“You killed my mother.”
“And your kind killed my father,” Richard said still holding his palms out toward the scout. He noticed the bat’s eyes focus on his two hands.
“I was taken prisoner,” said the scout. “I have no honor.”
Richard shook his head. “You are a Crosioian scout. They have always been honorable foes. I believe you were supposed to be taken prisoner so we could meet. In fact, I don’t believe you are a prisoner at all. I believe you are a sleeper purposely placed here so we could meet. Your honor is intact. The odds that you are the daughter of the first scout I fought are too great to be coincidental. Unless I miss my guess, taking me as prisoner to your tribal leaders should go a long way to restoring whatever honor you think you’ve lost in your tribe’s eyes.”
“Perhaps,” said the scout. “There is still the problem of the nuke, not to mention I do not have a ship.”
“I have a ship,” Richard said, hoping he was telling the truth. He knew well enough that convincing Sergeant Ron to take a Crosioian scout onboard the Defiant might be more than a little challenging.
“And the nuke?” asked the scout.
Taking a risk, Richard reached out with his mind and undid the kink he’d placed in the scout’s link to her Power reserve. As soon as he did, he sensed Power flow into her body, healing her spinal column.
“Jeena, release your paralysis spell.”
“I do not th—”
“Please, Jeena. You promised to obey me. Remember?”
Richard heard his bondmate mumble something to the effect of “I meant within reason,” even as he sensed the magic energy around the scout dissipate back into the universe from which it had come. He breathed a sigh of relief. In their short time together, he’d quickly found out his bondmate could be volatile at times.
“As can you,” said Nickelo in their shared space.
The scout sat up slowly on the edge of the cot, keeping her ears and eyes focused on Richard.
“Follow me with your mind,” Richard said. “Jeena, Nick, I’m going to need your help as well. I’d be willing to bet a month’s pay the warden is even now heading for the fail-safe switch.”
“That’s a sucker’s bet,” said Nickelo over the battle helmet’s external speakers. “I am surprised he hasn’t already set off the nuke.”
Reaching out with his mind, Richard probed beneath the cell, pinpointing the tactical nuke. He sensed two lines of Power follow along with him as he merged his mind with the electronics of the nuclear weapon. He used the same technique the Defiant’s mechanic, Charlie, had shown him to troubleshoot problems with mechanical equipment. This time Richard wasn’t looking for problems, he was seeking potential weak points in the arming mechanism of the bomb. Spotting a surge of energy heading toward the weapon’s electronic trigger, he grabbed onto Jeena’s line of Power and guided it to a weak point ahead of the energy surge. Sensing another surge from a backup trigger, Richard wasted no time waiting to see if Jeena would know to block the flow of energy. Either she would, or she wouldn’t.
“Don’t worry,” said Nickelo in their shared space. “Danny is with her. She’ll do her part. You’d better hope the Crosioian scout knows what to do. You’ve got to stop that second energy surge and short-circuit the trigger mechanism before the nuke’s security programs decide to activate the weapon using override logic. You can’t do both things at once on your own.”
Wrapping his line of Power around the scout’s, Richard shoved her line into a weak point ahead of the second energy surge. Without waiting to see what she would do, he merged his mind into the nuke’s computer core, seeking out the security programs.
“One of the programs is already activating,” said Nickelo. “You have to stop it.”
With his mind working at nanosecond speed, Richard scrambled the security program. He changed the programming code for self-activating the nuke to make it close the safety switch instead. He modified the security program in such a way as to permanently disable the bomb’s trigger. He sensed flows of energy burn out the circuits in the trigger.
“How’d I do that?” Richard asked in his shared space. “I’m not a computer programmer.”
Nickelo laughed. “No, you are not. Fortunately for you, I am. Once you got into the computer network, I was able to guide you in what to do. We’re a team, remember?”
Richard’s mind returned to normal speed. The scout was standing to his front with wings outstretched. Jeena was a step to his right rear. The Lady’s staff was glowing with Power.
“This one is my prisoner,” said the scout, pointing a paw at Richard. “Does his word mean nothing?”
