Alien Attachments (16 page)

The following day, Dani made her way to breakfast alone. Mara insisted she use the Cavacent’s personal dining room which was located near their living quarters. Her training with Mordo didn’t start for another two hours, and at the moment she was out of sorts.
I just need food. And coffee. Please let them have coffee.
Although smaller than the main dining area, the Cavacent’s private dining room was still quite large. To the right, was a wall of French doors that overlooked a patio outside. Along the back wall, to the left of a massive fireplace, a buffet beckoned. The enticing smells made her stomach growl. Along the interior wall were four smaller fireplaces, surrounded by more intimate seating areas. Lord Rucon and Lady Mara occupied one of these tables. Aside from them, the room was empty except for a single male server near the buffet.

“Dani dear, please come and join us,” Mara said, wiping her lips with a white linen napkin.

Rucon ignored the two women.

Mara said something to Rucon under her breath.

He didn’t appear impressed. Instead he nodded toward the chair next to Mara. “You may sit there if you must.”

Like father like son.
Dani bit back a smart-ass remark.

Mara scowled at her husband, then got up and showed Dani the buffet. There were eggs, bacon, smoked salmon, pancakes, and an assortment of fruits, some recognizable and some not. Crusty bread and different kinds of cheese adorned a side table. Dani resisted the urge to start shoving food into her mouth. “Is this from Earth?”

“Much of it is, yes, but we grow it here now. I have a fair-sized farm where we produce fruits and vegetables. We also raise cattle and poultry. Ian brings me the salmon. I just love the food on Earth, don’t you?”

Dani laughed. “I guess. I never had anything to compare it to.”

“Help yourself, then please come and join us. I’d like to get to know you better. It’s not often we have humans here.”

Dani glanced over to the table where Rucon sat reading a tablet of some kind, suspended in the air in front of him. “I don’t want to impose.”

“Nonsense.” Mara addressed the server next to the table. “Dax, see that Ms. Standich gets what she needs.”

“Yes m’lady.”

Dani opted for the salmon with tomatoes and capers with toast. Next she pointed to some purple cubes. “What are those?” she asked Dax.

“Those are reechy. Rather like your melon on Earth.”

She asked the names of a few more items, then selected one of each. “Can you make a latte?”

“Yes, madam,” Dax replied and scurried off through double doors behind the buffet.

Dani returned to the table with Mara and Rucon. She didn’t relish eating at the same table with Ian’s father but didn’t want to offend his mother. As she put her plate down, the knife slid off the side and clattered onto the wooden table top. “Sorry,” she said to Rucon’s glare.

Mara placed the knife next to Dani’s plate. “It’s all right, dear. Rucon, please be nice to our guest.”

Rucon gave a curt wave through the air and the display he’d been reading, disappeared, leaving a small square lying on the table. He scooped up the device and dropped it into his chest pocket. “It’s time I got to work.” He stood and left the room.

Mortified, Dani watched him leave.

Mara let out a sigh. “Don’t let him bother you, dear. He has a great deal on his mind right now.”

“There’s something about me and Cavacent men. They don’t like me much.”

Mara gave a sympathetic grin. “Mordo likes you.”

Dani looked up from toying with her food. “One out of three isn’t exactly a winning record.”

Mara placed a hand over hers. “I’m afraid our lives are a bit complicated at the moment. Rucon is under a great deal of stress. Try not to take it personally.” She paused, as though uncertain whether to go on. “I wanted to talk to you about yesterday morning.”

Dani’s cheeks burned. “Nothing happened, I swear. I curled up with him. That’s all.”

“You saved his life. Again. How are you feeling now?”

Dani poked at the strange fruit on her plate. “Physically, I feel amazing, like nothing ever happened. Mentally, I’m kind of a mess. Hard to concentrate. I’m sure coffee will help.”

“Can you tell me how you healed him exactly? You see, healers tend to be quite unique in their methods. Healer Kane, for example, simply needs an image in her head and she can affect a person. None of the healers were able to do anything for Ian. Except you.”

Gee Mara, I just had the most mind blowing psi-body orgasm imaginable.
“I really don’t know. When I laid down next to him, I just fell asleep.” Dani was compelled to keep the bit about a psi orgasm a secret, and the relieved look on Mara’s face told her it was the right thing to do.

