by Shae Mills
“Thank you for not prying, although I do not think you are going to be entirely happy with what I have to tell you.”
Korba frowned. “I already know the mischief you are capable of, and right now I know you are alive and well, so I shall tame my emotions for the time being and hear this out.”
“Just for the time being?”
“I will decide whether to explode afterward.”
Chelan kissed him thoroughly. Then she pulled back and looked at him coquettishly. “If I do that enough, will it help temper the explosion?”
Korba seized her face in his hands and kissed her back, hard. “Maybe,” he breathed. “We will see. Now start talking.”
Chelan smiled and nodded. “So, I told Terig about what I felt back on Earth, about being drawn to find RIBUS 7, or Fremma, or directed by Fremma, or whatever. But Fremma is alive, so whatever that feeling was is still a mystery. But now there is this other sensation, that of a presence on board the ship, and I feel I can only discover its source by being on her decks.”
“So, this feeling or sensation that you have now, is it not the same as it was on Earth?”
“No. That is where it gets complicated. What I felt on Earth, the need to find and get to the ship, I still have that even though I am here.”
Korba’s eyes narrowed. “And this new feeling?”
Chelan had to suppress the urge to flinch. “Ah, yes, well, this new feeling is a little more personal.”
Korba’s voice dropped. “How so?”
Chelan twisted in his arms and faced him directly. “When I am on the ship, I feel as if I am being watched.”
Korba became very still. “You had this feeling when in the Command Center?”
Chelan hesitated. “Yes.”
“Do either of these sensations have anything to do with that strange reaction you had to the hyperjump on our way here?”
“Maybe, but I do not know the relationship as of yet. But since that reaction never happened again, maybe that part of the puzzle is moot.”
“Troublesome reaction aside, it is the feeling of being watched that has me most concerned.”
“Yes, well, that brings me around to the rest of the story.”
Korba braced himself, reminding himself of his word that he had just given to her.
Chelan continued. “Three weeks ago, I talked Terig into taking me with him onto RIBUS 7. There is a corridor that extends through the crew’s quarters and flanks one of the ordinary transport tubes. I felt drawn there for three reasons. First, just a sixth sense, a feeling that there is a presence in that vicinity. Second, that is an area of low priority even though it is close to some of the modified sections of tubing. Being low priority meant no crew intrusions, and being close to the Zenatropium-infused tubing meant quick access to shielded areas. Third, it is strategic. It is close to the personal Command Center. Anyway, I decided that if there was something or someone hiding on this ship, that would probably be one of the most likely spots for it to be.” Chelan paused, watching her mate for signs of an imminent eruption, but she detected nothing.
“Continue.”
Chelan nodded. “Terig and I had agreed on a few things pertaining to my venture, time and locations traversed being a couple of them. But as it was, I went down a connecting corridor.” She hesitated, looking sheepishly at Korba. “It was against Terig’s strict orders. But when I was at the junction, I could see a distant orb, which was no big deal in and of itself. But while I was watching it, something disturbed the light, just a shadow, something fleeting.”
Korba’s eyes narrowed again.
She continued hurriedly before she lost her nerve. “I had to find out what had caused the disturbance. I went only as far as the lone lighting orb where I thought I had seen the shadow, or a flicker of some sort, but there was nothing there, and the orb was fully functional. I knew there was no sense going farther as it was dark beyond for as far as the eye could see. And I also knew I had already taken a risk by entering the corridor at all. Plus I was betraying Terig’s trust in me. So I simply turned to go back..., but...”
Korba tensed. “But?”
“But the floor gave way.” She stopped and stared at his chest as the horror came flooding back to her. “I thought I was dead.” She closed her eyes and took in a deep, slow breath. “I had managed to grab onto a pipe of some sort, and there I was, hanging there in the middle of oblivion. I—” She looked up into his eyes, expecting anger, but instead she saw grief. “I thought of you and the children, and about how foolish I had been to do what I had done, but it was too late for any regrets. It was over, and when I could not hold on any longer, I let go.”
