The Sac'a'rith Read online

  “Sounds too good to be true,” I said. The warrior in me could easily see how that kind of communication could turn a battle.

  “You will know soon enough. Come, let’s begin,” said Felix.

  Chapter Eleven

  That week passed slower than any week in history. Every day I worked with Felix on telepathy. As much as I hated the idea that I was some kind of freak like them, I had to admit the prospect of being able to use powers like theirs was attractive. The ways in which learning these skills could be helpful were abundantly apparent. I just could not accept that I was a freak. I could not stand the thought that I had been freed from being a slave to a common street thug only to be turned into some bizarre creature, different from other people.

  Still, Narcion wanted me to train, and I was still his employee, so train I did. Each day was filled with grueling mental exercises. One day, I sat for hours doing nothing but focusing my thoughts on a single candle flame. Felix wanted me to project my mind into the flame. Though I was not sure how to tell if I had succeeded, I did try. It was head-splitting work, but at least pain was something I understood and knew how to deal with.

  Another exercise was counting the clicks that were randomly generated by the computers. The goal was to be focused enough that no matter how quiet the clicks were, or how monotonous they got, I would catch every one of them. They would walk into the room carrying on a conversation or shine flashlights in my face to distract me. I lost count numerous times, and even fell asleep a few times. But as the week wore on I got better at it.

  On and on, every day I did nothing but these mental gymnastics. When training physical combat under Narcion we did the same kind of pattern. I would repeat some seemingly simple move over and over again for what seemed to be an eternity. All that repetition turned into faster reflexes and greatly improved my skills. I was not sure how the exercises I was doing with Felix would end up helping, but I assumed it was the same concept.

  When we arrived at the hospital, I was given a much-desired break from the mental exercises. Narcion stayed on the bridge and had me run things for him. I contacted the station, and once the formal greetings were complete I said, “We have one patient in a hyberpod in critical condition. I am sending the readouts to you now. None of us possesses the skill to understand them.”

  “I see,” he said. After studying the readouts he said, “I am moving you to priority one. Dock your vessel at Docking Arm Five-B. A medical team will board your vessel shortly after you dock and have further instructions for you,” and then cut the channel.

  “That can’t be good,” said Felix.

  Thankfully, Crivreen was not in earshot. “Narcion, did you get all that?” I asked over the intercom.

  “Yes. Once we are docked, let them on and give them whatever they need,” he said.

  It was not long before we reached the docking arm, and the medical team was already waiting at the airlock when we secured ourselves to the station. I opened the door and said, “This way to sick bay.”

  After they were set up, I had to physically pull Crivreen out of the room so that they could work. I could tell by their demeanor that they did not have time to talk, so I just made sure everyone stayed out of their way. From what I could tell, our medical bay was fully stocked and seemed fairly advanced to me, so I was sure they would have all they needed in there.

  Crivreen nervously paced back and forth in front of the door. I wished there was something I could say, but really there are no words for a time like this. It seemed like hours before anything changed, but suddenly Crivreen stopped and said, “He didn’t make it.” He collapsed in a corner and did not move.

  “How do you know?” I asked.

  He did not respond, but I heard Felix’s voice in my head: “Crivreen has been using his telepathy to watch from out here.”

  I jumped a little, looked at him, and said, “How di … ?” but he cut me off.

  “No words. Remember the candle exercise. Focus your words as a thought aimed at me,” he sent.

  “How?” I wondered.

  “Just like that,” he sent back.

  “You are reading my mind?” I thought but then something clicked. I had willed the ‘how’ comment in his direction. “Like this?”

  “Yes, exactly! I can only read what you will me to read. At least, that is all I can do without trying to break through the defenses you’ve learned to build,” he sent back.

  “If it was this easy, why did you wait till now?” I sent back.

  Before he could answer, the doctors came out of sick bay and one said, “I am very sorry. We did all we could. The damage was just too extensive. Even had we been at the scene of the incident I doubt we could have saved him.”

  “It’s okay. We knew it was a long shot,” I said.

  He looked over and saw Crivreen in the corner and said, “I presume they were close?”

  “It was as if they were brothers,” said Felix as he walked over and sat with Crivreen.

  The doctor led me away and then said, “If you like, we can take care of the remains for you.”

  “Can you arrange to return them to his family?” I asked.

  “Certainly. We will take him with us. It would be best if you included a message explaining what happened.”

  “Thanks. I will get that to you before we leave.”

  “And if you want, we can send someone over to help him,” said the doctor while gesturing back towards Crivreen.

  This seemed like a perfect use for a private comment, so I tried thinking at Felix again. “Felix? They want to send someone to help Crivreen. What do you think?”

  “I don’t think that would be a good idea,” he sent back.

  “I think we will pass, but thank you,” I said with a sigh. It probably would have been good to get him some grief counseling. I wondered why Felix wanted to avoid that, but I had to trust that he knew Crivreen best.

  “Well, if you change your mind, let the station know,” he said. His team then packed up, collected the body and left.

