Crow: The Deviant

Chapter 2

“Yeah, I caused the earthquake. But I didn’t do it on purpose!” Steven insisted, trying his best to convince the Elvin Gatekeeper that he wasn’t dangerous. The instant he said that he realized just how bad it sounded. He grimaced and looked down at his hands. “I didn’t know. You’ve got to believe me.”

The interview wasn’t going very well. Accidentally causing earthquakes was frowned upon. He was still having trouble wrapping his head around the actual cause of the global tremor and how it was related to him. He was just a kid. A bit of an odd kid, but still just a teenager. And he was accused of causing an earthquake? However, he had traveled to an alien world, and was now discussing this with an alien, so that sort of put the earthquake thing into a familiar context of outlandishly and ridiculously implausible. Aliens.

Steven blinked and looked at the Elf who sat there frowning sternly at him. Her attitude was uncharacteristic according to his limited experience with Elves. Normally they were bubbly with a heavy dose of sultriness and grace. But she appeared to be ready to pounce on him at any given moment. It reminded him of how terrified he was when another Elf, Penipe, was chasing him not long ago. The Elf squinted at him. “This bothers you, the earthquake?”

“Well, duh!” Steven blurted out. He stopped and glanced at his life-mate, trying to subdue himself. All of this was for her, after all. Asherah smiled at him tentatively. Steven swallowed and looked at the inquisitor who had been grilling him mercilessly for the larger part of the day. “I mean, yeah. It bothers me.” He shook his head, unable to restrain himself. “Just what kind of stupid question is that?”

“Penipe said you wanted to visit the Cooperative. In that light, there are no stupid questions, deviant.” Her tone was chilly and firm.

Steven scratched his arm nervously, shrinking under her withering glare. He was tired. But she was still an alien who apparently didn’t understand him. He looked back at Asherah, an Elf who was, for all intents and purposes, his wife. Or, as they called it, life-mate. There was no divorce for them. She, too, was an alien. But when he looked at her, he didn’t see an alien, in spite of her soft fur, large eyes, and canines. He had to mentally assent to see her alien attributes. Steven shook his head. He was surrounded by aliens. He felt out of place in his own home.

“Asherah wants to visit. I really don’t care,” he said, subdued.

“She can visit any time she wants.”

“Not without Steven!” Asherah interrupted defensively.

The Elf barely acknowledged her. Just the briefest flicker of a glance before she returned her attention to Steven. After all, Asherah was the foolish young Elf that had bonded with the deviant. They weren’t pleased with her either. But she was Penipe’s daughter, so they decided to focus on Steven first. “Your life-mate will not interfere with this investigation or she will be removed.”

Steven nodded. He squeezed Asherah’s arm and she relaxed a little. Steven looked at her, remembering the days of the meadow. Asherah grinned at that memory. Their shared thoughts seemed to flow back and forth as he focused on memories from a time when everything made sense to both of them. Oddly, easing her tensions helped ease his own. Their bond’s feedback. He was still getting used to that.

The interrogator seemed to be following his thoughts too, even though he had no bond with her. Steven wondered if she could really read him. It felt to him as if her unwavering gaze pierced deep into him, and Steven couldn’t help but shiver involuntarily. The Elf noticed his unease and almost smiled. Almost.

Steven coughed nervously and looked at her. “You don’t have to be rude. Why all this trouble? I answered all of your questions. The search for my parents, the secret agent people. Nightmares. Asherah. What more do you want?” Steven knew the answer. But he didn’t understand it in his case. It should be an easy decision for them. He was just a slightly less than normal kid.

“Deviants are not allowed to survive, much less visit the Cooperative.”

“Yeah, I kinda gathered that. But are we really that bad?” Steven winced. “Okay, bad question. Am I? You’ve been with me all day. Do you still think I’m going to…do whatever it is that deviants do?” Steven remembered the memory Penipe had shared with him. He glanced up at Asherah’s mother who sat on the roof of the house quietly nibbling on a mushroom. It was a horrible memory, full of devastation. An entire world reduced to roiling magma. The world of the Faeries. But he couldn’t imagine even remotely doing anything like that, much less conceptualize actually being able to.

“You are an anomaly.” The Elf leaned forward on the other side of the picnic table and squinted at him. “You are aware of us.”

“Really? How could I not be aware? Furry, walking, big-eyed kitties, huge skulking wolfmen and Mr. Vampire dude over there?” Steven waved his arm around at the aliens who were steadfastly trying to avoid their discussion.

The Elf shook her head. “It’s not that. There would be none of this discussion taking place. A deviant does not acknowledge life. Only insatiable hunger.”

Steven’s stomach growled and he looked down, embarrassed. The Elf cocked her head.

“Well, I am kinda hungry. We’ve been doing this all day!” Steven said defensively. He looked back up at the Elf. “Not even a snack?”

“Perhaps soon.”

Steven sighed. It was like she wanted him to be uncomfortable. He shook his head and looked at her, trying to make sense of just what angle she was coming from. He had snuck some figs from the bowl in the kitchen before the meeting and was sorely tempted to take them out of his pocket and eat them just to spite her.

But she didn’t appear to be the type to be trifled with, even casually. She had arrived with their first shipment of supplies that morning, this ancient Elvish Gatekeeper. From what Steven understood, the Elf was his biological parents’ boss and was several centuries old, though she appeared little older than himself. She seemed to emanate authority that made Steven uncomfortable. He felt like he was in the principal’s office. It struck him just then that she was his parents’ boss. Perhaps it was time for him to start grilling her. “You knew Mom and Dad.”

“You did not consume your mother.”

That was not the response Steven was expecting. He gaped for a moment then closed his mouth. “I hope that isn’t something you aliens do?” He looked at Asherah questioningly, appalled.

“Lelana still lives,” Penipe said quietly. Steven heard her in his head as much as with his ears. But she wasn’t speaking to him.

The Elf glanced at Penipe, then returned her guarded attention to Steven. “Interesting. She will be the first.”

“The first what?” Steven asked, finding it hard to stay seated. She knew things about his parents that he desperately wanted to learn.

“The first to survive giving birth to a deviant.”

Steven slumped, not sure how to respond to that.

“Deviants are born with an awareness of the entire universe but no way to frame that awareness. Your inclination is to grasp the closest anchor point, which would naturally be your mother. Given your nature, that is always fatal. That Lelana survived…”

“I would never, ever hurt my mother,” Steven interrupted loudly as he looked intensely at her. “Or my father.”

The Elf didn’t look convinced as she crossed her arms.

Steven rolled his eyes. “They’re missing because of this stupid mission you gave them! Not me! You sent these aliens here to spy on the Sadari. To get trapped. And you’re here judging me about my weirdness?” Steven stammered then stopped. “I don’t want this, I really don’t care. I’m home. I just want to please Asherah. That’s all this is about. And I want to find my parents. My parents,” Steven said, irritated at what was starting to look like a wasted day.

“You exist because of this stupid mission we gave them. And without this stupid mission, the Sadari would not be contested in their plans which would likely render this planet a dead wasteland.”

Steven faltered. “I…” He had no suitable retort. He was born to be a tool to achieve an end, then be discarded. The Elf had confirmed as much. “The only enemy I see right now is sitting in front of me,” Steven said quietly as he looked at the wood grain of the table.

“Perhaps you are right. You were supposed to be terminated the moment you opened the gate.”

“Yeah, well, don’t look so disappointed,” Steven snapped. Asherah clasped his hand, and he sighed and looked up at Penipe, who remained sitting cross legged up on the roof of Steven’s adoptive parent’s modest ranch house. She returned his gaze without expression. He felt no hints from her either. He was going to have to get through this on his own.

Everyone was so serious all of a sudden. Even Sirel, the ever effervescent and mischievous Faerie, sat upside down under the eve of their home, quiet and sullen. She looked like a perfectly normal barely adolescent girl, though she was many thousands of years old. Yet even with her age, she retained the joy and typical playfulness of a child. While her gravity defying capabilities were still disconcerting to Steven when he looked at her, she was always so cheerful and positive. Except for now.

And Lohet, the Keratian, also remained aloof from their discussion. He pretended to focus on a discussion he was having with Asherah’s father about supplies and logistics. But Steven could tell he was paying close attention to the interview.

“They have been instructed to not interfere.” The Elf had noticed his wandering attention.

“I can tell,” Steven said, sour. They might have been the aliens of his nightmares at one time, but suddenly he wished they would interfere.

Asherah sat apprehensively next to him, still leaning against him. He could feel his life-mate’s nervousness through their bond and it was disquieting. He knew she was trying to set him at ease, but at the same time she was fearful as well. “Asherah? Who is this woman?” he thought to her. Asherah looked from the newcomer to Steven as she attempted a weak smile and held his hand.

“She is the one who interrogated me when I first told my father about you. Lorei Sarali Teningsin Solory Fahele Syagria,” Asherah thought to him.

Steven blinked.

“Lorei.”

