The True Ruler, page 4
part #5 of Worlds Apart Series
“When did it stop?” Darden asked.
Benko smiled. “When she met you. I do not believe she ever forgot what happened, but she had something else to concentrate on. You.”
Crystal telepaths disappeared from time to time, never returning from a mission. No one would have automatically considered the missing man tangled with Benko Jarlyn and lost. They certainly had not been aware of Cassie’s existence. Whoever Cassie killed would have been written off as a result of a bad wormhole or entering a hostile world. Before his first trip to Gingko Terra, the only information Darden had about that world was Gatherers suffered headaches when in that dimension.
“You can understand why I have encouraged you not to start a sexual relationship with my daughter,” Benko finally said. “If she had the capacity to do that as a child, there is no way to tell what a mated fifth-generation telepath’s abilities might be. JoAnna struggles with her abilities and she has the maturity to deal with it. Cassie is still very much a child.”
“Yet, JoAnna and Shirl talked Cassie into entering the portal that would take her to the Troyk universe,” Darden said. “They must know something we do not.”
It hurt Darden that Cassie would make such a decision without discussing it with him. They were partners and such a radical move should have merited a discussion between the two of them. Darden knew he was being hypocritical since he made unilateral decisions all the time that impacted the two of them. He and Benko had meticulously outlined when Darden would bring each of the orphaned girls back to the Troyk universe. Not once had either discussed Cassie’s return. It was understood that Cassie would not enter the Troyk universe until Benko had control of the world.
“Shirl and JoAnna both felt that Cassie would never reach her true potential until she went to our world,” Benko said. “They had more faith in my daughter than either of us. For that, I am ashamed. Chartail warned her not to go, but that most likely pushed Cassie to leave.”
Darden knew there was no love lost between Cassie and Benko’s soul mate. Chartail unintentionally managed to prey on Cassie’s insecurities. He only further added salt to the wound by rejecting Cassie’s physical advances. The more he thought about it, he understood why Cassie joined her two friends.
He had once again failed his soul mate. Now his presence in the Troyk universe would only complicate matters. The last thing anyone of them wanted was to have Jeryl Jarlyn know the true nature of their relationship. The elder Jarlyn would not hesitate to force them to mate to increase Cassie’s powers substantially. Darden was now stuck in the penal colony, unable to assist her should she find herself in mortal danger.
Chapter 4
Cassie re-entered her bedroom after taking a much needed shower. To her surprise, a tunic and leggings were laid out on the bed. Leenea Childers had somehow managed to move all of JoAnna’s belongings and provide her a change of clothing in the short period of time Cassie took to bathe. The clothing was in a blend of white, gold, and tan colors. She slipped the tunic on over her head and put on the accompanying slacks.
There was a knock on her door and Alex stuck her head in. “Are you decent?”
“Come in,” Cassie answered. To be honest, she wanted the company. All she could think about was how much she missed Darden. Alex was a nice distraction.
“My cousin, Solfa, and one of her intelligence officers are here to meet you,” Alex said.
Cassie initially started to panic until she remembered someone telling her Solfa was one of the good guys. How they managed to keep the growing network of dissidents from her grandfather was a mystery. The larger the group, the more risk that communication would slip into a communal channel. Every day, the warrior link grew with new members entering the pathway.
“Is the intelligence officer one of us or is this official business?” Cassie asked. She was unsure what happened when someone entered their dimension for the first time. True, she was the Prime Ruler’s granddaughter, but procedures had to be followed.
“Intelligence officer Karlon Flonder is one of us,” Alex informed her. “He entered the warrior channel soon after Solfa did. My aunt and Solfa’s mother will be over later to meet you. We did not want to overwhelm you with everyone at once.”
“I appreciate it,” Cassie said. “Remembering everyone’s names is not one of my strengths. We may have to cheat and share some names through our closed channel. I know it’s cheating, but I need all the help I can get.”
