by Regine Abel
A large welcoming party awaited us, most of them Warriors here to pick up the two Mimics and the stasis chambers in the hold of our frigate. But I only had eyes for two other legendary figures of the Vanguard: Legion and his gorgeous mate Ayana. I still remembered the day her spark was discovered, proving that non-Caucasians had unique powers of their own that offered us an even greater role within the Vanguard than as a psychic Operator—even though that was also a tremendous honor.
The sight of her mantle gave me a pang of envy. Once mated to a Warrior, their mates developed scales around their necks and shoulders, matching the scale patterns of their mates. Where Legion’s golden scales on Ayana’s brown skin made her look like royalty, Bane’s black scales on Tabitha’s milky skin had made her look even more like a fierce and badass Dragon Queen. What I wouldn’t give to have Chaos’s scales gracing my neck and shoulders.
He placed his hand on the small of my back to nudge me forward. Although he nodded at many of his brothers, Chaos made a beeline for Legion. Despite being highly confident in general, I felt incredibly intimidated in the presence of the famous couple.
“Welcome back, brother,” Legion said, embracing Chaos and giving him a resounding slap on the back.
Chaos returned the gesture, tapping Legion’s back twice before they parted. He winked at Ayana who beamed at him and caressed his upper arm in a friendly gesture. She then turned to eye me with undisguised curiosity, a welcoming smile stretching her lips.
“Legion, Ayana, please meet our new Aspirant, Sabra,” Chaos said with an oddly proud, almost possessive tone.
“It is such an honor to meet both of you,” I said, feeling silly for how star-struck I was. “Huge fan,” I added while glancing at Ayana.
She blushed and appeared almost timid, which took me pleasantly by surprise. I hadn’t quite known what to expect her personality to be, but she seemed quite sweet.
“I’m the one who should be fangirling, if I wasn’t so busy being jealous of the first Black Soulcatcher,” she said, making a teasing face.
I snorted. “Soulcatchers are a dime a dozen. I just happened to be more tanned. You, on the other hand, have nothing to be jealous about, Ms. I’m-the-only-human-in-the-universe-without-psychic-range-limits. Now that’s something to be jealous about.”
“She’s got you there,” Legion said, looking proudly at his mate.
Ayana scrunched her face and crossed her arms on her chest before lifting her chin defiantly. “True, but you can read other people’s emotions, which I would loooove to be able to do to a certain someone to teach him what it feels like when he keeps spying on my tattle tale aura,” she added, casting a baleful glance at her mate.
Chaos, Legion, and I all burst out laughing, and I found myself instantly liking her.
“And that’s only the tip of the iceberg,” Chaos added. “This young lady also happens to be able to Ghost, which is something I want Raven to look much deeper into.”
“Agreed,” Legion said, his dark eyes assessing me.
The small hairs on my nape stood on end from the field of psychic energy swirling around me. Seconds later, although his face remained impassive, Legion broadcast a strong surge of emotions. His gaze went from Chaos to me, and a strange smile stretched his lips. I would have given anything to know what communication had passed between the two men.
“Welcome to the Vanguard, Sabra,” Legion said. “I look forward to getting to know you better.”
“Unfortunately, I must abandon you,” Chaos said to me with an apologetic look on his face. “The endless fun of meetings awaits.”
Just as he spoke those words, Tabitha and Bane walked up to us. I couldn’t tell if Chaos had called them, but Tabitha looked at me expectantly.
“Well,” she said, “time to get back into my newbie guide role and show the place to this new Aspirant.”
I returned her smile, hoping mine didn’t come across as stiff.
“Enjoy,” I said to Chaos.
He winked at me, then turned around, leading the way. Wrapping an arm around his wife’s waist, Legion nodded at me in goodbye, Ayana giving me a gentle smile before they followed in his wake.
“See you later, my Queen,” Bane whispered against Tabitha’s lips.
I silenced a pang of envy as they exchanged a kiss, picturing what it would be like to have something similar with Chaos. They parted, and Bane hurried after the others with Wrath by his side.