Steven nodded, glancing at Lorei who appeared to be following their conversation. “Can she hear us?”

“No. But she knows we’re communicating.” Asherah looked down.

“She can stuff a red pepper in her ear and dance on the table for all I care. Who is she?” Steven flashed anger and Asherah gripped his hand tighter, calming him.

“She’s the Huntress. A Chaser. They hunt deviants,” Asherah thought to him. “But it wasn’t bad. She’s not a bad person. I just hope she likes you.”

“But, I’m a deviant,” Steven said to her out loud, alarmed.

“For the rest of this interview I will have to mute your bond,” Lorei said coldly as she looked at Steven and Asherah. Steven grimaced, feeling guilty about his outburst. He didn’t want to imagine what muting meant. His first impression was that they wouldn’t be able to hear each other’s thoughts and feelings. “Is this acceptable?” the Huntress asked, watching him intently as she gauged Steven’s response.

“No,” Steven said impulsively. Lorei raised an eyebrow as she sat straighter. He gulped. Asherah squeezed his hand again and they met each other’s gaze. It was important to Asherah that Steven gain Council acceptance, and he knew it. The Council governed the Cooperative, and getting their approval was the only way they could visit without him being a target for termination. He was almost terminated the last time he was there. “I mean,” Steven started, then shook his head vigorously, “no! No way! What? You want to…she’s part of me. How can you even suggest that?”

Lorei leaned forward, the faintest glimmer of empathy showing on her face. “It will be just like Asherah is asleep.” She leaned back, looking perplexed as she watched Steven process this. He was already surprising her by his reactions.

“Well, unless I entered her dreams,” Steven said sarcastically. They dreamscaped often. It was like they were awake, but their bodies remained asleep. However, most of the time when she was asleep he enjoyed just feeling her presence while resting, much like a lover would look down lovingly on his mate while she slept. It was a calm break from the frequent nightmares he would have, and it was soothing as he basked in the peace of her slumber. Asherah looked at him and he could have sworn she blushed a little under her fine short fur. Steven blushed back. Yeah, he liked watching the love of his life sleep. Who doesn’t?

“This is important, Steven,” Asherah said softly, caressing his hand. Steven scowled and looked around. Lohet averted his gaze when he tried to catch his eyes. He also got no response whatsoever from Penipe, and Sirel just sat there, upside down and staring at him.

Looking at Lorei, Steven sighed and shrugged. “Whatever.”

The Elf got up, walked around the picnic table, and sat on the bench beside Steven with her back to the table. As with Asherah and Penipe, every move she made was measured and not a little titillating. Gracefulness seemed to bow at the feet of Elves when they moved. Steven looked at her and was at once lost in her eyes as she sat down and looked intently at him. Elves’ large eyes seemed to see more than light, and for Steven it was truly a window to their souls. He saw something else in her eyes, however. Veiled fear? Was she afraid of him?

She held up her hand to his face and hesitated for a moment. Steven cringed a little, and Asherah’s grip on his hand tightened. Then Lorei appeared to steel herself and touched his cheek ever so gently, and he instantly felt her in his head.

Steven mentally recoiled at the stranger’s presence, seeking Asherah as he took a sharp breath. But Lorei was right. It was as if Asherah was asleep. Asherah’s grip on his hand tightened even more as she gasped a little. She could still see his thoughts, but she knew he no longer saw her. The lack of that feedback was as uncomfortable for her as not being able to experience her thoughts was for him. Suddenly Steven felt alone and scared.

The Chaser looked into his eyes with wonder as she probed deeper into his memories, gasping as she trembled a little. It was the first real emotional reaction Steven got from her.

“Impossible,” she whispered, her eyes wide. He could feel her fear as her mind tickled his thoughts. Terror even. But also a spark of something else. No one had ever been in the mind of a deviant before. Except Asherah and Penipe, of course. But now Lorei was in there and she was apparently not seeing what she expected to see.

Steven fidgeted, suddenly wanting to run away. He hated the spotlight, and even more so now that someone was poking around inside his head. Asherah squeezed his hand again and he looked at her. The silence was unnerving, but he took comfort in her presence nonetheless.

“So much compassion,” Lorei whispered almost imperceptibly, bringing Steven back from his meandering thoughts. She looked back and forth at Asherah and Steven. “Penipe reported this to Lohet. But we couldn’t comprehend it.”

“Yeah. I heard that was supposed to be unusual.” Steven felt a little sheepish. He loved life. All life. How was that unusual? But he had never known another deviant.

“It is impossible, Steven,” his interviewer stated quietly, still trembling. “You shouldn’t be.” She looked up at Penipe, who still sat nibbling on her mushroom up on the roof. His bond-mother returned the gaze without emotion. Lorei was suddenly at a loss. She had to see it personally. “The earthquake.” She looked back at Steven. “Lives were lost.”

Steven fidgeted. It wasn’t from the actual weak global earthquake he accidentally generated, but from the unzipping effect that the earthquake caused, resulting in many much stronger earthquakes around the globe as faults slipped. Nonetheless, he was the trigger for that. “It was just a nightmare,” Steven said quietly.

“It was more than a nightmare. The orbit of this planet’s binary companion was even shifted,” Lorei said as she pulled away and examined her fingers.

Steven looked at her blankly, then understood. “The moon?”

“You care about the deaths.” Lorei ignored Steven’s question.

Steven grimaced. “I try not to think about it.”

“You think about it all the time,” Lorei corrected. She had been looking into his memories after all.

“I didn’t say I didn’t think about it!” Steven said defensively. He sighed, looking at the ground beside the table. “I dream about it, and the, the others.” The memory of the deaths he witnessed while being chased intruded into his consciousness and dreams frequently.

“We shall go see for ourselves then.” The Gatekeeper closed her eyes briefly. Then, grabbing Steven’s arm, suddenly the two of them were standing in the middle of a refugee camp somewhere in the East. Lorei made a face as the putrid, humid air invaded their senses, then turned her stern attention to Steven. “You are responsible for this.”

Crow: The Deviant

Chapter 3

The stench from open sewage was almost overwhelming. Steven repressed a gag as he tried to ignore it. The abrupt change of scenery was jarring, and it didn’t help that it impressed itself as potently on his sense of smell as it did visually. The refugee camp was a chaotic collection of tents and cardboard structures, erected hastily with little thought to the logistics of dealing with waste.

“I thought you couldn’t gate on Earth because of the Sadari,” Steven said, coughing a little. A faceless and immensely powerful enemy called the Sadari had corrupted the subspace fractures around Earth, depriving Gatekeepers access. But according to his alien companions, not even they could block a deviant.

“I cannot gate on Terra. But you can,” Lorei said to him coolly. She had borrowed his power with but a touch. “This offends you?”

Steven cocked his head, squinting at her. “Why would it offend me?”

Lorei just looked at him, expecting something, but not receiving what she expected.

Steven shook his head, bemused, and looked around. There were hundreds of tents around them, all tightly packed in a small clearing beside a large dump. It was sticky and sweltering even though the day was just starting, and there were already a number of people heading towards the various food trucks that were starting to filter in. Recent rains had rendered the terrain a muddy, stinking swamp.

Steven covered his mouth as he beheld the putrid scene around them, horrified that people actually had to live there. His first reaction was to attempt to return to the homestead but Lorei grabbed his arm, anchoring him there. He felt her terror through her touch. She knew that she couldn’t stop him. No one could. Not even the illustrious and powerful Sadari. But he still reluctantly cooperated, remaining with her. That such an exotic and ancient creature was terrified of him shocked him, almost distracting him from the scene around them.

“Please. I don’t like it here,” Steven said, trembling as the ramifications of what he saw sank in. The scene around them was his doing. His fault.

“Why?” Lorei asked as she struggled to maintain her composure. “You did this.”

Steven didn’t really know the answer to her question. But he knew the camp was a direct result of what he had caused. The people there had homes at one time. There was a time when they had lives and families and bright futures. Now they had squalor and suffering, hunger and cold, disease and death, and it was breaking Steven’s heart. He wiped his eyes. “I didn’t mean to! I really didn’t!” Steven didn’t know how to process what he was seeing, what he was responsible for. He looked at her pleadingly, all but begging to be allowed to leave.

Lorei furrowed her furry eyebrows as she observed him. She put her hand on his face again, trembling a little as she entered into his tormented thoughts. She bit her lip as she dug deeper, trying to see if his guilt was genuine. Steven gritted his teeth, trying not to withdraw from her. Until her own memories betrayed something that shocked him.

“You were ordered to kill me!” Steven stepped back from Lorei’s touch, alarmed.

She raised an eyebrow as she pulled her hand back. He had read her as easily as she was reading him. She doubted she was strong enough to totally block the deviant but was still surprised at how effortlessly he had cracked through her resistance. His power was intoxicating and terrifying at the same time.

“Very perceptive.” Lorei leveled a cool gaze at Steven. “I am being ordered to kill you even now. What is your reaction to that?”

