MindSighted: BlackWing Pirates, Book 1

by Connie Suttle

  "So it could have come from anyone." Kooper lifted the one he'd brought and slipped it in a jacket pocket, while Brandl reclaimed his.

  "Yes. As for power wielders, I have no information. I'd never heard of such until Randl mentioned it this morning. You understand, however, that we only took our goods to sell and trade twice per month. That wouldn't give us too much gossip, as you well know."

  "I know this is a delicate subject, but did your wife ever talk about Gungl?" Mom asked Brandl.

  "She hated it," Brandl said. "We met in the marketplace one day—she was looking to buy any fruit we had. She came back every time afterward, and we'd talk. After nearly a year passed, I asked her to marry me. At the time, I worried that she wouldn't want to leave Gungl. I was wrong."

  "She never said anything about anyone unusual in the city, Pap?" Randl asked.

  "Son, she didn't want to talk about it, and if she were here, she'd just tell you that everyone in Gungl was unusual in some way. If a power wielder existed, he didn't expose himself as such."

  "Or she," Mom suggested.

  "Yes. Or she, as the case may be," Brandl shook his head. "I wish I could help you more, but that's all I know."

  "It's all right, Pap. Anything might help. You never know."

  "What do we do now?" I asked.

  "I think it's time we took Randl to Gungl, so he can look around," Kooper said.

  Chapter 12

  Gungl, Vogeffa II

  Randl

  "Did you ever come here with your father?" Kooper asked as we walked along a brick-lined street with many of the bricks missing from it. The remaining bricks were slowly disintegrating from the passage of time and lack of maintenance. From what I could see, the city was mostly deserted, now.

  "No—I was kept at home. Pap said this was no place for a son whose lack of sight could work against him in a city of thieves and cutthroats. Did Cayetes kill the inhabitants after we left?" I asked.

  "Most," Kooper agreed. "Many fled into the outlying countryside. Some of those survived. When Cayetes abandoned the planet, it was almost empty of life. You know how the outlying villages were rescued."

  "Yes." I recalled it very well. Quin had sent mindspeech, and Queen Lissa and others had come to our rescue. It also infuriated Cayetes, who attempted to exact vengeance for that rescue.

  He and V'ili were now dead, and I was even more grateful for that. "How did Cayetes and V'ili die?" I asked. I'd never heard the how or who, just that it was.

  "Zaria," Kooper said. "Took down both at the same time, as I understand it."

  "If I'd known that, I would have kissed her feet when I met her," I breathed.

  "She'd probably tell you it wasn't necessary," Kooper chuckled.

  My hand went to my chest, to touch the medallion beneath my shirt. Sabrina had a medallion like mine—from Zaria. Keep her safe, I sent to Zaria. I had no idea whether that was possible, or what the medallion was for, even. It couldn't hurt though, could it?

  "Randl, are you getting anything?" Kooper's voice interrupted my thoughts.

  All about us, crumbling buildings stood on either side of the broken street. Most of the structures were uninhabited. A few birds, nesting in empty spaces between bricks, called out in the hush our arrival precipitated. I felt eyes upon us, however, and soon enough, two faces appeared at broken windows.

  They were starving; that was easy for me to understand.

  "If you'll talk to us, I'll make sure you get food and supplies," Kooper called out. He understood their hunger, too.

  Slowly, those two disappeared from their windows. Moments later, they tentatively stepped outside their separate buildings.

  "Shall we sit?" Kooper indicated a rough curb that was still intact. "We're not here to hurt anyone, we just have some questions."

  "Here," Trent held out a bag. I could smell the food inside it, as could they, no doubt. I wanted to ask where it came from, but that could wait. Someone had sent it to him in response to mindspeech.

  "Set the bag down and back away," one of the men croaked. He walked with a pronounced limp; I knew it was from an old injury and not misshapen from birth. I sent that information to Trent, who'd already set the bag on the street in front of him.

  He, Kooper and I backed up until we were several yards away.

