Daughter of Destiny

by HC Playa

  A large portion of her anger melted at Katarina's confession. "Kat, even then I knew they didn't get how fucked in the head I was for quite some time. Still, they tried to do the right things. They sent me to counseling and made sure I knew I was safe and loved. What more could I ask for?"

  Katarina fisted her hands and turned away. "I hope they would have done that no matter what, but most days I can't convince myself of that. I made a bargain with Dad. If I wanted you safe and happy in our house, I kept my mouth shut and didn't use magic, ever. That promise killed any respect I had for him. Until the day they died, my biggest fear was that I'd fuck up and somehow he'd make you pay just to teach me a lesson."

  It hurt. She admitted that to herself. It disgusted her to know that the man she thought of as a father used one child's love for another to gain obedience. "I understand. The people you trusted the most betrayed you and while it hurts that you thought I might do the same, I get it. I've been in those shoes, Kat. More than you can imagine, I get it."

  "I'm sorry that I've been distant."

  "Distant? Girl, you've been as emotionally warm as freezer."

  Katarina winced. "Ouch. Okay, I deserved that."

  "Take off your coat. It's late. You can crash here tonight."

  "Yes, ma'am," Katarina said and executed a sloppy salute.

  Naia rolled her eyes, but inside she wanted to jump up and down and laugh. Her sister was back. "Any other deep dark secrets you want to confess before I go make us some hot chocolate?"

  "Well, according to the scan Zane did, I'm only half human."

  Wow. "Well, the lighting out of the hands thing isn't exactly a common human skill, so I can see that. What's the other half?"

  "Tuatha de Dannan."

  "As in faeries?"

  "Yep."

  "Now I'm impressed. So Mom not only found a faerie, she boinked him!"

  Katarina laughed. "Well, I'm pretty sure I ran into him once, and if that is the right one, I can't say I blame her." She paused in folding her jacket. "A faerie named Torin has been keeping tabs on me for years. He spoke to me tonight and gave me an address that my father frequents, but it's in Ireland. I'm not sure what to do."

  "Well, I'm going to make hot chocolate. If Robert hasn't gotten swallowed by the droid-thingy he's working on, we can get him to help figure out how to track down the other half of your genetic weirdness."

  Katarina flipped her the bird. "Weird? Have you looked in the mirror lately? I think a skittles rainbow collided with your hair."

  Naia laughed all the way to the kitchen.

  ***

  Katarina sighed as a giant weight lifted from her soul. She felt rather stupid after Naia's lecture. She should have known Naia would get to the meat of things and tell her what was what. It hurt knowing she blew the chance to reconcile with her mother, but the past was gone and dwelling on it accomplished nothing.

  She carried her coat to the coat tree and hung it on a vacant peg. She slipped off her low heels and flexed her arches. Then she bent and stretched as she made her way around the room. She felt like she had a couple of bowling balls strapped around her waist. Her taught skin loathed the dry air of autumn and by the end of the day every muscle in her torso complained. She didn't want to think about how uncomfortable she'd be by the time she reached full-term.

  Her hands on the small of her back, she stopped near the front window. Her lips curved in amusement as she looked around the room. The difference in style between her apartment and their home was about as different as vanilla pudding and a chocolate éclair. Everything was color coordinated and in sleek modern lines. Abstract art of both two and three-dimensional varieties decorated strategic locations throughout the room and charming bric-a-bracs filled every available surface. On the coffee table several electronic gadgets lay in various states of assembly, or maybe it was disassembly.

  Katarina eyed their newest art acquisition, a wire and plastic monstrosity that hung from the ceiling near the living room window. She shook her head at their unfortunate taste in art. She took a step toward the kitchen when an intense pain gripped her and she heard a scream, which she didn't realize came from her until her knees buckled beneath her and she collapsed to the living room floor gasping for breath. As quickly as it came, it vanished. Naia and Robert raced into the room.

  Katarina knelt on the floor shaken to her core. The pain did not come from her body. "Oh God, Zane!" Katarina gulped air faster and faster as she tried to rain in the sobs which fought to escape.

