Chosen (37 page)

The only one not joining in the festivities was Master Brok. He floated off to the side, both sets of arms crossed, brow furrowed.

Master Ferrok spoke. “You have been successful, Jon Stone. This power you possess is extraordinary. Can you continue or do you need to rest?” Ferrok hoped the lad could finish immediately. He was anxious to have the Chosen complete their journeys to each other's worlds and return to Gentra.

Jon glanced at Master Brok and set his jaw. “I can finish now.”

Jon proceeded to implant the knowledge of the various languages into the minds of the Chosen and their Guardians. Master Brok pursed his lips and allowed the boy to touch him with the foul magic though his skin crawled.

As Jon finished and tried to release the magic, he found it was harder to do than the last time. Jon gritted his teeth and closed his eyes, concentrating on letting go of the magic. It continued to flow
through him, suffusing his body with heat. Every part of him felt alive and wild and free. He longed to push himself, to extend his hand and feel the power flow from it, doing his bidding.

“Jon!” Brok roared as he approached. The power emanated from Jon as heat waves rippling off the boy's body.

The rest of the Chosen and Masters backed away, putting distance between themselves and Jon. Keera and Kaelin held Gwen back as she fought to swim to Jon.

“Gwen, stop! He isn't himself! He might hurt you if you get too close. Let Master Brok handle it!” Keera snapped. She was afraid for all for them. The tension and power filled the room like a volatile mixture that could explode at any moment. While grateful for Jon's ability to enable them to communicate, she feared what he could do and hated the dark magic.

Gwen hated being afraid for him, and
of him
. That last was hard to admit to herself.
Was it possible to love someone and fear them at the same time?

Gwen watched helplessly as Master Brok tried to help Jon let go of the power. Jon opened his eyes and she gasped. His eyes were jet black and held a glimmer of excitement and malicious glee. It was as if Jon were two different people, each one fighting for control.

Gwen could not hear what Master Brok said but whatever it was, it must have worked. Jon's eyes returned to their normal violet and he sagged as Brok rushed to catch him. The others slowly made their way back to the center of the room, still nervous about being too close to Jon.

“I am alright now.” He shook off the worried hands of Master Brok. “I
could
use some food. I feel like I could eat an entire scrago!” Jon rubbed his stomach.

Master Ferrok sent a servant to bring food for all of them. “We must discuss the next stage of your training. As was previously discussed, the Volgons will be travelling to Astra and the Earthmen to Kromin. We will send Master Brok and Gerok to Astra while Masters Mirka and Forka travel to Kromin. Yes, Saemus?” He looked to the boy who was talking animatedly to the others from Astra.

Kaelin, Keera, and Gwen shoved the boy to the front, urging him to speak. “Umm, well… what are we to do about clothing and such
for the Chosen from Volgon and Master Gerok? We left ours behind in the cave but we don't have enough for six others.” Saemus finished in a hurry.

“The Earthmen cannot travel to Kromin until they learn how to shield their minds. The Kromins will sense their presence the second they step from the portal.” Mirka shuddered as she recalled her fear of not being able to maintain her hold on her mind shield when she emerged. The first few moments were tense as she waited for someone to come bursting through the door to store room 9, in search of the cause of the strange thoughts. To her relief, no one had come; her hold on the mind shield had been successful. She knew how difficult it could be with the proper training; she did not see how the Earthmen could manage without taking the time to go through the same grueling training she had.

“Begin teaching them,” Ferrok ordered.

He looked sharply at the Astrans, who were having another heated discussion. “Something else to add?”

Saemus found himself once again pushed to the front of the group. “Sorry, Master Ferrok.” He glanced at his friends, who were nodding encouragingly. “Well, we think we may have found a way to help. As well as finding a way around the clothing issue.”

Master Ferrok's eyes widened. “Well, it seems as though the surprises from the magic planet never cease. What do you propose?”

“We believe we can create a shield for the minds of the Earthmen that would remain until we remove it. That way, they won't have to spend time learning the technique. And we also think we can make others invisible, until we can find them clothing. It would be better than leaving them behind at the cave while the rest of us go in search of clothing. They might be discovered if we leave them at the portal,” Saemus said.

“If you can do these things of which you speak, it will be a tremendous help to the missions,” Master Ferrok said.

Saemus nodded. “We can do it. It may take some practice to get everything just right, but we can do it.”

“Do what you must.” Master Ferrok swam off to the side and allowed the Astran Chosen to congregate with the other Chosen in the center of the room.

“Can they really do this?” Master Briska asked Master Brok. She was amazed at their magical powers.
Surely, with their power we can find a way to fight the Mekans.

Master Brok nodded. “They would not have suggested such a thing if they didn't believe it was possible. The spell for invisibility is simple, really. What I don't know is how they plan to shield the mind of the Earthmen and Guardians traveling to Kromin.”

Briska looked confused. “Surely you must have some idea of their plans! After all, they learned their magic from you.”

“It's not that simple. While I
did
teach them everything I know, they have begun to tap into magic I have never heard of and never read about.” He shrugged. “Perhaps they were born with gifts beyond imagining. When faced with problems and danger, more of these gifts will be realized. They are acting on instinct for the most part.”

The Chosen ate a quick lunch and allowed themselves to be guinea pigs for the Astran Chosen to practice their magic on. All of the Astrans could make the others disappear. The spell was quite effective.

“Why don't we have to make the Earthmen invisible?” Jon asked.

