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Grey Chronicles
Nineteen
“Sir, shall I get you something to drink?”
Caleb McHugh didn’t look back. “No, I’m good. Let Beverly know I’m home and that I’ll see her later.”
“Yes, sir.” The Killerbreast headed farther into the house as he opened the door to his office.
In the darkness, Caleb moved unerringly to his desk and placed his briefcase down on top of it. He flipped on the light and jumped. Iain was sitting in an overstuffed chair. “Hello, Caleb.”
McHugh glared at him. “What the hell are you doing in my home?”
Iain smiled crookedly. “You wanted to see me, remember?”
“Not here,” the Minister of Defense hissed. He looked Iain over carefully, searching for weapons. “Gun?”
“No thanks, I already have one.” Iain gestured at the desk. “Please sit down, McHugh. I thought about meeting at your office, but considering that last time you kept me cooling my heels for your amusement I decided to give it a pass.”
“I was busy interviewing. It went long.”
“I’ve noticed that time management seems to be a problem with a lot of ministry personnel, McHugh. It isn’t one of my problems, however, and I’ve decided I won’t let another person’s inability to schedule things appropriately waste my time anymore if I can help it.” His smile faded. “That also goes with their attempt to make me wait so I know how much more important they are than I am.”
“Damn it, man, my wife and children are here.”
“Actually, your wife and child are here. Your son, Joseph, is spending the night at the home of a school chum. It’s just Beverly, Erica, you and your harem. Well, and me, but I don’t intend to stay long.” He pointed at the chair. “Now sit down.”
McHugh settled slowly into the indicated chair. “This cannot go unpunished, Wolf.”
Iain shrugged. “You can try, but the odds are pretty good that you’ll never find me.” He shook his head slightly. “They don’t know I’m here and I am not and do not intend to threaten, harm or otherwise cause any sort of trouble for your family. The only reason I am here is because there isn’t any other place where you’re alone and I can see you without there being a running battle between Blue League forces and my family. You’re never alone at work and I had to scrap my first plan of intercepting you while traveling when I found out that you use a league teleporter to get from home to work. This was my very last choice because I didn’t want to take a chance on a battle around noncombatants. If you’d come in here with any of your harem I would have left before you’d ever known I was here.”
McHugh seemed to relax a little. “Say your piece, Wolf.”
“If you remember, when you accepted my resignation from the BLSF it was only because I told you that you had no choice in the matter and that I’d ignore you after that. I hope you explained that to Colin because my position hasn’t changed just because he said I still have to play. I don’t and I’m not going to. Oh, and I think that manipulating Monica to try to get me to come in was beneath you.”
McHugh snorted. “I wasn’t involved in that one. The president went outside channels and summoned Ms. Chambers to talk her into that sordid little display. I wouldn’t have been against it if it worked, mind you, but we both know that’s the way things are in the world.”
“Yeah, and since it was Colin with the idea you had to go along with it.” Iain shifted slightly in his chair. “Well, I don’t intend to meet with Colin and I’d appreciate it if you’d tell him that the painting he was offering me comes with so many strings that it’s not really a gift and I’m not going to pay the price he wants for it.”
“So what is next for you, Wolf?”
“I’ve got a little more business in Blue and, after that, I don’t expect to ever return. It means I’ll lose the property I own in Ireland, but it’s a small price to pay for my freedom and the freedom of my children.” Iain rose. “I only came here because I wanted you to be able to say under truth spell that I did tell you thanks but no.”
“No threats? You know I’ll be ordered to pursue you.”
“I know. I also know you’re well aware that I’ve been caught a couple of times but I never seem to stay that way for long.”
“I’ve also noted that your escapes tend to be on the very bloody side. Still, I’ll have my orders.”
“Yes, yes you will. You’ll understand if I don’t wish you good luck carrying them out.” Iain nodded to McHugh as Zareen stepped through the wall behind her male and took his arm. They walked through the wall and disappeared into the night.
***
One instant Iain was in a scene eerily similar to that of the murder feeding of the Overlords of Delgon with all of the victims being members of his family and him not under the mental influence of the Overlords and the next he was standing on a flat plain that stretched into infinity on all sides. He knew it stretched into infinity because there was no curvature and he could see it continue to the horizon. Somehow he knew that it continued on forever past the limits of his vision. Overhead a golden orb glowed down on him without heat.
