But she was a woman-and his wife. This business of being a husband carried responsibilities he hadn’t fully considered when they were back in Tiberium. / think I’m starting to understand what Serafon meant.
When they stopped to rest, Zanos used his Adept powers to kill a rabbit, then started a cooking fire to roast it. While he was skinning and gutting it, Astra went foraging again-and only when she returned and he saw her eyes skitter away from the sight of the roasting rabbit did he remember that Readers kept to a vegetarian diet to preserve their powers.
But she shared what she had found, berries and mushrooms and greens. Nonetheless, Zanos noticed that she kept her face turned away from him as he devoured the meat his body craved.
Eventually Zanos broke the tense silence. “Are you going to be uncomfortable every time I eat meat?”
She managed a hesitant smile. “No. I know you need it. I’ll learn to prepare it for you-Zanos, I understand that you have to eat such food for both your physical strength and your Adept powers.”
“And I can see why you hadn’t even the strength to lift your own body out of that cave back there. Astra, that’s not a balanced diet.”
“No, it’s not, ‘ she agreed. “But it will be if I can get some cheese and nuts and good bread. There must be places where we can buy-”
Suddenly her eyes widened, and she gasped. “A Reader! Zanos-there’s a Reader only a few miles from here-and he’s broadcasting a warning to other Readers!’
With Zanos standing guard, Astra left her body to Read what was happening on the seacoast. The Aventine fleet was attempting to enter the natural harbor on the west coast of the savage lands. On a hill overlooking the harbor she found the source of the mental voice: a young male Reader was just returning to his body, which lay on a spread cloak. Nearby two men stood facing the sea, both unReadable.
“They refuse to turn back, Wulfston,” the Reader said as he sat up. “They think their army is too big to be defeated.”
The older of the other two-a young black man with the bearing of a leader-frowned angrily. “I expected as much. Let them know that we are about to give them a demonstration.”
The Reader lay down again on his cloak, and did not even bother to close his eyes before leaving his body. He’s blind! Astra realized. This had to be the renegade Torio, whom the savages had raised from the dead!
Astra Read him move among the shiploads of soldiers, sailors, and Readers, “heard” him broadcast another warning, telling them that their ships would never reach shore. Back on the hilltop, the black man put a hand on the arm of his other companion, a frail-looking youth who was also blind. “Ready, Rolf?”
“Yes, my lord,” the boy replied, and both of them became unReadable once again as a strong wind suddenly rose, shaking the Aventine vessels to and fro. Astra watched their sorcerers’ powers in action with horrified fascination. Only two people trying to stop that vast flotilla-and she felt they actually might succeed!
The “demonstration” ended with no damage to the ships or their occupants.
Torio pleaded with the Aventine Readers to make
the fleet reverse course, but the invaders refused to turn and run from two Adepts and a renegade Reader.
It was after sundown when the first ship neared the shore, ready to unload troops and Readers. But the two Adepts conjured up another windstorm out of the cloudless sky, much fiercer than the first. Ships whirled like toys-one capsized, breaking apart and spilling people into the churning waters.
Astra watched helplessly as at least a dozen people drowned-six of them Readers. Their mental screams clawed at her like the screams of those who had died at Gaeta.
Zanos put more wood on the fire to keep off the evening chill, then carefully placed a blanket over Astra’s still body. Every few minutes he checked to be sure she still breathed.
His mind went back to the ordeal they had shared in the cave, both in and out of their bodies. It seemed like much more than one day had gone by since then, while this waiting for Astra to return felt like an eternity.
I should be with her, he told himself. If he could do that Reader’s trick while he was under the influence of the drug, surely he could do it easily now that he was back in control of himself.
But someone had to remain here, guarding Astra’s body in this strange forest while her spirit performed a Readers prime function: to search out truth. And after watching the care she had taken before leaving her body-looking for a smooth and level patch of ground, spreading a blanket on the spot, and then gingerly positioning her body on it-he knew that there was more to this trick than he had thought. There was so much he could learn from her, perhaps as much as he wanted to teach her about-
A soft moan signified Astra’s return. Zanos dropped to one knee beside her as she sat up, obviously upset. “Are you all right?” he asked. “What happened?”
“We’re in more danger than we thought,” the Reader replied, and told him what she had just witnessed.
“These Adepts may not really be able to turn ships to stone, but their methods are just as effective.”
“Wait,” said Zanos, settling beside her. “There’s something you said that I don’t understand. This Torio warned the Aventine Readers three times to turn back? And the Adepts gave them a demonstration of their power and a chance to retreat?”
“Yes, but-”
“Astra, if I had that much Adept power, and an army invading my lands, I might bother with one warning before defending myself-but certainly not three! And the storm. You said it destroyed only three ships?
What about the others?”
“They managed to get away,” Astra replied.
“When the Adepts ran out of energy? They couldn’t sink all the ships?”
“… no, ” Astra admitted. “I had the impression that they could have kept the storm going for some time, but-” She stared at him. “Zanos, are you defending the savages?”
“No,” he replied. “I’m just sharing my feelings that there is something wrong-something unexpected here. You said the three savages told the survivors of the shipwrecks to come ashore?”
“Yes, and the Reader broadcast a promise that they wouldn’t be harmed. He was wasting his time, though. No Reader would risk it, and none of the other survivors could Read his message.”
“What about you?” Zanos pressed. “Did you believe his message? Was he sincere in wanting them to come ashore?”
“Well, of course he was-think what they could do
with a dozen more Readers, their minds twisted like Torio’s to work against their own people!”
Zanos nodded, but asked, “Did anyone else go ashore?”
“Yes,” Astra admitted reluctantly. “There were people from Lord Wulfston’s lands to help soldiers and sailors get ashore. What do you make of all this, Zanos?”
“When someone invades your land with an army,” he explained, “do you waste manpower and resources taking any prisoners but valuable hostages? The commanders of the army would make bargaining tools-
but from what I know of military tactics, the commanders approach the shore only after the land has been secured. So all this ‘Lord Wulfston’ has got is foot soldiers and seamen to feed and house-a cadre of his enemies inside his own land. That sounds incredibly foolish to me.”
“Maybe he plans to turn them all into loyal savages,” Astra suggested. “Twist their minds against the empire.”
“Three shiploads of people?” he reminded her. “That’s at least sixty people, probably more. Even supposing this sorcerer has that much power, he hasn’t got the time. That fleet will find a place to land and march into his territory from another direction. Wulfston will have to meet the invaders and protect his people-or his own subjects will turn against him.”