The Crystal Demon: 20/?
by Nancy Smith and Linda Garrick
XXI
Lyn Parnell sat wrapped in her blanket, her hands clasped around her knees, looking out at the rainy darkness. Julia and Miki were asleep, Mark nearly so, but something wouldn't let her relax.
Julia Austell was jealous of her, she thought, as ridiculous as it seemed. She wished fervently that the two quarreling lovers would settle their differences. It was obvious to her that Linley was deliberately baiting Julia with his attention to Lyn. She wished she knew how to tell him to stop without being obvious. Maybe, she thought wistfully, she could get him in private. She liked Mark, oddly enough, considering his treatment of her in the beginning. The problem was that she understood it. Mark was almost single-mindedly determined to protect Alan, and that meant that his side had to win, no matter what Linley had to do to make it happen. Anyone who endangered that was Linley's enemy, and to be given no quarter. Once she had changed sides, that no longer applied and Mark was free to allow himself to regard her in a more favorable light.
Miki was sound asleep, his head drooping sideways against Linley's knee, and Mark was obviously struggling to stay awake. Lyn stared out into the night, wondering why she didn't feel the slightest bit sleepy.
Uneasiness crawled on her skin. It was reaction, she told herself firmly. After all that had happened, it would be surprising if she didn't have difficulty sleeping. Again, her thoughts went to her father. He had tried to save her and because of that was going to be publicly executed.
The sound of the rain was loud, and the dark trees swam in a blur of tears. Then, suddenly, the darkness expanded, growing within her, brimming with fury and determination. It was coming nearer, looming above her, until she could feel and hear nothing else.
Lyn came violently back to the present, her shields snapping closed, wrenching her mind away from the formless terror. A hair-raising scream echoed in her ears.
Powerful hands were grasping her arms, pulling her upright. Lyn found herself staring into Mark's bewildered face. "Hey, baby, what's wrong? Did you have a nightmare?"
"Yes -- no -- I don't know." Julia, Lyn and Miki were all awake and looking at her. "Who screamed?"
"You did," Mark said. He released her arms. "Awfulest scream I ever heard. What's wrong?"
"I don't know!" She shook her head. "I felt something. It scared me."
"What?" Julia's face was a pale blur in the darkness, but she could feel the other girl's eyes boring into hers.
"I don't know. I must have been dreaming."
The two Undergrounders exchanged a look.
"What'll we do, Mark?" Julia asked, her voice quiet and very sober. "We can't leave. Alan won't know where we've gone."
"Leave?" Lyn stared from one to the other. "Of course not. Alan will be back soon."
"Yeah, he will," Mark said, "but when psychics get scared, I get scared." He spoke to Julia again, and, to Lyn's surprise, his voice was civil, without a trace of his earlier sarcasm. "She's pickin' up somethin', that's sure. Could be we've got a Jil after us."
Julia nodded. "I think she's a long-range precog. She was worried earlier this afternoon."
"Damitall!" Mark muttered the word under his breath.
"Look," Lyn said, "we can't move. Alan's getting close -- I think he is, anyway."
They were both watching her.
"Do you think it's safe to wait?" Julia asked her directly.
Lyn drew back. "How should I know?" She stared in astonishment at the Terrans before her, and at Miki, watching from the shadows. They were asking for her advice because she was a psychic, she knew. "What do you think, Miki?"
The Shirva shrugged. "I don't feel nothin', but I am not, as you say, a precog."
They were still watching her expectantly. Lyn shifted uncomfortably. "I don't know." Deliberately, she tried to concentrate as Alan did when using his powers. "I don't sense anything now."
"I think you're trying too hard," Julia said, helpfully. "You have to relax."
"I can't! I don't know how!"
Julia sighed. "How soon do you think Alan will be back?"
"I don't know. Tomorrow, maybe."
"We'd better wait," Mark said.
"Yes." Julia hadn't taken her eyes off Lyn. "But if she starts getting nervous --"
"Right. We play it by ear." Mark took Lyn's shoulders firmly. "Honey, Jul an' me are gonna watch keep watch tonight. You lie down an' get some sleep."
"I can't sleep. I'm not tired at all."
"Then just rest and try to relax."
"This is silly, Mark. Why should you stay awake when I can't sleep anyway?"
"Because until Alan gets back, you're the only psychic we got. Miki's too sick to be reliable, an' he's not a precog, anyway. We gotta keep you in good shape."
