by John Corwin
Mikhail nodded and turned away. Another seed planted. Hopefully they would spread the message. His spirits lifted. Their response had been unexpectedly positive. He should have factored the Transcendist fear of war into his calculations. By provoking Mikhail, Andre was inciting violence. A majority of living Scions had never seen conflict between the factions. There had been incidents over the years, but nothing like the Founders War. So much knowledge and history had been destroyed and lost during that dark era. Over two centuries later they were still rediscovering information that had been common knowledge among the early Scions.
After exiting the Vortex, Mikhail connected to his network of arbiters. Since the Lucas Fowler incident, both factions had concentrated most of their forces in the area. Mikhail sent word for every Statist to come to Atlanta. Of course their Transcendist counterparts in those parts of the world would notice the absence. Andre would likely interpret that as a preparation for war. Despite his possession of arbiter-blocking technology, the mere threat should put more pressure on him. Andre had a breaking point. Mikhail simply had to find it.
Chapter 41
Alexia awoke when the door opened. She'd been shut up in a conference room for hours and had fallen asleep, head resting against the long rectangular table in the center of the room. Marissa and Andre entered the room. Black bags underscored Marissa's eyes. Unshaven and pale, Andre looked even worse. They had obviously not slept for some time. Her first impulse was to ask questions. To demand immediate release. On the other hand, that might buy her more lockdown time. With two powerful arbiters in the room, trickery was out of the question.
She waited.
Andre smiled. It looked forced. "You've done us a great service, Alexia. I can't tell you how glad we are to find you alive and well and to finally have the rogues in custody."
"It's been a crazy couple of days. When can I get back to active duty?"
Andre glanced at Marissa. Turned back to Alexia. "I think it's important we debrief first. Where did you go when you and Lucas vanished from the cemetery?"
Alexia had thought long and hard about her answers. In the end, she'd decided that no harm could come from full disclosure. But she couldn't tell them of her feelings for Lucas. How she longed to know that he was okay. To hold him against her and feel his breath against her neck. Such strong feelings for a man she'd only just met felt wrong. She didn't believe in anything quaint as soul mates, but something in him made her heart beat a little faster. Made her catch her breath when she thought about him.
Andre could never know this. He would use it against her. She told him and Marissa about the afterlife. About their escape. About their capture by Martin and the ghouls. About her connection to Lucas, she told him nothing.
Andre shook his head. "Unbelievable. You've physically been to the afterlife."
Something in his tone caught her attention. It sounded like he already knew it existed. Like he'd expected it. Marissa, on the other hand, was pale. Her breathing was more rapid than usual. Alexia could almost feel emotions leeching from the woman. In fact she felt spidery cold whisper across her skin. Not a hair on her arm moved but the feeling persisted. She'd felt these emotional emanations before, but this felt much stronger. Andre's face showed surprise, but his emotional state remained stable. Logical. Nothing emanated from him.
"Do you intend to execute Lucas? I'm certain he was being forced into his actions by Martin. The man led him around like a puppet."
Andre's eyes darkened. "I've made my decision."
Anger rolled off him in a hot breeze, counteracting the emanations from Marissa. The physical reaction was so strong, she broke into a sweat. This was nothing like before. Something brushed her hair gently, like static. She switched sight. A thick tendril extended from Andre to her. Her muscles clenched. Something in her mind went taut. She flinched away from the glowing strand. Andre's jaw tightened. Another probe extended from him to Marissa. A second later she shot a probe of her own toward Alexia. Puzzlement swept into Marissa's eyes.
"I see you've learned some new tricks," Andre said.
"Tricks?"
"How are you blocking both of us at once?"
"I'm not trying to block anything. Why are you trying to probe me?"
Andre shrugged. "Your mental health has been at risk. All the trauma you've been through. Visiting the afterlife. The ghouls. I want to make sure you're okay."
"I'm fine. May I resume my duties now?"
"I think it best if you rest. Take all the time you need."
"In here?"
"Is there a problem with the accommodations?"
"I feel like a prisoner to be honest."
