The Rowan
- Автор: Маккефри Энн
- Серия: Tower and the Hive #1
- Язык: английский
- Жанр: Научная фантастика
Электронная книга - «The Rowan». Краткое содержание книги:
The kinetically gifted, trained in mind/machine gestalt, are the most valued citizens of the Nine Star League. Using mental powers alone, these few Prime Talents transport ships, cargo and people between Earth's Moon, Mars' Demos and Jupiter's Callisto.
An orphaned young girl, simply called The Rowan, is discovered to have superior telepathic potential and is trained to become Prime Talent on Callisto. After years of self-sacrificing dedication to her position, The Rowan intercepts an urgent mental call from Jeff Raven, a young Prime Talent on distant Deneb. She convinces the other Primes to merge their powers with hers to help fight off an attack by invading aliens. Her growing relationship with Jeff gives her the courage to break her status-imposed isolation, and choose the more rewarding world of love and family.
Then Jeff paid her a surprise visit at the Tower while she was shifting some internal freight, including two crates of tools which she had discreetly brought in from Capella.
The kinetics she was training for in-planet freight never questioned what she asked them to 'port. Jeff was another matter entirely. Unfortunately, not only was the origin of the crates clearly stenciled on the side, but also they were far too fresh-looking to have been miraculously "unearthed". There were also two inbound shipments still in their cradles, waiting to be dispersed.
Where did all that come from? Jeff wanted to know, striding into the Tower room. He halted, staring about a facility which bore little resemblance to its previous appearance. He whistled in apparent appreciation which made the three youngsters grin, but the Rowan had no trouble sensing a growing concern and anger.
"All right, Tony, you and Seb link and send Cradle 4 to the mine," she said, continuing the procedure. "Good," she added as Seb punched the appropriate coordinates up on the screen. "Touch the gestalt…" The generator's whine peaked. "No, don't look at me for the go. You have to know yourself when it's go… that's right. On the button! Good transfer!" Jeff found himself a seat and, if he seemed to be interested in how the three trainees were teleporting, the Rowan was all too aware of the tension building in him.
His eyes were brilliant with what she identified as suppressed outrage.
"That's all for today, crew," she said. "Now, why don't you take all you've learned 'porting inanimate objects, and take yourselves back to the City while the generator's still running sweetly." She added that impudently.
"You'll never know until you try," Jeff added with a hearty enthusiasm for them to be well gone from the tower. "Out you go. You've thrown heavier stuff than yourselves. And you ought to know where home is by now. Off with you."
One by one they managed the feat, echoes of astonished delight from each of the three minds before their touches dissolved.
"And why are you annoyed, anxious, outraged?" the Rowan demanded because she couldn't bear his displeasure "Deneb's bankrupt!" The words exploded from him and his eyes seemed to shoot sparks at her. "How're we going to pay for all this? Hire more kids out to FT amp;T when we need every survivor we've got to rebuild?" "It's all paid for," she said, clamping down but not quickly enough for someone as swift to see an opening as Jeff Raven. Why not? I never use half my contractual monies anyway. I called in a few favors… Deneb isn't your planet, isn't your problem. Don't be so damned proprietarial! It's my problem if I make it mine. I've great respect for this planet's people. I admire your family tremendously.
Family's the keyword, isn't it? Jeff's tone had abruptly altered and his eyes narrowed. He caught her by the shoulders then and before she guessed his intention, he had pierced through every layer of privacy in her mind.
She cried out at the force of his mental penetration as he also broke through the block that had remained intact against every other invasion.
Trembling violently, she clung to him as his intrusion restored the memory of that horrendous time. Then slowly, with infinite tenderness, he withdrew, soothing away forever the terrors of a three-year-old girl, battered about in the dark of a rolling, plunging vehicle.
They stood a long while locked in each other's arms, until the glorious sunset colored the sky and they realized just how long this passage of restoration had taken.
Rowan's tears were dry on her cheeks and she was no longer racked by shudders.
"I was named Angharad Gwyn. My father was a shaft supervisor and my mother was a teacher. I had a brother named Ian." She looked up in amazement.
"We have something else in common then." He tucked her head under his chin again, holding her more firmly now. "It was a rough trip all right, enough for one small, lonely girl." He pressed her tightly when he felt her begin to shudder again. "You know, I don't think that it was all Siglen's fault that you were afraid of big, black holes in space. Not after that trip!" "You know, you might be right," the Rowan said slowly, for she remembered all too clearly her terror at being propelled toward the shuttle that was to have taken her to Earth for training. She'd been so frightened that she'd even dropped Purza as she 'ported herself back to the one safe place she knew. "I couldn't think of anything but you on my way here." She gave a convulsive shake at the memory of her first glimpse of Jeff.
"I was really messed up, wasn't I?" he said in a thoughtful tone as he caught the image in her mind. "It's probably a very good thing that patients don't see how they look to observers." She hugged him as hard as she could. "So, if you don't object, may I please contrive in my own small way to be of assistance to the beloved planet of your birth?" Jeff cocked an eyebrow as he looked down at her. "You do mean well. And Makil and the Council are about to give you honorary citizenship for getting this facility working again, so I'll trust your discretion. Now, since the Tower is functional, how much longer do you think Reidinger is going to allow you a leave of absence?" The Rowan smiled beatifically at him. "Oh, as long as I can make him believe you're still recuperating." "Oh?" and Jeff was highly skeptical.
"It's nice and quiet out here," she said, pulling him toward the long bench under the windows, "and no-one will knock on the door and then just…" she halted, hearing the edge in her voice.
Jeff chuckled understandingly. "I thought it was getting a bit much for you - all the Raven togetherness. You have to grow up in such bedlam to be able to ignore it, and you never really had much childhood, did you?" "Don't patronize me!" "Temper, temper!" And he kissed the corners of her mouth in a way that put all trace of temper out of mind.
AND JUST WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, YOU WHITE-HAIRED, BUG-EYED ALTAIRIAN LOON.
An empath with half your range should instantly perceive that I am feeding my nephew his breakfast, she replied equably, as she managed to get another spoonful of thin cereal into Ian's mouth.
Jeff, hands cupped under his chin, was closely observing this totally unexpected facet of his lover. Ah! Our master's voice. Glad it's directed at you!
NOW, LISTEN YOU, YOU UNREGENERATE… You know I'm immune to flattery, the Rowan replied.
You're not immune to contract penalties. And that goes for that culchie whom I sense is in your immediate vicinity. If you and that bondmate of yours are not back at your respective stations by the end of this day - this Earth Day - you will both suffer the maximum deductions for dereliction - of duty. And that should put a crimp in this altruistic spending spree of yours, Rowan of Callisto!
"I think he means it," Rowan told Jeff, giggling.
"I am sufficiently recovered to shove you back," he said ruefully, for the past week had been one of joyful discoveries about each other.
Despite busyness requiring long days, they had managed to work in tandem now whenever possible. And they had managed to get sufficient sleep at night to work equally hard the next day.
"I'm secure enough now to do my own 'ports," she replied, deftly scraping up the residue of cereal around Ian's mouth and popping it in again. "This doesn't seem to be too arduous a task." The first time, no, Isthia Raven said from another room.