"But --"
"No buts. This is an order."
"He's right," Julia said. "Lie down and rest."
Reluctantly, Lyn obeyed, watching Mark settle down before the fire, the blaster held in one hand, resting on his bent knees. Julia lay down again. "Wake me when you start to feel sleepy, Major Linley."
"I will, Lieutenant." Their voices were carefully neutral, now. They were still angry with each other, Lyn realized, but in the face of an emergency, a temporary truce had been called.
Miki crawled across the rocks to her, and in the darkness she could see his eyes regarding her soberly.
"Hi, Miki," she whispered.
"Hi Lyn. Are you okay?"
The sympathy in his voice brought the infuriating tears to her eyes. Angrily, she brushed them away. "I hate being a psychic, Miki! I just hate it!"
"But, why?" he asked.
"All my life I've had to hide -- to be afraid! Psychics are outlaws in the Jilectan Autonomy. If they catch me now, I'll be publicly executed, just like my father."
"There is no reason to feel that way, now." Miki's voice was soft and amazingly gentle. The Shallockian accent had vanished, and his voice was suddenly incredibly like Alan's. "You are with people who know psychics for what they are. Psychic powers are good things. My people prize their psychics. We are thought to be a great gift to our tribes -- and we *are*." He spoke proudly. "*You* are a great gift to your people now, Lyn. I am too sick to be of much use, and Alan is not here. We need your psychic powers to save us."
Lyn was silent. Miki's words put a new light on the matter -- a perspective that she had never thought of before. The Underground did not only protect psychics, they used them and prized them, even as Miki's tribe did. Perhaps she could use her powers to help -- someday, with training and instruction. But now she had no skill with them. Since she had been a child, she had hidden them, and she didn't know how to use them. True, she had learned to shield her mind, but that involved no psychic powers. Non-psychics learned to shield. Julia and Mark were living proof of that.
The silence between them lengthened. She could hear the rain falling on the rocks and into the river beyond their hiding place. A sudden gust of wind blew a fine mist into their faces. Miki shivered, wrapping his small cape around him.
"Tired," he muttered. "Better rest.'
"Yes, you'd better."
"Damn right." He was a Shallockian again. "I feel like hell, Lyn."
"Is there anything I can do?"
"Nope. I gotta have some Lemke soon, dammit." He closed his eyes and was instantly asleep.
Lyn lay quiet, listening to the sound of the rain. The trees sighed gustily in the night wind.
Her thoughts began to drift. She saw Alan's face suddenly, his green eyes bright with anger and hurt. She wished now that she'd had the nerve to tell him before he left that she no longer found his feelings for her offensive. In spite of her anger, she had found him very attractive, even in the beginning when she had been his prisoner. Coming to know the real Alan Westover had been a surprise. He was such a genuinely nice person -- nothing at all like the stories she had heard about him. And now, perhaps it was too late.
She shook off the thought. He would be back soon; possibly tomorrow. Then she would tell him. She wouldn't let the chance go by again.
Dreams began to creep over her. She saw another face, a fair-skinned, handsome face, and stony grey eyes watching her from the darkness. He was searching for her. The straight, thin lips formed her name.
She struggled to escape from the searching menace and felt her imperfect shielding tightening. The presence pursued, striving to maintain contact. Panic swept over her, and with a wrench, the searcher's mind was gone. She heard herself screaming Alan's name, and felt hands grasp her arms, pulling her to a sitting position. Frantically, she struck out at the face looming over her, struggling against the hands that held her.
"Lyn, baby, it's me!" Hands caught her wrists and the same voice cursed fluently. "Dammit! M'nose is bleedin'! Knock it off, Lyn! Wake up!"
It was Mark. Lyn went slack in his hold, half-sobbing. Mark released her wrists and patted her awkwardly between the shoulder blades.
"I saw a Jil!" she gasped. "I think it was Halthzor!"
Mark cursed. "Jul!"
"Right here." Lyn knelt beside him. "I think we'd better go now."
"What about Alan?"
"I don't know." Julia was also looking at Lyn. "What exactly did you see?"
"Just his face. It was Halthzor. I've seen him on the videoscreen enough to know."
"You think he's looking for you?"
She nodded. "I'm not sure, but I think my shielding must have relaxed when I went to sleep. Sometimes it does that. Even before all this, sometimes I'd wake up and find it down. Maybe my control is poor or something."
