Defiance (Rise of the Iliri Book 3) (32 page)

Chapter 35

Ricown looked at Jase, surprised.  "The Colonel is in Sal's tent?"

Jase laughed.  "Na like that man.  Sal was na even in her own tent last night.  Ilija is jus' passed out on the floor."

Breakfast?
Roo said gesturing to the deer as she looked up at the humans.
Sal, would you tell them we have enough to share?

"Roo wants to know if you'd care for some breakfast.  Sorry, humans, we tend to do mostly meat around here," Sal said.  "Come on in guys, pull up a seat, and get comfy.  Blades, you'll likely be fighting beside these men, so you'd best get to know them."

Hearing the commotion, Blaec emerged from his tent, dressed in his finest black uniform, and introduced himself.  The Shield's were awestruck, most unable to do more than bob their heads in acknowledgment.  Sal smiled at their reaction to meeting a military legend. 

"Jase, go wake the Colonel and tell him his men were looking for him?" Sal asked. 

Once the assassin left, Blaec took his place, sitting next to Sal beside the fire.  While the shields found places to sit, he leaned over and kissed her gently, then accepted his own breakfast from Roo, smirking at the looks from the men around them.

"You're off duty, so I'm not breaking protocol, am I?" he asked.

"No, love," she assured him.  "They're just used to seeing me with Jase.  We made no secret of our relationship.  It kept the humans from annoying me."  Roo handed out food to the guests in her camp, but Sal noticed them eavesdropping.  "They only know the two of us, and so many of you look human enough to confuse them."

Blaec nodded.  "So, we go to Conglomerate habits, or do we teach them about iliri?"

"No -" Sal began to answer as Jase returned.

"He's up.  Damn it, LT, ya stole my spot," Jase said as he moved to Sal's left side, putting her between them.  The Shields traded glances, most of them tense and waiting for an outburst.

Sal giggled, but continued her thought.  "No, Blaec, I think if we want iliri to be accepted here – truly accepted – we need to show humans that we aren't quite like them.  They know we're different, they just don't understand all of the nuances."

Jase quickly grasped the way the conversation was going.  "Yeh, I had ta explain it ta Ilija last night.  He half expected me ta challenge ya, LT."

"Really?" Blaec was amused.  "I would've thought that of all of them, he'd think little of it.  You know him pretty well, don't ya, Sal?"

"I do, but like I said, only with Jase."

Blaec picked at his food.  "Yet you think we should enlighten them."

"Not just that.  We need to get them a link.  If nothing else, Roo can hold it until Rragri can assign a linker to them.  I think she will, with the way things have been going."

Roo joined the conversation. 
I think she will, too.  She wants to begin mingling the packs with the humans and reclaim the country as their own.  She's willing to share, but she isn't willing to go back to the secrecy the grauori kept before.  The Shields have worked with Hwa and me, and they'd be a good trial to see if it works.

The three Blades nodded in understanding. 

"First," Arctic pointed out from beside them.  "We have to stop talking about them like they aren't here,"

Ricown chuckled.  "Yeah, I don't know about the rest, but I know there's a bit of tension.  Kaisae, we know your Blades are different -"

"Blaec's Blades," Sal corrected with a grin.

"Ok,
the
Blades.  A few of us know there's more, and the Colonel knows more than we do."

"What about me?"  Ilija asked, rubbing his head as he staggered from the tent.  "Morning men.  Don't touch the iliri unless they offer it," he said.  "And it sounds like we already have an issue."

"No," Sal assured him.  "Not an issue, really."

"I kissed the Kaisae," Blaec explained.  "Your Shields didn't like it, but they were polite.  It just brought up the cultural differences, and we're debating the best way to handle it."

"Well, what'd ya do in the Conglomerate?" Ilija asked.

"Hid it," Jase told him.  "In public, we act as human as we can.  That's why we all have a camp at the edge, and why we're so hypersensitive ta humans entering it.  Our den, our home, that kinda thing."  He shrugged at the Shields in explanation for their earlier behavior.

Ilija nodded.  "Well, I don't think ya need to do that.  We all know Sal's anything but normal, and Ahnor, you aren't exactly the most comfortable man to be around.  Knowing that, I can see why the Shields are tense.  Hell, I know how it makes me feel."  He shrugged.  "All I can say is that you'll probably answer a lot of questions – like Jase did with me last night.  You may have to push some of 'em because we humans don't want to offend.  We know what we owe Sal."

Blaec thought about that.  "So, address the concerns before they can become more, and just be ourselves?  You already seem to understand a few of our quirks, like the touching."

"Yeh, I know about the Ahnor.  I also see enough to notice how Sal tries, but flinches every time a strange hand touches her.  The grauori are the same."

Arctic explained, "Most of our abilities are touch based, or at least accentuated by touch.  Some are conscious, like Sal's, Shift's and Risk's.  But others, like LT's and Cyno's, are spontaneous."

Sal looked at the humans sitting much too quietly.  "Come on, Shields, I see you listening, you might as well join in."

Ricown chuckled.  "I was trying to be subtle, Kaisae."

For the first time, Arctic looked at the First Officer of the Verdant Shields.  His head tilted slightly.  "Sal?"

"Yeah, quarter iliri.  I know, Arctic.  I don't know if he has a talent – we didn't have the means to check without a link," she said.  Ricown looked between them, his eyes large, as Sal talked about him.  "He's a better shot than you, though."

"Seriously?" Arctic asked, impressed.

"Yep.  He's the one that nearly killed me in the gauntlet.  That was
before
he had training."

