No," Julian said as he opened the door. "As far as we can tell, there is nothing wrong with her physically at this point."

Brandon wanted to ask what Julian thought was the reason for Morelle's prolonged coma, but as he followed the doctor into the room, he felt the words die in his throat—a rare occurrence for him since his job performance was based on his ability to talk and charm.

Even in her unconscious state, Morelle was magnificent. There was an undeniable regality about her. Her features were delicate yet strong, and her nearly bald head made every feature seem even stronger, more refined.

"What a stunning female," Brandon murmured.

Julian nodded. "That she is. It's a shame she's missing her own welcome party."

Brandon pulled out the lone chair in the room from under the counter, rolled it toward the hospital bed, and sat down. "I hope it's okay if I stay for a little bit?"

Julian nodded. "She needs stimulation." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pendant similar to the one Ell-rom had around his neck. "This will translate what you say into Kra-ell. You should also put your earpieces in. Not that I expect her to suddenly wake up, but just in case she does, it's better not to take a risk. She might be a compeller." Julian rubbed his hand over his jaw. "Though I have to wonder if compulsion can be effective when the compelled does not understand the compeller's language. I should discuss it with Kalugal and seek his insight."

Brandon took the device and pulled the cord over his head. "Does it automatically detect which language it needs to translate?"

"Not yet." Julian leaned over and pressed the side of the device. "It's still in the prototype phase, so it needs to be manually switched. I'm sure that William will soon have it switching by voice command and translating many languages."

"Don't you love technology?" Brandon smiled. "It's the one thing that gives me hope in our constant push against the darkness. Technology will prevail over barbarism and oppression."

Julian sighed. "I hope so, but I fear that it's not as simple as that. Just like people, artificial intelligence bases its assumptions and conclusions on whatever it is fed. If it's fed lies, the output will not be progress. Only the unbiased truth can propel us forward."

Brandon glanced at Morelle's peaceful face. "What do you think, princess? Does truth have the power to set us free from the illusions we create?"

Julian chuckled. "I like that. If Morelle can hear you, a philosophical postulation might stimulate her mind to awareness."

A grin spread across Brandon's face. "Well, philosophizing and postulating is what I do best. I built a career out of it."