Authors: Cyndi Friberg
Slipping her hands inside his vest, she spread her fingers across his warm shoulders. His eyes narrowed while she moved in. She brushed her lips across his, enjoying the tingle resulting from the brief contact.
She felt his fingers rake through her hair and she tilted her head to the side. He didn’t rush her, didn’t encourage her, just allowed her to take what she wanted. Tension built between them yet he seemed content to let her play.
Pressing her mouth to his, she deepened the kiss.
She touched his lips with her tongue and he opened to her. She stroked his tongue with hers and he groaned. His mouth moved, his tongue slid and she lost herself in the spinning haze.
“Charlotte.”
She didn’t want to stop kissing him, didn’t want to lose the comfort of his embrace. He said her name again and she opened her eyes. He moved to sit beside her on the bed.
“I’ll start slowly until you become accustomed to the exchange.”
“You established a link?” She hadn’t felt him in her mind. Apparently, kissing was even more distracting than being kissed.
“Yes. Are you ready?”
She chuckled. “Probably not.”
He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and the room fell away. She gasped and clutched his vest.
“Relax. I’ve got you.”
She could still feel the bed beneath her but she could see only darkness. His arm squeezed her in silent reassurance. She moved closer to him, snuggling against his side.
Light flickered in the distance and Charlotte focused on the spot. The blackness parted, folded back like theater curtains.
“Where are we?” she whispered, fighting the nausea rolling through her belly. Concentrating on the light helped but she was glad for his supporting arm.
Tal laughed softly. “We’re in your cabin.”
“You know what I mean.”
“We’re nearly there. This is the day I first met Dez dar Joon.”
A cavernous chamber appeared within the light.
She was drawn into the scene, becoming part of it.
High, decorative arches supported the ceiling thirty feet above her head. Beneath her feet spread massive squares of ivory marble. A neat row of boys stood along one wall, shoulder-to-shoulder, arms clasped behind their backs, gazes fixed straight ahead. She saw the scene from the perspective of one of the boys.
“You were children,” she said softly. “You were only a boy.”
“Look to your right. He’s the fourth one down the row.”
How could this be Dez dar Joon? The boy Tal indicated looked scared to death. His hair shone softly in the firelight, the rich gold of antique coins, and his wide turquoise eyes were brimming with tears.
“What is this place? Why were you here?”
“This is the Choosing. The Mystics invited us here to be scanned.”
“And now you’re the one who issues the invitations.” That had to make him proud, but he often spoke of his accomplishments with a sad sort of indifference. Had his war with Joon eclipsed everything else in his life?
She turned back to the scene and focused on the frightened blond boy. “You and Dez are both here.
Don’t the Mystics hold allegiance to one sect or the other?”
“The Conservatory is neutral ground. To violate its neutrality would invite the wrath of all the Mystics.” Reverence filled his tone and Charlotte felt intrusive. This place meant the world to him. She glimpsed his very soul. Still, she wanted to understand, needed to know what she’d be facing.
“You’re a Master-level Mage, so I know you were chosen. Was Dez dar Joon?”
“Yes. Vee selected both of us to train personally.” The scene flashed off. She shook her head, surprised by the abrupt change. They sat on her bed again. “Why did he look so frightened? Isn’t it an honor to be chosen for apprenticeship?”
“It’s a great honor and Vee hadn’t chosen an apprentice for many years.” His lips compressed for a moment and he glanced away. “Dez had lost his mother five days before. Pell was the only softness he would ever know. I only met her once, but there was such kindness in her eyes. Vee often wondered if we might have saved Dez had Pell dar Joon survived.”
“Saved him from what?” she asked.
“From himself.”
Memories of the man quickly eroded her pity for the frightened child. Tal offered no more of an explanation, so she asked, “When did he change?
Why did he change?”
He pivoted toward her and raised his hands to her face. “Ready for more?” She nodded and he said, “I’ll go a bit faster this time so prepare yourself.” She closed her eyes and opened her mind, ignoring the now-familiar urge to resist him. Images inundated her brain, flashes of scenes spanning years. They trained together. They tested each other’s skill. They laughed and encouraged one another. They were friends.
