Zealot

by Cyndi Friberg

  Gradually, Chandar’s gaze cleared and her struggles eased. She raised her hand, lightly stroking Raylon’s bristled jaw as she whispered, “We have to warn them.”

  “Warn who, Chandar? Tell me what you saw.”

  She sat up and pushed her fingers through her messy hair, but made no move to leave the shelter of his embrace. Danvier’s hands closed into fists yet he’d regained control of his expression.

  “I saw a throne room, huge and lavish.” Chandar looked into Raylon’s eyes, tuning out the rest of the world. “Zilor and his brothers stood before the crown stirate. They argued, but Garin refused to back down. Quinton ordered his men to arrest the brothers and they were dragged away in restraints. If they walk blindly into that meeting, they will never be free again.”

  Danvier moved closer to the bed, drawing Chandar’s attention. “Is the event still fluid?”

  “Yes. My vision was a warning. The events can be changed.”

  “Then we must change them.” Raylon eased her to sit on the bed beside him though his hand remained at the small of her back, calming her, soothing her. “Where is Bandar?” He looked at Indigo with a knowing smile. “Zilor is about ten minutes out.” His gaze shifted to Danvier as he added, “Round up everyone and I’ll meet you in the conference room in twenty minutes. I need to finish up what you interrupted before I can give you my undivided attention.” He gave Chandar’s shoulder a reassuring squeeze before he left, but he missed the momentary panic in her eyes.

  Indigo sat down next to Chandar before she could retreat completely into her fake calm. “You did really well. This was an important first step.”

  When Chandar turned and looked into Indigo’s eyes her fear and desperation were visible again. “I didn’t want the visions to return.”

  “How can you say that?” Indigo glared at Danvier and he immediately saw the error of his ways. “I’m sorry. It’s your life. The choice should be yours.”

  Feeling sorry for the conflicted harbinger, Indigo threw him a bone. “Danvier reacted because your power is a rare and wonderful thing when used as it was meant to be.”

  “It has brought me nothing but pain.” The last word sounded strangled. “I wanted a normal life, a life without envy and danger.”

  “That could still be an option.” She silenced Danvier’s protest with another scathing glance. “When I reconnected a few of your soul strands it gave you access to your power. If I separate them again, I’m pretty sure your power will be neutralized.”

  “You’re ‘pretty sure’?” Indigo’s hottest glare didn’t silence Danvier this time. “What you’re suggesting is basically a lobotomy. Don’t you trust your grandmother? Mimi obviously believes that Chandar should be healed not…crippled.”

  Indigo stood and faced off with the harbinger, which wasn’t easy because he was almost a head taller than her. “Stay out of my head,” she snapped. She hadn’t told him about her interaction with Mimi, wasn’t sure how he found out. “Either you trust me or you don’t. Having us argue about her treatment only confuses the situation. You need to leave.”

  “I will not stand by and allow you to permanently disable her gift. It’s not logical to—”

  “Thank you, Mr. Spock,” Indigo sneered, “but you don’t get a vote. This is between me and my patient.”

  “I want to speak with Indigo alone.” Chandar stood as well, a bit of her earlier spirit returning.

  Danvier’s face darkened and his phitons began to glow. His gaze shifted from Indigo to Chandar as he spoke in a tight, angry tone. “I will step outside because you ask it of me, but I am resolute in my belief that the person the Devine Creator fashioned should be restored.”

  “I understand,” Chandar assured him. “But it’s my life. My choice.”

  Much to Indigo’s surprise, Danvier turned to her. “I apologize for the interference. My emotions are extreme when it comes to my sister. I do trust you and know you have her best interest at heart.” Without giving her the opportunity to reply, he left the suite.

  Indigo smiled, pleased by her glimpse at the true Danvier. He might want the universe to believe he was cold and emotionless, but his outburst proved otherwise.

  With a deep breath Indigo calmed her expression before she looked at Chandar again. “I’m not going to rush you and I’ll never pressure you. That’s not why I’m here. I’ll do my best to help you see each situation clearly so you can make the best choice for yourself.”

