Twisting Souls Read online

  Simmry surged up with a scream, four of the others gasped and the woman who had been about to have some kind of procedure kicked wildly to free her legs from the collapsed personnel.

  The vid camera saw it all and Simmry reached out her hand and a flare of light sent the floating bot straight into a wall.

  Aymin finished getting the rest of the ladies up and briefed as to their current situation. None of them had a stitch on, but it was the last thing on her mind right now.

  Simmry was still looking at her hands. “That... I didn’t know I could...”

  Aymin nodded. “I think that is why we are here. I am pretty sure that we are more than we thought we were; we just don’t know why.”

  Tuara came up to them, and she nodded in greeting. “So, do we have a plan to get out of here?”

  Aymin shook her head. “Nope. I just wanted to stop the little insemination party before it got to me. I wasn’t thinking beyond that.”

  The woman who had woken up in the busy section paused. “Do you think they made it?”

  “No. I hit the priesty guy first.”

  The woman, Urial, checked herself and sighed. “Thinks appear fine.”

  Simmry looked around. “Can anyone else trigger their talents?”

  The women shook their heads.

  Demmin grabbed a handful of sheets. “If we need clothing, this should do.”

  While Tuara tried to grab the sheets, Demmin stopped her. “If Aymin and Simmry are the only ones who can use their talents, they get dressed first and we can dress on the move. I really don’t think we should wait here.”

  Aymin reached up her hand, and a sheet thudded into it. She tore it in half and then tore a third off the half she kept. She bound her breasts and wrapped the remaining two-thirds around her hips.

  Simmry watched and was right behind her. The tearing of sheets filled the room, and they were soon making their way through the only available hallway.

  * * * *

  Ten years of watching and rearing his offspring had resulted in this moment, and the bitches had turned on him.

  Sromin looked at the display. The final expression of hate aimed at the camera was taken right before Simmry had shattered the light sensors and sent the unit tumbling.

  He stared at the repeating loop and watched Aymin’s gaze moving to the insemination. Her fury could almost be felt through the image. The collapse of his workers had shocked him, but there was no doubt as to the cause. Aymin had broken her restraints.

  His researchers had assured him that the program had been successful. There should have been no way for any of the women to break free.

  Sromin looked to his worshippers and fluttered his wings. “Kill them. Make sure it is painless. They are brides, after all.”

  He rose to his feet and headed for his shuttle. The décor in the observation chamber mimicked his own purple colouring. The Vorwings were not going to be generated from the Jimsako, not if the deadliest of the women could not be controlled.

  As he entered his shuttle and the door hissed closed and pressurized behind him, he shook his head. The women didn’t even know that they could have been the deadliest weapons that the universe had seen.

  It was almost a shame they would be dead before they reached their potential. He would have enjoyed seeing his genes reinforced to the next generation.

  * * * *

  Aymin led the pack and Simmry followed. She kept her focus on seeking minds ahead of her, and it was Simmry’s shout that alerted her to the automated closing of the door behind them. While she turned, a heavy wall of metal blocked the pathway in front of them.

  “No!”

  She ran and tried to get her hand through the closing jaws, but Tuara pulled her back. “Aymin, watch it.”

  A woman that Aymin recognized as Lorada—one of the first to go missing—went to the wall and ran her hand along the metalwork. When she found what she was looking for, she pressed inward and a panel popped out.

  She smiled slightly as she worked. “My father is an electrician. He was training me when I was declared a Backer.”

  Vents on the floor opened, and a mist began to coil inward.

  Lorada glanced down, looked up and kept working. “That isn’t me, by the way. I am guessing we have outlived our usefulness.”

  The women swayed and leaned back to back to keep themselves upright as the gas slowly climbed.

  Lorada was glaring at the panel and blinking frantically as she worked, but the door remained closed.

  Through the metal, Aymin could feel the pressure of other minds. Someone was on the other side of the door, and their energy didn’t feel hostile.

  With the last of her energy, Aymin touched their minds before she hit the floor. She heard the hissing of the door as she blacked out.

  She was so tired of being drugged.

  Chapter Three

  Aymin jolted upright, and several things were different. She was wearing a dark grey bodysuit that was both warm and comfortable at the same time. A woman approached her with a smile.

  “I am glad to see you are awake. Can you understand me?”

  Aymin nodded. “I can. Where am I?”

  “You are aboard the Imperium Cruiser Del Hart, on its way to Balen. It was thought that your recovery would be more effective there.” The woman smiled brightly.

  “Where are the others?”

  “Still recovering. The records we managed to glean said that you were resistant to sedation, so we kept you separate. If you would like to come with me, I will bring you to the others.”

  “Um, sure. Who are you?”

  “Oh, so sorry. I am Tactical Specialist Zohn of Citadel Balen.”

  “I thought you were a healer.”

  “No. All the medics are watching your friends. You didn’t need it.”

  It showed that they actually were paying attention. Aymin had always been able to get by with minimal medical visits.