Tal stood half hidden in a thick, leafy copse of trees. The clearing he observed lay just beyond some sort of psychic boundary. Joon stood in the clearing, flouting the regulation with his presence.
Charlotte tried to guess his age. Tall and lanky, his golden hair now reached the middle of his back and his features had greatly matured.
“We had passed fourteen Ontarian cycles,” Tal answered her unspoken question. “Ontarian cycles are slightly longer than Earth years. Each Ontarian day lasts approximately thirty-six Earth hours.” Tal refocused the transmission and Charlotte felt herself drawn more deeply into his perspective. A sleek, turquoise spaceship landed in the middle of the clearing. Dez stood straight, squaring his shoulders, as a man exited the ship.
Hate burned so brightly in the man’s turquoise gaze that she couldn’t make out his features. Evil and hostility radiated from him. She felt Tal erect a mental shield.
“Tell me the reports are not true,” the man said calmly, his voice terrifying with its soft command.
“Tell me my son has not disgraced the House of Joon.
Tell me my faith in you has not been misplaced. Tell me I may still call you son.”
“Father, I can explain.”
She could only see Dez’s back, but she felt Tal’s heart hammer in reaction to his friend’s fear.
“If you must offer an explanation, then there is nothing left to say.”
The man turned and Dez grabbed his arm. “But, Father—”
An abrupt backhand ended his sentence. “You wretched weakling.” He hit Dez again. “You shame me!” His closed fist knocked Dez to the ground. “You shame us all.”
Each ruthless blow made her cringe. Each vicious kick tightened her stomach. The beating hadn’t ended when Tal stopped transmitting the memory.
“Dez wouldn’t let me interfere. He warned me that to do so would only make it worse for him. I tried to move toward him, but he shot a mental pulse that rendered me unconscious.”
“What had he done? Why was his father so angry?”
The muscles in Tal’s throat worked as he swallowed awkwardly. “For the first time in our apprenticeship, I had performed better than Dez.”
“What? His father beat him because he—”
“Had allowed an Aune to best a Joon. Every failure, regardless of how insignificant was punished…” His voice trailed away. “
Seyati
is similar to brother,” Tal explained. “It is a bond only Mystics can truly understand, an affinity of spirit that goes deeper than biological ties.”
He didn’t give her the opportunity to comment. He touched her face again, resuming the memory transmission. The images passed even more quickly now, making her dizzy, making her shake.
Something dark stirred within Dez dar Joon’s turquoise eyes. Camaraderie turned to competition.
Friendship to rivalry. Dez manipulated situations, he lied and deceived, he no longer cared about the means, only the victory. Tal mourned their friendship and the innocence left behind.
Light appeared again and Charlotte moved toward it hesitantly. She could sense Tal’s pain, the grief and fury surrounding this memory. She stepped into a bedchamber. Her heart pounded in her breast. She heard a breathless moan and expected infidelity.
Echoes of Tal’s fear amplified her reaction to the scene. She moved as he moved. Saw what he had seen.
Tal snatched back the curtains enclosing the bed.
Joon stood across from him, smirking with evil satisfaction. The bruised and broken body of Tal’s lover—Flur—sprawled across the bed.
“You’re early. But I was finished anyway.” He laughed and Tal lunged for him. Joon vanished and Tal collided with the wall.
Charlotte panted harshly and hugged Tal as he released her from the memory. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” she whispered.
“She was still alive,” Tal said in a soft, throaty voice. “He had lured her to my bed using my form.
He raped and tortured her, experimenting with the extent of his powers in ways you don’t want to imagine. Vee came to me but her injuries were even beyond his ability to mend so we dispersed her energy.”
Tal pushed her to arm’s length as he went on.
“That was when we realized Joon can manipulate energy patterns. You see, he had imprinted the room with my pattern so when the code regulators arrived, they believed I had murdered Flur. I spent four weeks in a detention center before Vee could prove what Joon had done.”
“Can they keep you in a cell? Can’t you just transport yourself to a different location?”
“There are cages that can contain even a Master-level Mage. Vee will not admit whether or not he can escape the cell, but I suspect he can.”
“Joon was never apprehended for what he did to Flur?”
“Punishment is still pending, but he has become a wraith, a phantom. Even Vee cannot isolate his energy pattern anymore.”
