‘You already know the answer to that question. If you would allow me to restore your memory now—’
‘No…’ Taren flatly refused. ‘What I would like to know is my MSS top-clearance code name.’
‘Why?’ Anselm was hesitant.
‘Because I don’t want you using it to control me, obviously.’
Anselm gave a half smile. ‘It’s baby-doll.’
‘What?’ Taren was almost insulted, but Anselm only shrugged.
‘Well, you were only a baby when I had to invent it and I’ve not changed it since.’
Taren accepted his explanation. ‘Who else knows this?’
‘No one,’ he assured her, and she was inclined to believe him.
‘Keep talking.’
By the time Anselm had finished telling the tale of all he’d been through to protect her from the witches controlling her insane mother, Taren was feeling rather more agreeably disposed towards him. That he had been the unknown force behind getting her into the institute on Maladaan, and managing to have her assigned to AMIE, was also very much in his favour.
‘It was your research that got you the assignment. I just helped get that research noticed by the right people,’ Anselm concluded.
‘And having put you through all that, you still love Qusay-Sabah Clarona,’ Taren prompted and Anselm looked horrified.
‘No, I do not love her!’ he objected, puzzled by Taren’s summation.
‘But you did,’ she challenged again.
‘I never knew her long enough to fall in love with her,’ he defended.
Taren shook her head, recalling the grigori assuring her that she had been conceived in love. They will not admit how they feel, not even to themselves, Azazèl had said.
‘What?’ he queried. ‘Why are you shaking your head? Do you know something I don’t?’
‘Apparently,’ Taren said, as Zeven began to stir in her lap.
The first person Zeven saw was Anselm, whereupon the pilot sprang to his feet to get his bearings. ‘Where am I?’ He spotted Taren sitting on the lounge. ‘Taren, you’re here? I was looking for you…I think?’ He scratched his head and looked about. ‘How did you find me? How did I get here?’
Taren hadn’t been quite so disoriented when she’d awoken and she looked at her father with displeasure. ‘You’ve edited his memory, haven’t you?’
Anselm shrugged apologetically. ‘I made him privy to information that I, that we, cannot afford to be leaked.’
‘You edited my memory!’ Zeven was furious. ‘And what’s this?’ He pointed to the restraining device around his ankle.
‘How about I leave you two to talk?’ Anselm rose to take his leave.
‘Thanks very much,’ Taren said, annoyed, but she just couldn’t bring herself to stay mad at Anselm. He was far too likeable and charismatic. It was better that the tragic news of AMIE was broken to Zeven by herself in any case.
Had Taren known that her father had been responsible for planting the explosive device on board AMIE, she undoubtedly would have felt differently. And as Zeven’s memory had been tampered with, she would remain none the wiser, for now.
After two hours alone in his room turning over the pros and cons of psychic acceleration, Lucian didn’t want to consider the consequences any more! He’d done some reading about the Powers and found there were twelve distinct areas known: Clairvoyance/Clairaudience; Levitation; Shape-shifting/Physical Transformation; Mediumship/ Channelling; Psychokinesis/Telekinesis; Prophecy/Precognition; Remote Viewing; Astral Projection; Telepathy; Transmutation; Teleportation; and the Healing Arts. There were thousands of talents that stemmed from combinations of these, some too horrifying to think about.
Lucian thought it was little wonder that regular folk feared those who had Powers and could only sleep soundly in the knowledge that they were all restrained. ‘Pretty soon I will be one of those psychic lepers,’ he considered, as he downed a shot of alcohol for courage.
He’d decided not to wait until morning; better to get this over and done with quietly, before the rest of the crew could talk him out of it.
He switched on the lights in the bio-containment lab and programmed the control console to admit him through each of the doors into the quarantine area.
As the final inner door opened and he passed into the tundrell’s environment, Lucian breathed deeply of the sweetly warm humid air, and gasped mid-breath when he spotted Kalayna asleep on the floor.
He squatted beside her to see if he could wake her with a nudge. ‘What are you doing here?’
‘Mmmmmm…’ She stretched out and, laying eyes on Lucian, she smiled. ‘Captain.’