“Well, hell, I wonder what is going on now.” He slowly turned in place. Everything looked the same. “Hmm.” He knelt to get a handful of dirt and stopped when he realized that the dark brown surface he was standing on was resilient and, from what he could tell, one piece. “Curiouser and curiouser. I know this is a dream, but I’ve never had one like this before.” He frowned. “Twee?” No response. “Hey, twee!” Again, nothing. He pulled up his shirt. No tattoos. Being completely alone was never a good sign in his dreams. “Aw, shit.”
Having nothing better to do, he picked a direction and began walking, counting the paces as he travelled. He knew he tended to an average of sixty four centimeters per step, so one thousand five hundred and sixty three paces was roughly a kilometer. After fifteen thousand paces, he stopped for a moment. He was not tired, sweaty, hungry or thirsty. Once more he slowly turned in a circle and stopped when he saw the dot on the horizon. “Something new.” He headed for it.
As he drew nearer, the dot separated out into two dots which began to grow into vertical lines. Finally he stopped in front of two women, both of whom stood stiffly facing him. They were taller than he was, and muscular. They wore identical armor and each wore a long, slender sword belted at her waist. Their faces were identical. They were carbon copies except for the color of the knee length braided hair dangling down their backs. One had hair that was a deep crimson flecked with copper while the other’s hair was a brilliant green.
They stared at him while he stared back for a time he could never estimate. Finally Iain could take it no longer. “You do realize that this is the most boring nightmare I’ve ever had, right?”
The green haired woman laughed musically. “It is not intended to be a nightmare, father.”
His mouth dropped. “Saoirse?”
“I knew you would realize who we are,” the redhead said. “But Saoirse wasn’t sure and we had to be certain.”
“I will admit you don’t look like I’m used to, Myrna. After all, you fit in my arms right now.” His eyes narrowed. “This isn’t really a dream is it?”
“What is dreaming, father? Tell us that and we can tell you if this fits your definition.” Myrna’s eyes twinkled. “But no, this is not entirely your mind. We have used your bond with mother to place ourselves in your sleeping mind. That is why we had to be certain you could identify us.”
“I don’t understand.”
“These are your dreams, father, and here your power could destroy our minds if you wielded its full strength against us. Still, we had no choice but to act.”
He folded his arms. “Why?”
“Understand,” Saoirse said, “father, that we have been linked to your mind and to mother’s since the instant of our consciousness. We know how debilitating your nightmares have been and still are and we know mother’s fear for you regarding them. Through your bonds with the rest of the family, we know that all of them worry about what your dreams have done, are doing and will do to you.” Blue and green eyes met his. “And we are aware of your own concerns in this regard.”
Myrna interrupted her sister. “We love you, father, as you love us, and we have the power to protect you from your nightmares.” She held up a hand as if to forestall Iain even though he hadn’t moved. “We know that you will only reluctantly accept our help, but the truth is that you need true rest. We are not strong enough to protect you always, and you would not allow us even if we could, but we can give you one full night of dreamless sleep every week. So we came here to ask if you would let us help you.”
Saoirse smiled at him. “We know to ask. May we give you this?”
Something occurred to Iain. “How does your mother feel about this?”
Myrna smiled conspiratorially. “She does not know we are capable of reaching out to you, father. For now, it might be best if she did not know.”
Saoirse nodded. “She would be concerned that we would seek you to become our male when we are mature. We will not, and she will not believe we know ourselves that well, but it is true. Our futures lay with you, father, for many decades, but our bodies never will.”
“That’s good to hear.” Iain considered them for several seconds. “Will doing this hurt either of you?”
“As long as you do not unleash your power against us, no, father, it will not. In fact, it will allow us to begin using our powers, which will help us to begin developing and growing our abilities.” Myrna smiled prettily. “It’ll be training for us, both in protecting you and in hiding from Canaan.”
“And what do you two want for this?”
“It’s an investment in the future, father,” Myrna replied. “If you get more rest, then you will be in a better mood and so you will be less likely to spank us when we are disobedient.”
“Let her invest in the future, father,” Saoirse said. “I want more cuddles, tickles and kisses from you and I want you to read to me more. I like your voice. Oh, and explain to Zareen not to hold me so tightly.”
Myrna gave her sister a long look. “Father, can I change my answer?”
