"You know..." Marjo smirked. "He's with Joss." She folded her hands before her, looking pleased with herself.
How little she knew about Joss's honor, or his friend. "I heard."
Chapter Thirty-nine
Halfway down the twisting trail to the pods, Pietas came upon a stubby, leafless tree. As he got closer, the thickest lower branch revealed itself to be a branch with a panther stretched out atop it, chin on paws. The majestic animal regarded him with supreme indifference, yet a clear challenge.
He halted, recognizing Tiklaus. As he would with any sentry, he maintained military protocol and kept his distance. The panther tribe deserved no less honor than any of his troops.
"Pietas, requesting permission to pass."
The cat gave him a serene blink and sniffed in his direction. The telepathic link they'd shared before re-engaged without effort. This time, a barrage of impressions flooded his mind.
Fight. Pain. Cage. Pain. Fight. Hunger. Thirst. Pain. Fight. Pain.
Pietas reeled under the psychic impact. He stumbled back and bent at the waist, sickened. These animals had endured cruelty beyond measure even before they'd been caged and shipped away as unwanted cargo. Their captors hadn't put them in stasis during transit. They'd been caged. Tormented. Ignored. Starved.
"Keep them hungry," echoed through his mind. One human had fed and watered them too little, too late. When he ventured too close to the cages, they took him down together, tore out the man's throat to silence him, ripped him apart, then dragged chunks of him through the bars of their cages and feasted. The connection was so strong between himself and the cat, Pietas smelled the blood, tasted the flesh.
He choked back bile. He, who had once bitten chunks off a hated, vile enemy.
For killing the human, the tribe had been punished the rest of the trip.
Pietas could count the means of death he feared on one hand. Being eaten by panthers went straight to the top. Not even an Ultra could come back from that. Perhaps consuming Ultras was what the tribe had been created to do.
Once on Sempervia, the panthers had been scattered, abandoned, each dropped in a different location and left to fend for itself. Tiklaus had been released in a forest near Pietas and Six.
The panther had watched him. Waited. The entire tribe had made its way here, to this place.
No. Not just here.
To him.
Why? How? He hadn't known he'd be here himself.
Through their connection, Tiklaus revealed an image of Pietas in a clearing, head back, arms outstretched, mouth open in a silent scream.
It had happened the night he'd learned the truth of how Ghost Corps made ghosts. Needing time alone, he'd stormed off into the trees and released a howl of empathic rage.
Unintentionally, he'd alerted his people he was near. Alive. Joss confessed later, "It woke us all up. Even across a mountain range. I think the whole world felt that."
The morning after, he'd encountered Tiklaus and they'd touched each other's minds for the first time. Panther and Ultra bonded.
That howl had alerted the other panthers as well.
Tiklaus, was the tribe sent here to eat Ultras? Or...me?
The connection shut. The panther rested one front paw over the other, somber and silent. It half-closed its green eyes.
Though his mind churned with possibilities and questions, Pietas accepted the decision not to answer. If there was one thing he understood, it was the importance of giving honor where it was due. Tiklaus had revealed much. This was not the time.
"Tiklaus, thank you for the service you and your kind have provided for my kind. I'm grateful. I do not take it for granted. Thank you for breakfast as well. That's two rabbits I owe you so far."
In one swift move, the panther rose and leaped down, landed on front feet and pushed off with the back ones. It loped toward him.
His heart hammered. As he did in battle, Pietas braced himself, stood his ground and refused to flinch. In an intuitive act of trust, he relaxed his warrior's stance, opened himself and dropped his hands at his sides.
Tiklaus halted before him, rose on hind legs and set both paws on his shoulders. It rubbed its nose along the side of his face, a pet happy to see him.
Pietas rubbed the cat's head and round ears. "You're huge at a distance. Up close you're monstrous. Scary monstrous." He gripped the animal's ruff. "But in a good way. I'm glad you're my friend."
The panther licked his face, dropped down to all fours and bumped into his legs. It hooked one paw around a knee and pulled.
