Onidus 17 #2
I nod. My tongue is numb from the popsicle, and my erection is digging into the gear belt still around my waist.
Solara drops her equipment into the bins on a nearby table, hands off the rifle, then finds Ashani. She looks back at me with a rosy smile as they walk toward the females’ wing.
“She’s pretty.”
I wheel around to find a familiar Smolder behind me. “Ulian?”
“Hey.” He tilts his head toward the complex, giving me a good look at the scar through his family crest tattooed in silver on the side of his neck. “Ryz is here, too.”
“Why? I just spoke with Viriden. He didn’t say anything.”
He motions me inside. I deposit my gear and follow him into the building. “So that mission he sent me on, and Ryz too, brought us here. We’ve been chasing strange signals in the Vibrance dimension. Oddly, we each picked one up here last night.”
“Mine?”
“No. And it isn’t Vibrance, just in that dimension.”
Ulian leads me up the ramp of my ship.
ION Striker greets us. “Hello, Smoldren. How can I assist you today?”
Ulian stops and looks back at me. “Have you gotten used to it yet?”
I shake my head. “No. But I’m trying really hard not to give up hope.”
Ulian glances at ION Striker’s stats screen. “Hello, ION. Can you bring up the file I shared with you?”
“Yes, one second.”
The screen beside us illuminates with a set of pings, one between the earth and the moon. And several on Earth.
Ryz hikes onboard. “Docked in the cargo area. It’s all they had. Sorry, I’m late.”
“Where else are these signals from?” I ask. Do we have any data on them?”
Ulian and Ryz exchange a glance that I don’t like.
What is it? I ask.
There are signals in one other region of space,” Ulian says.
Ryz scratches the bridge of his nose just above his mask. You’re not going to like it.
“Oh, come on guys. I know you’re talking in your heads again,” ION whines. “I’m feeling left out.”
Ulian rolls his eyes up at the AI harbor in the ceiling. You had to take an Ember. He was far too young for a ship.
I wasn’t going to let him fade. He has a good soul. Vibrant. And there was no one left to visit his Revenant in the Hall of Souls.
Ryz scowls. He’s going to make mistakes.
Like any one of us. “Where else have these signals been seen?”
Ulian plants his hands on his hips. “Delsfein.”
“But they’re all…” I reply.
“I know.” Ulian scrubs a hand through his hair.
ION makes a frustrated noise. “They’re what?”
“Dead.” Ryz looks at the screen beside me. “Onidus and Solara are the only two survivors of that world. The few natives they had portaled to another dimension, or so Viriden just told us.”
“Which is why this doesn’t make sense,” Ulian adds.
“Unless one of them is attached to or linked to Solara, somehow,” I offer.
“Your power is exceptional too. Perhaps the Delsfein did something to you as well,” Ryz says. He lifts a device from his pocket and points it at me. It buzzes, and I can feel it pass over me like a hot blanket of static. “Daaamn, Onidus. That’s higher than I remember.”
Ulian tilts to scan the readout over Ryz’s shoulder. “Lumen Command had to have inferred it from your reoccurring firestorms. They’ve always ranked you as a Smolder. But that is high.”
I rub my forehead. “Viriden senses it at least. He said I would know my mission when I got here. Perhaps it was Azrim’s gift?”
“What was that?” a screen asks.
I turn to see General Viriden peering out at us.
“Sir?” Ulian reports their findings regarding the Delsfein. As he does, I call to ION and step away from them.
“ION, did Viriden call us?” I ask.
“No. I called him. We need help.”
I restrain the urge to sigh.
Ryz shakes his head. “Told you.”
“ION, do not call anyone without my permission. Viriden is a very busy general.”
“But he is an Ison like you. You need help from an older, experienced male,” ION replies.
“ION Striker,” General Viriden calls to my ship’s Vibrance. “While I appreciate you keeping me in the loop, I do not appreciate being called old.”
ION’s monitor dips into weaker signals.
General Viriden smiles. “But it is an accurate statement, so no punishment is warranted.” He looks at me. “Now, Onidus, what to do about this situation…”
“She wants to come with us as a medic.” I blurt it before I think. I don’t want the guys to see how much she affects me or how strong our Bond is growing in my core. I don’t want them to doubt my capability in battle.
Viriden sits back. “Okay. A medic? She’ll need training first. But are you okay with this?”
“It will keep her under our watch and away from her family. But she has federal certifications for over 200 species.”
He considers it for a moment. “We may have to rush her through some training. Tension is escalating in the fringe worlds. Allies are assembling in space now.”
“If we need to call the race early, then let’s do it.” But my core betrays me, lighting up at the mere idea of Solara living among our people.
Ryz rests a hand on my shoulder. “We’ll make sure she comes with us, and she’s safe no matter what.”
Viriden nods. “Until we know how Solara has been affected by her connection to the Nebs, Delsfein, and this chip, we need to keep a close watch on her.”
“What about me?”
Viriden looks me over. “I knew you were going to be a Master, maybe even Ison, before you ever went to Delsfein. Your Luminescence was brighter before the traumatic Delsfein massacre. I think you’ve just found your way back to it.
“I’ll get her forms submitted. For now, continue the race. And well done during the maze. You won, but you gave your prize to someone who will benefit from that gesture. Caligno definitely needed to see that. Keep it up.”
“Yes, sir.”
My formal uniform hits me in the face. I catch it. Ryz grins. “Now let’s shine you up so you can impress your Bond.”
“Ryz.” Ulian sits on a bench in the back. “We need to be game-on and try to figure out what the hell the Delsfein are trying to do to them now. Why now? What do they need?”
“Maybe it’s time for a Resonance Ritual.” I shrug.
“But do we invite her?” Ulian asks.
“Yes,” Ryz is firm. “She’s involved whether she likes it or not. And if she’s joining us, then we need to let her in.”
I nod. “Fine. Just let me talk to her about this first. Her family forced her into a lot of things. I don’t want to do that to her anymore. I want things to be her choice.”
Ulian and Ryz agree.
I’m eager to get back to her, so I change fast. Something deeper is going on. “How did you know what Vibrance signals were off?”
“Augurs,” Ulian replies. “At least, that’s what Commander Ervior of Chromis said when he dispatched us. He was sent out as the lead on the mission. Smoldren Niuro and Reitan are surveilling the abandoned Delsfein homeworld.”
I buckle my golden armor plates down my sides and trade out my working mask for the polished one.
“Does she know?” Ryz asks.
“About what?” I ask.
He motions to my face.
I smile as I attach my polished mask. “Yeah.”
“I saw that,” Ryz teases. “What’s that smile for?”
“None of your business.”
“Bah. You’re no fun.” Ryz walks to where Ulian assesses the screens with the data ION has acquired from their ships.
“Well, I have to go to a stuffy dinner and talk to Solara about a mysterious extradimensional energy reminiscent of a traumatic event that is coming back to haunt us. What is it that humans say when up against something challenging? Piece of cake?”
“I do not know what that means, brother.” Ryz grins. “But I like cake.”