“Reaction? Really?” Steven was almost speechless at that question. Almost. “You have orders to kill me and you want to know how I feel?”

Lorei crossed her arms, saying nothing. She had forfeit her life by committing herself to the mission to evaluate Steven and had not expected to survive the encounter with the deviant in the first place. Even so, she was yet again surprised at his reaction to her and to the threat she represented against him.

Steven looked at her, dumbfounded, then around at the refugee camp, trying to think. “Well, I’m not very happy about it.” He shook his head at that, then nodded resolutely. “Not happy at all.”

Something occurred to him. “You’re not going to do it, are you?” Steven asked as he squinted at her.

Lorei grinned devilishly, “Not yet.”

A child ran between them and stopped, staring at Lorei, then ran off. Lorei looked at the child then back at Steven who stood transfixed by the kid. Mystified, she pulled her hood over her head to avoid undue attention. Elves were not exactly a common sight on Terra. “Come with me.” She slipped her arm under his and they walked together through the camp.

As they walked, they passed a tent where Steven saw a young boy cooking a meager portion of rice for himself and his younger sibling in a discarded tin can. There were no adults with them. Steven only saw a single sleeping mat of cardboard that was barely big enough for the two of them, and the realization of why struck home. They were orphans of the tragedy. His knees got a little weak as he saw the fruit of his mistake trying to subsist without their parents.

He knelt down before them and sat on his heels, crying as he looked at them. One spoke to him in an Asian language he only barely remembered from his linguistics classes. They were worried that they wouldn’t have enough rice for him. He found it hard to breathe as he looked at them, then remembered the dried figs he had stuffed into his pocket. “This is all I have,” he said to them in their language as he held the figs out for them. They looked at him for a moment, then eagerly took the figs. They were obviously starving. The figs did not last long.

Steven looked up to Lorei. “How can I make this right? I don’t have enough for them. I killed their parents.” He was wracked by waves of guilt as Lorei tried to pull him to his feet. He hardly noticed her as he numbly reacted and got up. The kids watched him walk away with her and waved when he looked back. If they only knew, would they wave at him then?

Lorei took them back to the homestead and Steven collapsed into Asherah’s arms sobbing as she cried with him. She had seen everything but had not been able to comfort Steven because of the muting. She glared at Lorei who also sat down hard on the bench, dumbfounded. Lorei glanced at Steven and touched his leg. Immediately, he could feel Asherah again. Asherah mentally reached out, trying to pull his sorrow from him, but he stopped her. “That’s mine,” he whispered, gazing into her eyes through his tears. He felt he deserved no less.

“It’s ours,” Asherah said as she caressed his face, sharing in his suffering anyway.

“I can’t stand to cause more suffering, especially not yours, Asherah.” Steven closed his eyes, unable to get the kids out of his mind. Another wave of guilt washed over him as he realized that the two orphans were just two of a great many at that camp. And how many similar camps were there? Tsunamis had caused havoc along most of the coasts. How could he let her suffer with him when it was all his fault?

“I choose to, Steven,” Asherah thought to him as she put her forehead against his. There was a song in his head. She was singing to him as she sat there comforting him, sharing in his agony.

“You’ve bonded with a monster,” Steven whispered.

“A monster would not care,” Asherah retorted firmly. She scowled at Lorei who still had her hand on Steven’s leg. Lorei had been listening all along to their interaction and was also crying.

“Satisfied?” Asherah asked angrily. Her tone was accusing. “He’s not sleeping most nights because of this. Now it’ll be worse and even harder for me. You didn’t have to do that.”

“We had to know,” Lorei said, standing up. She looked up at Penipe who still sat cross legged on the roof with her hands clasped in her lap. After a moment, Penipe stood up and jumped off the roof, landing lightly on the ground. She gracefully walked over to her daughter and Steven, sat next to him, opposite her daughter, and embraced the both of them.

“You could have just looked into my memories, Lorei,” Penipe said quietly. Lorei opened her mouth to speak, then closed it. She sat back down and put her hand on Penipe’s cheek. Penipe held her gaze defiantly as the interrogator delved into her memories and experiences concerning the deviant. She saw how the deviant had stopped fleeing from Penipe when rubble fell on her, threatening her life. He saved her twice in spite of the threat she had represented to him. She also saw Steven intercepting a toxic dart intended for Asherah, trading his life for Asherah’s without hesitation.

Penipe maintained her glare at Lorei, her irises flashing yellow with indignation. “Tormenting him was not necessary. He is different.”

Lorei pulled her hand back, looking at Steven. “I needed to see him under duress. He still has all the power of a deviant.”

“But not the heart of a deviant,” Penipe responded coldly as she pulled him and her daughter closer. “The bond is genuine. You saw it. She almost died with him. It is a true bond.” Penipe caressed Steven’s hair. “And you know deviants can’t form bonds.”

Penipe looked around at Lohet. He was no longer trying to ignore the interview now and stood as if waiting for a command. She returned her attention to Lorei. “You’ve felt the depth of his pain over what has transpired with him. The guilt over the people who have been harmed by those hunting him. What deviant feels for the dead and injured?”

Lorei said nothing. The calls to execute Steven were no longer raging through her consciousness as the rest of the Council were silenced by what they had witnessed through her.

“What is he?” Lorei asked finally, looking at Steven in wonder.

“Something new, Lorei.” Penipe put her cheek against Steven’s head as he remained lost in his grief while his consciousness revisited the disaster areas, the refugee camps, witnessing the continuing suffering. He was totally oblivious of the conversation going on about him.

Lorei stood up and knelt down before Steven. She reached out and touched him again. The overwhelming grief abruptly washed away and Steven breathed in sharply, his eyes wide as he was pulled back from his mental travels. Lorei saw him with a new appreciation. “I am truly sorry, Steven. We had to see. All of our lives are at stake and we had to know.”

Steven returned her look sullenly. He took a shuddering breath as he tried to regain his composure. “You could have just asked.” Steven shivered with overwhelming guilt. “You people think I’m going to go on some rampage and destroy your worlds. That’s ridiculous, Lorei. All of this is just ridiculous.”

Sirel stood up and pushed off from beneath the eve of the house, inverting so her feet touched down softly on the ground. She skipped over to the table and hopped onto it, sitting on the edge so her feet hung behind Penipe as she played with the Elf’s hair. Little electrical discharges danced around Penipe’s follicles making Sirel giggle. She looked coyly over at Lorei. “Asherah asked you a question.” She leaned toward her. “Are you satisfied?” She grinned, flashing her shark-like teeth. Lorei glanced at her then looked back at the others.

“No. No, I’m not,” Lorei said after some contemplation. Penipe looked up at her friend then over at Lorei as she sat back down next to her. Asherah appeared alarmed as she pulled Steven to her protectively. Lorei smiled sadly. “No, I will not kill him.” She looked at Steven then back at Penipe. “How did you know? There was a time you were trying to terminate it. Him.”

“I know him,” Penipe said. “The deviant is my bond-son after all.” She glanced at Steven, smiling wryly.

Lorei looked at her for a long moment then turned to Steven. “The evaluation is far from over.”

Steven gulped and looked at Asherah, wondering if he made the right decision. Today was bad. How much more would she need?

“So you’ll teach him?” Penipe asked. Steven cocked his head at Penipe, confused.

Lorei looked down. “The Council is highly divided on this. But he has Syagria on his side, thanks to today.” She looked into Steven’s eyes and shuddered involuntarily. “This is amazing, Penipe. He’s really real.”

“What does that mean? What’s going on?” Steven asked, looking around, getting perplexed as he wiped his eyes.

Sirel giggled and mussed his hair. “It means the deviant has a master.”

“Ah.” Steven looked around at her. “That explains everything.” The sarcasm wasn’t lost on Sirel who smiled and bopped him on the back of the head, sending little sparks flying out. Steven winced and tried to glare at her, but the Faerie was impossible to stay angry at. He thought about what Sirel had said. He had a master?

Steven looked questioningly at Asherah who shrugged her shoulders. She was as confused as he was, and for once that actually comforted him. She was usually the one holding his hand on things that seemed trivial to her. As smart as he was, the learning curve had been exceedingly high.

Penipe leaned into Steven. “If you are to be accepted into the Cooperative, you need to go through the same sort of training and indoctrination that any Gatekeeper goes through. During that training, they’ll see that you are not the monster they thought you were.” She looked at him expectantly and Steven fidgeted. He glanced at Lorei then back at Penipe.

“But, I just want to be able to visit. I’m not asking to move there or anything. I like it here.” He looked around the homestead. “This is my home. And for the first time in years, I see Sally and Jonah as my real parents.” He watched through the window as Sally worked in the kitchen. Until recently, she was just Sally to him. She’d been Sally to him since early on when he learned he was adopted. They were his godparents, sworn to care for him in the absence of his biological parents. But they were also his adoptive parents and they had given up everything to care for him. Sally glanced out and saw Steven staring at her. She waved. Steven smiled sadly. “I’m not going to leave them.”