“Gee, you talk fast,” Alex stated. “I don’t remember that about you. We’ll have Tolfer teach you how to talk orally, as well as pushing the same information through our channel. Telepathic communication is not affected by how quickly we talk, but sometimes by the speed the brain interprets what was communicated.”
Cassie knew she spoke rapidly when she was excited. Learning how to repeat her thoughts telepathically would reduce the funny looks she received and eliminate the embarrassment of the listener having to ask her to repeat what she said. It was her understanding Tolfer was a master at what he did and she needed the help.
The two women headed for the common room where everyone congregated. Cassie stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the second C.T. Guard from earlier today. The nondescript man was standing next to a stunning woman with rich chestnut brown hair. It was several shades lighter than Cassie’s mahogany locks.
“This is my cousin, Solfa, and Karlon Flonder,” Alex made the introductions.
“We met this morning,” Karlon said. “They were short a C.T. Guard, so I accompanied Barash. Most of the time our alarms are set off by insects entering the dimension during the intervals other dimensional portals open and close. I felt like a little exercise, so I volunteered instead of allowing them to pull one of the trainees.”
“Why were you silent the entire walk to town?” Cassie asked. “It was a little odd, considering I am the Prime Ruler’s granddaughter. I know you wanted to keep your involvement with the resistance a secret, but any normal person would have tried to ingratiate themselves with a relative of the man in charge.”
Karlon smiled, which made his face anything but ordinary. “But my job is not to be noticed. I blend into the shadows and learn what I can from people who let their guard down. Barash would have become suspicious if I started to act out of character. Besides, he would not have appreciated the competition.”
Everything Karlon said made sense. They all had roles to play and Cassie needed to make sure she kept that in mind. One slip and she could topple her father’s plans and those who plotted along with him.
“It is nice to meet you, Cassie,” Solfa came forward and extended her hand. The woman had a penetrating glance. Considering Cassie was surrounded by friends, she was not concerned by the way the woman glared at her. “Your grandfather has asked me to start screening men for you to meet tomorrow night. A procession of gentlemen will be brought before you and they will kiss your hand. The general population will think it is a means for these subjects to welcome the granddaughter of the Prime Ruler, but it’s Jeryl’s way of finding your soul mate.”
Silence met Solfa’s last statement. Everyone in the room knew Darden was her soul mate.
“Well, Jeryl is not wasting any time,” a voice from the entryway sounded.
Cassie turned to see Candy Phillips come into the common room. The woman was covered in mud from head to toe. Some things had not changed since they were kids. Candy had always been a tomboy. Uncaring how filthy Candy was, Cassie ran toward her old friend, but Candy put up her hands to stop her.
“I am a sweaty mess,” Candy said. “There is nothing I hate more than being sent to Terra Flora to gather crystals. We tangled with a giant larma beast.” She shuddered indelicately. “When is that man ever going to be satisfied with what he has?”
Candy was no doubt talking about her grandfather. As she grew up, Cassie’s father taught her about the different crystals that could be used to enhance their telepathic gift. Cassie feared most of her abilities except the ones that would safeguard her against danger. She paid little attention to most of her father’s lessons. Now it appeared her grandfather mastered pulling power from the stones.
“We can chat after I shower,” Candy said. “I am going to grab Tolfer and then clean-up. He can finish cooking dinner after he scrubs my back.” With a saucy wink she flounced out of the room.
A pang of jealousy hit Cassie. Her friends had soul mates they could depend on and enjoy intimately. That thought brought her back to what her grandfather planned for tomorrow night. He was going to be disappointed. Nothing was going to occur, regardless of how many men he paraded in front of her. As far as Cassie knew, her grandfather was only aware of two pairings: Shirl’s to Starc and JoAnna’s to Koel.
“What else does my grandfather have in store for me?” Cassie asked.
“That is it for now, as far as I know,” Solfa said. “Jeryl has not shared anything else with me. He has, however, asked for JoAnna to be present in The Palace tomorrow afternoon.”
“I am not surprised,” JoAnna said. “He continues to train me, but has barely used my mind control gift in any capacity since my return from Gingko Terra. My mind closed its telepathic link to him before I mated with Koel.”