"What do you think?" Linley asked. "Are we runnin' outta time?"
"I don't know. I don't want to leave. Alan will be here soon."
"Are you sure of that?"
Lyn closed her eyes, trying to tap into whatever knowledge her psychic power gave her. "I think I am."
Linley grinned faintly. "That's a nice confident attitude. Look, Lyn, we gotta rely on you. Should we wait?"
"I don't *know*, Mark!"
Mark chewed his lip and glanced at Julia. "Advice, Lieutenant?"
"Until morning," Julia said. "No later."
"I'm with you. If Alan ain't here by then he'll just hafta come lookin' for us." He stood up. "An' I don't think either you or me should sleep any more, tonight. I'm goin' to the top of the bank to watch. You stay down here an' don't go to sleep, for the luvvamike."
"I won't, Major," Julia said, coolly.
Mark turned to Lyn. "You better stay awake, too. Mik, you get some rest. If we do hafta move tomorrow, you're gonna need all you can get." He glanced at his chronometer. "It'll be light in two hours. We'll move out just before sunrise." He walked over to the stone ledge and scrambled upward, vanishing from sight a moment later.
Miki made no protest to Mark's order, but lay down like one too exhausted to care anymore. Lyn crawled over beside Julia. The blond girl had drawn her blaster and was holding it in both hands. Lyn settled down beside her, her shielding up tight. Julia didn't move, nor did she speak. Rain pattered on the rocks overhead.
Time dragged on, and at last the eastern horizon began to show the faintest hint of light. The rain began to let up.
Uneasiness tingled on Lyn's skin. Something was wrong. Slowly, she stood up, her blaster held firmly in both hands. It was one of the weapons that Miki had taken from the patrolmen that had pursued them a few days before, and it felt bulky and clumsy in her hands. Rapidly, she reviewed in her mind all the instructions that Mark had given her over the past few days. If the situation came, would she be able to kill another human being?
A month ago, her answer to that would have been a positive no, but a lot had changed since then. *She* had changed. Now she felt almost certain that if she had to, she could, and in a short time, there was a good chance that she would find out.
Julia was watching her. "Are you sensing something?"
Lyn nodded, no longer uncertain. "We'd better go -- right now."
Julia got to her feet. "I'll tell Mark. Get the stuff --"
A hoarse shout from the cliffs above sent adrenaline jarring through Lyn. Without thinking, she darted from the cave and leaped for the rock wall. Fear leant her strength as she ascended the jagged rocks, hand over hand. Behind her, she heard Julia's scream and the crack of a blaster set to kill. Somebody -- a man -- also screamed.
She reached the top of the rock wall and bolted toward the underbrush. Almost absently, she realized that her shields were down and that she was shouting for Alan in her mind. Miraculously, his voice answered, commanding her to raise her shielding. She obeyed at once, crashing forward through the tangled shrubbery and away.
Someone shouted near at hand, and from behind her came the sounds of pursuit. A soft, grammatically perfect voice spoke clearly. "I want them alive, Lieutenant."
Patrolmen materialized through the underbrush ahead of her, and she jerked the blaster up, flicking the setting switch almost instinctively. There were at least six individuals coming toward her as she pressed the trigger.
The roar of sound echoed through the silent forest, and she realized abstractedly that when she had flicked the control, she had set the weapon not on kill, but on emergency maximum. Flame engulfed the foremost patrolmen, and the shrubbery around them was utterly consumed. A chorus of shrieks reached her, and disbelieving, Lyn saw a Jilectan eight meters away, staggering sideways, his hair and fine clothing blazing.
Holy heck! She was in for it now! Lyn spun and ran away into the trees. Behind her came the sound of more blaster fire, and someone else howled in pain. Shouted orders reached her ears. A figure loomed up beside her, and again she tried to fire, but the exhausted weapon hissed harmlessly. Then, the patrolman was on her.
A hand caught her hair. Desperately, she swung the blaster and felt it connect. There was a curse, and for a moment the grip slackened. She tore free, leaving hair behind, and stumbled blindly forward, tearing her skin on thorns.
Then a soft humming reverberated through her, and an electrical tingle coursed over her skin. Blackness fell.
**********
XXII
Someone was speaking, the sound sending stabs of agony through Mark's brain. He cursed weakly to himself as memory returned. The Patrol had them. They were prisoners.