  The second man didn't limp. He bore a terrible scar, which ran down his face and neck before disappearing below a ragged collar. He approached and cautiously lifted the bag, as if afraid it would explode in his face. With shaking hands, he opened it and, after glancing inside, turned to his companion and nodded.

  The other limped forward and they divided the food and containers of water between them.

  Kooper waited patiently until they'd finished everything inside the bag, down to the last crumb of the thick sandwiches provided.

  "What do you want?" the man with a limp asked.

  "We'd like to ask you about the times before and during Cayetes' Storm," Kooper said.

  "That filth." The scarred man spat on the bricks at his feet. "He promised us everything. You see what's left, now." He flung out a hand.

  "Actually, Cayetes is dead now, and no longer our concern," Kooper admitted. "What we really want to know is this—was there ever anyone here that held power—like a wizard or warlock might have?"

  Both men looked at one another. I understood then that they had no knowledge of such. "If we had, you think we'd be living in crumbling ruin?" the scarred one asked. "If he had such talent, he'd have left this place long ago. Why stay to squabble and fight for food and clothing? That's all I've known since I've been alive. We know of no such person."

  "Thank you," Kooper sighed. "Are there any others here who would know anything?"

  "There are few of us, and most are worse off than we are," the limping man confessed. "They know nothing more than we do—we are the oldest of the survivors and more used to living without."

  "Randl?" Kooper turned to me. He wanted to know if they were being truthful.

  "It's the truth," I blew out a breath. "I feel nothing here," I added. If there were spells and such, I'd likely feel the buzzing in my brain. Gungl, in my estimation, was dead or dying, and nothing had impeded its fate.

  If someone were here with the power to reanimate the dead and create the other spells I'd seen, they'd left long ago, as the scarred man said.

  "Thank you," Kooper nodded to the two men. Trent and I were folded back to Queen Lissa's palace moments later.

  Sabrina

  I'd fallen asleep after being left alone for hours. Keys rattling woke me. The same man I'd seen before was unlocking my cell.

  How did this add up? They had spells to pull me away from Jaledis, and then employed old-fashioned locks and keys to imprison me?

  That didn't make sense.

  Whatever it meant, I didn't want him in my cell or anywhere near me. I wished Director Griff hadn't confiscated my ranos pistol; I'd be out of here already if I still had it.

  "What do you want?" I scrambled to my feet and glared at the man, who now stood inside my cage.

  "Just a little fun. You'll get food afterward, and we'll let you know what we want from you."

  "You get nothing from me," I hissed at him, and went into the stance Jayna taught me to defend myself.

  "Think that'll work against this?" He pulled a laser pistol from his waistband. He'd hidden it behind his back so I wouldn't know. His wide grin told me he'd meant to intimidate me all along.

  "Then kill me. I'd rather die than have your hands on me, anyway."

  "That's not what the boss wants, now," he said. "Since you're still alive, anyway. Things will go a lot easier if you cooperate."

  "No, thank you." At least my voice was steady enough; I was quaking on the inside, though, and had no idea whether I'd be raped or killed in the next few seconds. Blood pounded in my ears and my heart wanted to beat its way out of my chest as I held my stance, waiting for him to make a move.

  Had I been this frightened
when I was fourteen? Then, I'd been one of many. This time, I was singled out and alone. My assailant was too far away to land an effective kick, and the pistol in his hand was steady and pointed at my chest. A shot from that close meant I'd die quickly.

  I opted for that—a swift death.

  I leapt at him, hoping to land a blow before he fired, aiming to do some damage before he killed me. Whether intentional or not, his pistol fired just as my clenched fist landed against his face.

  I felt nothing—no pain as expected, except for that in my bruised knuckles as light bloomed all about us and we were knocked away from each other. I hit the floor with a muffled grunt and when my vision cleared, the laser pistol lay at my feet. My unconscious assailant, however, had been thrown against the wall opposite my cell.

  The cell door creaked on rusty hinges as it swayed back and forth, still, after he'd been blown past it.

