Crackling energy suddenly sounded behind us, stopping us both in our tracks.
I was a second away from throwing Merada clear of danger and leaping at the intruder with teeth and claws. But then I heard Stell’s voice, the voice of the Starsown’s primary body, call out.
“Merada!” the Steward of Avalon shouted breathlessly. “I’m here! I came as fast as I could with supplies! Listen! I need to tell you—hurk—” Her voice ended in a strangled gasp.
I turned my head to see her.
Her primary body had changed again, losing the gray blurriness it had in its transition stage. Right now it was a beautiful chocolate-brown, with night-black curls cascading down her forehead. Her body was a bit shorter than it was before, making me a full head taller than her right now. She was also a glorious mixture of muscles and curves, especially in her biceps and hips. But the rest of her body was hidden behind one of her many baggy t-shirts. This one had a picture of a twenty-sided die, and underneath it were the words ‘crit happens, stop whining about it.’
Holy cow she’s gorgeous, Teeth said. Why haven’t I gotten to talk to her yet?
She had a shocked, angry expression on her face, and I realized in the next instant that I had noticed her just as she was about to yell at us.
“WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?” she shouted loud enough to make my ears hurt.
It was quite possibly the first time she had ever shouted at me. And I was too full of conflicting instincts to answer her. I wanted to apologize for hurting and disappointing her, and then explain just how this happened. I also wanted to say I’d done nothing wrong, and that she had no right to be upset about what another part of herself had initiated with me. Additionally, I wanted to yell back at her, because she was interrupting us, and that the appropriate thing for her to do would be to leave and give us our privacy back. Finally, I wanted to compliment her timing, and gently but firmly insist that she get over here and join us.
I’m not very proud of that last one.
Merada sighed, and I felt her warm breath waft over my face.
“Evening, Stell,” she said calmly as she looked over my shoulder at her primary body. “Don’t suppose ye could come back in a few minutes, could ye?”
“MERADA!” Stell screamed again. “EXPLAIN!”
“Me garments have too many buckles,” she said with another sigh. “Never knew it was a problem until today.”
“THAT IS NOT THE ISSUE RIGHT NOW!” Stell screamed, and it was beginning to hurt my ears in this enclosed space. She saw me wince, and rounded on me. “AND YOU! WES MALCOLM!” She stomped and clenched her fists. “I LEAVE YOU ALONE WITH MY SATELLITES FOR JUST A FEW DAYS, AND YOU ALREADY HAVE YOUR HANDS DOWN ONE OF THEIR PANTS!”
Oh, that’s why, Dumbass said in my mind. Hurry up and stop making her mad.
“Took ye far too long, frankly,” Merada muttered in my ear. It made me feel a little less guilty when she said that, but my hands still jumped off of her. Then they hovered aimlessly through the air, because I didn’t know what else to do with them.
“Wes,” she gasped, and I finally saw the hurt in her face. “How could you? How?”
“He almost couldn’t,” Merada said, still not getting off of me. She moved her hands to rest on my shoulders. “Gave himself a test to see if he was worthy of me. I had to cross off every item, one by one, before he would even let me in his lap.”
“You came onto him?” Stell said as she blinked and shook her head.
“Aye,” Merada said confidently. “And now that he finished his test, I don’t suppose I can get back to grading him?”
“But you can’t!” Stell insisted stubbornly, ignoring her Satellite’s second question. “It’s supposed to be impossible!” She looked at me again. “And why are you naked? Why did you take your clothes off around one of my Satellites?”
“I didn’t,” I protested, as my brain finally figured out how to answer her.
“That’s right,” Merada added. “He didn’t.”
“Well, did they just fly off on their own? What happened?” She rounded on me again. “And why do you still have her in your lap? Get your hands off of her!”
I finally decided I was the one that had been wronged.
