Telepath

by Janet Edwards

  “I understand. I’ve been working very hard at using all the words in sentences. Are you relaxed enough for me to share your heat sack?”

  “This isn’t a good time to …”

  “I merely wish to share your heat sack. Nothing more.” Lucas gave me a look of wounded innocence. “Respectfully point out that wearing body armour severely limits my actions.”

  “Doesn’t limit your thoughts,” I grumbled. “Nothing has ever limited your thoughts. Even the first time I met you.”

  I shuffled over in the heat sack, and Lucas wriggled in next to me.

  “Query? My thoughts the first time you read me?” he asked.

  “On the deep levels you were lusting after my legs, and thinking the Lottery information on my preferred partners meant you didn’t stand a chance of getting into bed with me.”

  He gave a shout of laughter. “And you still hired me!”

  “I found it quite flattering actually. Remember that I’d spent the whole of Teen Level fixated on Forge and he’d never looked at me. You were the first young man whose thoughts I’d read, and you found me attractive. It was a huge boost to my ego.”

  I paused to grin at him. “It’s the only reason you got your job. You clearly weren’t intelligent enough to be a Tactical Commander, and …”

  Lucas’s kiss silenced me for a moment. “Back then I’d no idea that you could read deep levels of the mind,” he said. “I was startled when I found out. I tried to impose control of my thoughts, but decided it was effectively impossible.”

  “That’s true. When I read someone, I automatically try to translate their thoughts into words, but the deeper levels are often just a blur of images and emotion. When you deliberately tease me with suggestive ideas, it’s on a higher level controlled by your conscious mind. Very different.”

  “Fascinating. I wish that I could experience it myself.”

  We were silent for a few minutes. I felt myself gradually relax as I shared Lucas’s reassuring warmth in the heat sack. His thoughts were all about me. A mixture of intellectual curiosity about telepathy, and non-intellectual enjoyment of our closeness.

  “This tent material is highly protective,” he said, after a while. “Removing our body armour would be a minimal risk.”

  I sighed. “We’d better be good. Adika would …”

  The words triggered a memory. My imprint was gone, but I would never forget my repeating dream and how Elden had told me I was a good girl. I broke off, crawled out of the heat sack, and started stripping.

  Lucas raised an eyebrow. “We aren’t being good?”

  “Lucas, I’m not a good girl!”

  His thoughts went into a super speed burst of analysis, then he laughed, and got out of the heat sack to undress as well. We were both extremely bad after that, and lost ourselves in a tidal wave of feedback, before we finally put our body armour back on.

  I lay in Lucas’s arms afterwards, feeling relaxed, secure and comfortable. It must be late at night now, and I was terribly tired, but I couldn’t possibly sleep. Not here, not Outside, not when the Truesun would be rising in a few hours.

  I slept.

  Chapter Thirty-four

  I woke up, and was instantly aware that Lucas’s warmth was missing. I looked round in bereft panic, searching with both eyes and mind, and then felt foolish. Lucas wasn’t sharing the heat sack with me any longer, but he was literally still within arm’s reach, sorting through the heap of equipment at the back of the tent, the odd lighting creating weird shadows as he moved.

  He turned to look at me. “Ah, you’re awake. Are you hungry? Thirsty? We have protein bars, fruit strips, crunch cakes, and melon juice.”

  I sat up and rubbed my face. “Megan sent melon juice?”

  Lucas took the top off a small container and handed it to me. I sipped it cautiously. Yes, it was melon juice.

  “It’s ridiculous sending this specially. I could survive without …” I broke off. “It’s not dawn yet, is it?”

  “It’s still fully dark at the moment, but it will be dawn soon. Once you’re dressed, I’ll open the tent flap.”

  I crawled out of the heat sack, shivered as an icy draught hit me, groped for my clothes and jacket, and put them on. I was feeling cold, sluggish, and scared, but I had to go through with this. It was vitally important to catch Elden. Not just for the benefit of my Hive, and the unknown number of other telepaths that Elden had imprinted, but for my own peace of mind. If Elden escaped, then I’d always have a nagging fear that he’d return and find a new way to kidnap me.

