Crisis Management

  Dev leaves her own world knowing that her future lies elsewhere. She joins the Citadel where her strength can be useful, but is useful enough?

  Dev’s talent makes her unwanted on her own world, so she chooses to join the Citadel in an effort to find another where acceptance will be offered.

  Helsin is the physician who tests her talent and when he confirms her strength, he offers her a position in the Lowel Citadel, a base that is still in the planning stages.

  Dev becomes the first employee of Lowel Citadel, based in the Udell base and trained by the Sector Guard. With a resume like that, it is no wonder that on her first assignment she is told that she has a talent for crisis management. Her living arrangements are crisis enough.

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  Crisis Management

  Copyright © 2012 Viola Grace

  ISBN: 978-1-77111-375-5

  Cover art by Martine Jardin

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the publisher.

  Published by Devine Destinies

  An imprint of eXtasy Books

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  Crisis Management

  Tales of the Citadel 12

  By

  Viola Grace

  Chapter One

  Devani Jarix was hard at work when a voice behind her jolted her out of her zone of numbers and data.

  “Dev, aren’t you going to be late?”

  Dev looked up and saw Tish loitering in the entrance to her cubicle. Blinking, Dev looked at the clock. “Oh hell. Thanks, Tish.”

  She got up, grabbed her jacket and smiled. “Wish me luck?”

  Tish snorted. “You don’t need it. You are a lock.”

  “Let’s see what the Citadel recruiters think.” Dev walked past her and down row upon row of cubicles until she reached the lift.

  She bit her lip and breathed through her nose as she entered the lift. “Oh, hello, Mr. Simithan.”

  Her supervisor moved to the back of the lift when she entered and cowered against the corner. “Ms. Jarix. What are you doing here?”

  “I took this afternoon off, remember? It’s the Citadel recruitment fair at the convention centre.”

  “Oh, right. Good luck with that.”

  Dev gave him a tight smile. “Thank you.”

  She pressed the button for the lobby and waited as the lift stopped on the third floor to let him off. She nodded briefly and waited to reach the main floor to make her escape.

  The security guards wished her luck, and Dev smiled and waved weakly. There was no choice really. She had to do something to get herself out of the spotlight here on Bahi. She had been in the news four times in the last two years, and it was becoming awkward to even go to work.

  Dev hiked to the rail station and took the train into the city. The Citadel recruitment fair drew plenty of hopefuls to the convention centre, and she was one of the plodding masses.

  Dev stood in line and fidgeted, keeping her mind blank. There were a few empaths in line with her, as well as one or two uncontrolled telepaths, and she really didn’t want anyone strolling through her mind randomly.

  She shuffled forward with the others in minute increments until she was finally facing the registration officer.

  “Hello, miss. May I have your name?” The woman’s skin was a soft pale pink and her baby blue eyes were soothing.

  Dev cleared her throat. “Devani Jarix.”

  “Devani, what do you believe your talent to be?” The woman’s fingers were poised over the icons on her data pad.

  Dev looked around and relaxed when there was no one near the kiosk. “Um. I am bullet proof and I can lift large weights.”

  The woman raised her brows. “How large?”

  “Two tons is my current limit.” Dev shifted from foot to foot.

  “Are you willing to prove your talent?”

  Dev nodded. “Yes. There are also local news reports that should be easily accessible.”

  “You have been in the news?”

  “Not willingly, but yes. I seem to stumble into trouble.”

  “Just a moment.” The woman’s fingers moved rapidly, and she raised her brows with an impressed expression on her features. “I see. You will be meeting with a recruiter immediately. Please take this locator and have a seat through those lavender doors.”

  Dev took the palm-sized disk and walked past the other kiosks, smiling when she realized that she couldn’t hear anything as she passed. The kiosks were soundproofed.

  She pushed open the lavender doors and walked into the waiting room with the small disk in her hand.

  There were some chairs set along one wall but no one else in the room. Dev took her seat and waited. A door on the other side of the room opened, causing Dev to raise her head.

  It was male, tall andwearing an armoured body suit in black and gold. “Devani Jarix?”

  “Yes.” She got to her feet and noted the width of his shoulders. Two of her could stand side by side and might just be the same width.

  He smiled and his scarlet skin darkened against the white of his teeth. “I am Helsin, please come with me.”

  He gestured for her to walk with him, and she paced at his side as they entered the door he had come through. He spoke again. “While ostensibly this is a recruitment drive for the Citadel, we are looking for those who can work in concert with Udell base. The nearest moon has a new Citadel outpost and having additional members available to help in a pinch is always useful.”

  She nodded as if his words made sense to her. They didn’t.

