“Everyone okay?” he said. “Any injuries?”
A few mutters from people as they examined themselves, but Jon didn’t see anyone who looked badly hurt.
Wreg’s frown deepened.
“Where’s Dante?” he said, speaking through the coughing and the murmurs of people checking on their companions and equipment. “Dante! Are you here?”
“Here!” she said, coughing.
Jon turned, following the voice, and saw her leaning on the same rock pillar he’d seen her holding while the bombs fell. She was frowning down at her handheld now, which was covered in red dust, trying to brush off the small screen and touchpad.
Vik crouched next to her, tilting a portable console sideways to get off a layer of small rocks.
“What do you need, brother?” Vik said.
“A view of our location.” Wreg grunted, gesturing as if that were obvious. “I want to see what they hit, brother Vik.”
Vik nodded, once, hitting in a series of keys.
“Far right screen, brother,” he said.
Jon turned, staring. He tried to make out the image amid the clouds of dust inside the cave, and the clouds of dust and smoke visible on the virtual image.
It looked like Ship Rock itself was rubble.
“Jesus,” he muttered. “They fucking obliterated it.”
A pain hit his heart as he watched the clouds of red dust billow through the air, staining the blue desert sky red. He knew it was only rock, that they were lucky as hell to be alive, but something about seeing that ancient rock formation ripped apart by modern day bombs affected him. It bothered him more than he ever would have imagined.
There were all just standing there, silent, staring at the virtual feed, when more seers and humans appeared at the door of their command center.
“Is everyone all right in here?” Jorag called out.
“We’re good!” Wreg called back. “Where’s the boss?”
“He sent me. They’re all okay in the comp-cave. Cave four is fine, too. There was only one collapse we know of, and that was in one of the secondary tunnels. No one was hurt. They’re cleaning it up now to clear the passageway.”
Jon nodded, feeling his light flush in relief.
“What about the door,” he said, raising his voice. “Where’s Allie?”
“She’s fine,” Jorag said at once. “No damage. Boss checked in there first.”
Wreg let out a low grunt, glancing at Jon.
Jon gave him a sideways smile in return.
Of course Revik checked there first.
Still, Jon’s relief lingered. The fact that no one was hurt softened the loss of Ship Rock itself. His relief was somewhat dimmed when it occurred to him they might not fare so well if the Mythers decided to go for round two, or three… or ten… over the next however-many hours, but the caves were well-built, and that wasn’t nothing.
Then he remembered something else.
Turning, he looked at his mate, who was already looking at him.
“You have to go,” Jon said.
Wreg hesitated, then nodded. “Yes, ilyo. It’s time.”
Jon swallowed, watching Wreg check the weapons he already wore, wrapping a handheld around his wrist and touching his ear to make sure he still wore his headset.
“I’m heading to the armory.” Wreg looked up, his voice carefully casual. “Want to come with, brother?”
Still staring at him, thinking, Jon frowned.
Then he nodded once, decisive.
“Yes,” he said. “I want to come with. And not just to the armory. I’m coming with you. For the whole thing.”
Wreg frowned, glancing around them.
Lowering his voice, he took a step closer. “I thought we agreed you’d stay here. Coordinate things between Nenz and––”
“They don’t need me for that,” Jon said, gesturing dismissively. He jerked his chin towards Jorag, who stood a few yards away. “Jorag can do it, and you know it. He needs more to do anyway. Normally he’d be on the front lines and it’s driving him fucking crazy. It’s a waste to not be using more of his military expertise. I’d only be in his way.”
Pausing when he saw Wreg’s frown deepen, Jon folded his arms.
“Take me with you.” His jaw hardened. “I don’t want you out there without me. I don’t want to be here without you. I’ll go fucking nuts if we separated right now.”
Wreg continued to frown, his expression conflicted.
“Nenz wanted you here,” he said finally. “For Lily. For Allie, if––”
“Fuck Revik!” Jon cut in, frustrated. “What do you want, Wreg?”