  “I’m ready,” I said.

  Either Lucas understood the tent flap fastenings better now, or it was easier to open than to close it. I looked out into the darkness, and couldn’t see the moon, let alone the Truesun. Lucas went out, waited for me to follow, then let the tent flap fall closed behind us.

  The light from inside the tent was blotted out now, and I could barely make out the shadowy shapes of other tents near ours. I hesitated, and Lucas took my hand to guide me to sit on a rug. “Where is everyone?” I asked.

  Lucas wrapped a heat sack round my shoulders. “The Strike team are on guard duty in the trees. Are you sufficiently relaxed to try reading some of their minds? None of the Telepath Unit Tactical teams have any data on how well a true telepath can work Outside.”

  Something in his thoughts grabbed my attention. “If we go hunting Elden, you’re planning to come with us.”

  “Yes. Even if your initial issues with the Truesun are resolved, you may develop problems later, and reading Elden’s mind could be very disturbing for you. You must have expert support with you, which means either myself or Megan. My role includes accompanying the Strike team on occasion. Megan’s does not.”

  This wasn’t really a surprise. I’d suspected Lucas would insist on coming along, but I’d been trying to avoid thinking about it. “You’re only supposed to join us on routine trips.”

  He grinned at me. “You can’t expect me to stay back at the unit while you go wandering round Outside in the company of twenty-one other men.”

  I checked Lucas’s thoughts, and was relieved to see he was joking. I hoped that was a sign he was gaining confidence in himself and our relationship.

  “I’ll try reading a few minds,” I said.

  I closed my eyes and reached out with my mind to find the Strike team. They were posted round the camp on guard duty, thinking about the cold night air, the discomfort of hiding in thick undergrowth, and the talks Rothan had been giving them. He’d told them all about the camping trips he’d gone on as a child. Shown them images of himself with his family. Reassured them that he’d never seen any sign of the hunter of souls when he was Outside at night.

  Rothan’s stories had helped the rest of the Strike team, but they were still very nervous of the darkness, and desperately eager for the Truesun to rise. I was the exact opposite, comfortable with the night but dreading daylight.

  I drifted on and found Rothan’s mind. Untroubled by any fear of Outside, his thoughts oozed delight on every level.

  “Adika’s told the Strike team about the promotions then,” I said.

  “Rothan gets Alpha team?”

  “Yes.”

  “The noble hero, Rothan, has proved his worth and can now claim Emili. That’ll be a huge relief to the poor girl.”

  I laughed.

  “Second deputy.” Lucas’s mind played with probabilities. “Forge has consistently been getting noticed. He gets Beta team. Correct?”

  “Correct.”

  Thinking of Forge made me automatically link to his mind. He was much further away than I’d expected, fighting his way through bushes with Adika and Kaden. Forge was pleased about his promotion to deputy team leader, but the top levels of his mind were worrying about why they were roaming through the wilderness.

  Adika had said they needed to try following some paths, to test whether it was possible to travel Outside at night without lights, but Forge believed they were doi
ng more than that. He was sure that Adika had brought Kaden along to see if he could handle being under pressure Outside at night.

  Forge hoped he’d been brought along to help Adika if Kaden had another panic attack, but he was nervous that Adika was testing him too. He’d tried to hide his fears of the darkness Outside, but if Adika had spotted them …

  I left Forge’s anxious mind and dipped into Kaden’s thoughts. He was burning with adrenaline, desperate to grab this unexpected last chance to stay with the Strike team, resolved not to show weakness whatever happened.

  I moved on into Adika’s mind, and found he was testing himself as well as Kaden, pushing both of them to the limit by roaming random paths in the darkness. He’d had to leave Rothan in charge of guarding me, so he’d taken Forge along as his second most reliable man. If he panicked, then Forge would have to take charge of the situation.

  There was a sudden burst of high-pitched, inhuman screaming nearby. Adika’s mind tensed in response and his hand went to his gun. The minds of the rest of the Strike team were flaring in fear too, filling with tales of the unspeakable horrors lurking beyond the safety of the Hive.

