“You can’t do this!” a man near the front shouted.
Tern slammed a wooden mallet on the podium. “We can do this. We have already done so. I suggest you find a way to adjust. We regret that not everyone has their family with them. It was an unavoidable cost. Let me be clear on one thing. You will cooperate, or we will send the Torogs back to destroy your town before acquiring more Vertans to do your job.”
Akio looked at his wife. Tears fell from her beautiful, angry eyes. He knew she was thinking of Kit. He wrapped his arm around her and held her tight.
***
Brie held tight to her husband’s hand and stared at the elderly Portal Master before them. She fought to wrap her head around their situation. They were to stay here for the rest of their lives. Live in luxury. Want for nothing. But their world had just shrunk to the size of this compound. It could be much worse. The PMs didn’t have to treat them so well. Escape would be simple, but the cost extreme. All of this paled against the thought they would never see Dani again. She squeezed Thomas’s hand, blinking back the tears that threatened to fall.
The PM, Tern, scanned each face in the crowd before continuing. “There will be guards and Portal Masters here at all times. You will work in teams and have assigned schedules. I strongly suggest you cooperate. We all know that it would be possible for you to resist, but bear in mind any consequences will be on your shoulders alone. Consider well if you wish to kill your fellow Vertans.”
Everyone in the room was wide-eyed and silent. Brie figured the chaos would come later when they’d had time to let their new reality gel.
“Now,” Tern said. “We will assign you temporary quarters. Starting at the back of the room, please stand and let the gentlemen at the door know how many there are in your group or if you are alone.”
An older man stood and walked to the door. His shoulders slumped. He looked as though he didn’t even know where he was.
“How can they do this?” She whispered to Thomas.
“They’re monsters.” The man sitting next to Thomas reached out a hand. “I’m Akio, and this is my wife Veera.”
“Might I ask how you came to be here before the rest of us?” Akio asked.
Thomas answered. “We were on our way to Earth when Torogs captured us.”
“Ah. So you know as little as the rest of us.” Akio’s disappointment was obvious as he told them how their town had been attacked and all of them abducted.
“Why are they doing this now?” Veera asked. “They’ve had access to our people for decades.”
“And why do they have us working in groups?” Brie asked.
“All good questions. It seems that’s all we have.” Akio shrugged. “Perhaps we will find out.”
They waited while the room thinned out before following Akio and Veera to the door. “We’ll see you later,” Brie said to the other couple as they were led away.
A pudgy man in robes showed them to their own place. As expected, there was nothing to complain about. It was a two-thousand square foot, two bedroom residence with a large kitchen and windows along the back wall that looked out on a mountain range in the distance. There was a state of the art replicator that could be used for clothing and other essentials. The man, who was barely more than a boy, showed them how to use the device. Brie only half listened to what he said. She’d figure it out later.
The boy recorded their names and issued them each a com unit. “You can go wherever you like within the walls. I’d stay away from the construction if I were you.” He left them standing in the middle of their new home.
Brie turned to Thomas. “What are we supposed to do now?”
“Let’s go find the others. We should get to know them.”
They found a large group gathering in a room across from where the Portal Masters had addressed them. People were waking up from their initial shock and starting to take stock of the situation.
Akio and Veera were there so they joined them. Akio introduced them to the group. It was clear the others deferred to him. Muscular and bald, he was one of those people that had an air of leadership about him.
Brie listened as they discussed the situation with their neighbors. The woman had a streak of white hair, similar to the colorful one the captain of the ship they’d hired to get to Earth had. In fact, the more Brie looked at the woman, the stronger the resemblance became. The streak in her hair didn’t appear to change, but other than that, it was uncanny.
“Thomas,” she spoke close to his ear so not to be overheard, “does Veera look familiar to you?”
Her husband regarded the woman a moment. “She looks like Kit. Surely, they can’t be related?”
Brie stepped over to Veera and waited for a break in the conversation.
“Excuse me,” she said.
Akio and Veera turned to them.
“Sorry to interrupt, but you bare a strong resemblance to the woman we hired to get us to Earth.”
Veera’s eyebrows shot up. “You’re Kit’s last fare?”
A flurry of comments ensued as they sorted out the relationship.
“But if you were captured,” Veera said, “why isn’t Kit here? Is she okay?”
“We think she’s fine,” Thomas said. “She ported out during our capture.”
“Thank the Goddess.” Veera took hold of Akio’s hand. “Dear, Kit. Please stay safe.”
Brie squeezed Veera’s shoulder. “We were going to Earth to find our daughter.”
“Earth?” Akio asked.
Brie didn’t know these people and didn’t want to go into detail. “Yes, she lives there.”
“I don’t know how,” Veera said, “but we’re going to get out of here and back to our families.”
Brie wished she could be so optimistic.
***
Kit couldn’t believe how this was playing out. Both her and Dani’s parents were presumably being held hostage along with the other Vertans in order to create portals for the guild that had kept her planet on lockdown for decades. Loc Zorton. That was the name of the guild’s leader. The one they needed to stop.
Durgan rubbed his chin covered in several days of stubble. “It speaks to a level of desperation that I quite frankly find surprising. We had no idea that our departure from the guild would cause such upheaval.”