Pietas tucked and rolled, ending on his back with the panther atop him.
Play. Chase. Tickle.
Pietas laughed. "You want to play!" He set his hands on either side of the panther's snout, leaned up and kissed the cat on the nose. "Biting is okay, but, mind you, no drawing blood." He rocked the animal's head back and forth.
Tiklaus rammed its nose up under Pietas's chin. The scratchy warmth of a wet tongue dragged along his jaw. The panther gave him two more licks and then pounced, nothing more than a kitten with a favorite toy.
It almost knocked the wind out of Pietas. He rolled in the dirt with Tiklaus, rubbing and tickling, hugging when he could manage to sneak an arm around the beast. The panther rolled onto him, which pulled one arm farther than he could move without pain. Pietas made no sound and did not pull back.
Tiklaus ceased all movement and sniffed his pained shoulder. The green-eyed gaze came to his.
"It's okay, my friend." He petted the panther. "I'm good."
Tiklaus went back to their rough play. More than once, the beast fixed its mighty jaws around his arm without pressure. It licked his hand and drew his thumb into its mouth, eyes closed like a suckling kitten. The intimacy triggered a connection.
Images, impressions, memories merged. In captivity, before the ship, a worker came every day with food. The man played. Scratched ears. Tickled. Pet. Chased. Aboard ship, isolated and in pain, Tiklaus longed for him. An image of the man's face hung before him, so clear, if they ever met, Pietas would recognize him. At the shared memory, tears filled his eyes.
Tiklaus released his hand.
He stroked the panther's face. "I will play with you every day. I promise."
Flipping onto its back, belly exposed, Tiklaus huffed twice.
"You want a belly rub." Laughing, he rubbed with one hand and stroked with the other.
Tiklaus lolled on its back, legs spread wide, the position trusting and submissive. The big cat sneezed and then rocked to its feet, shaking its head. Claws retracted, the panther batted at him, knocked Pietas onto his back and then flipped itself down beside him. Tiklaus wrapped its front legs around his arm and gnawed at it in gentle play while the hind feet kicked him without injury. Claws flashed, but did no harm.
Now I know how a chew toy feels. He blew out a breath.
When the panther draped itself over his chest, Pietas struggled to slide out from under but could not get up. The animal weighed less than he did, but with no visible effort, it kept Pietas from rising.
"I concede, my friend. You win."
The panther ignored him.
"Tiklaus, off."
Nothing.
"Off, please."
The panther yawned, opening a huge maw. Fangs flashed.
Pietas tried a signal that worked with sparring partners and asked for release by double-tapping the panther's side.
The cat stood at once and stepped over him. It shook from nose to tail, then sat and groomed itself.
He stood and brushed himself off. Standing beside Tiklaus, who reached him mid-thigh, Pietas took pride in knowing this sweet, playful cat was also the snarling ball of animal rage that had nailed Mahikos to the ground.
Pietas ensured no one was on the path in either direction before he knelt and scratched the cat's ears. "Who's a good kitty?"
The animal sneaked in a lick of his hand and face and flopped down on its back.
"My Tiklaus, that's who. Tiklaus is
a good kitty." He rubbed the smooth belly. "Yes, you are! Such a good, big kitty. You're my kitty, aren't you? Good, good kitty."
The panther accepted the attention, one paw twitching. After a moment, it stood and shook itself. A purring sound rumbled from its chest. It sat, licked one paw and added a lick of Pietas's face as well.
He chuckled. "Thank you for the bath." He hugged the panther's neck. "You have as soft a heart as I do but you don't show it either. Pact, my friend. I won't tell if you won't." He kissed Tiklaus on the nose.
The panther bumped its head against Pietas, then bounded to the tree and up it. It resumed a nonchalant pose, as if none of their boisterous play had happened.
After standing, Pietas brushed off dirt and shook it out of his hair. "Ugh. I need a shower. How I miss soap and towels."
The panther yawned, crossed one paw over the other and set its chin atop them. The serene gaze flicked over him, then away.
