Traitor.
“Not interested,” Reia said tightly.
“Too bad. Konjah, Ademos, attack!” The civility vanished from the man’s tone.
Reia drew her shootav and rolled under the leaping korver, firing two stun pellets up into its belly as it sailed over her. She only had time to squeeze off one shot at the second korver leaping for her throat.
The beast latched onto her banistick but let go with a whimper when the electric pulse registered in its teeth.
Reia landed with the korver on top. The three energy beams that would have struck her slammed into the korver’s tough hide, but the giant thing landed squarely on her chest. She remained consciousness but having one arm trapped beneath the korver left her vulnerable.
AS SOON AS REIA TURNED down the job, Terosh knew the two korvers facing him would attack. He drew his kerlinblade and kerlak pistol. A swift adjustment put the pistol on full automatic, which would cause it to fire one continuous stream of energy. The powerpack would deplete almost instantly, but if he swung his arm fast enough, he might hit both korvers and the Ranger before it ran out. He had two more powerpacks strapped to his belt, but they would do him no good without adequate reload time.
As the first korver leapt, Terosh pulled the trigger. The beam slammed the korver to a halt in midair and threw it backward. Before the scent of well-done korver reached him, Terosh turned the beam on the other korver and the Ranger. The second korver yelped, leaving its cry hanging in the air as it died.
The Ranger leapt away from the energy beam as the powerpack died. Nevertheless, the thin beam skipped along the Ranger’s right forearm, causing him to recoil and flee. It was too bad that the powerpack had come from Fort Riden’s armory and thus lacked Dr. Belcross’s special knockout concoction. Terosh wanted to pursue the man but saw a korver land on Reia and went to help her.
LUCAS TELON DIDN’T care as much as Kiner that the korvers were dead, but it was a shame. Even though he had shot one of the korvers to save Reia, he wished the program no ill-will. The first korver trials had been promising but this disaster would be a big setback.
Playing games with the Alliance is foolish.
Lucas wanted to kill Kiner, but the RT soldier wasn’t a true threat. Kiner would crawl back to his masters and report the program’s failure. Lucas would file his own report with Gareth Restler, but his official report would go to Lord Kezem.
How many Alliance soldiers know Lord Kezem is Maledek?
If Kezem’s plans proceeded properly, the Alliance and the Rangers would soon destroy each other. Kolknir approved, but despite flaws, the Order still felt like family to Lucas.
Chapter 29:
Roads to Meritab
ZERI (JUNE) 25, 1538-Temen (July) 2, 1538
114-121 days into Prince Terosh’s Kireshana journey
Kireshana Path, Kesler Plains
The Heskrin battle, the brush with Coridian Assassins, and this korver encounter stole some joy from the Kireshana, but Reia determined to make the best of everything. She ached for a couple of days after the korver attack but at least they were alive. Worse than the soreness, something happened inside Terosh. He was pensive for long periods of time. Reia worried about the silences but didn’t want to pry.
The ground trembled.
Probably just shifting graveground. Nothing to worry about. Terosh will open up when he’s ready.
Reia guided them southeast toward the Lotrian Fields. It would take several weeks to reach the fields at their current pace, but they had no reason to rush. The goritor-infested area would still be there when they arrived.
Suddenly a tremendous crack sounded, followed by a high-pitched scream.
Flinching, Reia exchanged a what-now glance with Terosh and dashed toward the scream. Seconds later, she halted on the edge of a miniature canyon. The depression was only a meter across but extended almost four meters to Reia’s right, two to her left, and went down at least five meters. She wanted to call it graveground, but it wasn’t like any graveground she had ever seen.
A girl leaned awkwardly against the dirt wall at the bottom.
Shouts brought Reia’s head up. A man and a woman sprinted from a large white house about a hundred meters away. The ground trembled and rumbled.
“Stop them.” Reia threw off her cloak and scrambled into the hole.
Terosh shouted something, but Reia didn’t hear his words.
The anotechs delivered the message.
It’s a maw!
