Astra: Synchronicity (5 page)

"I don't know, Ali. Why did you pick a
hellhole like this as the home of the psions?"

She blinked at him several times in
annoyance. "Me? I don't recall us having much of a choice at the
time. Would you prefer if we'd taken over an inhabited planet and
brought the wrath of the Allied Confederacy upon us? This isn't the
end of our budding kingdom, Z; it's only the beginning."

All her plans lied deep in the thorny thicket
of her mind. Through snippets of passing thoughts, he tried to
wrest the schemes brewing inside. As her confidante, they read each
other's thoughts and memories like they were their own. Their
brains had grown together and become interconnected. In doing so
her power had grown considerably, yet it left her vulnerable. She
could never block him out—only mislead him.

"Besides, I liked the name. Superbia…sounds
about right for all of us, doesn't it? I mean, we have evolved
beyond the rest of our pedantic race."

Zingeri's hazel eyes returned to the horizon.
"They don't see it that way."

"Of course they don't! They think they've
killed most of us. One day…all of that is going to change. We won't
have to run and hide anymore. We'll be respected—"

"Don't you mean feared?"

She cursed under her breath. "We already are.
We have been since the Great Holocaust." She somberly stared down
at the floor and kicked the railing. She'd been there.

How easy for the fool to forget an event
that occurred over 200 years ago
, she thought. January 22nd,
2080. Year of the Metal Rat. It happened a few days after her 32nd
birthday. A jet carrying a powerful biochemical weapon had been
shot down over Tehran. Pure horror ensued. The destruction of the
plane scattered the noxious compound across most of Iran, killing
all of the inhabitants on contact. Having not sufficiently tested
the chemical weapon's properties, no one anticipated the fallout
would combine with water and be carried around the globe on the
wind, in the clouds, and as the rain. 75 percent of the world's
population died in agony from this secondary effect. Panic and mass
chaos gripped the world, leaving orphaned children and decimating
entire families.

As a result of the Great Holocaust, the Earth
became virtually uninhabitable. Years prior, the nations of Earth
had splintered into three major factions: the PAU, AF, and UE. In
order to avoid extinction, they tenuously shared technology and
searched for new planets to call home.

For Aliane it had been the end of her old
life and the beginning of a new one. She found herself amongst the
lucky few to survive the Great Holocaust and chosen to leave Earth
with her father. But the toxin changed something inside her.
People's thoughts permeated her mind with ease, and swaying them to
do her bidding took little conscious effort. It almost drove her
mad until she learned to manage her newfound abilities.

She wasn't the only one. A small fraction of
survivors could use more of their brain than ever before. Most
formed elaborate neuropathways that granted them telepathy. Many
had a degree of conscious control over involuntary biological
functions, able to slow aging and fight off cancers. Still others
possessed telekinesis or could see the future. These people
collectively became known as psions.

Unfortunately, these abilities didn't come
without a steep price. A neurotransmitter called gammamine
regulated their psionic potential and enabled them to function in
ways normals never could. But the human brain was never designed to
produce enough gammamine for extended use of their talents.
Obtaining it in sufficient quantities required killing normals on a
regular basis, often in brutal fashion, earning them the unsavory
moniker of mind-raper.

She gazed across the field of tall black
grain behind their lush residence and shuddered, remembering how
much it first pained her to kill innocents in order to utilize her
extraordinary abilities. Back in those days, suspected psions were
executed without trial, forcing her into a life of hardship. Psion
hunters tracked her from place to place, emboldened by their sense
of righteousness and duty. Only through serendipity did she manage
to survive.

Today, psionic genocide still plagued most of
Astra. Planets had harsh laws against using psionics: the only
crime punishable by the death penalty. While murdering a psion was
against the law, juries rarely convicted perpetrators of the crime.
Many psions chose to hide their abilities in order to be perceived
as normals. But for the rest, the power intoxicated like a drug,
and after many years, they couldn't face a life without it. So they
fed off the gammamine of others, stoking fear and desperation among
humans.

