by Reiter
“Lady Forlen,” Gantee called. “It would be unwise to expect fair-handed justice here. To the one that I was once proud to call my Vi-Prin, I answer your inquiry to the affirmative. I understand the proclamation as it was given to me.”
With the slightest of gestures, the restraints holding Gantee opened. “Then you are indeed free to go,” Danatra declared. “Beta-Elder, would you be so kind as to see our guests to their ship?” The Beta-Form of Elder came up through the floor before becoming solid.
“As you wish, Mistress.”
“How it is we received guests without any notice reaching me?” Danatra asked.
“They arrived in a Mal-Vin ship,” Elder advised. Danatra’s face registered no surprise and she simply nodded to acknowledge what had been said. Elder then went about the business for which he had been summoned.
As soon as her Vu-Prin was out of sight, Danatra teleported to her chambers. She moved quickly to the corner of the room where she kept the mat for her meditations. Sitting down and focusing her mind, the power gem that would allow her to amplify her ThoughtWill rose up from its resting position and started to glow.
Danatra was soon out of her body, floating through the walls of the constructs of The Campus. She eventually came to the hangar where she could see the Mal-Vin transport. The engines were already fired and it was ready to depart. Danatra allowed her mind to move among the uniformed men and women.
Most of the soldiers aboard the transport were guarded against telepathic scanning, save for one low-tiered engineer’s assistant. It was in his memory that Danatra was able to see a number of ranking Vinthur persons that had been present at the launch of the transport.
“It would seem that Talkurra has been replaced,” Danatra thought, recognizing the marking of the Grand Traveler on the shoulder of a male Vinthur. “Nugar will not be happy about that. Perhaps I should be about the business of finding her after I am done with this reading.
“But wait,” Danatra said, opening her eyes. She was in a very familiar room; it was a representation of her bedroom in her childhood home. She had created it because of the sentiment the trappings of the room gave her. This was the place where she and Dungias had created the Traveler. But she was not at ease to be here now; something had brought her here. She sighed, energy beams firing harmlessly through her body as she phased through the floor.
“We need a change of venue,” she declared, falling into a mental representation of the arena where Dungias had bested an Iro-Form Master. She landed on the sands dressed in her combat armour; her Bi-Blade in hand. “And you are very bold, approaching and attacking me inside my own mind!”
“You think that gives you an advantage?” a chorus of voices asked.
“Allow me to demonstrate,” Danatra said as the lights of the arena came up. Her uninvited guest was now easily seen, standing in the box the Z’Gunok had been invited to attend. Danatra’s eyes flared wide in shock. It was a Vinthur man, but not of the sort who was about to weave any type of incantation. She recognized the robes immediately; the chains worn to secure it around his body. “You’re Savanté!”
“So good to not be forgotten,” the man spoke, still sounding like a number of people. “Let us see if you can remember why you felt it necessary to hide from us!” A mind blast raced down to the arena floor, striking Danatra’s shield. She screamed as her defensive barrier was shattered.
Danatra’s head snapped back and she was back in her room, her assisting gem exploded. Shards cut into her skin and she rolled back off the mat. “That’s impossible!” she panted as she struggled to get up off the floor.
“Careful of such declarations, young one,” the man said, taking form in her room. He was unlike many of the Savanté, looking as if his appearance was something he relished and took time in maintaining. His hair was a bright gray with three yellow streaks on the left side of his head and one on the right. Large bronze eyes locked on her body and squinted as he came to his perspective. “Can it be that you have actually come to believe you know everything?
“Regardless, you were better off remaining in the arena, child. At least there you had armour!” The Vinthur man lunged forward, slashing his clawed hand for Danatra’s chest. She screamed as blood sprayed to the floor and wall. The door to her room burst open and Beta-Zeu Rex rushed in, drawing his sword and gun.
“Even the Founders will come to know fear!” the man proclaimed before he faded out of sight.
