Exile by Julia Barrett

Author:Julia Barrett [Barrett, Julia]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
ISBN: 9781607352792
Amazon: 1607352796
Publisher: Resplendence Publishing, LLC
Published: 2011-06-28T21:00:00+00:00

Daughters of Persephone

The ship drifted, dark and silent, as the men held position behind the first moon. The hauler had flashed to its destination several turns before. Kyr and Davi remained alert, scanning for any sign of a Coalition destroyer.

Still in a trance-like state, Aja hadn’t moved since they’d powered down.

Kyr watched the irregular rise and fall of her chest, his anxiety for her increasing. Despite the chill of the ship, she was drenched in sweat. Her clothing clung to her. Her skin seemed even more pale than usual in the dim glow of the emergency bulbs.

He hadn’t witnessed this before, this searching for a path, for a future. He’d only seen the aftermath. To watch this made his heart pound. Wherever it was she went on this inner journey, he couldn’t go with her. Whatever she did, she did alone.

Davi fidgeted in the chair next to him. He kept the scanner on low, watching and listening for any radio broadcast. So far it seemed they’d gone undetected. Kyr could read his friend well and he knew Aja’s trance-like state, in addition to everything else she’d told them, made Davi ill at ease.

Kyr leaned over the console, kept his voice low. “She’ll be all right. She’s done this before. It’s how she found our way off the planet.”

Davi shook his head. “Maybe so, but watching her makes me want to jump out of my skin. Is it magic? Is she touched by the Gods? I thought this was nothing more than myth.”

“I did as well, until I saw her fight her way out of the laboratory. She fights like a trained Aric Assassin. I’d heard the stories of Women of the Blood from my grandmother, but until I saw it with my own eyes, I’d never believed them.”

“So you believe all of them? You believe they’re true?”

“Yes. I believe they’re true.”

Davi was silent for a few moments. “Then she could be used as a terrible weapon by either side.”

“Yes.”

“So what do we do? Do we take her to the Resistance? Gods forbid; we can’t let her fall into Coalition hands.”

“For now, we wait. When she comes out of this, she’ll guide us. I think we’ll need to stay on the margins for a bit, in order to keep her safe. If you prefer, I’ll find you secure transport at the first opportunity with twice your share of the coin. I won’t leave her, but I won’t ask you to take this risk with me.”

Davi searched Kyr’s face. “You’ve had her blood, haven’t you?”

Kyr didn’t answer.

“So that part’s true too, then?”

“Yes.” Kyr could almost read his friend’s mind as he pondered his options.

Davi turned the scanner even lower. “I’ll stay with you for now. You need a second in command. But if we discover it’s easier to hide two rather than three, then I’ll make my way back to Kesa and the men. They won’t wait forever, Kyr. They’ll grow restless after a piece.”

“I know. They’ll wait a moon, maybe two, no more.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.