Korba raised up on his elbow and stared at her. “Oh, my Lady...,” he whispered.
Chelan covered his lips with her fingers. “As soon as I let go, someone grabbed me. He saved me.”
“Who saved you?”
“I do not know. But I am sure it was the same being who tried to save Terig. I am certain of it.”
“How do you know?”
“I just know,” she whispered. “The tubes are shielded. He lives in them. He wanders through them. He comes and goes from the ship as he pleases. There are probably quarters we have not found that are also shielded. He simply knows all. I have come to the conclusion that it is him I now feel this connection with.”
Korba leaned forward. “Chelan, when you fell, is that how you bruised your hip?”
She nodded.
“Is this man Iceanean?”
“I don’t know.”
“Is he alone?”
Chelan sucked in a breath. “I have no idea, but I sense that he is.”
Korba looked deep into her eyes. “Are you alone, my Lady?”
She squinted at him, becoming suddenly confused. “No, my Lord. I have you. Why would you ask me that?”
“I am trying to sort out your emotions and get this whole phenomenon nailed down. I cannot tell what is coming from within you and what comes from outside. Regardless, what do you want to do?”
She took a deep breath. “I need to go back. I need to be in the Command Center, alone.”
“That could put you in danger.”
“No, he will not hurt me.”
“You do not know that for sure.”
“You say that because you are wary. He could have let me fall, but he did not. And for some reason, of all the men in that hangar, he chose to try and rescue Terig, the man closest to both you and me. That was no coincidence. I do not know if he feels a bond with me because I am a woman or because I was drawn to the ship originally, or even if his bond was originally with Terig. No matter which, he is no danger to me.”
“That may be true, but if he feels cornered or threatened in any way by the rest of us, everything could change in a heartbeat.”
“No. Even if threatened, he still would not hurt me. If push came to shove he would simply leave. I am sure he does this freely, maybe even in a cloaked fighter. Anyway, let me go to the Command Center and this mystery will eventually be solved.”
Korba hesitated. “What will you do?”
“I am not sure. Simply be there. Call him to me somehow? I know he has everything monitored, possibly in ways we have not discovered. Maybe if I just talk to him, he will reveal himself.”
Korba’s muscles tensed. “You know, what you felt on Earth and what you feel here... you could be responding to some sort of electromagnetic or gravitational anomaly, something we are not registering. At some point I want to bring the Telesians in on this. We could even be speaking of parallel universes.”
Chelan nodded. “I agree. And that is quite likely something to explore pertaining to the original phenomenon. But this is more personal, more than just a feeling. Because, really, what are the chances that I am picking up on something that neither the Iceanean workmen nor the sensors can?”
“Well, actually, pretty high, since you are the only Earth human among us who has any sort of attachment to RIBUS 7. If there is s
omething in your physiology that makes you sensitive to some sort of transmission, no matter what the conduit, you may be the only one to feel it.”
“Then why did Terig not feel anything?”
“Again, maybe just your particular physiology. I have no idea. But you felt a presence on RIBUS 7, like you were being watched, and now we know you were.”
“So, you do not think I am crazy?”
“Absolutely not. You know of my own abilities with what can only be described as my sixth sense. There is no mysticism to it. It is simply some sort of connection I have with yet an as-yet-undiscovered channel to things happening outside of currently measurable parameters.”
Chelan nodded. “We both know there are countless things out there yet undiscovered.”
Korba nodded. “So true. That is why I think the Telesians may be able so shine some light on this phenomenon.”
Chelan hesitated. “Well, as I just said, that all makes sense for the Earthly manifestation, the draw to the ship, but what I am getting on board RIBUS 7 is more basal. It is almost like a mental connection. I do not think the Telesians can help with this aspect. I truly feel the mystery will be solved simply by putting me on her decks.”
