"You only say that because you haven't fought her lately," Revik retorted.
Wreg looked me up and down, then glanced back at Revik. "Is that a wager you're offering, brother?"
Revik made an affirmative gesture. "Absolutely. Two hundred on my wife...house rules. Assuming she's bored enough to fight you..." He smacked Wreg's hand when the seer reached for another piece of toast. "...Order your own, goddamn it!"
Undaunted, Wreg removed his hand, but seemed to be waiting for another opening. I nudged him with my arm, smiling in spite of myself.
"Careful, brother Wreg," I said. "I don't dare try to eat off his plate when he's like this. He's not joking, by the way. He really is liable to stab you..." I motioned towards the remains of the omelette. "That's his second breakfast already."
"Care to wager that he'll have a third?" Balidor asked drily, glancing around for a menu.
"No," Yumi said, laughing.
"Me, neither," I said, glancing at Revik, who rolled his eyes, giving me a wan smile. "In fact, from the look in his eyes just then, I'm pretty sure he will..."
"Your man's hungry," Wreg said, smiling at me. He glanced at Revik, then back at me, giving me a more deliberate once-over. "Now why is that, I wonder, princess?"
Revik rolled his eyes, clicking at him in irritation as he pulled his plate closer.
I found myself smiling back at Wreg though, in surprise as much as anything.
He'd always been a flirt, but he'd put more light into his voice when he did it just then. When he didn't avert his gaze immediately, I found myself looking between his obsidian eyes with a kind of wonder, realizing I'd never seen that exact expression on his face before, either.
But it was more than that...he looked relaxed, his light was open...and further, he'd shaved and even cut his hair. Not all the way, like Jon had done, but he'd lost the barbarian braid, and the ponytail in a clip looked more like something from the last century at least. He wore a dark jacket over an off-white, mandarin-collar shirt that suited him, too.
He'd always been a good-looking guy, but he looked positively handsome right then, better than I'd ever seen him look. Even as I thought it, I felt a pulse of irritation off Revik...and even more disconcerting, a stronger one off Jon.
Before I could think of anything to say, Jon looked at Revik, rolling his eyes.
"Your wife's a flirt, man," he said, his voice joking.
I heard the edge there, though, and peered around Wreg to stare at him, making my face openly incredulous.
"Don't I know it," Revik muttered.
When I glanced back at him in equal disbelief, I caught him looking at Wreg, too. When I kicked him under the table though, he smiled.
"...And violent," he added to Jon.
Jon nodded. "A little hypersensitive –– "
"So why are we here?" Balidor said, cutting them both off.
I looked at him, but instead of seeing the irritation I expected to find in his expression, he looked amused, too. And relaxed. In fact, I don't think I'd ever seen Balidor look that relaxed, not in the several years I'd known him. As I continued to stare at him, Wreg laughed, snagging a piece of bacon off Revik's plate before the Elaerian could stop him.
"Motherfucker...!" Revik said.
I knew he was angry when his German accent came out that thick. He really did look like he was about to stab Wreg with the fork he held, but Wreg only waved him off, stuffing most of the bacon in his mouth without the slightest look of remorse in his eyes or his voice.
"All right, all right," Wreg said. "So everyone got laid...can we move on? Whose meeting is this? The Bridge's? The Sword's?" He gave me another wink, once more looking down my body, his gaze lingering. "...Is there even a difference anymore?"
Yumi laughed at that, clicking softly.
I felt another pulse of irritation off Jon.
"It's his," I said, pointing at Revik.
Revik shook his head, swallowing a long drink of juice. "Nope. You've obviously been thinking about this longer than I have. Anyway, I'm eating..." He waved the fork in my direction, hovering protectively over his food. "...So talk. I'll jump in, where appropriate."
Glancing at me, Yumi rolled her eyes.
"Bunch of kindergarteners," Jon muttered.
Chuckling, Wreg wrapped his arm around Jon's shoulders.