“It will take time for them to replace you,” Mordo said. “On one level, this is the perfect solution for the guild.”
“We have to find them,” Dani said.
“She’s right,” Kit agreed.
Rucon eyed the group. “I’ll be honest with you. If my future daughter-in-law wasn’t directly involved, I would say no. I would suggest seeking the help of the GTO and be done with it. But Dani makes it personal. And now Kit.” He gave her a look of compassion. “You’re family too, now, and Cavacents take care of their own.”
Kit wanted to hug the man, but he didn’t seem to be one for public displays of affection. She settled for a sincere thank you.
“The first thing we need to do is find them,” Balastar said.
“If it’s the guild, as we suspect,” Durgan said, “they’ll be somewhere on Sandaria.”
The old capital of the empire. Kit had heard about it but had never ventured near.
“There are no distorters on Sandaria, but we can anchor to any of their existing portals,” Armond said. “Of course, we have to assume they will be monitoring for such activity.”
“Wouldn’t it be better not to use a portal?” Balastar said. “Why alert them of our presence if we don’t have to?”
“He’s right,” Kit said. “If they don’t know we’re there, we’ll have more time.”
“Sounds like a job for Trulass,” Ian said.
“Who’s that?” Kit asked.
“He’s an old friend of mine,” Rucon said. “Once he left the military, he took on a, shall we say, less law-abiding lifestyle.”
“He’s a top-notch smuggler,” Balastar said.
Kit grinned. “I’m a top-
notch smuggler.”
Everyone looked at her then, and she shrugged.
“Even better,” Rucon said.
“Who’s going?” Marco chimed in. “I’ll volunteer.”
“I’m going,” Dani and Kit said at the same time.
“Which means we’re going as well,” Balastar said, nodding to Ian.
Kit gave Dani a nod and a smile.
“The four of you then,” Rucon said.
As bonded pairs, their ability to communicate telepathically would give them an edge.
“I’d like to go,” Ria said.
“Not without me.” Ty crossed his arms.
Ria twisted her lips. “You’re not done with training yet.”
“We must keep the limits in mind.” Mordo paced. “I think four is sufficient. There are a total of twenty Vertans that we know of. Four ports and eight hundred-fifty pounds an hour.”
“I can’t let our distorters leave the planet,” Rucon said. “We’ll keep our two here.”
“Two distorters are plenty to get everyone from Sandaria to Earth,” Kit said.
Armond reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of little black discs. “Keep one of these on you at all times. If anything goes wrong, I can locate you with them and port you back here. Assuming you’re within range.”
“What are they?” Kit inspected one of the tiny devices.
“I call them focal points. I created them when I was determining how to use the first device we found. Unlike a full distorter, I can only move the bearer to one location. It isn’t bidirectional.”
“So in other words, you can’t go to them.”
“Correct.”
Kit was impressed. “They’ll reach to Sandaria?”
“Yes, but not much beyond that distance.”
They decided to use Balastar’s ship since it was large enough to handle all the Vertans. They would travel to Sandaria under the pretext of delivering cargo. Kit would be the captain as she was the only one among them that wasn’t known on Sandaria. She’d take one of the distorters to the surface, and the rest could port down undetected. That part was fairly straight forward. Finding the Vertans was another matter.
CHAPTER TEN
Loc stared at the red glowing monolith. Excitement coursed through him, along with a growing rush of power. Five hundred years, the Portal Masters had connected the galaxy with interstellar gateways. The irony of the masters being bound to this one planet was not lost on him. Bound by this mysterious device that only a few masters even knew existed. For five hundred years, the thing had sat in the same spot. Until now. Loc and three other trusted PMs stared at the artifact, which sat approximately three feet to the left of where it had rested for so long. His psi buzzed in a foreign manner. It was the monolith, there was no doubt, and it was annoying. But just look at that thing. They’d done it.
“I don’t believe it,” Tern said, scratching his bald head.
Tarkness and Ira both stood with mouths agape.
“I don’t know what to make of it,” Ira said.
“This is history, gentlemen.” Loc felt a little sorry for the three men before him. He’d called them to his office and completely rewrote life as they knew it. Of course, he knew that feeling well.
“So, you’re telling us that anyone can harness the power of this thing?” Tarkness pulled on his beard.
“I believe so,” Loc said. “That’s why the original masters created the guild.”
“And the lies,” Ira said. He was a kind, pious man.
Loc had almost not selected him for that reason. He knew the loss of his beloved god would not be easy for him. But Loc trusted the man. All three of them would be his inner circle. Rather like Merrin and his henchmen. That’s how Loc had come to think of them. The elders of the church. The keepers of the secrets. The grand liars.
“It’s time to put it back,” Loc said. “We keep this to ourselves.” He looked each man in the eye. “Change is upon us.” A plan was forming in Loc’s mind. A plan that would not include Merrin. “Times are changing, gentlemen, and the guild must change along with them.”
As they engaged the lifts and the harness creaked with the weight, a subtle wave of energy flowed over him. It was the same as before. Loc had the uneasy feeling he was missing something. Like a dream you couldn’t remember. Only vague impressions remained. That, and the annoying buzz.