  I went over to Crivreen and knelt down before him. I could not quite get all the way down to his level, but I got as low as I could. “Hey, we need to write a letter for his family. Are you up for doing that? If not, I am sure Felix and I can come up with something.”

  “No, I’ll do it,” he said and then wandered off.

  “Too soon?” I asked Felix.

  “Perhaps, but what’s done is done,” he said and then followed Crivreen.

  I felt really bad for Crivreen. It was obvious he’d cared a lot for Jammer. Later, when he was feeling better, I would have to find out more about Jammer. It seemed wrong to lose a man and not know more than just his nickname. I decided to let that thought go for now to give them time, and headed up to the bridge to bring Narcion up to date.

  As I entered the bridge he said, “Your mental focus is significantly improved.”

  “Huh?” I asked. I had been deep in thought trying to make sense of my ever-changing reality. I wondered if I’d missed part of his comment, because what he said seemed so out of place.

  “Your mind: it is sharper. I can sense less of it,” he said.

  “Is that a good thing?” I asked.

  “Excellent thing,” he said. “Can you hear this yet?”

  “Yes, but it is still a bit odd to hear someone talking without speech,” I said.

  “And send?” he asked.

  “Yes,” I sent.

  “Excellent! You are making great progress,” he said.

  “Am I a magus?” I asked.

  “We need to undock and free this arm for any other emergencies that come along,” he said.

  As he turned away, I held his shoulder to stop him and said, “No, not this time, Narcion.” I needed to know, and I was not going to put up with his redirection.

  He chuckled. “I figured sooner or later you would start pushing back a little. This term ‘magus’ is an odd one to
me, but in the sense I think they mean it, yes. Understand, all that really means is that you have the natural ability to tap and use the energy of the universe itself.”

  I was stunned for a moment at the success of my insistence, but that passed and reality sank in. “So I am a freak.”

  “No, you are not. The universe is a vast and varied place. You represent one tiny little variation in the vast dynamic sea of life.”

  “Why didn’t you tell me before?”

  He set the autopilot to undock, then looked me in the eye and said, “Zah’rak, I hope you understand that I completely trust you; you are the only family I have out here, but I can’t tell you everything all at once. Think about it for a moment. That first day we met, if I had told you that you would be using knives to fight spirits and dead people, what would you have thought?”

  I had to cede his point on that one. “That you were crazy.”

  “And if I told you I planned to teach you telepathy?”

  Again, the point was his. “That you were a freak.”

  “Right. I have so much more to teach you, but we have to get there in baby steps.” He paused for a long moment and then sighed. “Those two down there are a different case. Right now they are helpful for your training, but I think we will need to drop them off somewhere. Felix’s history makes him a man I can’t trust, and Crivreen is too malleable.”

  “So what do you plan to do?” I asked.

  “Well, you are going to continue your training with them for the next couple of weeks. We need to pick up supplies, so I have programmed a course to a place where I can buy some safely. It is a major trade hub, so we will give them some money and supplies with which to restart their lives, and leave them there.”

  “We could use the help, and I think they could too.”

  “You think we should keep them on?”

  “I think we should offer it. Why can’t you trust Felix?” I asked.

  “In a day or two he is going to get a message with an offer that he will not be able to turn down.”

  “What kind of offer?” I asked.

  “The Wolf Pack will tell him that either he helps them kill me, or they will kill his family,” he said.

  “Wolf Pack? More bounty hunters?” I asked.

  “No, assassins. The best,” he said.

  I thought about that for a bit and then said, “So kicking him off the ship protects him and his family.”

  “Exactly. We are about two weeks, maybe a bit more, from that station, so I will have to buy him time,” he said.

  “How do you know about this?” I asked.

  “I know that the Wolf Pack has already contacted him, and I know how they operate. It is just a matter of time before they send that message,” he said.

  “So they’ve already asked him once and he turned them down?” I asked.

  “Actually, he simply did not respond, but he did tell me about it,” he said.

  “Does he know your plan?” I asked.

  “No, and do not tell him yet. I am sure Felix will understand, but Crivreen needs time to mourn and is not ready to handle thinking about moving on yet. As we get closer to the station, you can talk to them about it. Now there is something I need to do that can’t wait. The ship is yours till I return. Farewell, my brother.”

  “Return?” I started to ask, but he was gone. He did not leave; he just simply ceased to be there. He had done that before, but it still baffled me.

  Chapter Twelve

  Far from where Zah’rak was coming to grips with his newfound powers, Claw was applying lightweight oil to one of his swords. He was unnaturally focused on his task as he worked. Sitting nearby, Fang had his blasters completely disassembled on a table in front of him. With the same painstaking care that Claw was using to care for his blade, Fang was cleaning and tuning his weapons.

  The two of them worked in complete silence until their leader came in. “What makes this Narcion so special?” asked Fang.

  “Yeah, I’ve never heard of him before,” said Claw.

