Bloodlord (Soulguard Book 3) (7 page)

Chapter 12

              As I entered the building where Paige's office was located, I could see Lyrica's Soul through the walls. She was up in Paige's office and her aura was full of turmoil. I sat down in a chair outside to wait until the fireworks were over.

              "I can't let him go alone," I heard Lyrica, "He'll do something stupid."

              "I know what you're saying, Lyr," Paige answered, "But what happens if they come while he's over there? Can the world afford to have both of its primary weapons off world at the same time?

              "I can't order you not to go. You've never officially joined the Soulguard and I understand why better than most. But this is bigger than you, it's bigger than me."

              "And what if they get him?"

              "Then you and I will walk through one of those damn gates and we'll rip their world in two."

              "You promise that to me and I will risk it," Lyrica said fiercely, "Because, if he doesn’t make it back, I'm going after him and God help anyone or anything that gets in my way."

              "And I'll be right there with you, Honey," Paige said, "I swear it to you right now."

              As Lyrica exited Paige's office, I met her with an embrace.

              "I love you, my Little Angel," I said softly, "There is nothing on this world or the next that could keep me from coming back to you."

              "And I love you, my Angel," she said, "You better come back or they have to deal with me. You just blow shit up, I'll tear their world apart."

              "Now I have to go to work," she said, "We'll talk later."

She walked out the front of the building, her aura still in turmoil. I hate that I'm the one who is causing the turmoil in her Soul. But we can't risk both of us and she can't do the Mark I need to do. So I have to be the one who goes.

If it was the other way around, I would feel the same as she does. I don't know if I could do as she is. It’s a stronger person who can take that high road and think of the world before themselves. She is doing that, I'm not sure if I could.

I walked into Paige's office and she was looking at me with distaste.

"I'm sorry," I said, "You're the only person she might have listened to."

"That may be true," she said, "It doesn't mean I have to like it."

"True enough."

***

I met the others who would be going across to Cerres to build the new academy in Montana. Kil'Sin'Deres would be meeting us the next day to escort us through the Gate and onto another world.

I was excited as I could be. I'd read science fiction all of my life and this was one of the dreams of any Sci-Fi fan. To actually walk on another planet.

"Sam," I said to the first team member I met, "Glad you decided to do this."

Sam Keller would be the head of the Soulguard forces that would be built on Cerres. He would head up any militant action taken by this Soulguard.

"It's goin to be interesting," he said, "to say the least."

"Darrel," I said to the next in the team, "I'm certainly glad you joined as well."

He nodded. I could see the fear of me roiling through his aura. Paige and Gregor had taken the effects of supporting my in stride, but Darrel had been traumatized by having his Soulstream ripped open and doubled in size.

Darrel would be the Dean of the Mage Academy on Cerres. It would be his job to find people with the Soulstreams large enough to Pull the Source. He would train them to use that power before it killed them. In the meantime, he would run the day to day part of keeping something like this going.

There were ten Mages of varied strengths going along with them and twenty Guards. I recognized most of them but there were several I hadn't met before.

"Any weapons," I said, "will need to be concealed. We are under the guise of a group of humans taken by Kil'Sin'Deres and his bunch. Everyone will be provided for after we get there so there's not much we'll need to take with us. Any personal effects need to be hidden as well. When Humans are captured they are stripped of these things. Jewelry, pictures, things like that. So keep em hidden."

"This group is the biggest we can risk sending at a time and there will be others slipped through over the next few months. The Soulguard thanks you, I thank you. So get ready and we'll set out tomorrow to make history."

***

              The Quarters Lyrica shared at the Academy were much larger than the ones I had used when I was here before. I think they were the quarters of a Councilor.

              Lyrica lounged in a huge bath tub.

              "That was Khalib, down there," she said.

              "Yeah," I said, "He's got more experience than most in infiltration. He's a good choice for the team."

              "And his family is left behind," she said.

              "Temporarily," I said, "He wouldn't take them until he's seen it's safe enough to move through the gates."

              "I wish you didn't have to do this," she said, "It's not fair that you have to always be the one."

              "Me too, honey," I said, "But the fact is, I'm the only one who can do this and we need allies. With this one move, we can change the whole course of the war to come.

              "Before, all we had to look forward to was an endless supply of Kresh, coming through the Gates to kill us. I've shown you the memories from my Shak'Tar. You've seen them. They have the numbers to just roll over us if the right clan goes after us.

              "But, this," I said, "This could actually win the war, given enough time."

              "All true," she said, "But I still wish I could just have you to myself. I don't want to share you with the world. I damn sure don't want to share you with fourteen other worlds, too.

              "Until tomorrow, though," she said, "You are all mine. So you better come join me."

              "That I can do."

Chapter 13

              I couldn't hide my excitement as our group approached the gate.

              "I used to equate the feeling I get near one of these with evil," I said to the giant walking beside me, "It has the same sort of power source as the one that is connected to your Soulstream."

              "Soulstream is not a new word to me," He said in his deep rumbling voice, "We never knew we were tethered to our own world until you closed a gate and killed a whole clan by cutting this Soulstream."

              "You never went through a gate and shut it behind you?"

              "We could not open one from this side," he said, "When we open a gate and walk through, it stays open until we come back. After the second attack, we knew the tether would move to another gate if one was open. So we can turn off the great gates when the horde has passed through it."

              Our group was surrounded by Wraiths and Soldiers as we approached the open gate. I could see the nervousness of the others so I moved forward to the front of the group.

              "All right," I said, "here goes."

              Kil'Sin'Deres moved up beside me and I followed him into the vortex of power that made up the portal.

