“Besides, we have the Portal Wielder.” His flashing grin disarmed her further.
Right. Easy. It was the unforeseen dangers she was worried about.
When Zenon brushed at some gnats that suddenly found him interesting, his wand joined in. “Thanks, Stick,” he muttered, returning to the clearing and Keia’s map.
Okay, good. So, she was worried over nothing. She really liked Keia and she wanted to trust her.
Your caution is a good trait to have, Ariad spoke, having been quiet through the planning process. It will serve your future family well.
Her future family? The last thing she would ever have. No way was she marrying some jerk-off her parents dredged up. A spike of negative energy zipped up her spine and curled her lip.
Shaking herself, she stomped all the old feelings down, burying them deep where they belonged. If her familiar noticed, Ariad didn’t comment.
Hugging her arms around her body, she gathered herself before rejoining the preparation efforts.
“We don’t know what her power is,” Keia was saying as she returned to the discussion. “We don’t even know her name. I’ve only seen her once. Her eyes are pure white. All I know is that she’s still there, which means they want to use her for something.”
“What’s that?” Alazne said, curious.
“One of the witches. No one knows why the Hunters are keeping her,” Zenon said. “We’ll have to be extra careful. Until we can remove the mind-control devices, we’ll have to be careful around all of them.”
Bugs crawled all over the map and a bee buzzed by Zenon’s head again.
“Can we have just ten minutes where there aren’t things crawling all over the place?” Zenon swatted the air.
Everything flew and crawled away, the map clear of bugs, the air no longer abuzz with flying insects. Astonishment making her head light, Alazne’s eyes widened.
Goddess, he could command life, even create it. What she witnessed on the Dead World made sense now. He created life there. And Zenon’s wand came from this world, from Elder.
Watching said wand hover next to him as he studied the now-free-from-bugs map, free from the bugs simply because he asked, she nearly cheered.
Zenon was a Nature Wizard! And he didn’t even know what he just did.
“Okay, I think we got this.” Folding the map, Zenon stood up, pausing when he looked their way, his wand standing still with him. “What?”
Sharing a glance with Keia, Alazne almost giggled. Keia did.
Zenon looked at his floating wand. “Witches are weird.”
Chapter 10
Envy ate at Alazne as she admired Keia’s ship. Sleek design, wings swept back, green sheen, it was small but could easily fit the three of them.
Four, counting me, her familiar said.
“Welcome aboard,” Keia said, climbing a small ramp that led to a side-door entrance.
Zenon followed her, carrying a jar of water, true to his word. Why was he so confident about the water? Did he finally believe in magic?
Once inside, they crammed into the only room onboard, the cockpit. Zenon let out a loud “Ow” as his head hit the bulkhead with Alazne’s “Ow” following suit as he stepped on her foot. There were only three seats, in a straight line in front of the control panel.
On second thought, maybe the spacecraft couldn’t ‘easily’ fit the four of them.
“This ship won’t hold anyone else,” Zenon said, head swiveling to take in the confines of the small space.
Alazne’s next thought exactly. Rescuing four witches in this thing was impossible.
“Oh good,” Alazne said. “Does that mean we can take your ship?”
Assuming Zenon had a ship larger than this one.
“Joan has a ship,” Keia piped up, cheerful as ever. “There’s plenty of room for the others.”
That meant they’d have to free a starship too. Eyebrows furrowing, she looked at Zenon. Wasn’t this becoming too complicated for just the three of them?
A net hung from the ceiling and Zenon secured his jar with other items hanging there.
“And we have the Portal Wielder,” he said, flashing her a grin.
Alazne bit her lip. Thanks to the Light Spirits, she had the energy to cover large distances. Problem was the amount of people. Could she keep a portal open long enough for everyone to make it through?
Watching the jar swing above their heads, she really wished they’d just take Zenon’s ship.
Alazne tripped over a cable on the floor, falling into the middle seat. Zenon’s hand gripped her thigh as he tripped over the same cable, dropping into the seat on the other side of her, to her left. A thrill traversed her spine and she couldn’t help the smile as his face became beet red.