I found myself watching in a kind of fascination as the Chinese-looking seer leaned down to kiss Jon's neck, tugging at his hair with his fingers before leaning closer. He said something in Jon's ear, too quiet for any of us to catch, but I saw Jon's face darken as he listened. Half anger and half a blush, the added color turned his ears a little red, too. He firmed his mouth when Wreg spoke to him again, just before he gave the seer an irritated look, moving his head out of range. Once again, the possessive vibe I felt around Wreg in relation to Jon was almost overpowering.
But what the hell had that been I'd felt off Jon about me and Wreg?
"Okay," I said, shaking that off and looking around at the rest of them. "I guess it's my meeting then..." Putting down my coffee, which was cold anyway, I took a deep breath, folding my hands over the top of the table. Giving Balidor a somewhat cautious look, I exhaled the same breath, then just bit the bullet.
"So here's the thing," I said, clearing my throat. "We're going to San Francisco."
After a longish pause where the rest of them stared at me blankly, Balidor cleared his throat.
"Who is we?" he said.
I made a smooth gesture. "That part still needs to be worked out. That's why you're all here."
Wreg looked at me. This time, his eyes were openly wary. He glanced at Revik...then, much more briefly, at Jon.
"Why is Jon here?" he said, blunt.
I felt a smile pinch my lips, but there was no humor in it. Ironic that Wreg and I would be in total agreement on this one.
"He's overseeing recruitment of the human names on the list, Wreg," I said. "He also happens to know the people behind those names, in San Francisco, at least. Are you suggesting he shouldn't be involved?"
I felt a pulse of heat come off the seer, intense enough that I flinched, glancing at Revik with a raised eyebrow.
"I wanted him here," Revik said, blunt. "Do you have a problem with that, Wreg?"
"As a matter of fact –– "
"Then you and I can discuss it after," Revik cut in. "Not now."
When I glanced at Jon, he was staring off to the side, no expression on his face. His eyes focused seemingly on the small fountain in the middle of the room, meant to resemble one of the old statues that used to dot the lawns of the gardens below the Old House in Seertown. A white tree stood at the highest tier; I knew most of those had burned down in the fires after the bombing as well, but a few survived.
Supposedly a group of seers were rebuilding Seertown even now, under the protection of a few members of the Asian-based Adhipan and several in the Seven's guard who had remained behind.
My eyes drifted back to the others. Balidor was poker-faced now as well, but when I looked at Yumi, I saw her watching Wreg, a flicker of sympathy on her face.
"All right," I said, fingering the hair out of my eyes. "So here's the thing, Revik and I both want to go...we think we should do this together."
"But what about what you said yesterday?" Wreg said, obviously keeping his voice subdued with an effort. "...About going after Feigran? Needing to address the problem in the south? I thought we were all in agreement that Shadow is the immediate problem..."
Revik nodded, pushing his now-empty plate back as he wiped his mouth with a napkin. "He is."
"So why are you going to the other side of the continent instead?"
Revik gave him another warning look. "Brother Wreg..."
I waved Revik off though before he could finish, seeing something different in Wreg's light than simple orneriness. Or maybe I'd read it more on Yumi's face. Laying a hand on Wreg's arm, I got him to look at me when I softened my voice.
"Revik will
go south," I said. "He'll leave from San Francisco. But we need the Lao Hu and Voi Pai and this Shadow person to see us going together to California. They're a lot less likely to come after us if we're together..."
"That is theory," Wreg said, leaning back to give me a hard look. "They could be more likely to go after the two of you, seeing it as an opportunity to capture you both..." He gave Revik a harder look. "What about Ditrini? What about what this seer, Surli, told us?"
I shook my head. "They wouldn't be trying so hard to split our forces if their goal was to pick up Revik and me together. As it is, they'll expect Revik to go south. As a result, they won't send everything they have to San Francisco...they'd want to keep the bulk of their military forces there. We plan to have a few diversions going, so they can't fully commit in any one place. Anyway," I added. "From what Surli said, they think they can get to me via the humans we want there..." I glanced at Revik. "They won't commit the bulk of their forces at me. They'll count on my telekinesis not being well-developed enough to pull off a hostage situation without getting a bunch of people killed. By the time they figure out Revik is heading west, too, it will be too late to readjust their strategy, as well as the number of people they have in that part of the world..."