Back in his private quarters Loc paced by the windows that overlooked the sprawling suburbs of Ardos. What he was contemplating was audacious in the extreme. Could he pull it off?
President Prayda had done as requested, and the crowds had dissipated the last few days, but Sandaria was disintegrating into a political mess. Loc wasn’t sure how long they had before Prayda himself lost control. With that vestige of order gone, the guild would be at the mercy of the population. Sandaria had been the center of the empire, ever since the guild started creating portals and the emperor amassed his fleet of starships. But the empire was no more, the fleet was under control of the GTO, and Sandaria had nothing to offer. Nothing but the guild. Whoever took control after the president’s inevitable fall would want to control the guild, and they would be powerless to stop them.
Unless… He thrilled as he replayed the scene from earlier. They had moved the monolith. Once they had believed they were inextricably tied to this planet. But now…now he saw another possibility.
Loc laughed. It was a sound he was unfamiliar with but, by the Goddess, he was energized. How would he do it, and where would they go? Should he announce their location to the GTO or keep it a secret? How many portal masters should come with him? In theory, all, but would Merrin and his henchmen follow the leader of the guild? More importantly, did he want them?
His mind raced. He would need a large enough ship to accommodate the Portal Masters, the Vertans, and the monolith itself. And the 3-D printers. With them, they could build anything they’d need. Constructing a separate compound as they had planned to do here might be their best option.
He knew that portals required the mass of a planet to function. That’s why one couldn’t port from ship to ship in space. A near-world station was the limit.
What would happen when the monolith was in space? Would every portal fail? Or would they continue until their reserves were drained as he expected? That was optimal. It would provide a finite window during which they had to execute the move and reestablish their base.
Loc wasn’t sure when, but somewhere along the way, he’d made his decision. He was going to move the guild and take the Vertans with him.
***
Kit couldn’t help but laugh as her psi-mate stepped out of the bathroom. As a former councilman, he would be highly recognizable on Sandaria, and thus the need for the disguise. Balastar stood barefoot before her wearing torn jeans and a T-shirt. His usual wavy blond hair was now blacker than her own. He looked rough and ready. And sexy as hell.
“What do you think?” he asked, turning around for her.
“I think you could make anything look hot.”
He came to her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “Maybe I should keep the black hair.”
“You could go bald for all I care. As long as you’re mine.” She ran her hands up his chest. “You do T-shirts really well.”
“Not as good as you.” He slid his hands around to the small of her back and down, cupping her ass. He lifted, rubbing her against his erection.
When their psi meshed, the intense pleasure coursed through her. “Don’t start something if you’re not going to finish it.”
He stepped back and undid her jeans before dropping his to the floor. She stepped out of the denim as he backed her into the wall. He lifted her left leg, and she hitched it across his hip as he slid into her.
The sensation spread from her core outward, rising with each stroke in and out. A whimper escaped her lips as she bit down on his shoulder. She was about to explode. She bit harder, knowing she’d leave a mark.
“Gods, K
it.” He pounded into her and then tensed as their psi burst with the orgasm. He held her pinned to the door, their hearts beating furiously. There was no way she could have stood on her own after that.
He returned her bite in the crook of her neck, sending a thrill down her spine. The bite turned to a kiss and ended with the heat of this tongue sliding up to the back of her ear. Her whole body got in on the shiver.
“We should see what Dani and Ian have going for dinner,” she said reluctantly.
“What we need is to be locked in a room somewhere for a month.”
“As long as there’s food. Lots of food.”
Balastar laughed from the gut. “Sometimes I think my lady loves her food as much as me.”
“Nay, m’lord.” She strived for a mock high society lilt. “Tis only that without food after your attentions, I would perish in a matter of hours.”
He let out a contented sigh and brushed her wayward locks behind her ear. “You are so perfect, Kit.” He moaned as he slid out of her, pressing a quick kiss to her forehead.
Kit laughed as she and Balastar entered the galley a few minutes later. Although not quite as well known as Balastar, Ian had dyed his hair black as well. The Cavacent clan was influential, and Ian was famous in certain circles for his record-breaking sim battles.
Dani shook her head as they entered. “This is bizarre.”
Both men wore the look well enough, but it was just wrong.
Whatever Dani and Ian had going in the kitchen smelled great. They’d taken turns cooking on the trip to Sandaria. Actual food prep wasn’t necessary since there was plenty of food packs and the 3-D meal generator could whip up virtually anything, but it was a three-day trip and there wasn’t much else to do. On the burner now was some amazing stew.
They’d made the portal jump a few hours ago and would be back on the PortalNet anytime. Another day and a half and they’d arrive at Sandaria’s spaceport.
Kit leaned against the counter and plucked a grape from a bowl. “So where do we start?”
“The compound is the obvious place,” Ian said.
“How large is it?” Kit asked.
“It’s big.” Balastar took a grape of his own and winked. He was remembering the way they’d flirted while escaping the Torogs. The memory had her flushing with heat. “They’ve been there for nearly five hundred years. It’s a significant piece of Ardos.”
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