Soul(s) (11 page)

“
Now that we’re all here,”
Iris started, “I just wanted the five of us to meet before you all
head out this afternoon. Consider this an informal debriefing. We
have always had scouts that took shifts protecting the territories
and making sure awakened Aura arrive safely to the Light City, but
we’ve never had a reason for a recon mission such as this. Keegan
and Sariah, I know you have had to learn very quickly but, in your
short time here you’ve honed your powers faster than any Aura I’ve
ever known. Something is changing. Otherwise, fate would not have
brought you to us. Now, your mission is to go to the different
outer rim territories that have been attacked and get a firsthand
account of what’s been happening.

The teleportation docks are staggered
through the peninsula side but the outer cities that have been
attacked are not near any. Lanni will transport you to the nearest
outer realm but you’ll need to use the maps on your communicators
to navigate from there. Report back daily. If anything changes in
your orders, we’ll contact you. You’re strong and we’re sending the
four of you out together because we know you can protect
yourselves, but don’t seek out Banguri. Avoid engaging if see any.
All the Elders want right now is information. Understood?”

We all nodded in unison.

“
Perfect. You are all
dismissed; leave immediately.”

The weather was chilly as we moved through
the forest. The season was shifting into the start of winter. Our
suits seemed to be temperature controlled so I was fine, but Sariah
was so much smaller than I.

Are you cold?
I thought to Sariah.

No. I’m fine. You?

A little,
I lied.
We’d better hold
hands so I don’t freeze.

I snatched her hand exaggeratedly and she
laughed at my movement. She pulled her hand away but then on the
down swing grabbed it linking her fingers with mine. She was
smiling at me in a way that made me want to pull her too me.

“
What are you two twelve?”
Ajani muttered jealously.

I smiled at Sariah and she shook her head at
me.

Don’t make it
worse,
she thought to me.

“
In need of some
affection?” Bem asked Ajani.

He shrugged off her playful touch and walked
further ahead.

“
Is he always like that to
you?” Sariah asked Bem. She’d let go of my hand and walked beside
her.

“
Not really, but he’s been
strange since you’ve been around. I think you remind him of
Jet.”

“
Was that his venku who
died?” Sariah asked, her voice sounding flustered.

“
Yes,” Bem answered
simply.

“
Well even without Keegan,
I wouldn’t have tried to take him from you.”

“
He isn’t mine to keep,”
Bem said softly.

I watched Sariah for some type of reaction
or body language I could read, but there was none.

15: SARIAH

We reached the first city a few hours before
dusk. The sun was dipping low in the sky but still had a long way
to go until it hit the horizon.

I was expecting something similar to the
Light City’s architecture but these buildings were completely
different. They were tall—maybe three to four floors—and narrow,
making the homes rectangular instead of the square shingled homes I
remembered from First-Plane.

It was like a ghost, no one was outside.
That did make sense, they must be scared—and honestly they should
be, it wasn’t safe anymore. There was no way of knowing if the
Banguri were doing random murders or if they were out there
watching; waiting, for a moment to attack again.

I don’t sense anything
outside other than us
, Keegan thought to
me as we all neared the closest building. Bem and Ajani were a few
feet ahead of us and we held back as they approached to knock on
the door.

Me neither. How far can
you see out?
I asked Keegan.

Farther than a mile off, if clear line of
vision.

We heard movement and looked up to see Bem
was walking back towards us and Ajani lagging behind her with a
disturbed look on his face.

“
Most of the people
wouldn’t come out, too scared. We had to try a couple houses before
we’d find someone who’d let Ajani read their mind,” Bem said to
us.

“
Looks like they stalked
them out first,” Ajani added as he joined us. “People saw some
Low-Banguri lingering around just outside the city territory and
then one night they just started attacking.”

“
Why wouldn’t that raise
alarm?” Keegan asked.

“
This territory—since it’s
one of the furthest out—is right next to the Banguri land. There
hasn’t been a problem before after the treaty was signed. Each side
just left the other alone.” Ajani explained. He pulled his
communicator out and tapped the screen to turn it on. He began
typing a message in with his two thumbs.

“
What are you sending back
to Paramount?” I asked curiously.

“
They Aura here are making
a request for someone to guard their water supply. All of these
cities have plumping bring the water inside the house—which as you
know, is important—they’re afraid that the Banguri will tamper with
it, block it from flowing or poison it.”

“
Why?” Keegan
asked.

“
To make them come
outside,” Bem answered. “The Banguri don’t have advanced technology
like we do, our people are only vulnerable if they leave their
homes.”

“
Couldn’t they just heal
through sex?” I reasoned.

“
Might not always be an
option. What if people get separated or they’re a widowed-venku?
And we’ve never had to deal with the possibility of being poisoned.
It could make everyone too sick to even have sex.”

“
The banguri are trying to
kill all of the aura-souls. Extinguish the entire race!” I
exclaimed; the severity of the situation suddenly hitting
me.

“
Yes,” Ajani agreed as he
drew his pack of his back and slid the communicator back into its
slot, “and we need to know why.”

We didn’t want to waste a night in town so
we continued onward. Ajani had checked our location off on the
projected map the communicator could make. We were still some
twenty miles away. Bem rationalized that if we did a well-paced
jog, we’d be able cover another eight to ten miles before needing
to stop to hydrate and rest.

Keegan and I fell into an easy pace a little
ahead of Ajani and Bem. I had to admit, I was enjoying the athletic
level my body could perform at on Second-Plane. It felt limitless.
It was freeing. We could be so much more here than on earth.

Talking without actually talking is kind of
nice.