He laughed. “You two want more time with me?”
“We know that soon we will have sisters and brothers, father. We want as much of your time now as we can get.”
“I’ll do it, girls.” He hesitated. “Is this what you’ll look like when you’re grown?”
“It is a possibility, father, but our future is not yet set. We know that we will survive to adulthood and that we will remain with the family until your training with Nightraven is complete. However, our physical development will depend on how we grow up.”
He nodded. “Girls, when you’re older and so am I, I’d like you to teach me how to do whatever you’re going to be doing to help me.”
“When the time comes, father, we will.”
***
“For the last fucking time, I’m all right.” Iain glared at Pandora and Eve as he threw himself into the recliner.
“Iain,” Eve said gently, “I had to wake you up this morning. Do you want to talk about it?”
He started to snap something when his twee intruded. From what I can find in your memories, they have never seen you have a full night’s sleep. You were already suffering the nightmares when Eve joined your harem. It makes sense that such a dramatic change would concern them.
Are you suggesting I tell them that my infant daughters are giving me a good night’s sleep?
I am most adamantly saying that you should not do such a thing. You need the sleep and your women would be very upset that your daughters are spending that much time with you psychically and also because your daughters, even though legendaries, are giving you something that they cannot. Just don’t forget that Eve and Pandora both can detect lies.
I haven’t forgotten. “Look, I’m trying something new that might help me sleep better sometimes. Last night I think it worked.” We will need to make sure that I go back to waking up on my schedule.
Understood, Iain. I’ll help as best I can.
Eve eyed him and he realized from her slight expression of frustration that she was using a truth spell on him. “What is this something that you’re trying?”
“I’m not ready to share that just yet.”
“Someday?”
“Are you having nightmares besides the ones bleeding over from me?” Eve blinked and shook her head. “Well, when you start, let me know.”
“Iain, it’s just that,” she began.
He interrupted her. “It’s just you insist on knowing every tiny little detail of my life unless it involves me keeping secret what I got you for a gift and that only if it’s a good gift and not some lame one. ”
Pandora snickered in spite of herself. “He’s right.”
Iain ignored the comment. “You don’t have to tell me everything that you’re doing, do you?” He didn’t wait for her to respond. “No, you don’t. And I don’t have to tell you or anyone else everything that I’m doing either. I’m not ready to share this and if I decide I am, I will.” He looked around. “Now, where’s April?”
Eve looked surprised. “What do you want her for?”
“It’s time for my shave. All we have are straight razors and I haven’t used one in quite some time. And since I like my nose right where it is, I need her to shave me.”
“Oh, that. April’s not doing that right now. I’ll shave you.”
Iain frowned. “Why isn’t she doing this?”
“In light of what happened, we don’t think it’s a good idea.”
Iain got a firm grip on his temper. He had a suspicion of where this discussion was going but wanted to be sure. “In light of what happened?”
“She did stab you through the heart.”
His eyes went flat. “Not with a straight razor, she didn’t.”
“She agrees with us, Iain. In fact, she’s the one who suggested it.”
“So this is some kind of penance on her part?” He scowled. April, can I talk to you for a moment?
There was a wary tone to her thought. What is it, Iain?
I thought we had a thing where you shaved me every morning. It was something that you were very possessive about since it was part of our alone time together. Now I’m being told that you don’t want to do it anymore.
It’s not that I don’t want to keep shaving you or spend alone time with you, it’s just that I don’t feel that I should right now. I did almost kill you.
So you’re punishing yourself for an accident?
I feel I need to do this, Iain. Are you going to take that right away from me?
Are you being coerced in this decision?
He felt a mental shrug from her. They tried to, but I’m stronger than that. This is my decision. When I’m ready to resume shaving you, I’ll let you know and you can decide if you want to change back from Eve doing it.
All right. I’ll respect your decision.
Thank you.
His face smoothed. “April agrees with you that she doesn’t want to do this right now. I can’t take her choice away from her.”
“That’s good,” Eve replied. “I’ve got the shaving stuff ready.”
“You won’t need it.”
She blinked. “I won’t?”
“Nope. I’m giving up shaving.”
“Um, Iain, you need to shave.”
“No, I don’t. Humans haven’t shaved for thousands of years. I’ll be fine. Now, what word do you have from Lucifer?”