“Merada, I’m going to need you to get up,” I said calmly. The tattooed brunette grumbled but obliged me. I did my best not to look at her legs as she did. Somehow I didn’t think anyone else was proud of me over that fact. I stood up and turned to address the Starsown’s primary body. “Stell, in answer to your question, one of your Satellites undresses me almost every time I get knocked unconscious, supposedly to treat my injuries. This is not a new thing.”
“You don’t have any injuries,” Stell said as she peered at me. Then her eyes widened and looked away.
“Can’t know unless I check now, can’t I?” Merada quipped as she crossed her arms.
“That,” I said, pointing a thumb at Merada. “That, there, is what normally goes on with your Satellites. All of them,” I added, still trying to make eye contact with my Steward. “That time way back when you told me that none your Satellites would be attracted to me? Categorically untrue. Breena and Guineve can’t outright say anything, but they’re sure making me wonder how you really feel about me. Merada has just been the most obvious about it. I think you and I need to have a talk about this.”
“Fine,” Stell said, still looking down and to the left. “But can you please put some pants on, first?”
“Sure,” I said. “But will part of you just take them off again when I’m asleep?”
“No!” Stell shouted.
“Meh,” Merada said at the same time, shrugging. “Reckon I can stop if he asks me to.”
“Where are my pants, anyway?” I asked Merada. “They’re not in the corner where my armor is.”
“Breena wanted them,” Merada pointed to the still-sleeping fairy. “She said ye have the best pockets. I didn’t pry.”
“You two got frisky in front of Breena?” Stell asked, incredulous. “I can’t believe you guys! What were you going to do if she woke up?”
“Find out where the real Breena went,” Merada retorted confidently. “I kept giving her sweets until she tired out and nodded off. If she wakes up right now, she’s no fairy.”
“Stop yelling,” Breena muttered from the pile of clothes. “And don’t take my cookies.”
“See?” Merada said as the little fairy began snoring softly. “Best way to keep her from barging in.”
“Wow,” I said in realization. “You really thought this through.”
“Thank ye,” Merada smiled, straightening her shirt and belt. “I’ll be leaving to let ye talk with me other self. The two of us can catch up later.”
She winked at me, and with a slow roll of her hips the beautiful huntress strolled out of the giant tree’s opening. I tore my eyes off of the sight and onto the other beautiful, but far angrier woman, still in the room.
“So,” I began, not really knowing what to say next.
“You’re still naked,” Stell said, looking down. “Can you not be naked?”
I sighed and walked over to Breaker, looked for a second pair of pants, couldn’t find any, sighed, and finally found a spare cloak that I was able to wrap around my waist.
“I am now as clothed as I am going to get,” I declared, “since a certain someone’s Satellite literally ran all of my shirts and trousers through the laundry. But it’s okay, though, because that Satellite can’t ever come onto me, can she? Because the rest of her isn’t interested in me, either, right?”
I put more of an edge into that than I meant to. But then again, I was also extremely frustrated right now. Stell’s eyes inched back onto me, and then she sighed.
“Wes, I’m sorry I freaked out. I didn’t know Merada could, or would do that. And I thought you were joking the first time you warned me about her back on your first Challenge. But in my defense, I’ve been moving through portals and Pathways trying to stay one step ahead of all our enemies and still
get food and supplies to the different communities on different worlds. I know I’ve been asking a horribly great deal from you—” her voice turned blunt—“but I was kind of expecting you to be able to get to work on at least this planet’s Trial before you took things easy enough for Merada to jump you.” She sighed as soon as she said that. “No, wait, I’m sorry. I’m being horrible right now and you don’t deserve it. And from the looks of it, you somehow managed to get a Woad tattoo, so that’s already a great start—”
“Stell,” I interrupted with a sigh of my own. I held up a hand to tick off information for her. “Two days. Trial’s already overcome. The Malus Men have been driven offworld, and their contacts have been destroyed or sabotaged. Horde Pits have all been destroyed, unless there’s one Merada hasn’t told me about yet. I’ll check on that either tomorrow or after the Tumult’s taken care of. Are you following?”
