Void's Psionics (10 page)

Put on alert, Oliver laid a hand on his sword
and reached behind to take hold of the shield.

“
False alarm, thought I saw
something. I didn’t detect anything.”

“
We’re done.” Renee called
out as the three women came out from below.

The barest chang in the breeze brought along
a strange and unfamiliar human scent. Oliver sniffed again and
observed a barely noticeable shimmer behind the nearest ringed
bench and then another over a ways. “Shit! Defend YOURSELVES!” he
called out too late as Bell the wolf suddenly yelped once in pain
as a hole suddenly appeared in the broad side of her chest and
exploded gore on the other side to fall lifeless beside Deegen’s
leg. Sorrow filled eyes met her partner to close and lose their
inner light.

Chapter 3

It seemed to the others as
if Oliver was standing tall one moment and in the next he was
crouched and yelling, but had instantly drawn the cutlass and
shield. The death yelp of Bell had everyone pause for a moment, but
none had taken it as badly as Deegen who’s eyes flew wide with
terror as he gripped both sides of his head, losing her presence
within his mind they had shared for the past nine decades hurt like
nothing else. Their eyes met and her last thought before leaving
life was clearer than using her physical voice.
“Sorry.”

“
BELLLLLLL!!!!!!!!” his
scream ripped from him and he drew his chakram from either hip.
“BASTARDS!!!”

Oliver noticed a hazy ripple in the air
behind Deegen, but before he could say a word a slice opened up as
an invisible blade was drawn across Deegen’s throat before the
helmet could rise up. Blood flew as it sprayed from the severed
arteries in the neck, the cut so deep it reached the spine.

Steven was closer and stabbed behind Deegen
as Visor took off and barely dodged a focused Kinetic blast that
shot from a different angle, alerting that there was more than one
hostile. Steven’s thrust of his spear met only air as the invisible
assassin had backed away. But before Steven could summon power to
slice the air, there was a flash of light. Out of honed reflexes he
placed a barrier in front of himself, but it was destroyed as it
was met by a kinetic blast at close range.

The brunt of the overwhelming force was
defected, but it was still beyond anything Steven could resist. The
blindingly bright explosion had enough detonative force to pick him
up and slam him back into the pillar. Though the helmet he wore
still covered, it smacked hard enough into the wall at such an
angle to make him go limp as he crumpled into the floor.

Renee saw how badly things were going and
heard the two women behind her scream and reacted protectively. She
threw her arm back, erecting a telekinetic barrier which pushed the
two women forcefully and they fell backwards to painfully tumble
down the stairs.

She ignited her full power, noticing Oliver
speed around inhumanly and though his helmet was on, she could
almost see he was using his superior sense of smell to track the
invisible assailants down. She though had her own tricks and
through her great power she began to dimly see psionic energy
cloaking more than twelve highly trained assassins. She watched
Oliver’s great size tear ass after a fleeing ball of electricity
flying via levitation, but wasn’t fast enough. He charged after the
one who sliced open Deegen’s throat and who also knocked Steven out
cold. The flying individual fired a kinetic blast straight for his
head, but the giant’s jerky motions brought the deep blue shield in
its path and reflected it harmlessly before he spun. The cutlass
sang through the air as it came down, cutting a person in half with
the edged blade itself over using a slicing energy wave.

Renee’s blazing green eyes locked onto three
heading directly for Oliver, but they noticed too late as Renee
lifted her hands to unleash a bolt of concentrated lightning of a
magnitude that shredded through their flimsy defenses and vaporized
them.

So caught up, she hadn’t checked behind for
enemy numbers and it was her downfall. One cloaked person had snuck
up and cracked her in the back of her skull with above average
force. Her eyes dimmed down to normal, losing psionic light. Then
her eyes rolled up into her skull as she went unconscious before
crumpling down onto the ground.

The attacker said “Package secure. Pull back.
Pull back.” and extended the invisibility field to cloak not only
himself, but Renee’s unresponsive form.