“This way,” Tabitha said, gesturing with her head for me to follow. “I will take you to your quarters and give you a quick tour of Khepri. Consider yourself privileged. It’s the first time anyone ever gets a private tour.”
“Thank you,” I said with genuine gratitude before giving her an apologetic look. “And sorry for the inconvenience. I can imagine you’d rather be rushing home to see your son.”
“I would,” she conceded without any hint of resentment. “But an extra half-hour won’t kill me. And, to be honest, you’re getting the abridged version. Over the next couple of days, Raven and his mother, Victoria, will give you a more thorough visit of certain locations during both your medical and psychic evaluations. You are like a mystery box, and everyone is dying to unravel your secrets.”
I snorted as we approached the security gate. “I’m not sure if I should feel flattered or worried. Playing guinea pigs didn’t feature very high on my bucket list.”
“Don’t worry, it will be painless, but I can’t promise it won’t be exhausting,” Tabitha said kindly.
As we crossed the strange archway that served as a DNA scanner to ensure the people entering Khepri were indeed who they claimed to be and not shapeshifters impersonating someone else, an alien mind brushed against my consciousness at the same time as an intense wave of confused curiosity washed over me from a different person.
My head jerked left, and I barely repressed the shocked expression that wanted to plaster itself all over my face. I’d heard of the Scelks but was seeing one in person for the very first time. It still blew my mind that they had peacefully integrated into the Vanguard considering they had been specifically engineered to destroy us.
The Scelks had originally been small and inoffensive, scorpion-like bugs from the primitive planet Janaur. After hefty genetic manipulations by the General to turn them into parasites, the critters had attached themselves to the spine and brain of young hosts from the local population, killing their soul and taking over their bodies.
There was something beautiful and terrifying about the appearance of this particular Scelk. His original host had been handsome, with his light grey skin reminiscent of a dolphin’s. The bug had fully fused with the host’s back, its body, legs and tail forming what resembled a black, exoskeletal armor along his spine. Black chitin scales spread along his shoulders, bald head and part of his face. Just like the Warriors, he had pitch black eyes devoid of sclera.
And those eyes were staring intensely at me.
A cold shiver ran down my spine. While I could only sense other people’s emotions—assuming they didn’t block them from me—these Scelks could flat out read minds and memories as far back as your subconscious could recall. They could fuck with your brain in the most epic fashion, convincing you to see and feel whatever they wanted.
“Hello, little Empath,” the Scelk said telepathically to me. “Welcome to Khepri.”
My skin erupted with goosebumps at the strange feel of his foreign mind. His voice had something eerie, haunting, hypnotic. It was creepy, and yet incredibly seductive.
“I always wondered who Chaos’s little woman would be. Interesting choice,” he said.
My heart skipped a beat, and my back stiffened. “Excuse-me?”
“I see you’ve caught Varnog’s eyes,” Tabitha said teasingly, snapping me out of my trance-like state and severing the communication with the Scelk. “He’s the Scelk leader. Don’t mind him. He loves to mess with people and can be quite the jerk whenever he gets the urge. But he’s as loyal as can be. I told hi
m to fuck off.”
Just as she spoke those words, a taunting smirk stretched the odd male’s rather sensuous lips. Yeah, that Varnog character was a beautiful monster.
A young Mimic standing next to him—this one not modified like Shuria and her sisters had been—was talking to Linette, although her gaze lingered on me with great curiosity. I recognized the Mimic as Silzi, the female from the hologram Bane had shown Shuria to convince her of our good intentions. I assumed Wrath’s Soulcatcher—and our pilot during our trip—was updating her on the status of the stasis chambers containing the young mutants.
In order to exit the docking bay, we had to walk past them. As soon as we came within range, Silzi took a step towards me. Although slightly surprised, Tabitha made the presentations.
“Sorry to bother you, but I hear you are able to connect with my sister?” Silzi asked.
