Kayla hadn’t considered this, and apparently, neither Jaden nor Atu had either.
Sven continued. “The perpetrators could be anyone, including quadrant military or sector regulators. They could eliminate those who threatened them with no repercussions at all. No, that weapon is far too dangerous. For that reason, I adapted it, developing the first ever pulse weapon, the one they have reverse engineered all others from.”
The three teens whistled as one.
“You invented pulse weapons?” Jaden sputtered.
“Yes. An achievement I now regret because our quadrant’s military defense and intelligence division noticed it. They wasted no time recruiting me, and I joined their ranks shortly after selling them the plans. That was the beginning of the end for me.”
“Why? I would’ve expected it would be a dream job, access to unlimited resources and labs to die for,” Jaden said.
Kayla debated telling Jaden to stop his inquisition. Perhaps they were intruding on areas Sven didn’t want to discuss. But Sven showed no signs of discomfort, so she let it ride. Besides, her head was hurting too much to get into it with Jaden.
“I thought the same thing,” Sven said. “And for a while, it was true. But everything changed overnight when they discovered my prowess in accurately predicting certain, shall we say, behavioral patterns. They took away my labs, confined me to a secure, isolated environment, and had me running statistical analysis for them, wasting my days identifying potential threats.” He fell silent, lost in thought.
Kayla stared. What is he talking about? Behavioral patterns?
“You mean intelligence work instead of weapons design?” Jaden suggested.
“Yes.”
Kayla considered Sven’s brusque response, and it crystallized for her. “Uh, intelligence work like profiling?”
Sven didn’t answer immediately, confirming Kayla’s guess. Then he sighed. “Exactly. But the work I was doing didn’t focus on crimes already committed. I conducted my analysis for the purpose of designing a system that could forecast which citizens were likely to fall prone to certain kinds of behavior.”
“But wouldn’t that be helpful, to recognize potential threats so they could be monitored?” Atu asked.
“It would, if that’s all they were planning on using it for—monitoring. But it wasn’t. I realized something was terribly wrong when they asked me to change certain parameters. To set my mind at ease, I bugged my supervisor’s office.”
Sven paused, and the teens held their collective breath. It was clear how much even thinking of these things distressed Sven.
“Sven, you don’t have to tell us,” Kayla said, her earlier concerns resurfacing.
“No, I do.” Sven hissed. “You need to understand the people I was working for. Not even a day after placing the devices, I heard their conversation. My results were helping them eliminate people who posed even a hint of a threat—before they had actually committed any crime. There were so smug, thinking they were so smart and that they were the righteous ones. It made me sick.”
Sven paced now, and Kayla wished she could ease the grief emanating from him.
“I couldn’t live with myself. All those conceivably innocent lives, now subject to execution. All because of my work. What if my logic was flawed? I had warned them about that repeatedly, begging them for someone I could consult with, someone who could validate my reasoning. But they provided no one and acted as though the results were infallible. They could’ve been murdering innocent people. So I changed things.”
“What did you do?” Kayla breathed, too caught up now to want him to stop.
“I destroyed all versions of my program, blew up their offsite backup facility, and escaped from the hellhole they had confined me to.”
Jaden whistled. “Talk about a radical solution!”
Sven bristled. “What would you have done?”
“You misunderstand. I’m not saying what you did was wrong,” Jaden hurriedly clarified. “Just extreme. I totally get why. If I was in the same situation, I’d have done something similar.”
Sven grunted. “At least we agree.”
“What happened next?” Kayla prompted, impatient to hear the rest of the story.
Sven smiled sardonically, returning to the counter and tossing cut vegetables into a heated pan where they sizzled and popped when they hit the hot oil. “I was ‘persona non grata’ after those stunts. With those people, resignation is not an option. Termination is more their style. Between my access to sensitive information because of my high security clearance and the knowledge I possessed concerning their murderous, preemptive actions, sending an assassination squad after me was a foregone conclusion.”
“Assassins?” Kayla felt like she was in a spy novel.
Sven grinned, waving away her horror. “I had planned well. I eluded their traps and escaped their facility, then the complex, and finally the sector. After two weeks on the run, I arrived here, in the middle of a blizzard, too worn out and too cold to travel further. I probably would’ve died, if the deep-seated betrayal I felt had not pushed me to find shelter so I could seek revenge. A sentiment which you’ll be happy to know I am rid of.” He stirred the vegetables and added some cooked chicken.
“Revenge leads no one down a righteous path,” Kayla agreed.
Sven nodded and continued. “Much of that last day is hazy, but I remember falling in the snow, too fatigued to rise again. I knew I needed to find shelter, or I would die. In a brief reprieve from the wind and snow, I spotted the entrance to the tunnel we traveled through to get here. It was a sign.”
“Then what?” Atu asked, his eyes wide.
“I clawed through that seemingly endless stretch of snow to the tunnel, taking refuge there. How long I lay there, I don’t know. I collapsed from sheer exhaustion. When my thirst drove me to wakefulness, the storm had passed. I would not go back, so moving forward was my only option. It’s impossible to describe how overcome I was when I emerged from that tunnel into this beautiful valley. The moment I set foot outside, I knew I had found my home. Reaching into my pocket for something to wipe my nose, my fingers touched something warm.”
