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  Mordem grinned. “I can get you clothing and a pack, but you are going to burn through what you have consumed while running the errand. I will give you the coordinates of some shops and a list of high-density ration packs. Everything will be charged to the Guardian Base.”

  Daymoth was looking suspicious. “You knew she would eat everything?”

  “I have a degree in biology. You can’t move that fast and not burn more calories than your body can easily access. Nine Guardians have had metabolic talents in the last four hundred years. She makes ten.”

  Daymoth raised his brows. “You want to take her on as your apprentice? You don’t have compatible talents.” The last part was said as a warning.

  Mordem shrugged. “She has the same strength and skills as a normal biological creature, merely faster. I am well aware of how to test for physical tolerances.”

  Cam watched them discuss her and then interrupted. “I am sure you can continue this while I am running the errand. Can I get some clothing, please?”

  Mordem cackled and sauntered off.

  She watched the flex of his back and buttocks as he went.

  Daymoth covered his eyes. “Yeah, I can’t see this being distracting.”

  Mordem returned with a wide, square box. “Your own Masuo. Just let it wrap around you and then think how you want it to appear.”

  She looked at it in surprise. Instead of opening the box, the box melted and coursed up her arms. She stepped back and fought the urge to shake it off.

  It ran across her skin and under the sheet, covering her completely in a thin layer of grey. She watched the texture form, and with a smile, she created a ridged system across the surface while colouring the suit. She went with a black and white pattern of leopard spots on the body of her suit with a grey and white cracked pattern on her gloves. She smoothed the surface before twisting and checking for any gaps. It wouldn’t do to flash anyone.

  Daymoth muttered, “We get our Masuo from Sector Guard Base Udell. It is up for all kinds of stress, not to mention radiation and friction.”

  Mordem took a quick look at her, front and back. “Nice pattern control. Come with me, I will give you the list and the pack.”

  She grinned and got the items from him, suiting up for the fastest shopping trip she could manage. The base normally got deliveries, but she was going to have to make up for eating everything that wasn’t nailed down.

  “You have your coordinates for the shops. We will send them a notice that you are on your way and to charge all items to the base. Go ahead when you are ready.”

  She looked at Mordem. “Any particular requests?”

  “I am fond of green mitskis. If you happen across any, feel free to toss them in.” He winked. “Have fun, but don’t forget your ration bars.”

  She looked outside, checked the unit that he had strapped to her wrist and nodded. “Let’s see if this works while I am behind the wheel.”

  Daymoth still looked as if he had a headache, but Mordem was amused and encouraging. With a few cautious steps out the door, she started to run.

  The world slowed down, and her heart felt freer than it had ever been. This was what she was meant to do.

  Chapter Six

  Five minutes. She had run over a hundred miles, shopped and returned to the base in five minutes.

  She paused for breath outside the base and jogged in at a quick but controllable pace.

  Comyo and Linz were up, and it seemed everyone was waiting for the next two Gifted to wake up.

  Cam handed over the backpack full of food, and Daymoth smiled.

  “Perhaps you will make a good Guardian after all. You even got the eggs back without cracking.” Daymoth chuckled. “Well done, Camile.”

  She smiled and started shaking.

  Mordem was suddenly beside her, holding a glass to her mouth. “Drink up. I prepped this in our med bay.”

  Comyo moved in her periphery, digging through the bag and coming out with the energy bars.

  Cam drank the sweetest beverage she had ever consumed, and when it was done, one of the bars was slapped into her hand. Apparently, she had just become a group project.

  The drink stopped the shakes, and she was able to sit and gnaw at the energy bar. It tasted like she was eating beef jerky, citrus and flowers, but her body relaxed and the ravenous tension eased.

  She sighed and settled back. “Did I get everything on the list?”

  Daymoth nodded. “Well done. It is an excellent trial for your Gift.”

  Cam smiled weakly. “Great, so where are the others?”

  She remembered the feeling that others were sharing the energy of the Gift with her. The sense of sharing had been a secondary feeling to her own body absorbing the light.

  Mordem sat next to her and held one of her hands. “They might require more rest than you do. The Gifting can be hard to adapt to.”

  She looked at their hands and felt the weird rightness of it.

  Comyo grinned. “I am not holding hands with my apprentice.”

  Linz shrugged. “If he needs a good cry, I might do it.”

  Even Daymoth laughed at that, and it must have been their laughter that woke the other two, because soon, two men cautiously came down the hall to where Cam and the Guardians were chuckling about Daymoth’s efforts in the kitchen.

  Cam migrated into Mordem’s lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist, and it seemed the most natural thing in the world to greet her Gift-mates from her perch on him.

  Kelmin was the new shapeshifter, and Vendiuk was a contact healer. Linz offered to take Kelmin, and Vendiuk gladly agreed to have Comyo oversee his development.

  Daymoth grinned and set out the buffet he had created. “Here you are. The apprenticeships are not set in stone. If another Guardian suits you better, we will make adjustments.”

  Camile closed her eyes as her stomach expressed its interest in the food.