His first thought was of Julia. The last memory he had was of her scream and the crack of blasters. Very carefully, he tried to lift his head, feeling the wave of nausea rush over him. He had been stunned, of course.
Julia was beside him. He saw her slim, blond form through a blur of tears. Gingerly, he lowered his face again, gagging slightly and closing his eyes against the headache.
A hand descended on his shoulder, shaking him.
"Wake up, Linley," a voice said. "His Grace wants a word with you."
Mark ignored the order, trying to control his stomach. There was a soft popping sound and a sharp acrid odor was suddenly in his nostrils. The stuff brought him back to full consciousness, but intensified the nausea. He groaned and began to retch.
The patrolman kneeling beside him remained silent until the spasms ceased. Mark sank his head onto the damp rocks, cursing between his teeth. Hands caught his shoulders and turned him over. "Easy, Strike Commander."
The man's face came into focus and Mark recognized him as one of his former crewmen aboard the Wolverine. What the hell had his name been? Davis, that was it.
"'Lo there, Davis," he croaked.
"Holy space!" The man sounded almost flattered. "I didn't think you'd remember me. I was a third classer when you deserted." His voice fell. "You're in for it, sir. That crazy broad shot Lord Panthvor."
"*What*?" Mark's head jerked sideways, sending fresh pains through his pounding skull. "*Julia*?"
"Uh uh. This time it was the cute little brunette."
"Lyn!" Mark glanced around, but was unable to see her. "Did she kill him?"
The man shrugged. "He might be dead by now, but he wasn't a few minutes ago. They're on their way back to base with him. He's burned bad. She wiped out three 'trols and got His Lordship with the edge of the blast. Man! I jumped for my life when I realized what she was doing. She singed my eyebrows. See?"
Mark glanced at the man's blackened, curled facial hair. "Yeah. Where is she?"
"Over there, beside the native." Davis boosted Mark to a sitting position, and he carefully turned his head, looking around.
Beyond Julia lay the small figure of Lyn. Like her two companions, her hands were fastened behind her with restrainers. Beside her, prone on the rocks, lay Miki, his hands secured behind him with ropes. The restrainers wouldn't fit, Mark thought. He counted five patrolmen clustered around the captives, and the bodies of five more lay on the rocks beside the falls.
Julia groaned and began to sob softly. Davis glanced toward her.
"Nice," he commented. "Take it easy, baby."
She didn't respond, but the sobs ceased. Two patrolmen leaped across the stream and began searching among the rocks, turning over stones and logs with their boots. A moment later, a large, red-haired figure followed. Steel grey eyes locked with Mark's.
Linley swallowed and lowered his gaze. This was it, then. Halthzor was here, and the alien would read his mind. There was nothing he could do to prevent it. Halthzor was the most powerful Jilectan psychic that Mark's partner had ever met, and Mark's shielding was far from adequate, even against the poorest of telepaths.
The Jilectan stopped before him. Mark kept his eyes down, trying to make his mind go blank and wishing he knew how to pray. Julia stirred again and turned to her back. Her eyes focused on Halthzor and she gave a faint cry. "Mark!"
"I'm here, honey," he muttered.
Halthzor strode over to Lyn and prodded her slack figure with the toe of one boot. "Wake her up, Patrolman!" he snapped.
One of the guards knelt beside Lyn and broke one of the stimulants under her nose. Lyn jerked convulsively and groaned.
Halthzor turned back to Mark, gesturing to the patrolmen. Two of them caught his arms, pulling him to his feet.
"The globe, Strike Commander," Halthzor said. "Where is it?"
Mark cleared his throat, avoiding the Jilectan's eyes. "I ain't seen it."
A large, inexorable hand caught his chin, bringing his face up. "The globe that Commander Parnell stole from the Xenis Patrol Base."
"I dunno whatcher talkin' about," Mark said.
The fingers dug deeper. "I think you do, Strike Commander." The alien's eyes bored into his and Mark flinched, waiting for the sensation that would signal that Halthzor's mind probe had penetrated his shielding.
But it didn't come. For an endless time, the scene remained static, the Jilectan's eyes holding his. Why didn't Halthzor get on with it? *Any* third rate telepath could penetrate his shields!
"Drop your shielding, Terran," Halthzor said.
