Daughter of Destiny

by HC Playa

  The usual two guards came into the room, but they went to his neighbor's cell instead of his. Metal whispered against metal as one of the guards drew his xaraq. A moment later they disappeared from view and Zane cringed at the sound of it slicing through flesh and bone. The two dull thuds that followed allowed him to picture the decapitation. His stomach cramped and his breath hitched at poor Arawn's death.

  Booted feet rang on the metal floor, stopping outside his cell. "Ready to beg for mercy?" a guard asked in accented Standard.

  Zane rolled over and lurched to his feet. "Kraghak te!" He refused to die lying on his back.

  "Even if your mate finds this base, by the time IGCF gets here, you will be dead. The Emperor will be sure to leave a message letting her know her actions hastened your death." The guard smirked with satisfaction and then punched the button on the emitter control panel, sending an immobilizing beam of energy at Zane.

  ***

  He awoke to a stinging and burning sensation in his forearm. He blinked blurry eyes until he could focus. A Goloth in a white coat, an incongruous sight in his mind, stood beside him pressing a hypospray to his skin. The doctor said something to the guard, but Zane couldn’t make it out, and then he left the room. He almost hoped the injection was a poison, but he had no such luck. The stimulant took effect and adrenaline flooded his system, multiplying the sensitivity of his senses.

  "Shit," he muttered. Killing him wasn't good enough. No, he had to be awake and aware for every second of torture.

  The guard took time to set up new equipment he hadn’t used before, so Zane took the opportunity to contact Katarina. "Katarina!"

  She answered him within seconds. "Again?"

  Zane closed his eyes and pictured Katarina’s face. "On the bright side, love, I’m fairly certain this will be the last time."

  "NO!!!" Her anguished denial echoed in his head and reverberated in his soul, but there was nothing he could do. He wished with his entire being he could spare her this pain.

  "You’ve got to hold on, Zane. I’ll do something. I just have to think. Shit. Shit. Shit. Now would be an excellent time for that goddamn faerie to pay another visit."

  The profanity told Zane just how upset she was, but otherwise he didn’t know what she was talking about. In fact, he was pretty sure she was talking to herself more than him.

  Already sensitized by the drug, his nerve endings screamed in agony when a laser whip sliced into his back. His body jerked and twitched trying to escape the pain.

  "Zane!"

  The drugs and pain made it difficult to concentrate. It took every ounce of will not to lose the connection to Katarina. "Promise me. Promise not to blame yourself."

  "Of course not. That bastard did this to you."

  "Mind games. Message. Don’t listen." Zane’s thoughts began to lose coherence, but he had to pass on the information about Karglock. "Earth. Karglock. Attack."

  "He’s going to attack Earth?"

  "Yes."

  The guard switched from the laser whip back to a laser beam. The pain burned a path down his body and it felt like fire consuming him both within and out. He summoned the last of his energy. "Goodbye, rahmali o mi." He let go of the connection, burying the link so deeply in his mind that no matter the temptation, he wouldn’t seek her out in his dying moments. Then he let the pain take him.

  ***

  "NO!!!"

  Commander Vrion raced through the ship with dread making his heart race. The blast of psychic energy pulled him from a sound sleep. Anguish that deep could only mean her husband was dead. He halted at the end of the corridor and stared. He didn’t know what he expected, but it certainly wasn't to see her standing calmly in front of a computer.

  "Mrs. Gratig?"

  "Doctor," she said as she continued to work on the computer terminal.

  "You need a doctor?"

  "My name is Dr. O'Brian. I haven't taken Zane's name yet."

  Holy Civa, she's lost it.

  He wavered on whether he should approach her or not. Bound telepaths could be dangerous to themselves and others when they lost the link to their spouse. He debated calling Driglock to assist him, but feared that the quizark would only make matters worse.

  "Commander?"

  Vrion startled at the sound of Driglock's voice and then realized it was his comm. "What?"