“Yeah.” She started to nod, then froze. “I think I… two days? You’ve only been here for two days?”
“It should be the second day’s evening,” I replied. “But yes. The Icons are willing to work with me, and time has sped up on Avalon, so I’ve been able to prepare and unearth some more artifacts there. I’ll tell you about them later. But yes, two days. One Trial down. Merada said that was a record, but honestly it felt like I caught a lot of lucky breaks right at the end.”
“Already?” Stell breathed. “You just got here, and you’ve already taken care of that for me? On top of everything else?” I nodded. “Lost Icons… You really have earned some… nevermind,” she began to mutter under her breath, so softly she probably didn’t expect me to hear her. Then she shook her head and began speaking at a normal volume. “What happened after that? Why was Merada trying to… treat you? Aside from the fact that she probably feels really grateful over all you’ve already done,” she added quickly.
“Well,” I began. “I tried to Rise right afterwards, but something interfered again and I fell unconscious. Apparently that was when Merada decided to tattoo and look after me.”
“So you’re still having trouble Rising?” Stell asked as she tilted her dark head. “I thought we took care of the device, and undid all the restrictions I installed?”
“You did,” I answered darkly. “But someone else put in restrictions long before either you or my own enemies did. Long before I was even born. Stell,” I asked, “do you know anything about the old Earthborn?”
“No.” She shook her head. “Almost no one does. As far as most races know, your people live on a cursed planet where they can neither Rise or Descend, and so they grow to be warped and confused. But…” she hedged. “When I was really little, my mother would tell me stories.” She lowered her head, and her eyes fell to the floor. “I can’t remember the details in any of them, but they say your people used to be more. That they used to be so great and shine so bright that every monster and oppressor in the Expanse feared them. She only got to tell me a few of their stories, and she made me promise not to share them with anyone, but… after my world was eaten—” she shuddered, but kept speaking—“and after I managed to escape, and grow, and become the Steward of Avalon, and found I needed heroes from another world, I chose your own. Since then, I’ve never needed to look back. That’s all I know about your race, Wes.”
“Okay,” I said as I processed her words. “Stell, we didn’t really have time to tell you about this before, but when we activated the Shelter on Avalon, we found bodies of Earthborn there. Bodies that predate my planet’s recorded history by possibly hundreds of millions of years. I can’t even tell how old they are.” Her eyes widened as I spoke. “When I interacted with one, my body changed, supposedly becoming a little more like their own forms. This was even before my dragon bonds emerged.” I pointed at my chest. “After I reached the next stage of Rises, I’ve started having these strange flashbacks of false skies and of frightened old men who keep demanding that I bow my head low and give up on all my dreams.” I looked at her, trying to see if there was any recognition in her eyes. “They said they were there on behalf of a council, and to make sure my race did not terrorize worlds any longer. Have you ever of this council, Stell?”
“Not unless they’re talking about the Stellar Council,” Stell replied. “But that’s not really a thing anymore. The last time I even remember hearing about it was from my father, before my world ended, and I was too young to remember or even understand what he said about it.”
“They talk about you,” I told her. “Every time they discuss whether or not they should end me, they decide not to. Because I keep trying to save you from what they think will doom you.”
“What…” She began blinking. She took a deep breath, and swallowed. “Cavus? Do they mean Cavus?”
“I think so,” I answered. “Someone knew Cavus would come for you.” I had to grit my teeth when I remembered the bastard’s words. “They knew, and they approved. Possibly before you were born.”
The dark-skinned turned woman away from me and began pacing.
“The Umbra,” she said softly. “Their attack came as a surprise. I remember that much, now. None of our allies showed up. Everyone wondered where they were. They swept over my people, before we had a chance to raise the alarm. They picked us apart, nation by nation.” She walked over to a raised part of the floor and took a seat. “It all happened in less than a full day. Wes,” she said, looking back up at me with eyes sparkling painfully with tears. “Are you saying… are you saying it all happened because of me?”