All was very quiet. Even the wind had died, and there was no rustle of leaf or grass. Lyn and Julia were both watching him, and still the sensation didn't come.
A large, white hand closed on his shoulder. Long, slender fingers located the nerve beneath the collarbone and pressed. Mark gritted his teeth against the pain.
"I have no time to waste, Terran." Halthzor was still speaking in that soft, dispassionate voice. "What did you do with the globe?"
Against the skin of his chest, the little stone that Alan had discovered in the river grew warm, almost hot. But it didn't burn him. The heat was strangely comforting, like a wordless promise of protection. Halthzor seemed to sense something too, for he released his hold on Mark's shoulder and reached forward, unsealing the flight suit Mark wore to the waist.
The little stone was glowing with a soft, blue radiance. Halthzor stared at it as though hypnotized, and from somewhere to his left, Mark heard a soft exclamation from Miki.
"What is it?" Halthzor inquired, politely.
Mark cleared his throat. "I dunno. I found it."
"Indeed?" The Jilectan's voice sounded slightly detached. "It emits an aura, does it not? Very interesting." He reached forward to grasp it.
Instinctively, Mark flinched back, but Miki voiced a shrill gasp, and out of the corner of his eye, Mark saw the Shirva struggling to his knees.
"No!" he shrilled. "No, you must not, Jil!"
Halthzor paused, his fingers centimeters from the object. "Indeed? Why not?"
Miki's eyes were enormous. "You must not!" he repeated.
Halthzor stared at the native a moment longer, then reached again for the object. Again, Mark drew back uselessly, as Halthzor's finger's closed around the little stone.
And released it instantly with an exclamation of pain, jerking his hand back. The stone dropped against Linley's chest again, still glowing warmly. Halthzor was sucking the palm of his hand, and a patrolman, whose helmet bore the insignia of a Patrol medic, came quickly toward him.
The man examined Halthzor's hand carefully. "It's a burn, Your Grace. Rather deep, too."
Halthzor seized Mark by one arm, half-lifting him from the ground. "How did you *do* that?"
Mark swallowed hard. "I didn't do nothin', Your Grace. I tellya, I don't even know what it is."
Halthzor's fingers tightened, bringing an involuntary yelp from him. "I will know, Terran, if I must cut you to bits to find out. First, where is the globe?"
Julia spoke unexpectedly. "He doesn't know, Your Grace. You're wasting your time interrogating him. Lyn gave it to me."
Halthzor let Mark go and turned to Julia. "Very well, Miss Austell. What did you do with it?"
"I threw it away," Julia said. "About ten, maybe fifteen kilometers back. Down a canyon."
"No, you would not do that." Halthzor's voice was again calm, and he extended a hand to the patrolman beside him. "Davis, give me your knife."
Davis complied quickly, opening the instrument for him. Halthzor turned again to Mark, placing the razor-sharp blade against Linley's throat. "Talk, Miss Austell," he said.
Julia was white to the hairline. "Oh no -- please!" Her voice was no longer brave or defiant, but the voice of a terrified girl. "I'll tell. I hid it while we were running from the Patrol. Please don't hurt him! Please! I'll show you where it is!" She began to cry.
Mark stared at her in awe. She was acting. She *must* be. He *knew* Lyn hadn't even disclosed the globe until they had reached their present campsite, but even he, who knew Julia well, would have been deceived by her performance. Halthzor smiled mirthlessly down at her sobbing form. "Your shields, Miss Austell. Lower them."
Julia shook her head, apparently too hysterical to hear what he said. "Please, don't hurt him! I'll show you where it is!"
Halthzor regarded her calmly a moment more, then gestured to the patrolman beside Mark. "Put them in the crawlers."
Mark, Julia and Lyn were half-carried, half-dragged up the embankment. Two crawlers, their tops open, were there, waiting. Another patrolman clambered over the top of the shelf, Miki tucked under one arm. "You wanna take the native along too, sir?" he inquired.
Halthzor gestured curtly and Miki was stowed into one of the crawlers. Julia was placed in a second one, and Halthzor climbed in beside her. Julia, to all appearances, was still weeping hysterically.
Mark glanced at Lyn. It was apparent that the two of them would not be afforded the luxury of riding. Julia, of course, was delaying, trying to hold out until Alan and Jeel arrived. It might work for a while, but Halthzor was sure to catch on eventually. What Mark couldn't figure out was why Halthzor had been unable to read his mind. It made no sense at all.
