Return of the Ascendant (The Ascendant Series)

by Raine Thomas

  “Here,” Avana said pulling something from her bag. A water bottle.

  He grabbed it and squeezed the liquid over Kyr’s back. Her blood ran along her back to the ground, staining the pavement dark red as it mixed with the black Shelvak poison. She started shivering.

  Damn it. That was a very bad sign.

  Knowing he had no other choice, Ty gritted his teeth and slashed his sword across her back, right over the injury. Her scream went through him like a lance.

  I’m so sorry, Kyr, he thought.

  He held her still, knowing she would thrash as she fought the pain. Her blood flowed freely, pooling underneath her in a dark morass that made him feel ill. Not because it was blood…because it was hers.

  Sem joined him, cursing when he realized what had happened. He ran a blackened hand through his dark hair, his eyes pained.

  Will she die? he thought towards Ty.

  No, Ty returned.

  He wouldn’t allow it.

  After a couple of minutes, the blood ran clear. Kyr was sobbing by then, begging them to stop the pain. If he could have done anything to spare her from it, he would have. But he had to cause her more pain by cauterizing the wound with his de’llum.

  By the time he turned her over, her frantic thrashing had stilled. He was afraid that his efforts had been wasted…afraid that she’d died anyway. So when her blue eyes met his, his relief was instantaneous.

  She pushed herself into a sitting position. One of the straps of her dress fell to the side, having been cut by the Shelvak’s blade. Ty reached out to steady her when she swayed.

  “Ma’jah Kyr, are you all right?” Avana asked in a tremulous voice.

  “Sure,” Kyr said, right before she fainted.

  Chapter 7

  Consciousness was slow to return. Kyra surfaced in long increments, feeling like she was struggling to emerge from a deep sleep.

  The first thing she saw when her eyes finally opened was the familiar face hovering over her. Ginger colored curls surrounded a cheerful, round face only lightly wrinkled by time. Dark blue eyes glistened with unshed tears.

  A second face joined the first. Dark hair worn too long, at least in his wife’s opinion. Warm brown eyes and a mouth that frequently turned up in a smile. A straight, aristocratic nose that Kyra had always thought she’d inherited from him.

  “Mom?” she whispered. “Dad?”

  When they smiled, she felt almost giddy with relief. It had all been a dream! Of course it had. Sure, it had been intense, but—

  “Dem-Shyr, she’s awake,” her mother said.

  Shit.

  She realized then that she was still on the ground, but her head was in her mother’s lap. Her father’s face was replaced by Ty’s. He studied her like she was a science experiment and he needed to know the results.

  “You cut me,” she accused.

  He frowned, but didn’t comment.

  “He had to, honey,” her mother said. “The only way to purge Shelvak poison in someone who isn’t immune is to bleed it out. If Dem-Shyr TaeDane hadn’t been quick about it, you would have been dead before we got here.”

  Kyra processed that. She thought about the excruciating pain she had just experienced, first at the hands of the Shelvak and then from Ty. She also considered the fact that she was still alive.

  “Thank you,” she told him.

  If she hadn’t been watching him so closely, she might have missed the surprise that crossed his features. As it was, the neutral expression that he seemed to wear like a cloak settled into place so quickly that she wasn’t sure she hadn’t imagined it.

  “Of course,” he said. “The time has come to transition. I will carry you to the location.”

  Kyra saw the look her parents exchanged, the sorrow on her mother’s face, her father’s pinched lips. She pushed herself up into a sitting position. Ty and her mother both held hands out to steady her in case she faltered, but she felt okay outside of some soreness between her shoulders. She did allow Ty to assist her to her feet as her father assisted her mother up, though.

  Meeting Ty’s gaze, she said, “Please give us a minute.”

  He looked between her and her parents before nodding. She watched as he stepped a few feet away. Avana and Sam stood there watching her. Not wanting them to worry, she gave them a small wave. They each returned it, Avana looking relieved and Sam looking…well, she couldn’t really tell. He gave Ty a dark look, though, and Kyra wondered if he was blaming Ty for hurting her.

