Solar Dare (3 page)

She sat sideways on the wide lip that surrounded the cheerfully splashing water. The scent of green and growing things surrounded her, the thick undertone of mulch and soil gave it a dark layer that she enjoyed on a primal level.

“What is this place?”

“The greenhouse. It provides food for me and the household. You are going to learn a bit about your power here and now.”

Solar blinked. “Fine. Go ahead. Tell me about myself.”

Denhar sat across from her and dipped his hand into the water before raising it to hold it in front of her. As she watched, the beads of water on his skin steamed and disappeared. “Your body radiates heat and energy. You have a passive field around you that cooks the vulnerable from the inside out. When you pull that energy in, you can interact and operate as a normal being. If you don’t, you will boil water in your own hands.” He dipped his hand in again, and this time, cupped his palm. He held that water in front of her for a minute before he let the liquid resume its path through the fountain. “It is a matter of controlling what you give to the world around you and what you want from it.” Solar clenched her hands into fists and pressed them to her thighs. “Is it that simple? The humans never gave us any kind of instruction.” Denhar laughed. “I doubt that they would have known where to start. Our type of talent is not common even among our kind. They would have been lucky to keep your power contained.” She shrugged, it had been the goal of every human they dealt with to keep their energy confined to the space around their bodies. It had made for a lonely existence, but at least they had each other, and their mother was only a thought away.

For years, it had been their ability to feel their mother’s psychic touch that had kept them sane when no contact with another being was allowed.

The humans never suspected telepathy and, therefore, could not control or dampen it.

“So, all I have to do is will the water into my hand and it won’t boil?”

“Try it and see. Pay attention to the feel of the water against your skin. It will tell you if you are subduing enough energy.” Denhar gestured for her to try.

She opened her hand and dipped it into the water. The liquid boiled and churned against her hand. “It’s no use.”

“Feel how the water reacts to your skin, what the ambient radiation is doing to it, and try to control it.”

His tone was low and even. Steam frothed and billowed around them, but she concentrated on the bubbling against her hand. She breathed the steam in and focussed on the contact that she had with the water. Solar blinked as her focus brought a vision to her that she wasn’t expecting. The glow around her hand was completely new to her, and yet, she felt it had been part of her all her life.

Concentrating on that glow, she pulled it tight against her skin, and with intense meditation, she cooled it. The glow went from hot orange to red to a soft pink as she watched it. The touch of water on her skin caused her to jerk.

“I did it!” She grinned at Denhar, and he was smiling at her. Her body flared again, and the cool of the liquid was pushed away, replaced with heat once again.

“Good, now keep it up.”

She nodded and knelt next to the fountain, plunging both her hands into the contained waves. Minutes turned into hours, and when Denhar touched her shoulders, she blinked wearily at him. With a smile, she lifted her hands, her fingers wrinkled and pruney from the extended contact with the water.

“You did very well for a first attempt. Now, come and have something to eat. I have a straw to help you drink if you need it.” He lifted her to her feet and kept one arm around her.

Her hands dripped water, but she let them. The feel of cold against her skin was so foreign, she was revelling in the new sensation.

“Are my sisters learning to do this as well?” She leaned against him, her body exhausted by her efforts.

“In differing ways. We can only teach the way we learned. This world has water, but it is beneath the surface. The steadiest supply I could offer you was the fountain.” He supported her with an arm around her waist as they walked back to the hall where she had entered his home.

“Thank you. Now, I think I understand the human fascination with water. It feels nice, so smooth and silky.” She could hear the dreamy tone in her voice and quickly tried to stiffen her spine and pull away from him.

He pulled her back against him, “It takes a lot out of you. Lean on me for now. I will make sure that you stand on your own soon enough.” There wasn’t anything unseemly in his tone, so she let him help her until he assisted her into a chair at a large, circular table. The table was made of the same glossy glass sandstone that comprised the rest of the structure.

A flicker out of the corner of her eye made her turn. To her surprise, the servant from earlier stepped forward out of the wall and brought a tray to the table.

“You move through the walls?”

The man didn’t say a word, but he winked at her with a slight smile. It was enough to confirm her supposition.

Denhar was seated near her, and he nodded.

“The original inhabitants of this world were being destroyed by their own sun. They moved underground for survival, and in doing so developed skills for living in the caverns of stone. Walking through the tunnels and the stone itself was one of those developments. Haringk offered to come work for me when I arrived. He regularly reports back to his people as to my activities. I am sure that you will feature heavily in today’s report.”

“He is immune to our radiation?”

“He is. It is another one of the changes that his people underwent while the sun went berserk. They developed a tolerance for the radiation it put out, and the current generation is alive and well hundreds of feet below us.” Denhar filled a plate for her and slid it in front of her. A glass of water was next to it.

“They live underground?” She smiled at Haringk a moment before he disappeared into the wall once again. It was funny to think she was living above creatures who were adapted to live underground. In her entire life she had never imagined that she would be one walking the surface while another species was in the dark. It was strange how life took turns. One moment, she was a prisoner below ground, the next, she was free, and the next, she was a captured guest.

Life did have a very funny sense of humour.

“Why are you smiling?” Denhar was working his way through his plate.

“I was just thinking that life took odd turns.” She focussed and lifted the glass of water to her lips. She drank greedily before refilling her glass and drinking again.

Her aura remained pink until the last few bites.

Her hands warmed from pale pink to hot orange while she finished her meal. “And there goes the last of my self-control.”