  “I’m terrified,” she whispered the confession, clearly shamed by the fact. “A harbinger shouldn’t be afraid of her abilities.”

  Indigo shook her head. “After all you’ve been through, fear is inevitable, but it’s not inescapable. We can work through your fear and help you feel more comfortable with your visions—if that’s what you want. If you honestly want to leave all of it in the past, we can do that too.”

  Chandar lowered her gaze and fiddled with the embroidery on her tunic. “If I hadn’t had this vision, the Nox brothers would have been lost.” A deep breath expanded her chest and she lifted her face. “I can’t run from this. I’m a harbinger. I need to fight through it.”

  Pleased by the decision, Indigo smiled. “And I’ll do whatever I can to make the fight as painless as possible.” When Chandar didn’t reply, Indigo moved on. “Was fear what kept you locked inside the vision?”

  “Yes.” Chandar swallowed then smoothed down her dress before she elaborated. “I sensed that there was more information, but I was afraid to push deeper. The trance wouldn’t release me because the vision wasn’t finished, so I was trapped by my useless fear.”

  Indigo nodded. “It will get easier. We’ll keep working at it until you’re comfortable again.”

  An enigmatic smile parted Chandar’s lips. “You better get going. Zilor just docked and he’s anxious to see you.”

  She was anxious to see him too, but she didn’t want Chandar to feel left out. “Are you coming to the meeting?”

  Chandar shook her head. “I’m going to meditate, see if I can access the rest of the vision.”

  “Would you like me to stay with you?”

  Again Chandar shook her head. “I understand what happened now. I won’t let it happen again.”

  Chapter Twelve

  Indigo’s heart thudded in her chest and she folded her hands beneath the conference room’s table so no one could see how badly they shook. Raylon sat at one end of the table and Kotto at the other. Zilor sat beside her while Bandar and Ashley faced them. Ashley looked as anxious as Indigo felt. Danvier had agreed to return to the Pavilion so Chandar wouldn’t be alone. He’d promised Indigo he wouldn’t interrupt his sister’s meditation. He just wasn’t willing to leave her unprotected.

  “Why would all three of us appear before Quinton?” Bandar shook his head. “I can’t imagine a situation that would result in that sort of meeting. It makes us too vulnerable. Chandar must be wrong.”

  “Harbinger visions are seldom wrong.” Kotto made the statement with absolute finality.

  “And yet, we don’t know how accurate her visions are now. However, I can answer Bandar’s question,” Zilor offered.

  Confusion wrinkled Bandar’s forehead. “I asked a question?”

  “Why would you and your brothers all appear before Quinton,” Ashley reminded him with a tender smile. They were so obviously in love it was almost comical. And Raina and Kotto weren’t much better. Neither couple could seem to keep their hands off each other regardless of the situation.

  “What’s the answer,” Raylon prompted.

  “My mission wasn’t a complete waste of time.” Zilor looked around the table as he spoke, assessing the reaction of each person. “According to Akim’s favorite pet, he installed a covert shield generator in one of his shuttles and flew right past our guards. He took pictures of the outpost and the three ships that were docked here at the time. Quinton knows just about everything.”

  “Shit.” Without explaining his actions, Raylon activated a control
panel inset in the table in front of him. His hands flew through the holographic controls and he spoke in a language Indigo’s com-bots couldn’t translate. A column of light appeared in the center of the table as Raylon rattled off several more commands. The illuminated column widened and took on shape, gradually morphing into a person.

  With short black hair and vivid blue phitons, the man was obviously Rodyte. Mile-wide shoulders and a strong jawline combined with the imperious tilt of his head, giving him an unmistakable air of authority. Even before Raylon spoke his name, Indigo knew she was looking at General Garin Nox.

  “Garin, we’ve got serious trouble.” Raylon quickly filled him in on all that had happened in the past twenty-four hours.

  Indigo wasn’t sure how she’d expected Garin to react, but a chuckle certainly wasn’t it. “Thank Chandar for the warning, but all this does is hurry our schedule along. Everything is already in place. I was just waiting for the right opportunity to set things in motion.”