Oliver looked around, sniffing for more.
Already one was cut in half and three more corpses were little more
than charred piles of ash blown and scattered.

Then came the most subtle sounds of humming
in the unexpected pandemonium of battle. It was out of place and as
he searched for the source, the forearm covered shield flew up and
ready, he noticed something so disturbing he felt fear unlike
anything that coursed through him in all of his experiences.

The sole anchor of his life wasn’t there.
“Renee!!!” the scream tore so loudly coming out it, cracked his
voice enough to bleed slightly. A single bound brought him to where
she had stood, but she wasn’t there, but he followed her scent.

Quickly his legs blurred, but that strange
hum had revealed itself to be a small cloaked shuttle. He noticed a
hatch open out of nowhere and a dozen hazy shimmers in the air sped
soundlessly to it by flying. Before he could reach it a set of six
blue-white lights all the size of his torso grew bright.

The ship’s thrusters slammed into Oliver, his
armor transforming to reflective silver as unbearable heat would
have cooked him thoroughly had it not done so automatically.
Regardless, the law of motion dictated that for every action there
is an equal and opposite reaction. By pushing the hovering ship
forward inside the building, the opposing thrust crashed into
Oliver to send him flying backwards to bounce and roll across the
ground before taking control and getting instantly to his feet, but
as he did so he saw that the ship had escaped.

Terror had Oliver yell just as powerfully as
before. “Renee!!!”

Knowing he’d never catch the fleeing vehicle
on foot wasn’t an issue as he blurred down the two kilometers of
nursery and leapt three stories up onto the parking area, dropped
in the Flare and was airborne in under a minute and a half. He ran
scans and was angry, but angry didn’t quite cover it. He was far
beyond murderous. They had taken his woman and he would not stop
till heads roll by his personal hand.

“
Wake UP!”
Visor mentally screamed in Steven’s mind again and
it finally brought him to. Steven was disoriented for a moment, but
it all came rushing back and he jerked upright just in time to see
the silvery cape of Oliver flicker in a metallic way far away and
then looked down to see Deegen still twitching beside the unmoving
Bell. Steven summoned his lance psionically as it had rolled away
from him after the explosion. It quickly grew to crackle with
power. He wanted to go to Deegen’s side, but didn’t know if the
threats remained. He couldn’t help if he was struck too.

With a mighty roar, Sparky slammed into the
ground completely alight with anger as the glowing traits of the
Drakes were in full swing within him. Right behind was Rose, also
murderous.

“
Where is my Renee!”
Sparky growled, slit eyes scanning as his arched
neck was coiled to strike.

Visor swooped down and chirped “Taken. I saw
her get hit and disappear. Oliver just charged off in pursuit. I
saw the attackers somewhat as they disappeared in a ship able to
fit in this space.”

Sparky close his eyes and
tried feeling out his bonded companion. He could feel her physical
pain as if it were his and not at the same time. Her emotions were
muted which meant she was completely unconscious, but using her
connection he sought out nearby minds to break into and control so
great was his fury. Drakes never take over someone as it breaks
them, but he didn’t care. He growled and his talons loudly
screeched on metal.
“The kidnappers’ minds
are shielded from me. They wear telepathic scramblers… but they are
fleeing.”
Focusing further showed him right
where Oliver was as no moving mind could be so erratic and
controlled in the air. He inserted his thoughts to say
“Oliver, you go in the wrong direction. I will
guide. Turn and head out of the atmosphere.”

Taking the advice, Oliver
flipped around and floored the Flare’s maximum thrust. He heard
Sparky’s livid, but controlled voice within.
“Starboard three degrees. Lift the nose twenty. You’re
gaining.”

Carefully Oliver turned the stick to the
right and pulled back on it. He saw nothing visually nor on radar,
but he felt Sparky’s need to get Renee back as great as his
own.