Andre's face reddened ever so slightly. In addition to the anger, something like fear trickled from him. The anger felt hot. The fear tasted like…crickets. Like creatures with prickly legs crawling in Alexia's mouth. She gagged and blew air from her mouth trying to dislodge whatever was inside. The sensation of barbed insect legs vanished. Instead, her head reeled. Dizziness. Confusion. What was wrong with her?
She bit her lower lip hard. Squeezed her eyes shut. A mental wall seemed to slam into place. The sensations became muted. Almost nonexistent. She didn't need the manifestations to tell her what she'd see upon opening her eyes.
Marissa and Andre were staring at her with open concern and confusion. Her reactions must have been unsettling. She probably looked borderline insane.
"You do need rest," Marissa said after a moment of uncomfortable silence. "What just happened?"
"I'm stir-crazy. I need to get outside. How long have I been cooped up in here?"
"I'll have someone look at you," Andre said. "You're obviously disturbed by all you've been through."
Alexia resisted the urge to bolt. The idea of being cooped up one second longer inflamed her. She couldn't take any more. But where would fleeing get her? She was obviously in the underground compound. As a seeker, she might be stronger than the two arbiters, but Andre had executors too. She wouldn't have a chance. If they still had Lucas, her first priority should be helping him.
Andre motioned toward the door. "Marissa, wait outside."
Marissa cast a puzzled look at him then glanced at Alexia. She stood up and knocked on the door. A latch clicked and someone outside opened the door. She left.
"Explain how you're able to block us. Did the old man teach you?"
"Old man?"
"Martin. The rogue arbiter."
Alexia lowered her barrier a little. A jumble of emotions washed over her. One made her burn with the desire for knowledge. Curiosity, obviously. Except this bordered on ravenous.
"Martin didn't tell me anything. I don't know how I'm doing it."
The curiosity shifted. Alexia felt an empty pit form where her stomach should be. Dread. Andre was afraid of what he didn't know. The dread quickly shifted to rage.
"Perhaps I should put it to a thorough test."
Fingers of static licked her hair. She could feel mental adjustments click in her mind, like a series of safety valves closing off. She switched sight. Probes of varying sizes roiled from Andre's head. They attacked her in waves. Each tendril seemed to shatter and dissolve, rebuked by whatever defenses had clicked on. Andre's face reddened. Darkened. The probes withdrew. A split-second later, a massive probe burst from his mind in a concentrated attack. It disintegrated on impact with Alexia's head.
Alexia felt lightheaded. Pressure built in her forehead. Her head lolled for a second. Then the dizziness passed. Andre was panting. Sweat beaded on his neck, his brow. He bolted from his seat and charged her.
"Tell me how you're doing it," he roared. He grabbed her shirt and dragged her off the chair. "I'll have all my best arbiters chip away at you until you're left with nothing."
She grabbed his thumbs and clenched them. She tried to peel his hands off her shirt. It was like trying to bend titanium. "How are you so strong?"
Andre smiled. "I'm no ordinary arbiter." He grabbed her throat. Lifted her from the
floor. Tossed her casually against the far wall.
Alexia lost what little breath she had from the impact. The wood paneling cracked against her back. She gasped, keeping her eyes glued to Andre. The left side of his lips curled in a lopsided smirk.
"I thought arbiters were the weakest physically," she said.
"True."
"You're strong as an executor. How?"
"In case you hadn't guessed, I'm asking the questions. Explain how you're blocking my probes."
"Maybe you're deaf. As I said, I don't know."
He rushed her. Despite his strength, he wasn't as fast as a seeker. Alexia flitted to the side, opened a Blight scar and slid inside. Andre spun. His glowing eyes scoured the room.
"You can't hide in the Blight forever. Don't make me send someone inside to bring you back."
Alexia tried the door. It was locked. She turned and looked at Andre. His aura burned bright and intense. Something about it, however, seemed off. An occasional streak of black wormed its way around the outer edges. She approached for a closer inspection. He swung his arms in the air around him. Despite her presence in the Blight, he could still hit her, though he wouldn't realize it. She drew as close to him as she dared and examined his aura. Faint black smudges corrupted the white nimbus. Another greasy tongue of black slid past.
