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  I started to ask what she was doing, but then I heard it as well. A cacophony of banging noises sounded out in the distance, along with roars and shrieks that echoed along the walls. It was muted, since the noise had to travel through walls, ceilings, floors, and reinforced blast doors, but the fact that we could hear it at all was a testament to its intensity.

  "Can you hear the difference?" Vessa asked me, her gray eyes staring into me.

  "No," I admitted, shaking my head. "What are you hearing?"

  "A pitch they rarely make, and never all at once," Vessa said with quiet intensity, as the banging, shrieks, and roars continued to sound. "They're scared."

  I remembered that this poor woman had been forced to hear such angry sounds for ages, all while confined to her bed and knowing that such creatures were trying to batter their way into her sanctuary. She had probably heard every pitch her hunters knew how to make.

  "Specifically," she said with a small smile, "they're scared of me. I've gotten stronger, suddenly and noticeably, somehow. It's still less than a percent of the power I once wielded in my flesh-body alone, but the fact that it's happened at all should scare them. They've been feeling me slowly wither away all these ages through the ruined walls and corridors of a body no longer under my control. They don't know how it happened, and they don't know what it means or what they should do. So a large number of them are panicking."

  "So they are unprepared now," I finished for her, "but they may soon become more vigilant once they calm down."

  "Exactly." The gray-skinned woman nodded. "Which is why you and Nova must move quickly and reclaim more territory. Your work earlier helped me recover some overall power, but the rooms are just extra living space right now, which we can't put to use. But if you two could somehow retake a sensor room, or a drive room, or give me back another weapon system…" Vessa shook her head as her eyes shone with an eager light. "Then I could learn—and recall—more, act faster, maybe even turn the tables on the ones outside my ship-body still hunting me."

  "Where are those places?" I asked the ship-woman. She closed her eyes as if she was concentrating on the response.

  "Many places," she finally replied. "I had a number of redundant systems built into me. And with all the damage I've suffered, it's hard for me to remember exact details. But now that I've repaired this much, and thanks to the treasure shared with Elder Mara, I can remember more… I have a security station nearby," she said brightly, gray eyes shining. "It was designed specifically to repel boarders, just before they reached the last of my emergency systems… if you can recover that room, I can strengthen my wards. I can reactivate some of my surveillance systems inside the ship, even a few automated systems that could let my ship-body fight alongside you two. That would mean you two could go planet-side more often, and you wouldn't need to worry about me being totally helpless while you did so. And that doesn't even count the other rooms that would be partitioned next to it." She began growing animated, gesturing with her arms and almost spilling her drink as she spoke. "There should be a navigation section, that could help me remember the locations of more planets… I could use that to jump to stars farther out, even without one of my Beacons. There should be another drive room, emergency life support and weapons systems…probably a hydroponics chamber… maybe even a small engine room."

  The far-off look left her eyes, but the fierce light remained, and she turned back to look at us.

  "But even more importantly, I'll be able to tell. I'll remember exactly what's nearby, at least for a good distance out. And I'll have an even better idea of what creatures are moving about my ship. We could plan safer routes for new reclamation missions. We could isolate certain enemies, and destroy them safely. We might even discover non-hostile boarders, because every single creature that crawled aboard this place couldn't be out to get me. There might be a Sourcebeast that just came aboard to hibernate, or a team of salvage explorers that didn't know the situation here, and were just curious. Maybe," she paused, excited, hesitant, and fearful all at the same time, "maybe there's a member of my old crew out there, somewhere. They could be still alive. It's a long shot, but if they were careful enough and found enough life support and Source energy, or if they found a working stasis pod, they could be alive. Or they could all be dead," she finished with a sigh, and she seemed to clamp down on her hope as she spoke. "But at least I'd know for sure, within the general area. So, yes," she said firmly. "Reclaim that security station, and we can really start turning the tide in this place. This is a big deal, Jasper, and I'm trusting you and Nova with it. And you too, Nestor," Vessa added, smiling at my bonded companion, "and you as well, Senior Dragon," she added as she turned her gaze toward me again. "Thank you for the resources in your Sourcepalace, as well as for saving Jasper's life. I am deeply in your debt."

  A voice scoffed audibly from within my soul.

  "Debt?" Grandmother Mara said in an incredulous, echoing tone. "The Holy Vessel-Saint bestows upon me the opportunity to aid her in some small fashion, and deems it a debt? As if she and her kind have not saved every living being in the night sky a hundred times over? I protest, Holy One. Let me a die a few dozen times on your behalf, before you claim the scales of justice have tilted in my favor."

  "Very well," Vessa continued in her formal tone. "Know that I am grateful all the same, for your saving of my pupil's life. I would speak to you more later, but for now, I have urgent need of my pupil. Please do whatever you can to ensure that he returns safely. Then we may have time to speak of other matters."

  "I thank the Holy Vessel-Saint for the opportunity to render her service. Know that I will give my new grandson all the care and affection I have."

  "Grandson?" Vessa blinked, before mastering her surprise. She smiled widely at me. "Very well. I am happy for you, Jas. It sounds like you are part of a wonderful new family now."