I hesitated, and found myself glancing at Jon for some reason.
"...And you'll be deployed in the field anyway, Wreg," I added, my voice more cautious. "You're not going to want anyone..." I glanced at Jon in spite of myself, hesitating. "...Anyone who's not theoretically expendable out in the field with you. Meaning no one we believe might play a key role according to those lists. You can't afford to bring anyone like that along, Wreg, not if you're leading a military force of Adhipan and ex-rebel infiltrators..." I hesitated again, glancing at Revik. "It's bad enough that you're on the list, too. But you, me, Balidor and Revik don't have the luxury to sit this one out..."
"You're talking war," Wreg said. "Full-fledged war." He looked at Revik. "Isn't that what you said you wanted to avoid, brother Syrimne?"
"We may not have any choice," Revik returned mildly. He was looking at Wreg now too, a faint caution in his clear eyes. "I thought you were in favor of an assault before?"
Wreg hesitated. Once more, I felt the conflict on him, right before he looked at me.
"This is coming from her, isn't it?" he said finally.
"In part, yes," Revik said. "I agree with her, Wreg. They are forcing us into a fight. The least we can do is accept on our own terms..."
"What about that 'no separation' bullshit you've been saying about one another?"
Revik's jaw tightened slightly. "This is a military op, Wreg. We've talked it over, and both of us are willing to do what makes the most sense when the time comes..."
"But isn't this exactly where they were leading you and your wife in the first place?" Wreg said. "You in South America, the Bridge in the west? How is this not playing directly into their own machinations?"
"You haven't heard the plan yet," Revik said, his voice carrying a faint warning.
"What would you suggest, Wreg?" I asked.
The Chinese-looking seer glanced at me. Then, mouth firming, he didn't hesitate but gestured in a straight line over his section of table, his jaw hard.
"Full assault on the south," he said. "We've done the intel...we know the risks, most of them anyway. There won't be a few dozen civilians to complicate things...or make our people hesitate in a shooting war. A city like San Francisco, especially one with a containment grid and a locked construct under the purview of SCARB like they have for this quarantine...it could be a deathtrap for us, especially if they come at us in sufficient force. The stronghold of Shadow is all heavy mountain terrain...it's conducive to our smaller numbers, and the training of both Adhipan and rebels. With two telekinetic seers, we should be able to offset the disadvantages of meeting them on their home turf..." He glanced at Jon, his mouth firming a bit more. "We can hit San Francisco once we've wiped out the threat from Shadow..."
"But they'll be expecting that," I said, fighting impatience. "Especially now that they've got Feigran. They're obviously trying to drive us south...even the warning from Surli could be seen that way, and you said yourself that you don't trust him!"
"So what?" Wreg said, throwing up his hands. "It's better than dividing our forces!"
"They will have no need to divide theirs either, if we go that route," Revik said, his voice cautious once more. Leaning over the table, he folded his hands, his eyes on Wreg's. "...Which means we'll be facing the Lao Hu, probably Salinse's people...as well as whoever Shadow has working for him directly." He paused to let that sink in, then glanced at Balidor. "Even if we pulled in everyone from the East, our numbers won't top eighty or ninety fully trained infiltrators, would they?"
Balidor shook his head, clicking softly. "No, brother. More like seventy...eighty tops. And there is no way we could bring them over in time. Most are still in hiding not far from Beijing itself. Despite their diminished numbers as they deploy to the west, the Lao Hu still have people stationed nearby, due to their work camps...along with Chinese troops. The humans have already shown a strong interest in culling the refugee camps for new recruits. It seems clear now that they would prefer to have a near-monopoly on seers, now that the United States military is occupied with domestic concerns..."
He was watching me, though, as he spoke, his gray eyes holding more than a faint scrutiny. Glancing between me and Revik a second later, he leaned back in his chair, frowning slightly.
