CHAPTER TWO
VESPER
Kyrion, Asterin, and I stayed in the locker room, waiting for Siya to return.
Kyrion raked a hand though his midnight-black hair, although the longish wavy locks fell right back into place. The overhead lights cast shadows on his pale skin and brought out his high cheekbones and sharp nose, along with the worried line that had taken up residence over his dark, ink-blue eyes.
Kyrion clasped his hands behind his back and started pacing, and the sticky cobweb of him in my mind bristled with nervous anticipation.
Or maybe that was my own emotion sloshing around in my stomach.
Sometimes it was hard to tell whether I was experiencing my own feelings, Kyrion’s feelings, or a mixture of the two.
When Aldrich and Verona had first suggested we come to the training facility a few days ago, I had been excited for the challenge. But now that I had seen how massive the maze was . . . well, doubt had eclipsed my eagerness like a sun crossing in front of a moon.
Two weeks ago, when Kyrion and I defeated Esmina Reston and Pollux Lamont, we had finally stabilized and solidified our truebond.
Eliminating the mercenaries had been a big relief, but the battle had also forced us to confront some of our deepest fears.
I’d been worried I wasn’t a skilled enough warrior to be bonded to Kyrion, while he’d been concerned he wasn’t strong enough to protect me from our many enemies.
Kyrion and I were both still afraid of those things, but we could handle our fears much better than before.
In a weird way, I was grateful to Esmina and Pollux for teaching us some important lessons about being equal partners and how Kyrion and I could rely on ourselves and our individual abilities, as well as each other and the truebond between us.
That mutual understanding and trust had sunk into our bond and made it even more powerful.
Most of the time, I could use Kyrion’s telekinesis and telepathy when and how I wanted, while he was learning to interpret my seer magic, which often appeared as silver flares of light around people or objects that were going to be useful or important in some future way.
I still couldn’t form a psionic blade, a weapon made of pure mental energy, on a regular basis like Kyrion, but I was getting better at summoning and wielding my seer magic, along with Kyrion’s abilities.
And we were both getting stronger, able to pull on more and more power without tiring ourselves or exhausting each other’s abilities.
But the House Battis maze was quite literally the biggest challenge we had faced, and I was worried all the progress we’d made wasn’t enough to help us navigate through the twists and turns, along with the obstacles hidden inside.
As a child, I always had to be the best—the best, most devoted student, who got the best and highest grades, who built the best and most elaborate projects for my science classes.
I’d thought if only I was good, smart, and strong enough, I could eventually earn Nerezza’s love.
Of course, my duplicitous mother had no love to give, but I’d never been able to shake off that inner drive, dedication, and determination.
Now I wanted—needed—to be the best warrior and truebonded partner possible for Kyrion’s sake, so he wouldn’t be either physically or psionically hurt by my actions.
Plus, I hated losing. I loved Kyrion with every atom of my being, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t try my best to beat him in our friendly competition to see who could find the other and reach the center of the maze first.
My hand drifted down to the empty slot on my belt where my stormsword would normally be. Even though I had only been training with the weapon for a few months, it already felt like a part of me, and I missed its slight, comforting weight.
I studied the thumbprint scanner on the locker where Siya had stored our weapons.
Quill Corp, my company, manufactured something similar, and my mind whirred, comparing those schematics to this device.
It wouldn’t be too hard to pry off the plastic cover, yank the wires free, and hot-wire the scanner to open the locker.
Asterin stepped in front of me, blocking my view of the scanner. She shook her right index finger back and forth. “Nuh-uh. None of that. No plotting how you can finesse the locker open and grab a weapon. That’s an order from my mother.”
I huffed out an annoyed breath. “Fine. Although if Verona wanted me to follow her orders, then she should have come with us and explained exactly how we’re supposed to navigate the maze using just our truebond.”
Asterin shrugged. “Verona and Aldrich had some business at another House. They’ll meet us back at the estate later tonight. But they gave Siya and me strict instructions about your training, including not letting you and Kyrion take any weapons into the maze, especially not your stormswords.”
“Why?” I asked.
“The lunarium blades could amplify your psionic abilities, instead of making you and Kyrion rely solely on your bond.”