The staff’s glow disappeared. Leaning the Lady’s staff against the cell wall, the high priestess raised both hands palm out. “I am also your prisoner. Where he goes, I go.”
“Like hell you do,” Richard said. “That’s not part of the deal. I’m the only one going with the scout. You will be staying on the Defiant with Sergeant Ron.”
Jeena turned away from the scout long enough to walk in front of Richard and poke him in the chest with two stiffened fingers. The blow didn’t actually hurt through his battle suit, but it was forceful enough to get his attention.
“The hell I will, Wizard Scout Richard Shepard. You are my bondmate, but I am the high priestess of the Lady of the Tree. I do what I want, when I want. So if you do not like it, that is just too bad.” Turning back to face the scout, Jeena once again raised both hands palm out. “So am I your prisoner or not? You should probably consider the fact that you do not have any weapons or armor at the moment, and that I have a disintegration spell ready to go at the first sign of attack.”
Richard held his breath. He sensed a ball of magic energy flow into his bondmate’s left hand. He had no doubt the scout sensed it as well.
Retracting her wings behind her back, the scout’s lips pulled back to reveal her fangs.
“I calculate that’s her version of a smile,” came Nickelo’s thought in their shared space.
The scout’s ears focused completely on Jeena. “You are my prisoner. Now, if you will refrain from turning my body into floating bits of atomized dust, perhaps we can figure out how to get off this moon. As I told you, I have no ship.”
Richard smiled. “Leave that to me.”
Chapter 12 – The Guardian
__________________________
Something woke Telsa. While wizard scouts didn’t sleep often, even she had to give her brain a rest every once in a while. When she opened her eyes, she continued to lie on the soft mattress of the guest bed in Rick and Jeehana’s home in Silverton. She was thankful they’d been kind enough to offer her the use of their spare bedroom before departing on their mission back to the physical dimension.
Snuggling deeper under the covers, Telsa gazed around the room seeking a clue about what might have disturbed her. The little moonlight entering through the curtained window above the desk barely lit the room. Even so, she could tell the bedroom was empty except for the elaborately carved bed, wardrobe, desk, chair, and nightstand. A sweep with her passive scan detected a life form at the front door. She recognized the life form’s frequency. It wasn’t that of an enemy.
“Of course it is not an enemy,” said Raj in their shared space. “What kind of battle computer do you take me for? I would have woken you if an enemy was nearby.”
Reaching to the nightstand next to the bed with her right hand, Telsa picked up her battle helmet and placed it on her head. As soon as the visor lowered across her eyes, the helmet’s night vision took hold. Everything in the room took on a light shade of red. She was used to it. During her years at the Intergalactic Wizard Scout Academy, the instructors had always stressed keeping the battle suit’s filter in night vision mode. According to her TAC officers, by doing so, no matter whether she found herself in daylight, darkest night, thick fog, or a raging blizzard, she’d be used to seeing things the same way if caught in a fight.
“You mean if
you’d detected an enemy,” Telsa replied to her battle computer’s comment about waking her. “You can’t detect everyone or everything.”
“True,” admitted Raj not sounding at all happy with having a weakness pointed out to him. “In this case though, I happen to know that the life form at the front door is the elf Leethor. It was his knock that woke you.”
Throwing back the covers, Telsa twisted and sat up on the side of the bed. The bed was high, and her short legs didn’t quite reach the floor. She scooted off the bed and took a moment to let her bare feet take in the softness of the luxurious carpet. She wiggled her toes, enjoying the sensation. “I swear this is the softest stuff I’ve ever felt. I’d be super rich like my parents if I could corner the market on the material and sell it back in the physical dimension.”
Raj gave a canned laugh. “Good luck with that. The carpet’s made of luxamar fur. I calculate it took the high priestess’s family several thousand years to comb enough of the little creatures’ fur to create the carpets in this house. Your business would grow broke waiting for enough inventory to sell.”
Laughing in spite of herself, Telsa grabbed her battle suit pants from where she’d tossed them on the floor the night before. Battle suits were made to be worn without clothing. Since she preferred sleeping in the nude anyway, she was able to dress quickly enough. Just as she was snapping on her utility belt, another knock came from the direction of the living room.