              I expected something like what I had seen in movies as the lights would stretch but I guess the movies hadn't really gotten that right.

              It was instant. My eyes saw the purple and black energy one second and, as they passed the edge of it, the sight changed to a raised platform in a large room.

              "Holy shit!"

              My whole body tingled and I felt the Source stutter and change. It was a subtle difference but I could sense much more power down inside the planet than I could feel inside earth.

              I stepped onward so that the next in line wouldn't run into me.

              "I will hide your mind glow, Rash'Tor'Ri," Kil'Sin'Deres said, "From here until we reach Cerres, you must not use any form of Lash. I cannot hide it if you are using it actively."

              "Ok," I said, "I'm not really planning to use that particular skill except to do the Mark for you."

              "You are an odd being, Rash'Tor'Ri," he said, "My race begins using the Lash the moment they evolve enough to use it. Why would you handicap yourself by only using half of your birthright?"

              On some level, he was right. I had paid in blood for the skills that my birth had granted me. But the use of that Lash was just the opposite of the freedom I wanted to bring to the people of these other worlds.

              It was too late to do anything about the people on Cerres except try to provide some sort of defense.

              "Yeah, I hear that a lot."

              The giant chuckled.

              I could feel the Kresh outside of the room. There were more than I had ever felt before. I knew the others would be feeling that same presence I could feel. It was a bit overwhelming. We waited until the whole group had stepped through the gate. Then the gate was gone.

              "Guess there's no way to go but forward," Keller said with a grin.

              "It would help if your people looked fearful, as most humans who come through these gates. They look like they are ready to invade and conquer."

              "All right guys, put on your scared faces and get into position, in case everything goes to shit."

              "Terry," Sam said to one of the Mages, "You and I are supports for the boss. Barnes get ready with a shield in case we need it. You're the strongest one here. Mages to the center, Guards around the outside."

              "Now they really look like they want to invade," Kil'Sin'Deres said.

              "Give it a minute," I said, "They'll get settled."

              Once everyone was positioned, they stepped one step in different directions. The organization disappeared and we looked like a mob of humans again.

              "If all goes right," I said, "We won't be needin to do any fightin. But we're ready if we do."

              Kil'Sin'Deres nodded and we headed for the opposite end of the big room.

              When the door opened and we stepped outside, the light seemed just a little off kilter.

              "Different type of star," Darrel said softly, "Different light."

              "Makes sense," I said.

              I'd been in big cities a few times. New York and Chicago were large cities, but they had nothing on what I was looking at in front of us. The buildings were huge and stretched far into the sky.

              The doors were lower than would be comfortably for the height of a Kresh. They were human-sized doors. That would mean they were made by the Makers. And that would mean they were thousands of years old.

              The streets were packed with Kresh and Humans. Most of the Humans kept their eyes downcast. They wore various home-made garments. There were a few in jeans scattered amongst the crowds.

              Having all of the Kresh around me was bringing that monster inside me close to the surface. As I saw the enslaved humans it was clawing at the walls of my mind.

              "Rash'Tor'Ri, you must calm your mind," Kil'Sin'Deres said, "There is nothing we can do yet for these people. There will come a time."

              I tore my eyes from the groups of slaves and followed Kil'Sin'Deres through the throngs of Kresh.

              That was, perhaps the hardest five miles I had ever walked. The whole way, I had to keep the beast locked down.

              That all changed the second we entered the Cerres facility. Every eye within sight of us turned to me immediately and I felt like I had walked into my own home.

              A Farrara'Ti walked toward us I knew his name was Pos'Far'Nadir and I had seen him in a memory. He was the Kresh'Farrara'Ti that Gorvelis had marked on Cerres.

              "Rash'Tor'Ri," he said in a gravely voice, "You have come to Cerres?"

              "You might say, I'm passing through, Pos'Far'Nadir," I said, "These are allies. After what we do on Cerres, they will be coming to join you in holding the Cerres facility."

              Pos'Far'Nadir nodded and led the way inside the facility. In the center of the facility was a large clearing with a huge assembly in the center. It was a massive ring that looked like something out of a TV series I used to watch called Stargate. It was the size of one of the Great Gates that open onto Earth.

              As the Gate began to charge up, I watched the power it pulled. It came from the Source!

              The Makers had created something that could Pull its power from the Source of all life and use that power to open a hole in space to another world.

              "It's powered by the Source," I said.

              "The Source?" Sam asked.

              "Yeah, it draws its power from the Source. I have no idea how it uses that to do what it does. But it's connected to the Source."

              "You may be onto something with those Source Weapons then," Sam said, "I bet there's something similar inside this."

              "Have you noticed how everything in this city that we've seen is too small for the Kresh?" Darrel asked.

              "It was created by the Makers," Kil'Sin'Deres answered, "They were as you are. Small."

              I chuckled. I was feeling so much more at ease since I had entered. The Mark had made these Kresh my family, just as much as it had the Romanians I had marked. There was a whole planet of people who would feel this way. Maybe the Mark wasn't all bad.

              The rage that had been pounding at my mind's walls began to ease off.

              This could be a wonderful thing for me, personally, but do I have the right to use this again on people? And where do I draw the line between people of my race and people of the Kresh. Do I have the right to do this Mark on Kil'Sin'Deres? It is his request, but is it right?

              The Gate flared to life and the portal hummed with power. I couldn't feel it like I could feel when someone Pulls from the Source. But I could see the power flow into the machinery and the tendrils of power twirl and reach out to another world.

              Pos'Far'Nadir motioned for me to proceed.

              I stepped forward onto the third planet I had set foot on in a single day. How often does a person get to say that?