"Already done," Teeg's dark-haired assistant handed over the comp-vid he'd been holding.

"So, you and your brother are wanted for arson by the Alliance?" Teeg's smile spread slowly across his face.

"Don't send us there. Please."

"Well, you and your brother should have considered this before you accepted the job, don't you think?" Teeg's voice was almost pleasant. Almost.

"Should have had better sense than to attack Teeg San Gerxon," Astralan snapped. "Are you as brainless as I think you are?"

"Probably more so," Dee said cheerfully. "Shall we pack them up for your trip?"

"Sure. We'll take a cage full," Teeg said.

* * *

"We need to put the bloom back in your cheeks, pretty girl," Jes was back and fussing again. Why did he upset me so much? I couldn't really put a finger on it. Farzi and Nenzi helped me to the solarium and I was paging through a book on the comp-reader I'd been given. Nothing seemed to hold my interest and I felt listless at best. Jusef brought a jumble for me and set it down on the tiny table next to my chaise.

Teeg had been gone for two days without a word. More than anything, I wanted to skip away. Tory, Aurelius and Lendill would treat me so much better than this. The only thing that kept me from storming out of Teeg's apartment in a fit was the promise of the visit with Gavril.

"Jusef, you make wonderful jumbles, but I don't know if I can drink this," I rubbed my stomach as I gave him an imploring look.

"Just try—perhaps you'll feel better after a few sips," he coaxed, his bushy eyebrows wiggling. It made me think of Morwin for a moment and I smiled.

"There it is—the first smile in days," Jusef sounded happy.

"Is she feeling better?" Lenden came out to check.

"We're trying," Jusef said. Jes moved away and I released a breath I hadn't realized I was holding.

"Little squirrel, start drinking that thing for Em-pah. All right?" Lenden tapped the glass I held. He put an arm around me while I sipped.

* * *

"Do you think this is shielded enough?" Garde allowed a tiny bit of sarcasm to coat his words. Erland laughed. "I know it doesn't affect you in the least, but Wylend and I want to make sure this visit isn't a trap of some kind. Admit it—we'll have some very important people in this room."

"Important to us if no one else," Garde agreed.

"They won't get out of here unless we allow it," Erland added. "If Teeg brings the brothers Starr, well, they'd better mind their manners."

"Those reptanoids could cause some damage if they come," Garde reminded the warlock.

"Already thought of that. We have spells that will activate if they turn. They'll be trussed up in a black net. You don't get out of that until we let you out."

"Warlock, you frighten me at times."

"Not just a pretty face anymore, am I?"

"Haven't ever thought of you in those terms," Garde slapped Erland on the back, nearly knocking him over.

"Perhaps I should allow those Falchani to teach me bladework," Erland straightened with difficulty. "I might be able to match you physically in that way."

"Warlock, why are you worried about that? We are what we are. We each have our strengths."

"What about weaknesses?" Erland turned back to Gardevik Rath.

"Do we have any?" Garde laughed. Erland barely moved away in time to avoid a second slap to the back.

* * *

"You've tapped into the core. Did I not warn you against that? What are you intending to do, destroy everything?" Fardris glared at his oldest son, Nidris. "I allowed you to stay with us and this is how you repay our hospitality. By starting the drain on Tulgalan's core. We like it here. Your idiocy means we have to move in less than ten years."

"Zellar said it was all right to only tap a little here and there," Nidris whined.

"Have you been living in a cave the past fifty years? Nidris, he's killed countless worlds. All dead now—drained lifeless and entire populations killed off because he engaged in forbidden sorcery. Why do you think it's forbidden if it's harmless? If you want a case in point, go directly to Cloudsong. That world is wasted, now. Zellar did that. I should never have listened to that liar. He's the one who convinced me that Wylend and his handful of cronies didn't have enough power to stand against us when we took the throne away from Warlend. Only he was wrong. Yet you, against my wishes, went searching for him. If I'd known that's what you intended, I'd have killed you myself. I lost three children because of Zellar. Now, there's a price on all our heads." Fardris' chest was heaving, he was so angry. Tulgalan, his new home, was now doomed because of his own son.

Nidris stared at his father. He'd never seen Fardris Hazlan so upset before. Had Zellar lied to him and the others? He knew most of them were dead—Yebri, who remained on Xordthe, had told him. Yebri had sounded frightened when she'd passed the news on to him—only she and Nidris were still alive. Yebri had already curtailed the draining of the core on Xordthe—she'd said the same thing that Fardris was saying—that Zellar had lied to all of them. Now, Xordthe would die, as Tulgalan would die. Nidris shivered. He would murder if it gained him something, but countless millions and no gain—even he worried over that. Nidris was glad he'd sold Zellar to the Alliance and to the others hunting the old rogue. Nidris had thought to set himself up in Zellar's place. Now, he only wanted to remain hidden until he could feel safe again.

