by Tim Kaiver
"What's going on in that head of yours, young man?" She reached out and ruffled his wet hair, reinforcing the older-sister vibe.
"You can't hear my thoughts?"
She wrinkled her brows. "No... not recently. Have you been trying?"
"Well, no, not really." Again, he broke eye contact and pretended to search the jungle behind her. The man she needed wouldn't let his guard down like this to talk about feelings. He checked her hands, which were clean enough, then her face. "We should keep moving. Are you ready?"
She smiled and let out an adorable laugh, as though he'd just invented a game to amuse her. The response reduced the tension in his chest and helped him smile in return. "I guess so." And just as quickly, her countenance fell and she glanced behind her. He read her concern this time. She was lost. Something had jammed their communication and thrown off their compasses, leaving their whole group to search for Fel Or'an by… what? Pure luck? "Schaefer, what's happened?" she thought.
Emmit telescoped out for his mom, taking in the sweet rhythm of bird calls, ticking of insects and the deep thrum of frogs as the forest lived around him. Somewhere, nowhere close, was his mom... and his dead friend's final resting place.
"Okay then," Sara said, and ducked inside a sideways Y formed by a fallen tree's trunk and branch.
Emmit rubbed Sprinkles's neck and stepped after her. He sensed his wolverine following behind. His mom's mental link remained nonexistent. Sara was afraid Emmit would die in her care, but there was more to that thought. There was another reason he couldn't quite read.
"Keep trying to reach your mom," she said. "You've already shown remarkable ability, and the shot I gave you should help more come alive now that your body has shown adaptation."
Emmit continued trying, driven by the fear that his mom could face the same fate as Adi.
25
"The Star General's son arrives," Willo announced from the far end of the cafeteria.
The rejects sank onto their benches, clearing a path to a petite blonde leaning against a door frame. She tucked a tablet under an arm and smiled as a doctor would to welcome a familiar patient. The look unnerved him. Adding to his discomfort were the tics exhibited by the rejects as he walked by. He hadn't noticed it in Scanis, but most of them struggled to keep their eyes still. The longer he watched, the more he understood the "failed experiment" label.
Willo shrugged as he walked up to her. "I'll take winning a war over a bit of social awkwardness." Lips tight as she smiled, she looked him over with confidence. "But it's not awkward once you're welcomed into the fold. I told you all to vocalize until we return to the field," she said to the silent group. "They don't like to talk out loud, but telepathy uses strength we ought to be conserving."
She extended a hand to shake with Cullen. He accepted with less enthusiasm, and a shock passed through as their hands met.
"Sorry," she said, and almost blushed as she looked down—possibly to hide a few eye twitches—and turned to signal they walk. "It's a small side effect of our treatments."
"Scanis mentioned an injection. Did you bring me here to make me a telepath?" It seemed like the next logical step. He scanned the group until he found Scanis, seated at a far table. She nodded in a way that said to go on.
"Not in the ultra sense," Willo said, stepping away slowly until he followed. As they left the cafeteria, the scent of sweaty bodies diminished, and he noticed that her hair and skin were recently washed. Her white lab coat was also clean, though spotted with old blood stains. "We've all learned from the mistake of rushing that process," she continued. "No. Not an ultra," she said, with a smile that made him feel like a child for asking, "but we do have an injection to enable easier communication when surrounded by those with ultra abilities."
"I've been able to communicate with you and Scanis, and..." He didn't know where to begin to summarize his experiences of the last half hour. He took a deep breath as Willo let him gather his thoughts, an eager grin waiting for his conclusion. "I already feel like we're... family." Well, maybe awkward cousins, but still family. "I've seen their time in cells, the experiments, how Scanis's ship was destroyed, pieces of her journey here."
"And Torek's betrayal."
"Yes."
"Good."
Cullen didn't associate good with that. They took a left turn as he picked up a scent of blood and the odor of a sterilizing liquid.
"So, you understand why we can't just play nice with Schaefer?"
He nodded.
"He, Ocia, Torek. Can't trust any of 'em," she said.