I grumbled, but Asterin gave me a serene smile that was an eerie match to the expression Lady Verona so often used to get her way.
Footsteps squeaked on the tile floor, and Siya stepped into view carrying two silver cuffs. “Here,” she said, holding the cuffs out to Kyrion and me. “Put these on.”
We did as she asked. The silver was surprisingly lightweight, and the cuff shrank a bit, automatically adjusting so that it fit snugly on my left wrist. A small holoscreen embedded in the metal flared to life, and a series of numbers appeared, showing my vital signs.
“What are these?” Kyrion asked in a suspicious voice.
“Holocuffs,” Siya replied. “They are synced to the main panel in the control room and create holograms that Asterin and I can watch. The cuffs will also show us where you two are in the maze, what obstacles you encounter, and how much stress they put on your bodies.”
I hummed in appreciation at the thought of analyzing all that data, but Kyrion glared at his cuff like he wanted to rip it off.
“What else will this device do?” he muttered. “Shock us if we don’t reach the center of the maze quickly enough?”
Asterin frowned. “Of course not! Why would you even think that?”
“Holloway used such devices in the past,” Kyrion replied in a stiff voice. “To motivate me during my Arrow training, especially when I was younger. There are always consequences for failure.”
My heart squeezed. Kyrion was such a strong, accomplished warrior I sometimes forgot all the cruel, grueling things he had endured at Holloway’s hands.
“No, the cuffs won’t shock you,” Siya replied. “But Lady Battis will charge House Collier for every single minute you go over the allotted time to reach the center of the maze.”
Kyrion and I shared a wary look. Now there was even more pressure to complete the training as fast as possible.
More footsteps squeaked on the floor, and several people trooped into the locker room.
They were a mix of men and women, all shapes and sizes, and ranging in age from early twenties to late sixties.
All wore red House Battis uniforms stained with sweat and dirt and singed with minor blaster burns.
One woman even had a couple of pink-star honeysuckle blossoms snagged in her long, tangled blond hair, making her look like a princess from some old fairy tale.
Every person was carrying at least one weapon. Mostly blasters and war hammers, along with a few hand cannons.
I studied the cannons, but they were an old, standard model by House Collier and not the new, much deadlier Techwave cannons that were based on my stolen design.
I exhaled a quiet sigh of relief. Sooner or later, someone besides me was going to figure out how to fix the faulty Techwave cannons, but that was a worry for another day.
The men and women split off, going over to the other lockers or heading toward the shower stalls. None of them said a word, and they were all either limping, grimacing, or both.
More footsteps squeaked, and a tall man swaggered into view. His uniform was immaculate, and he was whistling instead of wincing. Ah, this must be the winning warrior.
The man was quite handsome, with longish wavy dark brown hair, dark brown eyes, and tan skin that practically glowed with health and vitality, as though he had just gone to a fancy spa.
He looked to be in his late thirties, the same age as me, Kyrion, Asterin, and Siya.
His body was all lean, hard muscle, and his high, sharp cheekbones, straight nose, and square jaw could have easily gotten him a modeling job on a fashion gossipcast.
Several daggers hung from his black leather belt, along with a blaster I recognized as a House Battis design.
I sniffed. A serviceable enough weapon, although it wasn’t nearly as powerful and reliable as the new Quill Corp blaster I had been working on before Kyrion and I were forced to go on the run.
The man stopped and beamed at my friends. “Asterin! Siya!” he said in a deep baritone. “How wonderful to see you both again! It’s been far too long.”
Asterin stepped forward, smiling wide. “Hello, Roderick. It’s good to see you too.”
He returned Asterin’s smile, then looked over at Siya. “Hello, Siya.”
“Roderick,” she replied in a cool voice, her face neutral.
Roderick’s smile remained steady, although his eyes narrowed at the Erzton lady’s less-than-warm welcome.
Asterin gestured at him. “This is Roderick Battis. He’s the one who extended the invitation for your training and agreed to let us use the facility after hours.” Next, she gestured at Kyrion and me. “This is Lord Kyrion Caldaren and Lady Vesper Quill from the Imperium.”
“Of course,” Roderick murmured. “I’ve seen them on the gossipcasts.”