Reia remembered Master Niklos telling her how the ground would split open for no good reason, then snap shut again, like a mouth closing on a tasty morsel. A maw could stay open for years but smaller ones—like this one—usually only lasted minutes.
I’d better hurry.
Every muscle complained as she braced a leg on each side and descended as quickly as possible. The dirt walls were firm, yet small pieces dislodged and rained down on the child as Reia scrambled for hand and footholds. She kept her caydronan sack with her, though she wasn’t sure the child could be helped.
When she reached the bottom, Reia examined the girl. The child was crouched on her right side with her knees tucked beneath her. Curly dark hair draped the girl’s face, rising and falling with each shallow breath. Reia didn’t want to move her, but something had to be done soon. She sensed movement and looked up in time to see Terosh slam into the ground next to her. Heart skipping three beats, Reia wanted to yell at him, but the dust cloud raised by his landing caused her to choke and cough instead.
“What are you doing?” Reia barely got the words out before Terosh bounded to his feet and said something she couldn’t hear.
Another ear-assaulting crack preceded a deep rumbling. The air pressed down and in from all sides, squeezing Reia until her lungs wanted to explode. Instinctively, she instructed the anotechs to protect the child and push against the closing ground, creating a thin shield around them. Breaking into a cold sweat, she continued to pour energy out, expanding the shield to include Terosh. The effort took a tremendous toll on her body. Her muscles quivered. She could see the prince only as a glowing blur.
When Terosh took her hands, Reia sensed admiration, annoyance, worry, and inklings of a plan for having the anotechs propel them upward through the closing ground.
It could kill you, the anotechs warned.
This maw will kill us!
Terosh’s thought sailed through Reia as if it belonged to her, but she didn’t have time to be amazed. The prince squeezed his eyes shut and struggled to reinforce the capsule Reia had started. She lent what strength she could, helping the prince tap into the anotechs’ power. Not even growing the amrita plants had been this hard. Terosh released Reia’s hands, snatched up the child, pulled Reia upright, and held on tightly. The pressure built around them. Just as she thought they might be squashed, Reia felt her feet rising. She watched a blood vessel in Terosh’s head tick in time with the passing seconds, grateful for the thick shield he had created so they wouldn’t blunder through the dirt with their skulls.
Reia clung to Terosh and shut her eyes, enduring the wild ride through the closing walls of soil. When they reached open space, she fell and flopped onto her back. Familiarity swept over Reia as she opened her eyes and stared at the cheerful sky with its fluffy white clouds. Something bony dug into her back. Her limbs wouldn’t cooperate, but she twisted her head and saw Terosh.
Out cold. What else is new?
A spark of anger poured energy into her. It wasn’t much, but it allowed her to sit up, check the prince for injuries, and glare down at him upon finding nothing to fix. Her head pounded, distracting her from the urge to smack him.
You knew the ground would close! You knew it and jumped in anyway! That was beyond stupid!
Terosh blinked at her, groaned, and closed his eyes.
“Don’t look at me like that.”
Reia gained enough strength to rub a sore spot in her side.
“Like what?”
“Like you want to ye
ll.”
“Terosh—”
“Leave it,” he insisted, meeting her gaze and slowly sitting up.
“You can’t—”
“It’s my life,” Terosh said, cutting her off.
Something inside Reia crumbled.
“You’re a prince.” She hated the tremble in her voice.
“And that means I should watch you die?” He fixed icy eyes on her. His expression said he would not allow her to come to harm because of him.
“Yes, if it comes to that!”
The intensity of his gaze touched Reia.
Don’t look at me like that!
Between the notes of his question Reia heard a declaration. The unspoken words pulsed through the air.
Reia numbly patched the child’s wounds with toom leaves and anotechs.
The little girl was Seri Elad. Her parents arrived as Reia finished patching the girl’s scrapes. The parents insisted they stay several days to rest and recover. They gratefully accepted this invitation. When they felt strong enough to continue, the girl’s father took them as far as the Lotrian Fields in his battered old hov.