  What the bloody, fucking blazes had happened?

  Gathering my scattered wits, I snatched the pistol off the floor and left my cell behind. I had no idea where I was or how to get away without being seen, but I was now armed. That in itself was a welcome turn of events.

  Quin

  I'd been sitting on the balcony outside Justis' and my shared suite at Avii Castle, having tea with Bel Erland, Lafe, Justis and several others. Dena stood at the door, watchful as always.

  I leapt to my feet, my teacup crashing onto the glass stones of the terrace as the information hit me like a storm. Until then, my attempts to find Sabrina had been futile.

  Whatever had blocked her from me had disappeared, somehow. "She's on Cord'ilus," I shouted.

  Winkler

  When the mindspeech came, I was ready, as were several others, including Drake, Drew, Rigo and Gavin. Kooper had gotten word from Quin and he'd taken her, Randl, Travis and Trent with him, to narrow the search.

  Cord'ilus was an empty world, devoured by Ra'Ak long ago. Jungle had taken over much of it; the rest lay in decaying ruin. Word of illegal animal hunts reached the ASD from time to time, but as it wasn't in either Alliance, there wasn't much done to prevent it from happening.

  I'd followed Kooper's mental sending, landing my party outside what was once a large city.

  Kooper, Quin and the others waited there for us. "She's in there?" Rigo asked, indicating the massive ruin ahead of us.

  "I can get us closer, as long as whatever hid her before doesn't do it again," Quin breathed hard, as if she were terrified for the kidnapped woman.

  "We'll shield you," Wellend and Warlend appeared as if called. "Fly, Quin. Find Sabrina, so the others may get her away."

  "I've got a call in for ASD troops, but the ships won't arrive until late tonight," Kooper said. "Let's go. She may be in terrible danger."

  Randl

  Remember your lessons? Travis placed a laser pistol in my hand. I worried that I'd impede the rescue, rather than helping, but for whatever reason, Kooper wanted me to go in with them and I was grateful.

  Sabrina was in that jungle-covered city, and I wanted her away from it.

  What do you sense? Kooper sent as I checked my weapon as Travis taught me.

  Animals. Some humanoids—going in and out of my perception, which puzzles me.

  Snakes? Kooper returned.

  Yes.

  I watched as Quin flew away with her two red-winged protectors. We'd know soon enough if they could spot Sabrina from the air.

  Do you sense Sabrina? Kooper asked.

  I turned toward Kooper then, prepared to shake my head in denial. Unintentionally, I touched my chest where my medallion rested.

  Like a bolt of energy, her image ran through my mind. She was in a vine-choked alley, where several men were converging upon her.

  "They've found her," I hissed. At that moment, Kooper slapped his hand on my head, the vision was pulled away from me with power and he folded all of us into the ancient city.

  Winkler

  None of us were prepared for a battle, but it was unleashed on us anyway. Whatever the hidden army had employed to protect themselves had worked for the most part.

  Was it a trap to lure us in? I had no idea, but I sent mindspeech to Lissa the moment we landed, because we were under attack from that point forward.

  Sabrina

  An ancient, brick chimney jutted out from the building beside me. I hid behind it, desperately shooting at anything that approached. I'd killed three already, but there were more waiting behind them.

  With no idea how long the charge would last on the laser pistol I held, I ducked behind crumbling brick every time one of the kidnappers fired at me.

  That's not what the boss wants filtered into my brain as I ducked behind the chimney again. What did the boss want?

  We're here and trying to get to you, Travis' mental voice informed me. I wanted to weep with joy and scream in terror at the same time, because an explosion rocked the ground beneath my feet.

  Another shot from the approaching enemy broke concrete near my head, forcing me to make myself a smaller target. Kneeling, I hoped the grass and broken blocks of brick from crumbling buildings would hide me well enough so I could shoot from a lower vantage point.

  Touch your medallion, Randl's voice came. Try to send mindspeech when you do, he added.