“See if you can connect with Cassie,” Shirl suggested. “If she has a natural barrier, Jeryl will be unable to control her mind, too.”
Cassie was hesitant to have JoAnna do as Shirl suggested. It was not that she feared JoAnna. Actually, it was exactly the opposite. She did not want to damage JoAnna’s brain. When she was younger she inadvertently entered some of her classmates’ minds and caused their noses to bleed. Once she was aware of what she had done, Cassie had pulled out of their minds.
“I don’t think that is a good idea,” Cassie cautioned.
JoAnna came to stand beside Cassie. “Let’s sit down,” JoAnna suggested. “Like you, I am a fifth-generation mind control telepath. If I sense something is wrong, I will release you and no harm will occur to either of us.”
“I think we should listen to Cassie and not tempt fate,” Alex wearily said.
Cassie looked between JoAnna and Alex. She was not dealing with non-telepathic children. JoAnna was more powerful than Cassie was, since she used her gifts. This was the perfect time for her to try and learn to control her powers. Cassie reminded herself the man she killed all those years ago meant to do her harm, JoAnna was her friend. She could only pray neither of them did harm to the other.
Cassie and JoAnna sat next to each other on one of the sofas. Koel was beside his soul mate, holding JoAnna’s hand. Since Koel was able to enter both JoAnna’s mind and the brain she connected to, he could monitor their exchange. If he sensed anything was wrong, they would break any bond the two women happened to create.
Cassie took a deep, cleansing breath. She had recently entered one other mind and inherently knew what she needed to do. Afton’s nose had bled when she invaded her brain. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt JoAnna. They stared into each other’s eyes and Cassie cautiously reached out telepathically to JoAnna. A barrier existed that stalled her ability to penetrate JoAnna’s mind.
Cassie felt pressure. Although she had been unable to enter JoAnna’s mind, her friend appeared to have successfully entered hers. She tried to relax and welcome the intrusion. If she fought, Cassie knew temporary to permanent damage would result.
“Can you turn off your thoughts, like you do when you turn down the volume of conversations in your brain?” JoAnna asked telepathically. “I have a natural telepathic wall, but you can erect your own by concentrating on turning off the noise. It will not be permanent, but it will safeguard you if Jeryl tries to enter your mind. He will not know the difference and will cease trying.”
JoAnna was not using a channel to communicate, but was in her mind. The pressure continued to increase as Cassie did as the other mind control telepath suggested. She could feel JoAnna’s presence, but was unable to block her intrusion.
Cassie felt liquid running down her lip and she wiped it away with her hand. She continued to concentrate on stopping JoAnna from penetrating her mind. Everything she tried failed.
“You need to stop,” Alex cried. “She’s bleeding.”
It was as if Alex’s warning was said in a cave. Her words echoed in Cassie’s mind, but did not interrupt what she was trying to do to stop JoAnna.
“We all bled.” Shirl’s words were even more diluted when she responded to Alex. “If she starts bleeding from anywhere other than her nose, we’ll stop. Koel has not pulled JoAnna from Cassie’s mind yet.”
The pressure in her head lessened. Whatever she was doing was on the right track. Cassie put more energy in pushing the unwanted thoughts from her mind and building an impenetrable wall against future attacks. She made a mental note of where she placed the barrier so she could continually check the strength of the telepathic shield.
“Did I erect a barrier you can’t enter?” Cassie asked. She was fairly certain she had, but she needed JoAnna’s validation to confirm she had been successful.
“Yes,” JoAnna responded, “But more importantly, we are able to communicate this way without entry to the functioning of your brain. Tomorrow, if Jeryl tries to enter your mind, I can join you and be invisible to him.”
“What’s happening?” Alex asked anxiously. Cassie could feel her friend’s agitation through their closed telepathic bond, even while she was connected to JoAnna.