  I grabbed for my ear crystal, turned it on, and opened my mouth to say that the screaming was nothing to worry about, but I found Rothan was already talking.

  “It sounds like a fox is hunting out there. You’ll remember me telling you about foxes. They aren’t a threat to us, but they’ll eat small mammals.”

  The Strike team calmed down again, and I heard Adika’s voice. “I’m convinced that you’re right about it being impossible to travel at night, Rothan. We’ve completely lost the path we were following, and we’re now trying to head back to camp.”

  I checked Adika’s mind, and saw he was satisfied with his own and Kaden’s reaction to the screaming. I turned off my ear crystal again, and reached out further with my thoughts. “Lots of animals out there. It’s like a vast park.”

  “You can read animal minds too?” asked Lucas. “Are they less well defined than human minds?”

  “It depends. They don’t worry about nothing the way humans do. They can have very sharp and well defined thoughts when they’re hungry, frightened, or hunting food. They’re blissfully happy when they’re eating.”

  “Is that why you like feeding the birds and animals in the park?”

  I smiled. “Yes. I get a whole wave of happiness coming from them.”

  “And why you try to help the people around you be happy too, especially your Strike team?”

  I pulled a face. “Yes. Adika thinks I’m too kind, but maybe the truth is that I’m dreadfully selfish. I’d rather not be hit by unhappiness every time I’m checking the Strike team’s minds. Either way, most of the time I can’t do anything to help them. People are very complicated. They can be unhappy because they don’t have something, but know they’ll be even more unhappy if they get it.”

  There was a moment of silence before Lucas spoke again. “Are the number of animal minds going to make it difficult for you to find Elden?”

  “I don’t think so. They’re a very different shape, colour, brightness from humans.”

  I could sense the huge mass of human minds beneath us that was the Hive. A blurred, amorphous hum of thought. The closest of the minds were the familiar ones of people in my Telepath Unit. I caught Megan worrying about how I’d react to daylight. She was jealous of my intimacy with Lucas, and brooding yet again on how she’d rejected Adika. She knew she needed to make up her mind one way or the other, give Adika a clear decision instead of constantly varying the signals she gave him, but …

  I realized I’d got sucked into someone else’s emotions and problems yet again. I wondered if I’d ever stop making that mistake when reading minds, and forced myself to pull out of Megan’s head.

  “I’ve found our unit. It’s much easier to reach out through the emptiness, than through corridors crammed with people. My range should be further than it is inside the Hive. Is that enough information for you?”

  “It’s very helpful and encouraging,” said Lucas. “Would you like some food now?”

  I opened my eyes. “I’ll have a fruit strip.”

  Lucas munched a couple of crunch cakes, while I nibbled half-heartedly at my fruit strip and looked nervously at the sky. It might be my imagination but it seemed a little brighter. “Is it nearly dawn now?”

  “Yes. The Truesun will rise in the east.” Lucas pointed directly ahead of us. “There are no corridor signs to tell us directions here, but I’m told that east is that way.”

  I dropped my fruit strip and focused on why I was out here. Elden had made me his puppet, and I was going to overcome my fear and make him my prisoner. “If I can learn to cope with the Truesun, what are your plans for hunting Elden?”

  “We’ll head out towards the coast, blending in with the groups from the Ramblers Association as you suggested. Rothan says that it’s vitally important for ramblers to help each other with problems, because there’s no emergency assistance from the Hive when they’re out in the wilderness. That means they’re very friendly to each other, totally ignoring level distinctions when they’re Outside. We may attract more attention than we’d like from them, but we can let Rothan do most of the talking.”

  My eyes were fixed on the eastern sky. It was looking brighter now.

  Lucas was still talking. “At intervals, we’ll stop and let you scan the surrounding area with your mind, looking for Elden. We can put up a tent for you if it helps. I’m hoping it takes days rather than weeks for you to spot him, and then … It’ll be like a standard chase, but in highly unusual conditions, and with the added problem that you won’t be able to read Elden’s plans in his head.”