Eve and Pandora exchanged a glance. “She’ll be able to meet with us in three days.”
“I thought we were meeting this afternoon.”
“She said she had to cancel and reschedule.”
“I see. And did you communicate that we’re here for the move she’s supposed to be preparing for?”
“I thought that it would be better to tell her when we’re face to face.”
“So we’re going to waste two days that she could be issuing orders for the move because you want to see the whites of her eyes when I tell her to pack her crap?” He sighed. “Maybe I’m just still irritable about April.” He took a deep breath. “Dublin should be pretty this time of morning. I think I’ll take a walk to clear my head.” His eyes narrowed dangerously. “Is April off of my guard detail too?”
“We think it’s prudent at the moment, so yes.”
“Will she be training me?”
Eve shook her head. “No.”
“I see.” Something in his voice made Pandora stiffen. “Are we still going to be fucking? What about cuddling? Kissing? Am I going to get to see her during her pregnancy or is she going into complete seclusion for the rest of her life?”
Ninhursag came out of one of the bedrooms that formed the suite they were staying in. “You’re being childish.”
“I am not. I am pursing this line of thought to its logical and yet utterly irrational conclusion. My wife does not want to see me or at least be alone with me.” He looked around. “So where is April?”
“She’s at the beta camp with Zareen and Canaan.” Ninhursag held up a hand. “It’s by her own choice.”
“So she doesn’t want to see me at all. Will she be returning with us to our home on One?”
“Iain, that’s just mean.”
“Is it? If she’s that determined to make sure that she never, ever gets the opportunity to hurt me, well, staying here would do it.”
I just want to spend some time alone, Iain, while I work through this.
He vocalized at the same time he spoke to April through their link. “I thought the rule was that if you fall off of the tamer you climb right back on board.”
I will climb back on my tamer when I’m ready to do so, not before. Her tone was firm.
Iain shied away from the thought that she was afraid to be around him. Her words and the fact that she’d walked away from him cut deeply and he resisted the urge to lash out and hurt her back. It would be so easy. He knew the right words and all he had to do was say them, tearing bloody strips off her spirit. But he forced the pain down, burying it with his anger and knowing that even as he did so it was a mistake that could come back to haunt him. But knowing that she got to walk away and spend time working out what troubled her while he had to keep dealing with the crap bubbling up around him made it hard to be supportive of her wants. “Let me know when you make a decision.”
Pandora cocked her head. “You’re eyes are solid blue again.”
He didn’t trust himself to speak. He was so angry. He wanted to hurt someone, anyone. It didn’t matter who. With purposeful deliberation he drew his pistol.
Eve’s eyes went wide. “Iain?”
He carefully laid the weapon down on the coffee table next to the recliner and pushed to his feet. Leaving it wasn’t much since with his staff/sword/bow, undead guardians and his magic he was far from disarmed, but it removed the easiest way to hurt someone outside his immediate reach. He spoke slowly and distinctly, carefully enunciating each word before moving on to the next. “I am going for that walk. Unlike April, you won’t let me be alone and I haven’t figured out the lever I need to use to make you.” Ninhursag’s eyes widened at both his words and the flat tone in which they were delivered. “I am not happy. Whoever goes with me had better keep her mouth shut. No comments, no questions, no advice. Is that understood?”
His maharani nodded. “I’ll go with you. Eve, explain to Lucy that she set the date and time and that we’re going to be pissed if she tries to reschedule again.” Then she followed Iain out the door.
***
Iain stood in the elevator as it headed up to the floor where their hotel room was and considered the last four hours. He’d walked almost nonstop around Dublin, stopping occasionally but never sitting down or getting anything to eat or drink. He used to take these walks infrequently when he was back on his birth world. They happened when he spent too much time alone and needed to reconnect as much as he could with humanity. Humor was his chosen vehicle for this and he’d look for people that he could laugh at or, once in a great while, with.
But all he’d seen this time were dismal little creatures going about their dismal little errands while living out their dismal little lives. The best thing that could be said about their existence was that it was short. Death was a release for beings such as these.
He, on the other hand, was truly blessed. He’d lived for centuries and would live for eons more and every day was a little brighter than the last one as his plans to remove his enemies came to fruition and he grew further into the power that he deserved.