  “Well, he is good at staying below the radar. He is a contract mercenary. He does a lot of impossible jobs, and never fails.”

  “Kind of like us then?” asked Claw.

  “Yes. He has a very large bounty on his head, possibly the biggest one anyone has ever had, and this has been the case for many years,” said their leader.

  “Why hasn’t anyone claimed it yet?” asked Fang.

  “Many have tried, but it is a dangerous sport, and none survive. A few years ago, there was an officer in Resden Consortium who decided to try to claim that bounty. He set up a trap for Narcion and sent an entire battle fleet to kill him. Narcion was in a hauler with some goods he had been paid to retrieve when they met up with him and surrounded him.” He paused there for a moment and then said, “Not a single member of the battle fleet survived.”

  “Nice,” said Fang.

  “The man who had contracted the fleet was found dead with no visible wounds on his body. He was deep in the secure Resden headquarters,” said their leader.

  “Hmm, sounds like someone we could like,” said Claw.

  “You said he was recently trapped on a station?” asked Fang.

  “Yes. That was the latest attempt on his life. Our employer had him trapped on a station and convinced the guards to activate the self-destruct mechanism. Narcion escaped and managed to bring around two dozen survivors with him, one of whom turned out to be a problem for him.”

  “How so?” asked Claw.

  “He was a plant from another consortium, unrelated to our employer, and he tried to organize a mutiny. The local police found all of them floating in space unharmed. A few days later the one who had tried to organize the mutiny turned up dead while sitting in a high-security prison. The man who had hired him was also found dead that same day, light years away from the prison.”

  “So you are saying anyone who tries to hire someone to kill him is quickly dispatched?” asked Claw.

  “Yes, this seems to be a very effective method of reducing the number of people that bother him,” said their leader.

  “But you just said our employer took out the last hit on him, didn’t you?” asked Claw.

  There was a moment of silence in the room as that comment just floated in the air, then their leader turned to a terminal and attempted to call their headquarters. After receiving no response he began to scan the news blasts. One headline caught his eye: “Slave uprising in the Phineary District.”

  “Computer, disengage autopilot and find the fastest route to headquarters!” He quickly left the room and headed to the bridge.

  Fang and Claw followed him down the corridor and Fang said, “I think this just got personal.”

  They headed back to headquarters as fast as they could, all the while trying to reach anyone who might be there. The Phareon government had declared a state of emergency and was not allowing anyone in, but did nothing to stop their craft as it blew through the blockade at full speed.

  As they dove into the atmosphere and flew over the city Claw said, “It’s a warzone.” Around them they could see combat everywhere. Slaves had taken to the streets and overpowered the local police forces; armed with the police weapons, they then took over. The local military was going from door to door trying to retake the city, but the city was being destroyed in the process. The death toll was rising by the minute. It was unlikely the city would ever recover from this revolt.

  “Yeah, local news blasts say most of the city is rioting,” said Claw.

  “What could have caused this?” asked Fang.

  “Loss of control from the top: a moment of weakness, and those with nothing to lose rise up,” said their leader quietly.

  As they approached the tower where they had last seen the man behind the desk who had employed them for this job, they locked down their helmets on their armor and headed to the airlock while decompressing the entire ship. Below them, rebels could
be seen on the roof. They were using it as an anti-aircraft platform and were in the process of trying to get their guns lined up with the fast-moving Wolf Pack cruiser.

  “Let’s move!” he called out and they jumped out of the airlock and fell onto the roof. Their armor absorbed the shock of the landing and the ship flew back up into the clouds out of range of the rebel weapons.

  Before the guards on the roof could react, the Wolf Pack was in motion. They moved with unnatural speed and grace, quickly cutting the down rebels with their swords. Once the roof was secured, they charged the door that led down into the building and blasted it open.

  Inside, the building was well-lit, but they punched a command into an access panel and killed power to the entire complex. With a grace that one does not expect to see in men running through complete darkness, they moved quickly towards the heart of the building. For the most part they were able to avoid the patrols of rebels who were trying to get power restored, but when they could not they cut right through them. It was as if they could still see, while the rebels were completely blind. They easily moved at twice the speed of any normal human.

  Eventually they made it to the room where their leader had met with the man behind the desk. They kicked open the door and charged in. Unlike the rest of the building, this room still had power. The man who had hired them was sitting in the chair, dead, a knife handle sticking out of his forehead and a look of sheer terror frozen on his face for all time. In front of him, calmly sitting on the desk, was Narcion.

  “Hold your fire and fan out! Careful, it would be impossible to overestimate him!” said their leader over their private communication system.

  As they fanned out, Narcion said, “I have no quarrel with you.”

  “Where is she?” demanded their leader.

  “I’m here!” came a female voice as a young woman came running out from behind the desk. She was the same woman who had been trapped and who had previously drawn longing looks from him. Slight of build, she was covered with bruises and scrapes on her scantily-clad body. She pointed to Narcion and said, “That man there freed me,” as she fell into the leader’s arms.