fear. How could that damned female N'koshoh have been stupid enough to scent-mark him? It wasn't as if she could have been under any illusions that he'd be kept on the Kz'adul. Everyone had known they were exchanging the hostages the next day. What insanity had prompted her to do that?
A surge of satisfaction that N'koshoh was dead, likely at the hands of Chy'qui, flooded through her, shocking her with its intensity. She wasn't normally a vindictive person, but for N'koshoh to go to Kusac in the night, callously drug him into compliance, then virtually rape him, just to further Chy'qui's mad scheme to breed hybrid Sholans, was morally unforgivable. Even worse was the fact that she'd been unable to find a trace of the samples she knew had been taken. Now that she knew for sure what had happened, she'd have to tell the Commander.
N'koshoh's marker could be turned off, but not here and now with all his family around them. Besides, she wasn't sure she could be that intimate with him, even if the opportunity had presented itself. At least the changes scent-marking instigated in males did lessen with time. He wasn't remaining among her people, he was returning to his own world, likely to live out the rest of his life there now that he'd lost the telepathic skill that had made him so invaluable to his own kind— unless the TeLaxaudin came up with some cure. The thought wasn't as comforting as it should have been as she remembered that he'd already been subtly altered by the implant. There was no way she could check what effect the pheromone transfer would have on him in the long term, unless they confessed the whole matter to the Sholans. And there was no way they could do that without risking the treaty.
* * *
Alerted by Jiszoe, Commander L'Seuli was prepared for Kaid's anger when the latter requested a ten minute recess.
"Just what the hell kind of stunt was that, sending Vriuzu in to force a mental examination on Kusac?" Kaid demanded in a low voice, grasping him by the arm and pulling him out of earshot. "He's got neural damage, dammit! The physician's still trying to assess how much, and we're being warned that getting him agitated could trigger a seizure! Now you go and do this!"
"It had to be done, Kaid," said L'Seuli calmly, avoiding eye contact as he extricated himself from the other's grasp. "And for exactly the reasons you were given."
"The order came from a higher level, didn't it? Who?"
"Master Rhyaz."
Kaid's voice was icy. "He hasn't the right. Our En'Shalla status supersedes any but Master Lijou's orders."
"I don't intend to argue protocol with you here, Kaid. Better Kusac had a seizure than he attacked the Primes or attempted to destroy Haven and plunged Shola into a war we cannot win. He's hiding something behind those shields of his, we know that much. Why else would he have them? And we need to know what."
"Don't give me that! His shields are natural, no different from those he had before the Primes took us!"
"Except now he has no Talent! He should be as transparent as a window! Dammit, Kaid," he said, exasperated. "He did what only a few rogue telepaths have ever done— killed, using only the power of his mind! We all felt it when he linked into the telepathic web Carrie built at the hostage exchange! There's something alien, not Sholan, or even Human, about him now! If he'd done this six months ago on Shola, he'd have been designated a rogue Talent and you'd likely have been sent to destroy him!"
He watched Kaid very obviously bite back his immediate reply. They both knew the alien quality was due to the filaments that had embedded themselves in Kusac's brain.
"When you've had your official inquiry into what happened to Kusac, leave him to us and the telepath medics back home," said Kaid coldly. "Mark me well, L'Seuli, I will not tolerate any further interference. It's because of him we have leverage over the Primes and it will not go down well back home if anything should happen to any
A surge of satisfaction that N'koshoh was dead, likely at the hands of Chy'qui, flooded through her, shocking her with its intensity. She wasn't normally a vindictive person, but for N'koshoh to go to Kusac in the night, callously drug him into compliance, then virtually rape him, just to further Chy'qui's mad scheme to breed hybrid Sholans, was morally unforgivable. Even worse was the fact that she'd been unable to find a trace of the samples she knew had been taken. Now that she knew for sure what had happened, she'd have to tell the Commander.
N'koshoh's marker could be turned off, but not here and now with all his family around them. Besides, she wasn't sure she could be that intimate with him, even if the opportunity had presented itself. At least the changes scent-marking instigated in males did lessen with time. He wasn't remaining among her people, he was returning to his own world, likely to live out the rest of his life there now that he'd lost the telepathic skill that had made him so invaluable to his own kind— unless the TeLaxaudin came up with some cure. The thought wasn't as comforting as it should have been as she remembered that he'd already been subtly altered by the implant. There was no way she could check what effect the pheromone transfer would have on him in the long term, unless they confessed the whole matter to the Sholans. And there was no way they could do that without risking the treaty.
* * *
Alerted by Jiszoe, Commander L'Seuli was prepared for Kaid's anger when the latter requested a ten minute recess.
"Just what the hell kind of stunt was that, sending Vriuzu in to force a mental examination on Kusac?" Kaid demanded in a low voice, grasping him by the arm and pulling him out of earshot. "He's got neural damage, dammit! The physician's still trying to assess how much, and we're being warned that getting him agitated could trigger a seizure! Now you go and do this!"
"It had to be done, Kaid," said L'Seuli calmly, avoiding eye contact as he extricated himself from the other's grasp. "And for exactly the reasons you were given."
"The order came from a higher level, didn't it? Who?"
"Master Rhyaz."
Kaid's voice was icy. "He hasn't the right. Our En'Shalla status supersedes any but Master Lijou's orders."
"I don't intend to argue protocol with you here, Kaid. Better Kusac had a seizure than he attacked the Primes or attempted to destroy Haven and plunged Shola into a war we cannot win. He's hiding something behind those shields of his, we know that much. Why else would he have them? And we need to know what."
"Don't give me that! His shields are natural, no different from those he had before the Primes took us!"
"Except now he has no Talent! He should be as transparent as a window! Dammit, Kaid," he said, exasperated. "He did what only a few rogue telepaths have ever done— killed, using only the power of his mind! We all felt it when he linked into the telepathic web Carrie built at the hostage exchange! There's something alien, not Sholan, or even Human, about him now! If he'd done this six months ago on Shola, he'd have been designated a rogue Talent and you'd likely have been sent to destroy him!"
He watched Kaid very obviously bite back his immediate reply. They both knew the alien quality was due to the filaments that had embedded themselves in Kusac's brain.
"When you've had your official inquiry into what happened to Kusac, leave him to us and the telepath medics back home," said Kaid coldly. "Mark me well, L'Seuli, I will not tolerate any further interference. It's because of him we have leverage over the Primes and it will not go down well back home if anything should happen to any
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