Dahlia looked down, “I can’t. I feel like I should but I can’t. I felt more alive than ever last night. I can’t find it in me to give that up. I feel like the desire would burn me up from the inside out.”
“Then accept what I offer and swim with me.”
Dahlia looked at the dark pool and braced herself, “Ok.”
The woman grinned and grabbed Dahlia’s hand, pulling her into the pool. Dahlia felt herself immersed in the exhilaration of a fight, the rush of power that came from domination over an opponent. She resisted for a moment but felt the other woman’s hand tighten around hers. She reminded herself that she had chosen this and let herself sink and open to the inundation of experiences. She felt the thrill from the night before returning, she felt her senses sharpen and the relief wash over her. She accepted this part of her and prayed what she had just released wouldn’t consume her.
She came back from the trance to find her face wet from sweat and tears. She was glad she’d opted to work on healing before sleep, she didn’t realize just how badly the sickened blood had hurt her. The lingering sickness had gone. She felt stronger. Despite her remaining hesitation, she had had to be honest with herself. She was a warrior, a fighter, it was part of her and she had to accept the brutality and feral part of that along with the bravery and willingness to sacrifice. The strength the woman by the pool had offered her had been welcome and Dahlia had accepted despite the cost.
Dahlia could now sense the woman as a manifestation of a portion of her psyche. Her odd ability to create what had been called “puppets” stemmed from her ability to enter her own mind and manifest the different aspects of her personality. She’d found that when she had a deep internal conflict or experienced deep psychological pain she sometimes found a new aspect of herself. She was able to call on these manifestations physically for aid. They closely replicated her appearance and physical abilities and, as she deepened her own strength and abilities, they become closer and closer to replicating her strength. She called them as little as possible. Manifesting them came with all sorts of consequences. Mostly she didn’t want to draw attention to that ability though. People found her unsettling enough without them knowing that she summoned women who were products of her own mind.
She cupped water in her hands and splashed it over her face then stretched wearily, ready for the nap she’d promised herself. She pulled herself out of the tub, allowing it to drain as she pulled on a light wrap and fell into bed. She dropped immediately into a thankfully dreamless sleep.
She slept heavily until she was awoken by a gentle tapping on her door. Evening had fallen outside. She lifted herself out of bed, feeling groggy but otherwise recovered. She found her robe and pulled it tightly around her then removed the chair she’d used to bar the door. She slid it open to find a woman with a middle-aged, motherly appearance holding a teapot.
“Dr. Nallia, please come in.”
“Hello Captain DeMorra. I won’t stay long, I heard you might need some of my medicinal tea.”
Dahlia smiled warmly, “It would be most welcome, thank you.”
Nallia strode in and placed the heavy teapot on the table. She then busied herself locating a clean cup. Dahlia collected the chair, closed the door, and took a seat at the table. Nallia, successful in her search, sat across from her, poured the tea, and sweetened it with honey.
Dahlia blew on it and took a delicate sip of the hot beverage. Her eyes opened wider. It was the same brew Kenny had brought her but the bitterness was gone.
“It’s wonderful with the honey!”
Nallia looked smug, “Ravin thinks I don’t know what he does to my tea. He ruins it. The honey is essential to balance the acrid ingredients. I take it you’ve had a bit of his.”
Dahlia nodded, not eager to go into details. She changed the subject.
“Thank you, again. May I ask how Captain Lenoi is faring?”
Nallia’s brows furrowed. “She is healing but that was a psychic beating she endured. It will take more than my tea to have her set to rights.”
“It’s a pity we were only able to save the one, and he was exceedingly damaged.”
“Yes it is a pity, but neither she nor you knew that at the time and you were willing to step up and risk yourselves in hopes of recovering information. Do not take that away for her or yourself.”
Dahlia was quiet for a moment as she blew again on the tea, “Thank you, Dr. Nallia.”