Korba finally released her and sat up. She rose up beside him. “What are you thinking?” she asked.
“I am thinking it is time to resolve this once and for all, your way.”
Chapter 37
ONCE AGAIN, THE WORK in the more potentially volatile areas of the mighty ship was curtailed in preparation for Chelan’s visit. Even though the vessel was now considered relatively stable, Korba was taking no chances.
He escorted Chelan to the private Command Center on RIBUS 7 and then retreated to the hangar deck. He had promised no sensors, and he would remain true to his word. But he knew he would spend the next couple of hours in the company of his men, pacing like a panic-stricken panther. However, this time around he would do everything that she asked in an effort not to impede the investigation. He trusted her instincts, and it was also obvious, as she had pointed out numerous times, that whoever roamed the corridors of RIBUS 7 was not a threat to her.
Chelan wandered around the Command Center for a long time, her heart pounding, her mind racing. She only hoped he came to her this time. She needed a resolution to this mystery once and for all, and so did Korba.
After some time had passed, she padded slowly down the workout area to the hidden blue room she had once known so well. She stepped into it, but it seemed eerily cold and unwelcoming, especially without her mate by her side. And for that matter, until RIBUS 7 was once again the regal and potent battleship she once was, nothing about the ship was going to be particularly friendly.
Chelan shook off the gelid sensations enveloping her and returned to the Command Center. There she slumped into a chair. The mystery had to be solved soon—Korba would eventually intervene. He was not worried so much for safety’s sake now, but he did not like the fact that his ship was being haunted by some unknown intruder, no matter what the being’s purpose. If whoever it was did not come out of hiding soon, Korba would go in after him, this time with a ship-wide purge. The crews would be removed. Flight decks would be shut down. Every breached area would be monitored. Men would start at the end points of the tubes and move through all of them, flushing the entity out or trapping it within. All the crew’s quarters, every nook and cranny, would be scoured simultaneously, and Korba had more than enough manpower to do exactly that. Either way, Chelan was on a time constraint... knowledge that made her even more edgy.
She stared at the inert control panels. She had deliberately not activated anything this time, wondering if having the Center’s technology operational served as a deterrent when it came to contacting her quarry. Only special security options would be functional as it was, and she enabled nothing more. “Come to me,” she finally whispered to the air. “You need to reveal yourself to me?” She sighed. “If you do not show yourself to me now, you know the final outcome will not be in your favor.” Then she froze. She spun around in her chair. And there before her, just inside the doors, he stood. She whipped back her hood, her eyes wide.
“You must leave,” he rasped.
It took Chelan a moment to respond. He wore an Imperial uniform, the shroud concealing all. He stood deathly still, revealing nothing. His voice was deep and gravelly, as though it had not been used for years.
She gave herself a shake. “Who are you?”
“Go home.”
Chelan rose slowly. “This is home.”
“This is home to no one.”
“I will not leave until I find out who you are.”
A low growl emanated from his chest. “Do not try to find me.”
Chelan squared her shoulders. “I have found you.”
“You need to leave.”
“Am I in danger?”
There was silence, then a voice full of resignation spoke. “No.”
Chelan took one step forward, and he took one step back toward the doors. She was going to lose him, she realized. She had to bar his retreat somehow.
She stepped back and sat down slowly, taking the pressure off her objective. “I need to know who you are. I seem to be able to feel you, your presence. I will not leave until I know why.”
There was no response. She swiveled in the chair and turned her back to him. “If you do not wish to converse, then why did you come here?” She ran her hands through her hair, feigning exasperation and then sagged forward onto the console onto her arms. Her elbow hit a switch locking the main doors. Then she swiveled back, her eyes cutting. “Answer me!”
“The man in the hangar, did he survive?”
Chelan felt the wind knocked from her lungs. Her eyes stung. “Terig,” she informed him in a choked whisper. “His name was Terig. And no, he did not make it.”
