strongholdrising (62 page)

* * *

The fever was gone the next time he woke. Experimentally, he moved his head and saw Tirak sitting on a chair beside him.
"You're awake," the U'Churian said, leaning toward him. "Do you remember where you are?"
He licked dry lips before speaking. "Annuur's sick bay?"
"That's right. You had a fever and woke sooner than expected."
"I couldn't move," he said.
"You were restrained because of the catheters. Would you like to sit up?"
"Please."
As part of the bed began to rise, he attempted to pull his arms out from under the cover. They felt heavy, as if they were made of lead, but by the time he was sitting up, he'd managed to get them free.
Tirak held out a glass of water and he accepted it gratefully. Kzizysus and Annuur came in as he was handing the empty glass back.
"How you feel?" asked the Cabbaran.
His head was clear, and though his body felt physically exhausted, he actually didn't feel that bad. "All right," he said. "Hungry," he added as his stomach growled.
Kzizysus came over to the side of his bed. "Reach out," he said through his translator. "Reach with your mind."
He looked at the TeLaxaudin. "The pain," he began.
"Is gone. Try."
He looked at Tirak who raised his eye ridges expressively.
"Lower mental shields," said Kzizysus.
He turned his thoughts inward, gradually lowering his shields one by one until they were all down. He listened, then shook his head. "No difference," he said.
Tirak got up and went round the other side of the bed, opening the cupboard and pulling out his wrist comm. "You left the psi damper on," he said, passing it to him.
Sighing with relief, he turned it off and passed it back to Tirak, waiting for something— anything— to happen.
"Nothing." Dispiritedly, he lay back against his pillow.
Annuur and Kzizysus began to talk rapidly, the conversation going back and forth for some time.
"Maybe you just need to get used to having that ability again," said Tirak eventually.
"It's either there, or it isn't," he said.
"Take off torc," Annuur repeated.
"Why?"
"Do it!" the Cabbarran ordered.
He reached up and removed his torc. Suddenly his mind was flooded with sounds and emotions and the hissing of white noise. Keening in pain and shock, he dropped the torc, clapping his hands to his head.
"What the hell?" exclaimed Tirak, lunging to catch the torc before it hit the floor.
"Replace torc," Annuur ordered the U'Churian.
As soon as the torc touched his neck, quiet returned. Shaking, his eyes streaming, he let go of his head and looked up at them.
"Is no doubt treatment worked," he heard Annuur say. "Problem is with regulator in torc." He looked across at Kzizysus. "Need adjusting."
"What happened?" he asked, blinking and rubbing his smarting eyes. "What was that?"
"No shields to protect you, you hear too many minds," said Annur. "Is like ability new again. Have to relearn, Kusac. Torc regulates what you sense, more sensitive than your dampers. Not need damper after this. Rest now, Tirak get you food. We scan you after. Time for adjustment is needed."
He nodded his understanding, but in truth, he'd taken in little after Annuur said he'd have to relearn how to use his Talent.
Valsgarth Estate, Zhal-Oeshi, 30th day (August)
The bed beside him moved and he opened his eyes to see Annuur leaning on it.
The Cabbarran's crest of stiff hair was tilted toward him and his long top lip, the whiskers on his nose almost touching his hand, wriggled as he began to speak.
"This you must know. Scans and tests we did last night while you sedated confirmed many things. Psi abilities restored, neural damage caused by pain collar mostly repaired, torc recalibrated. But anomaly showed too. Not told us of sensitivity to la'quo and experimenting with temporal gates. Sensitivity affected neuro-viral regeneration, cause memory problems."
"What kind of problems?"
A burst of static, then, "Like memory loop. Must find and reevaluate affected memories. If not, then they keep replay, nightmares follow. Likely most recent ones affected."
"If I've lost them, how can I find them?" he asked, confused.
"Family help. They remember for you. Try see from outside, objectively. Bits of memories will come, cannot be avoided," he said firmly.
There are some memories I could do without,
he thought. "But my telepathy? You said I have it back." That was more important to him than memories.
Annuur dipped his head once in a nod. "Is back. You get up now, eat. Practice you must. Naacha help you. His ability this is, not mine."
"You have telepaths? I didn't know that."
"All are, is like, not same as telepathy. Much you learn here will not be remembered, Kusac. Rise. Dress. I take you to Sokarr for food." Annuur got down and trotted over to the nursing station, climbing up on the chair to access the comm terminal there.
He pushed the cover back and swung his feet to the floor. He was a little unsteady perhaps, but that was all. "My family, can I speak to them?"
"Apologies, no. Three days it takes to stabilize you. Tirak will have told them all is well with you."
