"Of course you, my proud Cat Man," Necator sneered, "will not live to see your son. He'll find you dead when I drag him back here, your body sliced to pieces by this most painfully efficient tool." As he spoke, he slowly raised the light beam to Morigan's face.
The crackle of laser searing flesh filled the deathly silent room. Though Morigan twisted futilely in Necator's grip, he made not a sound. But something snapped in Liane. All the hatred and loathing she'd ever felt for the Lord Commander rose in a blinding burst of fury. With a wild cry she ran into the lab, her stunner in hand. Before anyone could react, she fired at Necator.
He fell with a gurgling cry, his body spasming grotesquely. The laser probe slid from his hand, skittering across the room toward Liane. She dove for it. The lab went wild.
Scientists scrambled for cover, some running for the door, others leaping behind lab tables and computer consoles. Liane grabbed the probe and fired at a scientist reaching for the alarm button. The discordant wail of a siren filled the room, mingling with the scream of the man now grasping a hand half-severed from his arm. Rolling over, Liane fired the laser again, this time at another man advancing on her with a heavy metallic bar. He, too, bellowed in agony and toppled over, clasping his face.
The control box lay in Necator's belt. Liane grabbed it and directed it at Morigan. The electronic shackles relaxed. Karic's father slumped to the floor. She knelt and gathered him to her.
"My lord," she whispered, sickened by the deep wound the laser had slashed across his face, "we must leave!"
"Go, femina," Morigan gasped. "Gget away before the guards arrive! I've no strength . . . would only hinder you. Get back to Karic. Warn him!"
"No!" Liane struggled to pull him to his feet, but his dead weight was too much for her. "I can't leave you. They'll kill you if I do."
"Then so be it." He gazed up at her, a tender, loving smile lighting his face. "The future lies with you and Karic now . . . and my grandchild."
Her eyes, full of hot tears, widened. "You know?"
"It was to be expected." Morigan gave her a gentle shove. "Now, go and tell Karic my thoughts were of him."
A sob rose, nearly strangling her, but Liane did as she was told. "Farewell," she whispered. She gave him a brief kiss on the cheek before standing up.
Liane made her way to the door of the now deserted room and out into the corridor. Shouts and the heavy thud of approaching footsteps echoed down the hallway. With a final glance at Morigan's crumpled form, Liane turned and fled in the opposite direction.
Liane ran until the sounds of pursuit faded and she was once more alone. She slumped against a wall, gasping for breath. The frantic beat of her heart gradually diminished, and the sheer terror ebbed.
She glanced around. Somehow, in the wild panic of flight, she'd found her way back to the upper level. She now stood inside the long hallway that led to the guest quarters. Liane peered down the length of dimly lit corridor. She saw a door at its end and sighed in relief.
Well, at least there was a way out, she thought, and the sooner she escaped the palace, the better. Once back in the winding streets of Primasedes, it would be far more difficult to find her.
As Liane made her way down the shadowy hallway, a strange sensation washed over her. She halted, confused. Her mind searched for the source of the feeling, vainly attempting to fathom its significance. Frustration welled in her.
In the past, when in full possession of her Sententian powers, the meaning of the strange vibrations would have been crystal clear, but not now, not anymore. The fact she felt anything at all amazed her. How was she able . . . ?
Her hand slid to her belly. It was the child. It had to be. Somehow, even now, the childher daughterwas psychically sensitive and speaking to her. And she was telling herwarning her?of some presence. But what was the significance of the message? And was the presence good or evil?
Liane's steps faltered, then stopped. The presence was near. It pervaded her, mesmerizing her. Fear spiraled, turning her hands to ice. Liane moved forward and came to an abrupt halt at the next door.
The impulse to enter beckoned with an almost uncontrollable force. There was no recourse but to face what lay within. With a resolute straightening of her shoulders, she pushed open the door.
On silent, stealthy footsteps, Liane entered the darkened bedchamber, carefully closing the door behind her. She could barely see, save for the muted recessed lighting high on the walls. She scanned the room, taking in the furnishings, the ornately stone-carved bed. Within it lay the form of a large, powerfully built man, his heavily muscled shoulders and back exposed beneath the light coverlet. A sinewy arm dangled off the side of the bed. The sound of deep, even breathing filled the room.
Stunner in hand Liane crept toward him, still puzzled as to why she'd been drawn here and who this man was. His face was difficult to discern with him sleeping on his stomach, but his hair was dark and wavy and he wore a beard. She halted, indecision overcoming her.
Should she wake him, and if she did, what would she say? At that moment what she needed was help, and most likely the only help he'd give would be to escort her back to Necator. She'd been a fool to come. She must leave, now, before he wakened, before it was too late. Liane turned to flee.
She slammed into a hard male body. With a strangled cry Liane leaped back. Before she could even aim her stunner it was knocked away, skittering across the room to strike the far wall. Powerful hands shot out of the darkness to capture her arms and drag her back.
Fear and nausea rose to choke her. Liane fought wildly, her nails rising to claw at the man's face, but he was even quicker, easily capturing her hands to pin them behind her back. He roughly pulled her to him.
"Who are you, femina, to sneak into this room? Did Necator send you to kill us?"
The voice rose out of the darkness, its deep rich timbre plucking at her memory. Liane had heard that voice before, but was its owner friend or foe?
"Answer him, femina," another voice behind her said. With a sinking heart, Liane realized it must be the man who'd been sleeping on the bed.
"No matter what that scrawny sandwart Necator has offered you," he continued, moving to stand beside Liane's captor, "it won't mean much without your life."
"And
we
control that right now," the man holding her added, giving her a small shake, "not your Lord Commander." Recognition flooded Liane and with it a surge of relief. "Gage!" she gasped, straining to make out his features in the gloom. "Oh, thank the five moons! It's me, Gage. Liane."