  Zohn led her into the med bay, and all of the women were on beds, dressed in grey suits and covered with light blankets. Medics were nearby but not hovering until one of the girls started to stir. Instead of rushing her, they stayed back at a respectful distance while another person in the same type of suit as Zohn stepped forward.

  “What are you, Specialist Zohn?”

  Zohn smirked, “You caught that, huh? Direem and myself are nulls. We cancel out talents by issuing a dampening field. Your friends haven’t all been activated, but we know some are. It is a precaution. We don’t want anyone crashing this vessel before we can get to our destination and you can get the briefing and treatment you obviously need.”

  Aymin raised her brows. “Treatment?”

  “For the nanites and scar tissue in your brains. All of your group had visible damage within your skulls. There was also a bit of genetic abnormality but that is something that they will need to discuss with you on Balen.”

  “What is Balen?”

  “It is a living and sentient world that has offered to house the Sector Guard and a Citadel. The Citadel trains talents to open up to their potential, and the Sector Guard employs them in defense if they wish.”

  “Which do you work for?”

  “I am a Citadel Specialist on loan to the Sector Guard. They have been looking for resurgence of the Vorwings, but they had no idea that some of their population had been playing the long game. You and your friends are evidence of that.”

  “How so?”

  Across the med bay, Lorada was sitting up, and the null was getting her a cup of water.

  Zohn sighed, “I should have offered you water as well.”

  “I am fine. How long until we can go home?”

  “That depends.”

  “On what?”

  “On whether any of you know where you came from. Your home world is a dark world. No one can find it on a star chart. We have already begun looking.”

  Aymin frowned. “What is a star?”

  The shock on Zohn’s features was easy to read
even though the rich orange woman with the blue stripes was trying to keep her expression flat.

  Aymin found a definition for star in her mind, but the idea that millions of suns were out there and shedding weak, pale light on those below was astonishing.

  “Let me show you. It is better seen than explained.”

  Zohn took her back through the entry door and headed up to a deck and then down a hallway to a wide chamber with a series of couches around the edges.

  “Look up, Aymin. Those are stars.”

  Aymin looked out the windows and looked up through the viewing window above her. She swayed and Zohn caught her. Above her was light in a thousand colours she couldn’t name and a riot of pinpoints of differing sizes.

  “Damn. Come on; let’s settle you on a couch.”

  “What... what is all that?” She sent her mind out to check, but the distances were too great.

  “Worlds, stars, suns, moons, nebulas, planetoids, asteroids, you name it, it is out there. Can you describe your home?”

  Aymin let Zohn get her settled on a couch, and she stared up at the stars until her eyes were forced to blink.

  “The sky is black at home. A globe of sun rises and illuminates the day. Night lacks light, so we see in the dark, and then, the sun rises again.”

  “No stars?”

  She whispered no, but she wasn’t sure that the sound passed her lips. So many points of light, so bright. She knew that the Lorthatch had come from another world, but she hadn’t put it together with another star being involved. Now, she realized that it couldn’t have been anything else.

  When the light got to be too much, she closed her eyes, but it was still there behind her lids. She kept her eyes shut as she sat up, and when she opened them again, the panorama of space was printed across Zohn’s features.

  “How much of the universe is like this?”

  Zohn crouched next to her. “All of it. We will need to question you about your home. What is it called?”

  “It is simply home or world. We don’t have anything else to call it.”

  “Have there been any visitors to your world? Any species you could name?”

  “The Lorthatch. They came, and soon after, the Backer program began. We are those who were deemed dangerous and marked as well as contained.”

  “All of the women who are here?”

  “There were more. A few committed suicide after they were blocked from their power.”

  Zohn scowled. “How many died?”

  “The other eleven.” Aymin was frank. “The assaults and bullying were rampant in the early days until we were given government protection. Of course, after we left school, there were plenty of opportunities for Backers to be abused.”

  “Backers?”

  Aymin opened her suit, parted her hair and turned her exposed spine to Zohn. “Backers. The marks identify us, and the scarring sealed in the nano machines that were put under our skin to stop our talents from manifesting.”

  “Nanites... hold on.” Zohn bolted out of the observatory and left Aymin to herself.

  After a few minutes of silence, she got to her feet and looked at the dark, flat panels built into the walls. Some displayed the stars and others had text that she struggled to understand.

  Aymin touched one of the screens and the text changed. She could make out the words, Please, state your request.

  “I would like to locate food, please.”

  A map appeared on the screen. Aymin stared at it, and when she closed her eyes, it was still there. She smiled and set about following the path. Her stomach felt like it had been empty for months.

  She passed several crewmembers in the halls, but no one took notice of her. The variety of species represented was probably the reason for her blending in. Her suit was the same as a crew suit, and most of the species were fairly close to her own.

  When she smelled the food, her step quickened. A doorway led into the source of the scents, and the line of crewmembers showed her what to do.

  Each person extended their wrist to a small beam of light, and they then walked to the side and collected a tray.

  Aymin waited her turn, and when she slid her hand under the beam, the small display said, Analyzing.