Aliane's exploits became infamous over a
century ago. The AF wanted her dead, and her prospects in the UE
weren't much better. Years of persecution meant she hated normals
as much as they despised her, but on Superbia she tried to put all
of it behind her.

"I had a dream last night," she told him. "I
was on my way to Chara when I got captured by the Allied Fleet.
Soldiers dragged me through the streets of Northampton. The crowd
threw rocks at me as I was led to an electric chair on the steps of
the Capitol Building. When I felt the President throw the switch, I
woke up screaming…"

He rubbed her back. "It was just a
dream."

She closed her eyes and tried to vanquish her
emotions. "I've always had an irrational fear of dying. You know
that. Not existing terrifies me. The emptiness, the uncertainty of
not knowing if anything lies ahead. Most are easily coddled by the
notion of heaven. All it does is deceive people."

"There's no such thing as heaven," Zingeri
said like he had all the answers of the universe at his fingertips.
"I'm certain reincarnation will be proven someday."

"You and your theories…well, evolution was
once a theory. Still, it's hard to believe scientists are looking
to prove reincarnation as a universal truth." She shook her head.
"I've officially become a dinosaur."

He put his hand on her chin and lifted her
head up. "You're
my
dinosaur. I'll do whatever it takes to
keep you safe. Never forget that." Zingeri tucked her long, unkempt
hair behind her ears and stroked his hand against her cheek.

"Good evening, Mistress."

She hadn't seen the sliding door open until
the gentleman spoke. "Ah, Tiyuri," Aliane cooed as a grin spread
across her face. "Thank you for coming."

She'd never laid eyes on a prime specimen of
manhood until she met Tiyuri. His dark brown skin glistened in the
warm sunlight and muscles bulged everywhere. He was bald by choice,
as though one unsightly hair anywhere on his body might detract
from his visual presence. A simple black tunic accentuated his
definition.

Among psions, Tiyuri was one-of-a-kind. His
mind and body had been honed by years of hand-to-hand combat on the
streets of Vilacabamba, Meru where he grew up. As a former assassin
for the Pan-Asian Union, he'd been trained to seek and destroy.
There was no reason to kill normal humans with his array of psionic
skills; feeding on them was much more worthwhile. But when it came
to seeking out other psions, particularly the more powerful ones,
his skills were necessary and invaluable.

He hadn't come alone. Behind him, a young
woman struggled to free her bound wrists and feet. He hauled her
over to Aliane before returning to his place at the door.

Aliane gestured to a chair across from her,
and the woman sat down with a labored sigh. "You know why you're
here, Kimber. Why don't you just tell me what I want to know and
I'll make this easy on you."

She rolled her gray eyes. "I have no idea
what you're talking about."

"I don't have time for these games." Aliane
settled into her chair and closed her eyes, channeling her mind
into a concussive thought. <is.>> Like a million stinging nettles, she assaulted Kim, who
put her hands on her head and buckled over before screaming in
pain. Even Zingeri winced at the power of her mind.

Such attacks had little to no effect on
normal humans because their brains were too primitive. They didn't
have the psionic pathways to affect the same way. For a lower-tier
psion, on the other hand, an attack resulted in an instant migraine
and complete suppression of their powers.

Aliane tapped her foot. "I can keep this up
all day, you know. In a few hours you'll be begging to die."

Kimber breathed heavily as the pain subsided.
"Okay," she said, spitting on the ground as her final form of
defiance. "I saw her on Rêve. I thought she was just a pretty
gold-digging socialite until I met her last month. My head tingled
the whole time I was there. It has to be her. Her name is Kara
Steinberg. There. Can I go now?"

"Did you honestly think I was going to let
you walk out of here alive? Are you that dense? How much did Albert
Petersen pay you to kill me?"

The woman's face glazed over, and she pouted
toward the floor. In spite of her quietness, Aliane extorted the
information she wanted to know as the thoughts rattled through
Kimber's brain. Love had been her undoing.

"I know something else. If you promise to let
me go, I'll tell you. You'll never see me again."

She tossed her hand into the air. "Very
well."