TEMEN (JULY) 2, 1538
121 days into Prince Terosh’s Kireshana journey
Kireshana Path, Kesler Plains
After safely crossing the Lotrian Fields, Terosh and Reia continued the journey, well-aware that they approached the last quarter of the Kireshana. Terosh would be home in less than a month. The thought of leaving Reia ached, tempting him to take a circuitous route back to Rammon.
“You look like you could use some sleep. Didn’t you like the bed at the Elad’s house?” asked Reia.
“Hmmm? Yes, it was fine.” Terosh avoided Reia’s gaze but still felt her attention.
“It’s the anotechs, isn’t it?” Reia inquired. “You shouldn’t use them so much.”
“You use what you can to save people, and I use what I can. What’s the difference?”
“Toom leaves and iras don’t leave me half-dead every time I use them,” Reia pointed out with a sad smile.
“What do you think about anotechs? Are they good or evil?” Terosh asked, needing to deflect the conversation.
“What do you mean? They’re just machines,” she answered.
“God machines. Thinking machines.” Terosh waited several seconds before adding, “There are rumors that some anotechs are evil, just as some people are evil. They’re called Dark Ones.”
“They’ve certainly got enough power to make trouble if they wish.” Reia took another dozen steps. “Do you believe the rumors?”
“I don’t know,” Terosh answered.
“What could be done if the rumors were true?”
Terosh shrugged at the disturbing question.
Are the rumors true? What can we do?
Fight Dalonos.
What are these Dark Ones? Where do I find them? How do I fight them?
They are us and not us. Twisted. Evil. Unfettered.
Unfettered?
Yes, no rules, only power.
“Look. Kamrias,” Reia said, pointing to their left.
Terosh focused on a small flock of kamrias circling about a kilometer away and listened to their triumphant cries. He remembered Reia telling him kamrias prey on scavengers.
They changed direction and quickened their pace. A few minutes later, they stumbled across eight bodies, six in the gray uniform of Meritab Regulars and two in jet black uniforms with no markings. The scent surrounding the hours-old battle matched the sight.
Terosh had the anotechs filter the heavy stench of blood and burned flesh.
Reia stopped by the third soldier.
A deep gash ran down his left side. A serlak rifle with a bayonet lay next to him, telling Terosh what had killed the man. He winced.
That’s not a pleasant way to go.
To his surprise, Reia knelt, checked the man’s pulse, and sent Terosh a measuring gaze.
“Good or evil, we’ve got to use anotechs. This man’s alive but beyond conventional healing.” Her expression said she clearly didn’t like what they had to do. “He still has a thread of life the anotechs could preserve.” Reia placed both hands over the man’s wounds.
Terosh knelt on the man’s other side, and together, they poured anotechs into the wound. Had anyone attacked them at that moment, they would have been helpless. The work was long and slow. While Reia tended to the man’s body, Terosh funneled anotechs to Reia and modified the man’s memories. Practicality demanded that the man never know the extent of his wounds. If word spread that anotechs could be miracle healers, there would be no end to the abuse.
People kill for trinkets, what would they do for the anotechs?
Terosh’s family and a few others had been entrusted with the anotech legacy. Maintaining that legacy meant secrecy. He had never liked it, but he had always understood the necessity, even when that meant Tate would receive training and he would not.
Why can’t anything be simple? Terosh wondered when they finished almost four hours later.
More work needed to be done, but the anotechs now possessed the instructions to continue piecing Lieutenant Korben Fericin together. Terosh felt odd knowing the man’s name without ever having spoken to him. The anotechs had pulled the name in the first two seconds of searching his brain. Terosh had to instruct them not to pry every memory out of poor Fericin.
The potential for damaging something vital chilled Terosh. Hearing tales about King Rammon stripping minds down to nothing had come nowhere near the experience of being inside Fericin’s head with the power to heal or destroy.