“You are welcome, but it’s simply the truth,” she replied briskly. “Now, I have patients to see, I only wanted to bring the tea myself and be assured that you were alright. Recent events have not been easy on you.”
The woman rose and made for the door but paused with her hand on the handle.
“You didn’t hear this from me, but the abducted team member your barrack recovered has vanished. Ravin and Horan were assigned to track him down.” Then Nallia slid the door open and left.
Dahlia sipped the tea and thought. That the man was missing was extremely vexing and very odd. He had been detailed with a guard, how could he have simply vanished? And what about it made Nallia inclined to tell her? If she had merely wanted to give Dahlia the tea and check on her it would have made just as much sense to send an assistant. Unless it had been a cover and speaking to Dahlia had been the main purpose of her visit.
She turned it over and over in her head then decided to let it rest. If Nallia had needed anything immediate then she would have found a way to tell her. Dahlia now had the information and that would be enough for the moment.
She turned her mind to her next steps. She was confident in Sabir’s ability to manage her barrack without her for the day, she could catch up with him in the morning. Her time would be best spent, she reasoned, working on something to counteract the sick, green energy she had encountered twice already. She did not want to face another incident like the one that morning unprepared. It was reasonable to assume that this wasn’t over and if she’d already seen it twice…
“Fool me thrice, shame on me,” she muttered, possibly misquoting the aphorism.
She finished the cup of tea and placed the pitcher in her large cooling jar. Another useful product of Rezzi’s training. She’d reasoned that if he could put heat in one thing then he could pull heat out of another. As a result, she had a large jar that radiated heat, making the inside cool. He’d had yet to control it enough to use it as a weapon but she thought with a couple more years of practice the dualism of his ability would fully manifest and prove a devastating set of weapons. In the meantime she could keep things cool.
She wondered how she could bribe Nallia for a larger supply of the brew. It worked wonders on her overtaxed psyche and with the honey rather than the alcohol the taste was quite pleasant.
She left her room and went to her office. She had a small garden walled in behind it that she often used for work. The calm energy there supported her while the contact with the earth grounded her.
She knelt down in the grass and brought up her memories of the sick energy. After dealing with the lingering results, she could now examine it without any revulsion or pain. It was only a memory that she could hold and examine, detached from the experience.
Her first instinct was still the strongest. The energy had a property to infect and either sicken or dissolve but it was not malicious, taking no pleasure in the pain it caused. It was neutral, it was simply created to consume. She’d been lucky. Had it been created with the intention of causing pain she might not have been able to turn it back on itself.
Satisfied, she settled on an expansion of the strategy she’d used to destroy the scythe. She would isolate the infection then turn it on itself with a slight manipulation of its purpose. Why waste the strength forcing something when a gentle nudge would suffice?
She took off two of the plain, silver bands she wore on her fingers and began to wrap the energy of isolation and redirection into each. With time, peace, and no pressure she was able to create a tool that was subtle and p
recise with minimal effort. She wrapped two uses around each band then sealed them so they would give off no hint of their use. She slipped the rings back on, placed her left hand on the ground, and released any fragments of energy that had built up during her work.
Then she slipped off the band on her right index finger. This one was a permanent construct she used to focus her aim when targeting a precise strike at someone’s psyche. It was one of her oldest and most stable constructs and she used it instinctually at this point. When she had manipulated Horan and when she had shot the soldier she had been using a small amount of very precise energy and had used the ring to help sharpen and aim it.
She quickly inspected the energy woven into the band and repaired any cracks or flaws that had appeared. When it was done she renewed the seal, grounded any stray bits of energy, and replaced that ring as well.
She returned to her room and returned to bed. While she wasn’t needed she might as well store up energy herself. She was drifting off when she again heard a soft knock on her door. She reached out and sensed Traedon’s presence.
“It’s not locked,” she called out. Not like she could lock it now. Thanks, Kenny.