“Let me guess,” Jaden interjected, “your medallion?”
“How did you know?” Sven puffed, his bushy eyebrows shooting up.
“Let’s just say I’ve also had mine burn a hole in my pocket before.” Jaden remembered the evening of the day he’d found the medallion and the way it had felt like it was searing into his flesh when his thoughts strayed from it.
“It was the strangest thing,” Sven went on. “During my flight, I must’ve reached into my pocket countless times, and not once before had I found it. After everything they forced me to leave behind, with all the betrayals and disappointments haunting my heart, it cheered me to hold our family heirloom. And it served as confirmation that this was where I should make my new home. I began building, but to this day, I truly don’t understand how the medallion got into my pocket.”
“Jaden and I know—Zareh explained,” Kayla commented.
“There’s that name again. Who is this Zareh? And what did he tell you?” Sven demanded.
“We’ll tell you about Zareh later. Suffice to say, he imbued the medallions with some ability to ensure those he gave them to never lost them. That was how your medallion magically found its way into your pocket,” Kayla replied. Then she paused, abruptly changing the subject. “But, please can we eat? That smells delicious, and now that my head’s not hurting so much, I’m starved!”
“Certainly. We’ll eat and then sleep and talk more in the morning, no?”
“That sounds wonderful,” Jaden replied for all of them. “Where do I find the plates?”
Chapter Twenty
The thunderous explosion crashed through the thick walls of Sven’s home, jerking Jaden awake. Bleary, he blinked, noting the commotion woke the others too. Dazed, they jolted up when a second deafening detonation followed the first. Leaping from sleeping shells strew
n across the living room floor, they sprinted outside. Sven stood there, an enormous grin plastered over his face. He wore one relic stone on the index finger of each hand.
“Good morning! Sorry to wake you. These are most impressive. Such fun to play with.” Sven raised his hands again, about to repeat the process.
Comprehension hit the teens simultaneously.
“Stop!” Kayla shouted, waving her hands in the air.
“Armorer, don’t! You’ll bring more beasts!” Atu yelled, his words falling over Kayla’s.
Jaden ran, tackling a startled Sven to the ground before he could bash the stones together again. Sven went down hard, grunting in shocked admiration.
“Humph, didn’t expect someone your size could put me down so easily.”
“That’s what happens when you have friends like Markov,” Jaden muttered, standing up and brushing himself off. “You get used to thinking you can do anything.”
Sven pushed himself up from where he lay. “Do things like that often, do you?”
“Only when I have to,” Jaden said, pausing for a moment before addressing the sticky issue at hand. “Sven, those stones are dangerous. Don’t use them again until we’ve told you more about them, please!” The anger brewing just below the surface since he’d realized his ring was no longer in his possession bubbled to the surface. “And would you mind explaining how the deuce you got our rings?”
Sven had the grace to look embarrassed. “I apologize. Removing them wasn’t deliberate. After waiting and waiting and waiting for all of you to wake up, my curiosity got the better of me. I snuck over to where you slept, meaning to just get a closer look at your ring. But then, when I picked your hand up, the ring just poof—jumped from your finger to mine. It was extraordinary. I couldn’t help wondering whether Kayla’s ring would do the same . . .”
“And let me guess—it did,” Jaden offered dryly, his anger moderated by Sven’s sheepish expression and his own desire to get more information on this whole blasted subject.
Sven looked hopeful. “You understand then? I didn’t intend taking them from you. When they were on my fingers, I couldn’t resist going outside where the light is better so I could inspect them more closely. And, well, I just had the overpowering urge to clap my hands together.”
Kayla grinned. “That was the first crash we heard?”
“Yes.”
Kayla rolled her eyes. “And then you just had to try it again?”
Sven grinned. “Ah, you understand me. These stones are astounding. Such power! So tiny and yet they hold so much destruction. Where did you get them?”
Jaden’s need to have his ring back got the better of him. “That’s a lengthy story for another time. Could Kayla and I have our rings?” The words were more a demand than a request.
“I’m so sorry.” Sven faltered, hastily reaching for the closest ring. Then, rethinking the matter, he left the ring where it was and scurried over to Kayla, lifting her hand. Nothing marked the moment the ring transferred itself from Sven’s finger back onto hers. It was exactly as Sven had described it.
It fascinated Jaden. “Hmm, do that again with mine.”
Sven laughed. “Intriguing, aren’t they?”
Marching back to Jaden, Sven reached for Jaden’s hand. When the stone leaped from Sven’s finger to Jaden’s, the movement so imperceptible as to be invisible, Jaden knew his mind was incapable of unraveling the forces of work.
“I can see why you wanted to do it again,” Jaden admitted grudgingly, grinning.
“Yes, amazing, aren’t they? Tell me, how did they get rid of the beast?”
Jaden scratched his head. “We’re not sure. We think it was because the Gaptor flew between Kayla and I, making the rings send out a beam that fried him.”
Sven nodded. “And you were each wearing a ring at the time?”
“Yes,” Jaden replied, wondering where this was going.