"Nice," Arctic said, and Ricown blushed at the praise.

You should link them, Raewar,
Roo suggested.
I'll hold it, but I don't know how to pull them in.

Arctic switched to his mind, including Ilija in the mental conversation.
  What do you all think?  Once they're in, they may be able to piggyback on any link like we can.

Only if they know they can, and have a strong enough awareness of the linker,
Hwa pointed out.

Sal thought about it.
  It would make things easier in the long run.  I know we'll all suffer for it the first day, but I expect we'll be fighting with them for weeks, if not months more.  They're good men.  On their own, I wouldn't recommend linking them all, but as a group...

Ilija held up a finger to the Verdant Shields, letting them know that something was going on.
I can't guarantee that I can control them, but I haven't seen much that makes me worry about linking them.  Dag is rash, and Vanja can be belligerent, but that seems to be the worst of it.  Their intentions seem good, and with a link, we'd be that much more aware, right?

Blaec nodded at the Colonel.
Yeah, and if Roo opens you up before battle, they can't hide anything.  It'll also let you share perceptions from each of them, covering your blind spots.  From what Sal says, Dominik deserves the best he can get behind him. 
He turned to Roo. 
You sure you're ok with managing their link?

Yes, Kaisor.  And I want to learn how to bring a human in.  I can't fight, not now, but this I can do.

Arctic, let them in.  Take Ricown first.

Yes, sir,
Arctic agreed, standing.  He walked over to Ricown and held out his hand.  "Ricown, touch me."

Ricown looked up and started to climb to his feet, but Arctic waved him back down.  Again, he held out his hand.  "It's easier if you're sitting."

Ricown clasped it. "Ok?"

"You're part iliri.  This shouldn't feel too strange to you.  Your head is going to feel like it's being tickled, and that's ok.  It's me.  Don't fight it."

"Yeah, I feel you," Ricown said, impressed.

"Take it.  Follow it," Arctic whispered. 

From the look on Ricown's face, he did.  Sal felt something brush against her consciousness, like rough spun wool that was well worn.  Around the camp, the Blades were smiling, knowing the feel of a new mind joining the link, and one that showed promise.

Be welcome,
Blaec thought to him, and Ricown's eyes nearly shot out of his head.  He looked at the Major in awe.

"Did you?"

"Yeah," Blaec said, gesturing for Ricown to hold that thought.
It's easier for you if you don't know what's coming.  Then you can't brace against it.  The humans will be harder.  Let us not set them up to fail.

Ricown just nodded, looking around at each of them. 

"Ok, hang on," Ilija interrupted.  "Let's get this straight, first.  Those humans have names.  The dark ones are Dag, Danku, and Vanja, from darkest to lightest.  Then we have Zain, Tebio, Caein, and Ricown, again dark to light."  He pointed at the men as he introduced them.  "And the Blades..."

Blaec took over.  "I'm LT, then Arctic, Sal, Jase, Zep, Razor, Shift, Risk, Geo, and Audgan."  As he named each one, they nodded at the Verdant Shields.

Awkward greetings were shared all around.  The Shields could tell the Blades were up to something, but were unsure of what it could be.  While the new guys tried hard to be polite, Arctic stepped to the next man, Dag, and offered his hand.

"Dag, look at me, and touch."  The soldier obeyed.  "You will feel something in your mind, let me know when you can feel it."

"What does it feel like?" Dag asked.

"A worm in your head.  Awkward and like it's moving," Zep told him.

"No, nothing like that."

Arctic focused harder, and Roo stared across at him. 
Is that it?
Roo asked.

I think so.  Each human is a bit different, so let's see
.

"I think I feel it.  Oh, that's weird," Dag whispered.

"I need you to grab it and hold it like a dog on a bone.  Sink your mental teeth and nails into it, and hang onto it like your life depends on it," Arctic told him.

Dag nodded.  "Ok, I got it."

Arctic pulled, and Sal felt gravel behind her eyes, and then nothing.

"It got loose, man," Dag said, shrugging it off.

"Trust me, Dag, you want to hold onto that shit," Ilija said.

"One more try," Arctic said, gazing deeply into Dag's eyes for a moment.

Eventually, Dag spoke again, "Ok, I got it good."

"Don't let it go, man," Ilija said.

Arctic exhaled, and again Sal felt the gravel against her brain.  She leaned her head on Jase's shoulder.  Blaec massaged her knee.  The other Blades rubbed at their heads, and Audgan was breathing deeply.  Eventually, the irritation stopped, and they all felt the prickle of a new presence in their link.  Blaec glanced at the Blades, and everyone nodded.

Arctic and Roo moved on to the next and the next.  Vanja took three tries before he got it.  Danku slipped right in on the first try.  Caein took two attempts, but his mind slid into theirs like silk rather than the coarse materials of the other human minds.  With only Tebio left, Arctic gestured to Roo.  She moved to sit in front of the human and held out her paw.

"I get the newbie, huh?" Tebio laughed.  "Tell me you can't mess up my head?"

"Na," Roo promised.  "I cran na mess yer ead."

Tebio accepted her paw.  As Roo looked in his eyes, Arctic talked Tebio through it, Glish being easier for the iliri tongue than the grauori.  At one point, Arctic paused and rested his hand on Roo's shoulder, focusing intently before he began again.  Sal felt sand against the back of her eyes, so rubbed at them.  The camp was silent, but the Shields looked around, obviously feeling the discomfort.  When the feeling stopped, Roo dropped Tebio's hand and looked up at Arctic, panting in her excitement.