“He was yours?”
Chelan gave a faint smile. “For a fleeting moment in time, he was my best friend. Yes.”
“I am sorry.”
Chelan stared at him. “Why did you try to save him?”
“Because...” His voice trailed off.
“Because why?”
“Because he was important to you.”
Chelan’s eyes narrowed. “How did you know that?”
More damnable silence ensued.
Chelan rose to her feet again, every move calculated. “Look, just tell me who you are and why you are hiding on this ship. I will keep it to myself.”
“That is impossible.”
“You have no time left. RIBUS 7 is nearly ready to make the trip home. Korba will flush you out.”
“No need. I will be leaving.”
Chelan faltered. “Then why did you come to me? Why expose yourself at all?”
“To see you,” he whispered.
Chelan stepped toward him and he stepped back again. She hesitated. “Now that you have seen me, what do you want from me?” She pressed her advance, and he seemed to haver with indecision.
She began up the stairs, stalking him centimeter by centimeter. “What would you wish of me?”
Suddenly he retreated quickly, backing up undoubtedly with the full intent of bolting, but he thudded into the immobile doors.
Chelan stopped dead in her tracks. She could not see his face, but she could sense his fear. She could actually see him shaking. “Please,” she beseeched. “I will not hurt you.”
“Please, my Lady, let me go in peace. When the work by your people is complete, I will leave this vessel.”
“And go where?”
“Anywhere.”
“Why?”
“Because... Because I must.”
“You will haunt me an eternity if I do not learn your identity.”
“You already haunt me, my Lady.”
Chelan felt a shiver run up and down her spine. There was no way she was releasing him to the bowels of the ship without knowing his identity and why he had made RIBUS 7 his home. And he had just used her formal title ag
ain. Suddenly, unveiling him was even more imperative than before.
She stepped right up to him and he pressed himself into the doors as if he could meld to them. “Do not be afraid,” she whispered soothingly. When only a hair’s breadth from him, she reached for his hood, and instantly he sank to his knees before her, a sob rising from deep within his chest.
Chelan felt herself almost teetering, staggered by his response to her approach. She had thought he would flee through the Command Center, or even strike her, but him falling to his knees left her stunned. She struggled for air, his grief unexpectedly becoming hers. With a trembling hand, she reached down for his hood. As her fingers touched the fabric, she could feel his massive body beneath her touch quaking like a child’s. She drew the material back, and let it drop.
Her knees instantly turned to jelly. But if ever there was a time not to faint, this was it. Nonetheless, she dropped to the floor like a stone before him. She tried to catch her breath and retain her consciousness. Unable to maintain her equilibrium, she fell back on her rear end. There, sprawled on the floor, she stared into his azure eyes.
“Dar,” she blurted out.
He cleared his tattered and soiled blonde mane back from his face and looked at her with tear-soaked eyes. “Why could you not have just left?”
Chelan was in shock. Her head spun. She shifted and ran a hand through her hair. Then she slumped forward and dug her fingers into her temples. When she finally looked back at him he had sagged against the doors, his head back, his gaze directed to the ceiling.
He swallowed hard. “I wish this kept quiet, my Lady. Other than his Lordship, no one must know.”
Chelan’s heart wrenched in her chest. “But why?”
Dar shook his head at her. “No questions, my Lady, please.”
Chelan snapped, the shock of him clouding her judgment. “What do you mean, no questions?!” she hollered. “You have been dead to the Empire for six long years. Then I find you wandering the decks of a burned-out ship, all alone, an Imperial Warlord, and the best of the best, and you say, ‘No questions, please’? Do not be so bloody absurd!”
Dar’s shoulders slumped, and he stared down at the floor between them. Chelan stilled herself. He looked so forlorn, so utterly defeated. She gathered in her wits about her as well as her emotions. “I deserve some answers, my Lord,” she stated as calmly as she could muster.