  Naia crouched down next to Katarina while Robert hovered nearby. She placed a gentle hand on her arm, "Kat what happened? What’s wrong? Are you okay? Are the twins okay?"

  Mention of the twins pulled Katarina out of her panic. She slowed her breathing and forced her body to calm, even as her mind screamed in panic. Katarina touched the infant minds linked to her. While too young for coherent thought they still experienced basic emotions. They didn’t understand pain or why she was so upset. She sent soothing thoughts and shielded them from her mind and her bond with Zane.

  Sheer will kept her from drowning in fear. Tears streamed down her face, but Katarina ignored them. "Something’s happened to Zane. I felt it through our link. And damn it, I’m helpless to do anything!" Katarina fisted her hands in frustration, willing Zane to be all right.

  "Link? What link? Can you block it out?" Naia asked.

  Katarina cleared her throat and ignored her embarrassment. "When Zane and I made love the first time, our psyches merged and forged a permanent link between us. We can always feel each other’s presence, and at times what the other person is thinking or feeling, no matter how far away. I can block my thoughts or emotions from him, and vice-versa, but I can’t block what comes through the link." As fear overwhelmed her again she gripped Naia’s arms. "Naia, I can’t lose him. I just can’t."

  Naia tightened her hold on Katarina and tugged her up off the floor. Katarina let them take her into the guest bedroom. Naia sat down beside her and stroked her hair back. Her eyes closed and she nearly managed to relax when her whole body jerked with spasms. Her breath came in ragged gasps.

  "Kat!” Naia gripped Katarina’s hand, but it didn't even measure against the pain flooding her body. "Concentrate on me. The pain isn’t real. It’s not your pain. You have to block it out. I know you can do it, Kat."

  It took every ounce of energy she could muster to concentrate through the fiery lances ripping through her, but she managed to divorce her mind from her body in the same way she did when in deep meditation. She transformed the pain into tangible waves that flowed around her, but not through her. In the back of her mind she registered her body relaxing and Naia’s grip on her hand gentling. She thought perhaps Naia said something more, but she couldn’t surface from the meditative state without sinking into the pain again. Her mental avatar moved toward the link to Zane. The pain ebbed and flowed like an ocean, which aided in maintaining the illusion of the waves flowing past her. She cast her thoughts into the link, "Zane, focus on me. I’m with you."

  "Katarina?"

  Her surprise when he answered nearly caused her to lose the intense connection. He sent mental flashes of memories; getting jumped on the streets of Brakenlu, being kidnapped, drugged, and the image of a serpentine man.

  Katarina didn’t know if it would work, but she sent what energy she could gather careening across the link. "Zane, hang on. Separate your mind from your body so that the pain doesn’t overwhelm you. Try, Zane."

  ***

  Zane absorbed the energy that pulsed outward from the link and used it to shut down his body, as if asleep, but resisted the pull into blackness by clinging to Katarina’s presence. His Goloth torturer believed he passed out and ended the session, leaving him suspended by the inflexible chains that held him immobile. Without the onslaught of new pain, he was able to speak telepathically.

  "I’ve always heard you, Katarina, but I never could project strongly enough."

  "Who is doing this to you?"


  "Karglock, self-proclaimed emperor of the Goloths. Remember my dream?"

  "Yes."

  "Goptamek was Karglock’s father. He plans to kill me to avenge his father's death, but he'll torture me first as entertainment." Zane paused, "Katarina, no one here even knows I’m in trouble. I'm sorry, rahmali o mi , but I won’t be coming home."

  "Zane! Don’t you dare give up! I’ll think of something. When you want to talk to me, focus every ounce of your being on our link."

  Her pain and desperation broke his heart, but hearing her voice again brought him peace. Weak, his hold on the link began to slip and he focused the remnants of his energy on asking what he wanted to know before he died, "Katarina, what do you plan to name the twins?"

  "If you agree, I’ve settled on Adrian Zane Gratig for our son and Colleen Marie Gratig for our daughter."