  "Thank you," I said, choosing to smile in spite of my discomfort. I felt an inexplicable kernel of fear develop inside of me, reminding me of the time when Mother Anne had attempted to make me part of her family and failed. I did my best to shake it away. "But we should prepare to head out once more. Do we have time to change into the equipment my grandmother has gifted us with?"

  "More things?" Vessa asked, blinking again. "Didn't she already dump an entire treasury into your soul?"

  "There is that," I admitted, "but she has also given armor and gear specifically for myself and Nova, or rather, the two future riders of her other grandchildren."

  "Other…" Vessa trailed off, then widened her eyes as she looked into my Soulscape. "Those are… Jas, those types of dragons have been gone for even longer than Nestor's race! You've turned your soulscape into a nursery for a previously extinct species!"

  I shrugged helplessly, as Nestor's ears perked up.

  More-friends? he asked my mind eagerly. The two young dragons seemed to have heard him somehow, as they looked up from their games and made tiny keening noises. The little lifemouse perked up at their cries. He began jumping up and down again, then racing around me in circles. Heard-them! Heard-them!

  Yes, other grandson, Grandmother Mara said, somehow speaking to the little mouse through our bond. I wanted to show them to you earlier. This is your new brother and sister.

  Brother? Nestor sent with an almost painfully high squeak. SISTER? Brother AND sister? New pack?

  New pack, Grandmother Mara and I confirmed at once.

  That was too much for the little mouse. He began running circles around me, squeaking so loudly I thought he was beginning to master speech.

  New-pack! he shouted through my mind. New-pack! New-pack-new-pack—

  He stopped talking when he somehow caught up with his tail and fell to the floor in a tumble.

  Vessa and Nova giggled in tandem. From within my soul, I heard Dimali and Topa croon in confusion.

  Focus, dear, my new grandmother admonished me. Hurry up and get everyone changed. You have nightmares to slay.

  I nodded, and su
mmoned our new suits of armor.

  CHAPTER TWO

  "I can't decide how I feel about this," Nova said as she lifted her hand, staring at the elaborate gold gauntlet covering it. It was just as ornate as it was when I had first seen it, with elaborate filigree and a large blue gem set into the center. The only difference was that the gauntlet's finger armor had been hidden until Nova donned the whole thing. Then, tiny golden plates appeared out of nowhere to perfectly cover her fingers and even help her grip whatever weapon she was holding. "I mean," Nova continued as she looked at the rest of the gear, a mix of white chain mail, lightweight golden plate armor, and creamy silk robes. "I would worry about what people would think of me if I walked around wearing this on Earth, but at the same time…" She gave another twirl, then gripped the jeweled sword sheathed at her side. "I feel like I look awesome. Like some mighty warrior-woman from the stories you used to tell me about. This is how I wanted to feel every time I put on my old uniform."

  I thought I understood. Walking around on Earth like this, Nova would certainly stand out. The loose flowing robes, gold-white armor and winged circlet made her look like an angel, a Valkyrie, and a Greek amazon all blended together, and yet, the look was perfect on her. She looked magnificent. Powerful. Commanding. The people on Earth might have recoiled from her, but I suspected everyone else would have had no problem following her into battle. I admired her, but as soon as I thought about how to tell her so, my tongue tied itself in knots.

  "It fits," I said finally, and stupidly, bitterly wondering where all my intelligence had suddenly gone. "I mean… it suits you. All of it."

  "Thank you," my friend said with a radiant smile. But she looked away as soon as she made eye contact with me. "Yours suits you very well. You look like a person that's not afraid to fight, but even less afraid to protect."

  I didn't know why she couldn't say that while looking at my face, but I chose to take her words as an honest compliment. My own garments were a mix of black leather and silver plate armor, as if someone had sought to merge a medieval knight with an apocalyptic road warrior. As I examined it I felt sturdy, comfortable, and slightly ridiculous.

  Yet, it did not stop me from wishing I had a motorbike and pair of sunglasses.

  I could probably buy a pair of sunglasses, I thought to myself as I gripped the halfblade resting in the loop on my heavy brown belt. "Ready when you are, Nova," I said loudly.

  "I'm ready now," the woman said with a firm nod. "Should Nestor still scout ahead?"

  Yes-yes, my little mouse insisted, running ahead, in his original, fluffy form. Have-pack-now, I caught him muttering excitedly to himself as he skittered ahead. Have-pack! Have-pack!

  But my companion managed to keep his new excitement from distracting him, and as we moved down the corridors I could feel his focus sharpen. Now that he and I were both at the wailing stage of essence energy, I had a much better grasp of what he was sensing. So far, he was being cautious and observant, in spite of the fact that he felt absolutely no danger and was not expecting to find any.

  We were still within our safe zone, our small network of rooms back under Vessa's power and warded by heavy blast doors. But after seeing Vessa's defenses become overrun at least twice, and my own traumatic experience with the shadowy unnatural horrors of this place, I had insisted on practicing maximum vigilance every time we left Vessa's sanctuary. Thanks to the roars and banging we sometimes heard even in our most secure chambers, no one ever argued with me on that. The banging actually continued, though it sounded far, far away, as if it was happening at a distant part of the ship.

