one
language, but with so may Colds this quadrant the mother tongue was
spoken freely. The words passed from generation to generation, to
keep something of their culture alive. His ancestors had been
forced to accept Treaty10, and forgo political and cultural
independence, but the people did so with great
reluctance.
His comrade nodded his approval and adjusted his
positioning.
Igor walked through the surging club, not bothering to
shoulder people out the way; they bounced off him like water from a
rock. Reaching the back exit, the door slid open, and he stepped
into the cool night.
He soaked up the wild woods, pulling his snood to cover his
chest and head from the extreme cold. He stamped his booted feet
and tugged on fingerless gloves. The nightclub was located deep in
the OutRim, making it easy to dispose of the bodies of those who
could not handle their narcotics.
He sensed the presence of his companion and held out his
hand.
The leopard padded from the shadows to meet him, crushing snow
beneath her paws. He had seen those delicate claws rip the flesh
from a man’s back with nothing but a listless swipe. A long scar
ran across her sleekly feline face and cut through her right eye,
now a milky, sightless orb. She blinked; her good eye winked like a
topaz star. Her thick coat, heavier and wilder than a normal
leopard, was brilliant white and spotted with deep brown
rosettes.
His fingers splayed over her head and rubbed affectionately.
She had been with him for many years. “Come, Natalya. Walk with
me.”
He rolled his shoulders and strode into the trees, knowing she
would always follow at his side, and so mindful of where his boots
fell.
The blue dark was beautiful to Igor. He wished he’d been born
feral, a baby left to fend for itself in the wild. To be raised by
wolves, or bears, and Mother Nature would have crafted him into an
even stronger warrior than he was now. He sighed, a warrior without
purpose.
He stopped and smiled at a night flower blooming by his ankle.
Igor crouched in the black soil to brush calloused fingers over the
soft purple petals. He inhaled the delicate scent the flower
released. An innate peace that only came when nature surrounded him
stole through his hulking body.
Natalya lay beside him and purred as he ran his hand down her
spine.
They stayed like this for some time until Natalya’s tail
thumped the ground and she tensed. Rolling onto all fours, she
hissed. Her ears lowered along with her body until she was
crouched, ready to attack.
Igor expanded the boundaries of his mind, seeking an intruder
in the dark.
He sensed nothing.
“ Natalya?”
Red light shot from the sky and haloed him, trapping him, a
crushing pressure that froze him on the spot.
He lost time, drifting in a void.
The next time Igor focused, there were bright lights overhead.
A tinkling pinged in his ears, and the bitter smell of minerals
prickled his nose.
Fuzzy, indistinct shapes stood over him with their backs to
the light. He couldn’t work out if the humanoids limbs appeared
overly thin and pale because of his perspective, or because they
were formed that way.
It was cold. That was because he was naked. His back pressed
into a rail thin chair in a reclined position. There were thick
cuffs around his neck, ankles, and wrists. Thicker bands secured
his hips and chest.
Had someone found out what he could do and taken him to
experiment?
Where was his Natalya? Was she safe? Would these beings harm
her?
Goosebumps broke out over his skin, and Igor tried to send out
a sweep of psychic power to assess the room. He was met with a
blockade. It was like trying to push his body through solid
concrete.
He couldn’t send power, but he could receive, and he picked up
hundreds of telepathic touches happening all around him. The purity
of the connection and its vastness was overwhelming.
Thousands of minds screamed for help.
Instead of being swept up into the hysteria, tempting as it
was, he looked deeper,
language, but with so may Colds this quadrant the mother tongue was
spoken freely. The words passed from generation to generation, to
keep something of their culture alive. His ancestors had been
forced to accept Treaty10, and forgo political and cultural
independence, but the people did so with great
reluctance.
His comrade nodded his approval and adjusted his
positioning.
Igor walked through the surging club, not bothering to
shoulder people out the way; they bounced off him like water from a
rock. Reaching the back exit, the door slid open, and he stepped
into the cool night.
He soaked up the wild woods, pulling his snood to cover his
chest and head from the extreme cold. He stamped his booted feet
and tugged on fingerless gloves. The nightclub was located deep in
the OutRim, making it easy to dispose of the bodies of those who
could not handle their narcotics.
He sensed the presence of his companion and held out his
hand.
The leopard padded from the shadows to meet him, crushing snow
beneath her paws. He had seen those delicate claws rip the flesh
from a man’s back with nothing but a listless swipe. A long scar
ran across her sleekly feline face and cut through her right eye,
now a milky, sightless orb. She blinked; her good eye winked like a
topaz star. Her thick coat, heavier and wilder than a normal
leopard, was brilliant white and spotted with deep brown
rosettes.
His fingers splayed over her head and rubbed affectionately.
She had been with him for many years. “Come, Natalya. Walk with
me.”
He rolled his shoulders and strode into the trees, knowing she
would always follow at his side, and so mindful of where his boots
fell.
The blue dark was beautiful to Igor. He wished he’d been born
feral, a baby left to fend for itself in the wild. To be raised by
wolves, or bears, and Mother Nature would have crafted him into an
even stronger warrior than he was now. He sighed, a warrior without
purpose.
He stopped and smiled at a night flower blooming by his ankle.
Igor crouched in the black soil to brush calloused fingers over the
soft purple petals. He inhaled the delicate scent the flower
released. An innate peace that only came when nature surrounded him
stole through his hulking body.
Natalya lay beside him and purred as he ran his hand down her
spine.
They stayed like this for some time until Natalya’s tail
thumped the ground and she tensed. Rolling onto all fours, she
hissed. Her ears lowered along with her body until she was
crouched, ready to attack.
Igor expanded the boundaries of his mind, seeking an intruder
in the dark.
He sensed nothing.
“ Natalya?”
Red light shot from the sky and haloed him, trapping him, a
crushing pressure that froze him on the spot.
He lost time, drifting in a void.
The next time Igor focused, there were bright lights overhead.
A tinkling pinged in his ears, and the bitter smell of minerals
prickled his nose.
Fuzzy, indistinct shapes stood over him with their backs to
the light. He couldn’t work out if the humanoids limbs appeared
overly thin and pale because of his perspective, or because they
were formed that way.
It was cold. That was because he was naked. His back pressed
into a rail thin chair in a reclined position. There were thick
cuffs around his neck, ankles, and wrists. Thicker bands secured
his hips and chest.
Had someone found out what he could do and taken him to
experiment?
Where was his Natalya? Was she safe? Would these beings harm
her?
Goosebumps broke out over his skin, and Igor tried to send out
a sweep of psychic power to assess the room. He was met with a
blockade. It was like trying to push his body through solid
concrete.
He couldn’t send power, but he could receive, and he picked up
hundreds of telepathic touches happening all around him. The purity
of the connection and its vastness was overwhelming.
Thousands of minds screamed for help.
Instead of being swept up into the hysteria, tempting as it
was, he looked deeper,
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