"I moved to Fantasti last year and got a job
at the docks, transporting fresh fish to retailers. One night, I
was running real late. By the time I got back to the docks,
everyone had left. At least, I thought everyone had. A large
shipment of wood had come in for a new warehouse, and Matt Zoleki
was unloading it. But he wasn't, you know, unloading it. I watched
six pallets of the stuff float off the boat and stack up next to
the pier. That's hundreds and hundreds of pounds moved three
hundred yards at least."

Zingeri furrowed his brow. "Matt Zoleki, a
telekine? I don't believe that for a second."

Fantasti Fisheries was a successful
family-owned business for the past sixty years on Fantasti, Vega.
Matt Zoleki was a well-liked and respected citizen, donating both
food and money to humanitarian causes. Zingeri and Aliane had known
his parents, both telepaths, quite well. Was it possible all that
was an elaborate cover?

<> Aliane
telepathically scolded him before returning her undivided attention
to Kimber. "You're certain about this? You weren't drunk or strung
out or tired?"

"I know a psion when I see one."

Aliane glanced back toward Zingeri.
"Telekinesis is a visual manifestation, correct?" He licked his
lips and nodded back at her.

Most psionic abilities produced telling
effects to indicate psionic power was at work. A few were mental or
aural, producing a slight ringing in one's ears or causing a mild
headache in those around them. For many the powers gave a visual
indication. Among psions, few possessed high-level telekinetic
powers: the ability to move or lift heavy objects over great
distances and manipulate matter, a fact which lent less credence to
her claim.

Aliane narrowed her eyes at the short-haired
brunette. "Did you see his eyes glowing?"

Kimber forced herself to swallow. "I don't
know. I couldn't tell…he was too far away. It was dark—I"

"It was dark and you couldn't tell if his
damn eyes were glowing?" Enraged, Aliane stood up and grabbed her
by the throat. "I don't have the time or patience for your
nonsense."

Suddenly, the breeze gusted around them in
frenzy. Aliane's raven hair swirled around her head like a witch's
crown, and her eyes pulsated in furious madness. Her victim gasped
and tried to cry out, but no one dared intervene. Aliane placed her
left hand on top of her head to steal her mana, the pure essence of
life she could not survive without. As she absorbed every molecule
of gammamine, Kimber shrieked from the pain, her eyes wide with
horror. A dim blue haze surrounded Aliane's arm while it energized
her body with an orgasmic surge of power.

After only a few moments, she released
Kimber, who dropped limply to the ground. The air around them fell
silent. Aliane reached into her pocket and pulled out a
handkerchief, which she used to wipe the grimy residue off her
hand. "Well, that was unfulfilling."

Zingeri stared at the lifeless body.
"Frankly, I don't believe a word she said. I doubt anyone could
keep a secret like that for long."

She scratched her forehead. The Zoleki's
moved off Superbia long before Matt was conceived. During their
time here, his older brother Magnius displayed little psionic
ability and she'd always figured Matt had been the same way. "I
didn't get the impression she was lying. It's a lead worth checking
out in any event."

"I mean, he'd have so many bodies piled up he
might as well have a target painted on his back. And I'm fairly
sure he's married."

Aliane walked over to Zingeri and put her
hands on his shoulders. "I agree, it's a long shot. But we're going
to need powerful psions on our side if we want to get off this
rock." She turned her head and cast a quick glance toward Tiyuri.
"Dispose of that, would you?"

"Of course." He tossed Kimber's corpse over
his shoulder and carried it toward the field beyond their
house.

Zingeri watched him for a few moments before
Aliane put her hand on his face and moved it until their eyes
locked. "One of these days, Z…everything we desire will be ours."
She pressed her lips against his and kissed him. His boyish face
weathered the decades better than most, and he looked the same as
the day she'd met him. She almost loved him.

When Tiyuri returned ten minutes later,
Aliane led him inside to one of the computers downstairs. She
brought up a map of Bordelaise, Fantasti. "I want you to pay Matt a
visit. See if there's any truth to that woman's story. I want him
to join us."