“Sorry,” he murmured, lifting his hand as if her thigh were a hotplate.
“You can keep it there.” Alazne’s cheeks burned at the bold statement. Where did that come from? And she didn’t know his face could be even redder than before.
She really wouldn’t mind if he kept his hand on her thigh, maybe those fingers would massage upwards, searching until they found—
Shaking herself, Alazne sat up board straight in her chair, stifling the intense tingling between her legs. Movement to her right, Keia plopping down next to her, helped throw cold water on the situation. Movement in her pocket as Ariad scurried out to climb to her shoulder also helped.
“This was my mother’s ship,” Keia said conversationally. “She left it to me when she died.”
A pang erupted in her chest, partly because this young woman had endured so much, partly because she felt guilty for still not trusting her fully. Alazne wanted to trust her, wanted to adopt her as family even, but she wouldn’t be comfortable until they had Jessa safely in their arms.
“Hummingbird requesting permission for departure from Bay Door 7,” Keia spoke to the air.
“Granted. Safe flight, Hummingbird,” an electronic male voice sounded back.
“Hummingbird,” Ariad squeaked cheerfully. “Love your name and your ship’s name.
The young witch smiled a thank you. Keia’s biggest fan, her familiar seemed to be trusting.
“You said you needed a communication array?” Keia looked to Zenon. When he nodded his head, she said. “You can use my comms.”
“There is a long-range array on Lern’s World. I will wait,” Zenon said.
Shrugging, their pilot punched buttons and pulled levers on the console and Alazne knew the moment they were off the ground. The viewscreen in front of them sprang to life and her supposition was confirmed as the confines of the hanger bay came into view. She could clearly see a large “7” painted on an even larger bay door as they floated towards it.
It was hard not to think about how young Keia was, though it wasn’t that unusual for a teenager to know how to fly a small starship, especially since children flew around domiciles on hovercraft. They were pretty well conditioned to be pilots from an early age, as most people owned a small transport craft to get from point A to point B in their everyday lives.
That stream of jealousy wound its way through her again. Because of who she was, she was never allowed a hovercraft and subsequently never learned to fly a transport, much less a starship.
But Keia can’t simply open a portal into a hanger on Quan, Ariad said.
True. Flashing a tight smile as the young witch reached over to tap a button in front of her, Alazne wished they could have just space-bridged to this friend of Zenon’s. She couldn’t open a portal while in spaceflight and still wasn’t sure if they were sealing their fate by trapping themselves on this ship, cute name and all.
Zenon couldn’t shake his thoughts of Alazne’s soft thigh, fingers itching to explore her body further. Damn, she was beautiful. Resorting to thoughts of his sick mother to stave off the impending erection, her bold statement didn’t help. So, the attraction was mutual, but there was no way he could act on it. Well, he could, but he didn’t want to hurt her. A relation
ship with this woman was impossible.
Glad the short trip was mostly in silence, he couldn’t get off the ship fast enough when they landed on Lern’s World, mindful of any obstacles and where he put his hands.
Inhaling the dry air as he stepped down the Hummingbird’s ramp, Zenon never thought he’d be so happy to disembark on an otherwise abandoned desert planet.
Approaching the lone, round adobe domicile, an old man with stark white hair peeked out of a hole in the door, hands on either side of his eyes to block the sun.
“Lern’s World, huh?” Alazne’s voice was accompanied by the squeaking crunch of sand beneath her feet. The smirk on her face was no doubt a result of her observation of the lack of residents. “I take it that’s Lern?”
The man stepped out, arms wide, faded and tattered blue clothing swinging in the breeze, big smile plastered on his wizened face.
“Zenon! Been a long time!” His booming voice echoed off the surrounding valley walls.
Grinning, he winked at Alazne before bumping forearms with the old man, who then pulled him into a crushing embrace. “Hello, Lern. It has been a long time.”