  "The human woman just sent an unauthorized message to Earth."

  Great. "Thank you, Private. Vrion out."

  "Dr. O'Brian?"

  "Karglock is going to attack Earth. I just sent a warning and a download of all files pertaining to the Goloths."

  "You did what?"

  She ignored him, stepped away from the computer, and walked to the middle of the room.

  "What are you doing?"

  "I’m going to shift space."

  "What?" He felt like a vid loop stuck on replay, spitting variations of that single question out.

  "Can you shut up for a minute? I’m trying to focus."

  Commander Vrion watched her stand there for a full three minutes before he dared ask another question. "Is Captain Gratig dead?"

  "NO," she spat the word with feral intensity. "And if you stop distracting me, I could concentrate on getting him out of there. I’m going to try something I’ve only heard about, but theoretically it should work if a person has enough power." Commander Vrion opened his mouth and she raised a hand to silence him. "I’ve almost got a clear image of where he’s at."

  "Why --" Commander Vrion broke off his next question when she opened her eyes and glared at him. He swallowed. Her eyes swirled with an iridescent otherworldly light. Shock kept him rooted to the spot when instinct told him to flee the creature in front of him.

  "Are you willing to help me?"

  "What?"

  "Will you help me rescue Zane?"

  Even with the weird eyes, he didn’t see how she was going to do that. No one deserved to have a loved one taken. Hoping it would calm her, he answered, "I’d very much like to help you." He forced himself not to back up when she approached and put a hand on his shoulder.

  "God I hope this works," she said just before everything dissolved around him.

  Chapter 14

  Robert sat hunched over the MPC with diagnostic equipment and an interface. He muttered to himself, "Now, if I just connect this here…no, maybe here…." The little computer beeped and a quiet mechanical voice said, "Incoming message." It startled Robert and he bobbled his interface, dropping it on the floor.

  "Damn it!" Robert exclaimed as he bent over and retrieved his instrument from the floor. "Robert, you’d better not be messing with that thing!"

  Surprised by Naia's sudden entrance, he misjudged and banged his head on the table. "Oww! Damn it, woman, don’t you know how to knock?" Rubbing his head, he put the interface back on the worktable. "I’m a computer engineer, Naia. I think I can analyze a piece of equipment without breaking it."

  "I know. I know. Sorry. I trust you, Robert, but it’s not something we can afford to mess with. What if you mess something up and it causes us to miss a message, or--"

  Robert interrupted, " --Speaking of which, I believe Katarina just sent us our first intergalactic email." Naia rushed forward to grab the computer, but Robert snatched her around the waist and pulled her into his lap. "Ah, ah, ah. I think you need to express more concern when your dear husband is injured." Robert pouted and then planted kisses on her neck and bosom.

  "Robert!" Naia squealed. She squirmed in his lap, giggling. She grabbed his head and planted a smacking kiss on top. "There I kissed the boo-boo. We can play doctor later. Now, let’s see what Katarina sent us. I can’t believe you aren’t as eager to see the message as I am."

  "Yes, but how I feel about galactic events pales in comparison to how I feel when you are in my arms."

  "I love you, too, sweetheart." She gave him a light kiss. "Now, please?"

  "Okay. Here, lean to the side a bit so I can see around you." He followed Naia's instruction
s to retrieve the message. The two of them read the message together and their playful mood vanished. "Shit!" Robert said.

  Naia clutched him tighter. "God help us."

  Robert set the computer down and hugged his wife close. "We’ll do what we can, and hope to God Kat’s able to send some cavalry. We need to pick out the most convincing information in here and decide on a plan of action. What do you think? Who should we go to, the press or the government?"

  "We’d never get a foot in the door of any government agency in time to do anything. Hell, the locations of all the important ones are top secret. We go to the press, and a legitimate outfit, not the ones that report nothing but celebrity gossip and fake alien sightings. We’ll need a panel of respected scientific minds to verify the data’s authenticity as well."

