Phynn'ro: A Science Fiction Romance

Chapter 1

Phyn’Ro

The crawling green sea breaks its towering waves against the sea wall protecting Urto’s capital city. From my position—sitting at the fourth story window of the modest office provided to me—I can see far enough out that the curvature of the planet Jurta is visible.

Would that I had a more peaceful, serene sight to gaze upon, because the turmoil of the stormy seas matches what I feel inside my breast. I’m supposed to be in pursuit of Zenna, the seventh level of enlightenment in the Raith’Pa religion, but these days I find it hard to rise above the many temporal concerns which plague my mind.

There is the war, of course, which has gone on since before even I was born and will likely continue long after I am gone. I did my time, giving my six years to the Alliance military before entering the monkhood with my brothers. Now the last thing I want is to face that kind of violence and chaos again.

Yet, I feel as if I’m negligent somehow by not getting more involved in the war effort, even in a non military role. After all, all that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.

Not that I’m a good man. Not even close. I struggle every day against my personal demons. A common misconception about our monastic order is that we’re all placid, serene transcendental beings, but nothing could be further from the truth. Even the leader of my order has been known to struggle with his baser desires.

I don’t mind a lot of the strictures. Truly I don’t. But of late I’ve found it hard to banish thoughts of one particular human woman from my mind. She intrudes upon my medidations, my dreams, even my waking thoughts when I least expect her to.

My insides are as twisted as can be over this matter. It’s not as if there’s not plenty of other things to worry about. The conflicts here on Jurta, a Fractured World, have heated up in recent months. Urto, the continent I currently reside upon, is thought to be the most ‘liberal’ of the three nation states that comprise the populace of this planet. This means they are open to trade, have generally equal rights for men and women alike, and allow their populace to vote upon their own leaders.

Contrast this with Tyrka, a religious fundamentalist nation with ties to the Ataxian religion. Citizens are free to vote for whichever leader the Clergy has deemed worthy to be on the ballot, which is often just one. And as for equal rights, well…a common threat of Urtos parents is that they will sell their children into Tyrkan slavery if they don’t behave.

The idea of one person owning another one rankles me, of course, but my order is supposed to remain above direct involvement with any type of regime change. We are to provide guidance and advice, but never direct interference. Our order watches events play out over the course of centuries, not days or months or even years like most temporal goverments.

While I understand and appreciate this fact, it doesn’t change much. I still feel as if I’m somehow being remiss by keeping myself separate from the world at large. Perhaps a life of pacifism and celibacy isn’t truly a fit for me after all.

But I made a commitment to my order, one that can not be broken lightly. My path to True Enlightenment is an arduous one, and I have made many strides toward transcending the physical realm. If I were to quit now, all of my efforts would be for naught. Do I really want to throw away such a huge portion of my life?

I could probably navigate all of these matters, and more, if it were not for the human woman intruding on my thoughts day and night.

When I first met Lucy, she had just opened her café, the Second Helping. I was gratified to see a new business opening up after the recent galaxy wide recession, and discovered that, for a human, Lucy was possessed of great insight and wisdom.

She is also possessed of great sadness. I don’t know what caused her to flee IHC space and come to this fractured world, but it must have been something terrible indeed. There are few humans on Jurta, and those that are here usually wear the chains of slavery in Tyrka.

Our friendship was so unlikely, it HAD to form. Which isn’t to say we don’t have much in common. We both enjoy a good cinnamon coffee, a game of Trinity, and the admittedly kitschy novels of Danielle Platinum. I find it easy to be around Lucy, and I’d like to think that she finds it easy to be in my company as well. I have often spent what seemed like minutes engaged in conversation with her only to find that I’ve whiled away many hours.

Friendship is one of the paths to True Enlightenment. My order would have no issue with my being friends with Lucy, but lately, I’ve found myself thinking what it would be like if we were to become….closer.

My vows forbid such temporal attachments. Even if she were not of a different species than my own Pi’Rellian origins, there would be much in the way of our union. For one thing, my people can live for centuries, even millennia. A human with the best sorts of medical care can only hope for a century and a half, and the twilight years are often fraught with difficulty.

So perhaps it is a good thing that we are just friends, for many reasons.

Clearly, I can’t get her off my mind. But that doesn’t mean anything, really. It could just be that I yearn for the company of my only true friend on this continent. My order is on the island  chain of Varro, with myself facilitating the shipment of goods that they cannot produce or acquire on their own. Since our order grows its own crops, tends its own livestock, and has little need for medicine, I have a great deal of free time.

The whole point of my isolation here on the coast is to give me the time and peace to achieve Zenna, but I fear that will never happen. 

As I do almost every single day, I decide to head to Lucy’s Café, the Second Helping. While she presents a source of temptation, I do enjoy her company thoroughly, and I believe she enjoys my own.

I head down the stairs and out into the busy streets of Port Knorr. A variety of sapient species roam about, mostly the native Crynn, but quite a few from other worlds as well. The Crynn on Urtos are considered the most ‘modern’ by galactic society at large, and the influence of so many cultures upon their lifestyle can be readily seen. Alzhonions open restaurants, the murals in the park are decidedly Vakutan impressionism, and of course my own Pi’Rell order calls this planet home.

Lucy’s café is a short walk from my shipping company. Indeed, the first time I stopped inside was as much due to convenience as curiosity. With intoxicating drinks and sex off the table, food is a pleasure which I can actually indulge in, and to be honest Lucy’s wares smell absolutely amazing.

I believe the first thing I sampled wound up being my favorite, a type of custard desert known as buttermilk pie. I don’t know what animal on Earth produces buttermilk, but it really must be a gift from the Great Dharma.

Ever since then, I’ve been stopping by at least five times a week for the past two years. Lucy and I have struck up quite the friendship, and I value both her company and her wise counsel.

At last, I stride up to the large picture window on her storefront. Behind the gleaming counter, Lucy plies her trade, pouring batter into a series of metal tins. The beverage portion of her shop is fully automated, but Lucy makes all of her desserts by hand from scratch, despite the greater investment of time and energy. I must say I truly appreciate her efforts.

As I stand there, looking in on her glorious strawberry blonde mane, her sparkling blue eyes, and yes, the feminine curves of her figure, I can’t help but let my mind wander down paths it should probably avoid. Obviously, she’s very attractive, but my fantasies don’t stop at mere carnality. I could easily imagine another life where she is my wife…

My heart aches suddenly, desperately. All I want to do is go in there and tell her that I want our friendship to expand into something more, something deeper. But my vows, my fear, and her shortened lifespan all stand in the way.

It would be best if I just left, and saw her another day. When I’m feeling stronger in my convictions and this terrible ache in my chest has subsided.

As if on cue, Lucy glances up and sees me. Her face becomes more beautiful as it stretches in a warm smile. She waves excitedly and motions for me to come inside.

It would be rude not to go in now. I suppose this is my daily penance. Fixing a smile on my face, I stride into her wonderful smelling shop, my expression belying my inner torment.