"Father, let us move from here, then," Nidris suggested.

"No. I have a place here and money coming in. We'll work for another five years and then leave. Tulgalan will certainly be feeling the effects by then and more money might be made. The Alliance will get as many off-world as possible, but there are always those who will not wish to come to the attention of the Alliance. We will transport them away and fill our coffers at the same time. Perhaps we can go outside the Alliance when we leave here—surely Teeg San Gerxon will have turned his attention elsewhere by that time."

"I'm thankful he can't reach us here," Nidris agreed. "The Alliance doesn't know to hunt us—we should be safe."

* * *

I wasn't about to tell Teeg how shaky I felt when we landed on Xordthe. A meeting with Gavril would be mine if I could get through this. I only hoped that I'd have enough strength to give Chash a hug when the meeting did come. I was desperate to feel better so I could, in Teeg's words, "heal the planet" the following day.

"Baby, if there was any other way," Teeg pulled me against him that night. He hadn't attempted to have sex—I was too drained and weary and he was too worried about something. Several mornings I'd wakened to his touch—he'd stroke my cheek as if he could coax color into it, somehow. The few times I'd bothered to look in a mirror, I'd appeared washed out and worn, so I stopped looking. I only dressed in the comfortable fleece outfits Teeg had purchased for me, wrapping up in an extra jacket or blanket whenever I could. I constantly felt cold, even in warm places.

"You said that before," I mumbled a response to Teeg's statement, closing my eyes. His arms were warm and tight around me as he kissed the spot behind my ear—the one that in better times would nearly send me into a climax.

"Reah, if things were different, you have no idea what I'd do," he whispered gently. I fell asleep with his breath tickling my ear.

* * *

"I think this is the place where the tapping occurred—Astralan and I want to see if it will be easier to do this at that precise location," Teeg said as he led me to another clearing. This one hadn't been cleared until recently—a house and surrounding courtyard had been destroyed so I could sit on the bare patch of ground and pull star energy to Xordthe. Piles of rock, lumber and most of a roof surrounded me as I began removing my clothing, barely listening to what Teeg had to say. Lenden took my clothes just as before, but Jes was hovering. Farzi and Nenzi were trying to keep him back while I undressed and turned.

"Reah," Teeg stood below me as I settled into a cross-legged position in full Thifilatha. I turned my attention to what he had to say. "Reah," he repeated, "please don't hurt yourself. Or—well. Just don't hurt yourself. All right?"

"Teeg, move away," I sighed. "Let's get this over with." I turned my head toward the night sky and selected a star.

* * *

"We should have thought of this before," Teeg raked a hand through his hair. Reah woke in half the time it had previously taken. She'd been ill again, true, but not nearly as long. A direct route to the tapped core had turned out to be the best solution. Reah slept now—Lenden, Jes and Jusef had managed to get something into her stomach after settling her in bed. Farzi and Nenzi had slid onto the bed on either side as lion snakes. They were worried about Reah too, they just weren't vocal about it. Lenden had been casting questioning looks at Teeg for several days now. He didn't like it any more than Teeg did.

"We have three days," Teeg said. "Three days to get Reah on her feet as well as we can. We'll be traveling after that. Jes, you'll go to Campiaa and work with Dee. The warlocks, Farzi, his brothers, Lenden and Jusef are coming with me."

"Where are you going?" Jes didn't like the idea that he wasn't included in the trip. "Who will take care of Reah?"

"Jes, you have to trust me. I have someone in mind where we're going who will watch over her until we can come back to Campiaa. All right? I don't know how long this trip will take, but I'll keep Dee informed. You can get updates from him. In the meantime, take some time off and relax a little. You've been working too hard."

Jes still didn't like it and he walked away muttering. "You need to watch him," Lenden said quietly.

"He's my physician and devoted to me and mine. Don't question me," Teeg snapped. Lenden turned away so Teeg wouldn't see the curl of smoke escaping his nostrils. It didn't happen often with Lenden—he could control it most of the time. It still escaped now and then, showing anyone who might know just what he was. Farzi was watching the entire exchange with a worried frown. He sided with Lenden on this, but there wasn't any way he could say that to Teeg.