He plucked one of the small white flowers and motioned for Elaina to draw close to the bars. She did, watching him with wide eyes.
“Open your mouth,” he commanded.
“Yes, Master.” Elaina obeyed at once, feeling a familiar rush of pleasure at obeying the command of her Master.
“Don’t call me that,” he said harshly. But his fingers were gentle when he placed a single white blossom on her tongue. “Hold it in your mouth and let it dissolve,” he directed. “And tell the other females to do the same. You too,” he ordered Zerana who had been watching silently behind Elaina.
She nodded. “Of course, Master Valdor. And…will this cure us of the Need?”
“It should,” Terex said grimly, passing the long-stemmed flowers through the golden bars. “But if not, just be sure you drink plenty of water in the next few days—rainwater will be best—but really any water should do. I don’t think the treatment plants can filter out the antivirus this plant is carrying—it’s too small.”
“I don’t understand,” Zerana said hesitantly. “But I will do as you say, Master Valdor—we all will.”
“Good.” He turned to go but Elaina called him back.
“Terex…wait.”
He looked back at her briefly. “Yes? What is it—I have much to do before I can meet you at the side entrance of the harem.”
“It’s just…you look so sad.” Elaina put a hand through the bars, reaching for him, wanting to feel his touch again. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” He shook his head but didn’t take her outstretched hand. “Listen, distribute the blossoms among the females of the harem and don’t worry—I saved a bunch for your sister as well. They’re back at the ship.”
“Oh, Terex!” She put a hand to her heart, her eyes suddenly wet with unshed tears. Gina—I can save her now! If we can only get out of here on time!
“Go,” Terex said firmly. “I’ll meet you later. I have to take care of something first.”
Elaina felt like her heart was going to burst as he strode quickly away. But even as she followed Zerana into the harem to distribute the little healer blossoms to all the women there, she felt a little doubt nagging at her heart. What was wrong with Terex? She knew she was right—there was something troubling him deeply. But what?
* * * * *
“What? What do you mean there are no blossoms to harvest?” Krumf the Fourth—otherwise known as Krumf the first—roared at the viewscreen where the trembling head gardener stood, twisting his hands together in abject terror.
And well he should be terrified! What he was saying was unthinkable!
Krumf was in his private chamber—where everything was covered in gold or made of gold—only the best for the Supreme Leader. He’d been getting dressed in his richest robes, thinking that as soon as his guards brought him the essence of the little healers, he would go and visit his exotic new slave.
The regenerating drink always gave him a burst of sexual energy when he first drank it and youthened back to hearty middle age. He was looking forward to seeing the little Earth bitch cry and beg while he took her—it would be most satisfying to show her that he was her true master now and let her know she would never be seeing that impudent Kindred, Commander Terex again.
Yes, all was right in Krumf’s world…until his communications officer told him there was an urgent call for him on the viewscreen and the gardener came on telling him this unbelievable news.
“What do you mean?” he roared again. “How could this happen?”
“Your Supreme Excellency, when we got here a ship was already docked on Grs and it looked like another had just landed and taken off,” the gardener said. “When we entered the growing complex, we found the guard dead in the corridor. And when we reached the growing room, well…look.”
He moved the handheld com-link he was using to speak to Krumf, showing a room where every blossom had been stripped clean of its long purple stalk. There wasn’t a single one left—just a few tattered petals caught in the teeth of the automatic harvester which came down from the ceiling and combed through the plants, separating the flowers from their stalks so that the long process of blooming could begin again.
“There was another body here too,” the gardener said. “We’re not sure what species though because it hasn’t got a head. It looks like some kind of battle took place before the blossoms were harvested.”
“This can’t be right,” Krumf said blankly. “How could this happen? Who took the blossoms? Where are they?”
“Coming down from the sky in the form of healing rain as we speak,” a voice behind him said.
Krumf spun around—moving as well as a male of his years could. He was close to the edge of death—he could feel its cold hand clutching at his heart, just as he always did before he drank the distilled essence of the little healers. It was an uncomfortable feeling but he got an even more uncomfortable one when he saw who was standing in his private chamber.
It was Master Valdor—his old enemy who had been wandering the palace halls like a ghost ever since he got back and saw the sweeping changes Krumf had made while he was gone. Or was it? As he watched, another male stepped up who looked enough like Valdor to be his twin. Was it Commander Terex? He couldn’t tell them apart. But if so—what was Terex doing out of his cell?
“Hello, Krumf,” the first Valdor said. “I take it you got the news. There will be no renewal or regeneration for you this time.”
“What are you talking about? Guards!” Krumf shouted, but no one came.
“They’re busy trying to quell the riots going on in the streets,” one of the Valdors said. “You see, when Commander Terex seeded the clouds with your precious blossoms, the rain itself became a cure for the Need.”
“The females you enslaved have woken up,” the other Valdor—who must be Terex—rumbled. “The effects of the little healer are immediate—they’re no longer feeling the need to obey every little thing their ‘Masters’ tell them to do.”
“And other males—honorable males who have been hiding among you, waiting to speak out—are beginning to mobilize,” Valdor told him. “They’re overthrowing your world order—storming your palace. I don’t imagine you’d live much longer even if you did get your quarter-century dose of the little healer serum.”
