Rayne's Return (Hearts of ICARUS Book 3)
Page 35
“If this is true, your transgressions are worthy of moztu-oku,” Landor said coldly, naming the ancient ritual of denouncement considered to be a fate worse than death for any Clan Jasani.
“No!” Salene said, stepping forward. “It’s not that important.”
“It is important, Highness,” Con said. “A male-set who dishonors their woman to this extent cannot be allowed to continue life as one with the Klanaren. I know that you, too, would suffer, and for that my heart aches with sorrow, but it does not change what they’ve done.”
“Wait wait wait!” Talus said, holding up both hands, palm out. “It’s not what you think.” Everyone turned to stare at Talus, waiting silently for what he had to say.
“We don’t look at your face, Salene, because our shame is too great,” Talus said, addressing Salene, but not looking at her. “Not because you bear scars earned on our behalf. Princess Rayne is correct in one thing and that’s that we are not worthy of you. We were warned ahead of time, and yet we still failed to protect our crew, our ship, and most importantly of all, you.”
“What good does it do to push Salene away?” Rayne asked, calmer, but still angry. “What good does it do to compound what you see as failure by hurting her?”
“It does no good,” Talus said, his shoulders slumping. “But it’s unavoidable.”
“Meaning?” Salene asked softly.
“We’ve decided that we will hunt this Doftle called Weeble,” Talus said, lifting his chin. “We will destroy him and as many of his kind as we can. After we’ve done that, our honor will be restored, and we can return home with our heads high and be the Rami you deserve.”
“Is that so?” Salene asked, her own anger finally kicking in. “You’ve just decided this is what you’ll do, and when you’re done doing it, you’ll come back and pick me up from wherever you drop me and…what? Just get on with things?”
“Well, um…yes, I suppose,” Talus said slowly, more shocked by Salene’s anger than Rayne’s.
“Good plan,” Salene said, reaching up to grab a pendant hanging around her neck on a slender chain. She gave it one hard tug, snapping the chain, then dropped it to the floor without looking at it. “You’ll have to rethink the part where you take me back though, because I will not be available.” Then she turned around and walked out of the room. Rayne shot Talus, Jon, and Kar a withering look, then she followed Salene.
“What just happened here?” Talus asked, watching Kar kneel down to pick up the necklace Salene had dropped. “I don’t understand.”
“That’s obvious,” Landor replied, studying the Gryphons. They still had radiation burns on their exposed skin, and they hadn’t regained much of their strength yet. What caused him to relax his stance against them was their age, not their physical condition. They were so young, barely over a hundred. Mere teenagers for Clan Jasani. “You have a choice to make.”
“We’ve made our choice,” Jon said softly.
“Wait, Jon,” Talus said. “I would hear what Commander Landor has to say. What choice do you speak of?”
“You must choose who you wish to devote your life to,” Landor said. “Salene, or the Doftle.”
“We can’t do both?”
Landor arched a surprised brow. “In case you weren’t listening, your berezi made the answer to that question exceedingly clear. It was no. You can’t do both.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Laura Jo lives in the Arizona desert with her loving husband, their two children, one very large dog and two interesting cats. Laura Jo loves to hear from her readers. Visit her website at www.laurajophillips.com to see when the next installment in the Orbs of Rathira series is coming, and sign her guestbook. Or, email her directly at laurajophillips.books@gmail.com
While you are there, take a peek at the ever growing Handbook of the Thousand Worlds which details lots of interesting information about the people, technology, governments, and other interstellar information about the worlds the Hearts of ICARUS, the Orbs of Rathira, and the Soul-Linked Saga take place in.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2 360 Days in the Future
Chapter 3
Chapter 4 361 Days in the Future
Chapter 5
Chapter 6 362 Days in the Future
Chapter 7
Chapter 8 363 Days in the Future
Chapter 9
Chapter 10 364 Days in the Future
Chapter 11
Chapter 12 365 Days in the Future
Chapter 13 365 Days in the Future
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Afterword
ABOUT THE AUTHOR