Chapter 23 - Retaliation
As soon as he could move again, Tymoros went to kneel beside his children, fearing the worst. He felt rage building within him, directed at the intruders who must surely have been the cause of the deaths of his other children. And these, that he had known for such a short time…
“Ty?” Xyron spoke quietly, aware of the rage in his fellow Governor.
“They are alive,” Tymoros said, his voice tight with emotion. “I don’t know how it is possible, but they are alive.”
“Raw power,” Reslic said bluntly. “They have the potential to handle a great deal. The power they called on neutralised the effects of the disruptor, though that is a less efficient way of dealing with the incoming energy than redirecting it.” He did not state that their own shields had only just handled the load and that the attendants summoned by Tymoros were lying lifeless on the ground. He summoned more guards and warned them to have force shields on.
“I think we should have these two moved quickly,” Xyron warned. “The diagnostic readings I am getting are odd. It is like they are both drawing in energy from somewhere.”
Reslic and Tymoros saw that Tymos and Kryslie were already stirring, even though they were still only vaguely conscious. Both had hands that were glowing purple.
“Tymos,” Tymoros spoke quietly to his son. “You need to ground out the excess power, and let us deal with the intruders.”
Tymos murmured, “Go ahead, it’s buzzing in my head. I can’t stop it coming in.” He weakly moved his hand to take his father’s and the power in him drained painlessly away. He was limp and unresisting as Tymoros lifted him and allowed one of the guards to transmit them to the infirmary.
Xyron spoke to Kryslie, and although she understood what he wanted to do, she didn’t dare allow her power to drain away. She could still feel the minds of the intruders, and she knew she could find them, even if they were invisible. They had not given up the idea of killing her, of killing the Governor’s, and any other innocent Tymorean that got in their way. She reached out with her mind to locate them, one by one, and held the minds of the intruders so they could not move. Five of them.
Reslic saw the look of concentration on her face, saw her hands glowing brightly. He understood what she was doing.
“Where?” he demanded.
“Rear gate,” Kryslie said, her mind identifying one location. “They know they can’t get out near the front gate. Another has a bunch of mutants around him.”
Her sense of the others suddenly vanished. The images in her mind turned to a white washed wall. She heard Reslic giving orders when she stopped speaking. While she was trying to extend her reach, and break through to see where the unspeakable creatures were hiding, Tymoros returned from the infirmary.
Xyron spoke quietly to him. “I would like her right away from here, but she is using her power to find these intruders. It is apparent that she can distinguish their minds from those of our people.”
Kryslie spoke again, “One is in the green house hiding under the herb beds.”
Reslic stayed close to Kryslie and Xyron gave a head gesture to have Tymoros move away a short distance.
“I am also sensing a rise in anger,” Xyron admitted. “Can you sense it too?”
Tymoros turned his attention to Kryslie, observed the intense concentration, and as Xyron had said – rising anger.
“She is drawing in power at a tremendous rate,” Xyron observed. “I think it will be more than the guards force suits can handle.”
“I will go with her,” Tymoros decided. He walked back to Kryslie and spoke gently. “Come, Kryslie. You can help find them equally well from an observation room in the palace.”
He felt the start of resistance from her, as she realised they were making her retreat, but then considered the rest of his words and understood they were still letting her help. She went with Tymoros and one of the guards without fuss.
They went to Xyron’s laboratory, the observation room that Kryslie recognised from her days just after transition. She felt tricked and began to struggle in her father’s hold, but he distracted her immediately. “Can you still sense the alien minds?”
“Yes,” she agreed, abruptly stopping her struggles. “But they are thinking of blank nothingness.”
“Very basic mind shields,” Tymoros remarked neutrally. “There is a technique you might try to focus your mind and make your sense of them increase. Will you try it?”
Kryslie nodded, realising that the buzzing in her head was not helping her.
“Sit on the mattress,” Tymoros invited. He lowered one of the diagnostic beds down to floor level and gestured to it. As Kryslie made herself comfortable, sitting cross-legged on the mattress, he lowered the second bed to a comfortable sitting level for himself. Then he met his daughter’s eyes and began to teach her a mantra of focus, having her repeat the phrases after him. As her concentration on the phrases deepened, he added new ones and she copied him, unaware that he was now helping her slip into a meditative trance. He was putting her mind into a resting state. He watched her for a while after she had stopped speaking and saw the intense purple glow of her hands fade to mauve. She was not aware of him when he stood up, or when he transmitted away.
To the guard standing outside of the shielding circle around Kryslie, he said, “Notify me of any change.”
Tymoros returned outside to rejoin the hunt for the remaining intruders and mutants. From the messages and orders audible through his headpiece communicator, he knew that eight of the intruders had been captured, and twenty of the twenty-eight mutants. They did not know how many more intruders remained on the estate, trapped by the dome shaped shield now activated over it, and preventing anyone leaving.
The Tymorean Trust Book 1 - Power Rising Page 24