Eyes swiveled in his direction, a number of them widening at his words.
The cave grew quieter as more seers stopped to stare at him and Wreg.
Jon did his best to ignore them, and the shock he felt emanating off nearby lights. He focused only on his mate, watching his eyes in the dim, dust-filled light.
“Do you really think Revik wouldn’t understand right now?” he said, forcing his voice lower. “For fuck’s sake… do you think he’d leave Allie right now? Or let her leave him? He’s got Lily and Maygar in the other room with him already. He can’t expect me to do something he would never do. He wouldn’t.”
Wreg exhaled, combing his fingers through his black hair.
Then he met Jon’s gaze. Looking at him, he nodded, once.
Warmth touched his dark eyes, just before he nodded again. Then he jerked his head and flicked his fingers towards the cave door, his voice all business.
“Okay,” he said. “Let’s go. Half the team is already up there. The other half is gearing up.”
A little startled, Jon unfolded his arms. “Do we need to talk to Revik first?”
“Already done. He okay’d it.” Wreg grunted, making a more or less gesture with one hand. “He saw your point of view, anyway. He said he’d work around it.”
Relief infused Jon’s light.
Without waiting to be asked twice, he turned, heading for the door.
Before he got all the way there, Wreg caught hold of his shoulders with one arm and hand, and squeezed him roughly in a sideways hug.
I love you, ilyo.
Jon turned, smiling at him, even as he fought a sudden tightness in his throat.
They entered the main corridor before he could recover, which was already filling with humans and seers, making their way rapidly to different areas of the compound. Wreg didn’t let go of him, forcing others to walk around them as they headed for the armory.
I know, Jon sent back, wrapping his arm around Wreg and squeezing him back. Don’t try leaving me behind again, okay?
Wreg smiled, but Jon saw his nearly-black eyes brighten in the light of the flickering yisso torches.
I won’t, is all he said.
REVIK CLICKED OFF his headset, frowning faintly as he refocused on Maygar and Cass.
Both of their faces were still streaked and dusted with red powder from the ceiling and walls. That same powder stuck in their clothes and covered their shoes, hands, arms, and ears, lining crevices in fabric and skin, sticking to anything damp from sweat.
“I’ll need to go,” he informed them. “Allie needs my help with the door.”
He glanced at Cass, then at Feigran who sat on the floor.
“…All four of us,” he said, giving Maygar a reluctant look. “We’re pretty sure we’ll need the entire Four to work that end of things. That’s how it was in Rome.”
He felt a plume of shock leave Maygar’s light.
Revik held up a reassuring hand.
“We’ll still be connected via the Barrier. And in virtual. We have the link I showed you, in case the construct gets breached and we have to work around the Myther seers. You’ll never be totally on your own up here, even if the transmission lines get cut.”
Tightening his jaw, Maygar nodded, not speaking.
Revik saw another plume of worry leave his son’s light, possibly simply at the thought o
f being in charge of such a huge part of their offensive effort.
Maygar’s gaze shifted to his right, focusing on the telekinetic clones who stood in a quiet cluster near the stone wall. Every one of them was focused on the wall itself, staring up at where the portable consoles were projecting images of the approaching Myther Army.
Revik saw Maygar scan their faces, as if doing some kind of calculation in his head.
Then he saw his son’s gaze turn inward.
He knew Maygar was calculating resources with Revik and Cass potentially out of the picture, despite what Revik just told him.
For some reason, the realization made him want to grab his son in a hug.
Glancing down and to his right, he absently stroked the hair back from Lily’s face as she looked between him and Maygar. When a cloud of dust came away on his hand, he proceeded to brush her shoulders and back to get more of that dust off her clothing and hair. He was still cleaning off his daughter as he aimed his voice and eyes back at Maygar.