Reia had retreated into her thoughts, and Terosh decided to leave her alone, despite burning questions. Throughout the evening meal Terosh thought of several dozen ways to ease into the topic. As they settled for the night, he took the direct approach.
“Reia, why do you care if I overuse the anotechs?”
He really wanted to ask: Could you ever love me?
The question stopped Reia from straightening her bedroll. Her expression told Terosh she thought it an odd question. Twice, she opened her mouth to reply, and twice, she closed it again. She took her time about finding a comfortable position, but eventually, she tucked her knees underneath her body, gazed at the fire, and tried to explain.
“It’s sort of like the Ralose Charm.”
“What’s that?” asked Terosh.
“There is a legend from long ago, before we were called Rangers, when Prince Davel’s Order of the Nareth Talis was still finding itself.” Reia looked like she wanted to restart the conversation, but she sighed and continued, “Prince Davel’s first recruit was his best friend, Aimeri Turnok.”
“His wife?”
“Not yet. When he recruited her, she was just a servant girl he befriended and taught to handle a sword.”
“Why haven’t I heard of this?” asked Terosh, searching his thoughts for a lesson he might have forgotten.
“Many people argue it never happened.”
“Do you believe it happened?” Terosh questioned.
“Five months ago, I would have said no, but now that we’ve learned so much about the anotechs ... I guess it could happen.”
“It’s a sad story, isn’t it?”
“They’re related to your ancestors,” Reia gently teased. “Yes, it’s sad. They married about a year after starting the Nareth Talis, but they were only married for about four months. Then, Aimeri and Davel ran into trouble with Miquinn Firol. During the final battle, Aimeri cast what is now called the Ralose Charm upon herself and Miquinn.”
“Reflect harm on him,” Terosh murmured.
“Close enough,” Reia confirmed. “Aimeri knew only one of them would walk away from the fight. Wanting her husband to live, she told the anotechs to transfer damage her body sustained to Miquinn.”
“How did she get the anotechs to Miquinn?”
“Shootav.”
“Why didn’t she just use poison or something?”
Reia shrugg
ed.
“I don’t think she planned on fighting that day.”
“Could we use the Ralose Charm?” Terosh wondered.
“I don’t think we would want to. Aimeri died that day. It’s not exactly a weapon of choice,” Reia noted. “No one has tried it since then. The anotechs swore not to let anyone cast it on their own person, and few will risk somebody else’s life. The truth’s in the translation. The Ralose Charm can bind two people’s fates together, making any harm done to one be shared by both.”
“What’s that got to do with this?” Terosh asked, struggling to make the connection.
“I feel like I’m wearing one. It’s like your pain is mine, and I fear my pain might become yours. You’re a prince. That cannot happen!” She drew a quick breath to compose herself before asking, “Do you understand?”
Terosh didn’t respond right away, but eventually nodded.
“I guess Davel also died that day.”
The somber statement effectively closed the conversation as they slipped into their own thoughts.
TEMEN (JULY) 10, 1538
129 days into Prince Terosh’s Kireshana journey
Maledek’s Safe House, City of Meritab
Blood leaked from a cut over Prince Taytron’s left eye. He stood over the broken body of the man he had greatly admired, invited into his home, and trusted in nearly everything. The intervening months since their last meeting had not been kind to Dr. Atien Belcross. His eyes glowed with strange light.
He is full of Dark Ones, the anotechs reported.
He deserves to die.
Not by your hand, Prince of the Chosen.
Captain Kelter echoed the anotechs’ sentiments.
“Do not do this, Taytron. Your wife and daughter are gone, but if you sacrifice your honor, you will never be the man their memory deserves.”
He had pictured this moment for many months. Conflicting emotions assailed Tate. He wanted to kill this man, yet Captain Kelter was right. They had captured Dr. Belcross and needed to let justice work. Still, Tate’s finger tightened over his kerlinblade’s activation switch. It could be over in a second. With strength drawn from the memory of his sweet Deanna and innocent daughter, Tate finally pushed himself away from the thing Belcross had become and ordered his men to secure the prisoner.
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