Iain frowned. He reached out and pulled the emergency stop on the elevator, grinding it to a halt. Ninhursag watched him curiously, but did not speak. Gratefully, she’d been quiet the whole time, even if her very presence had been a constant if minor irritation. He didn’t need her and, to be honest, he wasn’t sure if he really wanted her. After all, she was a fucking elf.
He rolled that last thought around in his head, examining it from all sides. Something wasn’t right with it, but he couldn’t quite determine what it could be.
It could be unusual because it comes from your second mind.
Iain blinked at his twee’s statement. Second mind? Aren’t you my second mind?
I am not. I am part of our mind and am not really separate from you even if I seem that way sometimes. You have your mind and also a complete second mind buried deeply within your subconscious. It isn’t very active but sometimes sends thoughts out to you. It has been doing that more lately. I know that a second mind is unusual, but it predates me and I didn’t think there was anything wrong with it. I considered trying to access it, but decided that it might be a defense mechanism against memories you’re blocking and decided to wait for a more opportune time. Should I have investigated immediately?
I’m not sure. Show me. As his twee dragged him deeper into his mind, Iain was dimly aware as he sagged against the wall of the elevator and of Ninhursag asking him questions he couldn’t understand much less answer. He managed to give her a weak thumb’s up before everything went black.
A dot appeared in his vision that grew as he and his twee got closer to it. Things twisted and he was standing inside a dimly lit tunnel. “Twee,” he said softly. “I am here,” he answered himself, “with you. We are one here, as it should be. Something is attempting to redefine the reality inside your subconscious so that you are not in command here, but so far they have not completely succeeded. Proceed quickly and remember that this is your mind/dream and you command here.”
Iain checked himself over. He had his tattoo of his staff and nothing else. No weapons and no dragonesses. He summoned his staff and trotted down the tunnel until it opened up into a cavern. He slowed and walked through cave, alertly scanning the area as he moved towards the cave’s exit, which opened onto a grass covered plain.
A half a mile out onto the plain was a stone that towered over the area. It resembled some of the samples of meteoric stone that he’d seen before and had been partially carved into some kind of humanoid figure. Iain fell back into a trot towards it. He returned to walking when he heard the sound of metal on stone. A stocky figure stood at the base of the rock, using a hammer and chisel to chip at it. It stopped when Iain was a dozen yards away and turned to face him. “You were not supposed to be able to find me. I’m not quite ready for you, but I will still win. I always win.” He dropped the chisel and his hammer grew in his hands until it was as big as he was.
Iain was suddenly clad in chainmail, wearing a helm and carrying a shield. In his hand his staff had become his black and silver sword. “Mhodvitnar. I don’t understand. I ate your soul. How is it you’re alive here?”
“You swallowed his personality and memories. They have been collecting here. I am them reborn and I will come to live again when I destroy you here and claim your mind, soul and body as my own.” He charged faster than a human could run and struck at Iain with an overhand attack that would have crushed the human. Coronas of energy flickered around both of them as they grasped at their mystical powers, both with equal lack of success. Mhodvitnar wasn’t strong enough here to access anything and Iain didn’t know how to use his offensively.
Iain stepped inside the blow and smashed Mhodvitnar in the face with his shield. As the dwarf staggered backwards, Iain thrust for the dwarf’s heart. Mhodvitnar barely interposed his hammer in time to deflect the blade, leaving a deep cut in the face of the hammer.
Mhodvitar slammed a fist into Iain’s face, but Iain ducked his head and took the blow on his helm. The dwarf danced back, swearing. There was a flash and he was wearing plate armor. “Now we are equal,” he snarled through his visor. He lumbered forward, gaining speed with each step.
This is essentially a dream, Iain told himself. It uses dream rules. That meant that no matter how much he evaded, Mhodvitnar was not going to tire even with a hundredweight of armor on his back. It was the classic doomed battle nightmare scenario. He had them often and the only reason Iain was armed in them was because he was strong enough to overcome his nightmares locally even while asleep.
This time he was awake. He threw himself sideways as Mhodvitar tried to slam into him, dropping the shield as his sword changed in his hands into a pollaxe, a long shafted weapon designed to counter the development of more common and stronger steel armor of the late Middle Ages. It had a variety of uses against plate armored opponents and Iain promptly stuck the butt of the weapon between Mhodvitnar’s legs as he attempted to slow and turn. The dwarf went down with a loud crash of metal and Iain, by refusing to let go of his weapon, was knocked off his feet as well. He smashed face first into the soil, breaking his nose and splitting a lip.
