Hunting a Soul (3 page)

“Was he recovered?”

N’ran sighed. “His body was. He was an excellent warrior and a stellar peacekeeper.”

“Did you know him?”

He nodded. “I did, and for the chance that one of these children will be one one-thousandth of the talent that he was, I am here and watching over them.”

“Is Repsak also a living world?”

He smiled brightly. “It is.”

“Resicor recently developed an Avatar, so I am familiar with the concept.”

“How are your people handling it?”

She sighed. “With talents finally willing to expose themselves without fear, the normal population is realising that there is no profit in hate and paranoia. They don’t benefit from turning in their family members anymore. There is a wave of change that Trala is dealing with, and it is good that she has folks around her who will help her hold onto the hearts and minds of Resicor through trust and good works, not brainwashing.”

She touched the tiny drop of the pendant under her suit. It was like having the touch of a guarding parent with her at all times. That was what she felt it was anyway.

Krix hopped up and down at her feet, chirping. She grinned and hoisted him onto the table. She cupped seeds in her hand and held it out while he nibbled.

“He is a vocal one.” N’ran smiled.

“He matches your eyes.” The moment the words were out of her mouth, she could have kicked herself.

“He does, doesn’t he? Too bad he didn’t pick me. I would have made an excellent partner.”

“How do they pick their companions? I see a bunch of them running around with no particular direction or purpose but everyone can play with them.”

“No one knows. Some folks think it is need on the part of the chosen companion, but others think it is a synchronicity between the two.”

“Huh. Fixit knew that I would be the right one for Krix the moment that we touched. I saw Krix, but I didn’t realise that it was the same species as Fixit until Veera explained it.”

He chuckled and reached out to stroke Krix. “Yes, they are cute at this stage and fearsome at their adult form. The baldness in the middle is rather amusing, but the little ones that appear make the awkwardness worth it.”

“How many little ones?”

“As few as three, as many as eight. They are now registered as an indigenous species of Balen.”

“How is that possible?”

“Balen recently resurfaced itself. It woke from an ice age and welcomed a new Avatar and the Sector Guard and Citadel.”

“And the Yaluthu?”

“Veera came to Citadel Balen, and she and her partner went on one of the missions, returning with not only Fixit but others of his kind. She was offered the position as administrator here, and thus, Fixit and the Yaluthu got a new home.”

A familiar voice laughed, “And we all lived happily ever after.”

Veera sat with them and Fixit chirped hello.

“When you are done, I would like to go over your schedule if that is all right?” Veera smiled politely at Leadra.

“Of course.”

N’ran picked up her empty tray and then his own. “I will leave you to it, and tomorrow, I will take you to your appointment again.”

“Thank you, N’ran. You were…it was nice having someone to talk to.” She smiled briefly.

He gave her a solemn nod. “It was my pleasure. I will see you tomorrow.” He left and took the empty plates with him.

Veera watched him go and blinked slightly. “Wow. That is the first time I have ever seen him acting in a social capacity for anyone other than the children.”

Leadra hunched her shoulders. “I had a bit of a breakdown in front of him. It was pity and nothing more.”

Veera chuckled. “I don’t think so. N’ran is a Master Hunter of Repsak. Hunters can’t pity their prey.”

“I don’t think he considers me prey.”

“If you say so. Now, come with me and we will get your schedule sorted.”

Leadra scooped Krix up and held him near her shoulder. He squirmed around, and using his beak and his pudgy feet, he pulled his puffball of a body up to her shoulder. He settled in and chuckled in triumph. Fixit chirped in approval and they headed for the lift to reach the administration offices.

When the schedule was laid out, it was comprehensive and placed her therapy at the end of the physical day. N’ran had agreed to pick her up from all of her workouts and he would fly her to her appointment each and every day.

“He knew that I was scheduled for combat training and he didn’t say a thing.”

Veera cocked her head. “He only parts with the information that is needed to accomplish his results. I am surprised that he encouraged you.”