“I’m not asking you to move, Steven,” Asherah said softly.

“Steven, you have no idea how paramount this is,” Lorei said, almost breathless. He felt her fear melting away as she put her hand on his. “Penipe asked for me to be the one to examine you for a reason. I didn’t know why until now.” She glanced briefly at Penipe then peered deep into his eyes. “I came here to die, Steven. My life-mate has already gone through the preparations for bond-breaking. No one expected me to survive. You are a deviant. I expected to be the proof of your deviancy that would end all discussion concerning you. But your bond-mother knew something that we couldn’t begin to comprehend, something I now understand. You are so incredibly special.”

“She’s a teacher, Steven, and a Guildmaster,” Penipe told him. “A family friend as well.”

Lorei nodded at Steven. He no longer saw the stern and intimidating Elf that had come to judge him. He now saw someone filled with renewed hope and invigoration and a fair amount of childlike wonder.

“Will you have me as your master, Steven?” Lorei asked as she held his hand, trembling a little with excitement. Her thoughts had gone from defeated surrender to a new tomorrow, and Steven could tell she was mulling over ideas and possibilities even as she awaited his response. She was already working on his curriculum, as if the question was a mere formality. Steven blinked, feeling like he was being rushed into something he had no knowledge about.

“Master? What does that even mean?” Steven didn’t like the word ‘master’. He fidgeted and looked at Asherah. Being enslaved was not something he had in mind when he thought about visiting Syagria. Just how high of a price was he to pay?

“It means until the evaluation is complete, you belong to me and my sole responsibility is your training. Steven, as your master, every breath I take is to be for your benefit.”

From what he saw through her memories, it was considered a great honor to be selected by her. She had a name in the Cooperative. The Huntress. Steven didn’t know what that meant, but it made her some sort of celebrity in a society that normally didn’t have celebrities. For her, a negative answer from him would be inconceivable.

Steven looked at Asherah, who smiled at him. He felt the same reticence from her that he was feeling, but he also felt a willingness to push forward. This was new to her as well, but she trusted her mother. He licked his lips and looked down, struggling to gather his thoughts. “All of this isn’t what I expected. None of it. Aliens, Gatekeepers, people chasing me, and now aliens wanting to teach me about alien stuff?”

Asherah didn’t respond. Neither did Penipe. Steven wiped his mouth. He knew what they expected, what they hoped for. But he was just now getting his life back.

He sat back, a little irritated that no one else was responding. He rubbed his aching temples then glanced at Asherah. “I am just now working out what it means to be bonded.” Asherah smiled weakly at him. Steven sighed. “You know everything has changed for me and I am so lost. And I’m supposed to make a life decision like this in all of that?” He looked at Lorei. “You’ve been in my head. You know just how confusing things are for me. And you still want to be my master?”

He wanted to get up and flee into the forest. To go to his tree house and hide. He wanted to resume his search for his parents. “Can’t you just give me a passport or something?”

Lorei waited, looking at him. Steven saw fearful hope in her eyes. She didn’t try to reason with him or convince him. This was a decision for Steven to make on his own.

Steven sighed. He knew if it was required of him, he would do it. Over-thinking things just got in the way. He scratched his head and looked at his life-mate. As he looked at her, he realized that he would do anything for her. For the both of them. There never was a choice after all. Asherah looked at Lorei and nodded on Steven’s behalf.

Lorei visibly relaxed and looked at Steven, wondering what she was getting herself into.

“Bond with him,” Penipe said.

“That’s not required,” Lorei said. She looked at Steven, then at Penipe. “Penipe, that would change everything. Bonding with a deviant?”

“So be it.” Penipe remained resolute. “There’s no other way. We discussed this.”

Steven looked at the two of them. “Um, I’m still here.”

Lorei looked down at her hand for a long moment. Taking in a breath, she reached out and tenderly touched his cheek again. Steven resisted recoiling and closed his eyes as he felt her in his head. It was much more welcoming this time, but still incredibly intimate. He actually felt her smile as the last tendrils of her own fear faded away. Steven winced as her thoughts and experiences abruptly washed into him and he breathed in sharply. Lorei pulled her hand away, but she remained in his head. Steven heard her, saw her in an entirely different light. He saw Syagria and felt her immense relief at being alive to see it again. He saw her life-mate celebrating her survival with family friends. Part of him hurt at the idea that anyone thought he would have killed her. Lorei caressed his cheek again and he felt her bless him with peace.

“Oh, great. Another person in my head.” Steven blinked hard and rubbed his temples. Asherah was there, of course. She was the center for him, the deepest bond possible. Penipe was there but was more peripheral rather than Steven’s center, a familial bond as Asherah’s mother and now his bond-mother. And now this woman he had just met and now pledged himself to as her student. Another familial bond similar to Penipe’s. He wondered if there was enough room in there. Lorei smiled and Steven remembered that she was still watching him and following his thoughts. For that matter, so were Penipe and Asherah. He looked around at them. He was convinced he would never feel lonely again.

But as Steven’s soul was laid bare to these Elves, it all seemed peculiarly normal to him, as if a puzzle piece just slipped into place. Steven had led such a private and secretive childhood for so long and now everything he was, his very essence, was utterly exposed to scrutiny to at least three aliens, and he couldn’t fathom why it felt okay to him. He looked around, perplexed that he was more anxious over the fact that it felt natural than the actual profound loss of privacy itself. He felt Asherah giggle in his head as she squeezed his hand. He looked at her. “I’ve bonded with Lorei like you and Penipe. She is part of me now, and you all know what I know, what I’m seeing and thinking, and it’s perfectly okay to me. Why?”

“The fact that I was able to do that cements things for you, Steven.” Lorei looked at him kindly and he wasn’t sure if she spoke that or thought it. “Bonding requires submitting. Deviants cannot submit.”

“Cool?” Steven was still trying to process the new presence in his head. But he felt his mind already adjusting and accommodating. Asherah caressed his hand, feeling with him how things were starting to settle in. “This is really weird, Asherah,” he thought to her, feeling a bit of vertigo.

Lorei stood up, smiling. “It’s weird for me, too.” Steven looked at her and realized that it wasn’t the bond she was referring to, but the bond with a deviant. She squinted at him and grabbed his chin, turning his head to the side. “I still don’t understand why you don’t have fur.”

Steven coughed and blinked, looking sideways at Asherah as Lorie scrutinized him. “Sorry?”

“You have an Elvish skeletal structure. Inside you’re an Elf. But, your eyes don’t quite fill their sockets. And you don’t have fur.”

Steven rubbed his eyes. “My eyes are fine! They look fine.”

“For a human.” Lorie pursed her lips. “Elvish genetics always dominate in a mix with humans. You should be full Elf. Meruk is just human. But it looks like Meruk had…” She hesitated then shook her head and sighed. “You are a puzzle, young one.”

Steven shrugged and rubbed his chin as Lorie released it. “I feel normal. I mean, right?” He looked at Asherah again. “Right?”

Lorei glanced over at Lohet and Tor’eng. They had completed bringing in supplies and were standing by, waiting. “Lohet, you head up his tactical training.”

Lohet nodded.

“What?” Steven looked at Lohet. Steven still couldn’t get the image of a walking marble statue out of his head as Lohet stepped ever so silently until he was standing over him. His black robe seemed to flow around him, apparently ignoring the pull of gravity. He put his hand on Steven’s shoulder, and it felt like a piece of industrial equipment just grabbed him. His touch was strong, cold, and as hard as stone. Steven was amazed that the alien could move so fluidly in spite of that. His vampire friend that wan’t a vampire.

“Lorei and I are a team back at the Cooperative. We’ve been doing this together for over seven hundred years. I’ve been training Gatekeepers for much longer. And we have Chased together.” He sat down on the bench and Penipe got up to give them room to discuss things. Steven looked at Penipe and noticed she was just barely containing her joy.

“You killed deviants? Like, for a living?” Steven asked, incredulous.

Lohet didn’t answer as he regarded Steven with the typical Keratian coolness.

“Asherah?” Steven thought to her.

“I’m as surprised as you, Steven,” Asherah said, looking at her mother, then at Lohet.

“Asherah, since you are bonded with him, you are part of the training too.” Lohet turned his steely gaze on her, and she was now the one to fidget as she looked at Lohet like a deer caught in headlights. Steven put his arm around her, trying to grasp what just happened. He should have known. The aliens there were essentially a military team and he was, for all intents and purposes, a new recruit. They needed his access to the Sadari networks. But he had other skills that they needed, too. Skills that only a deviant would have. He only barely understood them. “On the job training,” Steven muttered.

Lohet nodded. “This is unorthodox, Steven. But necessary for us, and for you.”

