Chapter 1
Ved
Runus – Clan Cleave territory
“A darkness slithers, and a hand wavers. During this period of stagnation, your enemies stir and grow restless,” Marlep warned as her fingers danced through part of the projection of infinite stars and distant planets filling the dark chamber.
Ved grunted. So, this was what he’d been called for. His presence had been requested by her and Je Ghol, a trusted member of his council. Marlep rarely went beyond predictions of weather patterns, land fertility, and changes in flight paths. All of which were riddles, but the gazer had finally captured his attention.
“When their restlessness turns to action,” Ved said evenly, “they can meet the might of our blades.” The very thought set fire to his veins. Many had looked to take on Clan Cleave, and all had paid for their hubris.
Marlep cleared her throat, her voice coming out shriller as she said, “I don’t think you understand the implication of this. If they decide to strike now, to fight would be folly.”
It was as if she were correcting a child and not the Qon of Clan Cleave. “You’d have us run? Deny a challenge?” Ved bit out. It was one thing to tell him which crops would fail; it was another thing entirely to tell him thathewould.
Ved knew the gazer well enough to know she was offended even without seeing her expression beneath her rounded mask. But a fired gun needn’t be discreet. “If war is what they want, war is what they’ll have,” he continued. “I refuse to surrender the might of this clan because a planet ispositioneda certain way. If our enemies look to strike, I will cut them down. We are the strongest clan on Runus, amongst all Xaal from the Three. Let them come.” It wasn’t pride that made him say that—Ved hadensuredit.
Kravis, his general, made a sound of agreement from where he leaned against the far wall. Ved knew the exact expression he undoubtedly wore beneath his dark mask as he mindlessly spun the dagger Ved had gifted him long ago in his hand, the red jewel sparkling in the light of the projections.
Je Ghol stepped forward then. “Our allies grow weak with infighting and neighboring clan wars. The ixom trade is being disrupted, our goods ending up in the wrong hands. But there is one clan, a strong clan, that has proposed partnership. Doing so would bolster our numbers and give us an ally along the trade routes and to the northeast. Clan Hale.”
Clan Hale was formidable. Positioned in a deep network of caverns, they were able to attack and defend themselves from any foe that came near. They were rich in resources but had few allies.
Ved narrowed his eyes. There was no plausible reason for them to want an allyship. “Why?” he asked.
Je Ghol clasped his hands in front of him. “Qon Sava wishes for a binding. With you, particularly. Her generalis also available for Kravis.Not only would our clans be united, but our combined strength would be made living through an heir. The deal can be struck now through a communication line we’ve prepared.”
The room fell silent. A binding? Ved had no time, no desire, to go through the binding rites. And an heir was of little use to him. In Clan Cleave, the title of qon came down to strength. It wasn’t passed down like a trait—that was something he’d corrected the moment he destroyed the last qon. He didn’t need symbols of power. Clan Cleavewasthe power. “You’d have me be a slave to my biology?” he snarled. “Thatwould be the weakness.”
“Once you aligned yourself with Qon Sava,” Je Ghol interceded, “our enemies would falter for a time. Clan Hale’s might can only be speculated at. So, they will not attack until they are certain of victory.”
“But there would be no victory—they’d find only ruin here. After all this time, I thought you knew me better. I will not bind myself to her or anyone,” Ved said. “Nor will I turn away from any clan that launches an assault on us. Name this enemy and I’ll challenge them now.”
Marlep hissed her annoyance, but before anyone could respond, Kravis pushed off the wall and made for the exit, drawing their attention. “I don’t see any reason for my being here,” the general said, tapping the side of his helmet. “Seven Kroid ships are approaching from the western divide. I’ll see to it.”
Ved welcomed the interruption. As far as he was concerned, the conversation was over. “We’ll go,” he said, turning his back on Je Ghol and Marlep. If the gazer was so gifted in the seventh sight, she’d have known the interruption was coming.
“They’re about to get a true Xaal welcome, then. We are, after all, so hospitable,” Kravis said coolly over his shoulder.
Ved offered a deep click of his tongue as agreement as his long stride carried him through the cosmic projection, making them ripple with the disturbance. Just as he passed over the threshold, Marlep’s voice reached him. “Into the storm you go, Ved Qon Cleave. All paths yield, for you have chosen.” Her voice was haunting, the words biting at his heels—a warning given too late.
He shrugged, rolling his shoulders as if he could rid himself of her cryptic declaration. Keeping a gazer on their council was a custom long held by many Xaal clans. It was a remnant of the old ways before the Breaker. Even Je Ghol, wise as he was, still followed those ancient ideals. Though Ved respected their strengths and skill, no one had the right to tell him he should let his weapons rust while his enemy plotted. The language of star patterns and fragile predictions wasn’t one Ved understood.
Bloodshed, on the other hand, he knew every dialect of.
Ved fell in step with his general. Kravis was his closest comrade, hisbruvya,and had been by his side in more conflicts than he could count.
Their plated boots echoed against the dark floors in the tunnel-like hall as they moved toward the hangar, but the companionable silence didn’t last long. Kravis tilted his head to look at him, the vertical black line that differentiated his mask from Ved’s gleaming like the mischievous grin his bruvya undoubtedly wore. “I’m told Qon Sava is a great warrior. Lithe and agile, too. Or are you waiting for your starborn mate, your great love?”
Ved rumbled a lengthy curse. “I need neither, nor did I expect you to be so willing. Or do you have your hearts set on Sava’s general, who I am told is stout and favors an arc axe?”
“Nothing wrong with that. The nights are long and grow colder, bruvya. I suspect a female who can handle an arc axe can handle my considerable assets and keep me warm withher … touch.”
Ved grunted. A binding would be an unwelcome distraction. He didn’t need anyone, and no one needed him, not in the way a mate and youngling would. And he wanted to keep it that way. He’d experienced firsthand the devastation that could be caused by having such weaknesses.
“What of these Kroids?” he asked as they entered the spacious hangar.
“Lost, perhaps, and in need of guides,” Kravis said as they parted ways toward their respective vessels.
