“Are you kidding? After what you just did to me? You can do that whenever you want.”
“Could you feel what I was feeling before or is that new? Have you tried to talk to me in my head before?”
“It’s new. Part of the bond. Can’t you feel it? Concentrate.”
The humming he felt around her was stronger. Ever since the night before, where they touched was a mixture of confusion. It was like being too hot and too cold at the same time. Now, there was an electricity, but the temperature where their skin touched was normal. It wasn’t like his fire and her ice were raging out of control. He didn’t know if that meant he was getting control over ice and her fire or if they were just becoming immune to each other’s gifts.
“You feel confused, Elan. We should visit Tati tomorrow if we’re not needed. I can sense her now, stronger than when she was outside the cabin. I could find her in her area of the forest now. I know she’s far away, but can you feel Soelva?”
“If you can’t feel her, then I won’t be able to.”
“But I can feel her. We’re just too far away to speak. I know she’s in the mountains with the other Qunelopes. She’s feeling the changes happening with me and I think she can sense you like Tati and I can sense each other.”
“Isolde, it’s different for me than it is with you and Tati. I’ve no idea what Soelva looks like and I’ve never been to Avala.”
“Tati is like an additional layer to you I can sense, but different than you.”
“Is it cold in Avala now?”
“Yes. It’s winter. The deep freeze. The Qunelope don’t hibernate like the other bears. The cold doesn’t affect them as much.”
“When we touch, I feel you now. But if I try to dig deeper into what I’m coming to know as the bond, I sense something fierce and cold.”
She laughed. “That’s her. She has quite the sarcastic streak.”
“Some of that rubbed off on you, my love. This may give you peace. Tati and I talked while she carried you in the tunnels. All of our bond animals will come to Ragnis Crystal with us.”
“Really?” she asked, sitting up. “Soelva never said anything. I always assumed she would stay behind because she wanted to. You mean I got to ride on Tati and I wasn’t even conscious to enjoy it?”
He yanked her back down to him to the sounds of her musical laughter. “She’ll do it again if you really want to. We should send for food. Bonding with you makes me hungry.”
“Same here. Do you have any more curry dishes for me to try?”
“I have just the thing. Then, I’m bringing you straight to bed. I want to use my tongue this time.”
Chapter 18
Fjola had a huge mess on her hands since Sartika called the day before. She’d already raised Jovin on COMM and told him to get his ass back. He tried to pomp and bluster and she just informed him she knew exactly what he had been doing the last eighteen years and where Isolde was. She ordered him to save all his questions until he got back.
She also woke up to a miracle. It was almost the end of winter, but the ice hadn’t started melting yet. Usually, by this time, they were rationing water and boiling melted snow. She woke up to a report the waters in the reservoir tanks haven’t gone bad yet and their drones had picked up a place to drill underground for fresh water. The drones had scouted the entire surface numerous times and not picked up any fresh reserves. She gave the go-ahead to drill.
She already knew most of the Avalian military were faction and for that, she was grateful. She had no idea what Sartika was doing that her military had defected. She’d already given the order for a large team of faction members to raid the slave quarters. She was waiting on Sartika’s call, Viljar to report back, and Jovin to come home.
Fjola and Sartika finally spoke after about ten minutes of pacing. “What’s going on?” she demanded. Sartika was supposed to have given Isolde a COMM so that they could talk, but so far, she hadn’t been on it or tried to talk to her. It hurt, but she understood why. Sartika had only told her what she intended to do after she got off COMM with her. They hadn’t spoken since.
“Commander Ace is on board. I think I might have blown his mind a bit. He’s insisting on meeting with Elan and Isolde, but I told him to wait a little while in the morning. Something is going on with those two. I suspected yesterday, but I’m sure now. Ace came to see me before I went to bed. There were reports the swarms in the lower districts just sort of fell from the sky dead. They’re still bad around the palace and the capital, but most of the lower districts seem to be pest free.”