Leadra thought about her day. “I think he knew I needed to think about the future, even if it was only tomorrow.”

“Then, you had better get to bed and rest up. Tomorrow is going to be a helluva day.”

Fixit shrieked and flapped his wings in encouragement. Krix copied the sound. It was unanimous. She was going to get her butt kicked.

Being pummelled by a stranger should have been a new experience, but in the dome, she had been confined with one of her brother’s victims. The man had super strength in the normal world, and bound in the restrictor suit, he had still been far larger than she was. It wasn’t always possible to get away unscathed.

“Enough, Novice. You are not defending yourself. Why don’t you go on the attack?” Her instructor sighed in frustration.

Leadra blinked and got to her feet. “Am I supposed to?”

“What would you do on your world if you were attacked?”

“Scream and call for help.”

Timorla sighed and ran a hand through her close-cropped hair. “You need to want to defeat your opponent.”

“But I don’t.” She slumped her shoulders.

A woman walked in from the door to the change room and shook her head. “She doesn’t want to hit a physical being, Timorla. She is after a specter.”

“Master Zeyan, I am honoured to have you in my session, but why are you here?”

“Leadra can see souls, and I am here to test the limits of her talent.” Zeyan’s red hair cascaded over her shoulders, and she smiled at Leadra. “Hello, Novice.”

“Master Zeyan.” Leadra inclined her head. “Thank you for coming to help me.”

“Change your clothing and come with me. I have some items for you to practice with. It would be easier if we had a local graveyard or a recent death, but the folk of Balen are repulsively healthy.” Zeyan grinned.

“I will be back in a moment.” Leadra quickly changed and flashed a solar blast to clean off the sweat. She scooped up Krix on her way out of the changing area.

She felt prim and proper when she returned to face her new instructor, and Zeyan was chatting quietly with Timorla.

Zeyan nodded and left her conversational partner, taking Leadra by the hand and leading her through the halls to an empty classroom that had a series of boxes lined up on the dais. With the door closed behind them, Zeyan smiled brightly. “Your Yaluthu can remain here as long as it doesn’t interfere.”

“He is a little sleepy anyway.” Leadra tucked him into a comfortable-looking chair and followed Zeyan’s lead.

“In each and every box, there is a soul. You have two choices, read the soul or bring the soul out to speak on its own. If you can do that, we will have something to work with.”

“If I can’t do either?”

“You are not trying hard enough. You have already demonstrated the first skill, so take your time and ask the boxes to reveal their secrets.”

It seemed weird, but Leadra stepped in front of the first box and stared into it. To her surprise, there was something staring back.

She quickly moved to the next one, and it had an occupant as well. As did the other seven boxes on the dais. Even the necklace around Zeyan’s neck had souls in it.

“Who is in your necklace?”

“No one you need to worry about. The crystal is a prison and they are mass murderers.”

Leadra looked away from the two men pounding against the crystal.

Back to the woman in the box. “How do I see them?”

“You mean how do you pull them up so others can see them as well?”

“Precisely.”

“Link your soul to theirs and pull on them. Think of the links as your arms, you are lifting them up to speak to.”

The idea was simple, but it took two hours before the first soul rose from the box. Leadra was sweating, her arms were tired and her mouth was dry, but she eased the soul from the box and the woman inside smiled encouragingly at her.

Well done, child. You are on your way to mastering your skills.

Zeyan smiled and came to her side. “Yes, she is. Now, Leadra, ease the soul back into the box.”

Leadra reversed the technique that had pulled the woman from the wood, and she slumped back in relief. “She’s back.”

Zeyan patted her shoulder. “Well done. Considering you have not been able to use your talent before, you are catching on quickly.”

Leadra chuckled and put her head in her hands. “I don’t know what this exercise is supposed to do.”

Zeyan guided her down to a chair and looked at her eye to eye. “I know about your pain and what you want to do. If you find the soul you are looking for, you will need a means to withdraw it from its host and destroy it. If you can ease a soul out of a shielded box and put it back intact, that is a skill you will need for the initial extraction. Dispersing the energy will be the last thing I teach you, because it is deadly dangerous.”