  "The names are beautiful" The swirl of joy, anger, and grief in his heart echoed the same emotions coming from Katarina.

  " Do you want to feel them?"

  "How?"

  "Just remain focused on me."

  He did as she instructed. Awe, and more love than he could contain spread through him to her when she linked all of them together. He clung to that peaceful bond full of love for as long as he could. Behind that link the echoes of her thoughts as Katarina wracked her brain for ways to help him, both comforted and tortured him. As darkness claimed him, he wanted to hope, but logic prevailed. He knew he was going to die.

  Chapter 12

  "Take that! And THAT!" Coran shouted. The first shot missed his VR opponent, but the second took him down. Just as he took aim at another villain, Katarina’s voice slammed into his brain.

  Coran ripped off the VR helmet, but he continued to hear Katarina’s voice in his head. Her faintly accented Truscan repeated over and over, "Zane is in trouble." Then after a minute, it stopped. Coran’s hands shook as he set the VR helmet down and got to his feet. He went over to his home computer. He searched for a ship registered to Zane Gratig and found one purchased four months ago. No departure logs matched Zane's registry and according to the computer the ship never left the hangar. With a little more finessing, he accessed the hangar's security system. The last deactivation recorded was dated just over a month ago. He spent an hour trying to find more information, but from all appearances, Zane vanished. If the ship were not still in the hangar, Coran would assume Zane returned to Earth, but he couldn't do that without a ship.

  Coran pushed his chair away from his desk and shook his head. He still couldn’t wrap his mind around the fact she contacted him telepathically from across the galaxy. Such things were not supposed to be possible. Considering Zane didn't flip out on the way back from Earth, their bond exceeded the strength of any recorded telepathic bond in history.

  He didn’t think Katarina would contact him unless Zane was in a life threatening situation. He needed to find Zane, and he couldn't do that alone. Coran grimaced as he leaned over and hit the one-touch button for ICGF headquarters on his comm. "Greetings. How may I help you today?"

  "This is Lieutenant Plaswer. I need an appointment with General Xu immediately."

  "Transferring to his admin." Lame music tried his patience for several minutes.

  "General Xu's office."

  "This is Lieutenant Plaswer. I need an appointment for today."

  "The general is out for the day. I can patch you through to his message service."

  "Listen, I know this is his day to play ricocet, but this is important." He held his breath. If push came to shove, he had data he could use to convince the secretary to see things his way, but he preferred to use those methods as last resort.

  She stayed silent a whole minute before asking, "You are sure this is important?"

  "Absolutely."

  "His ricocet partners cancelled. He's in his office for now. Get over here quickly and I'll buzz you in when you arrive."

  "Thank you, Miss Keku. I owe you."

  "Humph," was her reply before she broke the connection.

  ***

  Katarina reached over to wake Naia, who dozed in a chair beside the bed. Naia jerked awake the instant she touched her arm.

  "Robert!" Naia called and then proceeded to fuss with the blankets and pillows. Kat shooed her away.

  "You all right, Kat?" Robert asked as he came in.

  "I’m okay, but Zane isn’t. A Goloth terrorist kidnapped him. He’s being tortured and they plan to kill him." Her voice trembled as she spoke, but she managed not to burst into tears. Tears wouldn’t help Zane. She had to think. There had to be more she could do.

  "You got all of that telepathically!?"

  Katarina turned to snap at Robert, but she caught herself. Robert went out of his way to be nice, and offered sincere concern. "Yes."

  "You know we’re here for you." Naia squeezed her hand.

  The tears welled and threatened to spill, but Katarina took a deep breath and blinked them away. "I know, and I thank you." She looked at Robert. "Both of you."

  "You're family. It's what family does."

  Naia added, "You’re staying here tonight. I don’t think you should be by yourself."

  She gripped Naia’s hand in return. "I’ll take you up on that invitation. And Robert, I apologize for being bitchy."

  Robert leaned against the doorjamb and grinned. "Nah, that's okay. I knew you'd come around. I'm irresistible like that."