“Interesting. We found a water source. What do you think it means for the alliance?”
“Elan’s bond animal can sense her. The two of them are smart. They’ll seek Tati for answers again.”
“Do they have time for that?” Fjola snapped. “You’ve got a cult on your hands.”
“So do you,” Sartika reminded her. “Our sixteen will learn on them. Are the rest of your sixteen as advanced as Isolde?” Sartika saw the look Fjola was giving her. She wasn’t sure if she should trust her with that information. “Because ours aren’t. Isolde and Elan are the strongest here and they need to be getting to know each other, not focusing on this. The rest of your sixteen can learn like ours are.”
“The rest aren’t like her,” Fjola admitted. “She had better access to people to train on because she’s going to be queen. We only have one who can sort of get into someone’s head like Isolde can. Isolde, she can plant suggestions. She can sway your opinion one way or another, but it’s not very strong. Finn can sort of switch minds with someone and get what we need. Then, Alva can come in. Alva will be more dangerous than Isolde and Finn once she’s trained. She can manipulate your memories.
“So, if we want our slaves to forget ever being in The Children of Fia, Alva can do that. She can change their entire childhood. She can make them forget they had the COMMs we will take away and that they ever wanted to steal Avalian tech. Isolde dislikes the fact that we have slaves. She may react badly if you hurt them or I mistreat them. We don’t burn people here like you do.”
Fjola found that savage when Sartika told her about it. She was pretty sure Isolde wouldn’t like it either and would do away with it. The Cendians burned for most crimes. They didn’t differentiate between theft and murder. Everything was the same and carried the same sentence. Sartika already knew they didn’t. They’d had this conversation before. It was a long conversation over COMM when Isolde and Elan were only two.
The Avalians gave second and third chances. If the crime wasn’t major, they put a tracker similar to the ones used in the military behind the ear. If another offense was committed, a camera was implanted in their iris. It was only on the third offense they were thrown into a cell. Most people cleaned up after the tracker and there wasn’t much crime on Avala. Apparently, they should have been watching the slaves closer.
“None of us were able to ask Isolde or Elan what sort of punishment they thought fit the crime. Isolde can steal thoughts longer with Elan touching her, but she still fainted and he had to carry her away. You know both of them might do away with both planet’s forms of punishment. This Alva, does she faint like Isolde does when she works?”
“Viljar and I figured that out already. Elan doesn’t get tired, correct? The ones with defensive skills don’t get tired or faint. The ones you could use in battle aren’t weakened by using it to fight. Those like Isolde and Alva, they are fine in battle using ice, but if they have to share a mind with someone, they need to rest. Alva has learned this, Isolde has not.”
“Isolde got everything we needed from Hikmat with Elan. Isolde said something to one of our sixteen, Nia. She thinks Nia has a mate among your sixteen. Maybe Isolde and Elan aren’t the only ones to bond, it’s just the others isn’t as strong as theirs.”
“Perhaps. From what you’ve told me, we have the right numbers for them to all pair up. We can’t announce anything until Isolde and Elan have completed their bond and we know
what it does. I hear Viljar ringing.”
Viljar always rang and walked in. She had already had him programmed into her retinal scanner, but he wasn’t this time. Curious. She walked over and opened the door a crack just in case it wasn’t him. Viljar was standing there with an impatient Jovin behind him. She let them both in. When Sartika saw them both on COMM she launched into Jovin about beating her.
“What the bloody hell is going on?” Jovin exploded. “Spies in our slaves, Fjola knew this entire time, Elan’s mother was in on everything!”
“Hush, Jovin,” Fjola clucked. “You can’t really think I wouldn’t know she was special. I knew everything you were doing with her.”
Jovin took it better than she hoped. Better than Sartika told her Botak took it. He collapsed on the sleek chaise. “So, why tell me now? We’ve been planning the story that she’s missing in the mountains for decades. If you try to tell people she’s on Cendis, our people will want to attack.”