“Everything is fine, Alex,” JoAnna responded. “We have an ability to connect on the surface of consciousness which Jeryl Jarlyn will not be able to detect. It’s almost like another telepathic channel, but unique to mind control telepaths.”
“Will Jeryl be able to enter the pathway?” Shirl inquired.
“No,” JoAnna answered. “I believe, since we are fifth-generation mind control telepaths, we have abilities unique to only the two of us. At no point did Jeryl ever try to communicate with me in this manner. Believe me, if he had this ability he would certainly use it. The man wants control over everything he can. We need to keep this ability to ourselves.”
“I still do not like Cassie being forced to spend time with her grandfather,” Alex said. “Candy, do you sense any impending danger?”
Candy had the gift of premonition and her visions became more vivid as an event neared. At this point, Candy would only be able to get an impression of danger without anything concrete for them to help prepare themselves. Worse, Candy could not always determine who was in danger.
“I do not sense anything,” Candy said. “However, we must diligently protect both Cassie and JoAnna. There are rebel contingents out there who already consider JoAnna a threat. Now that the communal channels have announced Cassie’s arrival, she, too, is in danger.”
Two attempts had already been made on JoAnna’s life that Candy and JoAnna herself were able to prevent. Cassie knew the risks when she entered the Troyk universe. Even after her father took over the government, she imagined there would always be someone out to get her or her dad. It was not something she had dealt with in Gingko Terra, but knew her life was imperiled the moment she left that realm.
“Like it or not,” Shirl said, “Jeryl Jarlyn is never going to be alone with Cassie and she will not walk the streets of Aster Province without one of us by her side.”
It was touching her friends were willing to risk their lives for her. Cassie could only pray that nothing happened to them while protecting her. How could she live with herself if any of them were harmed? In the Childers’s household she could relax. Tomorrow, when she returned to her grandfather’s palace, everyone would be at risk.
Chapter 5
Cassie fidgeted with the bracelet Darden gave her on her eighteenth birthday. It was a beautiful gold tennis bracelet set with a variety of gemstones. The slim bracelet graced her left wrist while a cuff graced her right. When she left Gingko Terra for the Troyk penal colony she began wearing her mother’s familial bracelet. Benko had told her very little over the years about the woman who gave birth to her. Perhaps he was afraid she would want to leave for the Troyk universe to find her mother’s family.
She sat in her grandfather’s receiving room with Shirl, Candy, and JoAnna. Shirl and JoAnna now lived with their soul mates, but returned to the Childers’s home for the mid-day meal and to accompany her to The Palace. Candy had originally been assigned to protect Shirl, but they would now ensure she was at Cassie’s side for the foreseeable future.
They had been in The Palace for half an hour and her grandfather had not yet made an appearance. Had she known, she would have stayed longer with Alex, Alex’s aunt Norrie, and Solfa’s mother Pattrice. Solfa’s mother was a trip. She kept crying and hugging Cassie as if she were her long-lost daughter. Norrie admitted to having a crush on Benko Jarlyn when she was younger. It was weird thinking of someone being attracted to her father.
Whatever delayed her grandfather was not in any of the information being communicated through the variety of communal pathways that linked the province’s population. There had been a little blip in activity when it was announced Cassandra Jarlyn had entered the Troyk universe. As soon as it was clear Benko was not with her, conversations about Cassie had diminished. The return of the children of Benko’s followers had become old news.
When her grandfather finally joined them, he seemed flustered. Something had occurred, but Jeryl Jarlyn was clearly not going to discuss it with the four women before him. He seemed surprised to see the entourage Cassie had with her.
“You girls are no longer required,” the Prime Ruler said, “you are dismissed.”
Cassie needed to make it clear these women would stay as long as they desired, and her grandfather did not have a say in the matter. “I need them with me as I learn about this world and my capabilities,” Cassie informed her grandfather. “JoAnna has the same telepathic gift I have and there is so much I can learn from her. Shirl and Candy are like sisters to me, having visited them as often as I did in the orphanage. Although we are blood, you are a stranger to me, Grandfather.”