* * * *

Dani arrived for her training a few minutes early and entered the arena to find a group practicing. A quick head count showed at least thirty people, approximately her age, both men and women. They worked in teams, using a variety of weapons as well as psi. The use of psi was obvious as bodies flew or lurched in unnatural ways. Three-dimensional spheres, squares, and triangles filled the landscape. They were all different colors and sizes and the balls moved continuously. Some of the obstacles stood over ten feet tall, while others were barely knee-high. The effect was bizarre.

Mordo came up beside her, sporting his usual black cape. “Impressive isn’t it?”

“Good morning,” Dani said. “Yes, impressive and a little surreal. Can I ask…why do you guys use weapons at all when you have psi?”

“Because psi has a limited range and uses up energy. A couple of hours of constant battle, and you’re going to be drained. The combination of weapons and psi is most efficient.”

“Makes sense,” Dani said. The group finished up and left the arena.

“You ready to begin?” Mordo asked.

“Sure,” Dani said.

Mordo turned and led the way to the exit.

“I thought we were training?” she asked, glancing back.

“We are, but you need to learn to walk before you can run. You see, our children are trained in psi from the day they are born. Along with eating, walking, talking, and everything else, controlling one’s psi is just another aspect of growing up. With you, it’s different. We’re going to have to experiment a bit to see how best to proceed. We’ll start in the sparring room.”

Dani smirked. “Don’t I feel special.”

“You are dear, you are.”

She followed Mordo to a small, wood-floored round room with an impressive assortment of knives, daggers, spears, and other hand-to-hand combat weapons hanging around the walls. “Nice,” she said as they entered.

“Indeed,” Mordo said, closing the door with the wave of a hand. “Now, take a good look around, and pay attention to the weapons and their placement.”

Dani did as asked, turning three-hundred and sixty degrees as she scanned the walls. “Okay.”

“Did you see any that you particularly liked?” Mordo asked.

“I like the look of the long spears over there.”

“Good. I want you to try to focus your psi and remove one from the wall.”

Dani frowned. “I don’t know how to do that.”

Mordo rubbed his chin. “You know what your psi feels like, correct?”

Dani hoped she wasn’t blushing. “I guess. I’ve experienced it a couple of times.”

“You need to find it.”

After fifteen minutes of trying to “find” her psi, Dani sat frustrated in the center of the room. “I’m sorry, I don’t know how to do this. Maybe I’m too old to control it.”

“Nonsense. You helped move a portal and saved Ian’s life. You sent furniture flying yesterday. Occupied furniture, I might add. You are far too powerful to run around without proper constraint.”

Saved Ian’s life.
Pfft
. Should’ve skipped that one. Dani’s anger grew as she thought of Ian. If he’d just stayed out of the pool that day, none of this would have happened. She’d be home, going about her business in ignorant bliss. No aliens, no psi. Something tugged at her emotions, but she chose to ignore it. Her mind flashed to the morning she’d healed Ian, and the way he’d treated her. The way Rucon glared at her like so much garbage. Little human not good enough for your precious son? Her teeth clenched.

Mordo stood near and tapped his foot on the floorboards, adding to her anger.

She stood and was about to tell him to piss off when she felt it. Like a ball of water gathered in front of her in zero-g. She’d watched the others, how they moved their arms and channeled the energy.

Tap, tap, tap. The tempo of Mordo’s foot increased.

Dani whipped around, lifted her hand and “grabbed” the spear with her psi.
Holy shit.
She ducked as the contents of the entire wall exploded. Daggers, knives, spears—everything flew in all directions, including theirs.

Mordo stood calm and shielded them from the oncoming barrage. Within seconds, weapons covered the floor, a few stuck in the walls.

Dani straightened up. “Oh, man. Sorry. I was only going for the spear in the middle.”

“No, no, don’t apologize,” Mordo said, with a gleam in his eyes. “This is excellent. Precisely what we wanted. Now, tell me, what did your psi feel like?”

“Like a big ball of water, floating in front of me. I couldn’t see it but I felt it somehow.”