"Don't look so smug. A few licks and you're clean. I need a bit more."
Tiklaus emitted a low rumble. The animal came up on all fours again and leaped from the tree. The ruff around its neck bristled. This time, it jerked its head toward Pietas and took off in the direction of the pods.
He followed.
Two minutes down the trail, Tiklaus crouched, tail lashing.
Squatting beside the cat, Pietas studied the area ahead. "What is it?"
The panther took one slow, creeping step, then another.
Keeping low, Pietas followed. As they reached the curve where the trail led down to the pods, he and the panther both stopped.
A grating growl rumbled from Tiklaus. The sound ended in a threatening hiss.
At the bottom stood Helia, Dessy, Joss, and Six, engaged in conversation.
Sneaking around the pods behind them was Mahikos.
Chapter Forty
"You! Stop!"
Pietas? Helia whirled around, but as close to the pods as she was, the sound of his voice seemed to come from everywhere at once.
"If you move"-- he bellowed --"I will let the panthers eat you!"
He knew! Robbed of breath, she clutched her chest. Pietas knew she'd betrayed him. She'd bathed and scrubbed in the icy falls to remove Mahikos's scent, but Pretosia had smelled him on her and told the other panthers. How else could Pietas have known?
Pretosia crouched low, looking up, past her.
Helia shielded her eyes. Above, halfway up the cliff, standing with arms folded, stood her son. In the direct morning light, Pietas was a blazing tower. A flaming sword. A god of retribution.
"Hey! You!" Six yanked out a knife.
Helia stumbled in her haste to obey. Her daughter caught her.
Brandishing the knife, Six passed her. "Back off!"
"Who do you think you're talking to, human?" Mahikos beckoned to Six. "Let's finish what we started."
The presence of Mahikos meant her son had been speaking to his father, not her. Unbidden, tears coursed down Helia's cheeks. Pietas didn't know. If he knew, he'd stop her. She'd never be free.
Six squared off with Mahikos.
"Six, no!" He was no match for Mahikos. If her spouse slaughtered him, Pietas would never forgive her. He wouldn't keep her close. "Pretosia, help him! Protect!"
Her guardian let out a yowl and two panthers raced past them and flanked Six. Once ahead of him, they crept toward Mahikos, snapping and growling while he backed away, hands outward.
He yelled at her to call them off.
She clamped both hands over her ears.
Pietas shouted as he descended the steep trail.
Mahikos screamed back.
The panthers snarled and growled.
She jammed her hands harder over her ears. The heat beat down on her, sapping her strength. The world existed half a step away. Sound echoed. Bright spots blinded her. Helia closed her eyes, willing herself into the dark sanctuary of sleep. Hiding where no one could find her. A world where no terror dogged her days and no regrets haunted her dreams. A world where she lived free.
Dessy's alarm washed over Helia, but it was Six who caught her and guided her as she crumpled.
"Here. Sit down." Once Six seated her, he stayed close. "I won't touch you."
Pretosia sent up a howl that ended in short huffing barks. It sounded so alien Helia opened her eyes. The panther licked her face, then howled again.
Pietas and Mahikos shouted.
"Mother!" Dessy knelt beside her. "Are you sick?"
Joss joined them. "Helia, you're pasty white. Dessy, I can't read her at all."
The shouting match between Pietas and his father continued unabated.
Pretosia bumped its head under Helia's chin, whimpering and licking.
"Move, Pretosia!" Dessy shoved the panther aside.
The great cat snapped its jaws and snarled.
"All right!" Dessy scrambled back. "Don't bite me!"
Pretosia took up a position between Helia and Dessy. The cat's neck thickened and its fur stood on end.
Unable to speak, Helia clung to the animal's neck.
Making little whimpers, it licked her face.
Joss moved up behind Helia. "Take my hands, Dessy. Pretosia won't bite us. We're here to protect your mother." The two women wedged Helia and the cat between them.
Helia broke into tears as the warmth and quiet of Joss's shields rose around them. It locked out the torrent of hatred and contempt spiking between Pietas and his father.