This sort of corruption reminded her of the ghouls. Except the ghouls had the abilities of seekers and executors, not arbiters. What had happened to Andre? He couldn't be a ghoul.
Andre extended a probe. Once it reached the door, however, it fizzled. He grunted as if remembering something. He Walked to the door and knocked. Alexia stood next to him. If he opened the door wide enough she could slip past. But he blocked the door with his body. Panic clutched her heart. Once he pulled her from the Blight, no telling what he might do. She grabbed his Blight echo and jerked it away. It didn't resist. The body collapsed in a heap against a couch.
Alexia dashed into the hall and looked both ways. The hallway dead-ended to her left. Andre abruptly reappeared in the doorway, tendrils rushing from his head down the hall. He was summoning help. An executor stood guard outside the door. Marissa was leaning against the wall opposite him. She was looking at Andre with alarm.
Without another glance, Alexia ran in the only direction she could. She passed a large kitchen, filthy and rancid smelling in the Blight, a room full of decaying bunk beds, and a game room complete with pool tables, darts, and video games all in states of Blight-induced disrepair. A T-junction intersected the hall. Voices sounded from ahead. It could be seekers. If they were already in the Blight, they'd see her. She hooked left. In seconds, she'd reached a metal door at the end. She flung it open and almost cried.
A corridor of cracked concrete floors and corrosion-laced metal doors greeted her. She was in some sort of dungeon. No turning back now. The seekers would realize she'd come this way any moment. Maybe there was a back door. She laughed without humor at her overly optimistic thought. Most of the doors in the hallway hung open. She rounded a slight curve in the hall until the end was visible. There was no door, just a blank wall. A warped metal door lay in the center of the hall amidst chunks of concrete and dust.
She looked inside. A daunting titanium cage was bolted in the center of the floor. Two bars on the end had been bent. Beneath the bent bars, blood had pooled, darkened, and caked on the floor. Someone had crawled through the blood and tracked it to the door. Lucas? Had he been here? Had he escaped? Relief flooded her. A bubble of odd joy grew in her chest. If he'd escaped, then—then everything was all right. It meant he'd recovered from whatever Martin had done to his mind.
She felt such intense relief that for a moment her own jeopardy escaped her mind. It probably had to do with this new side of her that was awakening. The side of her that had seen the future. Lucas must be important. An image flashed into her mind. The Washington Monument. The figure atop it. Ghouls streaming from the sides of the National Mall, killing, stoning chum, and turning them into more ghouls. Was that Lucas atop the monument? Would he control the ghouls? Or would he stop them?
Uncertainty ruptured her bubble of joy. Someone moaned. Alexia jumped and stifled a scream. The moan had come from across the hall. The door there was closed and latched. She reached to open it, remembered she was in the Blight. If she entered, the door would reset and lock her inside. She switched to Normal and walked inside.
A figure lay bound in titanium chains on the floor. The chains were wrapped so tight in places, that the skin was raw. She gasped when she saw the face. Lucas. One side of his face had traces of dried blood. His ear was crooked. He must have tried to escape and been captured. She took his hand and Blight hopped across the room. The chains remained wrapped around him.
How had Anne-Marie freed Mikhail and the others from the chains? Was it a matter of concentrating on exactly how much you wanted to bring with you? She shifted them back to Normal and tried again. This time she focused on Lucas. Hopped. It still didn't work. Maybe the chains were too tight. There must be some trick to it she didn't know.
"Damn it." She examined the chains and noticed a thick padlock. Letting go of Lucas's hand, she took the padlock and held it at an angle so its loop didn't touch the chain. Hopped. She looked at the padlock and expected to see Lucas and the chains still attached to it. Instead, only the padlock remained in her hand. With a sigh of relief, she shifted back to Normal and unwrapped him from his metal cocoon.
He groaned every time she shifted him. They'd done something to knock him out. How much could one man take? That didn't concern Andre. He wanted Lucas dead. In all likelihood, only protocol had kept him from eliminating him outright. Andre didn't want his compatriots to know about his extra abilities. Didn't want them to know about his dark side. If he did away with Lucas without trial, even his loyalists might question him.