“Do you want me to run a few more scenarios with you before we go?” he said. “Or do you think you have enough to get started? We can continue to work over virtual, if you get stuck. But if you need me to stay a few minutes longer, I can.”
Maygar frowned faintly, thinking.
Glancing at the clones, he slowly shook his head.
“No,” he said, his voice reflecting that concentration. “No, I can start things at least.”
Maygar looked up then, meeting his gaze, that more worried look reflected in his chocolate brown eyes.
“You said you’ll stay connected though, right? Any chance you and Cass––one of you, anyway––can help with the heavy-lifting later? I’m assuming things will get worse when they get closer.”
Revik nodded, waving off his concern with a fluid gesture.
“Of course,” he said, sending a pulse of reassurance. “Cass, Feigran, and I need to be physically close to Allie and the door, but I was planning on helping with the actual telekinesis from down there. I need you to lead it, and coordinate all of us, but we’ll be there to do the actual work. If I have to go offline totally, I’ll warn you as early as I can. I’ll also leave Cass with you, if it’s at all possible. Allie said she might even be able to help if we’re all together down there.”
Sending Maygar another flush of warmth, he added,
“You can do this. Don’t worry.”
For a moment, the two of them just looked at one another.
Revik didn’t fully realize he was looking at his son’s light, making sure he was all right, until Maygar brushed him off in annoyance, or maybe embarrassment.
“Forget it,” Maygar said, shoving his hands in the pockets of worn blue jeans. “Go. I assume you’ll let me know if anything changes with the door? You’ll call us all back then, right? Including Wreg’s team, and everyone up top?”
Revik continued to stare at him, but now he was frowning.
He’d forgotten something else until now.
But he had to tell him. It was better to tell him to his face.
Revik was pretty sure the two of them had been friends.
Looking from Maygar to Cass, then back to Maygar, he said, blunt, “Tenzi’s dead.”
He paused, watching Maygar’s eyes widen. Grief left his light in a plume.
“Are you sure?”
Revik nodded, wincing. “We’re sure. Anyway, even if he was alive and only injured, the bombs would have killed him, since he never made it back downstairs.”
He watched Maygar process this. He tried to decide if he should approach him, or send him light. Feeling his son fighting to compartmentalize his friend’s death, to not go there right now, he decided against doing anything that might make him more emotional.
He kept his voice businesslike, instead.
“We don’t know how it happened, but it was before they hit us with the bombs. Maybe two, three minutes before the attack. We didn’t get any visuals, but it might be some kind of flyer. If so, it has a cloaking device.”
Thinking about this, Revik felt his frown deepen.
“…Or it was small. Really fucking small. Too small for Tenzi’s proximity sensors to pick it up. Which means it’s possible they could get in here through one of the ventilation shafts.” Still thinking, he added, “That, or it was some kind of satellite-based weapon, like what they used in New York. Truthfully, that might be the good news. I’m more worried they have some kind of micro-flyer tech. If they do, you’ll potentially be in danger up here, if they get inside.”
He waited while Maygar frowned, processing his words.
Revik added, “I want you to go to one of the caves they can seal off, if that happens. Just drop everything and fucking go… I mean it. Or, better yet, come down to the door where I am, if you can. They can seal the entrance down there. If you get any kind of advanced warning, head there first. Just move fast.”
Revik saw Maygar’s eyes widen as his words sank in.
“Oh.” Now Maygar definitely looked embarrassed. “Hey, don’t worry about that. I’ll be okay.” He waved him off. “Go. If you need to. I didn’t mean to hold you up. You could have told me that stuff over the headset.”
Revik hesitated the barest instant.
Then he walked directly to his son.
Maygar looked faintly nervous as he approached, and jumped when Revik embraced him in a strong hug, holding him against his chest.
Revik barely noticed.
“I love you,” he told him, kissing the younger seer’s face. “Don’t take any unnecessary risks. I mean it. Please.”
He couldn’t help noticing Maygar was only a few inches shorter than him now. He still hadn’t reached his full height, or his full weight.