  Kelmin smiled politely. “What do you do, Camile? Aside from the obvious?”

  His words were a little off putting, so she decided to show him. She sped across the room, fucked up his hair, filled a plate and sat back on Mordem’s lap in the space of a heartbeat.

  She nibbled at some toast. “Oh, this and that.”

  Vendiuk caught a look at Kelmin’s hair, and he laughed. “Speed hasn’t been seen in over two centuries.”

  Camile winked at him. “I do love the classics.”

  Kelmin straightened his hair with his hands, and he cleared his throat. “I didn’t mean any offense.”

  “Which is why I confined my attentions to your hair and left your clothing alone.” She grinned.

  He chuckled. “Thank you for your restraint.”

  They loaded their plates, and Mordem gave her a light slap on the ass as she left his lap.

  She settled around the table with the others, and Daymoth set beverages on the surface. She poured for the others in a blur of motion and realized that this speed thing might be very handy.

  Mordem was a bit of a pill when it came to her workouts. He had her strapped with monitors, breath processors and metabolic registers. She was wearing several pounds of equipment, and he wanted her to run.

  “Come on, Camile. We need to know how many calories you burn and at what speeds. Daymoth is going to go nuts until he can work out a regular food delivery.”

  “What does he do?”

  “He manipulates light. Now, run.”

  She grimaced and looked around the track inside the base. With a focus on thickening her suit, she started a flashing sprint that slowly increased in speed until she was running flat out in a very boring circle.

  The equipment started to melt, so she slowed and then stopped.

  “What is wrong?”

  She walked over to Mordem and handed him the breathing unit. “It melted.”

  He blinked. “Oh. Right. Well, we have some starter data. You are on a direct exchange. You are burning calo
ries at the same rate as if you were running at a normal speed. It is the distance that you can cover that is making the difference. With every step you burn energy, and you step quickly.”

  “Succinct.”

  He grinned. “There, now that that is over, what are you going to say at the press conference?”

  She paused. “What?”

  “Oh, didn’t you know? The new Gifted are gathered at the governor’s mansion one week after they have been chosen, and they speak to the people of Namkor.”

  She blinked. “Well, hell. Oh, geez. Where is the ambassador?”

  Mordem laughed. “He is trying to sue to get you back. Unfortunately, the possession of the Gift counts as being a host to an endangered species. You can’t leave Namkor.”

  She blinked. “So, I am trapped here.”

  He didn’t mince words. “Yes. You have one year to settle into your talent. If you reject the Gift at that point, you will be free.”

  She looked at him, and her heart thudded in her chest. “So, it will be up to me?”

  “It will.”

  She nodded and turned away from him, stalking to the pile of energy bars. She unwrapped one and chewed slowly.

  “So, I have to make a speech?”

  He chuckled. “Yes, you can view ours if it is necessary.”

  She smiled with a cruel twist to her lips. “I think that would be fun.”

  Mordem sighed. “Well, for the next few weeks, I am your training master only. If you wish to resume our physical interaction, you will have to completely master your own biology.”

  Cam scowled. “You are serious?”

  “Yes. The last thing we need is to injure each other in an intimate moment. When you were not Gifted, I could hold back as I have with other women, but the energy that changed us will fade all control. Sex with both partners Gifted is raw and, frankly, dangerous.”

  She walked up to him and pressed her hand to his chest, “But you want to do it anyway.”

  He closed his eyes and exhaled. “Every time I see you.”

  She went up on her toes and kissed his jaw. “Good. So it is in your best interest to help me through this adaptation phase so I can stop thinking about your protein content.”

  He grinned. “Well, as long as we are on the same mission, I will get you another breather and you will make your rounds on the track again.”

  “I do love a mission statement. Ready when you are.”

  Mordem nodded and got her a new mask made of a different material. The training portion of her change had begun in earnest.

  When the Guardians were called out, the apprentices had to remain behind. To kill time, Camile queued up the interviews from the current Guardians on their first time in public.

  Kelmin tried to encroach on her personal space on the couch, but she zipped to the other side of the room.

  “Don’t try anything else, Kelmin. I can rip parts off you, and you wouldn’t even realize they were gone until your heart beat again.”

  He blinked in surprise. “Yes, ma’am.”

  She got the impression she had just rapped a puppy with a newspaper, but he took it well.

  Vendiuk just smiled. “Don’t look at me. You aren’t my type, and I am content with all my parts attached.”

  She laughed and started the first vid. Comyo was speaking and talking about the honour of being chosen.

  It was short and sweet. Linz kept appearing and disappearing in front of the cameras.

  Mordem appeared in fully metal mode and spoke eloquently about the honour of being the second member of his family Gifted in the last two generations.

  Daymoth’s speech was a bit of a surprise. He changed colour and puked halfway through it. He was from a previous group of Gifted, a contemporary of Taliak.

  Kelmin was sniggering, but Camile gave him a serious look.

  “Have you spoken in front of a few million people before?”

  Kelmin suddenly turned grey.

