Nova Flare (slow updates)

Psi Lord

One of the few mundane forces both high sages and technomages were wary of, psi lords belonged to a small group of sentients from a number of different species that had cultivated and perfected powers of the mind called 'psionics'.  With a mere thought, they could move objects, read minds or instantly teleport from one place in the universe to another, and those were only a handful of many such talents.  Mammalians, reptilians, cephalopods, insectoids; no species was barred from their ranks, as long as they had the talent.

The most powerful of these psionics, individuals who had most, if not all the talents available to their kind, and with great skill and ability in them, were named Psi Lords; virtual gods with their ability to twist reality itself with a thought.  And, unlike the high sages, the technomages had actually engaged in combat with them on many occasions, often with unfavorable results.

"Well, shit," Ben hoarsely rasped with a grimace.  They had just found the reason why the technomages had battlecruisers in orbit.

"Indeed," Kahri curtly agreed, already scanning the throng for any sign of technomage agents there with the sole purpose of keeping an eye on the Psi Lord, a vohdel, by the golden color of his skin, a non-human, bipedal, lemur-like mammalian species that occupied a number of systems close to the galactic core.  Wearing colorful robes in some sort of shimmering, metallic fabric, the Psi Lord's prehensile tail twitched just beneath them in the only sign of his frustration at his negotiation's failure with the insectoid merchants.

"I suggest we find an alternate route before the Psi Lord, or his technomage shadows, discover us."

Ben nodded tightly in agreement to Kahri's terse suggestion.  But before they could turn and plunge back into the throng, a wave of warmth washed through their heads.

- Too late, my friends. -  A quiet voice spoke into the depths of their minds.  - I've already spotted you.  No use in avoiding me now. -

Hearing the voice, Ben's jaw tightened as he ground his teeth in frustration.  If the psionic spotted them that easily, he knew it wouldn't be much longer before the technomages also made them.  Kahri must've said something in reply to him in her mind because a heartbeat later the voice was back in Ben's head.

- Fear not, friends.  I've no love of technomages.  Your presence here is safe and secret with me.  And my order has strict protocols on what we can do with our telepathy.  No thought outside those on the very surface of your minds, will be read for the sole purpose of communication, I assure you. -

"Thank you, ..."  Ben began awkwardly outloud before stammering to a halt and repeating silently in his head.  - Thank you, kind sir.  We appreciate your discretion. -

- But of course. -  Ben got the distinct impression the vohdel was smiling.  - Further more, please heed this warning: there are a large number of technomage agents in the settlement.  While they are here to track my movements, I've little doubt they'd be very much interested in discovering a teir'dal servant of the high sages here, on a world far removed from high sage-controlled space.  Use caution in all that you do. -  There was a slight pause as if the psionic was considering something.  Then:

- Perhaps there's something I can do, to lend assistance.  What is your destination? -

- A fountain in the merchant's quarter, sir. -  Ben supplied, sending an image of the fountain from his data store along with the answer.

- Ah, I know it well.  And the crowd around it is currently sparse, unlike this throng. -

Ben nearly cried out loud when, with an abrupt jerk, the world around him spun violently for an instant before steadying.  He blinked and felt himself filling with astonishment when he found the fountain in his data store was a mere ten metres' distant, its quiet babble audible above the low hum of activity rising from the merchant's quarter a hundred metres beyond.  An equally bemused Kahri was at his elbow, her eyes narrowing as she visually swept the nearly empty square at whose heart stood the fountain, a multi-stream dance of water and light a good five metres tall in its basic of weathered stone.

- There. -  The psionic declared into their minds with not a little satisfaction.  - That should save you some travel and sow confusion amongst the technomage agents. -

- T-t-thank you! -  Ben managed to send back, eyes wide as habit made him scan the square as well, despite his astonishment.  He heard a dry chuckle in his mind in reply.

- No trouble, Mr. Talbott.  Anything to tweak the technomages' noses.  Now, I suggest you find whomever or whatever you're here to find as quickly as possible, before the agents are any the wiser.  As soon as your business is concluded, send me a mental message and I'll teleport you to your vessel. -

Nodding as if the vohdel psionic stood directly in front of them, Ben pushed his amazement aside and began to walk towards the fountain, Kahri a half step behind in his wake.  As they approached the rather ramshackle affair, water erupting into the air from a series of nozzles in the fountain's basin, a lean figure detached itself from the shadows and moved into sight.

Catching sight of this newest addition to the situation, Ben slowed even as his hand slipped into his jacket to take hold of his blaster's grip.  Kahri too took something off her forward pace as she focused on the shadowy figure and gave it a hard look.

Only when he saw that the shadowy figure was fadran did the lean human begin to relax.  That lean, almost snake-like body was unmistakable.  Now, if only it was Hos Kalim, he could make the exchange and his duty to the Union would be over.

Seeing that it had caught Ben and Kahri's attention, the figure took a half step out of the shadows and reached up with scale-covered hands to pull back its hood.  The reptilian face that was revealed was one familiar from the images in his head.

"Hos Kalim," Ben breathed with a grin of relief.  The end of this short but tortuous job was in sight!

He was about to take a step forward, hand rising in greeting, when without warning Kahri grabbed him by the shoulder hard enough to send a stab of pain through his arm.

"Hey!" he began, jerked to a halt by the drowess' grip.  Ben looked over at her, meaning to ask her what was going on.  Only to fall silent at the dark expression on her finely sculpted face.  He remained silent as she slowly scanned the square for a second time, pausing on several figures scattered around the perimeter in the shadows of buildings standing on the edges of the open space.

"Union operatives," she said in a voice meant only for him, point out each one with subtle shifts of her chin.

"Keeping an eye on the drop?" Ben asked, letting his own gaze track out over the shadowy figures Kahri had identified.

"They were." A blaster appeared in the drowess' gloved hand.

Ben glanced back at her then focused on the nearest figure still in the shadows.  What the hell was she talking about?  Were?  What did that mean?

Then he saw it: the figure that he picked out from the others to stare at.  It wasn't moving.  He quickly switched to another then to another after and saw they weren't moving either.

With a chill wave washing through him as fear and anxiety stormed into his senses, Ben jerked his attention back to the fadran by the fountain.  As he did, that storm threatened to sweep away his very self when he looked into Kalim's face and watched it shimmer around the edges before it dissolved to reveal a lean mammalian face.  One that was wearing the marks of a technomage.

"Swords and shadow," Kahri hissed, snapping her weapon up to take aim at the creature that was Hos Kalim.

"It's a trap!"