The old man squinted up at him. “Did you change your eyes?”
Zenon had no idea what to say to that and Lern’s hand waved through the air. “No matter. So, what brings you to my world? I know it is not this beautiful woman.”
The hermit bowed to Alazne, who stiffened.
Keia ambled down the ramp of her craft and the gleam in the old desert dweller’s eyes followed by a toothy grin was positively lewd. “Two of them! You dog, you.”
Now Zenon stiffened, face taking on that tell-tale warmth and he knew he was turning red again. If the old man’s smile got any wider, his face would split.
“I need to talk to you about a piece of tech I found.” Zenon appealed to Lern’s bottomless curiosity. “Alone.”
Add a little intrigue and the desert dweller would forget about the women. Maybe. That was probably too much to ask for a man living alone.
Judging by Alazne’s glare, she wasn’t happy about that ‘alone’ part, but he’d make it up to her later. Sending her his best apologetic look, he followed the old codger, who was pulling him into the domicile, clearly falling for the mystery.
Loud and energetic, Lern stepped behind a dusty table full of tools and gadgets, turning to face Zenon with that gleam in his eye, resting his hands on the table before leaning forward. “Let me see your tech.”
Zenon already had it in the ready, offering his outstretched hand with the tiny piece for the hermit to inspect. Lern plucked it from his palm, holding it closer to the eyepiece he was now wearing, saying nothing of the crushed state of the tech.
“This was outlawed by your mother,” the old man exclaimed way too loudly.
Glad the two witches weren’t in the domicile, Zenon looked through the hole in the door to make sure they weren’t standing close enough to hear anything. “Keep it down.”
The eyepiece fell to Lern’s chest, hanging from a chord, his eyes narrowing on Zenon. “You know what this is for?”
“Can you replicate it?”
“Well, yea.” Shrugging, the hermit’s guard went down. “Of course, I can. But that’s not the question, is it?”
“Yes, I know what it’s for.” Zenon blew out his breath. “They’re using it on Hellumon.”
“Hellumon,” Lern said with a grimace. “Too hot for me there.”
Zenon resisted the urge for a sarcastic comment. Lern’s World was scorching and the hermit was remarking on Hellumon being hot? Well, Lern would know; the old man was from there.
“I don’t need a functional one,” Zenon persisted. “Just need it to look functional.”
“What are you up to, lad?” That cautious guard went up again and Zenon wasn’t sure he’d get what they came here for.
“Helping those two ladies out there,” he said.
Lern’s gigantic mischievous smile returned as his caution was thrown to the wind. “And they are beautiful!”
“Shh, you’re too loud.”
“You know what they say about witches?” Lern’s voice was lower, elbowing him conspiratorially.
Zenon’s mouth dropped open. He had no idea how the old man knew they were witches and even less about ‘what they say about witches.’ Hell, he didn’t even know witches existed until recent events.
“You playboy, you.” Lern wouldn’t shut up. “Like your uncle, eh?”
Zenon’s mouth soured. He was nothing like his uncle. Sure, the thought of playing with Alazne made his pants tight, but he wanted more than that. Because of who he was, he wasn’t going to get it.
Lern held the broken tech above his head, inspecting it in the light.
“Sure, I will replicate it for you,” the old man said. “A day and it will look the part. Three days and I can make it functional.”
Beckoning Zenon with a curled finger, he leaned forward and Lern leaned even closer with a whisper. “Just don’t tell your mother. I will deny, deny, deny.”
Zenon stood away from him. “I just need it to look functional. One day is fine.”
“Very well, then,” Lern said cheerfully, standing up straight. “Enjoy that tiny ship— Where is your ship, anyway?”
Zenon opened his mouth to answer and the old man’s hand waved in the air, head shaking.
“Of course,” Lern said. “Tiny ship makes for closer quarters to enjoy those ladies.”
Zenon decided to just go with it. “Yes. And enjoy them I will.”
Laughing, Lern said, “I live vicariously through you.”