“You know?”

“Of course I do. Veera got your files and sent them to me. I read all of your statements and the witness reports. I have only run into one other creature of this nature, and the solar Avatar of the region took him out. They are bits of chaos with a hunger for destruction and fear. They live on the panic and sorrow they create.”

Leadra sat up and stared at her instructor. Finally, there was someone who knew what she was talking about. “Can they travel through the stars on their own?”

“No. They need a host. They can’t survive the waves of radiation of space travel. The chaos shadow must have arrived with a Raider ship. There is no other way it could have gotten to Resicor.”

“So, you have actually run into this before.”

“I have. It almost killed me. Orenn had to use a healer, and I drained power from him as he healed and I kept taking his energy.”

“Who is Orenn?”

“My partner and my mate. He keeps me stable and fills the hole in my soul.”

Leadra looked at Zeyan’s sombre expression. “I can see it. The scar is bright and it is all over you.”

“And that is the first step of mastering the talent that we seem to share. You are not bound to your world like I was, though I will say that you do bear a similar scar.”

“Resicor kissed me and sealed the wound when I left. I didn’t realise that that was what she had done until right now. I felt it at the time, and I was sick for a few days, but I am better now and ready to master what I have been given.”

Zeyan grinned. “Good. Pull out and replace three more souls and we will call it a day.”

“Yes, Master Zeyan.”

Leadra got back to her feet and extended her power, mentally imagining picking up the soul with the edges of an energy apron. She held it up, greeted the man she was looking at and eased him back in.

The next two went just as quickly.

She grinned at Zeyan, “I did it.”

“You did, and tomorrow, you will do more. You do need to learn to fight though. A fit body will support your mind. If your body can manage itself and work from its own resources, you will be able to use more of your mind.”

“Does that include hurting people?”

“Don’t think of it as hurting others; think of it as protecting yourself. You need to be able handle your own safety or you will drain the resources of those around you.”

“What do you mean?”

N’ran spoke from the back of the classroom. “She means that the Citadel will not send you on your own. You will have a partner when they feel you are finally ready, and together, you will go in search of your chaos shadow.”

Leadra was a little surprised that he was sitting there, but when he finished speaking, she was shocked. “What do you know about them?”

Zeyan sighed. “N’ran’s folk have had quite a few exposures to the chaos shadows. They are thought to have emerged from a species in the Repsak sector.”

N’ran got to his feet. “If you two are done here for the day, it is time for Novice Leadra’s appointment.”

Leadra scooped Krix up and put him on her shoulder. She thanked Zeyan then followed N’ran out of the educational wing and out into the afternoon light.

In the small transport, she asked, “You knew about my situation the whole time?”

He lifted off and they flew toward the Guard base. “There was a reason I was assigned as your pilot. If you complete your training and are not a danger to those travelling with you, you will be given free rein to find the one who attacked those you love. It is suspected that they will be found in my peoples’ portion of space.”

“You will help me find him?”

“If you complete your training and will not put the lives of those around you at risk because you are helpless.” He gave her a sideways glance. “Am I speaking clearly?”

She sat back and nodded. “I have to get used to hitting people.”

“That is a nice summation. Yes, you have to get used to hitting people.”

She nodded and straightened her spine. “Well, all right then.”

Krix chirped in confirmation, and she read it in the pictures of his thoughts. If she got hurt, he would heal her until she was what she needed to be.

N’ran gave her a long look, and he resumed his focus on their flight path. She could see the curve of a smile around his lips, but it could have been a trick of the light.

After dinner with Krix and a data pad full of information on hand-to-hand combat, she headed to the gym and started up the fight simulator. It was set to basic, and the solid hologram still kicked her butt.

Leadra kept going until she could no longer stand. The program shut down, and Krix came hopping over to her, cuddling her and sending healing energy through her. In five minutes, she was able to stand up and she headed to her quarters to feed Krix an extra ration because it was going to be a long and painful night.