Steven had had no idea what to expect when the interviewer arrived. He had thought she was going to ask him some questions and rubber stamp some sort of passport. Instead, he was tormented, then inducted into some kind of training program. Asherah played with the hair at the nape of his neck. Her fingers felt soothing, however, and he sighed as he sensed his growing comfort causing her to relax, too. They had gotten in sync far faster than most bond-mates do, which was ironic since Steven didn’t even know what the bond was when it happened. Her thoughts about the situation mirrored his from her own perspective. They were both nervous about what they had just gotten themselves into. Steven pulled her close, wondering just how deep the rabbit hole went.

Crow: The Deviant

Chapter 4

“What do we have?” Jacob asked as he walked through the computer room and peeked over the shoulders of the analysts. With the confirmation of the alien intrusion, and the loss of the Order’s Seattle base because of them, his analysts had been working nonstop trying to learn all they could from the one alien they had been able to conclusively identify. Namely, Steven Crow.

“Everything. Basically,” Jorge said, looking up. He crossed his arms. “We have his adoption papers, education transcripts, college. Did you know he has never been to a doctor?”

Jacob looked at him. “From our scans, that’s not surprising.”

“They’d have freaked over his heart,” Jorge nodded. “We’re still sequencing the DNA samples we took. But, Jacob, it is most definitely not human DNA. It’s like the old samples we have in storage. That kid is as alien as they come.”

“Is he, was he modified to look like us?” Jacob asked.

“No. His looks are legitimate.” Jorge pulled up what data they had so far on his genetic information. “There. Black hair, humanoid configuration, it’s all there. But that is where it ends. Inside, even his organs, let’s just say there’s no donor list he’d qualify for,” Jorge nodded. He pointed at a DNA segment. “This right here could cement our fixation solution once and for all. We’re testing it now.”

“What’s that?” Jacob squinted.

“That would be human segments mixed in with the alien segments. How they work together is giving us a lot of information for our own modification teams.” Jorge grinned. “Our latest batch of treatments are using a modified form of fixation thanks to this already.”

“Our alien modifications would stick better,” Jacob understood, “and we had him.” He sighed.

“It would be good if you could get him back again. A live specimen would help us interpret the more complicated parts a lot faster.”

Jacob shook his head. “The kid escaped a hyper-secure base of the most powerful military organization on the face of this planet. And he defeated one of our top field agents. A live specimen might be a tall order to fill.”

“Perhaps he’s had training?” Jorge said. “Nothing we have indicates that, but he did spend a lot of time out in the forest.”

“He certainly had help from the aliens,” Jacob nodded.

“His paperwork is flawless. He definitely had help.”

“Well, Sally and Jonah would have been able to do that. They were that good back in the day. Match their digital signature to that hack and verify that,” Jacob mused. He looked at Jorge. “The samples Laurence brought back? From that furry woman?”

“Spectacular. The alien genetics, they are really close to Steven’s. I’d say identical if we were further along in our analysis. But I can pick out the human segments in his which has given us a significant edge in interpreting hers.” Jorge closed a computer window and opened another one. “It’s incredibly dense, like his. But we’re still processing it. Jacob, it’s like we were given a Rosetta stone here. Our old samples don’t even compare.”

Jacob smiled. “You remind me of Tracey, Jorge.”

“He’s the reason I got into this field,” Jorge said, grinning. “I still have his notes on the old samples we processed.”

“I’d say we’ve come a long way from those.” Jacob nodded at the computer screens. He squinted at the data. “The furry aliens can teleport too?”

“That is an unknown. Laurence had one captured and restrained, so I would hazard a guess to the negative.”

“Steven never teleported when we had him, and yet he was able to.”

“Laurence’s intelligence indicated that Steven was unaware of his abilities until recently,” Jorge said. He looked at Jacob. “You saw the video. He and his alien friends just disappeared. And the seismic anomaly stopped the instant he was gone.”

“They were chasing him,” Jacob said as he looked up at a larger video screen. There were looping videos of Steven in the forest being chased by the aliens. And yet another video of Steven rescuing one of them in their old base. “Perhaps they wanted his teleporting ability, too.”

“He is the only one we have documented as having this ability. And get this,” Jorge grinned as he reached for a controller to activate another screen, “we have detected spectacular bursts of energy during periods of time when he teleported. Like an explosion of exotic particles that put our colliders to shame. The entire region around Seattle, and even here, our granite bedrock didn’t block any of it when he teleported from the base. It’s like an aurora borealis opened up on half of Washington.” Jorge nodded to the screen as he hit a button on the keyboard. “There…”

“He’s causing all that?” Jacob gaped at what looked like a massive light-show that covered hundreds of square miles.

Jorge nodded. He glanced at Jacob. “You have to admit, teleporting has been largely theoretical up until this, and even then the theoretical energy requirements were immense. There it is, right in front of us.”

“Can we use that to track him?” Jacob still gaped at the video. It was like watching solar prominences erupting from the crust of the Earth. “Can we refine it to narrow the range?”

Jorge shrugged and pointed. “This right here, he was here when that happened. But we haven’t found any pattern yet. He’s not centered, and not even in the strongest part.”

“Find a way,” Jacob said sharply, looking at Jorge.

“Already got a team trying to crack that.” Jorge fidgeted, glancing furtively at Jacob. “We’re not having a lot of progress just yet.”

“This boy can do that without any technology,” Jacob said, dumbfounded. “His scans didn’t give us any hints of this energy.” He shook his head. “He took me to Iceland, Jorge. And there were no theatrics or anything. I was just suddenly there, then suddenly back in my office.”

Jorge moved another window on his screen and looked at the larger screen. “Here are more concise results of your scans.”

“Nothing.” Jacob frowned.

“We did find volcanic ash in your mucus and on your clothing. You were definitely there.”

“I want that.” Jacob looked at Jorge. “We need that. Especially…”

“…since four aliens and a child brought down one of our bases?”

Jacob glared at Jorge. “That is not going to happen again. We know what to expect now. How far has R&D come in their development of a response?”

“We’re incorporating energy weapons and hypervelocity weapons into our drones,” Jorge nodded.

“What about lightning protection?”

“They already have that. We found scorch marks on the wreckage of our last drone but it survived the static discharge. It’s really not an issue unless they’re grounded.”

Jacob nodded. “What about hand weapons?”

Jorge shook his head. “We’ve simulated the alien resistance to everything in our mobile inventory and there is nothing.”

“I suggest we replace our inventory with something that will work then,” Jacob snapped. “Our bellies are bare and we’re the only ones even aware of the threat.”

“Yes, sir,” Jorge nodded. He looked at his logistical database. “I’ll allocate more teams on that. Rome and Chicago have the most expertise.”

“Not good enough,” Jacob said. “Make this a Priority One mission. I want everyone involved.”

“The Board needs to approve that, sir.”

“Leave that to me.” Jacob scowled as he looked at the video of Steven reacting to the wolfman that had invaded the base. He hated the politics of the Board and would have rather faced the wolfman than the stuffy bureaucrats. “Something is up and it’s going to happen soon, Jorge. I can feel it in my bones.”

He glanced at Jorge. “How far have the profilers come?”

“They have a pretty exhaustive analysis of Steven’s characteristics, his associations, and habits. We can predict his reactions pretty accurately now.” Jorge smiled.

“Excellent. It’s time to put that data to work.”

~ ~ ~

Tor’eng sat down next to Chaser Guildmaster Orin and Lohet after bringing a couple of large mugs of Rodan blood for his Keratian guests. Orin nodded as he sipped his warm meal while Lohet moved his out of the way, continuing to work with the data he had collected over the past twenty years. Tor’eng pointed at the intelligence data that Lohet had processed so far and moved a data block to the side out of the way. “That looks like the coverage they had at Rholling.”

Lohet looked at it and nodded, sober. He had seriously underestimated the golems there. What they had discovered during their stay on Terra was terrifyingly similar. Orin zoomed out on a representation of Terra. The former Cooperative Defenses Commander crossed his arms as he looked at the sphere critically. Lohet glanced at him then looked at Terra more closely. Orin scowled and zoomed in. “There is one big difference between Rholling and Terra.”

“No indigenous space presence,” Lohet said, mirroring his thoughts.

“The Sadari clearly have superiority over Terra,” Orin said, nodding.

“We have yet to find their carrier. But we have been unable to leave Terra without our cloaking technology becoming compromised,” Lohet said, scratching his arm. “We had to scour the system remotely. There are a lot of places where we need to look closer.”

“The solar corona and the radiation belt of…Jupiter? Is that what they call that planet?” Tor’eng asked, pointing.

Lohet nodded. “Those are two candidates. However, we will need to probe their superiority better before sending teams to investigate.” He rubbed his arm where Steven had singed him a few weeks ago. It was technically healed, but it still itched a little. “Another optional location is simply on the opposite side of their star from Terra.”

“Would they hide in that obvious of a location?” Orin said, scowling.

“They have superiority in space and have shut down the fractures. However unlikely it might seem, it’s still a distinct possibility,” Lohet said. “I will have Steven visualize that region of space.”