“That story has changed. Someone on Avala has searched Isolde’s chambers for earth relics she found hunting and she’s gone missing.”
“And the slaves?”
“Already rounded up. If the faction doesn’t get anything, Finn will. Surely, you didn’t think Isolde was the only one who could do that?” Viljar asked with an eyebrow cocked.
“How is Isolde? She doesn’t need to be cavorting around catching spies, she needs to be bonding with that boy. He hasn’t figured out where it goes yet?”
Sartika hissed and Fjola let her hand dart out and smack the back of his head. “Stop speaking until you know what you’re talking about. The real Elan is not like what you were told. The real Elan is more like her. We made a mistake letting her believe that lie. The bond is not like how we thought. They won’t talk about it, but we think it’s already started.”
Sartika took over and explained swarms were starting to die off and Fjola explained the large water spring found by drone. Jovin looked like he had a million questions, but they didn’t give him a chance to ask them. Fjola didn’t know if Alva’s gift was so fine-tuned yet that she could go in and remove everything about The Children of Fia and leave everything they knew about their masters and duties.
Jovin reminded them Isolde had already said several times growing up that they would be freed when she was queen and no one would ever be a slave again. Fjola was starting to think he was pretty dense.
“She said she would free them before we found out they were part of this cult.”
“Well, has anyone asked Isolde and Elan what we are supposed to do with them once we have them rounded up? Once you’ve gotten everything from them? Are we supposed to send them back to their masters? What kind of race are we if Alva takes all their memories except those of enjoying being here? Of being happy being a slave?” Jovin argued.
Fjola sighed. Jovin was right. Fjola was still regent here and her word was law, but Isolde was old enough to rule now. She was going to have to face her sometime. She met Sartika’s eyes over the screen of the COMM. Elan yelled, but had forgiven her. Isolde hadn’t reached out since she was given a COMM to contact home. Fjola hadn’t tried to contact her because she was letting her come to terms with it in her own time and she didn’t want to distract her with everything going on at Cendis.
“You’re going to have to face her sometime, Fjola,” Sartika said gently. “Don’t blindside her and let her think it’s me calling.”
It was still early on Cendis, but Sartika was always up with the sun for this call. She punched in the code she was given for Elan and Isolde’s COMM. She had it memorized and had started to dial it several times and stopped herself. It rang through unanswered the first time. Fjola’s heart was beating in her ears. Did Isolde hate her so much she wouldn’t even answer the COMM with everything going on?
She let out the breath she was holding when her COMM vibrated in her hand. Either Elan was calling back or they simply hadn’t gotten to it in time to answer. The screen lit up and split with Sartika on one side and Elan and Isolde on the other. She was surprised to see Elan and Isolde in silk robes in bed together. Elan had his back against the carved wooden headboard and Isolde was wrapped around his chest. They were both obviously naked under their robes.
“Before anyone asks again, we haven’t completed the bond,” Isolde snapped. Elan tightened his arm around her and kissed the top of her head. Maybe not, but they had done something. She didn’t even bother looking at the COMM until Jovin mentioned the water they found.
“Swarms died off in certain areas here too,” Sartika pointed out. “Whatever you are doing, you’re on the right track.”
“Did all of you call to rush us?” Elan asked. This was the first time Fjola had seen him or heard him speak. He looked like a god and had a voice like velvet. She wondered if the other Cendian sixteen looked like him. She was glad he paired with Isolde and she seemed to be close to him in the few days since she got there.
“No, Elan,” Viljar said. Fjola was glad Viljar spoke and not Jovin. Jovin still didn’t understand everything. “Whatever you are doing, keep doing it. You’re both going to be ruling soon. We need to know what you want us to do with the rebel Avalian slaves.”
Elan and Isolde exchanged looks. “What are the options? Have you questioned them?” Isolde asked.
Viljar explained there were either faction members or Finn from the sixteen who could help with this. He’d hardly gotten started with what Alva could do when both Elan and Isolde said no at the same time.