“Mistress!” the Beta-Form cried as he easily hurdled the large bed. He landed next to the weeping body and cringed at the sight of the wound. It was deep, and Zeu Rex wondered if he had arrived in time to save the sister of the Master of The Campus.
“Thank you for coming as quickly as you did,” Danatra said, walking from the far corner, sweating from her brow and temples, blood falling in small drops from her nose and left ear. Beta-Zeu Rex turned and looked at the figure at his feet and could see it beginning to fade. “It made for a more convincing performance.”
“To say the least,” Beta-Zeu Rex remarked, standing up. “You managed to fool me too.”
“I was only feeding into how badly he wanted to see me dying,” Danatra explained. “Empathic Augmentation. If I’m going to teach the class, it might be helpful to know something about it.”
“It might at that, Mistress. That thing looked and felt familiar.”
“I’m afraid it did, my friend,” Danatra said, taking a seat near the bed. “It was one of the Savanté. The one, in fact, who recruited me when I was a child. We knew that Dungias had not killed them all, but I was fairly certain that they would think better than making themselves known.
“And it would appear that they have created another Ulti-Mind,” Danatra added. “That Vinthur held the presence of a number of minds. I was able to trick it because it’s still young, inexperienced.
“Send Beta-Chiaro to the Queen and inform her of what has happened,” Danatra commanded, wiping her brow.
“And you, Mistress?” Beta-Zeu Rex asked.
“First, I am going to get my mate and look in on my Vu-Khan,” she answered. “Then we will be visiting the original Ulti-Mind. I will heed the lessons learned from this engagement. There are some facts I failed to gather, and I know of a very simple remedy to that position.”
** b *** t *** o *** r **
“I have to admit, I didn’t see that coming,” Reginald admitted.
“Before you get too deeply into it, I didn’t see it coming either,” Stewart shared.
“What?!”
“The trick for me is not to see it coming… but to expect it to come. You can go crazy trying to figure out how someone is thinking. Trust me, the cosmos is too packed full of idiots for that to be a worthwhile pursuit. No, I leave that for the Zen-type entities.”
“You mean, like Freund,” Reginald offered.
Stewart chuckled before leaning close toward Reginald. “Reggie, get this straight, when the know-it-all deities want to come off bad-ass and bright, they all go to their personal libraries and take down their Freund journals! Even the part of the anti-life that was inside me was pressed to keep up with him. He’s that bad!”
“And you?”
“Don’t want it… don’t need it,” Stewart replied. “There’s a lot of good living to be found under that bar. Besides, look at what that kind of sentience costs Freund. The man doesn’t even sleep after getting laid! Don’t let the power levels fool you… I’m just coming into my sexual stride! Mind you, I know more about how to please a partner than most, but it’s all somebody else’s knowledge. Very little of it is first hand.”
“Very little of it?” Reginald asked. “Don’t you mean none of it?”
“One of these days I’ll have to tell you how me and Thao met,” Stewart said softly as he looked down into the settlement. “Right now we deal with this crap!” Reginald turned to look in the same direction. The landing craft had all touched down and the away-team personnel had been dispatched. A small army, apparent
ly privately financed, had waded through the small town, ransacking the place, overturning every object they could possibly move… all in an effort to find the very people who were watching them from their perches. “We spank a few deities. What do they do? They send these apes to deal with us!”
“Are they about done down there?” Specs asked as he returned his blaster to its holster.
“Just about,” Reginald estimated before looking at Stewart. “What’s the next play?”
“We wait for them to leave… and we tail them. Eventually they’ll either get to where they feel safe or they’ll try to commune while they’re in transit. Either way, we piggyback on that bridge and kick down the door to the pantheon.”
Thao put her hand on Stewart’s shoulder and leaned close to whisper in her ear. “Are you sure we’re ready for this?”
