by S. E. Weir
The older male’s face turned cold and unreadable, his tone short. “Then you will sit for it because Delegate Waters is staying.”
A grimace crossed the young woman’s face as she leaned closer to the older male and whispered. The younger male leaned closer as well and looked like he wanted to object but remained silent. The older man shook his head, but the female looked determined. Finally, she turned to the Qendrok contingent and stepped forward, her eyes intent.
“If I prove to your whole delegation my qualifications and ability to give value to the discussions, will you withdraw your objection?”
Qartan’s smile bore malice. Xoruk could hear it in his voice. “No.”
The female merely nodded as if expecting the response. However, she did not seem discouraged or affronted. Xoruk found himself staring at the strong, pulsating glow of power around her that seemed to condense around her head.
He had never seen such a display when viewing power surrounding a person. Normally in those with power, the glow remained a light constant emanation throughout the whole body, with a slight focus within the person’s core. He closed his eyes for a moment then checked again. Still the same. If Xoruk hadn’t needed to remain motionless to maintain his posture of acceptance and devotion, he would have scratched his head. This female was anomalous.
Unless this configuration was typical of the humans from the Empire? He scanned the males from the corners of his eye but didn't see any sign of a glow beyond a normal life force, let alone the same glow of power the female possessed. Perhaps this phenomenon occurred only in the females?
Xoruk resolved to find out. He was startled from his thoughts by the female’s firm response as she scanned the Qendrok with an assessing gaze.
“Then I’m afraid your prejudice and bigotry have caused your request to be denied until such a time as your leader is willing to speak with me. Gerden duv prakken.”
To Xoruk’s surprise, she bowed with her hands together in the correct Qendrok form to address the highest present leader of their people, then straightened and walked toward the door. The other delegates from the Empire turned and walked behind her.
Xoruk thought she had to be bluffing, hoping to give Qartan reason to change his mind. Any second, one of them would come back to negotiate.
Any second.
The three of them filed out the door and did not return. As it sank in that the three delegates were not coming back, Qartan began cursing and throwing a fit. Xoruk let the familiar sound wash over him as he stared at the door the humans had left through, his thoughts speeding through his head.
Just who was this female?
QBBS Meredith Reynolds, Secret Bar
Will followed Greyson Wells and Phina from the reception hall to the meeting room behind the bar. Once the door was closed, he looked at them both with raised eyebrows. “Well, that sure was different.”
Phina grimaced and fidgeted with the top of her tablet peeking out from her pocket as she moved over to a chair. “It was different, yes. Not fun, though. That alien does not like me.”
Will frowned as he took a seat next to her. “Yeah. What was up with him? Is that kind of word vomit common in diplomatic discussions? It seemed excessive.”
Greyson Wells smirked from his chair opposite of the two students and twiddled his thumbs as he spoke. “Absolutely not. What are both of your observations from the meeting? Kid, you go first.”
“Well, I—” Phina stopped as Greyson held up a hand.
“Sorry, I meant the other kid.” Greyson laughed lightly. “That’s what I get for using generic nicknames.”
Phina shrugged, then gestured at Will, whose eyes darted between them. “Gee, thanks. Throw me in the deep end, why don’t ya?”
The older man grinned and spread his hands out. “I think I just did. Go on, then.”
Will sobered as he put his thoughts together. “Let me see. It was obvious that the head guy didn’t like Phina. I don’t think it’s for the reason he said, but that’s a gut feeling. I couldn’t tell you why. Some of the other ones in the delegation were watching us while trying to look like they weren’t. I got the feeling at least one of them doesn’t like the head delegate but, again, couldn’t tell you why. Umm...” Will thought for a moment, then shrugged. “Can’t think of anything else.”
Greyson steepled his fingertips as he gave Will an approving nod. “Not bad, kid. Phina?”
Will’s self-appointed new friend opened her mouth once, then paused, appearing startled. She finally began speaking slowly. “That’s interesting.”
Greyson’s eyebrow rose. “What is?”
Phina glanced at Will before addressing Greyson. “My memory recall is a lot better since my coma.”
Will’s eyes widened. “Coma? Is that where you were the last year and a half? That’s crazy.” He paused, then added, “Though I like it better than the elopement story.”
Grimacing, Phina shook her head. “That one was ludicrous. But yeah, I was in a coma. Long story, and I can tell you later if you want to hear it.”
Will waved her on as his mind reeled at the information. He had so many questions. He decided to kidnap her later so she could answer them. Then he’d give her some of his mom’s cookies. Everyone loved his mom’s cookies. Will nodded at the plan then focused on Phina.
“I can remember a lot more details now. Whole conversations and accents and everything. Weird.” She shook her head quickly and moved on. “Anyway, I think Will is right about both things. I couldn’t get much of anything regarding thoughts since they had mental shielding. That makes me think they have experience with mental abilities.”
Greyson nodded his agreement. “A reasonable assumption. Go on.”
Phina nodded as she leaned forward. “However, what I did get was a mix of emotions and a hint of their direction. One of the guys standing behind Qartan felt disgust and disagreement when he was spouting that at me. I don’t know if it was toward Qartan in general or because of the way he spoke, but it felt like both. Qartan himself has a fanatical feel to him. I don’t think he will be willing to work with us if he remains in charge.”
