Page 45 of Tamed
“The past few weeks have been particularly hectic,” Nadis pointed out. “Both of your mates have numerous responsibilities. Arcon has been extremely busy preparing the alliance conduits.”
Kendra just nodded. What Nadis said was true, but Kendra wasn’t sure that was the reason she knew so little about Arcon’s gifts. He wasn’t generally secretive. Still, this felt like an intentional omission.
“My point was not to cause conflict between you and your mates,” Nadis insisted. “I just find it curious that without knowing anything about their gifts, you chose two powerful seers.”
Kendra finally smiled. “I don’t believe in that sort of coincidence, so I guess I believe in anulix.”
“When power like yours and theirs combines, the triad becomes an oracle.” Nadis looked deep into Kendra’s eyes as she urged, “Let them claim you. We have never needed an oracle more than we do right now.”
Zevon sat back and sipped a mug of wessin as Arcon tried in vain to engage Kendra. She’d seemed distracted when they woke up this morning and her agitation had only grown during the hours he’d been at work. By the time they gathered for lunch, she was fidgeting in her seat and startling at every sound.
“What is wrong with you, mate?” Zevon asked, setting down his mug. “You’ve been antsy all morning and you barely touched your food. What’s bothering you?”
“I don’t know,” she cried, clearly frustrated. “That’s the problem. Something is wrong, but I can’t explain what.”
Unwilling to ignore the premonition, Zevon pinged the control center. “Is everything quiet up there?”
“Yes, sir,” the shift supervisor responded. “Are you concerned about something specific?”
The only important event scheduled for today was delivery of the first set of conduits. “Have any of the alliance transports arrived at their destinations? When was the last time they checked in?”
“None of them are scheduled to arrive yet. It’s likely that all three are still in hyperspace.” After a tense pause, he added, “Is there a problem with the mission?”
“I’m just being cautious,” Zevon assured. “Comm me immediately if there are any concerns.”
“Understood, sir. I’ll let you know when they arrive.”
Zevon terminated the link and looked at Kendra. “Maybe one of the mentors can help you focus what you’re feeling. I’ll check into anything you perceive, but I need a little more to go on.”
“I have some time,” Arcon told her. “My next appointment isn’t until two.”
“That would be great.” She smiled, her expression and posture starting to relax.
Arcon led her into the bedroom and Zevon chuckled. He predicted that within an hour they would be in bed. That might be good for both of them. If this wasn’t an actual vision, maybe a good fucking was all she needed to release the excess energy. If Zevon didn’t have such a busy afternoon, he would have joined them. He pushed back from the table, preparing to return to his duties. His subdermal control band vibrated, notifying him of some sort of message. A chill dropped down his spine so he paused long enough to activate the message.
Verbet’s smug face appeared on the holo-display centered over the dining table. “As I’m sure you’ve figured out, my useless brother has ceased to exist.” Not wanting to alarm his mates, Zevon bumped the volume down until he could barely hear it. “You may now address me as Emperor Verbet. I intend to focus my energy on rebuilding Torret to its former glory. If you do not interfere with my efforts, I have no conflict with you. I am not my half-brother. His priorities are not mine. However, I learned about your offer to the other planetary leaders and I find it highly objectionable. There will be no alliance, and no more conduits will be dispatched unless the rightful leader of Torret is included in the deal.” Verbet’s likeness was replaced by a sequence of graphic images featuring the interior of the three alliance transports. “Any conduit sent to a planet other than Torret will share their fate. Do not test me on this. You will rapidly run out of conduits.”
Reluctantly, Zevon backed up the message so he could review the evidence Verbet had provided. The images had shuffled by so quickly the first time that Zevon hadn’t had time to examine them. The security teams had been stabbed repeatedly. The females, though dressed in Citadel uniforms, were burned beyond recognition. All the conduits were of Altorian descent, so it was possible they’d lost control of their Fire with no one there to help them control it. An armored Torretian stood in the cockpit of each transport proving that they’d boarded the ships. But the burnt females were suspicious to say the least.
He glanced toward the bedroom, heart thudding wildly in his chest. What should he tell Kendra and Arcon? If this was a deception, Verbet had to have planned it well in advance. Each burn victim had the same hair color and basic body type as one of the conduits. Zevon shook his head. Was he giving himself false hope because he didn’t want to accept what he was seeing? All evidence indicated that the conduits were dead, that everyone aboard those transports had been murdered.
Unbidden, the images scrolled back through Zevon’s mind, burned faces and charred bodies. Slashed flesh and blood-soaked seats. Fear and death, he could feel it, smell it as the images tormented him. There could have been a complex deception, but it was far more probable that untrained conduits lost control of their Fire while frantically fighting for their lives.
Emotions built inside Zevon. The rioting pressure was ready to explode. He fisted his hands and clenched his jaw, fighting against the emotional onslaught.
Arcon rushed into the living room, followed closely by Kendra.
“What’s wrong?” Arcon asked, looking confused and worried.
Zevon’s tenuous hold on his emotions snapped and he swept the contents of the lunch table with his forearm. A mournful cry ripped from his throat as fury overtook his grief. “That fucking coward! They were civilians. Most of the conduits wanted nothing to do with the war.”
“What are you talking about?” Kendra looked at Arcon then back at Zevon. “What happened?”
Before Zevon could answer, the apartment AI said, “Emergency interrupt from the control center.”
“Activate comm,” Zevon said, his voice tight, almost guttural.
“Are you alone, sir?” the shift supervisor asked. “I have some… disturbing news.”