  Moving closer to her parents, she asked, “How did you get here?”

  “Dem-Shyr TaeDane contacted us,” her father said.

  He sounded as though she should know that. It hit her all at once that she had no idea how the Alametrians communicated with each other. She didn’t know a single thing about their society. She would be the only person on the planet who didn’t know who she was.

  “We’re so sorry we’ve kept the truth from you, honey,” her mother said quietly.

  “Kyndred aren’t allowed to reveal their true identities to their charges,” her father added. His hand was settled on her mother’s shoulder in a show of support.

  Wringing her hands, her mother hurried on, “Even though you’re not our birth child, we’ve loved you ever since we left Alametria with you. It’s been more than an honor to serve as your Kyndred. I hope you’ll forgive—”

  Kyra flung her arms around her mother. “Stop, Mom. Please. I love you both so much. I don’t want to leave. Can’t we just stay here, a happy family?”

  Her mother sniffled and hugged her tight. “I wish it was that simple, honey. I truly crave exactly that. But you’re far too important to Alametria for us to be that selfish. We’ll be traveling with you, and we’ll be at the palace with you and the Guardians. We’ll get to see each other whenever we want.”

  Palace? Kyra thought. “Who are the Guardians?” she asked, pulling back from the hug.

  “Your birth parents,” her father said.

  Her father…

  That thought lodged in her head. Fighting back tears, she asked, “If you won’t be my parents there, what will I call you?”

  Her mother gave her a watery smile. “My Alametrian name is UllahOwar. You’ll call me Ullah.”

  “And I’m WykOwar,” her father said. “So you’ll call me Wyk.”

  Her breath shuddered out of her chest as the reality of her situation hit her. She was really about to leave everything she knew to travel to a place she didn’t remember. Everyone on this other planet believed her to be something she knew she wasn’t.

  “I can’t do this, Mom,” she whispered. “Please don’t make me.”

  “Oh, honey,” her mother said as a tear traveled down her cheek. “It’s because I love you so much that I must make you do this. I know you can. If you look deeply enough, you’ll know you can, too.”

  Her father pulled her into a hug. “Don’t worry, Kyr-bear,” he said, using the nickname he always used. “Everything is going to be fine.”

  Kyra sensed that they weren’t telling her everything. She knew they were as upset about the coming separation as she was. Because they were trying to be strong for her, she knew she could offer them no less. Pulling away from her dad, she managed a smile.

  “Okay, you two. If you say it’ll be fine, I’m going to believe you. But you can’t pretend you don’t know me once we get to Alametria.”

  Her mother looked genuinely aghast at the suggestion. “Oh, honey—”

  “She’s teasing, Ullah,” her father said with a deep chuckle. “Kyr-bear knows she won’t be able to walk two steps without you hounding her, no matter the solar system.”

  That brought a genuine smile to Kyra’s face. “Okay, let’s get this over with. I’m sure Ty’s about to come over here and drag me along.”

  They turned as a group and started to walk over to join the others. She hadn’t even taken two steps before Ty hurried forward and scooped her up. She’d almost forgotten about her bare feet. Surpr
isingly, the foot that had stepped on the sharp rock as the Shelvaks chased her didn’t even hurt anymore.

  Catching Ty’s enigmatic silver gaze, she said, “Thanks.”

  He gave her a curt nod.

  She wanted to explain that her gratitude wasn’t for carrying her around, but they were moving and her attention turned to what was about to happen.

  “Will this hurt?” she asked. Her fingers had dug deeply into his shoulder, so she forced her hand to relax.

  “Will what hurt?”

  She considered again her lack of knowledge and the fact that she had no idea how they were going to get from Earth to Alametria. Drawing on her limited sci-fi exposure, she guessed, “The, um, transport to the ship…or whatever.”

  “No.”

