"I'm
afraid you misunderstand. A reliable witness saw you using
telekinetic powers. If that truly is the case, we would like you to
come home and rejoin us as a brother in our quest to one day be
accepted as the psions we are."
Since Tiyuri was not a telepath, Magnius did
little to shield his inner contempt for Aliane. Once long ago she
might've felt like that. But recent news reports indicated she'd
become more aggressive, lashing out at psions who lived on Chara as
sell-outs and frauds. Part of him wondered if it was a veiled
attack on him. "I don't know, she's not the person I thought she
was."
"The Mistress has a vision that will reunite
us all," Tiyuri said and released his grasp. "She's on her way to a
Seer as we speak in order to find the path. If you resist, I will
be forced to eliminate you."
As long as he had any say in the matter,
Magnius didn't plan to return to Superbia. However, if Tiyuri
thought for an instant he had no intention of coming with him, he'd
make Magnius beg for death. If there was a way out of this, he sure
as hell didn't see it yet.
"Give me until tomorrow morning. I need to
take care of a few things before I go. And yes, I realize you'll be
watching me."
He hopped on the hoverbike, but when he
turned his attention back to Tiyuri, he'd vanished. No sooner had
he started its engine than the rain resumed its diabolical fury. If
his frustration could've flung him straight into space, he'd be in
orbit of Nuage about now.
***
Amii stood in the sickbay of the Kearsarge while the doctor gave her a thorough physical. The
unfinished bulkheads had been covered by green panels. A faint odor
of bleach lingered in the air. An examination table sat in the
center of the room, ringed with analytical tables and sophisticated
medical instruments. The cluttered workspace led her to the
conclusion the doctor was knee-deep in some kind of research,
though the nature of it was foreign to her.
Xander chewed on his bottom lip while he
paced around the sickbay and watched the doctor starting his second
test. "I thought I told you to stop touching her."
Dr. Jones sighed again and puffed up his
well-built chest, a move that made him look ready to pummel Xander
into oblivion. "I can't do the tests if I can't touch her. If you
won't pipe down, you need to leave."
"Bloody doctors." He skulked away and dropped
into a chair by the door.
The doctor's attention returned to his
patient. "Amii, is any of this bothering you? You can refuse the
tests at any time."
"Please continue," she said as she sat down
on the examination bed and smoothed out her blue gown.
"I need you to lay down for me," Dr. Jones
said. "Your vitals look normal, but I want to do some
high-resolution imaging of your head to check for recent trauma or
anything else that might indicate the cause of your memory
loss."
She nodded and stretched herself out across
the bed, the head of which was tilted up. The doctor rolled a large
device over to her, designed to fit around the bed and over her
head. It was an IMRI, a cutting-edge instrument that could detect
even the most minor brain trauma. If anything were wrong with her
head, this machine would sniff it out. The doctor pushed a few
buttons to calibrate it. She heard the quiet whir of the device as
it started.
The relief of being off Pisa soothed her. The
chances she'd run into a group from the Allied Fleet were slim at
best. She had no idea who Xander Adams was or how he seemed to know
her. But the idea that someone had an inkling of her past satisfied
her. She glanced over at him; he sat with his legs crossed and
shook his foot frantically as he bit his thumb and muttered to
himself. The sight made her smile.
"This is going to take about five minutes.
Xander, a word. In my office. Now."
The two men strode away, and the latch of the
door followed moments later. Because Amii needed to keep still, she
couldn't watch them, but between the chirps of the scanner, she
heard their muted
afraid you misunderstand. A reliable witness saw you using
telekinetic powers. If that truly is the case, we would like you to
come home and rejoin us as a brother in our quest to one day be
accepted as the psions we are."
Since Tiyuri was not a telepath, Magnius did
little to shield his inner contempt for Aliane. Once long ago she
might've felt like that. But recent news reports indicated she'd
become more aggressive, lashing out at psions who lived on Chara as
sell-outs and frauds. Part of him wondered if it was a veiled
attack on him. "I don't know, she's not the person I thought she
was."
"The Mistress has a vision that will reunite
us all," Tiyuri said and released his grasp. "She's on her way to a
Seer as we speak in order to find the path. If you resist, I will
be forced to eliminate you."
As long as he had any say in the matter,
Magnius didn't plan to return to Superbia. However, if Tiyuri
thought for an instant he had no intention of coming with him, he'd
make Magnius beg for death. If there was a way out of this, he sure
as hell didn't see it yet.
"Give me until tomorrow morning. I need to
take care of a few things before I go. And yes, I realize you'll be
watching me."
He hopped on the hoverbike, but when he
turned his attention back to Tiyuri, he'd vanished. No sooner had
he started its engine than the rain resumed its diabolical fury. If
his frustration could've flung him straight into space, he'd be in
orbit of Nuage about now.
***
Amii stood in the sickbay of the Kearsarge while the doctor gave her a thorough physical. The
unfinished bulkheads had been covered by green panels. A faint odor
of bleach lingered in the air. An examination table sat in the
center of the room, ringed with analytical tables and sophisticated
medical instruments. The cluttered workspace led her to the
conclusion the doctor was knee-deep in some kind of research,
though the nature of it was foreign to her.
Xander chewed on his bottom lip while he
paced around the sickbay and watched the doctor starting his second
test. "I thought I told you to stop touching her."
Dr. Jones sighed again and puffed up his
well-built chest, a move that made him look ready to pummel Xander
into oblivion. "I can't do the tests if I can't touch her. If you
won't pipe down, you need to leave."
"Bloody doctors." He skulked away and dropped
into a chair by the door.
The doctor's attention returned to his
patient. "Amii, is any of this bothering you? You can refuse the
tests at any time."
"Please continue," she said as she sat down
on the examination bed and smoothed out her blue gown.
"I need you to lay down for me," Dr. Jones
said. "Your vitals look normal, but I want to do some
high-resolution imaging of your head to check for recent trauma or
anything else that might indicate the cause of your memory
loss."
She nodded and stretched herself out across
the bed, the head of which was tilted up. The doctor rolled a large
device over to her, designed to fit around the bed and over her
head. It was an IMRI, a cutting-edge instrument that could detect
even the most minor brain trauma. If anything were wrong with her
head, this machine would sniff it out. The doctor pushed a few
buttons to calibrate it. She heard the quiet whir of the device as
it started.
The relief of being off Pisa soothed her. The
chances she'd run into a group from the Allied Fleet were slim at
best. She had no idea who Xander Adams was or how he seemed to know
her. But the idea that someone had an inkling of her past satisfied
her. She glanced over at him; he sat with his legs crossed and
shook his foot frantically as he bit his thumb and muttered to
himself. The sight made her smile.
"This is going to take about five minutes.
Xander, a word. In my office. Now."
The two men strode away, and the latch of the
door followed moments later. Because Amii needed to keep still, she
couldn't watch them, but between the chirps of the scanner, she
heard their muted
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