‘You should not be in here,’ he said sternly.
‘You should not be in here, either,’ she whispered, grinning broadly. ‘And yet, here we are.’
Lucian should have been furious, but he wasn’t. He was transfixed by her youthful charm and tenacity. ‘Why would you do this to yourself?’
‘Because, like you, I am tired of falling victim to the will of others.’ She sat up to look him in the eye. ‘It’s time I took my destiny into my own hands.’
Kalayna kissed Lucian and, although his mind knew he should be protesting, he felt so incredibly on fire…he really wanted this girl.
‘I’m online!’ Kalayna gave a cheer between kisses. ‘I’ve never felt this turned on before,’ she confessed, amazed and delighted.
‘Wait!’ Lucian held her at bay in a moment of clarity, recalling Taren’s misadventure with Zeven on Oceane. ‘It’s the air in here—’
‘Yes,’ Kalayna agreed, breathing in deeply before moving toward Lucian, who held her at arm’s length.
‘You don’t find me attractive,’ he said, trying to reason with her.
‘Yes, I do!’ she insisted. ‘You have no idea!’
‘But before this, you didn’t,’ Lucian challenged her.
‘So! I was an idiot.’ She shrugged off the oversight and backed the captain up against the wall and kissed him again. As tempting as it was to let her have her way, he caught her wayward hands and pushed her gently backward. ‘I’m old enough to be your father and then some.’
At the mention of her father, Kalayna’s sexual urges died. ‘You really know how to kill the mood.’
‘You need to leave this room,’ Lucian said sincerely. ‘And that’s an order.’
‘I’m done anyways, I reckon,’ she smiled, as she’d been in here for a couple of hours at least.
‘Would you tell me how you got past security to get in here in the first place?’
‘I still have spy toys,’ she grinned, ‘and since Zeven broke my conditioning…’ The mention of his name made her feel horny all over again. ‘…I consciously remember how to use them.’
‘I’ll be confiscating those,’ Lucian advised her sternly.
‘Aye, aye, Captain.’ As she backed up toward the inner exit door, it opened automatically. ‘Good luck.’
‘Go straight to Kassa,’ he instructed.
‘And then I’ll send her here, shall I?’ She wandered through the security door, which closed in her wake and, detecting no danger, the system allowed her to pass back into the observation room. She paused to look back at Lucian.
‘There are not many men, or women, who have declined my favours, Captain,’ she said with a tender smile of admiration and envy. ‘You must love her very much.’
Lucian’s eyes welled with tears just thinking about it, the tundrell’s air spurring his senses and emotions into overdrive. ‘Very, very much,’ he agreed.
‘Then we shall get her back.’ Kalayna smiled and left.
Alone, Lucian’s mind filled with memories of Taren, and as his lungs expanded to capacity to take in the supernatural air, tears of exhilaration and fear flooded his eyes. Let’s see them try and sever our connection now.
CHAPTER 24
ANATHEMA
Qusay-Sabah Clarona was incensed about the security breaches around her daughter. She could barely co
ntain her fury for long enough to address her viceroy as the woman entered the throne room.
‘Who was he?’ she demanded. ‘How did he gain access to the Phemorian palace?’
‘Zeven Gudrun, your majesty,’ Jalila replied, bowing briefly to her queen. ‘He is the pilot from the AMIE project, and nobody really—’
‘The same pilot who escaped the collapsing Maladaan system,’ the queen realised, her eyes narrowing in thought. ‘You think that was just luck?’
‘The two agents I sent after our treacherous spy, Dr Portus, have gone missing,’ Jalila continued, ignoring the queen’s question for the moment. ‘But the remains of a small Sermetic shuttle have been raining down just south of the city this morning.’
‘Anselm!’ Now the queen had somewhere to channel her anger. ‘How could such a craft be near our planet without a base ship?’
‘It could not.’ Jalila suppressed a grin. ‘A Sermetic ship has obviously entered the Phemorian system without authorisation.’
‘This must be reported to the United Star Systems,’ the queen commanded.