Iain was on his feet first and he stepped back, set himself and spun the pollaxe so that the hammer head was down as he swung it with all of his might. It caught Mhodvitnar on the back of his helmet as he rose to his feet and the dwarf crashed to the ground again, his limbs twitching spasmodically.
Armor this thick was probably proof against Iain’s weapon, but the head of the hammer put all of the energy of the blow into a relatively small area right behind the dwarf’s head, accelerating the head and helmet together violently. It didn’t kill him, but he definitely felt it.
Just to be sure, Iain hit him again in the same spot.
He grabbed one of Mhodvitnar’s arms and pulled steadily, rolling the dwarf over onto his back. Because of the blood clogging his nose he sucked air and spat blood as he raised the pollaxe again and hit Mhodvitnar in the visor. Then he dropped to his knees next to the dwarf’s head. Mhodvitnar’s eyes stared blankly up at him through his visor and then focused. The dwarf took a deep breath of air and raised an armored hand to feebly to slap at Iain.
Iain’s weapon changed again, becoming a bodkin dagger. He drove it between the slits of the visor and into Mhodvitnar’s eye, leaning to put all of his weight on it until the tip grated against the inside of the back of the dwarf’s skull. He lay there for a moment, gasping to breathe as adrenaline continued to roar through his system. Finally he rasped out the words. “We were never equal, you son of a bitch.”
Mhodvitnar’s body disintegrated beneath Iain and he lay there for a few seconds before rolling over to stare at the statue. Slowly he began to sit up. “If that bastard hadn’t needed that monstrosity to beat me, he wouldn’t have wasted time working on it. I suspect that as long as it exists here he can reintegrate. Therefore, it’s gotta go.” The bodkin changed back to staff and Iain used it to clamber to his feet.
With Mhodvitnar eliminated for the time being, Iain had almost full control over the dreamscape. He looked up at the blue, cloudless sky. “Rain.” The sky turned dark gray and torrents of water instantly fell from the skies. It fell so hard that mud sprayed up from the drops to his knees. “I can’t wait until I have this kind of power in the real world.” He let it rain until the ground was one large pool of water. “Enough.” The rain ceased falling and the skies turned blue again.
He squelched around the statue, examining it carefully. Once he’d made a complete circuit, he moved to a particular spot and stopped. He thrust the butt of his staff into the soil right next to the statue. Water streamed towards him, gathering from a hundred yards around until it formed a pool around the end of the staff and which extended under the base of the statue. “Ice.”
A loud crackling sound filled the air as the water under the statue froze and expanded. As it froze, water flowed underneath it and froze as well, driving up under the edge of the statue like a glacier flowing. It levered the statue slowly upwards, tilting it away from Iain. He moved to the right so he could see what was going on as well as getting farther from the impact point.
The statue leaned farther and farther until it began moving on its own, picking up speed until it smashed into the ground. The impact shattered the statue into huge chunks and sent a wall of muddy water in all directions. It was taller than Iain and swept him off his feet. He got up slowly, spitting mud and coughing. “Now that’s a lesson learned for next time.” He wiped his eyes and headed for the statue. The smaller pieces were already dissolving like dry ice in sunlight. He planted his staff and leaned on it to watch as the statue sublimated. He didn’t move until the statue was completely gone.
Abruptly the scene broke up and vanished. The second mind is dissolving inside yours, spreading out and becoming much more diffuse. I will be on alert in case it begins trying to coalesce again.
Iain opened his eyes. He was looking at the ceiling of the bedroom he had in their suite. With his perception he could see April sitting in a chair to his right. She was reading a magazine they’d scavenged from the ruins of a supermarket back in Texas. “I promise I didn’t do this so you’d come back from Africa,” he croaked.
She jumped. “Iain, you’re awake!” She put the magazine down and came over to perch on the edge of the bed so she could put her hand on his forehead. “How do you feel?” He felt the magic as she used a medical spell to scan him.
“I’m ok.”
“You collapsed in the elevator. Ninhursag got you into bed as fast as she could and called for help. From what we could tell, you’d gone into what looked like some kind of coma, but we were worried. Nobody could touch your mind. And then, a little while later you started bleeding uncontrollably from your nose and lips. Now it’s been over a day and you wake up as if nothing has happened. What can you tell me?”