  “Are you sure,” Kotto asked. “Forewarned is forearmed.”

  As Garin shifted his focus from Raylon to Kotto, his gaze landed on Indigo. For one electric moment he stared into her eyes. Awareness pulsed between them. The sensation wasn’t as consuming as it had been when she met Zilor, but she definitely felt something. Then without changing his expression, Garin dragged his gaze away from her and looked at Kotto.

  “That concept works both ways,” Garin pointed out. “We know Quinton is on to us, so we won’t walk into his trap. Our one advantage is that he is unaware that we’ve been warned. We’ve hidden our true intentions long enough. This showdown was inevitable.”

  “So we just sit around and wait for his summons?” Bandar clearly disliked the strategy.

  Garin turned to his middle brother and smiled. The transparent display allowed Indigo to see his expression even though he faced the other way. “It’s a test of sorts. If Quinton summons all three of us to court, it will prove the validity of Chandar’s vision. If the summons never comes, we simply continue along the established timeline with a bit more caution.”

  “This can’t be happening.” Ashley’s eyes filled with tears and she pressed her hand over her mouth.

  Bandar dragged her chair closer to his and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “We’ll be fine, love. Nothing is going to happen to any of us.”

  “They gave me the final injection this morning. I can’t lose you now.” She threw her arms around his neck and sobbed out his name. He pulled her onto his lap, enfolding her snugly in his strong embrace. All she could do for a moment was sob, then she looked into his eyes. “The transformation is frightening enough. How can I go through it knowing you’ll leave as soon as Quinton crooks his finger?”

  “You won’t,” Garin insisted. “I’ll tell Quinton that Bandar contracted a human virus and is quarantined. There’s no way he’s leaving you right now.”

  Ashley’s lips trembled as she fought for composure. When she was able to speak again, emotion still thickened her voice. “Won’t that put you and Zilor in danger?”

  Garin waved away her concern. “We’re warriors. We thrive on danger. There’s nothing more important than what you’re going through. Your mate will be by your side.”

  His authoritative tone seemed to soothe Ashley. She took a deep breath then kissed Bandar. “Will anything ever be simple with you guys?”

  “Probably not,” he admitted with a smile.

  Garin turned around and looked at Indigo, but he spoke to Zilor. “Is this the healer you recruited?”

  Zilor nodded and motioned toward her. “Indigo Carlson, meet General Garin Nox.”

  She looked into Garin’s eyes and tension coiled through her. His gaze was intense and assessing, not warm and caressing like Zilor’s was so often. The interest in his expression was undeniable. Still, she felt like she was being analyzed from a strictly strategic perspective.

  “It’s nice to meet you.” She finally spoke when the silence became uncomfortable.

  “You’re not what I pictured.”

  That made her smile. “I get that a lot.”

  Without further comment, Garin turned back to Raylon. “Do you need anything else?”

  “No, sir. Business as usual until Quinton makes a move.”

  Garin glanced at Indigo one last time before he ended the transmission.

  Something rumbled around her, but she felt the sound more than actually heard it. She looked at Zilor and found him glaring at the place Garin’s image had been. “You are mine.” He whispered the claim just loud enough for her to hear him.

  She reached over and squeezed his leg, assuring him that she felt the same.

  “Everyone stay close,” Raylon advised. “No more trips to Earth until this is over.”

  That concluded the meeting and everyone headed off in different directions.

  “She really did it,” Indigo muttered as she and Zilor walked back to the Pavilion.

  “Ashley?” Zilor reached down and caught her hand, intertwining their fingers.

  “Yeah. I know you said she was going to allow the transformation, but it still didn’t seem real. Hearing her talk about it forced my mind to accept that this is really happening. My friends are participating in a medical experiment that will morph them into something…” She couldn’t find an adequate description, so she just let her words trail away.

  “The medical team is monitoring her every step of the way. They won’t allow anything to happen to her.”

  “You don’t know that. They don’t know that. This has never been done before.”