"Which direction, Miss Austell?" the Duke inquired.
Choking back sobs, Julia nodded toward the northeast. Halthzor spoke to the driver, and the crawlers ground into motion.
Mark and Lyn followed, a patrolman walking on either side of them. The ground was rough and rocky, and once or twice Mark stumbled. Lyn walked quietly beside him, her face down, skillfully avoiding obstacles.
They had continued for perhaps two kilometers when Halthzor spoke. "How much farther, Miss Austell?"
"Not very," Julia said. "Three, maybe four kilometers."
Halthzor shifted uneasily, glancing back along the trail. Lyn also glanced back.
The Jilectan raised a hand and the vehicle ground to a halt. "Miss Parnell."
Lyn jumped. "Yes, sir?"
"Come here."
Lyn shrank against Mark, but one of their guards seized her, propelling her forcefully over to the vehicle where Halthzor was seated.
"Miss Parnell," Halthzor said gently, "is someone following us?"
Lyn cringed back. "I don't know." Her voice shook.
"I think there is." The Jilectan reached out, grasped her by the arm and dragged her forward. "I sense no one, but if the follower is a member of the Underground, he is shielded." The Jilectan paused. "You will tell me what I want to know, Miss Parnell. Your shielding will not stand up under interrogation. The Undergrounders have not had the time to condition you properly. Have you ever seen an interrogation, Miss Parnell?"
"Please, I don't know anything!" Her voice shook. "They didn't tell me anything!"
"Very wise of them, too. Who is following us, Miss Parnell?" He placed his free hand on her face. "Who?"
"No one!" Lyn sounded near panic. "The natives, maybe. They followed us for a while, but I thought they'd all gone back."
There was a stir among the patrolmen and Mark knew grim satisfaction at their discomfort. Good for Lyn, he thought. The truth was always far more convincing than a lie, no matter what the circumstances.
"Your Grace," one of the patrolmen ventured, "if the natives really are following, I suggest strongly that we head back for the base."
Halthzor was still watching Lyn. "I'm inclined to doubt it, Lieutenant," he said absently.
"But sir, we've taken one of their people prisoner. We tried to do that once before, and --"
"I will make the decision, Lieutenant." Halthzor's cold voice cut him off. "I believe Miss Parnell knows something more."
Lyn took a deep breath. "Lord Halthzor, what happened to my father? Is he dead?"
"Quite," Halthzor replied indifferently. "Quite dead, Miss Parnell. But he told us all we needed to know before he died."
"Public execution," Lyn whispered brokenly. "So you killed him because he tried to save me."
Halthzor smiled at her almost gently. "No, Miss Parnell, you have it all wrong. We did not touch your father. How do you think we so easily located the planet where Sublieutenant Timmar was to meet your kidnappers? Your father blurted out the whole story, then died of heart failure, which, the doctors concluded, was brought on by sheer fright."
Lyn began to cry. "That's a lie! It's a filthy lie!"
"He also supplied us with this, Miss Parnell, that I might trace you more easily." Halthzor reached into a small, well-concealed pocket and withdrew something. "Do you recognize this, Miss Parnell?" He held the object before her.
It was a ring, Mark saw -- a wedding band set with diamonds and tani crystals, beautifully worked. Lyn cried out when she saw it. "That's my mother's wedding ring!" Her face came up, her eyes blazing. "This is *mine*! Dad gave it to me when Mother died! He would never --"
Halthzor slapped her, sending her spinning to the ground, where she lay sobbing softly. The patrolman lifted her to her feet again.
"And now, Miss Parnell, who is following us?"
She didn't reply, sobbing brokenly. Halthzor tossed the ring carelessly to the ground.
Mark knew the Jilectan's tactics well. He had seen them used time and time again in the Patrol. A sure way to break down resistance was to demoralize the prisoner, to rip pride and dignity away. Halthzor, Chief of Viceregal Intelligence, understood Terran weaknesses all too well.
He must tell her, Mark decided suddenly. After all, what did he have to lose?
"Don't listen to him, baby!" he snapped. "Jils always trample you into the dirt before they kill you. He's lyin'!" His words were cut off as one of the guards struck him in the ribs, knocking him to his knees. Stars sparkled before his eyes, and he was dimly aware of the stone growing warm against his skin. Two patrolmen dragged him upright once more.