Why’s that?
I asked. I smiled in anticipation of his
answer.

I can flirt without getting winded.

That’s not what I thought
you were going to say,
I thought back to
him.
Besides, you don’t even get winded.
Endurance is one of your powers.

Yes it is,
he agreed, adding a little wink after his
thought.

Why do you think the
Banguri are attacking?
Keegan thought to
me.

You mean another reason
besides them being wild uncontrollable animals?
I asked.

I don’t think they’re just animals. That
night we awakened I saw one on the ridge. It looked human like us
and it was leading the others.

I thought back to that night. I hadn’t been
able to see the figure on the ridge like Keegan, but I had entered
its mind. Their leader did have an organize thought flow, it could
have been human. I had just assumed that the Banguri that were
attacking were just the lesser intelligent ones, but it made sense
that someone would be instructing them. My thoughts were cut short
by Bem’s booming voice.

“
Keegan, Sariah! The
mini-atlas shows a stream just ahead,” she shouted from behind us,
“We’ll camp near there for the night.”

A little curvy creek came into view and we
slowed down to a walk. There was a clearing of open grass near it.
Ajani stopped beside me and pulled out an octagon shaped onyx
colored stone. He held it up face level showing me; the moonlight
illuminating it.

“
This is an octave. It has
eight different forms it can take. There’s one in your pack.
There’s a side button that pops out a compartment that holds it,
just so you know. This one is Bem’s, I’ll set it up for you,” Ajani
said.

He tapped a house symbol and it glowed.
Setting it down on the ground, he motioned for us to step back.

It dissolved into tiny squares that spread
like black tar across the grass. It expanded in size as it flowed
upwards, forming walls until it all met once again at the top of
the dome structure it’d created. It reminded me of some type of
outdoor housing I stayed in in First-Plane. I could see it, but I
couldn’t quite find the name of it in my mind.

Tent,
Keegan thought to me. I nodded in agreement not really
remembering if that were right but trusting him all the same. How
he could remember so much from a world that was fading in my mind
like a mist of a dream. Keegan smiled to himself. I wondered what
memories of tents he had.

“
This is the night-house
form,” Bem said as she came and stood beside me. “Just room enough
for two. You and Keegan will sleep here and Ajani and I will sleep
in his. Once the sun hits, it automatically goes back into its
octagon shape, so be sure you’re—
decent.
”

At first I thought she
meant fully clothed and then I realized what that
insinuated
.
I
blushed.

“
There’s the creek too,”
Ajani muttered over his shoulder as he walked a few feet back from
our tent. He was setting his up at the edge of the clearing. “Make
sure you get some water in your system. We’ll have a long day
tomorrow.”

“
Goodnight,” Bem said to
me.

“
Wait,” I said, “aren’t we
going to take turns keeping watch?”

“
This isn’t a First-Plane
western,” Ajani said. His voice shot through the dark like a dart.
“You and I are telekinetic; we’d be able to sense them before they
were within a mile of us.”

“
I just
thought—

“
Don’t worry,” Bem added,
patting my shoulder before she walked away. “They wouldn’t
attack
us
. Even
though they’re attacking the outer cities, they wouldn’t go so far
as that.”

Without another word Bem shuffled on after
Ajani who had disappeared within their night-house.

Even though they were veteran warriors, I
didn’t agree with their decision. It seemed unwise to just leave
ourselves open for an attack. Either the night-house was safer than
I thought, or they were just overly confident.

“
Are you coming?” Keegan
asked softly from the opening of the night-house.

“
No, I’m going to stay and
keep watch for a while,” I told him. “Probably a good idea,” Keegan
said. “I was surprised too that they didn’t think it was necessary.
Want me to take watch first and then we can rotate in a few
hours?”

“
I’ll go first. I’ll come
get you when I’m tired.”

“
Alright,” Keegan
consented. I heard him walk up and stoop beside me. I turned to
him. He trailed his thumb across the bottom of my chin and I
thought he was going to kiss me. He did, but on my forehead. There
was no other contact and I surprised myself by reaching after him
when he got up.

He caught my hand in his kissing the front
of it sweetly, before releasing it and striding away.

I was disappointed. There’d been nothing
sexual between us since the afternoon I got hurt and the morning
after when I pushed him up against the wall. I felt needy. Like I
was scraping for any scrap of affection he might toss my way. I
didn’t like it; made me feel at his mercy.

I heard a groan and my eyes shot towards the
directions of Ajani’s tent. I was about to get up and make sure
they everything was alright when I realized I hadn’t heard the
noise aloud. I’d heard it in my head. I closed my eyes stretching
my senses out. Ajani’s mind was open and he let me float right in,
but then when I realized what was going on, I understood why his
guard was down.

I saw Bem—through his eyes—kneel down over
him. Her head began bobbing steadily and Ajani’s muscles flexed as
he enjoyed the firm sucking grip of her lips. I could feel the
pleasure moving up his body from his groin in steady waves. His
hand curled into Bem’s hair pulling her head off him. She slid up
his body, slowly adorning him with little licks and nips she
traveled upwards until they were finally face to face.

Ajani kissed her aggressively hard. He
devoured her, dominating her body fully and she submitted
willingly. He rolled her onto her on her back and drew her arms up
above her head. There was nothing slow or tender; he was consuming
her body with raw zeal. He was unapologetically rough and she ate
it up hungrily. He bit her nipple sharply and took her with one
swift thrust. Once he was inside of her something changed in him.
He began kissing her in a way that wasn’t just to satisfy his own
lust and I realized he wasn’t thinking of Bem anymore.