While the fight raged above her, Helia slumped against her panther.
Pretosia gave two sharp huffs, more bark than growl. Helia felt the sound rather than heard it.
Within moments, another panther sat beside Helia. A third braced her other side. Pretosia leaned on her chest.
How unworthy she was of their devotion! She'd betrayed her son and he would soon know it. Pietas would sense it. He would know. He'd hate her.
"I'm as useless as a mortal!"
A look of insulted disbelief flickered in Six's eyes.
Helia covered her mouth. She hadn't meant to say those words aloud. Six had protected her and she'd insulted him.
He didn't speak, but the small shake of his head said everything.
"Mother." Pietas stooped beside her and placed one hand on her shoulder. "We need to talk."
Helia hid her face.
Chapter Forty-one
Pietas stood back and allowed Joss and Dessy to assist his mother to her feet. They dusted off her uniform and stood with her between them, arms around her.
Mahikos paced while two panthers eyed his every move. Tiklaus prowled back and forth near Pietas, chest rumbling, ears flat. Another panther touched noses with Tiklaus and then took up a place between the other two. Pretosia and two more panthers remained at Helia's side.
"Tiklaus."
Licking its chops, the panther turned and looked at him. A message came through their bond, not in words, but Pietas understood. Feast!
Oh, how he'd like to grant the panther a meal. But he must obey Ultra law.
Pietas squatted and the panther trotted to him. "He will be punished. Our kind must do other things first." He made sure Mahikos was watching before he continued. "If the sentence is death by panther, I promise, you get first bite."
Tiklaus sneezed and leveled a glare at Mahikos.
His father broadcast no emotion, but a twitch in the jaw revealed his fear.
Pietas rose and paced before his father. The man had returned--so he claimed--to offer a solution to the problem of releasing Ultras from the pods. Though Pietas had no faith that was true, he owed it to his people to listen.
"For now, Father, stay out of camp and away from the pods. I'll consider your offer but if you come back before I give you permission, I'll let these panthers eat you."
Mahikos puffed out his chest. "How dare you threaten me?"
"Not a threat. Promise." He touched the panther. "Tiklaus. Please tell your tribe to escort him away and keep him away."
The panth
er gave a low-pitched yip and the three panthers facing Mahikos advanced.
His father retreated.
"They won't eat you, Father, unless you refuse to leave."
Mahikos backed away, never taking his gaze off the panthers. When they didn't come closer, he turned and ran.
Pietas folded his arms and stayed until the man was out of sight.
Tiklaus slapped its tail back and forth on Pietas's legs. Their bond made the meaning clear.
"I know, my friend." He dropped down to one knee and stroked the panther's neck. "I'm sorry. I wish you could eat him too."
When Pietas returned to his mother's side, mixed emotions stuttered from her, reflecting confusion and exhaustion. She still wouldn't look at him. How like her to take on too much. The walk down here followed by the argument she'd witnessed had weakened her.
"I'm going to carry you." Pietas lifted her.
"No, put me down." She pushed against his chest. "I'm too heavy. I can walk."
"Mother, any lighter and you'd blow away in the wind." He carried her toward the steep incline. "Stop fussing. You overdid it, as usual. You're not walking up that hill."
"But--"
"Mother, I am not putting you down."
"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry!"
"Shh. It's not your fault. It's Father's."
Despite his assurances, his mother wept. When he'd been a child, he'd seen her cry many times. Then, he'd been powerless to comfort her, having no ability to intercede or protect. Now, at least he could wrap her in his arms.
Though she wasn't heavy, carrying her up the incline put pressure on his shoulders. His hands numbed and his arms screamed in agony.
He broadcast an illusion of himself as a healthy, vital man in his prime. Not the damaged shell he'd become.
Who would follow a king plagued by weakness?
Before his imprisonment, the task would have been trifling. Now, sweat trickled down his face.
"Pietas." His mother tapped his chest. "'We're at the top. Put me down. I can walk."
Bringer of Chaos Page 17