  Naia shook her head and rolled her eyes. Then she gave Katarina a hug before joining Robert in the doorway. "Let me know if you need me for anything. We’re just down the hall. G’night."

  "Night." Robert echoed Naia.

  "Night," Katarina said.

  Late though it was, Katarina's mind raced and sleep did not even enter her thoughts. She needed to contact Coran again. She believed she reached him. She sensed a flare of emotion just as she ceased broadcasting. If so, he needed more information to look for Zane. She sank into a meditative trance and focused on Coran's psychic signature. Contacting him took much more concentration than reaching Zane, but the more she did this, the easier it became.

  "Coran, it’s Kat. Karglock has Zane. Hurry Coran. He's going to kill him!"

  God in heaven, please let him hear me, she thought to herself after severing the brief connection.

  ***

  "I’m telling you sir, something isn’t right. Zane swore he would contact me and he hasn’t."

  "You barged in here for this? This isn’t an IGCF matter. File a report with Civil Enforcers."

  Coran fisted a hand at his side. Damn it. Searching for the words to convince the general, Katarina broke into his thoughts again. Her message made his stomach sink and his throat threaten to close.

  "Lieutenant! What in the galaxy is wrong with you?"

  Coran stopped staring into space and focused on General Xu. He swallowed, forcing his voice to work. "Would you change your mind about looking for Zane if I told you Karglock is responsible for his disappearance?"

  The general's lids half closed over his bulbous eyes. "Origin of information?"

  Coran hesitated and General Xu added, "Truth, Lieutenant. All of it. That is an order."

  Coran winced. If Kat was right, Zane’s life was on the line. If Katarina's right, I suppose the question I have to answer is would Zane rather die at Karglock's hands or IGCF's? Coran cleared his throat. "Well, sir, Zane’s wife is a telepath- a very powerful one. She and Zane are bonded. He was able to tell her who kidnapped him and then she contacted me."

  "Where is his wife? If they are linked, we can use her to pinpoint Karglock's location."

  At least IGCF won't torture him first. Coran cleared his throat again. "Uhm. Well, the thing is she’s uhm… on Earth." Coran steeled himself for the explosion he knew would come.

  "She’s where?!" General Xu boomed as he leaped from his chair. "Did you and Captain Gratig purposely leave out any mention of sensitives on Earth?”

  "No, sir! Katarina is an anomaly. Her DNA doesn't even r
egister as a hundred percent human, which must mean someone else has already visited Earth, right? The general populace is no more sensitive than humans over here."

  Coran expected Xu to call for his arrest, but instead the general sat down and thought before asking, "She’s on Earth, and yet she communicated with you, a non-sensitive, across an entire galaxy using mere telepathy? Very interesting."

  Uh-oh. "Sir," Coran interrupted the general’s musings. "Zane doesn’t have a lot of time. This could also be the break we’ve needed to finally crush the Goloth terrorist movement."

  "Yes." Then he repeated more emphatically, "Yes. We’ll use this woman to help find them. Give me her coordinates. The communications team setting up the cybernet relay is near Earth. They can extract her."

  Coran breathed a sigh of relief. The general’s fascination with Kat still worried him, but if she could handle Zane, surely she could handle an over inquisitive Glimera. "I’ll pull the coordinates from our mission records."

  "Do so."

  ***

  As Katarina walked down the hall to her apartment, putting one foot in front of the other took Herculean effort. Zane's exhaustion bled through the link adding to her own, but she took comfort in it, as it reassured her. As long as she felt him, he was alive. She stopped at her door and rummaged through her purse.

  "Where did I put that stupid thing?"

  Too short to peer over her shoulder, Naia poked her head around her. "Check your jacket pocket. I think I remember seeing you put the key remote in there."

  She put her hand in her pocket and sighed when she pulled out her key remote, along with a wad of tissues, a pen, one earring which wasn't even hers, and a ticket stub to a movie she and Zane saw. The last stole the breath from her lungs as emotion choked her, but she steeled herself and put it out of sight back into her pocket.