Captives

Aradia smiled her wolf-like grin. 'Now you know how I felt when you and Wulfston and Lilith opposed my idea of forming an empire last summer.'

'Apparently your visions are as true as mine, Aradia-as you said, we now have an empire, whether we want it or not. What is the use of such visions if there is nothing we can do to prevent their coming true?'

'Lenardo,' said Wulfston, 'your vision came true-your vision, not the total destruction of Tiberium.'

'Yes,' said Julia, 'that is what was foretold, Father, and we prevented it.'

'Remember what you told me?' said Torio. 'Master your powers and you will master your fears. You fear your visions-but they are one of your powers.'

Lenardo stared at Torio for a long moment. 'Again the teacher learns from his student. You are right, Torio-I must stop fearing my visions. Then I may stop misinterpreting them.'

'Readers must accept all their powers,' said Melissa.

'We must win the confidence of the strong Readers left in the empire who were not part of Portia's circle.' said Torio. 'If they haven't guessed by now what Portia was doing, other Readers will tell them under Oath of Truth.'

'Portia,' said Aradia with a shudder. 'I understand her, perhaps better than any of the rest of you. Because of her powers, she was denied power. That is not healthy. Readers must be given power, openly-or they will breed more Portias, silently festering and secretly manipulating, turning their strength toward hurting instead of healing.'

'You are right, Aradia,' said Lenardo. 'If Portia had been openly allowed to exercise power, she would have been content and other Readers would have had the same right. Any extreme move would have been countered- because it would have been public. We must change the whole attitude of and toward Readers.'

'So we go on meddling,' said Torio.

'Every form of government is meddling, in a way,' said Aradia. 'And anyway, I think you agree with us, Torio.'

'I do,' he replied. 'I don't want to go back to the Academy. I'm a part of the changes we've made-and the ones yet to come.'

Melissa put her hand over his. 'So am I,' she said.

'And I,' said Decius, taking Melissa's left hand. Wulfston took Torio's right hand, his right to Aradia, who joined with Lenardo… Julia… Ivorn… Rolf… Lilith… and back to Decius.

Torio felt the power in that circle of Adepts and Readers-perhaps the greatest assembly of power ever gathered in one room. It tingled through his body and mind, controlled by trust and good will. They would disagree again, he knew, but at that moment all were in a rapport of acceptance. This is the way Adepts and Readers are supposed to act together!

The sensation of leashed power and trust was too welcome, too soothing, to be broken at once. They basked in it, healing their anxieties, their strained nerves, their guilt, grief, and sorrow. He felt the minds of all the Readers in the circle, the emotions of Wulfston, Ivorn, and Lilith-wishing the three Adepts might break through-

But only their emotional strength supported the circle. Torio's thoughts turned with those of the other Readers-as if it were one mind rather than seven-to Master Clement; their sorrow at his loss; their fear for him, lost on the planes of existence; their hopeless yearning that somehow he might yet return. The thought seemed to take form, drawing energy from those with Adept power-even the three mind-blind who could not comprehend what was happening, remained still, silent, participating.

Like a glowing beacon, the thought rose above the circle, a moment's memorial to a man who had touched all their lives-if some only briefly. The force of Lenardo's immeasurable mental power concentrated the emanation until it seemed unbearable-they would have to let it go-but no one wanted to leave the rapport as memory washed over them like the mind of the gentle old man himself, as if for one moment he were actually there with them-a brief touch, and then-

Lenardo suddenly started, gasped, and leaped from his chair, shattering the rapport. Torio jumped up and followed him, not believing what he Read. Despite his handicap, Decius was on Torio's heels when they entered the room where they had left Master Clement's body. The old man was sitting up, Reading about him in amazement. Then his three students were on him, 'Master Clement!'

'We thought you were dead!'

'You were gone so long-'

'So long? Yes-it must have been hours,' the Master Reader replied. 'I was on a plane where time is different-I thought I was gone only minutes. But I was lost.'

'It was two days!' said Torio. 'Master Clement, we had no hope you could return.'

'Portia?' asked Lenardo. 'Her body died. Is she-?'

'I lost her,' said Master Clement. 'I meant only to calm and comfort her. She fled from me into the emptiness of one of the planes beyond.' He sighed. 'She was once a good woman, Lenardo. This recent power-madness-'

'Yes, we know,' said Torio. 'We praised her good memory today, Master Clement. But we thought we had lost you.'

'I thought so, too,' said the old man. 'I could not find my way back. The emptiness of the plane I was on drew at me… I could not find my way. I wanted to fill that emptiness, or escape it-but there was no place to turn! If I allowed myself to be drawn away, I knew I could never return to you-'

By this time all ten people who had formed the circle at the table were crowded into the small room. He looked at them, Read them, and shook his head in disbelief. 'There was a… a beacon in the emptiness. It seemed… not as you do now, with all your separate personalities, but like one mind with the power of many-much greater than any rapport of Readers.'

Tears were running down Torio's face. 'We found our way to each other,' he said, 'Readers and Adepts together. It's right, Master Clement-it has to be right for us to work together!'

'Of course it's right,' said Master Clement. 'I would never have left the empire if I were not sure of that.'

The old man looked around the group again, and smiled. 'You are all so young-you have many years to build a new way of life. I have heard what you call it, my dear friends-and I thank the gods and all of you that I shall now live to see the beginning of your new way of life: your Savage Empire!'