“It was Mhodvitnar.”
The blood drained from April’s face. “What? I thought you, I mean, I thought he was dead.”
“You thought I gobbled him up like a candy bar.” She grimaced and nodded slightly. “I did. I ate his soul and his personality. I also walled him off as much as I could so that I didn’t have to deal with his memories and life. It may have been a mistake. The memories began collecting and formed a secondary mind inside of mine. It was planning to take me over, destroy what made up me and become a living Mhodvitnar using my soul, body and magic. Fortunately, some of his thoughts began to leak over into mine, giving him away and letting me battle him before he was ready.”
April was gaping at him. “Dominique says that it’s impossible for memories to do that.”
“It isn’t if they once belonged to a truewizard.” Iain sat up, taking April’s hand in his. He stroked her fingers absently as he spoke. “He,” Iain hesitated, “we can do a lot of things that Dominique would say are impossible. It’s all part and parcel of being a truewizard.”
The door opened and Canaan came in, followed by Eve, Dominique and Ninhursag. “I know we said we’d wait outside to keep his stress down, but this is important.” The Splice sat down on the other side of the bed from April while the others grabbed seats in chairs around the room. “How do we know you’re you and not Mhodvitnar pretending to be you? For all we know he might be able to fake the way your mind feels through the bonds.”
His twee answered before he could. Mhodvitnar doesn’t understand twee and would not be aware of my presence until I revealed myself. I would have had time to get off a warning while he tried to discover a way to destroy me without also destroying the mind he’d just occupied.
Iain nodded. “That and if Mhodvitnar had supplanted my personality, he’d have immediate access to my magical reserves which, as I can’t do much as a mage yet, are fairly substantial. He would have had no reason to pretend to be me.”
It is also unlikely that he would have been able to fabricate the bonds between you and us, Eirian said to him mentally. Even if he is a powerful necromancer he is unlikely to have experienced anything like what we share.
“Mhodvitnar is not much of necromancer,” Iain stated flatly. “His interest in the dead ends when he’s harvested them for spell components.”
Dominique crossed her legs and tapped one foot in the air absently. “The more important question is can he do this again?”
Everyone looked at Iain expectantly and he licked suddenly dry lips. “He could, unless I take steps. Unfortunately, there could be unwanted effects from doing so.”
When he didn’t continue, Canaan’s eyes narrowed in an angry glare. “Explain.”
“When I realized what I’d done, Nightraven helped me to isolate Mhodvitnar’s memories from my own. Apparently that was a mistake that allowed his memories to coalesce like scum in a pond. If I don’t assimilate his memories into my mind, the situation could arise again.” Canaan handed him a glass of water and he drank noisily. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” She patted him on the knee. “The problem is that if you do this, you will be making everything about Mhodvitnar a part of you. Are you worried that his life will overpower yours?”
“Not really. He’s already tried that and I kicked his ass again.” Iain’s mouth twisted into a snarl. “And since my options are win or die, I will beat his ass every time he and I face off. I’m worried as to what changes will take place in me afterwards. I’ll be adding several hundred years of life experiences to mine, and they’ll all be from what seems to be a rather unpleasant individual. While I’m not worried about him taking me over that way, I am concerned that my personality will take on some aspects of his. Granted, I’ll know everything he knows about truewizardry, but I’ll also have memories of everyone he’s tortured to death or raped or whatever just as if I’d done it with all of the feelings he had at the time.” He smirked. “I don’t think it’ll make my nightmares much worse, but I’m worried about you ladies stumbling over them.”
Dominique scowled. “So your choice is either to blend Mhodivitnar with you and become some amalgam of the two or risk becoming Mhodvitnar completely someday. While those are both pretty awful, I don’t see that there’s much of a decision to make.” She gave him a crooked smile and chuckled darkly. “You have the same decision that Morwen had. You are going to threshold and the only choice you have is that you can control what you become, within reason. For you it’s become a Splice or become a Dark Queen. I’ll still love you as a Splice, but the Dark Queen will probably kill me since I’m celestial.”
“I’m sure we can put safeguards in place to keep Iain safe,” Eve said. “Or we can go to Magdalene or Kerrik.”