“Using the deviant is risky, Lohet,” Orin said. “It was to be terminated immediately. Our law is clear on that.” Orin looked at the information hovering in the air between them. “This does not clear you of that bad decision.”

“True. However, at the moment he is lucid and cooperative,” Lohet said.

“For how long?” Orin challenged, raising an eyebrow.

“I am not entirely sure, Orin. He has been sentient since he was born and that has not changed. He expresses none of the hunger that a regular deviant suffers, and is distinctly a pacifist.” Lohet looked down. “He has not exhibited any of the habits of the Elder, either. Not yet.”

“It burned you.” Orin nodded at Lohet’s arm.

“Unintentionally. He currently has control over that. And we are watching him very closely,” Lohet said. “The Council is debating his status even now.”

“I do not require Council approval to order its termination.” Orin glared at Lohet.

“His status as a deviant could change,” Lohet said, subdued. “He could be reclassified.”

“Your report indicates that it still has nightmares. Nightly even. I propose it could be more similar to the Elder than you have stated,” Orin said. He sipped his drink thoughtfully as Lohet continued looking down at his.

“Yes. He does. Sometimes things get broken. But, they’re not incidents. Not like before,” Lohet said.

“They could get worse. They could become incidents again,” Orin said.

“True. However, his bond-mates are reinforcing him every moment he is awake. He is never alone. And he is responding surprisingly well to that,” Lohet said frankly. “The Elder did not have that luxury.”

Lohet glanced at Tor’eng then back to Orin, thoughtful for a long moment. He sighed, shaking his head. “I agree with your concern. What we are doing, it is extremely heterodox to our policies, Orin. He is absolutely unique. And thanks to him, Lorei has access to the fractures there. Between the two of them, we might be able to track down the Sadari carrier and facilitate a final solution.”

Tor’eng nodded. “Our fleet is nearly complete. The Ordan have an upgrade to our weapons, too. Not the old modified mining tools we used last time.”

“He also cracked the Sadari network,” Lohet reminded Orin.

“Using work that Lelana and Meruk performed,” Orin countered dryly.

“No. They never made the connection that he did. And he didn’t have access to their work directly,” Lohet said. “He just knew they were interested in the chips and he tried to replicate their experiment without really knowing what it was or what to look for.” Lohet looked down. “He learns, assimilates information, and processes it extremely rapidly. You’ve seen our reports of his work on the Terran networks.”

“That makes the deviant an even greater danger,” Orin said quietly.

“I agree.” Lohet sighed. “He was able to elude Penipe in the trees. He matched her climbing skills then surpassed them when he had the need. He was able to combat a soldier of the Order.” Lohet shook his head. “It’s like he just absorbs what you know but then does it better.”

Orin looked at Lohet, scowling.

Lohet sighed and picked at his robe. “It is risky, but he is controllable, Orin. He has what we need. He is the key.” Lohet looked up. “You’ve been there. You’ve actually been to Axis. You’ve seen the Sadari home. You were actually on one of the enormous Sadari motherships. One of those is in the Terran system right now. You know Aradia cannot face them alone, not even with our fleet.”

“I also know that they have plans for the deviant,” Orin stated. “Anything we do, it simply has to be something they have already considered. Using it will only hurt us.”

“They couldn’t have planned his physical nature. Orin, he is bonded to three Elves, two of which are experienced Chasers. How can that be helpful to the Sadari?”

“Its relationship with the Elves,” Orin looked at Tor’eng who averted his gaze, “is the only thing that is saving the deviant at the moment. You will stress test it, Lohet. We need to know what it is truly like when it is under extreme duress. When it breaks, I want to see in what direction it goes.”

“I concur.” Lohet nodded as he took a sip of his meal while keeping Orin in his sight. “That is already in the plans.”

Orin glared at Lohet, clearly displeased. “I suggest you stop making this Steven central to your plans, Lohet. Terra may be forbidden, but we could yet send Chasers after the deviant. So keep it peripheral and rely on Aradia’s fleet and resources. Our Gatekeepers are already probing the limits of the jamming and are working to set up bases outside the Terran system.” Orin stood up. “And Lohet, I should not have to remind you that Steven is more than expendable. You may be working under Aradia, but you are a Chaser, too. If it should prove necessary, the deviant must be put down without hesitation. Am I understood?”

Lohet nodded, sober. Tor’eng looked down, clearly thinking about his daughter. His death would mean her death thanks to their bond. He was still uneasy about the whole thing, and even more so now that Steven’s future was still balancing on a razor’s edge.

Crow: The Deviant

Chapter 5

“She wanted me to clean her teeth,” Steven said. He made a face and grimaced.

“Elves help each other clean and groom,” Sirel said sourly as she worked. She tried not to sound impatient, but Steven’s chatter was distracting her for some reason.

“Well, I know that. We help each other in the shower…” Steven winced. “I mean I help her with her fur,” Steven said quickly, hoping he didn’t cross a line by discussing that. But it wasn’t like anything else was happening. Nor was there any pressure to do anything. He found that enormously perplexing. But it seemed normal to her. He shook his head, hoping to push on. “But teeth? Never in a million years did I think that would be expected of me.”

“You are a peculiar creature, Steven Crow,” Sirel said, noticing his embarrassment. She shook her head, bemused, as she brought up another data display.

“What is that? Is that mine?” Steven squinted at the data that floated around her, eager to change the topic. He poked at an interface and Sirel zapped his hand, making him yelp.

“Your stroke of luck has been difficult to replicate,” Sirel grumbled as she moved the interface back. She glanced at him and took in a deep breath, trying to quell her annoyance.

“Luck? Really? I call it inspiration,” Steven grinned. “You’re tapping into my flash drive wrong. Watch.” He moved the interface back and twisted it. Neighboring interfaces lit up. Sirel scowled as she looked at what he did. “That’s not going to be enough. We cannot depend on your flash drives. They simply do not have enough capacity.” Sirel moved one of the interfaces, cutting the connection it had made with the Sadari network.

“You sent my stuff off to the Ordan, didn’t you? Shouldn’t our new computers be here by now?” Steven glanced around at the floating crates of supplies that were being guided to their barn.

“The Rosteran mills are exhaustive in their reverse engineering, Steven. It does not happen overnight.”

“‘Superior beings’ my butt,” Steven smirked.

Sirel bopped him on the back of the head, causing sparks to fly. Steven laughed, leaning on the table as he rubbed his hair back down, then sobered as a Keratian set a case down on the table in front of Sirel. He gave Steven a chilly sideways glance as he walked back to the shipment.

“I wish they didn’t hate me,” Steven sighed. He looked at Sirel for a moment. While the Faerie was usually effervescent, he could tell she was subdued when around him. “Do you hate me?”

“I tolerate you,” Sirel said absentmindedly as she opened the crate.

“I’ll take that. Better than being chased and shot at,” Steven said glumly. He poked around the crate and pulled out a small brass cylinder, then pulled out more. “The prototypes made it! We were just talking about these!”

“Astute observation,” Sirel said sarcastically as she grabbed one that he placed on the table while she shut the displays from her old computer down.

“Now you sound like Lohet,” Steven mumbled as he rolled one of the computers on the picnic table.

Sirel frowned as she closed the last of her displays down. She glanced at Steven, feeling a little guilty for her shortness with him.

“Still find it hard to believe that these computers are alive.” Steven held one up to the sun and squinted at it. “Little brains embedded in an itty bitty life support system.” He wrapped his palm around it. “Can’t tell it from the old ones.”

“Make sure you return the old computer for recycling,” Sirel said as she finalized the data transfer and put her old computer in the crate. “These are not prototypes.”

“You know, I never really paid these much attention when I was helping Asherah with her homework.” He shook his head. “It’s kinda like my flash drives.” They were a little bigger than the flash drives, but he could still easily put one in his pocket.

“With an order of magnitude more power, sweetie,” Sirel giggled as she activated the new computer. She pulled up a holographic display and familiarized herself with changes in the system. As she worked the computer she noticed that Steven was grinning at her.

“What?”

“You don’t have to touch the new units to activate them,” Steven said, smirking.

Sirel looked at him sourly for a long moment, and Steven shifted in his seat nervously as he looked away. They had been stuck with twenty year old technology while he had been able to play with the latest computers while helping Asherah with her homework. Sirel shook her head. “There was a time many centuries ago when we had to actually press a button to activate them.” She leaned towards Steven, squinting. “And even before that when we actually used physical screens.”

Steven shrugged and looked at his hands. “Sorry.” Even their older computers were miles beyond anything they had on Earth. Terra. Steven made a mental note to try to think of Earth as the Cooperative thought of it. Terra.

Sighing, he fiddled with the computer and looked for a way to open it. He found the removable core that was identical to the one he had helped Asherah with. Virtually nothing externally had changed with the new computers. Even so, the core was still hermetically sealed and Steven sighed as he squinted at it, looking for a way in. “Very tight. How do they work on these?”