“I’m coming,” Telsa mumbled, knowing full well the sound wouldn’t carry to her obviously impatient visitor. “Keep your pants on.”
“I suspect Commander Leethor is fully clothed,” said Raj.
“It’s just a saying, Raj. Don’t get your panties in a wad.”
“I do not wear—”
“Forget it, Raj.”
“Consider it forgotten, Wizard Scout.”
Making her way to the hallway, Telsa walked past the kitchen and out to the living room. Once at the front door, she opened it to find not just Leethor, but Master Jathar and Rembis as well.
“Hmm,” commented Raj in their shared space. “As I have said before, they have good stealth shields.”
“We’re sorry,” said Rembis. “Did we wake you?”
The gnome magic user’s grin told Telsa he knew full well they had. She grinned back. “Not at all. I’ve been up for hours doing my knitting.” She took a look at the dark sky before stepping back from the door and motioning the others in. “Make yourselves at home. Geez, I knew you said we were leaving today, but I figured you at least meant after the sun came up.”
Leading the others in, Master Jathar maneuvered his way around a stack of books and made his way to the sofa. Moving some scrolls over to create a clear space on the cushion, he sat down. The old elf’s garb was somewhat unusual in that instead of his normal black robe he was wearing a set of brown and green pants and tunic. His uniform appeared more suitable for an elf scout than a master mage. He leaned his staff across one leg before looking at Telsa.
“I am afraid the early hour is my fault,” he said giving a tightlipped smile. “I have many duties, and it is my hope that we can finish this business quickly and return in time for me to make a report to the Council of Light when they meet this evening.” The elf mage looked around at the stacks of books and scrolls in the cluttered room before shaking his head and chuckling. “This is my first time in the high priestess’s home. I had heard stories, but…” He looked at Telsa. “How do you get around without knocking something over?”
Telsa flashed a grin. “It’s been a challenge.”
The elf Leethor looked around from where he stood in the center of the room. His brown and green pants and tunic matched those of Master Jathar. In lieu of a staff, he carried a bow in his right hand. A longsword was strapped to his left side. Telsa made note of the blue gem chip in the pommel of the sword. Her passive scan picked up magic energy radiating from both the sword and a dagger on the elf’s right hip. More magic was coming from beneath his tunic.
“He is wearing magic armor underneath his clothes,” volunteered Raj in their shared space. “I calculate a ninety-two percent probability it is elven chainmail. Several of the arrows in his quiver also radiate magic.”
Leethor finished surveying the room and laughed. “I must agree with Wizard Scout Telsa. I have been here many times, and it is definitely a challenge getting around. I must confess I have knocked over quite a few stacks of books over the years.” He turned and faced Telsa. “Now, not to hurry you, Wizard Scout Telsa, but if you would like to take a few minutes to get yourself ready, we can make ourselves comfortable here until you prepare for the journey.”
Telsa laughed at the thought that a wizard scout needed time to get ready. The moment she sealed her battle suit, she knew the sterilized environment inside the suit would take care of all her body’s needs. She didn’t even need to brush her teeth. “First off, just call me Telsa, Commander. I’m not used to formalities. As for getting ready, I just need a minute to get my pack and rifle from the bedroom, so don’t get too comfortable.”
Leethor bowed. “As you say, Telsa. Please call me Leethor. Any friend of Rick and Jeehana’s is a friend of mine.”
Hurrying to retrieve her gear, Telsa was back in less than thirty seconds. She slipped the strap of her M12 assault rifle over her shoulder so that it hung in a ready-to-fire position. It fit comfortably in her hands. Sergeant Hendricks, the Defiant’s armorer, had modified it especially for her by shortening the stock and barrel. While the modified grenade launcher under the barrel only held five rounds instead of the usual seven, the comfortable design of the weapon was worth the loss, in her opinion. Once situated, she faced Master Jathar. “Ready as I’ll ever be. You mentioned teleporting to our destination?”