‘Already done, majesty,’ Jalila said. ‘All on board that vessel will be arrested as they pass through the inter-system gateway.’
‘And if they go around it?’ the queen quizzed. ‘How shall we identify the offending ship then?’
‘There is only one ship presently unaccounted for in the Sermetic armada, and I have the assurance of Khalid Mansur that everyone on board that vessel will be taken into custody as soon as it docks on Sermetica.’
The queen did not respond, a half smile gracing her lips. She mentioned nothing of what she suspected and the crown of Phemoria cast its psychic shield around her, so she was protected from Jalila’s telepathic expertise.
‘Splendid work, Jalila.’
‘Thank you, majesty.’ Jalila bowed deeply.
‘Ready our fastest transport, please,’ the queen requested. ‘I shall leave for Sermetica as soon as possible.’
‘Leave!’ Jalila was caught completely off-guard. ‘You wish to leave Phemoria, majesty?’
‘That’s right,’ she confirmed, as if it were no big deal.
‘Allow me to go on your behalf, majesty.’
‘Not this time,’ the queen said, feeling her viceroy’s panic and resistance, but she did not let on that she sensed something was amiss. ‘And what of the rest of the AMIE crew?’ the queen asked, wanting to hear of Lucian Gervaise in particular.
‘The AMIE vessel left dock late last night and, from all appearances, her crew left with her. Shortly after departure there was an explosion and AMIE disappeared from our screens.’
‘And yet, all we have found is a Sermetic vessel,’ the queen mused.
‘My conclusion is that AMIE has formed an alliance with Sermetica.’
‘I want that vessel found,’ the queen commanded. ‘That will be all.’ She dismissed Jalila, who bowed and left to carry out the queen’s orders.
The queen returned to her throne and shed her body to consult with the Phemoray.
The five veiled ones were awaiting the queen.
Qusay-Sabah Clarona bowed before her superiors. ‘What do you think, great mothers? Is she treacherous?’
She is masked. She must carry a charm that blocks our sight, the women replied in unison. An act that, in itself, reeks of treason.
‘Then my decision to retrieve my daughter myself is sound,’ the queen concluded.
It is imperative that we get her back before she fully awakens to the extent of her Power, the Phemoray decreed. Then there shall be no controlling her.
‘Does Anselm have the princess with him?’
Yes.
‘And what of AMIE and her captain?’ the queen queried.
Both survive.
‘I shall find them and destroy them,’ the queen assured, wanting that loose end tied up.
We advise against it. AMIE and her crew may still be of use to us.
The queen wasn’t happy, but clearly they could be used as hostages to persuade her daughter to return to Phemoria. ‘Your will be done.’
After a six-hour stint in the bio-containment lab, Lucian finally emerged. He would have described his state as completely euphoric had he not been dying to take a leak.
‘I’m so mad at you,’ Kassa said, checking his vital signs. ‘And Kalayna, too…you’re both crazy!’
‘I know,’ Lucian mumbled, barely able to keep his eyes open.
‘Off to bed with you then.’ The doctor postponed her lecture for a time when he might have some chance of comprehending it. ‘Ringbalin and I will give you a full checkup when you wake.’
Lucian didn’t need to be told twice. He made straight for his quarters to relieve himself, and finally to rest. As he’d barely slept since they’d landed on Phemoria, sleep came easily for a change.
A little light-headed, Lucian stirred from his slumber. It took longer than usual for his eyes to focus, although he’d never had any problems with his sight, not even when he had a hungover. His stress subsided as the contours of his dimly lit room at last came into focus.
Against the wall, he saw his dead wife—her fatal wound still evident upon her neck—and panic crippled Lucian’s being once again. ‘Amie!’ he gasped as he scampered backwards and out of bed.
You see me? she assumed, drawing nearer. I was hoping one of the psychics on this ship would tap into their mediumship potential sooner rather than later.
Amie’s ghost had none of the vitality of his deceased wife’s living presence; her skin tone and facial expression lacked colour and vibrancy, and her eyes were as dead as her corpse.
‘Why are you here?’ Lucian backed further away to keep a distance between them, horrified to see her again.