  He chuckled. “Don’t worry. I am taking you for some medical testing to determine the extent of your talent. Most of those applying today are weak talents, at best. To find someone who has your skills is remarkable.”

  She spoke, “Don’t be too impressed. The press put it all out of proportion.”

  He smiled and his bright yellow eyes sparkled. “And yet you mentioned being impervious to projectile weapons in your initial statement. That shows some pride.”

  “It shows desperation. I have no social life here, my friends keep their distance, the requests for interviews are constant and I have no inclination to live my life as a law giver when it has to be a life alone.”

  “Why must it be alone?”

  “No male of my acquaintance was comfortable with me after I moved the bus to free the passengers. I am regarded as a freak in my daily life, and I am tired of the stares and whispers.”

  He paused, “So what is it that you seek at the Citadel?”

  “I seek to be with exceptional beings who know what it means to be alone in a room full of their own kind. That’s all. Just the company of equals instead of being looked down on.”

  Helsin smiled. “That we can do, ah, here we are.”

  He opened a door, and she stepped into a large space that held a number of medical stations. The one he led her t
o held a large standing press that was designed to have a living being inside it.

  “May I take baseline readings?”

  She blinked. “You are a medical tech?”

  “No, I am base physician for the Sector Guard Base Udell.” He smiled and flipped the navy blue braid of hair over one shoulder.

  Dev hopped up on the scanning table and followed his small touches to place her limbs in the proper position.

  “Excellent. Hold still please.” He started the scanner and a beam of light caressed her, coasting from her head to her toes.

  She waited until he shut off the scan and asked, “It can read through my clothing?”

  Helsin smiled. “This scanner was designed by Fixer and assembled by Tech. It can probably read through time if I find the proper setting.”

  Dev chuckled and accepted his help in sitting up.

  “Are you willing to test your strength?”

  She blinked. “Oh, yes. Of course.”

  She removed her shoes and walked to the press, allowing him to set the weight on her shoulders.

  “Does removing your shoes help your talent?” He asked the question as the weight increased pressure.

  “No, but it keeps them from being crushed under the pressure. Each time I used my talent in public, my outfit was ruined, and I need those shoes to get home tonight.”

  He chuckled and the weight continued to press on her.

  She felt the pressure, but it didn’t buckle her. Her limbs hummed as her talent surged to the fore, and she stood straighter than she had when the test began.

  “Remarkable. You are generating a cellular compression field. Your body will not be crushed and if you tried, I imagine that you could lift the weight from your shoulders.”

  She blinked. “Would you like me to?”

  “Please, if you can without injur…whoa.”

  Dev lifted the pressure plate straight up and stepped aside, lowering it to the ground. “Anything else?”

  Helsin quickly moved to shut off the machine. “Um, no. That is quite enough. May I do a puncture test?”

  She blinked. “Do you mean a needle?”

  He fidgeted. “I have never asked a woman this before, but may I stab you?”

  Dev laughed and she nodded. With a swift move, he brought his arm down, and whatever object he had in his hand shattered on impact with her skin. Unfortunately for Dev, it also cut a hole in her blouse.

  “Well, that settles that. I was going to ask for a blood test, but it seems unlikely.”

  Devani looked at him. “Move slowly. My skin only becomes impenetrable at higher speeds.”

  Helsin nodded. He rolled up her sleeve and sterilized the crook of her elbow. As he slipped in the needle, he glanced up at her, his yellow eyes attentive to any signs of distress.

  “It’s fine, Helsin. Or should I call you doctor?”

  “Helsin is fine. May I take a skin sample?”

  “Of course. I am in this for keeps. Take what you need.”

  He closed his eyes for a moment, as if her words sparked something in him. “I will take what is necessary, but I can tell you that your body is exceptional, and you are accepted into the Citadel at Lowel.”

  She blinked. “That easily?”

  “Your body just supported more weight than fifteen average men could carry. That type of strength is welcome in service to the Alliance.” He paused. “Do you have any objections to military missions?”

  “Um. I had not thought about it, but I suppose that that would be where I was most suited to be. Certainly. Military missions would be fine.”

  His grin showed her teeth that were as sharp as they were white. “That is most excellent, most excellent indeed.”

  Chapter Two

  Devani cleared out her desk at work and packed her small apartment all in the same day. It was a little disappointing that human resources had taken a deep sigh of relief when she announced her immediate resignation. Tish hauled her out for drinks on the first day, but two days after she had gone to the convention centre, she was on her way off Bahi for the first and last time.

  The Sector Guard shuttle was sleek and fast. It cut through the atmosphere effortlessly.

  “Why are there no other Bahi candidates on this shuttle?” Dev was seated next to Helsin.

