Page 41 of Lacey's Warriors

“Well,” Chel finally said with a smile teasing the side of his mouth. “That didn’t go as I expected.”

“No, it did—”

A searing, crippling pain tore through his mind, worse than anything he’d ever experienced. It felt as if something deep inside of him was being broken, and power seared into his mind. He cried out, collapsing to his knees as Chel gave out a similar shout of agony. Together the men crumpled to the ground while the doors to the room opened and the sound of men rushing in reached him.

“Gwarnon, Chel!” Orushel shouted. “What is wrong?”

Chel gave a harsh, coughing gasp before he said, “Gwarnon’s mental shields are gone. His Matriarch either severed the bond or she is dead.”

Gwarnon let out another pain-filled roar, the flimsy bars holding back the madness straining as only his bond with Chel and a far too distant Lacey held it back. He writhed in agony, his mind feeling like it was about to explode at any moment. Lurching to his feet, he grasped his head and roared, the strain of fighting the madness crushing his mind in a brutal fist.

Voices rose in panic around him and he felt a slightly painful prick right before blessed darkness closed over his sight.

Chapter 11

Chel

Looking at his brother, strapped to the medical bed with restraints strong enough to anchor a ship, Chel wept.

Right before he’d managed to sedate Gwarnon, his blood brother had displayed all the signs of the madness. And the feeling that had tried to surge through the bond and into Chel—it had scared the life out of him. Anger, such anger and hatred, that it had made him sick, but deep inside, a part of him that he didn’t even recognize strained against the boundaries of his soul. An unthinking animal who only wanted to feast and kill.

The only sound in the room came from their breathing, and Chel remained slumped against the wall nearest to the door, his hope fading by the moment that they would make it to Lacey in time.

Despite being knocked out by the tranquilizers, Gwarnon still snarled and roared in his sleep, his incisors refusing to retract.

Chel was afraid to open one of Gwarnon’s eyelids, afraid he would only see the black of a blown out pupil instead of the rim of brilliant deep blue and silver of Gwarnon’s iris.

“Sir,”came Orushel’s voice through his mental implant,“there are six unidentified ships closing in on us.”

Chel cursed, pushing off the wall as he gave his two men a hard look. “Stay here with him, no matter what. Guard him with your life.”

He didn’t wait for their reply, sprinting through the ship to the command post where Orushel was frowning at a giant display of the area surrounding their ship. Like most of space, it was empty other than a few bits of debris, so the ships were easy to spot. He frowned as he stared at the screen, trying to make sense of what he was seeing.

“Why is there aMoriskanship, aCowtarsniper ship, and three HolyQuinhuEmpire battle cruisers moving in formation in our direction?” Chel asked as he mentally readied the ships defenses. “We were in stealth mode when we left the Baladium, no one should have been able to track us.”

“TheQuinhu’swish to speak with you,” Orushel said as his fingers moved over the display before him.

“Allowed,” Chel said, bracing himself for whatever additional trial they were about to face.

An elegant femaleQuinhuappeared on the screen, the long golden plume of her feathered crest flexing slightly as her gaze scanned Chel. She wore the armor of a high priestess, the golden accents glittering in the light and calling attention to her well-muscled frame. AQuinhuBattle Maiden, his crystal implant helpfully supplied. Considered the equivalent of a Kadothian General.

Quickly learning the correct protocol, Chel dropped his head to his chin twice, then said, “Battle Maiden, you honor us with your presence. How may I be of assistance?”

To his surprise, the Battle Maiden dropped her chin twice, her teeth clicking together in a way that made him wince.

“It is we who are honored to be in your presence,” the Battle Maiden said. “And it is we who offer assistance.”

Orushel gave him a startled look as Chel quickly said, “Without giving offense, may I ask why you are offering us this gift?”

“We learned that you are to become Lady Lacey’s bondmates, and wish to repay her kindness with an act of similar value.” Her head quirked to the left in a birdlike way, her teeth clicking again before she said, “It is part of the foundation rules of our Holy Empire to return life debts. Lady Lacey freed twenty of our people, both royal and common, that she won in the Baladium. She did this without asking for rewards or demanding treaties and sacrifices. She did it because she believed it was the right thing to do. Acts of honor like that are to be respected. We, along with theMoriscanandCowtarpeople offer you safe escort to the edges of the Kadothian territory.”

Chel digested this, then ran his tongue over his teeth before saying, “Will this be a dangerous mission for you?”

The Battle Maiden chuckled. “No, but without us, it would have been a dangerous mission for you. Going off without an escort, thinking that no one would notice—are you daft? The various bounties and personal vendettas against you are enormous. We would be extremely disappointed if Lady Lacey’s bondmates turned out to be fools that got themselves killed before they could return to her side.”

He couldn’t exactly tell them that Gwarnon lay in the hold, mindless and sedated, and that every moment they spent speaking was a moment that might be Gwarnon’s last.

“We have our reasons,” was all Chel said in reply. “If you are ready, we need to continue on with our journey.”

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