“If we’re not ready, there’s going to be a sharp decrease in our numbers,” Stewart said aloud. “We go, we make a run, we leave the stuff we’ve liberated from the other pantheons we’ve visited. Spreading those bread crumbs, we let nature take its course. Once the gods are at each other’s throats, we see what we can do about scattering their followers. It doesn’t solve the problem, but it sure as hell will cut down on the general entity population around here. The divine shit is getting thick!” Stewart turned to look at the young woman who had touched him. “It’s a good plan, Thao,” he assured. “I’m just glad we’re on the same side.”
“Okay,” Reginald announced. “They’re headed back to their ships.”
“Well done on the cover, Ethadior,” Stewart praised. “This shroud works like a charm. It sure feels better to be on the other side of its use, too.
“And while I’m thinking about it,” Stewart said to the Enacranite. “… while we’re running about trying to cause chaos, you take your team and make a bee-line for their dungeons.”
“My team?” Ethadior asked.
“Yeah,” Stewart replied. “Thao, give our lead SpellCasteR a few good people. Kaila, would you be so good as to go with him?”
“That I can do,” Kaila replied, eager to apply her skills to the matter. It was definitely a different feel with Thao composing the plans and Stewart taking the lead in the field. While she knew Freund respected her skills, he seemed hard pressed to put them into play. The new administration of the Dark Pawns showed no sign of hesitation or reconsideration. “Anything in particular that we’re looking for?”
“The enemy of my enemy is my friend,” Stewart said as he turned and crawled away from the edge of the overlook. “Anything that will add to the chaos.”
“You got it!” Kaila smiled.
“Let’s get ready to move, people,” Reggie commanded. “Quick and quiet. Looks like it’s going to be a high body-count night!”
** b *** t *** o *** r **
The data crystal shattered against the wall, but Ranmus was kept from shouting out in anger by the quick application of Shievel’s branches. The two continued to wrestle, falling to the floor. Ranmus was not only stronger, he was also the better combatant. But Shievel was not trying to pin his lord as much as keep him silent.
“Keep your voice down!” he insisted. “We are still in mourning! If Blackwood hears you she could delay your coronation!” The last three words of the warning registered and Ranmus, who was now nearly straddling his friend, relented. Shievel removed his branches and braced to receive Ranmus’ anger. As Ranmus stood up, he lifted Shievel from the floor and patted his bark.
“Be at ease, my friend,” he said softly as the doors to the chambers opened. Marjoram Blackwood walked into the chamber with one hand on her blade.
“Prince Ranmus, I heard a disturbance.”
“Indeed you did, noted wotree,” Ranmus said, waving off her concerns. “You would call it a break from discipline. A few of my possessions were forced to receive my fury.”
“A truth,” Marjoram thought, listening to her senses. “He’s learning, but still very slowly. The shards on the floor are of a data crystal, and the Prince is not fond of reading. And it feels of blood and bone, not root and soil. His Majesty has received news that he did not like, but that is all I can fathom at this moment.
“I would consider it the way of the woode, my Prince,” she returned. “We mourn in our own fashion. I will leave you to yours while I wrestle with my own.” Marjoram bowed, backing out of the room.
“I have a cure for my woes,” Ranmus hissed, “… the removal of each of her life-roots, one by one!”
“Perhaps I can offer a remedy, my Prince and soon-to-be King,” Shievel spoke softly. “There is a reason why our agent is able to deliver these messages so easily among our people. He works with a seer. She is one of the flesh that has been allowed to live in our kingdom. According to our agent, she has pressing news that she needs to give you directly. She foresaw the shortcomings of the Xanthousarans of the Calcite Barony.”
“Damn shape-changers!” Ranmus spat, but Shievel pressed on.
“She knew their hand would be discovered by the Governor of Black Gate, forcing them to withdraw from our campaign. That is why she says she must meet with you.”
“Why?!”
“She will not say to me or our agent,” Shievel quickly replied. “She insists on speaking with you and you alone.”
“Then set a meeting inside the falls,” Ranmus commanded. “I will see what this flesh-worm has to say, and if it is not to my liking, we will see if she will predict the end of her time among the living!”
Trust is hard to come by. That’s why my circle is small and tight. I’m kind of funny about making new friends.