He slid the door open then closed it behind him. He came over and sat back on his heels in front of the bed, entwining his fingers with hers.
“I didn’t mean to wake you, I came to see how you were after this morning.”
She smiled and curled the bottom of his mane around her fingertips.
“I’m fine now, been asleep half the day.”
He rose up and nuzzled against her neck, “Good. I didn’t even see what was in their heads and it was unsettling enough.”
She dropped the hand from his hair to run down his arm. “You can stay if you’d like.”
“Just ‘til dawn.” He lifted himself lightly over her and settled behind her back, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close. The gentle rise and fall of his chest soothed her back into sleep.
True to his word, he awoke at dawn and slid out of her bed. She propped herself up on one arm and watched him in the pale light. He prowled silently around to her and cupped the side of her face in his hand.
“I was trying to sneak out so I wouldn’t wake you again.”
“I slept enough yesterday.”
He leaned in and kissed her. Dahlia felt her heart tighten painfully as she kissed him sweetly but pulled away rather than deepening it. He was so gorgeous, red hair kissing the tattoos on his perfectly sculpted shoulders. She could feel the desire she’d had for this man but somehow the heat from the fire didn’t reach her lips. She ran her fingers through the ends of his hair, feigned a satisfied smile, and lay her head back down, gazing up at him as he slipped out of her room.
She was just stressed, she reassured herself, nothing had changed. She lay for a few moments longer then rose and pulled out more of Nallia’s tea. She sipped the cool brew and watched the dawn break outside her window. The strange night they’d chased the soldiers through the forest and the gruesome scene she’d found in their minds seemed like distant dreams, scoured away by the clean morning light.
When she’d finished her tea she sighed, pushed back her chair, and set about preparing to face the day, leaving the peace of the morning behind.
Chapter Twenty One
Dahlia didn’t hear anything else about the missing research member that day. She tried to accept it as a blessing that other people were handling it and she was being given a breather. She caught up with Sabir on the guard postings and the news for the day she’d missed, worked with her soldiers on their mental defense, and led them on a brief trek through the trees to further familiarize them with the area should they need to navigate it at night again. She couldn’t push a feeling of unease out of her mind, however, and went through the day feeling as though she were in the calm before the storm.
That night wasn’t much better and she rose early to check on the guards assigned to the third shift of the night. She found Fidelity, Rezzi, and Nel staving off sleep watching Rezzi set off a silent fireworks display. She suppressed a chuckle as she slipped into the shadows and padded silently towards them.
She took Nel first as he stood the furthest back. She leaned just a little on the sleepiness she felt coming from him. She had to lean harder than she’d expected; Fidelity had been training him well in defense. His eyes drooped and he nodded off. She gently picked him up and carried him a few feet away where she laid him down then walked silently back.
When she was close she heard Fidelity start and lift her hammer and the glow of Rezzi’s fireworks faded. She crouched down and started, full speed, out of concealment, bulling into Rezzi and taking him down. Fidelity swung her hammer but missed, her eyes unadjusted to the dark after staring at Rezzi’s light show. She turned to sound the alarm. Dahlia released Rezzi and pushed herself into the air off his diaphragm, effectively knocking the wind out of him. She somersaulted up and over to land between Fidelity and the alarm bell and yelled “ha!” before dropping to avoid another hammer swing.
“Fuck! Captain!” Fidelity yelled, dropping her hammer as Rezzi staggered to his feet wheezing and Nel rushed in, apparently awakened.
Dahlia stood up, suppressed the laughter bubbling up inside her and lectured her fourth officer, “This is why I said no fires at the post. When you stare into a fire you can’t see through the darkness around you. If you’d been adjusted to the darkness you would have seen me take Nel. Rezzi might have reacted before I took him out and you would have aimed your swing better. A fire blinds you and leaves you open to an attack.”
Fidelity’s shoulders sagged, “Yes, Captain, I apologize, it was my responsibility.”
