“Crystals grow in certain, rigid structures,” Agnor told them. “Ki is essentially a crystal that can only grow in certain paths and directions, according to the physical laws of the universe. It likes order because it cannot grow or be any other way. That structure is also incredibly powerful and is a fantastic conduit for psi energy, which is where the conflict comes in. Ki is aware of the danger and was very careful to examine our character and all of my memories before it allowed us to be its champion. It gave us only a small sample of itself for study and reference, but it also gave it as a way to communicate directly with Ki.”
Bet lifted the spalling to show them again. “Through this, some of us can commune with Ki, and it can check up on us, as well. That was the condition of our alliance. Ki gave us the power—and the duty—to relieve the collective of as many of the spallings and shards the puppet masters had taken over the years and used so evilly. In return, we have promised never to use Ki’s order for evil, to keep Talented minds away from the Ipson system, and to communicate with Ki via the spallings so that we may continue to exchange learning and information.”
“You made an alliance with it?” Darak asked.
Agnor smiled. “You bet we did. Ki considered the previous alliance it had with the collective, through the puppet master named Kol, to be null and void. Kol lied, and if he weren’t already dead, Ki would have demanded he be brought to trial. Ki is allied with the Council now, under much stricter conditions than it had with the collective. It has learned from its mistakes. There will be checks and balances this time. But since Ki is expanding, it realized it needed allies to help keep unscrupulous Talents from its system. That’s where the Council comes in.”
“It sounds like this is the end of the collective,” Jeri said, her voice tinged with hope.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“In essence, it is,” Bet pronounced, the room stilling for a breathless moment before she continued. “It will take some time for us to ferret out all the remaining spallings and shards, but we have the power to nullify them now.”
“Ki has asked that we eventually return those pieces to the Ipson system to seed the other moons. It will take time, but Ki wants to expand to take over the entire system,” Agnor told them, sitting forward to make a map of sorts out of olives and rolls. “These are the planets in the system. This one…” he stuck a cocktail fork in the top of one of the rolls he’d laid out, “…is Ipson. These are the two that have already been seeded.” He added two more forks in two more of the rolls. “These are the moons.” He pointed to several olives he’d laid out around the rolls. “This one was just seeded.” He bit that olive in half and put one half back down on the table, eating the other half. “The rest are ripe for the crystals we have retrieved from the collective. Ki wants us to return in one standard year and do it.”
“What about expansion beyond the Ipson system?” Micah asked, studying the crude diagram on the table.
“For now, Ki has no interest in that. Its experiences with humans so far has led it to believe that it should centralize its location,” Bet said quietly.
“The potential for misuse is greater if Ki is spread out all over the galaxy. If it is limited to one system, it’s easier to protect,” Agnor added. “Plus, you have to understand the timelines we’re talking about. Ki doesn’t grow overnight. The structure of Ki on Ipson took millennia to develop. Seeding the system is just the first step in a very long process by human standards. Ki probably won’t want to expand again—if it ever does—for several thousand years. Maybe longer.”
“Time just isn’t the same for Ki as it is for us,” Bet reflected. She offered the crystal up for examination again. “I know you won’t want to take the chance now, but after the Specitars have finished examining the spallings, you should commune with Ki. You’d understand it all a lot better.”
“What do you see when you use the crystal?” Jana wanted to know.
“It takes me out of this plane of existence, onto a sort of galactic plane. I can see the
Calypso
as if I’m standing on top of it, and I can see all the enemy ships. And I can use my telekinesis, augmented by Ki, into something that allows me to move entire ships full of people across solar systems.”
“It’s pretty astounding to watch the results when Bet gets into battle mode,” Agnor said, running his hand down her back, stroking her.
He was so damned proud of her. She’d blossomed into the most amazing woman, though she retained that indefinable something that made her Bet. He loved every inch of her. Every gesture. Every smile.
“That sounds amazing,” Jana said, smiling now.
She was a tough woman to get to know, but she seemed more at ease now than Agnor had ever seen her. Darak was good for her. Their mating was a solid one that had brought them both a measure of peace. Agnor thought he understood it now. Now that he had Bet in his life.
“What you’re describing sounds familiar,” Jana went on, talking to Bet. “Memories of some of the things I did while under control of the collective are still coming back to me. When I got the name StarKiller, it was because I somehow managed to stop a star from destroying the planet Plectar. I remember looking down on the system in the way you just described, like I was outside my ship, walking among the planets and stars. I thought I was dreaming, but after hearing what you’ve just said, I think it was Ki helping save all those lives on Plectar. Ki working through me, somehow.”
“It’s very possible,” Bet said, encouragement ringing in her tone. “Ki respects life. It would act to save it, if it were possible.”
Jana and Bet kept talking about different aspects of their experiences with Ki while Micah leaned over to speak to Agnor.
“Your lady is really something, Ag,” Micah said with a smile. “I’m very happy for you.”
“Thanks,” Agnor replied, watching Bet talk with Jana, her face animated with excitement as her shyness retreated in the face of acceptance. His friends had accepted her, and Agnor felt a warm glow in his heart for them and for her. There was nothing better in this life than the love of friends and especially the love of a true soul mate.
“Have you given any thought to how the Council is going to react?” Micah broke in on Agnor’s happy thoughts.
“React to what? The crystals? I figured they’d cause quite a stir.”
“The crystals, yes…” Micah trailed off, which drew Agnor’s full attention. “But what I was really thinking of was you and your lady. You missed some things while you were on your mission to Ipson. Darak and Jana have been retested and both are now Shas, just like Jeri and me. I think I’m looking at two more in you and Bet, if I’m not very much mistaken.”
Agnor was floored. Sha was the highest rank a Talant could attain. There were only ever a handful of Shas in each generation. Sometimes, only one or two. If Micah was right—and Agnor had no reason to doubt his old friend—this little lounge held six of the most powerful Talents in the galaxy.