I never left! She sighed. I cannot leave this project until I make recompense for what I did and that is near impossible in this condition. Although your girlfriend did prove of some use once hypnotised.
‘You’ve been here since you were murdered?’ Lucian was feeling uncomfortable. Taren and he had enjoyed many intimate encounters in this room.
Amie nodded, forcing a smile. Don’t feel bad, I never deserved you anyway.
‘I don’t feel bad, actually,’ Lucian said, as he’d done nothing wrong. He realised this unique situation awarded him the chance to acquire information that only Amie could give him. ‘Who were you working for? Swithin? Anselm?’
Amie shook her head on both counts. Khalid Mansur. Lucian was stunned. He’s been patiently waiting for the illegitimate daughter of Anselm and the Queen of Phemoria to be exposed. He always knew she existed, but Anselm kept her very well hidden. The Viceroy of Sermetica imagined that with her as a hostage he could conquer both planets without lifting a finger.
Lucian’s first reaction was horror, but then, Amie seemed to enjoy horrifying him. ‘Taren is the daughter of the Queen of Phemoria?’
Looks that way.
The news was bewildering. ‘That would mean that—’
—she is the Princess of Phemoria, Amie concluded for him.
Lucian had to sit down before he fell down—fighting off Taren’s enemies to save her was one thing, but fighting royal parentage was something else again. ‘That would change things. Why should I believe you?’
Have you not been listening? Amie stressed. I’m stuck here until I fix this! Look at what that bastard Mansur decided should become of me. She pointed to the gaping hole in her neck. Do you think I wish him to live long and prosper?
‘Swithin said he ordered your death?’ Lucian said, confused.
Ha! He wishes, I’m sure. She contained her amusement. Only Khalid has the authority…he found himself a new lover, I expect.
‘You were Khalid’s lover?’ Lucian gasped, and Amie shrugged and nodded.
Supposedly, she said, highlighting her betrayal. I did love our life together, Lucian.
‘Married until your secret service lover recalls you from duty,’ Lucian chided, unable to digest her reassurance. ‘I do
n’t remember that clause being in our wedding contract.’
It was a bad life choice, she conceded in retrospect. What can I say?
‘What is so special about Khalid Mansur?’ Lucian wondered.
Oh, he is special, Amie assured him, just as you and most of the crew are special.
‘You mean to say he has psychic power?’ Lucian was flabbergasted as Amie nodded. ‘But he is the greatest prosecutor of psychics in the USS.’
Or so it would appear to the outside world, but, inside the secret service agencies, he recruits for his private army, Amie explained. Did I not mention he has been looking for your girlfriend for quite some time?
The door chimed and when Lucian looked in that direction, curious as to whom his caller was, he saw straight through the wall to perceive his visitor. ‘It’s Kassa,’ he said, startled by his own capability.
Don’t tell her I’m here, Amie appealed. She never did like me much.
‘Kassa!’ Lucian called to her, glad to have the company of another living being.
‘You’re awake. Splendid,’ Kassa noted with pleasure as she came through the door. Noting how far he was from the doorway, she was curious. ‘How did you know it was me?’
‘I saw you through the wall,’ he replied, waving off further explanation. ‘Amie is here. I can see her.’
Thanks, Lucian, Amie quipped, as Kassa looked around in surprise, her eyes narrowing with spite.
‘You see her ghost?’ Kassa clarified.
‘I do,’ Lucian confirmed and pointed to where Amie stood.
Kassa turned to stare in that direction, and although she saw nothing she did not hesitate to believe Lucian’s claim. ‘Do you have any idea how much trouble you’ve caused?’
‘She does,’ Lucian replied on her behalf, ‘and it seems her soul is confined to this craft until she makes recompense.’
Kassa was mildly appeased by this. ‘So there is a karmic order to the universe after all.’
‘Captain!’ Leal’s voice sounded through Lucian’s communicator, and Lucian answered the call.
‘What’s up?’
‘There’s a very large Phemorian vessel headed our way. The Queen of Phemoria is on board and she is requesting we surrender our craft and allow her Valoureans to board.’
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