  "That’s what we’ll do then. How about you work up a list of scientists, and I’ll go through the data."

  Naia slipped off his lap and went to her own computer. Robert let out a shaky breath. It was going to take a miracle to convince a planet overnight that not only did aliens exist, but that they were about to get a very unfriendly visit.

  ***

  Katarina ignored the vast amount of space she needed to conquer. She let go of her human need to orient herself to a fixed time and place. If the Fae could go anywhere at will, why couldn't she? Locking on to Zane proved the most difficult because he'd blocked her. Instead of barreling through the barriers he put into place, which would take less time but cause him more pain, she called to his subconscious. As she hoped, he answered her. Katarina allowed her mental avatar a small smile of triumph. She and Zane connected far deeper than at conscious level. Their subconscious minds consistently sought the comfort of each other’s mental touch.

  Once in his mind, she flinched at the overwhelming pain. Zane’s retreated so deep inside his psyche nothing remained within reach but his link to her and instinct. She feared he might have gone too far inward, but at least it made it easier for her to utilize his senses for her purposes.

  She took possession of his body with her mind and pain poured into her, through her, consuming her, but the block she maintained around the infants remained strong. She endured long enough to establish a clear picture of where he was and then pulled back. Katarina focused her entire essence on being with Zane and willed her body and the Commander’s across the reaches of space.

  She left no room in her mind or soul for doubt. She would succeed. She had to. Seconds or minutes, she didn’t know, but one instant she stood in the middle of the small ship and the next a sense of simultaneous expansion and contraction. Different from the paralysis of the teleporter, she felt as if she could move, even though during the transition her body did not exist in physical form. Locked on to the image in her mind of the room in which she needed to materialize, a burst of energy swept through her and she became acutely aware of her body again. Blood rushed from her head at the increase in gravity and she swayed with dizziness. Her knees wobbled, but she locked them in place.

  A shout from across the room made her shake her head and focus. A Goloth twice her size aimed a weapon at her and reached out to hit a button on a wall panel. Beside her, Vrion fumbled for his weapon. Katarina flung her arm out and unleashed her fury on the monster that took such pleasure in torturing Zane. Bolt after bolt of energy flew past him, destroying his sadistic equipment. He attempted to dodge and she let a bolt slam into his chest. A part of her yearned to kill the monster that fell to the ground, but her conscious wouldn’t let her. She pulled back her hand. His chest still rose and fell. His fate belonged in the hands of whatever medical personal tended him once she left.

  Zane’s harsh wheezing breaths broke into her mind. She turned to Commander Vrion. "I need you to make sure no one comes in here, and if you can, find some medical supplies."

  Commander Vrion nodded and half walked, half stumbled toward the doorway.

  "Don’t let anyone see you!"

  Katarina turned to Zane. "Oh God," she breathed in an anguished whisper.

  Fury boiled inside her until she could no longer contain it. Lights flickered and sparks hissed and spat as comm terminals and equipment short circuited. Acrid smoke poisoned the air, making her cough. She closed her eyes and reigned in her emotions. Zane needed her. As she regained control, the lights ceased flickering. She opened her eyes and walked over to Zane. His body twitched and convulsed. Cuts and burns marred every inch of his skin. Blisters oozed blood and the sulfurous smell of burnt hair mixed with the smoke in the air. A few wisps of hair that managed to escape the lasers clung to matted blood on his swollen face.

  How the fuck am I supposed to get him down without hurting him more?

  Unable to look at him anymore without completely losing it, she turned her attention to the chains in which he hung suspended. "Damn!" More vicious curses echoed unsaid in her head. Designed to send the captive crashing to the floor as an extra measure of punishment, she could not lower him by herself.

  "Vrion!"

  A second later Vrion peeked around the door frame, "Yes?"

  "I need your help. I’ll release these chains. You catch him."