  The unit chirped and a tray slid out of the dispenser. She took it and looked around for a place to sit. A voice behind her said, “Aymin, please sit over here with me.”

  She turned and stared at the man who was looking down at her. He had a polite smile, and he inclined his head when they made eye contact.

  “Specialist Zohn sent me. She was busy trying to stop the med teams from working on your friends.”

  She grimaced and followed when he led her to a table. “Only a few are my friends. We are simply related by circumstance.”

  They settled across from each other, and she examined her food, picking up one of the eating implements and prodding at it.

  “You are related by more than that. All of you have been overlaid with a third strand of DNA.”

  She tasted the first dish, and when it wasn’t objectionable, she continued.

  “You do not appear surprised.”

  “I will be surprised later. I am hungry now.”

  He chuckled and excused himself for a moment. When he returned, he had a pitcher of water for her as well as a glass.

  He poured water for her and set it within easy reach. “My name is Combat Specialist Mikkon. You can call me Mik.”

  She nodded and kept eating, swallowing the water in one long draught when the food was gone.

  “Thank you. Specialist Mikkon.” She smiled slightly and sat back in her chair, patting her belly happily.

  “Are any of the others awake yet?”

  “No. But the signs say that they will wake within the hour.”

  She nodded. “Right. Should we get back there, then?”

  He frowned. “If you like.”

  Aymin mentally snorted. He was lovely, but he wasn’t her type. She could see that he was waiting for her to be stunned by his appearance. It wasn’t going to work. She could see the fascination he felt with his own appearance, and it repelled her. Sometimes seeing a living soul wasn’t the best thing.

  When they returned to medical, Tuara was the woman who was first to wake. Aymin went to her side and held her hand as she jolted with shock and prepared to scream.

  “Easy, Tuara. We are safe here. Well, we are safer than we were. We woke up with clothing on, so that is a plus.”

  Tuara looked down, and she touched the fabric. “Yeah, this is better than sheets and air.”

  The medic who seemed to be in charge of the situation came over and asked Aymin, “May I have a word with you?”

  Aymin squeezed Tuara’s hand and stepped away from the bed.

  The medic coaxed her to cross the room. “May I ask how you broke through the nanites?”

  Aymin nodded. “Yes, of course. Do you have pain healers?”

  “We have fire healers, is that the same?”

  Aymin shrugged. “I don’t honestly know, but pain sets up pathways that stimulate the brain into defending itself. Over the course of months, the pain healer on my world broke down the barrier until it was the thinnest whisper. She did the same for Simmry. The lady who is second from the end.”

  “Why not the others?”

  Aymin shrugged. “Some were not in my neighbourhood and others didn’t want the pain.”

  The medic nodded. “Right. I will get on the com and try and find a pain healer. I am guessing that it isn’t a common talent.”

  “I don’t know. At home, we only had the one.”

  The medic nodded again. “Thank you. It is vital that we don’t try and burn out the nanites. They have been known to attack their host if it is a long-term infection.”

  Aymin went back to Tuara and helped her sit up. “Come on. Take it easy.”

  Tuara swung her legs over the edge of the med bed, and she breathed deeply. “Are we safe?”

  “We are.”


  “Can I get my talent to work?”

  Aymin chuckled and rubbed Tuara’s shoulder. “They are working on it. Grandma Kiba could have had you up and running in a few weeks, but since the only one who volunteered for the treatment was Simmry, the rest of you are stuck until these new folks find a way to unlock you... safely.”

  Tuara smiled. “Well, better slow and steady. At least our bodies are safe for now.”

  “About that. Did you ever have to go in for any medical testing after you were locked?”

  Tuara shook her head. “No. I haven’t even been sick. Why?”

  “Nothing. It was just something mentioned by one of the medics.”

  She looked around, and Mikkon was next to Simmry’s bedside. He was holding her hand as she woke.

  Aymin tried not to think that he was climbing the wrong tree, but then, he might be Simmry’s type. Only time would tell, and thankfully, they had it.

  Chapter Four

  They were switched from the Imperium vessel to an Alliance ship, and the members of the Sector Guard made themselves known as they travelled with them and the Citadel specialists.

  The group of Backers was usually found in the observation lounge. They stared at the stars and did research on how the universe around them worked. It was a whole new game, and their minds reeled with the expanse around them.

  Balen was a revelation. The green and growing world was bursting with energy, and the sun caressed the surface. Just looking down, they knew it would have heat and not just light.

  Aymin was at the departure site with the others, waiting for their chance to board the shuttle that would take them down to a world once again.

  The members of the Sector Guard walked past them to the first shuttle. Aymin watched a grey figure in a black suit as he walked with his companions, and she bit her lip. There was something about him that was fascinating. She blushed when she realized that attraction was her motivation.

  To her horror, as she continued to stare, he turned slowly and looked at her with his eyes disguised by a naturally pigmented mask. He nodded deliberately and closed one eye. She felt her skin heat, and she turned to see Simmry staring at her.