“What are you saying?” Krumf began to panic, though he tried not to show it. “You can’t just take over! You can’t let all the females go free! They’ll ruin everything!”
“The way you ruined everything?” Valdor demanded harshly. “The way you polluted the environment with no thought for anything but enriching yourself? The way you enslaved females to suit your misogynistic desires?” He stepped forward and a long, wickedly sharp sword suddenly appeared in his hand. “The way you killed my people?” he growled.
“Now…now Valdor, that’s all in the p-past!” Krumf stuttered. “It was over a hundred cycles ago!”
“Not to me.” Valdor’s voice throbbed with a quiet intensity. “To me, it’s been only over a single solar year. I left a planet that was green with life, filled with vibrant people of both races living in harmony and came back to find a lifeless husk where you’ve stamped out the will of anyone who opposed you. Surely the Goddess has a special place in the lowest level of the Seven Hells for such as you.”
“Valdor…you can’t!” Krumf backed away. “You don’t understand…I’m the Supreme Leader!”
“Not anymore. This is for my people and for all the harm you’ve done, you old bastard!”
There was a sweeping arch of silver, a biting pain, and Krumf’s head rolled from his shoulders. His body stiffened…then sank to the ground, the neck spouting weakly onto the gold-tipped carpeting.
* * * * *
Terex stared at Valdor from the corner of his eye. The other male was breathing hard, a wild, fierce expression on his face, so like Terex’s own.
“Are you well, Brother?” he asked at last since Valdor seemed fixated on the sight of the he
adless body at his feet.
At last Valdor drew a long, shaking breath and nodded.
“As well as I can be,” he said at last. “I didn’t want to kill him, you know.” He nodded at the still-twitching corpse. “I would rather have had him stand trial and face judgment for all the crimes he committed.”
“Why didn’t you then?” Terex asked curiously. He hadn’t been sure himself what the other male would do when they entered Krumf’s private chambers. The outcome was slightly surprising, although he couldn’t blame Valdor. The man he had killed had overseen the slaughter and extermination of the entire Kindred race here on Nixelle Prime-Beta. Terex was certain he would have done the same.
“His words are poison.” Valdor drew a deep, shaking breath and let it out in a sigh. “Even back before I left he was gathering support to himself. It didn’t seem to matter what he did—how many atrocities he committed—he could always sway the masses with a few honeyed words. I knew if I let him take the stand and speak in his own defense he might be able to wriggle out of his punishment, simply because he knew how to talk to his supporters.” He sighed. “Some were as evil and power hungry as he was but some were simply good people he fooled with his lies.”
“He had to die,” Terex agreed. “But what will you do now? There are still plenty of his supporters here in the palace and, I’m sure, other places around your world.”
“I have supporters too. Females who don’t wish to be enslaved to the Need and honorable males who don’t wish to see them enslaved,” Valdor said. “People—male and female alike—who want to heal our planet. It won’t be easy but we will retake our world.” He clapped a hand to Terex’s shoulder. “It wouldn’t have been possible without you, Brother.”
“Don’t thank me.” Terex looked away. “I only did what I came to do.”
“You told me you came for the Sphere of Location and the little healers but you never told me why.” Valdor looked at him curiously.
“As to that, the little healers are for Elaina’s sibling—she’s very ill to the point of death. We need to get home as quickly as possible to try and stop the disease process that’s eating her alive.”
“All right, that accounts for the healing blossoms. What did you need the Sphere for?” Valdor was staring at him in an uncomfortably intense way, as though he knew something was wrong.
Terex fought the urge to put his fingers to his throat where the high-necked cape he wore still hid the evidence of his soul-poisoning.
“To find an old enemy,” he said shortly. “One who has bothered and bedeviled my people for many cycles now.”
“Will you go seeking him now that your part on my world is played?” Valdor asked.
Terex shook his head. “No need. He found me before I could find him.”
“Brother—” Valdor began, looking concerned. “Whatever happened—”
“Nothing happened,” Terex denied quickly. He looked away. “Nothing that I didn’t deserve for the deeds I have done on this mission.”
“You did what was necessary to survive,” Valdor said quietly.
“I branded the female I loved, inflicting torment I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy on her,” Terex said sharply. “That is not excusable.”
“Krumf forced your hand.” Valdor nodded down at the lifeless, headless body on the floor.
“I shouldn’t have let him,” Terex growled.
“If Elaina really is infected with the Need, she would have felt ecstasy, not agony when you branded her,” Valdor pointed out.
“I burned my initials into her fucking flesh!” Terex roared. “After swearing a vow that I would never harm or inflict physical pain on a female again. I broke my vow—I deserve my fate.”
“And what fate is that?” the other male asked, frowning.
Terex shook his head. “Look, I need to collect Elaina and get out of here. As I said, time is of the essence where it concerns her sibling.’
