The Way Back (Champions of the Crystal Book 4)

Chapter 4.2

Scotty became aware of a dull throbbing inside his head and a heavy, enveloping pressure outside it. For a moment he thought he must have blacked out in the cockpit of a fighter jet; then he realized he was lying down on something cold and hard. He blinked as his eyes adjusted to the light in the room, then tried to move. The feel of the combat armor made him pause, and at last he remembered where he was. "Aurora!" he called, looking around.

She lay on a table nearby, helmetless and unconscious, her golden hair spread haphazardly around her. She looked too pale, Scotty thought, struggling to sit up and discovering that he was tied down. He also discovered that movement made his head feel much worse, and he had to lie still for a moment to combat the urge to throw up.

Someone nearby said something; he couldn't translate it. Then the woman he'd seen before came into view. When she spoke, he could understand her in his mind, while still aware that she wasn't speaking any language he understood. "This one is awake. Unfortunately he is of little use. Still, I suppose he might have some value as a hostage. Leave him as he is for now. It is the other I am interested in."

"Leave her alone," Scotty demanded. "Who are you? What do you want with us?"

"Why, I thought you knew," the woman said, with a thin smile. "I have not forgotten you, Lieutenant Devon, though you seem to have forgotten me. But then, I have more reason to remember. You helped to kill my mother."

Scotty nearly choked. "You're that kid—"

"Queen Varla," she corrected him.

"Well, it's Captain Devon now," he retorted.

"Irrelevant," she said. "But then, everything about you is irrelevant. Your companion holds some faint interest, however. You may demonstrate your value by telling me her relation to my handmaiden."

"You better give up now, Varla," Scotty warned. "You can't fool Mara forever, and Praxatillus won't stop coming after you. Homeworld, too."

"Homeworld! They are no threat. Their 'observers' were so easily suborned." She laughed. "They were so sure I could not affect them. But I am more than what I was, little man. Much more. Your defiance only amuses me. I can crush your mind at any time I choose."

"Probably," Scotty acknowledged. This was no time to let his mouth get ahead of his mind, he told himself firmly. Glib remarks wouldn't help matters.

"I am glad we are in agreement," Varla said, amused. "Now, your companion—I believe you called her Aurora? Who is she?"

"She's my aide," Scotty said.

"Try again, little man."

"No, it's true. She came to help me rescue our Queen."

"Mm. Perhaps. But she is not of your race."

"No. I'm from Earth. There aren't many of us running around in space yet."

"Just you and your sister, I gather. Oh, yes, I know she is here—I have seen her. I let her achieve what she evidently came to do. She is of as little value as you, and she may amuse me until I see fit to kill her. The man she rescued was of no use either, and he will only distract her from my handmaiden." Varla's smile was smug. "This time I will not underestimate the damage you can do together. It will not be difficult to keep you apart. My handmaiden is most unwilling to be rescued. You will not escape; I shall see to that. The Tirqwin is catatonic, and your sister does not have the ability to rouse him. She is no threat to me on her own."

"I'm afraid you're right," Scotty said. But I'll bet you're wrong, he thought, back in the furthest corner of his mind where she couldn't sense it.
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