Sirel waved at him impatiently as she worked, and Steven continued to play with the computer. He sorely wished he could open one up further to get a closer look. He put it back together and looked at the ornately decorated brass-like tube in the sun. The craftsmanship was immaculate in both function and appearance. “Like little pieces of art, right in your…”

“Are you really that fascinated by these?” Sirel turned to face him, exasperated. “You’ve been using one for five years.”

“Yeah. Well, I really didn’t know it then,” Steven stammered, startled by Sirel’s outburst.

“Where’s Asherah? Usually you two are glued to each other.” Sirel returned her attention to her data exchange.

“Um, she’s helping Mom and Migalo,” Steven fidgeted and nodded towards the house, “over there.”

“Go bother her then,” Sirel quipped.

Steven slumped and rubbed his neck, deflated. Sirel looked around then at him. “What? Why are you pestering me?”

“It’s quiet here,” Steven said timidly.

“It’s quiet over with Lohet, too. Or…”

Steven shook his head. “No. And he’s off helping Tor’eng with something anyway. And Dad left for Syagria with some Elf. Ambri’a, I think.” Steven shrugged. He looked at the gate he had created in their neighboring pasture. It was much closer and more convenient than the meadow gate.

“You don’t have training yet?” Sirel asked, shaking her head. She knew the answer but hoped that maybe he had some sort of pre-training duties.

“No. I think Lohet’s working on the curriculum.” Steven rubbed his hands on his pants. “Look, I’m sorry. It’s just, when I’m around you and not the others, it’s quiet. My headache is gone and the buzzing noise is almost gone. That’s all. I’ll stop talking, I promise.”

Sirel glared at Steven for a long, uncomfortable moment, then turned back to her displays. “Entering into the Sadari network is very dangerous, Steven. I need to concentrate.”

Steven fidgeted again and looked around, not sure if he should just leave. He could go to his tree house, but even there it wasn’t as quiet. Somehow, Sirel’s presence seemed to dull his constant annoying headache and buzzing. He opened up a new display and put it to work parsing the Ordan version of his Sadari network access.

As the computer worked, he glanced at Sirel while she worked and got the impression that she was actively ignoring him. After several minutes, he picked up the computer again and traced the ornate design with his finger. “These were made in the Rosteran mills, huh? I have got to meet these people. The Ordan. Cool name.” Steven stopped when he noticed Sirel fidgeting.

Sirel glanced at him and sighed. She had no idea why he was getting on her nerves. In spite of being a deviant, representing a constant reminder of the loss of her homeworld, Steven was still very much a kid, and annoyingly likable at that.

“Yes. Very clever people. They would be the source of the dwarf legends here on Terra.” She leaned over. “But I’m small, and you’ve seen what I can do.” She reached out and touched Steven and suddenly his hair stood straight up and he zapped everything he touched.

“Hey, I’ve got a computer here!” Steven brushed his hair down again. He looked at his interfaces, worried the programs he had running were corrupted.

“Not to worry, sweetie.” Sirel giggled at him mischievously and winked. “They’re Faerie proof.”

Steven got quiet as he looked through the blocks of data that floated around him at the aliens bringing supplies through the gate. “They think I’m a monster. You do, too. I can sense it.”

“It will take time to overcome ancient prejudices, Steven.” Sirel looked at her fingers, remembering she had touched him. He no doubt read her through that touch. She wondered if he picked up on her inner conflict. “You know the trouble we have had with deviants. Penipe showed you.”

“Yeah. That’s me.” Steven slumped. “How many are homeless because of me?”

Sirel pursed her lips, unsure of what direction to take the conversation. Steven did cause the quake, after all.

He looked down at his hands as he absentmindedly played with the computer. “I see them in my dreams. The orphans. I want to fix it. I need to. They didn’t deserve that.”

“Steven,” Sirel shook her head, “what can you do to fix that? Take them figs?”

Steven shrugged. “It was all I had. We did have a bumper crop this season.”

“I didn’t mean that literally,” Sirel frowned.

He scratched his nose and sighed. “A few weeks ago I was just some kid everyone wanted to chase. Now…”

“You’re still the same person. Just a kid,” Sirel said, looking at Steven sternly.

Steven shrugged noncommittally. “Asherah wants to go home. They hate me there, too. Just a kid, right? Not.”

Sirel turned to manage her displays. “One day they might not hate you. Perhaps they’ll see the same annoying kid that I do.” She glanced at him sideways.

“This is the only place that feels like home. I don’t really…” Steven sighed and shrugged. He looked at her. He wanted to tell someone that he didn’t want to leave, but hesitated to come right out and say it.

“This is all you’re familiar with, Steven,” Sirel said. She smiled and poked him, causing little bolts of static electricity to jump from his fingers. Steven squirmed and tried not to grin. He looked at the data again. A faint, almost imperceptible rumble distracted him and he looked around, then up.

“Oh, snap! Is that a gunship?”

Sirel looked at him then up. “You can see it? It’s cloaked.”

Steven cocked his head. “I see the cloaking, too. Kinda shimmery. But that thing is easy to see. Big, mean looking.”

“Gatekeepers can…”

Steven closed his eyes and grinned, “Oh, freaky. I can see it that way too.” He opened his eyes and squinted up at the gunship. “But, I can also see it with my eyes.” Steven looked around at the Keratians that had been quietly working on the property, then back up at the ship hovering overhead. “Are they here because of me?”

“We are about to access the Sadari network.” Sirel looked nervous as she regarded him. “They might not appreciate that.”

“They never gave me any problems when I was hacking them.” Steven frowned as he glanced at her then looked back up at the gunship. “These guys think I’m going to crack and break the Earth, don’t they?”

“They…you didn’t… I think you didn’t have problems because…” Sirel shut her mouth and looked down. “You actually see through the cloak. That might be a problem.”

“Why?”

“What else do you see?” Sirel looked up.

“I see everything. Stars, planets. Dust mites. I ignore it, mostly. But, it’s all right there, and so much smaller than I thought it would be, but still, there is just so much out there,” Steven said, sober. “It scares me. And it’s so noisy all the time. I mean, it’s like I live right next to an airport or something.”

“No, Steven. I meant, the Sadari. Have you seen one of their golem ships?”

Steven looked at her blankly.

Sirel shook her head. “They have cloaking, too. If you can see them, they might not appreciate that either.”

“And that would be…bad?” Steven queried.

“I do not know about your noise problem, but Gatekeepers experience something similar, being able to see through the Fracture. The cloaking isn’t as effective over in the Cooperative because they can see right through it, if, you know…” Sirel pointed at her temple, “if Gatekeepers look with their inner eye.” She frowned, looking up at what appeared like clear sky. “But, here they are largely blinded by the Sadari blocking. They can’t even see our own gunships, much less the Sadari golem ships.” Sirel took in a breath and looked at Steven. “You, you are special,” she said hesitantly.

Steven looked at her and saw that she was uncomfortable telling him about what he was. A change in subject could help. He looked around, then back at her. “Ordan are Dwarves, huh? What about others? Elves, Faeries, Trolls, Selkies, even our vampire stories?” Steven moved the data around him so he could see her better between the networks the computer was scanning.

Sirel looked at him shrewdly, recognizing a diversion, but she didn’t press the issue. She took another breath, glanced at her displays then relaxed a little. “Terrans have seen us before. In very, very ancient times. Our own legends tell of a time when there was no need for Gatekeepers. When all of the worlds were joined and we traveled freely,” She closed her eyes as she remembered. “They called it flat. The world was flat.”

“You’re kidding, right?” Steven tried not to gape. How could such advanced creatures ever believe that?

She peeked at Steven with an eye, then opened both her eyes and grinned. “It wasn’t really flat, silly. That was just how we referred to it. Something happened that shook the universe to the core and suddenly we were cut off. The gates disappeared and the worlds were lost. A goddess called the Younger returned the gates to us, but with limits. Only a few of us were able to manipulate them, and we had to actively keep them open. Then we started finding those lost worlds again. That is the Cooperative.”

Sirel returned her attention to her new computer when one of the displays changed color. She started several diagnostic tests on it, pursing her lips as she worked. Steven shook his head, sighing as he looked at her. Sirel glanced at him and Steven suddenly realized he was staring. “Sorry. I’m just…well, you’re an…” Steven looked down.

“An alien?” Sirel said, looking at him coyly and batting her eyes.

“Yeah. I’m still having trouble with that, too,” Steven stammered. “But it all feels so normal. That drives me nuts. Everything, aliens in my head, flying over us, zapping me. And it’s all just normal.”

Sirel shook her head. “That’s because you’ve been playing with an alien since you were ten years old, silly.” She leaned closer to him. “And you’ve been bonded with her for three of those years.”

Steven nodded. “That’s different. I never saw her as an alien. I still don’t.” Steven sighed and Sirel mussed his hair before she got back to work.