“How long ago did all this happen? How long have you been chasing him?”
“Those are two different questions. Eight cycles have passed since he murdered Flur and I spent nearly two working with Trey to locate him. It takes twenty cycles to complete an apprenticeship. Vee convinced me that the skills I would learn in the final phase of training might well enable me to find him so I returned to the Conservatory. I completed my training three cycles ago but Joon has yet to pay for his crime.”
Charlotte wanted to weep. In her arrogance, she had believed that Tal’s only motivation for finding Joon was to prevent him from harming her. “Had you been with Flur long?”
“Not really. We shared affection but Joon knew I didn’t love her. He chose to destroy her, even knowing that our alliance was nearly over. The senselessness of what he did is part of why I can’t let go.” He shook his head. “At least that’s what Vee says.”
“You admire him very much.”
“Vee is part parent, part teacher and part deity.” He managed to smile. “There is no one like him in the universe.”
Charlotte shifted on the bed, wanting very much to touch Tal. He’d opened himself to her, trusted her.
But she’d made her expectations clear. It wouldn’t be fair to start something she wasn’t ready to finish.
“I know you lost your mother but is your father still alive?” she asked.
He exhaled a long, ragged breath as if to purge himself of the memories. “My father is Prefect Roe Aune, head of the Traditionalist Sect Council. He lives in Frontine, Ontarian’s capital city. You will meet him once we know it is safe for you to travel.”
“And when will I meet Vee?”
“As soon as the Mystics have seen to his recovery.
The Conservatory is our destination.”
* * * * *
Charlotte’s heart fluttered within her breast and she could no longer hold back a grin. She was about to set foot on an alien planet! A hatch opened directly in front of her and she felt the floor rumble as the exit ramp extended toward the ground.
Grasping the smooth metal rail, Charlotte started down the ramp. Tall, leafy trees surrounded the ship, but the leaves were more turquoise than green.
An exotic bird soared into the lavender sky and she laughed, unable to contain her exuberance.
“What is that?” she asked, pointing to the round object clearly visible through the trees.
“The day moon,” Tal explained as they stepped away from the ship. “Ontariese has two moons. The larger is visible during the day, the smaller at night.”
“Are either of them able to sustain life?”
“Yes. The day moon is used as a training facility for our armed forces.”
“Where is the Conservatory?” she asked, dragging her gaze back to the small clearing.
“Just over the rise,” Trey informed her as he joined them on the ground. “Transports aren’t allowed within sight of the complex. They disrupt the balance of energy or something.”
“Most Mystics can transport themselves at least a short distance so conventional conveyances are seldom necessary,” Tal said.
His arrogance made her feisty. She turned to Trey with a blinding smile. “Are you coming with us?” she asked, enjoying the tension generated by her casual question.
Tal had been a perfect gentleman in the six days it took to complete their journey, not attempting so much as a kiss. Now she understood the old adage
Be
careful what you wish for…
Tal’s posture stiffened and his hair coiled.
Charlotte’s enjoyment increased with each outward sign of his jealousy. At least he hadn’t lost interest.
“Would you like me to?” Trey returned her smile.
“No. She would not,” Tal responded.
“I didn’t ask you.”
“Won’t your crew miss you?” Charlotte flirted.
“Do you really think I care?”
He stepped toward her but Tal slipped between them, preventing Trey from touching her. “Get back on your ship. Charlotte means nothing by her banter.”
Trey crossed his arms over his chest, amber eyes narrowed, legs wide apart. “The conclusion of our flight is a logical transition point. If you had satisfied her, she would not be flirting with me.”
Causing a fistfight within minutes of her arrival wasn’t the best way to introduce herself to the Mystics. She placed her hands lightly on Tal’s shoulders and leaned around him. “I’m sorry, gentlemen. I didn’t mean anything by my banter. I enjoyed meeting you, Commander Aune.”
Trey’s expression remained strained but he inclined his head. “We will meet again,” he said, and marched back on to his ship.
They started toward the Conservatory but they didn’t get far before Tal turned on her. “There are no harmless flirtations on Ontariese. Men have fought to the death to secure a mate. Women frequently employ armed guards to ensure their safety. Didn’t I make it clear—?”