Halthzor was speaking. "Who is following us, Miss Parnell?"
Lyn turned her head to look at Mark. Linley winked at her, and she turned back quickly. "I don't know that anyone is following us, *Your Grace*!" She lifted her chin, and quite suddenly, in spite of her tangled hair and dirty face, she reminded Mark again of the girl he and Alan had abducted back on Xenis -- the cool, disdainful officer's brat.
Halthzor caught her by the arm, shaking her hard enough to rattle her teeth. "I will have the truth, Terran!"
"I have told you the truth." Lyn's voice was calm and faintly contemptuous. "Which is more than I can say for you, Your Grace."
There was a frozen silence. The patrolmen stared at her, their mouths agape, but Halthzor's response was surprising. He smiled slightly and inclined his head a degree. "Touche, Miss Parnell. Very well. I find mind probes on Terran very distasteful, but duty calls ..."
"The feeling is mutual," Lyn informed him frostily.
Mark couldn't help admiring her. She had guts; that was for sure.
Halthzor placed a hand on Lyn's temple, concentrating. A minute dragged by, and then another.
Then, the Jilectan removed his hand, his face hardening. "A psychic!" He spat out the words.
Mark felt a touch of surprise that Halthzor had not identified Lyn's psychic abilities earlier. It spoke well for her shielding that she had been able to keep the fact a secret for this long. "Let her alone, Your Grace," he snapped. "She don't know nothin'."
"I think she does." Halthzor made a quick gesture. "Bring Linley here, Davis."
Mark was propelled forward, and Halthzor again produced the knife, flicking the blade open. "You will talk, Lyn Parnell," he said.
Lyn stared in horror as Halthzor rested the blade beneath Mark's eye. Mark felt his heart begin to pound. This was it, then. He was in for it. Lyn was not yet skilled enough to tell a convincing lie, as Julia had. She had proved that, moments ago.
The blade pressed lightly, and there was a stinging sensation on his cheek. Julia made a wordless sound of distress, and he heard the Shirva squeal. A trickle of blood traced its way down his face.
Afterwards, Linley was never sure what exactly happened. On his chest, there was a brilliant flash of light. It was the stone, he realized, glowing like a miniature sun. The patrolmen fell back with frightened exclamations, but Halthzor stood motionless, the knife still pressed to Mark's cheek. The patrolmen holding Mark released him, moving back like the rest, and Mark retreated quickly from the knife blade, but Halthzor didn't move. His breathing whistled sharply, then stopped. He gave a strangled cry. His eyes bulged, and his face began to turn a faint lavender hue.
"Your Grace!" The Lieutenant caught him by the arm, dragging him away from Mark and the tiny, glowing stone. Halthzor went slack suddenly, the knife falling from his hand. Slowly, he crumpled to his knees.
On Mark's chest, the light from the stone dwindled to that same, soft blue radiance. It still felt warm, and again that sense of security seemed to emanate from it.
Mark stared in awe at the worried patrolmen, and the Jilectan, who was now being assisted to his feet by Lieutenant Wales. Halthzor was shaking visibly, and breathing raggedly. Abruptly, he threw off the officer's hand.
"Kill him!" he croaked. "Now!"
"No!" Miki shrilled, and Linley turned his head to see the Shirva struggling frantically in the grasp of a patrolman. "No, no, dammit! It's not his fault, for the luvvamike! No!"
The Lieutenant turned to his men. "Patrolman Jasper, kill the prisoner."
"No!" Julia screamed, and over the heads of the patrolmen, Mark managed to get one last glimpse of her blond loveliness. Patrolman Jasper drew his weapon as the patrolmen pushed Linley to his knees. Jasper aimed point blank and fired.
The bolt burst before him, centimeters from his nose. He flinched away automatically, but an instant later realized in bewilderment that not only was he still alive, but that he was not burned in the least. Apparently, Jasper had missed.
Jasper, himself, looked slightly nonplused at his marksmanship. Deliberately, he aimed and fired again.
And again the bolt detonated centimeters from Mark's face. There was a frozen silence among the watching patrolmen. Jasper said something under his breath and dropped his blaster, stepping back. Halthzor's expression was a mask of puzzlement. The Lieutenant glanced quickly at the Jilectan, then back to Jasper. "Set max," he ordered.