“Not exactly,” I said in an apologetic voice. “When greatly distressed, your sister somehow summons me to her, but I haven’t had any more contact with Shuria since we parted ways on Fobos.”
A look of disappointment took over Silzi’s features, and her shoulders slumped. Still, she continued to examine my face like she was trying to solve a mystery.
“There’s something strange about you,” Silzi said. “Something about you calls to me. You feel familiar, almost like you were a Mimic, which you clearly aren’t.”
“Her grandfather is Thirilian,” Tabitha offered, and Silzi’s eyes immediately widened. “Don’t your two species have a common ancestry?”
“Yes,” she whispered, looking at me with new eyes. “That could explain the connection, why she reached out to you.”
“Herina felt naturally at ease with Sabra as well,” Tabitha said pensively. “I’d assumed it was because of your connection with Shuria, but now, I’m starting to think we need to investigate that heritage a bit more.”
I nodded, also feeling intrigued. Aside from a fraction of their population developing empathic abilities, Thirilian didn’t have psychic powers like us humans. This would explain why Shuria had only been able to reach out to me, and not to any of the pureblood Thirilians.
After a few more pleasantries, we took our leave. The heavy stare of the Scelk continued to weigh on me until we broke his line of sight by entering the long hallway leading to the central transport hub. All white, with black and gold accents, Tabitha explained that it was the gateway to every section of Khepri, be it the HQ or the residential suburbs and farming area surrounding it. We walked past a state-of-the-art, bullet-shaped hover train to head towards one of the six arches of the circular room. Each one contained a single glass sphere, which was a high-speed transportation vehicle that could carry a maximum of six passengers.
Tabitha showed me how to operate it, using a very simple interface indicating a series of locations. In our case, we were heading to the fourth stop, the Aspirants Residence. I was glad I’d taken a seat next to her on the long, single bench that surrounded the circumference of the sphere. It took off at dizzying speed that had my stomach lurching like on a theme park ride. Still, it traveled smoothly, coming to an even smoother stop in what felt like barely a minute after departure.
“The first stop is the HQ where all the official stuff takes place, but also where the research lab is located. I’m not sure if that’s where Victoria will examine you or at the medical clinic,” Tabitha explained as we stepped out of the sphere onto a large plaza. In the clear blue sky overhead, we could see the ghostly shape of Khepri’s three rings. “The second stop is the Vanguard Residence. Most of the single Warriors live there, many of the married ones having chosen a bigger house in the suburbs to raise their families. The third stop is where you will find the Training Center. You will go there later today to start getting roughed up by Raven.”
“Hmmm, getting roughed up, that sounds like my kind of entertainment,” I said with a smirk.
Tabitha snorted, her dark blue eyes sparkling with mirth. “Then you’ll get plenty of that. And here is the Aspirants Residence,” she added, pointing at a large, off-white building that resembled a turtle’s shell mounted by three towers shaped like flames of glass and steel. “Your apartment is located in the first tower. The second tower contains a grocery store and shopping malls with absolutely everything you could possibly dream of. The best part of it all is that everything is free; just grab what you want and enjoy.”
I gaped at her, my eyes all but popping out of my head. She burst out laughing.
“I will never tire of seeing that reaction from newbies,” she said teasingly as we entered the building. She pointed at a large set of doors off to the right. “These lead to the common room. It’s essentially a place to hang out with the other Aspirants and some of the Veterans. It also has the common dining area where dinner is served at 1900 hours every night if you’re not in the mood to cook your own. It’s a good opportunity to mingle with the others,” she said before making a beeline for the elevators. “The last tower contains the medical center, a spa, movie theater, dance club, and pretty much any form of entertainment you could wish for.”
“Sheesh, you guys really have thought of everything,” I said, hiding nothing of how impressed I felt.
“Here at the Vanguard, we only recruit the best, and give them the same in return.”