Then again, they might not. She couldn't rely on anything or anyone but herself to get out of this.
After freeing Lucas, she slapped him a few times. No response. She could carry him. That wouldn't work for long. Once the seekers checked the other hallways, they would come down this one. She remembered the sensations of Andre's emotions. Perhaps she could sense Lucas's emotions and determine if he was okay. She dropped her mental guards and opened up. A ravenous feeling assaulted her. Dry air choked her throat. Lucas was thirsty and starving. She ran her hands over his face and slapped his cheeks.
"Lucas, wake up. Wake up, please."
As she ran her hands over his forehead, something seemed to prick her palm. She jerked her hand away and examined it. Nothing. She felt his forehead again. A needle of pain stabbed her palm in the same spot. She checked his skin. Aside from being pale and dirty, nothing protruded from it. Had Andre done something to his mind? Alexia pressed her palms to his forehead. A warm flush rushed up her neck, through the top of her head and out. It felt similar to the tingle of her extra sense, only more controlled.
A window opened in her mind. Through it, she saw white. The view twisted and angled down. Now she saw hair. Her hair. The image was blurry. She squinted. The image sharpened. What was happening to her? Lucas appeared in the window. Alexia switched sight. Suddenly she understood. A glowing probe extended from her. It was curvy and looped. The tip was pointed at Lucas.
Somehow she was using an arbiter probe.
She willed the probe toward Lucas. It darted at his head like a laser. Alexia gasped. Lucas groaned. Thoughts, images, and emotions flooded through the probe and stormed into her mind, overwhelming her. Her head pounded. With a cry of pain, she jerked away. The probe disintegrated in a shower of sparks. Alexia's pulse slowed. Her head stopped throbbing. Weak relief flowed into her limbs. She didn't have a clue how to use probes. If she persisted, she might brain-damage the both of them. On the other hand, Andre would likely kill them both anyway. At worst, Andre would find two brain-damaged Scions drooling in his prison cell.
It took Alexia several tries to make another probe appear. They seemed to follow
the same path her tingle always had, up her spine. Was there a spot in the body these things emanated from? Maybe it was different for everyone. She wanted to practice extending the probe. Unfortunately, she didn't have the time. It responded to her mental commands by darting about like a hyperactive snake. The probe flicked into Lucas's head again. This time, she tried to shut the same mental gates that had kept Andre and Marissa out. The probe flickered like a florescent bulb. Its diameter constricted. But it remained.
A trickle of images entered Alexia's mind. She swept the probe across Lucas's forehead. The images and emotions changed as if flipping stations on a television. The probe was still moving too fast. She gritted her teeth. Willed the thing to slow down. After that it crawled across his head. The storm of emotions and imagery changed less frequently. It was still almost too much to process. Seconds dragged on. Her mind was filled with the noise from Lucas's thoughts and she feared someone could sneak up on her at any moment.
Frustration mounted and she had trouble guiding the probe. Where was that spot? She ran a hand over his forehead until something pricked her palm. She pressed her finger against the spot and felt the invisible point dig into her finger.
"Go there," she said, commanding her probe into place.
The probe zipped to the spot. A void replaced the onslaught of Lucas's memories. Alexia gasped. She hadn't expected that. Tracing her finger to the other side of the prickle, she directed the probe to follow. A jumble of memories appeared. She repeated the process on the other side and experienced the same thing. Thomas had given her some instruction on the workings of arbiters. They achieved mind-locks by preventing clusters of neurons from firing. Skilled arbiters knew exactly where to block the neurons for different effects.
Most Scions learned how to deter such attempts by a single arbiter. Lucas, of course, had never learned. Alexia had no idea how to correct such a thing. She'd been under the impression that an arbiter had to keep an active probe to mind-lock an individual. In this case, it was obvious that her probe was the only one in Lucas's head. Some arbiters apparently had ways of permanently affecting the neurons. How did they see the neurons, much less affect them?