“Of course.” Valdor nodded respectfully and held out his arm. After a moment, Terex took it in a warrior’s clasp. “Go with the Goddess, Brother,” Valdor told him. “And do not be too hard on yourself—you saved many females from bondage this day. And though I never got to know her, I believe your female, Elaina, truly cares for you. She will not blame you for what Krumf forced you to do.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Terex said shortly. “I blame myself. Goodbye, Valdor—may the Mother of All Life help you heal your world.”
“I pray it may be so.” Valdor squeezed his arm once and let go. “I hope to see you again sometime.”
“I doubt it,” Terex said. Turning, he left the chamber of the dead tyrant and went seeking Elaina. With the soul poisoning at work in his blood, he had little time to get her home to her sister before he collapsed, eaten from within by the same noxious rot that had been Two’s final downfall.
Ironic that he’s killed me every bit as much as I killed him, Terex thought grimly. Well, he had known when he left on this mission that he was seeking an honorable death. Soul poisoning wasn’t exactly what he’d had in mind but there was no stopping the bite of the kusax. His fate was determined and now he had only to be strong and face it.
But death isn’t what you want—not anymore, whispered a desperate little voice in his brain. Now that you’ve found Elaina…
Terex pushed it away. So what if he loved Elaina? He didn’t deserve her or the happiness she brought him. It was enough to know that he’d had a chance to hold her, to love her for a little time. It was more joy than he’d had since his beloved Solange had died and it would have to be enough.
I have to find her, he told himself. It’s time for the voyage home.
Chapter Twenty-seven
“I’ve never seen anything like this.” Dr. Soames, Gina’s head Oncologist, shook his head in wonder. “We’ll have to do some scans but it appears your sister has made a marked improvement.”
Marked improvement was a vast understatement, Elaina thought as hope welled in her chest. It was only an hour since she and Terex had gotten back to Earth and she’d given Gina a blossom from the little healer plant. And already her sister, who had barely had the strength to lift a hand when Elaina walked into the room, was sitting up and talking with her husband, Gary. The color had come back to her ashen cheeks and her eyes sparkled as she gestured and laughed at something he’d said. She no longer looked like a woman on the brink of death.
Oh, she still looked frail and too pale but the pall of doom had lifted. She appeared to be a woman recovering from a long illness, rather than succumbing to one.
“Did you give her some kind of medicine? Something from the Kindred?” Soames asked her as they watched Gina. “I know you said you work with them.”
“Something like that,” Elaina said evasively. They were standing outside the hospital room, watching the scene from the corridor and speaking in low tones.
“Well, whatever it is, it’s certainly working.” The doctor nodded at Gina, who was laughing again. “I’ll keep you informed as to the results of the tests we run.”
“Thank you. Please do.” Elaina nodded and the Oncologist left just as Terex came up to her.
Though the big Kindred had been extremely quiet on the voyage home, he had been kind enough to take her straight to the hospital where Gina was. In fact, Elaina was still wearing her outfit from the Need harem, (although on his ship she’d found a long coat to wear over it which covered the slits that would have showed her nipples and sex otherwise.) Terex had even waited to see the effects of the little healer on Gina before returning to the Mother Ship.
“Is your sibling well?” he murmured, raising an eyebrow at her. “Did the little healers help her?”
“She—oh!” Elaina caught her breath when she saw the tall, lanky figure of Jake, Gina’s thirteen-year old son, slouching into the room. He looked at his mother uncertainly at first and then took a hesitant step towards her bed.
Gina held out both arms and Elaina saw tears streaming down her s
ister’s thin cheeks. Jake went to her and hugged her carefully, as though she might break. Elaina heard him say, “Mom?”
“Oh, baby!” Gina hugged her son tight and after a moment, he squeezed her back.
“Mom, are you going to be okay now?” he asked.
“Yes, baby.” Gina looked at him, her eyes shining. “Your aunt Elaina went and got me some medicine that made me better.”
“I…I…” Jake shook his head, his face twisted into a helpless knot. “I’m so sorry!” he burst out at last. “I should have come to see you but I thought…I thought…”
“I thought so too, baby.” Gina stroked his shaggy brown hair reassuringly. “It’s okay. Everything is going to be okay now.”
Jake broke down, crying and hugging his mother, and she hugged him back while Gary watched with a relieved smile his face.
Together again—they’re all together again, Elaina thought, her heart welling over with gratitude. Thank you, Goddess, she sent a prayer skyward to the Kindred Goddess, the Mother of All Life. Thank you for this miracle, for my sister’s life. Thank you.
She turned to Terex, who was watching the scene in the hospital room with an unreadable look on his face.
“I think she’s going to be all right,” she whispered. Then, impulsively, she flung her arms around his neck and squeezed him tight. It was the first time they’d touched in what felt like forever and she loved the way his rough cheek scratched against hers and the warm, spicy scent of his skin. “Oh, Terex,” she whispered. “Thank you so much. Thank you for everything!”
He stiffened under her touch and held the embrace for the shortest of times before trying to disengage.
“I don’t really think you want to thank me for everything,” he said dryly, pulling away.
“What is that supposed to mean?” Elaina asked. “What—ouch!”
Her fingernail had snagged on the long cloak he wore, pulling it out of position for just a moment. Terex straightened it at once, tugging it back into place but not before Elaina saw a strange, curving green line on the side of his neck.