  My medallion? I'd forgotten it. Slapping my hand against my chest, I told Randl he was crazy to think that would work.

  It's working—I heard you, he returned.

  Holy bleeding hells, I'd had mindspeech all along if I needed it. With my hand still over the medallion beneath my shirt, I tentatively sent mindspeech again. I'm stuck in an alley, and they keep coming and firing at me, I struggled to keep my mental voice calm.

  We're having some trouble, too—somebody put an army here, and we're doing our best to keep them away from you, he informed me.

  I hadn't realized my terror could ramp up several more notches, but it did. Too afraid to ask whether the explosion had hurt or killed any of ours, I struggled to keep my hand steady as I fired at another attacker who'd leapt over a large pile of fallen bricks to level a shot in my direction.

  Travis

  Keep your shields up, Kooper shouted into all our minds. This was after the first hundred or so of the dead troops leapt up from high grass and weeds, only to explode together, nearly knocking us off our feet and rocking the ground beneath us.

  Randl said we were getting close to Sabrina's hiding place—somehow, he was using the medallion Zaria gave him to make that determination.

  Our shields had been up from the moment Kooper folded us into the city, too. Those of us who had them, anyway. Someone, likely Winkler, had included Randl inside his. I was grateful, because a green mist blew away from the place where the bodies exploded, and I was beginning to believe this was a carefully laid trap to lure in ASD troops or others who had no way to protect themselves against it.

  I had several guesses as to what the green mist was, but each was too terrifying to contemplate, so I shoved them out of my mind.

  Sabrina was out there and vulnerable, as far as I knew. My heart squeezed at the thought of it, and understood that Trent was just as fearful as I was.

  Brace yourselves, Kooper shouted as more of the dead popped up ahead of us and exploded in unison, causing most of us to fall as the terrible sound raced through the city and the ground bucked and rolled more violently beneath our feet.

  Quin

  Randl had sent information to me regarding Sabrina's hiding place. Below Wellend, Warlend and me, the ancient city was smothered in creepers, grass, trees and collapsing bricks, making it more than difficult to locate the alley where she was hiding.

  At times, we saw grasses move as the enemy army swarmed toward Kooper and the others, and twice we heard explosions, so we knew this had to be a planned attack.

  Someone had laid a trap, hoping to take or kill those who had no power to overcome what was aimed in their direction.

  There, Wellend's voice invaded my mind. He pointed below
, toward a narrow alley cluttered with plant growth and debris. Sabrina fired at enemy invaders coming from one end of the alley.

  They're sneaking in behind her and she doesn't see it, Warlend snapped.

  We dived, just as Justis and Ardis had taught us. Wellend, however, folded space, appearing a moment later at Sabrina's back to protect her.

  Warlend and I heard her shriek of surprise, but she got herself in hand quickly to fire at two more who'd entered the alley to shoot at her. It was a distraction—the real attack was advancing from behind—until Wellend leveled a blast at the encroaching robotic device, picking its way along the back entrance like a spider making its way over a web.

  Wellend's power blast knocked the robot against a wall, crushing half of it immediately. The rest of it disappeared beneath a rain of bricks from overhead—revealing another worry.

  The ancient city was a weapon in itself, and unstable structures were ready to collapse after two explosions had already rocked it.

  Get her out of there, Warlend sent a shout to Wellend, who pulled Sabrina against him and folded space.

  Warlend and I watched as the walls on both sides of the alley collapsed in slow motion, beginning at the back, where the robot had crashed against the wall, initially bringing part of it down.

  Several attackers then aimed indiscriminately into the air, shooting wildly at something they couldn't see while the wall collapsed back to front, like a giant row of gaming tiles.

  Winkler

  We have Sabrina, Wellend informed us. At least that worry was resolved, but we now had more to deal with.

  Hundreds of dead troops were now marching toward our small company, shielding living troops who stalked behind them. It didn't matter if the live ones hit a dead one in front of them with their laser pistols—the dead were already dead and kept walking.