Cullen struggled with not trusting Torek. It just didn't feel right. Torek had saved his life so many times; their mission was one mission. He couldn't imagine a purpose that didn't include his good friend at his side. At least, that had been the case before he saw the conversation between Torek and Ocia.
Willo stopped. She looked displeased, as though his questions were slowing their progress. Then she nodded a gesture of respect. "You'll see, when we get to Fel Or'an, that Ocia doesn't intend to take you home. Their deal was to leave you here with Torek and wipe your memory while Ocia sells the Vijil coordinates to the Osuna in exchange for his wife and son. Schaefer doesn't know that, but I don't feel bad for him, that's for sure. He'll get his before they leave. If you want to bring all your people home, then you may need to cut off the arm that hinders you."
Her words didn't erase the pain of leaving his friend, but the greater mission for his people rang true. "Will you promise to leave Torek alone?"
She smiled. "We already have. We know you and value you. Even if I don't care about an Esune, I care about you and I'll cut that arm off to strengthen the grip we'll share."
She motioned him on as her thoughts directed his toward what she'd learned from Schaefer and how to make stable telepaths. She could return home with him as his ambassador to the courts for time served in exile. Returning with two hundred Rucien prisoners of war and a power that could aid their war with the Osuna could be enough to erase the uproar of his father having left his memories intact. Something in the back of his mind suggested another power he could bring, but he couldn't pinpoint it. It was somehow connected with Ehli and Emmit. "Do you know where Ehli and Emmit are?"
"Scanis relayed that Ehli is fine. She's also seen our plight and embraced the opportunity to help. An escort is bringing her in."
Ehli?
Willo gave him a pitying look. "Remember, you're not a telepath. Unless she's trying to find you or speak to you, your thoughts are yours and mine, or whomever is within reach and curious." She backhanded his arm playfully. "Don't worry. You'll see her soon enough."
Willo took another turn and motioned ahead to a door. She typed a code into the keypad, opened the door, and led the way into a room with a bank of monitors and computers on the far wall. Four neuronet chairs were lined up to his right, and shelves and cabinets stood against the left- and right-hand walls of the twenty by thirty-meter room.
She opened a fridge behind the last chair and took out a small box. She motioned to the chair. "Have a seat."
Cullen started toward it before thinking it might not be a good idea. He continued walking as he struggled to identify why. The missing knowledge felt like a superior officer shouting commands drowned out by the chaos of war. To have it drowned out while in a silent room made it even scarier.
"Are you with me?" Willo asked, tilting her head down to catch his attention.
"Yeah. Sorry, this… I was just thinking about Torek."
"He'll be fine. And so will you. When you return home, you'll be a hero"
"Willo—" An unfamiliar male voice spoke in Cullen's head. "—Ehli's here. We're coming in via entrance two."
Willo waited a moment, watching Cullen. "Get her some food or refreshments. I'm not done with the captain."
Ehli?
Willo shook her head. "Sorry. I let you hear that announcement, but otherwise it's just you and I in here."
"She isn't as strong as she thinks." E
hli's voice filled his chest with heat and expanded his mind as though shedding a massive parasite. Willo didn't react. She walked over to the counter behind him as though nothing had changed, and opened a drawer.
Text download ready.
The Cipher notification flashed. Cullen hid it instinctively, at first shocked as the reminder of his mission appeared, then embarrassed and angry for having been overpowered. That was what she had hidden. The Cipher. He'd completely forgotten. Willo glanced at him as she took a white case out of the drawer. He kept his face straight. Can you hear me? he thought, hoping only Ehli would.
Willo set the case on the counter.
The plastic lid clicked as she opened it and removed a syringe.
"I can," Ehli responded.
Willo didn't react. Only took a needle out of the case. "This will also help us use less exertion when we 'path with you, so we can maintain our stamina against the real enemy."
Cullen wanted nothing to do with the needle now. Stop her. They controlled my mind.
"I'm working on it."
They even blocked the Cipher.