“Excellent! That is what I wanted to hear. Based on my limited observations, I believe I can make a weapon that will duplicate the rings’ effect. Without the necessity for two people! That just adds an unnecessary complication and is far too restrictive. I must test the weapon, to compare results, but I think I can do it!”
“Can you build it without using the relic stones again?” Jaden asked.
“Now why would I need to do that?” Sven grimaced, unhappy at the thought.
Kayla answered. “Because we think the downside of using the relic stones is that they act as homing beacons for the beasts. And if our theory about more Gaptors coming through holds true, using the relic stones will direct any new arrivals right toward us.”
“More beasts are coming?” Sven asked, eyes round.
“We think so,” Kayla said. “Jaden mentioned that last night. Remember?”
Sven rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Yes, now that you remind me, I recall. The news about your rings’ ability to destroy those monsters eclipsed all else. But didn’t Jaden also say he thought no more had entered yet?”
“I made a tentative assumption,” Jaden corrected. “That’s quite different from knowing for sure. Until we do, it’s best if we avoid using the relic stones.”
“Pity.” Sven sighed, and they laughed at the longing in his voice. “But speaking of items that could help win this battle, I have something for you—especially after observing your lack of skill when my device affected your gliders.”
“You try staying in the air when your ride is flying sideways,” Jaden retorted. “You saw what your device did to them. It was pretty miraculous we stayed on for as long as we did, considering our gliders’ lack of control. No offense,” he said to the gliders, who had snuck up on the group while they talked.
“None taken,” Han replied. “The Armorer’s device was effective. Did I hear correctly that you have something which might help our voyagers?”
“You did.” Sven beamed. “Wait here and I’ll fetch it.”
He disappeared inside the house and reappeared a few minutes later, carrying something that looked familiar.
Kayla giggled. “A wetsuit?”
“But one that is probably more than it looks.” Atu winked.
“You are getting to know me. I call it a ‘smart suit.’”
“What does it do?” Jaden asked, eyeing the suit. Kayla would look amazing wearing it. Her long, blonde hair flowing loose over her shoulders, her sage green eyes sparkling, weapons strapped to her waist and perhaps her thigh, resembling some ancient warrior princess. He grinned. She really didn’t need any props. She was attractive enough without them. And if he was having a tough time keeping away from her until she showed him she was ready to take the next step, how much more difficult would the suit make it? He sighed. He wasn’t sure he was up to the challenge.
Sven held the suit out for Jaden’s inspection. “The suit has thousands of microscopic wires embedded in the fibers. They remain inactive until someone dons the suit. Then the wires monitor the wearer: breathing, movement, muscle tone, et cetera.”
Jaden asked, “To what end?”
“While there are many things the suit can do, its primary purpose is training muscle memory. This was the last project I had the pleasure of working on in my lab before they moved me to that other unmentionable division. Our quadrant’s military wanted something that would give our soldiers an edge—to help them learn how to fight more quickly, teach them how to move better, and show them how best to incapacitate their adversaries.”
“But I still don’t see how the wires help if they’re just monitoring your movements,” Kayla said.
“I think I do,” Jaden ventured. “Are the wires programmed so they control your body movements instead of your brain?”
“Again, you figured it out! Inspired, isn’t it?” Sven chuckled. “The wires intercept signals between the nerves and the brain, interpreting them and sending impulses back to the nerves more quickly than the brain can. Since these impulses reach the nerve endings faster than the signals sent
by the brain, the body responds to them, allowing the person to act more swiftly and accurately than would normally be possible.”
“Okay, then—a suit that tells your body what to do?” Atu confirmed.
“Precisely. But come, try it on,” Sven said, pulling the suit from Jaden’s hands and handing it to Atu. “It’s easier to understand when you wear it.”
Atu took the suit, eager to try it, darting back into the house to change. When he returned, he was wearing only the suit.
Kayla shivered, fingering the soft collar on her thermal jacket. “Aren’t you cold?”
Atu grinned. “Nope, nice and toasty.”
“Ah, I forgot to mention the suits regulate the surrounding air so you don’t get too hot or too cold,” Sven murmured.
Jaden hooted. “Is there anything the suits don’t do?”
“Well, yes, quite a lot in fact—” Sven began, before stopping himself. “But they will serve their purpose as they are now.”
Atu chuckled. “Okay, genius, so I’m suited up. What do I need to do?”
Without warning, Sven swung one of his massive arms toward Atu. Jaden was too shocked to react. But Atu did. Before Sven’s meaty palm even neared his face, he stepped backward, out of harm’s way.
“Whoa!” Atu chortled. “Do that again!”
“What?” Kayla squawked, horrified.
But Sven swung again, this time not only aiming a fist at Atu’s face but following it with a quick kick at Atu’s stomach. Atu nimbly danced out of reach of both strikes.
“Yeah! I could do this all day!” Atu whooped. “Give me more.”
And before Kayla could protest, Sven reached out, faster this time, and tried to knock Atu over. But Atu’s body reshaped itself like an elastic band, curving out and then back upright. He didn’t fall.
Jaden put it together. “The suit made you do that?”
“You bet it did.” Atu grinned.
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