Meanwhile Steven had hurried to Deegen’s side
and helped to stop the bleeding, but he had seen lesser wounds kill
comrades in combat and the slice was fatal. He wasn’t a medic, but
even Renee would see it was too late. Even with nanites working,
the cut was too deep and wide and the arterial spray had pumped out
too much blood. Crimson covered the Hunter, his dreads sprawled
out. Steven’s brow came together and his lips were so pressed
together they were white. No one saw it as the helmet stayed on.
“I’m so sorry, Brother. I cannot fix this…”

With what life remained, Deegen used one hand
to grab the hollow collar of Steven’s vest and glared. Unable to
speak he moved his mouth easily enough to have Steven read lips.
‘Rose.’

“
Rose!” the glowing female
Drake turned her head from her mate and suddenly noticed one of the
fallen was Deegen beside the already dead Bell. She leapt around
and looked to find Deegen tapping his head as Steven’s hands tried
staunching the slowing flow of blood. “He wants to be Read. Hurry,
he’s got just seconds.”

Rose easily found a way in as Deegen opened
himself completely. She didn’t need to touch to fully read someone.
She was one of the best telepaths of all Drakes. What she saw left
her completely speechless, but still she continued.

Right up to the last moment
when his body completely failed. It took just another five seconds
for brain death, but she pulled away. Reading the dead, even so
fresh, was taboo. Nevertheless she got what she needed and said
without a trace of emotion
“Steven, there
is a crystal disc no larger than a coin in his left posterior
pocket. Take it and put it away till I tell you otherwise and
do
not
let anyone
know about it. Keep your helm on as well.”

Steven was confused, but rolled his dead
teammate over and found the crystal easily enough. He wanted
answers, but knew when the immediate crisis was over he would get
them. Afterwards he pressed a button on Deegen’s wrist and the
armor moved him into burial position, covering his head in a helmet
before shutting down.

Oliver continued following
Sparky’s instructions further and further out into space. His worry
seemed to find new heights along with anger to keep him in check
and focused. When it seemed Sparky was sending him out on a wild
chase towards one of the moons he at last saw six plasma
streams.
“Got ‘em! Thanks…”
Fear found a new level as soon as Oliver saw a
window open in space. It was shaped just like turtle’s shell with
longer lines for fins. FTL made a window in the exact size and
shape of any ship and Oliver knew he couldn’t pull the trigger,
even with his pinpoint accuracy to knock out the engines. If he
did, the ship would disintegrate the moment it makes contact with
the colorful rainbow.
Damn. My only chance
is to follow in their wake and hold on. Their ship’s bigger than
mine so maybe I can piggyback.
He thought
and corrected, speeding to full. Distance between shortened as they
slid into subspace.
Come on… make it…
don’t…
“Nooo!!!” He yelled and jerked on
the stick when the space closed too small to fit the Flare.
“Renee!!!” he yelled impotently as tears flowed down his cheeks
behind the mask as it began pulling back.

“
It is too late.”
Sparky spoke with no hope. His rage replaced with
loss. The barest of sensation is all he could know Renee
lived.

Jessica and Andrea peeked over the edge and
Jessica cradled a broken arm from the tumble down the stairs.
Andrea bled from a head wound before they managed to stop rolling.
The gash making it look worse than it actually was. Jessica fought
the pain with barely held back tears, but Andrea said “Is it
over?”

The hopelessness in Sparky’s gaze and the
shudder he gave spoke volumes, but it was Steven who assumed
command of the situation. “We’re leaving. It’s too dangerous to
linger if none of us can see our enemy. Ladies, pack your things
and get moving. Where is Mr. Wrench?”

“
Here.” Jacob crawled out
from a set of benches holding a stump of a leg he had recently
cauterized with his laser. “They took me before the attack when no
one was looking… help…”

Rose extended her four wings
and flew right over and lowered her neck.
“Take hold. I will carry you.”
Jacob
struggled with the pack weighing him down, but managed to throw an
arm across her strong, scaly neck and managed to situate himself at
the base of her neck.

“
Did they say what they
want?”

“
Left me alive to give the
captain this.” Jacob held up a video crystal. “Then cut off my damn
leg and tossed me my pen to stop the bleeding. I couldn’t even yell
to warn you.”