“Interesting.” Mordo rubbed his chin and paced. “You see our psi is energy. It permeates our bodies, but is independent of them as well. It takes some children months to manifest that external form of psi and even longer to control it. For others, it comes naturally. Now, what did you do to find it?”

“No idea.”

“Yes, you do. Think.”

“Look Mordo,” Dani’s anger rose and the ball was back again. “Oh. I got mad,” she said, feeling relieved.

“Mad at what, or who?”

“At Ian if you must know. He’s a world-class jerk.” Her psi swirled around her. “No offense.”

“None taken. So,” Mordo said, clapping his hands together, “now you know where to begin. Excellent.” With that, Mordo turned to leave.

“Are we done?” Dani asked.

“I’m done. You have a mess to clean up. No cheating. Use your psi and put everything back.”

“What? You saw what happened. I can’t put everything back. I’ll probably kill myself.”

“That would be most unfortunate. Do try not to. I’ll be back in an hour to see how you’re doing.”

“Ugh.” Dani turned around, surveying the damage.
Fine. I can do this. I’m certainly angry now.
She lifted her hands and reached out for one of the smaller daggers on the left. She could feel her psi, and gave it a little nudge. She had to duck as a hand full of weapons hit the wall and rebounded.

Holy crap. I really could kill myself doing this.
She found the dagger a few feet away. She needed to try it with less distance, so she sat down about a foot from the dagger and took a few deep breaths.
Clearly I have to figure out how to limit the amount of psi I use. I must be using a hammer when I need tweezers.
Dani crossed her legs and placed her elbows on her knees, staring at the shining metal of the blade.
When I reached for the spear and dagger, it felt like a big ball coming out of me. So, that’s my psi, and it’s serious overkill.
Dani remembered Mordo speaking to Ian with his mind. She saw a field then too, about the size of a baseball.
I need a straw-sized field.
She squinted her eyes and thought of a metal straw to channel the energy through. She mentally nudged the tip of the blade.

The dagger spun in a circle a few times then stopped.
That’s better.
Dani concentrated on holding the dagger’s handle. She saw it move a bit, and somehow experienced the connection with the cool leather of the handle. She moved the dagger left then right, then lifted the weapon into the air and smiled.

An hour later Dani placed the last weapon on the only available hook.
Ha. Not precisely where they started, but I didn’t use my hands.
Fatigue pulled at her and she wished she’d eaten more of her breakfast. She turned for the door and Mordo walked in. He surveyed the wall and his eyes brightened. “Not bad. Well done, in fact. However, the order is a tad off, wouldn’t you say?”

“Well yeah, but I didn’t exactly memorize where everything went,” Dani said.

“You should have.” Mordo raised his hand, and weapons started rearranging themselves. Within a few seconds, everything hung in its designated location.

Feeling a little less proud, she asked, “How did you do that?”

“Something akin to your photographic memory. I can access my memories like a book. I simply flip the page to where I need to be. You may not be that proficient, but I feel certain we can greatly improve your recall.”

“Cool,” Dani said, blinking as her head swam slightly.

“Are you all right?”

“I’m feeling a little drained, probably hungry.”

“As you should be. Go get lunch. Practice whenever you can.” Mordo raised his eyebrows with a knowing look. “Carefully. I’ll meet you back here tomorrow.”

“Sounds good, and Mordo?”

“Yes?”

“Thanks.”

He nodded and left her to her thoughts.

* * * *

She closed the door to the sparring room behind her and took a moment to get her bearings. Her stomach rumbled. Not wanting to risk another run-in with Rucon, she headed for the main dining hall. Crossing an outdoor courtyard, she inhaled deeply. The increasingly familiar spicy aroma added to her sense of well being. A few minutes later, she entered the great hall. Delicious smells greeted her. Definitely some kind of meat, and something foreign and sweet. She spotted Ian and his team, sitting with the SAs, at the table they’d occupied yesterday. Her stomach tensed as their night on Como came back to her. Part of her was glad he was acting the way he was. The intensity of emotion where he was concerned made her uncomfortable. Her stomach grumbled and she prepared herself for more drama. Ria saw her first and waived her over. The look Ian gave her almost caused her to leave, but she resisted the urge. She wanted to see her friends. She put her shoulders back and strode over to the table.

Ria jumped up and gave her a hug. “How’d training go?”