And he was one of them. And Bet too.
Well…of course they were Shas. Who better? And who else could have taken down the collective with only two lives lost and thousands freed?
“We did experience another energy storm when those three crystals shattered above Ipson,” Agnor thought aloud. “I knew the whole crew gained a level or two, but there was nobody available to test me, and I’m not very objective when it comes to Bet, so I left her retesting until we got home.”
“We’ll make it all official later, but there’s little doubt in my mind right now, Ag. Welcome to the highest rank there is.” Micah reached over and shook Ag’s hand, wearing a big grin. “Life is about to get really strange.”
Micah hadn’t been kidding. In the weeks that followed, Agnor and Bet did, indeed, test out as Shas. They were given all sorts of acclaim for having returned to Geneth Mar triumphant and routing the collective.
There was still much to do. Jana and Darak took up the cause of the collective’s conscripted army. They were organizing the ranks and helping repatriate those soldiers who wanted to go back to their homeworlds. Micah and Jeri handled the political aspects of being Shas. They interfaced with the Council more than any of the other newly minted Shas, and Agnor was just as happy to leave them to it. Politics wasn’t his thing.
Instead, he and Bet had been working on the scientific side of things. They were overseeing all work with the crystals, and Bet was in charge of their storage and care. The spallings Ki had given them were alive in a way the crystals the collective had been given weren’t. Because of that, they needed extra care, and because of the added dimension of conscious life, they were able to allow communication back to their source.
It was a time of discovery and innovation. Communication and the building of relationships between two very different species.
Agnor also loved working with Bet every day. He loved the fact that she was now treated with the respect she should always have gotten and that she was coming out of her shell more and more, but still retained that quiet, gentle way that made her so very appealing. He just loved her. Period.
They had made plans for their wedding. It was supposed to be a small affair, but for the two newest Shas on Geneth Mar, a small wedding was just not possible. Jeri and Jana had turned their little ceremony into something for the ages, but Agnor didn’t mind, as long as Bet was happy.
Finally, the day arrived, and Agnor met her in front of the crowd of well-wishers and friends. They exchanged their vows and pledged their troth. They had a big party, surrounded by those who had come to celebrate their union. The day, and the night, that followed were absolutely perfect.
“I love you, my husband.” Bet reached upward to kiss him.
“I love you, my wife,” he replied, kissing her back.
Bet sighed happily and laid her head against his shoulder. “I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of hearing that.”
“Me neither,” he agreed, feeling smugly happy, alone at last with his new spouse.
“I can’t believe the collective has just about collapsed,” she said quietly, running her fingers along his arm idly.
“There are a few pockets, but we can take the
Calypso
out again in a few weeks and free those poor souls who are still trapped.” Personally, he wouldn’t rest until every captured Talent was freed.
“I’d like that. Nobody should be controlled like that.”
Agnor knew she’d seen a lot as she had freed so many of the collective’s victims. So had he.
“We won’t stop, my love. Not until every last one of them is free.”
With that vow ringing through his mind, Agnor finally slept, secure in the arms of his soul mate.
# # #
Thanks for reading
Shy Talent (StarLords #3)
. If you enjoyed this book, please consider leaving a review.
Scroll down to read an excerpt from Bianca D’Arc’s EPPIE Award winning
Resonance Mates
series. This futuristic menage romance series consists of five books, all of which are now available.
Following the excerpt from
Hara’s Legacy (Resonance Mates #1)
, there is also a small snippet from another of her space opera romance series, the
Jit’Suku Chronicles
. This multi-generational saga begins with the four kings. The excerpt here is from the first book,
King of Swords
.
A complete list of all of Bianca’s books, separated by series, follows the excerpt. You can also check out Bianca’s website at
WWW.BIANCADARC.COM
. Or you can sign up for
Bianca’s Newsletter
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EXCERPT
Hara’s Legacy by Bianca D’Arc
Resonance Mates #1
"Justin is mad as a hornet about something," Caleb said as he smacked his work gloves to rid them of the perpetual dust. He laid his hat aside and took off his jacket as he stomped inside the big kitchen, greeting his wife with a smacking kiss.
Jane put her coat on and picked up a wire bucket. "I have to get the eggs anyway, maybe I'll try to see what's up with him."
Caleb stayed her with a hand on her arm. "He's in a foul temper, Janie. Don't let him upset you."
She patted his hand and reached for the doorknob. "I won't. But Caleb, he needs a friend."
Caleb muttered as he watched her traipse down the path toward the chicken coop and the barn nearby where Justin kept his Harley.
"What he needs is a woman," Caleb muttered out loud, knowing Jane couldn't hear him, trying hard not to let guilt flood his mind. Jane would be back like a shot then, and he would have to explain why he felt guilty about being the only brother with a wife.
He'd tried desperately to hide the fact that the larger part of the guilt came from the fact that he felt he'd stolen Jane out from under Mick's nose, or that he suspected Justin would have courted her too, had he been home at the time her daddy died. Caleb felt like a heel. He was supposed to protect his little brothers, not cheat them out of the best woman in the world.
At the time though, he'd figured they would find other great women and settle down. Now though, with the shortage of women of any kind, the prospects were grim, and Caleb felt worse each day and each night he spent in Jane's loving arms.
Caleb watched her through the kitchen window, but staggered a moment later, as he was hit with a wave of precognitive vision that clouded his senses as it hadn't done in years. At least not this strongly. Not since the dire vision of the alien invasion had he been gripped so tightly by his gift and he slumped into one of the hard wooden chairs, letting the vision take him where it would. Surrendering to his vision, he almost feared what he might see, but resolved to use his gift to protect his family - the most important thing in his life.
* * *