Free Nightmare by Steven Harper Page B

well, Kendi," Mother Ara said. It was both odd and pleasing to hear someone else say it. "Would you like to join us? If you’d prefer to be alone—"
      "No," he said. "No, I’m all right." Lizard—Kendi—drew his chair toward the little group which had formed around her. The others made room for him.
      "First," Ara said, "let me explain a few things. As you may have guessed, I don’t work for a corporation."
      They nodded in unison. "Did you really pay for us?" Kendi asked.
      "Oh yes—with good, hard currency. Once I determined each of you was truly Silent, I submitted the instant-buy bid and that was that."
      "Instant-buy bid?" Jeren said, his green eyes all but glowing with intensity. An old scar framed the outside of his right eye and Kendi wondered if his owner had done that to him.
      "The auction is silent, meaning no one knows what anyone else is bidding," Ara said. "But the auctioneers always set an outrageously high price that you can pay if you want to buy on the spot instead of waiting for the bidding to end. I submitted that bid for each of you, and that was that."
      "Youhavethatkindofmoney?" Kite said. He spoke quickly, the words running together like drops of mercury.
      "The Children of Irfan do," Ara told him. She settled herself more comfortably in the chair. "We’re a monastic order. It’s our duty to find Silent, especially enslaved Silent, free them, and bring them back to the monastery on Bellerophon. Before you ask, no—you are not required to join us. You are not required to do anything at all." She leveled them a clear, steady gaze. "You are free citizens. No slave bands, no owners, no obligations to anyone but your own, free selves."
      "Sure, sure," Jeren drawled. "You fork out that kind of cash and don’t expect a thing in return? Next you’re gonna ask me to pull your finger."
      Willa made a shushing noise. "Don’t get her angry. She could make us slaves again."
      "No," Ara said emphatically. "Absolutely not. You do, however, have a choice to make. You can come with me—with us—to Bellerophon and study under the Children of Irfan. The Children will give you room, board, clothing, and a small stipend. You will receive a general education "
      "Wadwedofyou?" Kite said, and Kendi had to think a moment to separate his words.
      Ara seemed to do so as well. "What do you do for us? Well, if you complete your training with us and take your vows as a full Child, you’ll work for the monastery one day for each day you spent in training. During that time, you’ll receive room, board, and a larger stipend. Once your debt is paid, you can leave the Children or stay with us. It’s up to you."
      "We have to work for you?" Jeren said. "Sounds like slavery again."
      "Yeah," Kendi chimed in, also suspicious. "What if we get there and decide we don’t like it?"
      Ara smiled. "You have a year to decide. After that, you’re technically a contract employee. If you don’t like it, you don’t have to sign on." She raised a finger, forestalling Jeren’s next comment. "And no, we don’t leave you stranded on Bellerophon as an incentive to get you to sign. All Silent slaves we buy are given two gifts. The first is your freedom. You have that. The second is a voucher for free passage on any ship to anywhere you want to go. I’ll give you that when we arrive on Bellerophon. You can use it right away, or you can save it to use for later. It’s good for life. If you decide not to stay with us, you can go wherever you like."
      Kendi relaxed a little. "What if we don’t complete the training? I mean, you must have people drop out."
      "It happens," Ara said. "If you drop the training before completing it, you still have to work for the Children one day for each day we trained you. It won’t be in the Dream—you need to complete your training to do official Dream work for us—but there are plenty of other jobs around the monastery that need doing."