He pulled her closer to the recessed wall lighting and lifted her chin to study her face. "By the . . . ! It
is
you, Liane!" Gage glanced over her shoulder. "This is the femina I told you about, Teran. The one I met"
Liane slipped from his grasp. "Mymy Lord Ardane!" she gasped, moving to stand before Gage's tall companion. "You've returned! It is I, Liane Allador, the Sententian scientist you met two monates ago."
Karic gained consciousness by slow degrees. Even as he did, the memory of his and Liane's passionate coupling filled him, heating his blood. He turned to pull her to him.
The bed was empty. Karic's eyes snapped open. He scanned the little hut and muttered a low oath. Liane was nowhere to be seen.
Flinging back the blanket, Karic swung out of bed. She's outside, he reassured himself as he pulled on his loincloth and boots. Probably standing guard, he wryly imagined, so the man could get a little rest. As he strode across the camp to the sentry's post, Karic nudged his sleeping men awake. It was time to be on the way to Primasedes, but first he wanted one last moment with Liane to say farewell.
The guard was sound asleep. Rage flooded Karic. Never had any Cat Man fallen asleep at his post. Karic roughly shook the man awake.
"My lord!" the Cat Man gasped, instantly aware of what he'd done. "II beg forgiveness! I don't know why I slept. I fought the weariness, truly I did, but it was as if I were drugged."
Uneasiness filled Karic. Drugged! The word plucked at his heart with the sureness of a premonition. Liane had drugs, those herbal concoctions of hers, and he wouldn't put it past her to use them if she thought it would help.
Something she said flashed through his mind. ". . .
no matter what happens, you'll know that whatever I did, I did because I thought it was the right thing to do
."
Panic wrapped itself around Karic's heart, constricting his chest until each breath was a painful effort. He threw back his head, his features twisted in agony.
"Liane!" he cried. "You little fool. You brave, crazy little fool!"
He left the sentry to stand there trembling in shame and ran back to the rest of his men. A search was quickly organized, for Karic had to be certain Liane was truly gone. And a half hora later, he knew. She had left while they were asleep. There was no doubt in his mind where she'd goneto Primasedes.
Karic returned to the hut to retrieve his weapons. As he shouldered the blaster, he noticed a stunner was missing. Good, he thought. At least she'd had the sense to take a weapon with her. Perhaps there was some sort of plan driving her. For his own peace of mind, he had to cling to that hope.
They set out after her. As they swiftly wove through the forest, Karic numbed himself to his anguish. Emotions wouldn't save Liane nor further their cause now. Only cold, hard logic could do that, and once again Karic called upon that part of him that was Bellatorian.
A grimly amusing thought struck him. If he weren't careful, he'd soon get used to that Bellatorian part of himself after all, as often as he'd been forced to call upon it of late. The melding of two races
did
have its advantages, he reluctantly admitted. The best of both worlds, as Liane would say. Too bad those two worlds couldn't seem to live in peace with each other.
He halted the men just inside the edge of the forest. From across the wide field the lights of Primasedes glowed in the darkness. Karic turned to his men.
"I'll test the alarm system, as I'm most familiar with its effects. If it's safe, I'll signal you. If not, you'll soon know. Use the ensuing noise and confusion to scale the walls. They won't be able to detect or capture all of you. Once inside, you have your orders."
Karic didn't await a reply. There was no need for further discussion. They all knew their jobs and the utter seriousness of their mission. There would be no second chances. He only prayed that some measure of luck would be with them this nocte and that the same luck would keep Liane safe. He turned and ran across the field, his cloaking powers in full force.
It was an easy task to get past the gate guard, who continued to stare out into the blackened nocte as Karic slipped by. The man yawned widely. Karic grinned. Good, he thought. Let them find this nocte as routinely boring as all the restuntil it's too late.
Though he waited for the sirens to sound, they remained silent. It was almost more than he dared hope, but had Liane managed to disable the alarms? Karic headed toward the guard barracks she had told him housed the alarm system. Her spoor was stronger here. But how far had she gotten? And would he find her dead within?
With hard resolve, Karic banished the fears and forged on. He easily found the upstairs room. It was locked. He destroyed the locking mechanism with the blaster. The sound barely carried in the thick stone corridor, not that he cared. The noise be damned; he'd no time to waste. Even now, Liane could be dead or in Necator's clutches, her life ebbing away.
The inert forms of two men, bound and gagged, lay on the floor. Behind them was the destroyed remains of the alarm system. Karic backed out of the room, relief and grim amusement tugging at the corners of his mouth. Liane had done her job very well.
He immediately set out for the fortress parapets where he signaled his men with a high frequency whistle. When they'd all regrouped behind the guard barracks, Karic relayed the revised plan.
Cloaked from Bellatorian eyes, they'd head to the palace. Half would then set out for the labs to find and destroy the Guide. The other half, with Karic at its head, would search for Morigan, his men and Liane. Eventually, they'd rejoin and systematically comb the palace for Necator and his scientists.
Circumstances being what they were, there was no other option but a complete overthrow of Primasedes. What would transpire next, when Bellator heard of the rebellion, was anybody's guess. Perhaps the warrior planet wouldn't be so quick to punish once they were apprised of the Guide and Necator's intent to use it for Imperiumwide domination.
But then again, Karic bitterly thought as they set out for the palace, Bellator might just as well see their rebellion as any other and mercilessly squash them. In their coldly ruthless eyes the end result was just the same. Bellator needed continued control of Agrica, and the dependency on a primary food source overshadowed other more noble though less practical realities.
Liane's spoor preceded them into the palace's lower levels. Karic wondered what her motives had been for heading down there. Had she intended on attempting to destroy the Guide? He hoped not. Necator would have had the weapon thoroughly guarded.