Mind Over Psyche (14 page)

“Whose side ar
e you on?”

“Yours, believe it or not! I agree, the whole set-up was whacked, okay? I just want you to think things through. Consider it from her side. All she wants is to protect her people, and if that means better fighting, so be it. I don't really think she enjoys killing, do you? Okay, then. So here's the Great Ydrel, font of all knowledge military, yet he won't take her seriously when he's sparring with her—
her point of view, not yours
—then when they get attacked, he lets loose with these amazing telekinetics he's never told her about, and people go flying, swords embed themselves in trees and in the ground, arrows bounce off him like rubb
er balls—”

“Wha
t arrows?”

“You kidding? When you went postal, they tried to shoot you. The arrows ricocheted. You had some heavy-duty sh
ields up.”

“I didn't know. I wasn't thinking, I just—” He put his arms around himself, shivering. “Did I hurt anyone?” He asked in a sm
all voice.

No use denying it. “They're all going to be fine. The unicorn—Glory—even brought me here. Tasmae said they'd se
en worse.”

“But we were so near the cliff. I didn't, well, toss
anyone…?”

“Yeah, you did,” Joshua told him gently. “But you also apparently stopped her before she hit the ground. She was more scared than anything. Still, you might expect folks to look at you a little differently after word gets around. That was some pretty powerful defense,” he added with a smile, but Deryl did not answer, just focused on the horizon with hau
nted eyes.

“There's so much more power on this planet,” he finally said. “It's like having a feast whereas before I was surviving on crusts of bread and thimbles of water. I don't know why I felt like it was a real attack, I just did, and I drew on that power and reacted. Afterwards, it was like I woke up from a nightmare, and I saw all the wreckage and knew I'd done it. Then she demanded I teach
her how!”

“So you need to work on your control,” Joshua
concluded.

“Control?” Deryl blanched. “You can't be suggesting I actually do th
at again?”

“Trash the place? Fling people around? No. But you've got to admit, being able to deflect arrows is pretty cool stuff.” He grinned and shrugged, inviting him to see the brig
hter side.

“Oh. Well, yeah,
I guess…”

“And as for repelling things, imagine if you flung their supplies into the next county? Or redirected their ships to where
you
wanted them to land? I don't know—do you have enough power to just send their ships back to Barin? There's a lot you could do without ever hurting anyone. You just need to use your ima
gination.”

“We could end this war,” Deryl whispered. He turned pleading eyes on Joshua.
“Help us?”

Joshua sighed in exasperation. “What do you think I'm tryi
ng to do?”

“No, I mean help us—help me—stop this war.” He shifted position so he was on his knees, sitting on his heels and facing him. “There're still a few months before the war—if we practice and work
together—”

“Months? I don't
think so!”

“I don't understand,” Deryl
stammered.

Joshua found himself gaping. He closed his mouth, gritted his teeth, and forced himself to speak slowly and clearly. “Listen, I don't know about you, but I don't want to be here when a war starts. Frankly, I don't want to be here
today
. I will help you and Tasmae figure this out. I'll give you what ideas I can. But not for months.
No way
. I am not a military advisor. I didn't want to come here. I don't belong here. I belong on Earth—with Sachiko, and my parents, and my own ambitions of making it as a musician. I want to go home—the sooner th
e better.”

“I told you I'd get you home before the
audition.”

Again, he forced himself to keep a level voice. “How? Have you even thought about it?
How
to get us home, not what you plan to do afterwards or where you'll drop me off or what
ever—
how
?”

Deryl blinked. “I will, I
promise.”

“So you haven't.” His nightmares returned to make a tight knot in his stomach. Joshua stood up and whistled. Glory picked up her head and came to him. He mounted. “Tell you what. You want my help? Fine. I'll brainstorm. But I'm not telling you anything until you tell me—no, you
show
me—that you can get me home.” He started to ask Glory to go, then thought better of it. “Want a ride back?” He asked, just managing to keep the grudging tone out of
his voice.

Deryl hesitated, then nodded and stood. Joshua gave him a hand to help pull him onto Glory's back. They rode in silence to the field where the unicorns hung out, but when they got there and dismounted, Deryl caught Joshua by the
shoulder.

“I'll talk to Tasmae about getting you home. Today, I promise. Even if there still are storms, like she said, every storm has lulls. Maybe she can predict them. I'll get you home. And you don't have to give me anything i
n return.”

Joshua smiled. “What, and give up the chance to save the world?” He replied lightly. “I may not be in the superhero suit, but that doesn't mean I won't help if I can.” Then, Deryl's words caught up to his brain. “You're not planning on staying on Earth once you get me back,
are you?”

“I don't know,” he whispered. “I'm not sure I could. I'm a
fugitive.”

“You can teleport, and the world's a big place. You could find s
omewhere.”

“Yeah, I
suppose.”

“Or, you could stay, and we could work it out. I'd vouch for you, and if you could return us within a few minutes of when we'd left, what are they going to do? For that matter, how's Malachai going to explain your kidnapping me right from under his nose? Especially if Sachiko and I are on your side? I'd talk to your aunt and uncle. My dad has a lot of contacts on the East coast—we'd find you a better psychiatrist until you can convince them you don't need help anymore. Then, go to college. Find Clarissa and hook up with her. Have a life. That is, if you want a life
on Earth.”

A laugh escaped his throat. “Oh, man, do you know how ridiculous that sounds? You've got to be the only person who's ever really had a choice between tw
o worlds.”

Deryl kicked at the rocks in the worn path. “Problem is, I don't know if I'm welcome on either one. Not unless I'm ready to do their
bidding.”