The other man frowned and nodded thoughtfully. “Which begs the question, of course.”
“Why is he part of the delegation if he’s so closed-minded?” Will hazarded a guess.
Greyson lifted a finger from their steepled form. “Bingo.”
Phina frowned in thought. “I felt surprise from all of them at first, and intense focus from a couple of them at the same time as Qartan was feeling outraged. So, whatever Qartan finds objectionable about me, it seems as if most of the others can sense or see it as well.”
Greyson nodded as he twiddled his fingers. “That lines up with my observations. Too many of them were focused on you for a normal interaction.”
Will had a thought but hesitated to bring it up. Phina glanced at him and nodded before asking matter-of-factly, “Would it be better for me to abstain from the diplomatic talks with them? It might go over better.”
Oh, good. Will didn’t want his new friend to be upset with him, but she seemed to understand.
Greyson shook his head at the question. “If this delegate has an issue with you, he’s likely going to have an issue with any other female we bring in. Or any he interacts with while he’s here. Not to mention if he ever met Bethany Anne or Gabrielle, or any of the other women we have in authority—if it’s women in authority positions that he has a problem with.”
He raised another finger at that, then with elbows on the rails, he tapped his chin as he thought. “If it’s somehow connected to your abilities, then it’s likely he would have a problem with Bethany Anne as well. His life expectancy would be cut radically short if he disrespected her or her people in her presence. So, no, I don’t think it would help to have you absent yourself from the discussions if they do occur. Your presence may serve to stir up things that we need to be aware of when he’s less than watchful about his words, as those with strong emotions ten
d to do.”
Phina nodded her head, appearing somewhat relieved.
After a short period of silence, Will queried, “So, what’s the next step? Do we wait for them to come to us, or do we approach them?”
Greyson shook his head at Will. “We wait. Phina told them to let us know when they are willing to work with her. If we approach them first, that implies that we need their alliance when the truth is that we don’t. It’s convenient but not a necessity as their star system is out of the way of higher traffic between other systems. So, approaching them first puts them in an advantageous position. It will be better for them to come to us. I’ll bet my best hat that they are having internal differences and this blow-up was a symptom of it.”
Phina scrunched her nose at her mentor. “You don’t wear hats.”
Greyson grinned at them both. “No, but if I did, I’d bet one.”
As Phina shook her head and rolled her eyes, Will felt a sense of camaraderie and belonging that he hadn’t felt with anyone outside of his family. He glanced at Phina with a smile. Yeah, he knew they would be friends.
But now he had the feeling they would become more like family.
Chapter Ten
QBBS Meredith Reynolds, Training Room
Phina pulled herself up on the bar, rotated around it, and released her grip. She flew up, wincing as her head came far too close to the ceiling, and focused on grabbing the bar again as she twisted and came plummeting down.
After she stretched out her fingers and grabbed the bar, Phina swung her body around for the dismount, her muscles bunched to get her over the bar, then let go. Rather than her normal flip in the air and landing on two feet some distance away, she shot across the room.
Gritted teeth and focus allowed her to twist so she could see in front of her, then grab the vertical pole that stood near the corner instead of hitting the wall. Her arms jerked and her palms burned briefly as she landed and spun around the pole, slowing herself down. She bent one leg to wrap around the pole closer to her hips and pressed the other foot down lower to take a breather. She spent a minute doing strength and stretch positions, then flipped to land on the floor.
Frustrated, Phina wiped the sweat off her face with her shirt. She caught a glimpse of movement by the door and froze. Todd stood leaning his tall, muscular body against the wall, his arms crossed as he watched her. She noticed he was dressed for working out or sparring, with similar clothes to her formfitting black shorts, shirt, and exercise bra. Well, Todd skipped the bra.
Which reminded her that she was currently maybe flashing him her bra, but certainly revealing her stomach, as she still stood with her shirt pulled up in her hands. Phina dropped the edge of her shirt in an instant and tugged down on the bottom to make certain it lay as normal. She shifted uncomfortably until she realized that Todd was walking toward her.
“May I make a suggestion?” he asked.
Phina nodded and hid her uncertainty about what he was going to suggest under her normal impassive lack of expression. “Of course.”
Her mind raced. Did he have tips about her positioning as she set up her flips or a different way to land? Would he tell her she should try a different type of exercise? She knew other fighters didn't do part of their workout on gymnastics equipment or as close as she could get to it this side of the galaxy. Perhaps he thought she should work on new weapons. That might be fun. Phina began speculating on which weapon she might like to try next and almost missed his response.
“I think you are trying too hard.”
Phina blinked and frowned as she focused on Todd’s face, which held a slight smile as if he knew what she had been thinking. “Excuse me?”
He stopped and stood a couple of feet in front of her, his feet and body position relaxed but ready for anything. “I think you are focusing and trying to control yourself so much that you are overdoing it. You need to relax your brain and let your body take over.”
Phina mulled that over for a minute before slowly nodding. “I think I see what you mean. However, doing what you suggest is difficult because I’m thinking and focusing all the time.”