“Chalk it up to an effective lesson and I expect you to be more conscientious from here out. Especially given the recent attacks. I’ll let Sabir know you’re volunteering for second shift to make up for your lapse in judgement.”
“Yes, Captain.”
Dahlia turned to Rezzi, “Don’t risk taking an incapacitating blow for the chance to take no hit at all. There was very little chance of you getting away from me when I hit you at that speed but if you’d blocked and covered or attempted to force us both into a roll rather than trying to push against me you might have tied me up long enough for Fidelity to raise the alarm.”
Rezzi bowed his head, wincing a little. “Thank you, Captain, I’ll work on judgement in my defense.”
She turned last to Nel, “Your psychic defenses have gotten better, work on your sensitivity now so you are able to detect when someone starts pushing into your psyche.”
Nel bowed as well. “Thank you, Captain, I will.”
Dahlia nodded her head, “Good.” She turned and left the chastised soldiers, walking towards the main area of the barrack. She located and started the kitchen fire and pulled out a strong tea. She brewed the leaves, the refreshing aroma stimulating her mind. Then she sat with her tea and her thoughts a while until dawn brought Sabir in. He heated some tea himself and joined her. She didn’t offer him any of hers. Those who knew her well made the mistake of accepting tea from her only once. She sipped her brew appreciatively. Maybe it was an acquired taste. Or maybe she just enjoyed being arbitrary.
“Good morning, Lieutenant,” she greeted Sabir.
“Good morning, Captain.”
“I’d like you, myself, and Lieutenant Arreal to start checking on the guards at night. They seem to have gotten sloppy.
Sabir frowned, “Of course, Captain. Anything happen?”
Dahlia sighed, “They just got bored and distracted, I gave them a shock and a brief lecture. Fidelity has volunteered for second shift.”
Sabir smiled, “You mean you scared the hell out of them.”
Dahlia grinned at him, “Like another sleepy guard I remember.”
“You were one hell of a Lieutenant.”
“You never fell asleep on guard-duty again, did you?”
“Hell, I didn’t sleep for days for fear you’d wake me up again.�
��
“It’s better than waking up to a real enemy.”
“Hell of a lot better. Ok, I’ll arrange with Arreal.”
“I’ll check on second shift,” Dahlia offered.
“I won’t pretend I wouldn’t appreciate that. I never was able to learn your trick of waking up in the middle of the night but I can get up early. And Arreal’ll prefer to check the first shift anyways.”
Out of the three of them Arreal was definitely the late to bed, late to rise type. He joined Dahlia and Sabir at the table when the sun was fully up and a number of other soldiers had come in and out for breakfast. Arreal sat down with his tea and Dahlia and Sabir let him sip in silence until his eyes had lost their morning fog.
“We’re checking in on guards, make sure they’re not getting sloppy with the recent enemy movement,” Sabir told him. “We decided that the last one out of bed got to check on second shift.”
Arreal glared into his tea, Dahlia tried to keep a straight face. That was a mean trick to play on the man so early in the morning. She sipped her tea, “Gee, I don’t know Sabir, I thought we agreed to fight for it today.”
Sabir grinned, “Same outcome then.”
Arreal sipped his tea again and shot over at Sabir, “It’s worth taking that challenge for a chance to see you trying to get out of bed in the dead middle of the night.”
Dahlia decided to step in before her lieutenants went to blows over the shift she’d already decided to take, “He’s just trying to get you riled up, I offered to check in on the second shift since I’m the most likely to actually wake up and do it.”
Arreal’s face relaxed with poorly concealed relief, “Did I ever tell you you’re my favorite captain? Hands down, not even close.”
She raised an eyebrow, “And who is your second favorite then?”
“Still you. You’re first, second, and a close third at the moment.”
“And you’re a born suck up.”
He shrugged, “Hey, whatever it takes to not get up for second shift.”
Dahlia: A Novel of Dark Desire Page 9