"They're strong. Especially her. I'm spending the bonus I earned at my level-up. It's called Stealth Pathing. It has limited usage, though. The injection won't hurt with my conduit power, so go ahead and let her inject you. I can't stop her. I need you free and on the front line with me, so fighting back isn't in our best interests. Yet."
Cullen rolled up his sleeve as Willo walked over. I could take her out right now. Willo didn't react to his treasonous thought.
"No. Schaefer has a plan. We can't fight yet."
"Okay," he told Willo, fearing a delayed response could alert her to his connection with Ehli. "I'm here to help."
"There's something about the memories I read in one of the rejects," Ehli 'pathed as Willo tied the strap around his arm. "It felt… off. I'm not sure where the lie is, but it's somewhere."
"I understand," Willo said, and hovered the needle over his vein. She looked him in the eye. "I'm dead serious about this mission, with or without you."
She inserted the needle into his vein. As the warm fluid rushed up his arm, realization dawned. He might have consented to their taking his only real leverage. If this opened his mind to telepaths further, would it enable them to steal enough of his memories to fly to Vijil without him? Ever since he'd met Justin and Scanis, it had been as though nothing could go wrong following them. Was Ehli's mental protection finally allowing him to consider the disadvantages?
Ehli, are you sure? She said Ocia's going to steal my memories and leave me here, wiping my memory so I won't know.
"Don't worry, I'll be there soon, and then we'll leave."
We need to find out more about this plan. She said they're going to punish Schaefer as well.
"I haven't read any of that so far, but I'll keep checking. I'm going to save my strength. See you soon. Hang on."
The injection created a euphoria, lifting his tiredness. He opened the texts downloaded from transmitter two and translated the keys.
Key #3 – "prior to the dawn of a new age."
Key #4 – "to signal the last great war."
Writings of Cusaugh: block two.
Since the two keys made little sense—hopefully only for now, until he had all five sets—Cullen opened the Writings of Cusaugh with a thought. Show me a passage about this new age. I want to be there.
Shephka's humor exists in the prophet with three children. A single man will carry three into the old sun, where old walls were buried, and will bear the birth of new power. The foretaste they enjoyed will explode from sea to sea. Shephka has given me visions of this new age. Numbers and rules shall be written in the air as clear as the tragedy that befalls the hearts of those who fight for the light. Man of exile, press on. One arm may be threatened, but your path remains the same. Shephka will carry you like the wind, fighting with right hand and left for His kingdom to return. As I have been blessed with visions of this age to come, so too are you. These secrets will become plain as the rising sun. Follow its rays, for it will light your path.
26
Ehli never had been able to reconnect with Emmit, and now that she was inside the tunnel leading to Willo's hideout, she struggled to block the whispers in her mind, taunting her that she'd gone too far—it's too late to rescue your son.
Her Stealth 'path had successfully blocked Willo from her conversation with Cullen, but she'd used it all, so both their minds were up for grabs. Did the rejects get level-up bonuses? If so, what levels were they? She and Haritz had confused and manipulated at least fifteen rejects since they’d teamed up, but those hadn’t been full-on mind-against-mind encounters. The XP boost to successfully getting inside Willo's base had helped her attain the new level and the bonus, but that was gone and she was now just a Level 2 Ultra among at least fifty rejects. Now that she was here, it felt like all of them were trying to pry her open. She felt strong, as evidenced by her leverage over Haritz, and the XP she had gained, but if coming here was what Willo wanted, then she hadn't tested Willo's strength yet.
"There's someone who wants to see you," Haritz said, and led her down a dimly lit tunnel that smelled of wet tree roots and vegetation. The walls were hardened dirt; Haritz's memory assured her they would hold due to a compound they'd spread over its surface.
He opened a door to a brighter room. Inside, lying on a hospital bed, lay Nassib, sleeping. Machines clicked and beeped behind him. His ribs and bare chest were almost covered in a large bandage wrapped from side to shoulder. A full cast held his left arm down to his thumb. An IV drip was attached to the other arm.
"Nassib!" Ehli ran inside and stopped at his bed. His face was bruised, one eye swollen shut. Clear salve glistened in the gashes that spread from one cheek, down across his lips and over his chin, as though from claws.