  His curt answers might have bothered her on any normal day, but right now, his matter-of-fact demeanor served to calm her. “And you’ll be going with me, right?”

  “Yes.”

  She breathed a sigh of relief. “Good.”

  Realizing she had said the word out loud, she avoided looking at him. She felt his gaze on her face, though, and fought a flush of embarrassment.

  It wasn’t long before they stopped. He put her on her feet. The wide patch of pavement on which they stood looked like it was clearer of debris than the parking lot had been. She also noticed that without her shoes on, she didn’t even reach Ty’s shoulders. Lord, he was big.

  “Do you both have your locators?” Ty asked her parents.

  “We have one, Dem-Shyr,” her father said. “The other was in a separate location as a matter of security and we didn’t have time to retrieve it.”

  “That’s all right,” Ty said. “You can transition with Ullah.”

  Kyra’s pulse raced as Ty arranged them all into the positions for transitioning. She obediently took her spot next to him. Sam stood on her left with her mother on his other side. Her father stood by her mother, and Avana stood between him and Ty. They made a tight circle.

  “Stay in position,” Ty ordered.

  They all nodded. Kyra’s father placed his hand on her mother’s shoulder just as Ty touched Kyra’s shoulder. Everyone who had a locator device held them with their palms out. Kyra’s eyes widened as they started glowing.

  This was it. She was leaving Earth behind.

  Her throat went dry. A sudden wave of nausea caught her by surprise. Confusion overtook her. Ty had said this wouldn’t hurt.

  Then the world spun. She lost her balance and fell backwards. There was a bright flash of light as her eyes rolled back in her head. Two hands kept her from hitting her head on the pavement. Still, she felt a hard, flat surface beneath her. Guessing she’d made the transition, she opened her eyes to face her new reality.

  Ty’s silver gaze met hers. She smiled, happy he hadn’t lied about staying with her, even if he should have told her the truth about the transition not hurting.

  “We haven’t transitioned,” he said.

  “We haven’t?”

  Turning her head slightly, she realized that Sam was also leaning over her. His expression reflected more concern than Ty’s did.

  “Is it the poison?” Sam asked.

  “I don’t know,” Ty answered.

  Strangely, the longer she lay there, the more normal she felt. She pushed herself up into a sitting position. They were, indeed, still beside the warehouse. Blinking to further clear her head, she looked around. Her eyes widened.

  “Where are my parents?” she asked.

  “They transitioned,” Ty said. “As did Avana.”

  She realized that her stumble had prevented her, Ty, and Sam from transitioning. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened. I guess I wasn’t prepared for the nausea and lightheadedness.”

  The two guys exchanged glances. She knew then that what she had experienced hadn’t been normal. Was it the poison, like Sam had guessed? If so, why did she feel all right now?

  “I’m okay,” she said. “Come on, let’s try again.”

  Ty and Sam each took one of her hands and pulled her to her feet. She waited for a wave of dizziness that never came.

  “Weird,” she breathed.

  “You sure you’re all right?” Sam asked.

  “I really am,” she assured him.

  Rather than ask about her well-being, Ty took her arm and led her a couple of feet back to her position. It was like he was looking at a brightly lit platform, so precisely did he position them. Kyra appreciated his competent manner and vowed to stand in place until the transition was complete.

  Once again, Ty and Sam held their locator devices out. As if in unspoken agreement, they each put a hand on her shoulders. Since she didn’t particularly trust herself, either, she could hardly blame them. Taking a deep breath, she waited for the glow indicating that they were about to be transitioned.

  And waited.

  And waited.

  Nothing happened. After a couple of minutes, Ty and Sam exchanged looks that told Kyra something was wrong.

  “What’s happening?” she asked.

  “Nothing,” Sam replied with a frown. “That’s the problem.”

  “What does that mean?”

  Giving her a wry look, he said, “It means that we can’t phone home.”

  Chapter 8

  Something was wrong.