Iain was shaking his head. “It doesn’t work that way. There would be a price with either one of them for their help and no guarantee they’ve ever seen anything like this before or can help. Kerrik doesn’t have most of his powers anyway, so he won’t be able to try and do anything for many years even if he can. By then it might be too late. Dominique defined the problem accurately. I don’t really have a choice if I want to live.”
Tears began running down Eve’s cheeks. “Iain,” she said desperately. “There has to be another way.”
“I’m not dying, and as long as I don’t die we’ll get through this like we did everything else. And it’s not like all of you can’t monitor things through our bonds. If things start to go badly, Canaan is a powerful psychic and can help.”
I want you to do this on the Theodora so I can monitor your process in real time.
“I like that idea too,” Ninhursag stated firmly. “And there we don’t have to be as worried that Murphy will make an appearance while we’re busy with this.”
“Works for me,” Iain looked to either side of the bed. April was on one side and Canaan the other so he slid to the end of it and stood. He wobbled slightly and Canaan grabbed his shoulder. “Just for the record, this scares the ever loving daylights out of me and I want to get this done before I lose my nerve, so we’re leaving just as soon as everyone’s ready.”
***
While they stood on the beach waiting for the shuttle, April moved to stand next to him where he stood a little apart from everyone else. “I’m sorry,” she said softly.
He glanced at her. “For what?”
“For stabbing you, for leaving to try to work through what happened, for not being here when you needed me the most,” she grimaced. “I feel incredibly guilty for all of it.”
He chuckled, making her eyebrows rise curiously. “First of all, the stab was either my fault or an accident. Second, there is no way anyone could have expected me to be suddenly under attack from within. You shouldn’t feel any guilt for any of that.”
“What about me taking off for a while?”
“I would have preferred that you not leave so we could have worked out your feelings, but I understand about needing some alone time to think. In fact, I envy you that.” When she gave him another curious look he continued. “I am never alone. Ever, and I really wish I could be sometimes. Everyone else gets that if they want, but I’m too valuable.” He watched the waves coming ashore for a little while before speaking again. “I’m a loner and I can’t be alone. So I understand completely about wanting some time alone to think.”
“You can be alone on the Theodora.”
“It is only allowed if Theodora is watching me or if I’ve got my undead harem with me. That means, of course, that I’m never alone.” He looked at her and smiled when she gave him a frustrated look back. “Yeah. Nice try though.”
The shuttle will be landing in thirty seconds, Theodora informed him.
Iain smiled mischievously. Has anyone asked the question yet?
What question, Iain?
You’re speaking to us in real time, correct? He continued without waiting for her to respond. That means you’re using a short ranged hyperspace com for twee communication. If you can do that, then you can control the shuttle from where you are.
There is a small but significant time delay in communications time at distances of greater than a light minute. I am currently at the lagging L5 point and am eighty light seconds from Earth. Granted, I could probably control the shuttle in anything less than active combat but I want my family to be as safe as possible.
Iain nodded to himself. I stand corrected. Just be ready to take over control if Mhodvitnar suddenly manifests again.
I am, Iain.
The shuttle materialized in front of them as it came in and landed. The outer airlock hatch slid open. “All aboard, ladies.”
***
Iain Grey
Living Harem
Ninhursag - Elfqueen & maharani
Eve Grey - Megami Sama
April Grey - Duelist & beta
Dominique - Blessed Archmage
Pandora - Fiendish Archangel
Canaan - G Splice (Hunter Amachamp & Alaka-Wham)
Zareen - Nightmare
Raquel - Fiendish Rapitaur
Sofia - Peekabu
Vanessa - Evangelion
Dead Harem
Eirian - Silver Dragoness
Aurum - Gold Dragoness
Skye - Blue Dragoness
Emerald - Green Dragoness
Beryl - Red Dragoness
Julia - human
Ling - Cheetit
Matilda - White Tigress
Liadan - Twau
Sorrel - Armsmistress
Natalie - Blazicunt
Slutton
Ranch employees
Daphne - Whorizard
Lynn - Growlie
Chuck - Doggirl
Ryan - Ponytaur
Winifred - Rack (German)
Rosemary - Kitten (Uruguayan)
Allison - Umbrea
Silver - Ponytaur
12 Elves
2 Elfqueens - Dionne & Adrianna
Joyce - Milktit
Lara - Milktit
LakeEmployees
Heltu - Wet Queen
6 Wet Elves
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