  Said banging had also convinced Vessa and Nova not to drive me into another room just to change into our new garments. I had just walked behind one of the larger terminals in the massive sanctuary, quickly swapped outfits, and then waited for the two women to finish whatever mysterious, lengthy thing they always did to make themselves look presentable. Eventually, Vessa had called out that Nova was finished getting ready, and after having our earlier conversation, we had embarked.

  Now we reached the emergency drive room, the first room I had reclaimed back before I rescued Nova. As always, I spared a glance to the secret door on the wall, the one that always gave me an ominous feeling, like I was turning my back on a vulnerable point.

  "I want to find out how we can seal that door for good," I whispered to Nova, casting my gaze toward the other end of the room.

  "The secret passage?" Nova asked in disbelief. "It's supposed to have already been sealed for good. It doesn't even have seams along its edges anymore, since you deactivated it. It's completely merged with the wall."

  "My desires are unchanged," I replied firmly, remembering the distant chittering I had heard when I stuck my head through it, and how it had come much closer when Vessa had started to reclaim the room. "Perhaps we can further barricade it somehow."

  "Can you tell me why you want to do that?" Nova demanded, probably annoyed with me, and probably because of the own fear she had to feel from navigating this cold, shadowy place where monsters bumped about in the dark. "Especially considering there are other doors that are actually visible, and that we know for a fact things are trying to get through?"

  "I wish to do so because I know Vessa's newfound power goes a long way in preventing those barriers from being overcome," I said seriously, "while this particular passage can be opened just by injecting a bit of Source energy inside it. And because, since it was open when I found it, a traitor from Vessa's old crew must have used it, and said traitor might somehow still be alive."

  Nova's eyes widened at my words.

  "That is a very good point," she admitted, with just a hint of anxiety coloring her voice. "I intensely wish that you had not thought of it."

  "So do I," I replied honestly. "Especially since there is nothing I can do about my concern for now. Besides, it stands to reason that the traitor would have attacked long before we had arrived if they truly still wished Vessa harm."

  Assuming they had even wished her harm to begin with. I had no idea what the circumstances were regarding Vessa's old crew. For all I know the traitor had somehow been coerced into opening the door, or hadn't betrayed her at all, and somehow opened it accidentally, or for some other reason in the heat of combat.

  All the same, expecting the worst had given me far more pleasant surprises than insisting to hope for the best. I would examine that passage every single time I walked through it, until I found a way to seal the whole thing in several tons of solid steel reinforced by concrete.

  "In fact, let me check it as well," Nova said, closing her eyes and reaching for the sense Vessa had given her to search rooms just beyond our safe zone. "Still nothing. At least nothing nearby."

  Check as well, Grandmother Mara spoke up from within my soul. With your soulsense. I will show you how.

  My what? I asked, privately wondering just how many special powers there were under the night sky that had the word 'soul' as part of their name.

  Just before the confrontation that left you injured, I tried to teach you about using your spiritual power, the elderly dragon said inside my soul. Spiritual power is something you can't normally do until you've Advanced a great deal. But since you have my part-soul within you, I can provide a great deal of training for that art. I have already seen the result of postponing that same training for you, so we will start now. Begin spinning your Soulscape, like I have seen you do when you are about to Draw Source energy.

  I complied with my grandmother's instructions, and sent the spiritual world housing her into motion. As I did so, I felt her spirit take a breath. When she exhaled, a light, windy sensation swept through me, tickling all my senses and granting an awareness that was hard to describe. But it made my grandmother's body become more detailed, and more bright. Dimali and Topa's bodies brightened as well, along with the spirits of all the insects and other small creatures I had absorbed earlier.

  Don't look too close, dear, Grandmother Mara admonished gently. It
will blind you. Your entire Soulscape is spirit, after all. Take a deep breath, and then look outward again.

  I followed the elder dragon's instructions and projected my new sense outward. The walls, floor, and ceiling of the Soulship gleamed with a dim warmth, while Nova felt like a human-sized fire next to me. It was odd, though, as I was not so much seeing everything, but feeling a new kind of light with all my senses, with the strongest effect being on my vision. I focused on the false wall leading to the secret passageway, and found that I could push past it somehow, moving my new vision/hearing/smell past it and into the hidden tunnel beyond.

  Leaving the range of my normal senses was a very odd sensation. I felt separated from my body as I became aware of the lightless shaft beyond the emergency drive room. The portion of the wall opposite our own, re-powered room gave off the faintest of warm light, but everything beyond was dark and cold, much like how it had felt when I had seen the tunnel with my normal eyes. Despite the lack of light, however, I could still make out the sides of the tunnels, the curves of the wall, even the small handholds that would allow others to climb up and down the shaft. Everything was somehow its own shade of black, distinct enough for me to tell where one texture ended and another began.

  It was almost enough to make me sigh in relief, because I could clearly tell that nothing living, or moving was nearby. But then I realized that my new spiritual sense was limited to only a dozen or so meters. I strained to expand my awareness, and was rewarded with seeing a bend in the tunnel, with an odd, pungent-smelling bump along its side that was just a bit longer than a human being.