"I agree," he added then. "I think the two of you going to San Francisco might be an effective diversion. We can get Nenz out through the ports...then pick him up by plane out at sea. Our allies upstairs," Balidor added, indicating upwards, to mean the organic machine company that occupied most of the tenth floor. "...They have boats we could use, do they not? They also have adequate connections to get us through the quarantine protocols..."
"Won't that be noticed?" Yumi said, glancing at Revik.
He made a conceding gesture with one hand. "Possibly," he said. "It may not matter. We don't plan to swim to Argentina...and I should still beat whatever additional force they decide to send there. It's unlikely they will know who boarded the boat, unless we are extremely unlucky...and I don't plan to go by boat the whole way..."
"I'm working on a more complex series of shields," I added. "I'm showing Revik how to use them...they shouldn't be able to ID him until he's on their doorstep..."
There was another silence when I finished, then Revik tapped the table-top with his knuckles. Looking around at faces, he glanced once more at me. I knew he wasn't happy with Wreg's reaction, but I also knew he would handle it, once we broke the meeting.
"All right," I said. "I think that's enough for now. Two hours, and we meet in the conference room on the 58th floor to talk specifics. We need to go over everything that's been mocked up already, and all of the latest intel...as well as whatever Loki and Vikram have been able to come up with on the trail Feigran made out of here with his captors. Make sure Tarsi is there, too...but no one else. Not yet anyway." I glanced at Wreg, then briefly at Jon, but the latter still wasn't looking at any of us. "...Bring everything," I added. "Even ideas you may have discarded. The only chance we have of beating them is if we take them by surprise..."
When I glanced at Revik, he raised an eyebrow at me, blowing me a pulse of warmth.
Balidor was smiling at me faintly when I looked back in his direction.
I couldn't quite interpret what his look meant really, but the expression on his face managed to remind me of Vash, who would sometimes aim the same sorts of cryptic smiles in my direction when I was trying to pull off a crazy maneuver like this.
Somehow, the thought was faintly reassuring.
JON FELT THEM fighting.
He wasn't sure how he felt it, or why...but it irritated him.
He found himself paying attention to the currents of the two men's lights anyway, mostly because he couldn't block it out...and also be
cause he could tell at least some of their argument appeared to be about him.
The reverberations hit him even a few floors down from where the actual meeting took place...and at times he felt Revik's side of the discussion as strongly if not stronger than he felt Wreg's. He didn't get a lot of details, when all was said and done, but he picked up enough that he found he was even more annoyed at the tenor of each man's light than he was that he'd been left behind in a different conference room like the family dog.
Truthfully though, the fight might have been the only reason he stayed where he was, instead of leaving and going back to his own room.
Instead he paced the small area between the long table and the door to the hall, trying to decide how long to wait before he left Wreg a nasty note and retreated to the bar...maybe to get drunk with Yumi and Jorag and some of the others, if only because it would probably piss the Chinese seer off.
As he stayed where he was instead, waiting exactly where Wreg asked him to wait, Jon asked himself again, for something like the hundredth time in the past six or so days, what the hell he was doing exactly.
Before he came up with a good answer, he felt the argument end.
Jon found his jaw hardening in the intervening minutes.
Sitting in one of the leather conference chairs, he wondered if Wreg had forgotten about him by now, even as he counted down to the probable time it would take the seer to travel from the conference room on the sixtieth floor down to the one where Jon waited on the fifty-seventh.
As it turned out, he needn't have worried...on that account, at least.
Wreg walked in without knocking, and before Jon finished counting down what he felt was an appropriate duration for the trip downstairs. Jon hadn't even had time to make up his mind yet, on how much padding to give the seer before he bailed. He'd figured something like ten minutes past what he'd deemed a conservative time limit, imagining the seer still waiting at the bank of elevators...when the door abruptly opened.
Wreg looked angry still, and not only on his face, which was closed in that infiltrator scowl. His light sparked darkly around his form, so visibly that Jon found himself reacting in spite of himself, even before he'd thought about what he intended to say exactly, or managed to wipe the scowl off his own face.
Allie's War Season Three Page 56