He might end up taller than him, yet.
Maygar’s muscular frame had leaned out over the past two years, too, so that it was closer to his own. Their biology didn’t exactly mirror one another’s, but it definitely resonated in various ways, and in various parts. Allie told him Maygar and he had almost identical arms. She said their jawlines were eerily similar too, now that Maygar’s face had leaned.
Maygar looked a lot closer to how he’d look as a full-grown male now.
Revik found that touching in a way he couldn’t quite express to himself.
He promised himself that, if they got through this, he’d spend more time just having fun with his son. Not teaching him things, not training him, not lecturing him, or structuring his light… just doing things they both liked to do.
It struck him that he didn’t even know much about Maygar in that regard.
He had no idea what his son did in his downtime, apart from train in telekinesis and mulei, and hang out with his girlfriend.
Then again, it was possible Maygar didn’t know himself anymore. Given the breakneck pace of the last few years, and how much of his time had been consumed by the telekinesis training, Maygar hadn’t exactly had a lot of downtime.
Revik also wanted to get to know his girlfriend, Angeline.
Maygar grunted a laugh, without releasing him. “She’ll love that.”
Revik frowned. “Is that sarcasm?”
Maygar chuckled louder. “Yes! She’s terrified of you.”
Revik thought about that, then grinned, retorting, “Could’ve fooled me. She chewed me out the last time I remember talking to her. Then slammed a door in my face.” Thinking, he tilted his head sideways. “Actually… I might have deserved that.”
“You did. She told me.”
Revik grunted another laugh. Giving Maygar a stronger hug, he wrapped an arm around his shoulders, kissing him again.
A plume of surprise, grief, love and worry came off Maygar’s light.
When Revik finally released him, the younger seer averted his gaze, wiping his face.
“Don’t get fatalistic on me, pop,” he muttered, fighting a smile. “We aren’t dead yet.”
Revik laughed. He couldn’t help it.
“Allie said
that to me, too.” He grinned, rubbing his son’s shoulder affectionately. “I get a little expressive with my feelings, and you all think I’ve got a few hours left to live.”
Maygar choked out another laugh, as if in spite of himself.
Wiping his eyes a second time, he smiled at him more genuinely.
“Fine, you big softie.” He hooked his thumb towards the entrance to the smaller cave. “Just let them know upstairs. I’ll keep the military channel open.”
Revik nodded, still smiling faintly as he looked his son over.
“Will do. Do what you can to keep the clones coordinated. If you get stuck with them, just call me through the construct, or via the headset.”
“You said that.” Glancing at Lily, Maygar added, “You taking Lily with you?”
“Yes. Allie wants her down there.”
Maygar nodded, zero surprise in his eyes.
Feeling eyes on him, Revik turned, and found himself meeting the gaze of Cass.
He’d almost forgotten she was there.
She was staring between the two of them, like she couldn’t believe what she’d just seen. It struck Revik that she hadn’t really been around when things shifted between him and his son.
He shrugged that off too, motioning towards her with his head.
“Come on,” he said. “Get Feigran. We’re going.”
He already had ahold of Lily’s hand.
Sending a last pulse of warmth to Maygar, he turned on his heel, leading Lily with him towards the opening of the cave. Behind him, he heard Cass and Feigran following. By the time they reached the stone corridor, he also heard Feigran humming under his breath. The auburn-haired Elaerian continued to hum as he trotted obliviously after them.
It wasn’t until they’d gone a few more yards that Revik snorted, suddenly recognizing the song Feigran was humming under his breath.
It was, “We Are Family.”
For some reason, that made Revik laugh, too.
53
REVENGE OF THE GODS
“HOW CLOSE ARE they?” Deifilius gritted his teeth as the Humvee hit another large rock, sending him up off his seat. Recovering, he resumed speaking. “Have any of the Diggers managed to breach the cave complex? What about the stingers?”
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