His eyes fluttered and his head lolled to her side of the bed. "Ehl?"
"Yeah. What happened?"
"A mara caught him," Haritz answered. "We've stitched him up and set his arm, which was broken in four places, but he won't be coming with us."
"Coming..." Nassib's voice slurred. His eyes half-opened, but his gaze failed to land on anything. "Where?"
Haritz tapped a button on a cord hanging off the edge of Nassib's bed. "Don't you worry about that. You're safe here, but you need to rest. The cut across your chest was deep."
Nassib's eyes closed as his head rested on the pillow. He looked pained, but capable of surviving.
Ehli didn't know if this was best, or if they were trying to silence him. The way Haritz took charge of the interaction made Ehli feel like a child with an adult hiding her eyes from the part of the room she wasn't supposed to see. She Telescope probed Haritz's mind, but found only concern for Nassib's recovery, and a desire to escort Ehli to Willo. Apparently she was wanted.
"He'll be fine." Haritz motioned to the IV bag. "Got water and nutrients to keep him hydrated while he sleeps." He started back toward the door. "Willo's waiting. We have to discuss our mission."
Ehli slowly followed, sneaking the last bite of her waver plant. "Do you know what's happening to my son? Why I can't find him?"
"Willo said she'd take care of it."
"How?"
"I'm sure that's part of what she'll discuss with you. We're in the last few hours before mission execution, so we're conserving our energy—including telepathy." He walked through the doorway watching her. "So, if you'll please."
That's fine. I also want to talk face to face.
"Are we going to see Cullen too, when we meet Willo?"
Haritz took a left at the next tunnel. "Don't know. Up to Willo. We're almost there. You can ask her."
Not far down the tunnel, he stopped at a door and offered his hand for her to enter. He remained outside while she opened the door. Beyond was a bedroom. Willo sat in a reclining chair with her feet up and eyes closed. A standing lamp in the opposite corner, by a line of monitors, lit the room in a dim yellow glow.
Ehli turned at the swish of Haritz's jacket against the wall as he reached inside, took hold of the doorknob, smiled, and pulled it closed. She closed her link to his mind and turned, preparing herself for the woman in the chair.
Willo remained motionless. Ehli wondered if she were sleeping. After some time, Willo's hand found the arm of the chair and swung the footrest shut. Her eyes opened and she studied Ehli in silence, like a machine that had switched from one program to the next without preamble.
Ehli tried entering the strange woman's mind, but nothing happened. If this woman's thoughts were a program requiring a password, she didn't even know the language.
Willo sat up and motioned for Ehli to have a seat in the chair set two meters in front of hers. "Please, rest."
Ehli had been on her feet for a long time, and her hamstring was not handling it well. She eased into the wooden rocking chair. Its lack of cushion was noticeable compared to Willo's. Still, sitting felt good.
"Long day?" Willo didn't try masking her grin.
"You know, it has been," Ehli played right back, as though they were old friends cackling over the dumb prison guard who'd dropped their iced tea. "Oh well, there's always tomorrow. I wonder what we have planned."
Willo's playfulness tempered as she studied Ehli. "Yes, I sure hope so. But before we discuss tomorrow, let's test each other's drinks, so to speak."
Ehli crossed her legs and folded her hands on her lap. "Yes. Let's. Starting with, how'd we go from 'they used me to find you'... 'find cover or prepare for a fight', to 'this way to my leader'?"
Willo shrugged. "Or, 'good idea about that snake,'" she said with mock sarcasm. "It's all been a test to see if Schaefer was right to bring you here." Her tone smoothly shifted into solemn respect. "And I will say, bra-vo. He may be a two-timing sack of elephant piss, but what he and Ocia did to you and your son is nothing short of incredible. The way you manipulated Haritz and the sentries I set in your path was impressive." She offered a slow clap. "Bra. Vo. You're about to be swooned over with words of 'for the family,' or 'for our people.' Schaefer's silver tongue is perpetually self-preserving. Fooled me more than once."