"Sir," the man quavered, "it's witchcraft, that's what it is! I saw somethin' like this on the Isle of Trappo on Shallock once --"
"Jasper!" the Lieutenant barked. "Pick up your blaster!"
Jasper obeyed, fingering the weapon uncertainly. "It's bad luck, sir, I tellya! Them natives'll cook your brain, if you --"
"Set max, Jasper! Kill the prisoner!"
Jasper flicked the power switch, took a deep breath and aimed. The other patrolmen stepped back, pulling Lyn with them.
Jasper fired. The energy cell of the blaster gave up its charge in a single, mighty burst of flame. Mark closed his eyes, hearing the deafening roar of sound all around him. Someone -- Julia, he thought -- screamed shrilly.
Then, there was silence. Mark opened his eyes to see a blazing ring of vegetation all around him. Lyn, still held by her guard, looked ready to faint. Julia's eyes were wide with astonishment and disbelief.
Miki gave a high-pitched cackling laugh. The Lieutenant jumped visibly.
Halthzor took a step forward, never taking his gaze from Linley. The Jilectan's face was set and unreadable, and Mark fought to keep his own expression as blank. Slowly, the big alien bent and picked up the knife. He fingered it for a moment, then returned it to his pocket.
"Most -- interesting," he said softly. "And I shall learn how it was done, Strike Commander." He turned abruptly away, speaking to the patrolmen again. "Let us go."
The men didn't move for a moment, and Mark could still see them all facing him. No expression was visible behind the dark visors, but there was tangible fear in their silence. Patrolman Jasper looked at his blaster for a moment, then placed it into its holster quickly, as though he expected it to bite him. He swallowed convulsively.
"Bring the prisoner, Davis," the Lieutenant ordered.
Davis swallowed hard. "I ... I don't want to fool with 'em, sir. Holy space -- a blaster on max, and it didn't even touch him ..."
"Witchcraft," Jasper muttered. "I seen it, sir -- two years ago on the Isle of Trappo. Our sergeant tried to shoot this native. The shot rebounded, an' our Lieutenant died that night, screamin' --"
"Shut up, Jasper!" The Lieutenant sounded very near the breaking point, himself. "Bring the prisoners at once!"
"Better let me go," Mark advised, grinning ominously. "You seen it yourself. I got friends in high places."
"Bring him!" Halthzor snapped. "Make him walk! The Parnell girl, too." He climbed lightly into the crawler once more. "Drive, Patrolman!"
The crawlers ground into motion again, and Mark and Lyn were propelled along behind them. Linley glanced sideways at her, noting her drooping shoulders and downcast face. "Hey, are you okay, honey?"
She nodded, not glancing up, and he could see her face, pale under its streaked grime. "Lyn, baby, what's wrong?"
She didn't appear to hear him. Her legs folded suddenly, and she sat down hard on the forest floor. A patrolman picked her up and pushed her on. Clouds gathered overhead, and there was a muttering of thunder in the distance. Lyn staggered on beside him, her head drooping wearily. Mark watched her, wondering anew at her apparent exhaustion. Was it an act -- a trick to slow them down until Alan could catch up? If so, it wasn't working well. Halthzor had certainly not diminished his pace to accommodate them.
Lyn's knees buckled again and she fell, sprawling ungracefully on the forest floor. The patrolman behind her lifted her to her feet, but she seemed to be half-fainting in his hold. She reeled, her legs giving way almost at once, and, with a grunt, the man tossed her to one shoulder. The crawlers lumbered on.
"Here," Julia said finally.
Mark recognized the place at once, and almost laughed. It was the cave of the Ekkes, where they had hidden the night before Lyn had found them. So this was what Julia had been planning. In the confusion that was sure to ensue when the patrolmen discovered the creature, they could make a break for it. The chances of escape were almost nonexistent, true, but it was possible that one or more of their guards would lose his head and kill one of the prisoners. In any case, it was sure to delay them more, giving Alan time to catch up.
"It's in the cave," Julia sniffled. "I hid it under the rocks toward the back."
Halthzor's expression was impassive. "Indeed, Miss Austell?"
Julia nodded, not looking down. As Mark watched, her eyes lifted briefly, and her gaze locked with his. He read a final farewell in her expression and swore to himself.
*Hurry, kid*. He formed the words desperately in his mind, knowing that Alan couldn't hear him. *Hurry, or we're done for.*
**********
tbc