Todd raised an eyebrow as he smiled. “All the time?”
She crossed her arms and nodded. “Pretty much, yes.”
He narrowed his eyes but continued. “You don't take time to yourself to relax?”
Phina blinked, confused. “Of course I do, but that doesn't mean my brain stops working.”
Something Phina couldn't identify moved through Todd’s eyes before he leaned forward to clarify. “So your brain is working all the time? Your brain doesn't take breaks or let you rest?”
She frowned and realized that Todd sounded bothered by that fact, but she didn't understand why. “Yes, that's what I said.”
He tilted his head in consideration. “What about sleeping?”
Phina raised her eyebrows and inclined her head forward in confusion. “What about it?”
“From what you said, you wouldn’t be sleeping well.”
She stared at him for a moment, then answered. “No, I don't sleep well, except occasionally in the last couple of weeks since I woke up. It seems to come and go.”
He nodded, appearing lost in thought for a moment before his gaze sharpened on her. “Would you like to spar?”
“Yes. Thank you. That would be great.”
Todd watched Phina’s face brighten as she stepped over across from him on the mat, then she paused and frowned.
“Something wrong?” Todd stepped forward. “Did you decide not to spar after all?”
“No.” Phina shook her head and turned to him, both determined and regretful. “I need to apologize for speaking into your mind last week without permission. I didn’t realize I was doing it until I saw you were startled.”
Todd gave her a reassuring smile and relaxed his position. He had thought about it a lot since the last time he saw her and knew his answer. “Don’t worry about it, Phina. Feel free to speak as you did any time you like or need to. However, I am less comfortable about you reading my mind, but that isn’t because I don’t trust you. I know a lot of confidential information. My bosses, as well as the people I’m responsible for, share things with me in confidence.”
Nodding, Phina relaxed. “That makes sense.”
He had a thought and added, “I will say that if there’s an emergency, especially if someone’s life is on the line, then you do whatever you have to do. Saving lives trumps anything else. I believe that’s what Bethany Anne would say as well, though you should ask her about it to be sure.”
Phina nodded more slowly and murmured, “I’m sure that will happen at some point and sooner than I’d like.”
“Oh? What makes you say that?” Todd felt puzzled as he hadn’t previously gotten the sense that Phina had a problem with Bethany Anne, although Phina had layers she didn’t let many people see.
She waved a hand and shook her head dismissively. “I’m not used to talking to her casually yet. I have a difficult time talking to those in positions of authority over me, likely because of the issues I’ve had with my aunt. I’m working on it.” She glumly sighed. “It takes time.”
“Anything worthwhile does.” Todd gave her an encouraging smile as his mind raced. He hadn’t poked into the situation with her aunt thus far though he had been curious. Perhaps he should pay the woman a visit.
Todd stood with his arms crossed as they talked about the Empress. Phina felt surprised by how easy it was to talk to him. Not quite the same as Alina or ADAM, but similar.
“You ready to spar now?” Todd asked.
Phina nodded and shook herself out one more time before taking her ready stance. It was the perfect way to work out her frustrations, both with her earlier difficulties and waiting to hear from the Qendrok delegation.
Todd settled into a fighting stance again, watching her with an assessing gaze before springing into motion.
He moved fast for an enhanced human. The skill, strength, and stamina Todd displayed
proved to be impressive. Forward kick, block a punch, punch, backhand, block a kick to the groin, roundhouse kick, block and hold her arm as he kicked, then a flurry of punches. Phina blocked most things well enough, but once he got hold of her, she found it difficult to break his grip. It took her whole body strength to get enough leverage to get her the position she wanted.
Hmm. Perhaps she needed to switch up how she did things. She usually sparred with Maxim or Link, and they often had gotten into certain patterns of doing things without realizing it. Todd seemed to flow and read what she would do almost before she did it, which amazed her given that they had only sparred once recently, and he had none of the mental abilities she did.
Phina threw herself into the fight, deflecting punches, blocking kicks, moving out of the way of attacks, and responding with attacks in between. The next time Todd gripped her wrist in a hold, she twisted her hand and grabbed his wrist, then ran up his body using his arm as support and leverage and jumped off his chest.
As the force of the jump pushed them apart, Phina let go of his wrist and found his slipping off hers. She twisted in the air and landed on the ground in a roll before popping up and readying herself for a follow-up attack.
Todd lay on the mat some distance away, looking dazed. He shook his head and lifted it to look at her with his hand rubbing his chest and an amused smile on his face. “Damn, girl. Maybe we should call you Wonder Woman.”
Phina’s tension flowed away and she relaxed, smiling. “I like Black Widow. She's pretty badass and doesn't need any special powers.”
Todd rose, then stood with his feet apart and his head tilted as he considered her. “Beautiful, intelligent, super-spy, martial artist, technical whizz, and all-around badass?” His smile widened into a grin. “Yeah, I can see it.”
Phina’s chest heaved as she laughed silently, then finally laughed out loud. She hadn’t ever considered herself beautiful as she usually reserved that for Alina, but to hear Todd describe her as such, among the other great epithets, gave her a warm feeling.