“No,” I growled. “And I will probably beat anyone who does. I tried to beat them when they told me that, but the cowards always ran away when I got angry at them. I think you were an excuse, an excuse for horrible creatures to do horrible things to a world. I think they were afraid of your people and my people, and they did what they could to stomp both of our species into the mud,” I finished.
“But you said they were part of the Council, Wes,” Stell pointed out, eyes still shining with pain and grief. “The Stellar Council was supposed to save worlds. It was supposed to help govern them. The Council was supposed to be a force of good.”
“It wasn’t,” I said firmly. “And these were not good men. They were cowardly, arrogant, bitter, and vengeful. They said the Earthborn were the reason the Council declined, but then they praised the creation of the Horde as a practical innovation.”
“The Horde?” she breathed. “Why would they even know of the Horde?” She shook her head, and anger splashed the sadness out of her eyes. “Why wouldn’t they wipe them out once they found about them? The Horde aren’t economical, Wes. They’re a filthy nightmare that does filthy things to every intelligent creature they catch. Every single race on every one of my worlds isn’t going to consider anything but banding together and fighting for their lives once the Horde are discovered. There’s no way any kind of interplanetary council would be happy with their existence, Wes.”
“I hear you,” I answered. “I have my own problems with them. But Stell, these old freaks didn’t just praise the creation of the Horde. They said that my own race’s war with them was the last straw that drove them into acting against my people. These guys are the reason I’m having trouble Rising, Stell. They seek to keep me from becoming the way my people were so very long ago. They want me to crawl beneath low skies, bend my back under false heavens, bow my head toward unworthy gods. And they hate us, specifically.”
I sat down next to her. Then I remembered I was almost naked and scooted a couple of inches away.
“And they think you’re doomed, because you’re trying to save me,” Stell finished. “Because they think Cavus will kill you the way he’s killed every man that ever tried to protect me. Because they don’t know that Cavus already killed you.” Stell’s voice trembled. “And he killed you because I threw you to him like you were a bone tossed to a rabid dog!”
“You didn’t throw me,” I said firmly. “I ran back after him.”
“That doesn’t matter!” Stell sho
uted. “What matters is that bad things happen to good men that care about me! Bad things happen to everyone that cares about me! That’s why you can’t care about me, Wes! That’s why you were supposed to just do a job and go back home! That’s why I live on a planet all by myself! Because something hungry and strange has been after me ever since I was a little girl! And he’s been after me for so long that I thought he wasn’t real, that he was a boogey man I dreamed up to explain how my family all died! But as soon as I stopped believing he was real he came and found me—” her voice cracked—“he found me like he always did in my dreams, except this time I didn’t get to wake up and escape at the last minute! This time I wake up and I know that he could be just around the corner, that I could be just moments away from becoming his, from falling into whatever nightmare he put the rest of my family in! So, no, Wes! No to there being a you and me! No to me liking the fact that you are kind and brave and smart and handsome and all of those things in a way that your stupid world ignores and that I can’t stop thinking about! I don’t get to have you, Wes! Because then you’ll just get thrown away!” Her voice cracked again. “I don’t want you to be thrown away! I don’t want that to be my fault, too! Please, Wes! Please understand!”
“Two,” I said simply.
“Two what?” she sobbed, cocking her head at me. “Two times he killed you? Did he tear you apart again, Wes? Did he hurt you again? Was it my fault again?”
“Two of your family are free,” I answered her, my voice a bucket of cold water launching out of my mouth. I turned to look at her. “I’ve fought Cavus three times so far, Stell. The first time he killed me like you think he did. The second time we fought, I knocked one of the lights out of his mouth, and it called out your name as it flew away. It said it was coming for you, and for you to hold on. The third time happened a few days ago, on our way to the Woadlands.” Stell’s eyes widened at that. “There was a piece of him waiting for me and Breena in the Pathway. I don’t know how he got there. I didn’t even know he could split up like that. But he taunted Breena and I had to fight him.”
Woad Children (Challenger's Call Book 3) Page 50