She glanced at him as he continued to stare. “Aliens are supposed to be creepy insect-like creatures?”

“Yeah. Something like that. Or evil robots or lizards or something. Blobs of plasma. You look like a regular girl even. Until you smile. Or you float up or zap something.” Steven pulled his hair out of his eyes. “I’m surprised you’re not in the house sitting on the ceiling.”

“I will be as soon as I finish running checks on these new computers,” Sirel said.

“You know what I’m talking about. You all look like…just different versions of humans. Or something.”

Sirel giggled, shaking her head. “You’ve only seen a scant few of us, child. We were chosen because we were better able to assimilate into Terran society.” She leaned towards Steven conspiratorially. “Have you noticed that Migalo shaved? His fur is coming back, though.” She grinned as she returned her attention to her displays. “If you look just a little further, you’ll see your aliens.”

Steven blinked. The computer had given him a mental alert. He looked up at the data and found that the application he had initiated had located the Sadari network and was already starting to parse the millions of data threads the network contained.

“I’m on.” Steven looked at the Sadari network as it expanded around him like a giant mass of pulsating threads. “Oh, this is fantastic!”

He looked at Sirel who was organizing her own representation of the Sadari network. “Do you think they know we’re on?”

“We won’t know until I get into their security infrastructure.” Sirel worked feverishly, digging deeper into their network while Steven hesitated. She had quickly and seamlessly joined the resources of both of their computers and they both shared the same interface and data hanging around them. Steven poked at one, and Sirel slapped his hand and continued working.

Sirel looked at him sideways. “You’re bored and thinking too much. It’s making you depressed. So, parse this. I need you to map these threads and figure out why they kept getting cut. You’re good at algorithms.” She moved a representation of a collection of data towards him. “Here are the patterns I need you to look for.” She pointed. Steven nodded and got to work, finally feeling useful.

It wasn’t long before Asherah ran out of the house and looked down the drive. Steven sat up straight and followed her gaze. He got the impression that someone was soon to arrive. “What’s up?”

She smiled, hopping with excitement. “Moringa’s on her way here.”

“Really? How can you tell?” Steven scratched his head.

Asherah glanced at him. “She’s a Selkie. They broadcast. I can see the road she’s on.”

Steven looked at her blankly. Asherah rolled her eyes then closed them. Suddenly Steven saw what Asherah was referring to in his mind’s eye, the view from the passenger side of Brandon’s Mustang as if he was sitting in the bucket seat himself. It was like he was looking out the window, then looking back to his childhood friend.

“Wow. That’s really weird,” Steven said.

Asherah just grinned and looked down the driveway expectantly. Moringa had been her best friend on Endard throughout her childhood and she was always delighted to see her. Steven was starting to pick up on the broadcast on his own now that he knew about it and watched as they turned off the highway, completely amazed. He was already familiar with seeing like that through Asherah, Lorei, and Penipe. But it felt different with Moringa..

“I can almost… she did that? That’s her? I think they’re arguing about something,” Steven said. Asherah nodded. It didn’t seem like a heated argument, but Brandon was clearly confused and her responses weren’t helping any. Steven felt for him. Brandon had been his best friend for as long as he could remember, but he had been thrust into the alien environment quite suddenly and was no doubt still shell shocked from it all. At the same time, Brandon grew up on science fiction, absorbing it while his nerdy friend kept his face in his computers and only watched peripherally. Steven grinned, finding it ironic that Brandon might actually adjust to aliens better than himself.

They pulled up the drive and Brandon got out of the car, waving at them. Moringa jumped out and ran to Asherah, giving her an enthusiastic embrace. Steven couldn’t help but be transfixed by the vivid hues that covered her skin. Noticing his rapt attention, she winked at him with both eyes and gave him a lingering hug.

“I missed you. Both of you,” she said, looking back over at Asherah. In English, but with a thick accent that Steven couldn’t quite place. Baltic perhaps? Brandon was a better teacher than he would have guessed. It had only been a few days. Moringa grinned. “I can hear his thoughts when I touch him. It made it a lot easier to learn,” she thought to him.

Steven flinched and gaped at her. “You, too? Is everyone in everyone’s mind?”

Moringa giggled, looking at Steven with a big smile. “You’re funny. I like you.”

“That’s what she said when we first met. I’m thinking I need to be less funny,” Steven said ruefully, nodding at Asherah. She kicked him and he winced, grinning mischievously.

Moringa gave him another hug, then stepped back. “I’m glad you turned out to be real. And safe.” Moringa cocked her head. “You don’t seem like a monster to me.”

“Well, thank you?” Steven grimaced.

Moringa giggled and poked Steven in the ribs. She sighed, looking at both of them. “Terra isn’t what I had expected.”

Asherah shook her head. “It’s been,” she glanced sideways at Steven, “something to get used to.”

Steven knew exactly what she meant and he grew up there, albeit out in the rural sticks. The city was another realm altogether.

“Their shuttles scare me,” Moringa said quietly. “They use wheels and Terrans have ripped up nature to make paths for them. It’s horrible.”

Steven cocked his head. “Shuttles? You mean cars?”

Moringa shrugged, looking down. “They also re-enact violent acts. Wars. Murders. For entertainment.” She shifted her weight, subdued.

Steven squinted at her. “Re-enact…are you talking about movies? They’re just movies. Pretend.”

Brandon caught up with Moringa before she could respond, grinning. “Okay, finally. Someone who understands.”

Steven looked at him quizzically.

“Could you please explain to Moringa why we wear swimsuits when we swim?” Brandon threw up his hands.

“What?” Steven wasn’t expecting that.

“Okay, we clean up the pool at our cabin. Filled it up. Salt water system instead of chlorine, just for my sweetie.” He waggled his eyebrows at Moringa, who elbowed him. “Big pool party. Parents. Business associates. We get out there to go for our very first swim and what does she do? Strips down nekkid and dives in!” He looked at Moringa up and down. She was very shapely and covered from head to toe with exotic, colorful patterns that had passed for extreme tattoos or body paint there on Earth. “That hotness! Naked! In front of my parents and their guests!”

Steven looked at Moringa who shrugged, then at Asherah, who raised her eyebrows, perplexed. Asherah looked at Brandon, confused. “What’s wrong with that? Who wears clothing when they swim?”

“Wait, you’re serious?” Steven got the impression from her of just how weird it seemed to her and he gaped at her, surprised and a little embarrassed.

“Really? Really? You, too? Okay, it gets worse. Now my parents are swimming like that!” Brandon blushed and shook his head.

“I think you like it, Brandon,” Steven grinned.

“That’s the problem. Looking at her, I really, really like it.” Brandon blushed even redder and hip-bumped Moringa, who giggled. He went off to the picnic table as Steven’s adoptive mother brought out refreshments. “Hello, Sally,” Brandon helped her put the bowls down, looking in each one for a snack.

“You know, not too long ago Jonah and I used to skinny dip at a quarry pond down in California. I really miss those days,” Sally said innocently as she arranged the bowls.

“Oh, not you, too! Really?” Brandon exclaimed as he sat down at the table. “I’m still trying to unsee my parents!” He sighed, shaking his head. “And their friends.”

“Terrans,” Steven said to Moringa, rolling his eyes.

“He’s cute when he’s annoyed. And he changes colors more than anyone I’ve seen!” Moringa said, beaming at Brandon as he found the bowl of honey-dipped figs. Skipping over to him, she sat in his lap and nibbled a fig from his hand as he grinned.

Asherah put her arm under Steven’s and leaned against him as he looked down at his life-mate.

“You and me. We need to go swimming sometime,” Steven said, grinning as he waggled his eyebrows. Asherah winked at him and walked off to help Sally. Steven got an image from her of a hot spring on her home planet and felt her get excited over the prospect of swimming there. Of course, with their bond, there were no longer any secrets or any illusion of modesty. But Steven still found the idea tantalizing.

Sirel poked Steven. “We need to get back to work.”

“What? You actually want me around now?” Steven glanced back at his family and friends, then followed Sirel back to their table where she was working on filtering the Sadari network.

“I want to see that algorithm in action,” Sirel said, pointing at what Steven had been working on.

He rubbed his eyes as he changed his focus to the task at hand. “Okay, I have some ideas about trapping streams so they don’t get cut on us. I think it’s not that we’re getting booted, but my hardware was suffering from some buffering limitations. They all seem to cut out after about the same duration.” He sat down next to Sirel and she put her elbows on his shoulders as she hovered up behind him, floating weightlessly as she watched Steven manipulate the threads of data and how their computers interpreted them. “Their network is ingenious. We need to duplicate it for our own needs.”

“The Ordan are already working to glean anything useful from it,” Sirel said as she reached out and adjusted one of the settings Steven implemented. Steven slapped her hand playfully and she bopped him on the back of the head again, making his hair stand up straight.

“You guys have the best toys,” Steven said absentmindedly as he dug deep into the Sadari network, already concocting new search algorithms to resume his hunt for his parents.