Cloud Rebel (R-D #3)(51)

"At least one of your agents had the talent for power blasts," Corinne leveled her gaze on Director Keef. "He burned that small town in Texas. Some of those babies were sleeping when they died. Maybe next time, you'll be more careful when you hire somebody."

"What do you expect me to do about it?" Director Keef hissed.

"Unless you can bring back the dead, maybe you ought to climb back on your spaceship and get the hell away from here," Corinne snapped.

"We should give a full report to the Founder," Schaff suggested. "That means examining the sites, recording images and gathering evidence before we go. We should also collect the bodies of our agents, to return them to the Alliance."

"You'll only get two of them," Colonel Hunter said. "Valegar separated the particles of two. Those bodies no longer exist."

"A Larentii felt it necessary to separate particles?" Schaff asked, his voice expressing wonder. "Norian, they must have attacked a Larentii."

"They were leveling power blasts at my Corinnelar," Val agreed stiffly. "I am allowed to protect my mate."

"May the stars never fail us," Schaff muttered. "I'll pass that along to my father."

"So the Larentii are responsible for the deaths of two of my agents?" Norian huffed.

"Yes," Val nodded. "If your Founder, Ildevar Wyyld, wishes to question a Larentii," he began.

"Norian," Schaff warned, placing a hand on Keef's arm.

"Who killed the other two?" Keef demanded.

"A werewolf, whom I refuse to identify," Corinne said. "Without his help, those f*ck-ups you called agents would have killed more people, looking for crowns that are no longer on this planet."

"Then where are they?" Keef asked.

"With the Mighty Hand," Valegar replied. Keef snorted his disbelief. Schaff went completely still.

"You know what he's saying, don't you?" I spoke for the first time. Schaff had gone pale at Valegar's words.

"The Three are waking?" he shuddered.

"Hmmph," Valegar snorted.

"What in the name of the eternal light is he talking about?" Keef turned to his second-in-command.

"The god wars," Lendill muttered and dropped his gaze. "I can't say more than that. All I can say is that I need to have a long talk with my father when I get back."

"I thought you didn't get along with your father."

"I don't get along with my brothers."

"I see." Keef clearly didn't.

"Who the f*ck are you?" Keef rounded on me, now, since I'd spoken to Schaff.

"That is a Karathian warlock, whose power hasn't been wakened," another man arrived in the same manner that Val and Corinne could travel.

"Father, we're handling things," Schaff muttered.

"And f*cking them up quite well, I might add," the new arrival announced.

*

Corinne

Lendill Schaff had no clue.

None.

His father from the future had arrived to defuse the situation. Lendill thought it his father from the present. Kaldill Schaff tossed a glance in my direction. I understood much from that swift contact.

None of this was supposed to happen, yet here we were, having a discussion that should never have taken place.

I knew the drug was to blame for every bit of it. I began to understand better why it was death on other worlds to have or use it.

I understood something else from Kaldill Schaff, too.

Sometime in the future, the drug would be found again. I shivered at the thought.

I'm here now, because we may need you in the future, Kaldill sent mindspeech. In all the history of the drug, you are the only bright spot in it.

*

That night turned out to be a very long one. Val and I—or mostly Val—bent time and folded space with Norian Keef, Lendill Schaff and Lendill's father, Kaldill. We were silent, invisible witnesses to the destruction caused by four half-Elemaiyan ASD agents who had a secret agenda.

Norian recorded every murder they committed on his handheld, while Lendill looked away in disgust and Kaldill silently blessed the spirits of the dead. When we ended up at the small restaurant in Cordell where the four Elemaiya died, Norian asked the question I knew was coming.

"He's with me," I said, meaning Gerrett. "If you think to take him, then you should think again."

"You will leave him where he is," Kaldill decreed. I watched as a blank look washed over Norian's features before he nodded.

The King of the Elves had spoken.

*

"Child, I think you should stay to help," Kaldill said to Lendill when we arrived at the ugly building in Arlington. Val had bent time again to bring us back just after we'd left.

"What about me?" Norian sniffed.

"You may do whatever you like, although your expertise would be useful," Kaldill leveled his gaze upon Norian. "Much is happening here. It will serve as good training for what you may face in the future."

"Can you expand on that?" Norian asked. He was learning respect—or at least offering it grudgingly.

"Not at this time. I believe that offering your services to the new President of this country will not go amiss. Especially since your agents did such damage on your watch while you ignored them."