  Ty lifted Kyr and strode away from the transition point. He knew Sem would follow. If someone had been monitoring the Earth’s atmosphere at the right frequency, they might have detected the transition of the others. If they also happened to know the location of the Alametrian ship, their location was compromised.

  What had prevented their transition?

  His question was answered seconds later. Behind them, a blast of cold, foul-smelling air signaled the arrival of a new host of Shelvaks. Their ship had obviously been the one that captured the signal.

  “How many of those bastards can possibly be on one ship?” Sem asked, drawing his weapon.

  Ty didn’t even pause as he broke into a run. Now wasn’t the time to fight. Kyr was already weakened by the last Shelvak attack. Whether he liked their odds or not, he wasn’t about to put her at risk again.

  Give her to me, Sem thought. You’re faster. Get your keys and get to the damn car so you can start it.

  He was right. Trusting his cousin to catch Kyr, Ty tossed her. She let out a squeak that faded as he pushed himself to his full speed. Any human who saw him wouldn’t have believed how fast he ran. Unfortunately, Shelvaks were faster.

  He raced to the car, unlocking it with the key fob as he ran. Sem and Kyr were still beyond the light of the parking area as he threw the door open. The lights made it impossible to see how many Shelvaks followed them.

  Hauling himself inside the vehicle, he started it, jammed it into gear, and floored the gas pedal without even bothering to close his door. It slammed shut of its own accord as he went from zero to sixty in less than four seconds. He reached the far side of the parking lot and slammed on the brakes, leaving rubber and smoke on the pavement as he stopped inches from Sem and Kyr. Reaching over, he shoved the passenger side door open.

  He itched to get out of the car and grab Kyr. His instincts to protect her were at their height. She caught his eye through the windshield. Whatever she read in his expression had her wriggling free of Sem and hitting the pavement at a run. She dived through the open door, climbing over the armrest in the middle and pouring into the backseat. Sem was right on her heels and tossed himself into the passenger seat just as Ty hit reverse.

  The locators, Ty thought, tossing his to his cousin.

  On it, Sem returned.

  Ty sped away from the warehouse, keeping one eye on the rearview mirror and the other on the road. Beside him, Sem entered the self-destruct codes into the locators and tossed each of them out the window. Flashes of light burst behind them as the locators were destroyed. He felt Kyr’s curiosity over it, but she didn’t ask any questions. If she had, he would have explained that those locator
signals were now known by the Shelvaks, and therefore easily traceable.

  “Where would your parents have left their second locator?” he asked her.

  She met his gaze in the rearview mirror. Her face was pale, her eyes huge and frightened. But her voice was level when she replied, “At home, I guess. Somewhere at home.”

  “All right,” he said, mentally pulling up the map he had studied before coming to get her.

  The drive to her home was quiet. During the trip, he tried to reason through what had happened. Was it merely a coincidence that Kyr had fallen just as the transition was taking place? He didn’t believe in coincidences. So what had happened to her? Did it have anything to do with the mental block keeping him from retrieving her memories? If so, who had done it?

  He noticed Sem throwing worried glances at Kyr. His cousin had reason to want Kyr to remain on Earth and away from Ty and her other obligations. Yet Ty detected only confusion and concern in Sem’s thoughts. Kyr’s Kyndred and Avana, as well, had only conveyed love and protectiveness towards her.

  Who did that leave? There were other Alametrians on Earth, of course. Some, like Kyr, were there learning life lessons. Others served as Kyndred. Still others had moved to Earth permanently many millennia ago, though as far as he knew, they had separated themselves from humanity. Most modern humans knew nothing about them.

  He supposed there was a possibility that one of the Alametrians had figured out Kyr’s identity and tried to prevent her transition. But he had no idea how to identify who or why. He also didn’t know how the Shelvaks were involved. They had known far too much about Kyr’s location and the transition point. It all hinted at them receiving inside intel. If that was true, there had to be more than one traitor. No single Alametrian knew enough details about Kyr’s location and Ty’s evacuation plan to have organized all of this.