“Not for the adults. Their children are innocent and will have a different future on Ragnis Crystal. We gave our new home a name last night. If Alva is going to mess with memories, give happy memories to the children and take away their bad memories. Let them know a better future is coming.”
Fjola had been told Elan was immune to Isolde’s mind gifts, but something must have gone on they weren’t talking about. “We've decided,” Elan said. “Question them and find out what they know. They are not on the same planet as Hikmat and the other Children. They’ve spent their entire lives on the bottom of the food chain. Find out what they’ve been taught and what indoctrination has been drilled into them. They might not know about Ragnis Crystal or the alliance. Find out what they believe, then give them another option.”
“Tell them on Ragnis Crystal, there will be no slaves,” Isolde continued. “Tell them Elan and I don’t know what will happen when we complete the bond. We don’t know if they will get their fire back when the bond is complete, but they won’t get it back doing what they are doing. If Fia took away their fire because they were being punished for the wars, they don’t get it back plotting against Avala. If there was a way to get their fire back through science, the Avalian scientists would have already figured out how to get our gifts back.”
“They’re fanatics, Isolde. You were in that man’s head,” Sartika argued.
“They are fanatics here on Cendis, Mother,” Elan pointed out. “They may just be desperate on Avala. Just find out the truth. If they’ve been blindly following Hikmat, enlighten them.”
“This is how you two want to play it? You’ve got armies of enemies on both planets and you want to talk to them?” Viljar asked. Fjola knew that tone of voice. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing and he was shooting daggers at Jovin because he thought he made Isolde weak. He was normally very proud of Isolde.
Isolde gave a chilling smile. “I said we are going to talk to the slaves on Avala just in case Hikmat wasn’t totally honest with what he knows. We never said anything about talking to Hikmat or members of The Children here on Cendis.”
Elan’s grin matched Isolde’s. “They want fire so badly and our sixteen has it. Let’s see how much they like our gifts up close.”
“Isolde, you’re on board with burning people?” Fjola asked, surprised. She just assumed Isolde would find it just as barbaric as she did.
“Elan doesn’t mean to burn them. We’re just going to frighten them a little. Burning is so perma
nent. A lifetime in a glass cell with nothing to think about but your failure is a fitter punishment. We think Hikmat and the others would consider it a gift from Fia to burn. They would think it would return them to her.”
She must be able to get into his head now. Fjola wondered why it didn’t work at first. She had no idea what they had been doing that all these changes had been happening. Sartika told her they were just supposed to be getting to know each other, but it seemed deeper than that.
“Is that it?” Isolde asked. “We’re supposed to go talk with Tati.”
“Isolde—” Fjola started.
“Later. In person,” she said, cutting her off.
This was the first time they had really spoken in her entire life and it was mostly plotting. Fjola really just wanted to explain everything to her, but it wasn’t the time.
At least she agreed to hear her out once they were all at Ragnis Crystal.
Chapter 19
Galih had never been in the presence of more than one of the sixteen at once. He had fifteen of them with him now along with Hikmat and Koswara. This was another faction safehouse, but bigger than the old, rickety wooden cabin they were in before. This one was the old ship that originally brought humans to Cendis. It had long been stripped of usable parts, but the solar chargers were still there, so it had power. People were too superstitious to go exploring in it anymore. He was glad he didn’t have to convince any of the fifteen with him it wasn’t cursed. They all went right in and started exploring.
They were all talking at once, excited about Isolde and Elan now that they knew. Something happened the night before. Galih felt it, but they felt it even stronger. Galih felt a huge adrenaline surge and the other fifteen felt it too. They were all saying they could sense something cold. Jaka had his head in the cloud as usual and kept swearing he was feeling the pull of his Avalian mate. Isolde told Nia her mate was waiting on Avala, so Jaka could have actually been right and they were all feeling something from Avala.
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