Eminem
(Rims Time: XII-4203.21)
“But was it worth what you had to go through?” Quordion asked as he stood on the lip of the landing pad with his entourage. “Was it worth the risk you assumed?”
“To give you vision, Quord?” Thandace returned as she ran her hand over Teo’s head. “What would I not do to help you?!”
Quordion Orgen sighed and looked at the clouds in the clear orange sky. It was a beautiful morning, and with the twenty-nine hours it had been since his communiqué with the present owner of the Prism Passion, his strength was mostly returned to him. “That is a question best not answered aloud, little sister.”
“My Baron!” a soldier shouted out as he approached from inside the mansion. Thandace closed her eyes and moaned in pain from the sudden increase in volume.
“Comm Officer, come forward, please,” Quordion said, waving the man forward. With the numbers of the baronial militia at the lowest he had ever seen, it was good to see a citizen in uniform and filled with pride in the service they dedicated to the Onyx Barony. “What is it that has you so excited?”
“This, my Baron,” the man said, handing Quordion a data pad. Quordion looked at the readout and found reason to frown.
“What is it?” Thandace inquired.
“A ship,” Quordion said softly as he continued to look at the pad and key in commands. “A small and very fast shuttle, actually. It’s entering the atmosphere off your left shoulder, sister.”
Thandace turned and lifted her head to see a fireball streaking through the orange sky. “Very fast,” she remarked. “It’s burning nearly white hot.”
“Heat shielding seems to be the least of its abilities,” Quordion added. “We had no reading of it thirty seconds ago. It appeared inside the patrol perimeter.” Quordion keyed in one more command and once he read the readout, he handed the data pad back to the anxious officer. “Calm down, Officer, and don’t bother scanning the immediate area. You won’t find anything.”
“But–”
“Look at the fire readings on the engines of that craft, Officer,” Quordion suggested. “You’ll find that the low-ion cells have nearly burned off. It takes a few moments after launch for that to occur. That ship did not just launch from a larger ship we cannot see, the shuttle itself just deactivated whatever it uses to be undetectable.”
“Given
the speed it’s traveling at, it was going to be seen eventually,” Thandace added.
“Precisely,” Quordion said, turning to face the approaching spacecraft. “And according to the scans we are able to run, the only thing that ship is giving off is non-specific EnerJa.”
“You mean it’s a machine that’s doing it?!” Thandace asked, greatly surprised to hear it.
“So it would seem,” Quordion replied. “A machine unlike anything we’ve seen before.”
“I think I am beginning to understand this woman’s swagger,” Thandace commented before realizing what she had said. Teo chirped a warning as well. “Provided it is her,” the young woman tried to add quickly.
“Your fore-knowledge has already been unveiled, sister,” Quordion smiled as he took a step toward the landing pad. “But do not worry, I will not go against the pacts we have made with the sceadu. Remember that I am also their servant, though not to the same depths as your service. I would ask simply that you keep your transformations to those forms which are not as demanding as the Songstress.”
“Your request does not fall on deaf ears, my Baron,” Thandace said with a smile forming on her face. “Just as your sentiment is not received by a stone heart.”
“My, what a poetic way to say ‘fat chance’,” Quordion replied, and Thandace broke form as she laughed out loud, grabbing his shoulder so that she could remain standing. A warm smile broke across Quordion’s face as he looked over his shoulder. Thandace composed herself and lifted her eyes to look into Quordion’s. She squeezed his shoulder before releasing it, and he nodded. Every word of affection and love was conveyed in an instant, and they both returned to their more stately statures, facing forward.
The Xara-Mansura lander-shuttle passed through the environmental shields and touched down on the landing pad. The side door opened as the gangplank extended to the ground. Jocasta stepped out of the ship, using her cane and followed closely by Cilrus Cliye as they both looked at the reception party. She was expecting more pomp, but as she looked at the estate, the pirate could see it had been built with defense in mind more than lavish comfort. Anything in the way of frills looked to be additions on top of the superstructure.