Rising from his seat, Master Jathar nodded. “So I did.” He turned to Rembis. “Would you care to do the honors? You lived in New Drepdenor. You are more familiar with the area than me.”
The gnome magic user smiled. “I lived there a hundred thousand years ago. However, between what Leethor has told me and what I’ve seen in our scrying devices, I think I can get us there safely enough.”
Without any seeming preparation, the gnome said a word Telsa heard and quickly forgot as he slapped his hands together. A wave of energy swept over her. Every cell in her body tingled as the world turned black. An eye-blink later, the world was again tinted red through her night vision filter. She was standing next to a rushing river thirty meters across, tall trees on her side of the riverbank and even taller cliff walls on the other. A loud roar drew her attention to a ten-meter-tall waterfall not a hundred meters upstream. Her passive scan picked up a score of life forms a couple of hundred meters downstream. Glancing in that direction, she made out a half-dozen one- and two-story buildings near a dock protruding into the river. She sensed nothing with her passive scan that might denote the presence of a guardian.
“Uh, where are we?” Telsa asked. “I thought we were going to some mountain.”
Rembis laughed. “We are, but not by teleportation. I’m afraid we’ll need to take a boat for the final leg of our journey. I suspect the guardian might take someone teleporting into their domain as an attempt to steal their treasure. Master Jathar and I discussed the matter last night. We agreed it will be much safer to make our way there in a more traditional way for all to see. Leethor assures us we can get a boat and guide from the human settlement yonder.”
“Assures is a big word,” said Leethor. “The humans at the settlement were helpful enough last time I was here, but that was fifty years ago when Meshoan and I helped rescue Jeehana. Still, I think we will be able to acquire a boat and guide without too much trouble.”
As Leethor took the lead following a worn path along the side of the river, in the direction of the buildings, Telsa took up position behind him. Rembis fell in behind her with Master Jathar taking up the rear spot.
“Raj, err, I mean my battle computer, mentioned Jeehana’s rescue,” Telsa
said. “I’ve never gotten the full story.”
Leethor glanced back over his shoulder. “Then I will have to tell you the tale some time when we are not in such a hurry. It’s a sad tale, in some respects. The high priestess’s salvation came at a cost.” He looked back toward the settlement and picked up the pace. “Still, Jeehana was saved, and that’s what matters. It was worth the price.”
Although perplexed and curious by the elf’s reply, Telsa prodded him no further. For one thing, she’d noticed a definite sadness in the elf’s voice. There wasn’t time to query more anyway since they were fast approaching the settlement.
The first rays of the sun were just peeking over the horizon as they stepped into the hard packed earth between the six wooden buildings. To Telsa, it wasn’t so much a settlement as it was a ranch. In addition to the main two-story log building, there was an obvious barn along with other outbuildings that appeared to be large sheds. A score of chickens pecked the ground around one such building as two children, a boy and a girl who appeared to be about eight years old, scattered cracked corn out of buckets onto the ground. When a rooster crowed, the girl looked up. The moment her gaze fell on Telsa and her companions, the expression on the girl’s face changed to one of wonderment.
“Elves!” shouted the girl as she pointed in their direction. “Elves!”
Two men came running out of the barn. One carried a pitchfork, but otherwise they were unarmed. Another old man and two teenage boys came out of the main building. They were unarmed as well. They were soon followed by a score of others, including a mixture of men, women, and children.
Leethor stepped forward and raised both hands palm out.
“He is showing them he is not armed,” said Raj in Telsa’s shared space.
“I know,” Telsa said. “What do you think I am? Stupid?”
“Is that a rhetorical question, Wizard Scout, or do you actually want me to tell you what I think?”
Ignoring her battle computer, Telsa concentrated on Leethor and the old man who’d come out of the main building. From the respectful distance the others seemed to give him, Telsa figured the old man was in charge. He approached Leethor, stopping four paces away. The old man was flanked by a couple of adult men with crossbows, but the cocked and loaded weapons were pointed at the sky. Telsa guessed the old man was in his late seventies or early eighties. He eyed her suspiciously before looking back at Leethor.
Wizard Defender (Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles Book 8) Page 13