  He shook his head as they exited the Crusader and headed for the outpost’s main entrance. “Actually, it’s been done once before. But the process has been refined considerably since then.”

  “And you want me to do it too.”

  It wasn’t really a question, but he replied anyway. “Of course I want access to my magic, but not if it harms you in any way. That’s why my name was on both of your lists. If you decide not to participate in the transformation program, I still want you as my mate.”

  If anyone but Zilor had made the claim, she would have wondered if he were simply telling her what she wanted to hear. But Zilor had never lied to her. At least, not that she knew about. His steadfast character was even more appealing than his face. And that was saying a lot.

  They passed through the commerce tiers in silence, each lost in thought. It still seemed fantastical that all of this was inside Earth’s moon. Each time she passed through the mini-spaceport, it seemed like more of the shops were ready for business.

  “Raylon said no more trips to Earth,” Indigo said as they entered the residential section of the outpost. “Is that where he sent you this morning?”

  “Yeah. One of Garin’s spies reported that Akim had stashed Chandar at a nightclub in Outpost LA for at least part of her captivity. I knew my way around, so Raylon asked me to check it out.”

  “And you ran into Akim’s ‘favorite pet’ at this nightclub.” She didn’t want to feel jealous. Until she agreed to mate with Zilor, she had no real claim to him. Still, it was too easy to imagine a pleasure giver crawling all over him.

  “More or less,” was all he said for a moment, then he reluctantly explained how he’d found Lynn and the true nature of the nightclub. “Akim was still with her when I arrived, but he bio-streamed out before I could do anything but scream in frustration.”

  “If Akim is one of Lynn’s regular customers, why was she willing to help you?”

  “Lynn is a business woman. She offers services for monetary compensation. The service I required was information.”

  “Was she beautiful?”

  He chuckled. “The stink of my enemy was so strong on her flesh, it was all I could do not to throw up all over her.”

  Pleased by his admission, she finally relaxed and focused on the events still ahead. “Mimi visited me last night. Among other things, she told me a Bilarrian named Vox Loriet could help train me.”<
br />
  “Why would a Bilarrian agree to help you? You’re half Rodyte.”

  The casual statement halted her steps. “Do you honestly believe that every single Bilarrian is morally obligated to hate every single Rodyte because their people are at war?”

  He drew his hand out of hers and continued down the walkway between two housing villages. “I’ve met many Bilarrians and they all resent Rodytes. If there are Bilarrians who feel differently, I’ve yet to meet them.”

  She hurried along, catching up with his long strides. “Well, this half-Rodyte wants to at least ask the question. Can you contact Vox Loriet or not?”

  “Do you have anything but his name? What color are his phitons? The color is determined by a Bilarrian’s region of origin.”

  With a frustrated sigh, she admitted, “Mimi just gave me his name.”

  “I’ll see what I can learn, but no guarantees.”

  By the time they reached the Pavilion, Zilor’s annoyance had blown itself out. Indigo wasn’t part of the war between Rodymia and Bilarri. At least not yet. He couldn’t expect her to understand how deeply resentments had grown. Besides, if he was serious about becoming her mate—and he’d never been more serious about anything—he needed to support her in any way he could.

  “If none of my usual sources can find Vox Loriet, I’ll contact my cousin Nazerel. His life mate heads the human taskforce that deals with alien threats. Her name is Morgan and her network of contacts rivals Garin’s.”

  “She sounds interesting.” Indigo’s smile was still a bit tentative. “Will I ever meet her?”

  He led her into his suite and closed the door before responding. “Once we go public, Morgan and Nazerel will need to be involved. And it sounds like that’s going to happen sooner than we thought.”

  “Does that worry you?”

  He thought about it before answering. The last thing she needed was hollow reassurance. “The events haven’t changed. We’ve been planning an overt rebellion for several years now. All the groundwork is in place. Like Garin said, all we’ve been waiting for was the right opportunity to announce our intentions. The governments of Earth must understand the justification for our actions. Humans won’t support an arbitrary rebellion.”