“Oh, come off it, Deryl. Everybody has to do the bidding of somebody, and it isn't always fun. You think I enjoy getting up at 6:30 every morning to do Malachai's bidding for twelve hours a day? Case studies, and sitting in on group therapies, and being told to keep my mouth shut ‘cause I'm just a lowl
y intern—”

“Playing best friend to a sulk
y client?”

“Exactly!” He moved his hand in a seemingly casual wave. In fact, it was a feel-good anchor he'd established with Deryl when he'd first started working with him, a kind of subtle motion-based mnemonic to instill hopeful, positive feelings. He'd been slipping thanks to the stress of the past couple of days and hadn't thought to use it lately, but it worked nonetheless. Josh smiled, and the former “sulky client” Smiled back. “The point is, I'm willing to do it, because it's getting me things I want: money for tuition next year, work experience, and I'm learning a
lot, too.”

Deryl grinned at his friend. “You didn't always do what Malacha
i wanted.”

“And I got called on the carpet for it, too. Even
by Edith.”

“That was Malachai's doing,” Deryl
told him.

Joshua grunted doubtfully. “I don't think he told her to threaten to personally send me back to Colorado and get me a job at Carl's Jr. for the rest of th
e summer.”

“No way!”

“Way. I was this far from using my psychiatric skills to convince people to biggie size their order. At any rate, what I'm trying to say is that no matter where you go or what you do, there's got to be some give-and-take. Still, if you're not comfortable with what Taz and her people want with you, you have a choice: go back to Earth, or stay here and forge a new role for t
he Ydrel.”

“You're right, Joshua. Thanks.” Deryl turned off
the trail.

“Hey, where y
ou going?”

“Tasmae's this way. May as well do this now. I'll see y
ou later.”

*

Deryl headed to a small grove not far from the paddocks. The trees stood tall and heavy with leaves, though no fruit. In places, he had to twist sideways to make his way between them, but suddenly, the trees opened up to a small clearing. They encircled an area of thick moss about twenty feet in diameter, but the branches intertwined above so that very little sunlight came though, giving the area a dappled, twilight effect not too different from that of the bathi
ng grotto.

Deryl smiled as he recognized it. It looked much like the clearing Tasmae had imagined for him the first time he'd actually spoken to her in the Netherworld, and when later, she had “changed” the location so that they could see the sky, she had kept the same springy moss that grew with almost mattress-like
thickness.

Tasmae was barefoot in the middle of the mossy clearing now, her sword in her hand, moving through a form that mixed the techniques he'd taught her people with moves they'd developed over centuries of fighting. He lingered by the forest edge, watching and admiring her grace and strength. She moved with lethal precision. Her face was grim as she con
centrated.

This is life and death for her, and I treated it as a game. I know she's a warrior. Maybe it's time I
accept it.

Sighing, he reached out with his mind and took hold of
her sword.

She jerked slightly as it froze in midair, resisting her motion. She gave it one experimental tug before releasing it, letting it hang in the air, and turned toward him. She crossed her arms over her chest and waited. He watched her from where he stood against the tree. Silence, both psychic and verbal,
stretched.

Then they teleped, both at the same time, waves of reassurance and understanding washing over them both. He hadn't been holding out on her; she knew. She hadn't tricked him; he knew. Both were sorry. Remorse, then relief, then affection, and Deryl closed the gap between them and pulled her into his arms. As he kissed her, he knew he didn't want to leave. He had to find a way to make this work. Then, there was only her, and t
heir kiss.

He lost his concentration on the sword. It fell with a dull thump, drawing them back to reality. Tasmae
chuckled.

“Perhaps we should talk instead,” Deryl said, pulling back without leaving her embrace. He felt a little dizzy, pleasantly so, but he'd promis
ed Joshua…

“Will you teach me?”
She asked.

He was too aware of her arms around him. “I'll try. I don't really know how I do it. Malachai—” Had he ever mentioned Dr. Malachai to her? “I mean, I tried for years, but I just sort of got it in the past few weeks. I'd want something; it'd come to me. I don't think I can ex
plain it.”

She turned her face from his, thinking. Her hair brushed against his lips. He fought the urge to bury his face in it. He tried not to breathe in
her scent.

“Try something,” She suggested. “Let me in your mind, then try s
omething.”

“In my mind?” Why did that thought make his heart race with such fear a
nd desire?

“Like when I Call you,” She said, leaning back to look into his eyes. “Move something. I'll draw out how yo
u did it.”

He touched her hair, and he remembered how jealous he'd felt about Joshua brushing it. Without really thinking, he used his mind to pull her punch dagger hairpiece from her bun. As her hair fell about her shoulders, he gathered it, separated it into three sections and braided it. All the time, he felt her Call, but this time teasing rather than forcing the information from him. The sensation echoed across
his skin.

Nonetheless, she shook her head. “You're right: You want something to happen and it happens. But I don't unders
tand how.”

“I'm sorry.” But he wasn't sure that he was. If she couldn't figure out how his telekinetic skills worked, he wouldn't have to teach them. He'd never have to worry about their forcing him to teach them to use the ability of
fensively.

“You've shielded yourself
from me.”

“Those shields are keeping us b
oth safe.”

Images flashed into his mind: civilians forcing back attackers with the strength of their will; children flinging objects to impede a Barin's pursuit or to construct a safe hiding place. Healers working in safety in the middle of a battle as another created a shield that deflected incoming arrows. He realized how much he'd underestimated her im
agination.

Let me join your mind. Then I will know as
you know.

The thought tempted and terrified. If he gave in, he wouldn't hold back. She'd know everything. His nightmares. His fear of the Master. His insanities. Even now, voices from the past pulled at him, and he didn't know why. He could ignore them, mostly, but if he gave in to her, let her into his
thoughts…