Whatever kept the old hermit motivated to complete the task. Zenon and ‘his ladies’ would be out of there soon enough and he could focus on the next obstacle.
“I need to use your communication array,” he said, motioning towards the tall satellite dish sitting outside.
“What’s mine is yours,” Lern said with a smile.
Call completed, traversing the scolding sand to the Hummingbird, Zenon’s thoughts were on Alazne. There weren’t many women that made him want to throw inhibition to the wind, but if any woman could, it’d be her.
Tinkering and voices echoed from beneath the ship and he ducked under to find Keia and Alazne’s robot familiar playing some sort of game in the sand, the ship providing ample shade.
“Hello Zenon,” the squirrel squeaked. “Alazne is topside if you’re looking for her.”
Why did it always sound like the robot knew what he was doing?
Bounding to the top of the ramp, he saw that Alazne had the pilot’s seat swiveled around, feet on the bulkhead at the back of the cockpit. Having no other room to retreat, as the cockpit was all there was, he leaned with his left shoulder against the same bulkhead, crossing his arms.
Alazne twirled her wand between her fingers. “Did you get your ‘alone time’ with Lern of Lern’s World?”
The emphasis on the words ‘alone time’ did not escape him.
“Stars, you’re just as lewd as he is.” He gave a lopsided grin.
Barking a laugh, Alazne’s feet hit the deck with a clang as she slapped her knees, sitting up straight in the chair. “Interesting choice in living arrangements.”
“Lern’s an eccentric old man. He thinks this is paradise compared to where he used to live.”
Her eyebrows went up. “Which is?”
“Hellumon.”
“Oh.”
He scooted between the back of her seat and the console, plopping down in the middle chair. “Yea.”
Leaning back, he rested his chin on his fist, resisting the urge to put his feet up on the control panel. There looked to be a lot of important levers and buttons; not boot friendly.
Still facing the bulkhead behind him, Alazne leaned back too, resting her chin on steepled fingers. Shoulders touching, Zenon resisted the urge to lean into that warmth.
“Says it’ll be a day to replicate the tech,” he murmured.
“A day?” she said, fl
ashing him a lopsided grin. “Then it’ll be three days until I can get you a healer.”
Two days. Three days. It didn’t matter at this point. He merely grunted an acknowledgment.
“The jar remains intact,” Alazne said absently, staring at the ceiling. “And we’re flying right into the mouth of the beast. The Hummingbird against a dragon.” She spread her hands to indicate the confines of the tiny ship.
Resisting the urge to— Damn, he was having a lot of urges to resist since coming aboard the ship. He bit down the sarcastic comment on the tip of his tongue. Though he understood the importance of this mission, going to Earth would have been easier. And he was only here because she begged him.
“Rescuing those witches is important for the safety of Adamar,” Alazne murmured. “If we can’t get it done, I’ll bridge us out of there.”
“We’ll get it done,” he said, determined. “My mother’s life depends on that healer.”
But it was more than that. He may have only been here because she begged him, but he wanted to help her just as much as he needed to help his mother.
“But if we can’t.” Alazne’s tone was insistent. “I’ll get you out and you can continue your search.”
Zenon knew his mother was out of time. He couldn’t try Earth now if he wanted to; it was rescue Jessa or nothing. Appreciating the sentiment, however, he presented a cautious smile.
The moment of silence that stretched did nothing to quell his desire and imagination of having this woman in his arms, especially with as close as they were. It just seemed to be getting warmer and warmer. That could have been just the warm desert breeze blowing in from the open airlock, but there was no going back now.
“Do you know how we get our powers?” she said.
For a second, Zenon understood how a little intrigue could distract Lern from thinking about the ladies. Then the weight of her head was on his shoulder, soft hair tickling his neck—
“Every witch has a different power,” she continued, oblivious to what she was doing to him. Or maybe she wasn’t. Maybe she was using her power to cast a spell. Whatever she was doing, it was working. He’d believe anything she told him right now.
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