  “I’m not sure how I’ll pick him out from among the ramblers,” I said. “Elden’s mind won’t be anything like my usual targets. He’s a dutiful, tame bee, just one that’s following the orders of a different Hive. I suppose we’ll just have to chase down anyone with unreadable thoughts and see if they look like an older version of Forge.”

  “I think you’ll find Elden’s mind very distinctive,” said Lucas. “Hive Genex must have imprinted him with a huge amount of information from several unrelated professions like data systems expert, imprint specialist, and mechanic. On top of that, he’d need a complete imprint of our language, and oddments like techniques for evading our drone patrols and information on booby traps.”

  Something had been worrying me. I had no choice but to hunt down Elden, but … “Elden must be imprinted with how to detect a true telepath as a child as well. Will our Hive be able to learn the secret from him if we catch him?”

  Lucas shook his head. “Elden’s imprint must be dangerously large just to cover the essential information. I can’t believe he’s been imprinted with expertise in brainwave analysis as well. It would be a totally unnecessary extra burden. Elden must have a way of communicating with Hive Genex to get an aircraft to come and collect him. He could use the same method to transmit data to be analyzed by their own experts.”

  I wondered what sort of life I’d have had if my Hive had been able to detect telepaths at age three. I felt a traitorous moment of relief that my Hive wouldn’t be able to get that knowledge from Elden. Future true telepaths would still be allowed a normal childhood.

  “I suspect Elden is hovering on the edge of being imprint overloaded,” continued Lucas. “You may see signs of that when you read him.”

  “There’s a limit to how much data you can imprint then?” I asked.

  “The limit isn’t so much on the amount of data you can imprint,” said Lucas, “as on the ability of the receiving mind to handle it. Above a certain point, the mind either ends up unable to access large blocks of the information, or it overloads trying to maintain all the links. Our Hive is careful to keep imprint sizes well inside safety margins. It also avoids the potential issues that can arise with the layering effects of multiple imprints, by only ever giving one imprint at eighteen years old.”
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br />   He paused. “That means children have to spend some time in school, learning the basics before they go to Teen Level, but school would be necessary anyway. It doesn’t just teach children reading and chanting tables, but their duties and obligations to the Hive.”

  By now I was well aware the main purpose of school was socially conditioning children to become dutiful tame bees to serve the Hive. I wasn’t entirely happy about that. On the other hand, I knew exactly how much damage wild bees could do.

  I could see the eastern sky was a lot brighter now. “The Truesun is about to rise, isn’t it?”

  Lucas took my hand. “There’ll be some interesting colours in the sky. Don’t worry. It’s not the world catching on fire or anything. Read me.”

  I touched his mind. One level of Lucas’s thoughts was concentrating on the eastern sky, another on reassuring me, and a third was full of incomprehensible technical details about imprints.

  “If I hadn’t been a telepath,” I said, “Elden wouldn’t have kidnapped me. I wouldn’t have feared Outside, I wouldn’t have had a fixation on Forge, and Teen Level would have been totally different.”

  I was babbling randomly, as if talking would blot out what was happening in front of my eyes. Memories of Lottery surfaced, and a terrified girl frantically talking to herself. “Why is the sky striped like that?”

  “There are some bands of cloud in the sky,” said Lucas. “They go different colours at dawn and dusk.”

  “And Lottery wouldn’t have picked me out as being special,” I jabbered on. “If I hadn’t been a telepath, what job would Lottery have allocated me, Lucas?”

  “I’ve no idea. The minute you tested positive as a telepath, the normal test sequence stopped.”

  The eastern sky was terrifyingly bright now. I kept suffering the problem of being sucked into other people’s emotions, but I could use that to my advantage now. I sheltered in Lucas’s emotions, letting them engulf me, and my view of the sky suddenly changed.

  The eastern sky wasn’t terrifying but incredible, glowing in a rich medley of red, orange, and yellow. I stared at it in awed admiration. Parks just slowly turned up the lights from moon to sun level brightness at dawn, there was nothing like this.