“Kromins do not wear clothing so it is not necessary for them to be invisible.” Mirka explained. “They do not have different sexes and their buildings and travel pods are climate controlled so that the temperature is always perfect. Therefore, there is no need for clothing.”

“No men or women? How do they…Well, you know….” Gwen gestured vaguely with her hands.

“They do not do that sort of thing,” Mirka said with a sideways grin. “When it is time, a new Kromin is awakened from the birthing chamber and assigned a designation.”

“Kromin certainly sounds like an…
interesting
…planet,” Gwen said faintly.

“It is, Gwen. I was anxious to return home though. It is too different and alien. I envied the other Guardians.”

“We do not wear clothing here. Maybe the long trains of the bodies make it seem as though we are wearing
something,
” Gwen pondered.

When it came to hiding the thoughts of the Earthmen, only Jon, and Saemus and Kaelin linked could accomplish the task. The Kromins were quite taken aback by the sudden lack of emotion coming from the Earthmen. They had become accustomed to touching the minds of the other Chosen and Guardians and it was strange to see them standing before them and yet detect nothing.

“Do you have to continue to use the magic to maintain the shield?” Master Ferrok asked.

“No. We can tie it off, in a manner of speaking,” Kaelin answered.

Master Ferrok nodded. “Excellent work, all of you. Is there anything else that needs to be discussed before we finalize preparations?”

“I think we should send Numbers 1 and 2 with the Astrans. Even though the Volgons will be able to speak Astran, there may be a need for the Kromins.”

“Such as?” Feeror asked.

“The Kromins can communicate over long distances. If you should become separated, they will be necessary to stay in touch with the others.”

Feeror nodded. He understood the need to be able to talk to one another, to coordinate attacks and to give and receive information quickly. “Do the Astrans not have radios for communicating?” Feeror asked.

“No. The Astrans are, well…rather un-advanced compared to the people of your world.”

Keera folded her arms and cocked her head to the side, her body flashing with angry maroon spots. “
Un-advanced?
”

Master Brok held up his hands. “The Volgons have weapons, shields, armor, and other technology that you can't even imagine. The Kromins are even more advanced. But that does not mean they are better; just different.”

Keera turned, mumbling under her breath. “Well, I hope they aren't too disappointed with us
un-advanced
country folk from some backwards world.” She gave the Volgon sidelong glares.

“This is the very reason why you all must get to know each other. It isn't enough to simply talk. You must
see
how the others live, where they come from, to truly understand and gain respect for
one another. It is imperative that you work together and not let petty differences stand in the way.” Master Ferrok gave Keera a hard stare.

“I do not think there is a need to bring the telepaths to Astra. We will all travel together and take every precaution,” Master Brok said.

Master Ferrok nodded. “If there is nothing further, we should make our way to the portal chamber with all haste.”

“Shouldn't we wait until tomorrow?” Martha said. She was nervous about the impending journey to another world.

“I fear we cannot wait. You must travel to all of your worlds. Eventually, you will have to travel to a planet that has been ravaged by the Mekans. You must see first-hand what they are capable of. All of this will take precious time, and all the while, the Mekans are moving closer to the galaxy. Perhaps while you are gone, our prophets will have managed to see into the future once again, giving us some sign of what is to come.” Ferrok hoped fervently so. He did not like the prospect of fighting this battle without having the foresight to know what was coming.

Sloan spoke up, exasperated. “What does it matter that your prophets can see the future? As far as I know, your world is the only one with such a need.” He gazed at Ferrok with a flat expression. “
We
do not need to see the future to know we need to fight. If what you say is true, we have no choice, regardless. If we do not fight, the galaxy is certainly doomed. If we do fight, we may yet fail, and the galaxy will still be doomed. I for one would rather fight on the hope we may be victorious.”

The other Chosen nodded in agreement, none more so than the Volgons. “The Earthman has spoken the truth. We also fight, every day, and do not know the outcome. If we do not fight, we fail. If we fight, we may lose, but we will not have failed from not trying at all. I would rather die fighting than waiting around for someone to scratch nonsense onto some old paper.” Kyron said.

Ferrok sighed. He could not make them understand that their being on this planet was the result of the prophet's ability to see into the future. All of the decisions concerning the Chosen thus far had been made after reading through the scrolls of the prophets.

Master Ferrok led the group to the portal chamber. The Chosen took great care in taking their last look at this beautiful and graceful
planet. They arrived at the portal chamber. A ripple of fear and apprehension filled the room.

“How long will we be gone?” Robert asked, trying to delay the departure

“We only want you to remain for fourteen days or however your planets record the passing from one sunrise to the next.” The Chosen all nodded at this. They all knew of what he spoke, even though they had different names for such an event. “The Guardians will be ready to bring you back after the right amount of time has passed.

“The visitors must look to the others for guidance. You must blend in with the folk of that world. More importantly, you
must
look out for each other. Keep one another safe.” Ferrok met each of their eyes, trying hard to make them understand the importance of his words.

He approached the portal and touched the Astran symbol: three interconnected rings. He floated off to the side so that those going to Astra could enter.

A
STRA

Queen Cheye of Siswae sat on her throne, facing the crowd of men and women kneeling before her. Her throat tightened as her green eyes moved over them, seers and prophets all. She took a deep breath to steady herself.

“Kill them all.”

Her guards saluted and began dragging the screaming, protesting people from the room. She made herself look as they tried to pull away from the grasp of the men who mercilessly dragged them to their doom.

Soon, the cacophony was replaced with blessed quiet. Her throne room had become a place of wailing and screaming and moaning too much as of late.