"Where is Tirak?" he asked, going round to the night table for his clothes.
"With his own family. No nursing you need now. Only us."
It dawned on him that he was alone with them. "Tirak said he'd stay with me."
"He did, while you needed nursing," confirmed Annuur. "Now, need practice new skills."
Anger flared. He felt his pelt starting to rise. "Dammit, Annuur, that wasn't part of what I agreed to," he growled. "I wanted some contact with my family!"
Annuur looked across at him, tilting his head from one side to the other as he surveyed him. "You angry. No matter. We set conditions, not you." He looked away and began speaking into the comm. The translator remained silent.
He began to snarl low in his throat, the need to get out paramount in his mind. Grabbing his tunic, he hauled it on. Fastening his belt as he went, he headed past Annuur and out into the corridor. They thought they could keep him locked in here, did they? Well they could think again! The air lock stood opposite. He was leaving here now.
His field of vision narrowed, focusing in on the access panel as he strode toward the exit. His mind was automatically thinking of numeric combinations even before he was within reach.
"That's far enough, Kusac," he heard Tirak's voice say from behind him. "No need to leave. Annuur was testing your responses, nothing more."
He stopped, his pelt rising about his face till it rivaled any U'Churian mane.
So Annuur had lied, had he? Even more reason to leave,
he thought, reaching for the panel.
A jolt of power surged through him, flinging him backward till he collided with the wall. Cold rage overtook anger as he turned on Tirak. He found himself looking down the short muzzle of a pistol.
"You trapped the panel and didn't warn me," he snarled, furious.
"To stop you leaving," said the Captain. "Think, Kusac. Think of your anger. There's no pain."
He began to advance. He wanted that gun.
Tirak fired.
Something hit him in the shoulder, distracting him enough to glance at it. The short, brightly colored tuft of a dart protruded from his black tunic. His knees buckled under him and, as he fell against the wall, he looked back at Tirak in shock. He'd hit the deck before the U'Churian reached him. Anger evaporated to be replaced by confusion.
"It's only a trank," Tirak said, hauling him up to his feet. "We needed to demonstrate to you that the neural damage has been cured." Tirak slid his arm under his shoulder and began leading him away from the air lock. "You've got one hell of a temper there."
"Hell of a way to demonstrate your point," he said, trying to control legs which refused to support him. "Where you taking me?"
"To the mess and Sokarr. You haven't eaten in two days."
"What day is it?"
"The thirtieth, and just after fourth hour."

* * *

The food was good, though mainly vegetarian. Out of deference to him and Tirak, Sokarr had cooked a couple of meat accompaniments.
"You going to work hard next few days, need your meat," the Cabbarran said, jumping down from his work platform to the floor.
"Have you spoken to Carrie and Kaid?" he asked Tirak as he sipped the strange cold malted drink.
"I told them everything was going well," he said. "Sorry about the trank dart," he began.
"I'll survive," he said ruefully, rubbing his shoulder where the tiny puncture wound still smarted. "I don't understand why I got so angry. Everything about it was odd. I was using huntersight, but with unusual clarity."
"Tell Annuur," said Tirak. "I know nothing about this."
He didn't know what made him look up at the door, but when he did, he saw the third member of the Cabbarran crew, Naacha.
He was older than Annuur and Sokarr, his sandy pelt liberally shot with gray, as was the upright mane. It was the tattoos that drew Kusac's attention. There were the usual ones of sept and rank, but those on his cheeks, executed in a bright, almost electric blue, were less formal, more swirling and free-flowing. They captured his gaze, drawing him into the pattern until he felt dizzy.
"Morning, Naacha," said Tirak without turning round.
"Captain. Come, Hunter," Naacha said before turning and disappearing into the corridor.
the
Couana,
Zhal-S'Asha, 20th day (October)
"Naacha took me to the cargo area and started teaching me how to use the torc and what remained of my Talent again," he said quietly.
"You told me the torc mimics psi skills. Now you're implying you got your abilities back. Which is it, Kusac?"
He realized he'd said too much. "The torc is a tool, a device to amplify others' thoughts," he lied. "I left Annuur's shuttle afraid to trust it despite Naacha's teaching."
Or was it because of it?
he began to wonder. "Father Lijou knows this," he said, glancing at Banner. "I needed to know how far I could trust you before telling you more. This mission hinges on the fact that Kezule assumes I'm no longer a telepath."
"So that's why he sent for you."
"And possibly revenge for what Carrie did to him."
"What did she do?"