She grimaced at her hands and slumped back in the chair.

She grimaced Denhar smiled, “You lasted much longer than I did the first time. A good night’s sleep and you will be ready for phase two of your education.”

She yawned and covered her mouth. “Just point me to a bit of floor and I will be out like a light.”

“I believe I can do better than that.” He got to his feet and led her back to the room with the clothing. “You can have the bed. I will make myself comfortable in a guest room.” She blinked. “That isn’t right. It’s your bed.”

“And I am offering it to you.”

Solar frowned. “It is large enough that I don’t think there is any problem with us sharing, provided that you don’t object. My sisters and I often sleep in a pile when we aren’t on watch. It preserves what body heat we generate and makes us feel secure.”

She was afraid to be alone. There was no doubt in her mind that she would be safe here, but to be alone in the darkness without one of her sisters nearby was sending her into ramping anxiety.

Nothing about her current situation was familiar.

She was alone, at night and expected to sleep and wake up in a strange location. Even her time on assignment had had her out, sending the humans back home and then returning to the lab herself.

Now that her sister had blown the hell out of the lab and the humans had declared them to be enemies of the lab, the security officers were now shooting at her and her sisters on sight.

The D.A.R.E. Project had been a flaring success, but now, it was over, and the clones were beginning new lives with no idea what they were doing.

Denhar looked down at her. “Are you sure?”

“Please. I don’t…I am not used to being alone.” The words came out in a rush.

He nodded. “Fine. You get first turn in the bathroom, and then, I will take my turn. There are long tunics in the wardrobe if you need clothing to sleep in.”

She blinked. “I don’t think that will be necessary.”

He closed his eyes tightly. “No, I didn’t think it would be.”

Denhar seemed tortured by something, but she ignored it and headed for the bathing room. A good night’s sleep seemed just the thing to help her get a handle on this new situation.

E
xhaustion was an amazing sleep aide. Solar slept through the night and didn’t wake once.

When she did rise to consciousness, there were arms wrapped around her and lips pressed to her neck. Her start of surprise caused the arms to tighten for a moment before they relaxed again.

His aura was a warm violet against her orange glow.

“Good morning, Solar. Are you ready to continue your education?”

She shivered as she felt the masculine body against her own. “Could you be a little more specific?”

He chuckled. “To control your radiation. Yesterday, you learned it was possible to restrain your field. Today, you get to extend it.”

“Oh. Yes, please. Um, how does getting out of bed work?” Solar knew she sounded like an idiot, but with his grip on her, she didn’t know how to go about unwrapping him.

He laughed, and his breath was warm against the skin of her neck. Her body tingled with that light caress, and she shivered.

He opened his arms. “You may have first crack at the bathroom.”

She levered herself upright, blushed when she saw him naked and interested in a little more than her turn at the lav and quickly removed herself from the comfortable bed before darting into the bathroom.

She held in her heat under the spray of the shower with a little effort, and for the first time, she truly enjoyed the process. Wrapped in a towel, she exited the bathroom and offered him his turn.

“Can I pick some more clothing?” He nodded. “For today, you should select one of the bodysuits. We will be working on channelling your energy, and we will be getting dirty.”

She smiled, “Thank you for the warning.” Solar wandered into the huge closet once again and selected a bodysuit that could serve as a coverall for the day. Knee-high boots with a slight heel completed her clothing, and she felt prepared for whatever he could throw at her or ask her to do.

When he exited the bathroom, a cloud of vapour framing his body, she gasped. His tattoos were wonderful. They moved against his skin in a manner that caught Solar’s attention and held it.

The tattoos on his face were striking, but the ones crossing his chest and down his arms were works of graceful style.

“You are staring.” He was amused.

“Your birthmarks are lovely. I haven’t seen a different design before.” There was something else. “Turn around, please.”

He grinned and turned. There, on his back, was a mark she was very familiar with. It was her mother’s mark. “You wear her pattern.”

“Of course. All ten of us do. We are her guard for life.” He smiled and walked past her into the wardrobe.

“Ten? We only saw five of you.”

“There was no need to taunt those who had not been chosen as matches to the queen’s children. They will still come when she calls.” She watched him as he moved past her into the closet and selected clothing that mimicked hers.

“First, breakfast and then practice.” He smiled and offered her his arm.

With images of his broad, tattooed back flitting through her mind, she took his arm and let him lead her in to breakfast.

Seeing his aura as hot as hers was also having an effect on her, but as she concentrated enough to drink a glass of juice and some more water, she decided that it was time to focus on the matter at hand.

While Haringk cleared the dishes away, Denhar led her out onto a large patio that had a series of rugs hanging from a line on one side.

Denhar smiled, “Those are your targets. Now, let me explain how to throw fire.”

“Fire?”

“Well, it is a concentrated pulse of radiation, so fire just seems easier.” Denhar released her arm and looked at the rugs. “I will demonstrate. Watch closely.”

Denhar extended his right arm, opened his hand, revved his aura into a focus on his hand and released it in a burst. The ball of energy streaked across the patio until it struck one of the rugs, punching a neat hole in it.

He grinned and nodded to her. “Now you. Concentrate your energy into your hand and then push it toward your target.”

Solar settled on her heels and turned her body three-quarters of a turn to the target. She held up her hand and watched her aura flicker and twist, and she tried to increase her power.

“Breathe deep, focus your power, increase the heat and let it go.” Denhar was sitting near her, watching closely.