  Vendiuk laughed. “Serves you right.”

  The healer turned to her. “Have you experienced that particular situation?”

  She shrugged. “No, but I have been on a podium in front of thousands of people who thought I was a whore, so I have knees of steel.”

  They discussed tactics for the speech and eventually got up and practiced in front of each other. It was a little weird, but they were building a team.

  Kelmin only threw up the first time.

  She had changed her Masuo to a sombre grey that matched that of the other Guardians. She stood in front of the podium and began her speech.

  “Citizens of Namkor, I know that I am not what you wished for in one of your Gifted. I do not know why I was chosen or even how. I am a little fuzzy on the entire process for that matter.”

  There was a ripple of laughter through the crowd.

  “So, I have already confessed that I don’t know why the light stuck to me and spun me around, but because it did, I am in training to become one of your Guardians, and the lives of the Namkor citizens are my only priority.”

  The crowd applauded, and the hovering vid cameras caught every moment.

  Kelmin and Vendiuk joined her for the question-and-answer segment.

  Everything was going along fine until one reporter asked, “Gifted Camile, is it true that you were a slave to the Yemish ambassador?”

  She took a deep breath. “That is incorrect. I was a bonded Companion with a speciality as a personal assistant.”

  He continued. “So, you mixed work and pleasure?”

  She smiled tightly. “I fulfilled the terms of my contract, and that contract has been broken by the light of Namkor. So, if you have questions about my future... that is something I can do something about.”

  The crowd rippled as the reporters recorded her words.

  It was a relief when Daymoth stepped forward. “That is enough. You have met our new apprentices and learned a little about them. I look forward to them joining our team as circumstances warrant.”

  With that, their commander ushered them off the stage and to the skimmer. They left quickly and returned to their base. The rite of passage was over and done with. Time to return to their training.

  Chapter Seven

  Mordem smiled at her. “Are you ready?”

  “I hope so. So, you just want me to check the forest?”

  “Yes. The blaze is out of control, and we need to know everyone is out before we complete the suppression.”

  She nodded and looked at the column of smoke in the distance. “Well, set us down, and I will head off to take a look.”

  The moment the skimmer was down, she set her com in her ear and took off.

  She ran past burned-out homes, scorched vehicles melted into puddles and embers everywhere. The breathing unit was rated for fires and filtered the air for her. She needed it; there was ash everywhere.

  Camile paused and watched her scanners, trying to figure out if there were life signs. A small collection of glowing images was not flames. “Damn it.”

  “What is it, Cam?”

  “Survivors. Can you send a skimmer to the beacon?”

  “Will do. Get them out and stay with them until the lift comes.”

  “Understood.” She zipped to the site of the signatures, and she knocked on the door. “Hello, I am here to evacuate you.”

  The voice inside came through the metal. “The door is sealed. We can’t get out.”

  “Well, fuck.” She muttered it to herself and grabbed the handle, jerking it rapidly in the socket until it snapped off in her hand.

  The grimy faces smiled with relief as the family of five came out. She led them to the beacon, and thankfully, the skimmer landed.

  “Get on board; it has automated homing programming.”

  The little girl looked at her with huge eyes. “You aren’t coming?”

  She smiled. “I still have more ground to cover. Stay safe.”

&n
bsp; Cam cruised through the scorched area, skirted around the flames and headed for the path of the blaze. Two more families were lifted out before the fire consumed the spot where they had been hiding.

  “You did well, Camile. Come on back.”

  “Understood. On my way.”

  She looked around, checked the viewing unit that she had and realized that she was lost.

  She took off in one direction and ran through the fire. When she came out the other side, there was a trail through the path. She ran south, north, east and west, but she couldn’t find the skimmer.

  “Mordem, I am lost.”

  “Thought you might be. Watch for the flare.”

  She looked around and saw the purple splash in the sky, about ten kilometres away. “Damn it.”

  She ran as fast as she could and ran into her Achilles heel. Stopping on soft dirt was not always an option.

  She skidded and came to a halt, hip deep in the soft dirt.

  Mordem trotted over and hauled her out. “Good job, Camile. Everyone in the area is accounted for. The suppression unit is just about here.”

  Cam could see it. The giant and heavy machine cruised slowly over the area, the inert gas that it dropped could suffocate a living being, but it didn’t harm anything else.

  Back on Earth, fires the size of cities were not common, but they did occur. This kind of technology would definitely come in handy.

  The huge ship hovered slowly over the scorched area, and lights and sirens began as the gas was slowly expressed.

  The fire flickered and died as the machine hovered and moved across the burning areas. The complete suppression would take hours, but the path of the fire was already being smothered.

  Mordem pulled off her breather, handed her an energy bar and hugged her. “Well done.”

  “So you said.”

  “It looks like your binding to your Gift is coming along well. How confident do you feel?”

  She grinned and pressed her cheek to his chest. “I am feeling exhausted and smug at the same time.”

  “Wonderful. If Daymoth agrees, your initial probation will be over. You know what that means?”