Although Tabitha said those words with a friendly smile, I didn’t miss the hint of an underlying message. I wasn’t quite sure what she was trying to say, and she was jealously guarding her emotions. If I insisted, I could try to pry them from her, but it was the type of unethical use of one’s power that I didn’t ascribe to.
“All the other Aspirants share this floor and the one below us,” Tabitha said as we exited the lift on the third floor. “Most of the floors above are occupied by the Veterans, be they Soulcatchers, Portals, or Shields. I used to live here as well before marrying Bane.”
We finally reached the door of my apartment. After getting me to configure the security lock with facial and vocal recognition, we entered the space I would call home for the next month of my final round of training. If all went according to plan, in just a few weeks, I could claim one of the apartments in the Veterans section. A surge of excitement coursed through me.
And maybe I, too, will get to move out of this building and in with a certain Warrior.
It was a silly, wishful thought. And yet, an increasing number of signs were pointing to there being something real happening between Chaos and me. Him showing me his soul, and Varnog’s earlier comment only reinforced what I was feeling deep in my bones.
The apartment took my breath away. Tabitha had not been kidding when she spoke of the Vanguard giving its people nothing but the best. This place was all around luxury. Decorated—as expected—in the black and gold of the Vanguard, the apartment was equipped with a massive bedroom, a full bathroom, and a small kitchen with a living and dining area. High-end furniture all around, including a comfortable three-piece, white leather couch set, and a fancy round dining table in the middle of which sat a welcome basket.
“You will have a couple of hours to rest and unpack your stuff,” Tabitha explained. “One of the Warriors will be by shortly to bring you your belongings from the ship. Next to the basket, you will find a list of all the important numbers, including the one to the kitchen. On the home screen of the vidscreen, you will have this week’s menu, and all the a la carte choices if you want food brought here to you. Otherwise, you can go grab a bite in the third tower, there are lots of nice restaurant options.”
“I will stick to having lunch here today,” I said, overwhelmed by the overload of information.
Tabitha chuckled and gave me a sympathetic look. “It seems like a lot right now, but don’t worry, you’ll adjust quickly. Raven will come pick you up at 1330 sharp, so be ready and wear your Aspirant uniform. It has been laid out on your bed.”
“Thank you,” I said, picking up from the table the list she had mentioned.
“Over the next few day
s, try to make the acquaintance of as many Warriors as possible to see which one you might feel an affinity with and that you might want to work with as his Soulcatcher,” Tabitha said, flicking her long black hair over her shoulder. “The combat training sessions are one of the best places for that.”
Although I tried to control my expression, all the excitement that had been building within me suddenly died, and my face fell. I averted my eyes while giving her a sharp nod.
“What’s wrong?” Tabitha asked, with an odd tone that I couldn’t decipher.
“Nothing,” I said with a fake smile. “I’ve been wondering for a while how the whole pairing process worked. How long before we have to decide? Who makes the final call? Can we pick or make a list, or do we have to wait for the Warriors to list the Aspirants they would be interested in working with?”
“Pick? Sounds like you already have someone in mind. You want Chaos, don’t you?” Tabitha asked, her gaze boring into mine with unsettling intensity.
“What Soulcatcher wouldn’t?” I asked with a dismissive shrug.
“What makes you think you have what it takes to be his right hand?” Tabitha challenged, leaning on her elbow against the kitchen counter.
I still couldn’t read her emotions, but it suddenly struck me that she was assessing me. Was this some kind of a test?
“Honestly, I could go on and list what qualities I possess, but that would only be the usual sales pitch everyone spews when applying for a job,” I said, lifting my chin defiantly. “I’d rather let my actions and my performance speak for themselves on that front. I earned a place as an Aspirant, and I intend to earn my insignia as well. That will be the proof I deserve a shot at the role. What I want to know is what my weaknesses are and what I am lacking so that I can fix those shortcomings.”
“Brazen response,” Tabitha said with an amused smile. “But even if I gave you an exhaustive list of what I think you may be lacking and you mastered it, you would still never be me.”
I snorted and bit back the urge to laugh. “And you call me brazen?”