"We were trying to get him to tell us how he called Fyak back to the past. She humiliated him through his fear of telepaths. In the end, she had to force a contact and read him, and even then we didn't get what we wanted."
"Annuur said you'd forget much of what you learned. Did you, or did Naacha make you forget?"
"There was a lot to learn, Banner. Mind skills aren't like learning a new craft. You can't see someone else do it then copy them." Banner was being too astute for his liking. He drained his mug and put it on the night stand. "There's little left to tell you. I was afraid to use my torc-enhanced gift because when I did, it was erratic. I went to Stronghold because the dampers there made me feel more secure about trying to practice what I did remember of Naacha's teaching. Lijou helped me as much as he could, but the nightmares and flashbacks had started by then. I found it difficult to cope with them, and couldn't face the thought of reliving the past again."
"So the memories and dreams were caused by the la'quo you'd taken to go back to the Margins reacting with the TeLaxaudin and Cabbarran treatment."
"That, and the dose they'd given me on the
Kz'adul.
" Annuur had been right, he'd forgotten much of Naacha's teaching, but every now and then, tiny portions would return. Like now.
He glanced at his wrist comm. "It's late, we should get some sleep," he said, stretching out his legs and taking off his bath robe before sliding down into the bed.
"Hadn't realized it was so late." Banner got up, taking off his own damp robe before climbing into the other side. "Good night."
He lay in the darkness, unable to sleep, listening to Banner's breathing gradually slow until he knew the other was asleep. Another thing he'd just remembered was how to control the torc.
Mentally, he reached for it, trying to find the active bio-component, attempting to turn it off. It wasn't easy, taking all his concentration, but he knew instantly that he'd been successful when he could sense Banner's dream thoughts.
Their discussion of the Cabbarrans was still at the forefront of his Second's mind. He thought how easy it would have been before for him to just reach in and make Banner forget, except then his own ethics would have prevented him....With a start, he realized he'd already instinctively reached out and grasped the memory and was destroying it— just as he'd been shown. Moments later, it was gone, as if the conversation had never happened.
Shocked, he pulled away from Banner and focused instead on reaching beyond his room to the whole of the
Couana
herself. It felt like he was detaching a small portion of himself and setting it free to wander around the corridors. Where it went, so could his mind.
He could feel exactly where each member of his crew was and whether they were awake or asleep. Satisfied, he pulled back and began concentrating again on the torc. Gradually, his awareness faded as the torc once more took control.
Annuur had been right about the memories. The closer he came to completing and accepting them, the easier it became to use his Talent, and the more stable it was, though what he'd done to Banner had been on such an instinctive level that he doubted he could reproduce it at will. He fell asleep determined not to think of the row he'd had with Kaid before leaving on this mission. He couldn't yet face that final memory.
Valsgarth Estate, Zhal-Nylam (month of the Hunt) 1st day (September)
"Phratry Leader Annuur, we received your report on the hunter. Concerned because of error we are. How long will it delay his full use of abilities?"
"Cannot say, Skepp Lord Aizshuss," said Annuur. "Effect of la'quo on hunters not anticipated because not known it interact like this with temporal displacement. Not something we could have tested for."
"This understood but Camarilla needs a time scale. Extrapolate."
Annuur looked at Kzizysus.
"Eight or nine weeks more. Depends on him."
"I heard," said the Skepp Lord, mandibles moving agitatedly. "Not pleased. Too long."
"When discover anomaly, tried to correct. Could not affect actual memories but corrected problem. Is stable now."
"Have to wait, then. What of training? Have enhancements worked?"
"Yes, Skepp Lord, have worked well." He hesitated, unhappy about admitting to further delays. "Lessons are blocked for now until he has dealt with memory problems."
Annuur winced while Kzizysus made soft noises of distress at the Skepp Lord's reaction. When Aizshuss had calmed down a little, Annuur leaped into the first lull in his tirade.
"If we hadn't done this, disaster results! His mind affected by dark memories of time on
Kz'adul
, creates imbalance. Damage he did to our lab here. Chance of discovery of augmentation high if he continues practicing in this state. You and Camarilla say avoid this at all cost! All this was in our report to you."
"He have no time left to practice skills! Your decision flawed!"
"Skepp Lord, I am also of the Camarilla," he said icily. "I am in field. I make decisions. You disagree, you leave safety of Council Chamber and do my task. More important our cover be kept and he survives to practice later. Laws here prevent killing using mind powers. In his state, could happen had I not made this decision. No use to us in prison or mind-wiped. I have work to do, Aizshuss. I contact you when we have more news." He cut the connection and turned away from the screen to look at Kzizysus.
"Can do no more than our best," he said.