  He grinned, “The five other candidates were sent to other Citadels. Udell is a battle base, and we need those who can fight and survive. You will learn how to manage your strength in combat situations, learn to fight hand to hand and use as many weapons familiar to the Alliance as possible.”

  “Udell? I thought I was going to the Citadel at Lowel.”

  He scratched his chin, “Well, it isn’t built quite yet. It is still in the construction phases. All the Lowel Citadel, members are being given quarters at Udell for the time being.”

  She grew suspicious. “How many members are there?”

  He gave her an innocent look, “So far, there is one.”

  She clapped her hand to her face. “So you lied.”

  “I did not lie. You are the first member of the Lowel Citadel. You will be trained at Udell, but it comes under the heading of financial matters. You can be a member of the Citadel and we can pay the Citadel for your services as a sub-contractor.”

  “So, I am a member of the Citadel who will do their training at Udell base while waiting for the Lowel Citadel to not only be constructed but populated.” Devani sighed. “That is indeed something thought up by an accountant.”

  “You sound familiar with it.”

  She chuckled “Of course I am. I am an accountant.”

  Helsin grinned. “Excellent. You may have to trot out your expertise at a later time.”

  Dev smiled. “I look forward to it. Data is my happy place. I enjoy working through numbers and running calculations. It is meditative.”

  He shuddered. “For you perhaps. I prefer the living body to the land of numbers and calculations.”

  “How many races are represented at Udell base?” Dev bit her lip when he looked at her curiously.

  “Over ninety at this time.”

  “You are familiar with them all?”

  “Relatively. Their files have baselines for their species, and we make allowances for any psychic or physical talent. I can’t have complete knowledge of each species, but I do a fair job.” He cleared his throat. “The Bahi are a fascinating species.”

  Dev rubbed the back of her neck. “Yes. They are.”

  “I noticed on your scan that you had an abdominal navel.”

  Dev winced. “I am a Brought child rather than a Decanted one. Yes. My mother had an inactive suppressing shot while she was interviewing for the position of genetic donor.”

  “So, instead of being gestated in a tank you were…”

  “Gestated by Neefa Jarix, but she handed me off to the crèche the moment I was born.” Devani shrugged.

  “It is fascinating to find a race that does not use their bodies for reproduction but still have a controlled genetic donation from the existing population.”

  Dev shrugged. “If you say so, it is simply the way the Bahi are.”

  “You didn’t donate for an offspring?”

  She shook her head, swallowing a lump in her throat. “No, by the time I turned my mind to it, I had already had my first public display and I could not find a male who wanted to blend his genes with mine. It was the ultimate in rejection.”

  “You would have used the gestation chambers?” Helsin seemed surprised.

  “There would have been no choice. I am beginning to suspect that my body is armoured against invasion. There is no sign to indicate that it will not extend to my reproductive system. My egg would be withdrawn and placed in the gestation chamber. It would be that simple.”

  Helsin shook his head. “As a doctor, I can tell you that it is never that simple. Some species have stronger maternal instincts than others, but they all want their young with them so that they can love and instruct them. It does go awry
in some, but most engage in this activity easily.”

  “Not on Bahi. When society buckled and dissolved, the government sponsored the tech to begin again. Women were given two chances at children and a bonus if they accepted sterilization afterward. The men were treated the same. Two children could be fathered and then their reproductive options were halted. The Bahi fought it for a few years, but when the government added bonuses to women who handed their children over for mass education, it took less than three generations to shift ninety-nine percent of the population into the gestation chambers as the only means of reproduction.”

  “What of the one percent?”

  “They bring their children in for registration and are given the option for entering them in the crèche or not. My mother brought me in and handed me over then submitted to sterilization and surgical repair.”

  Dev was uncomfortable, as she always was when her birth circumstances came up.

  “I see. So you don’t claim family on Bahi.”

  “No, Dr. Helsin, I do not.” Her voice was firm. “What species are you, by the way?”

  “Wadaren. It is an offshoot of the Wyoran species. My colouration was an indication of my differences. I had a talent not common among my people.”

  She shifted to watch him as there was a tug on space around them. “What is your talent?”

  “Diagnostics. I can’t heal with a touch as others can, but I can determine what is wrong with a body simply by touching and concentrating. I don’t do it often unless there is no other option, but it is what sets me apart from my people.” His smile was kind. “Don’t worry about what has been or how you got here, move forward with all your might.”

  She tilted her head and smiled ruefully. “That is a lot of might.”

  He chuckled. “I know, but I also know that you were strong enough to not let the public embarrassment destroy you. You kept your job, maintained what little social life you could and refused to use your talent for personal gain. Those are qualities to be admired, and I do admire them.”