  As Commander Vrion got into place, Katarina did a quick scan of the surroundings with her mind, but sensed no one. "No one else is here?"

  "There's probably a skeleton crew in place, but from what I saw when I looked outside, they've evacuated."

  "Fuck." She took a deep breath, pushing her worry for Naia aside. She gripped the lever that released the chains. "Ready?"

  "Yes."

  "Now." She pulled the lever and Zane fell onto Commander Vrion. He grunted and stumbled.

  "Do I lay him on the ground?"

  "Then there’s no reason to stay here. We need the med bay on the ship."

  Before the commander could say anything in response, she put a hand on his shoulder again and the world dematerialized. She took them directly to the med bay on Vrion's ship. Their entrance triggered the medical droid's activation. Assisted by the droid, Commander Vrion placed Zane on a diagnostic table where the droid began diagnosis and treatment.

  No matter how many times Vrion or the droid suggested she leave, Katarina refused. She stood by Zane’s side for the full three hours it took the droid to stabilize Zane and complete treatment.

  "The patient will recover," the droid finally announced.

  Katarina’s shoulders sagged and her knees wobbled.

  "I have placed the patient under sedation while the nerve, muscle and dermal regenerators work. All visitors should leave now."

  Katarina opened her mouth to tell the droid where to go, but Commander Vrion placed a gentle hand on her arm. "He’s safe and sleeping now. You need your rest as well."

  She pulled her arm back as quickly as she could without appearing rude. In her weakened state her walls were iffy at best. Touching him might overwhelm her. Katarina ran her hand over her face and it trembled when she lowered it. She admitted to herself that sheer willpower kept her upright. "All right."

  Commander Vrion offered her an arm to lean on but she waved him off. He followed her to her bunk and after she sat down, he handed her a meal pack, already heated and opened for her.

  "Thank you."

  "You aren’t human."

  Katarina swallowed a bite a food and then laughed weakly. "I’m more human than you are."

  "I read the data brought back from Earth. There is very little difference physiologically or psychologically between Earth humans and humans from our portion of the galaxy. I don’t believe Captain Gratig or Lieutenant Plaswer falsified their reports. That means you have to be something else. Your telepathy, while explainable, is beyond phenomenal in power. Besides that, I have never seen human eyes turn luminescent like yours did earlier."

  Exhausted, she barely listened to the commander, but his last comment penetrated.

  "What did you say about my eyes?"

  "They glowed."

  "What color?"

  "They shifted through the enti
re visible spectrum."

  "Like father like daughter, I suppose."

  "What?"

  She sighed. "I'm tired, Commander. Can we discuss my odd genetics later?"

  "I apologize. Rest now. I need to send an update on what’s happened, anyway." He turned to go.

  "Commander."

  "Yes?" He paused at the door to the corridor.

  "Could you please hold off on that report?"

  "But--"

  "How about you let command know where the Goloth base was and that they’re headed for Earth. Give me some time with Zane, please."

  "I really should…" His gaze wandered down the corridor in the direction of the med bay. "I won't mention yet that we extracted Captain Gratig."

  ***

  The medical droid met Katarina at the door. "Greetings. How may I help you?"

  "How is he?"

  "I’ve decreased the sedative and provided intravenous nourishment. The patient’s vitals have improved, but he will remain unconscious for a while yet."

  Katarina walked around the droid so she could stand beside Zane. She ran a hand over the bristly new hair growth on his head. The skin underneath still looked bright pink, but no blisters remained. Deep bruising marred his face and shadows painted circles under his eyes, making them appear sunken. The skin not healing from burns had regained its normal color. She found such a spot on his cheek and pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead.

  "Is there a chair or something to sit on?" Katarina asked the droid.

  "No. Visitors are not allowed to stay with the patient."

  Katarina scowled and opened to her mouth to argue, but then the metal box like face reminded her that she might as well argue with her toaster.

  "Let me know if he wakes."

  "Affirmative."