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Feeling like he had never really known his partner until this minute, Thrax got up slowly with his hands in the air to show he wasn’t going to be a threat.
“All right, I’m up,” he growled. “Now what?”
“Head for the door. I’m right behind you. And if you try to go anywhere else but the Sacred Grove of if you go for the blaster, I’m going to make you very sorry,” Andi told him. Her voice was like steel and the look in her big brown eyes was deadly serious.
“Fine,” Thrax growled irritably.
He still wanted to end the dreams, but the urge to shoot himself—so strong just a few moments ago—had faded considerably. Maybe it had something to do with the muzzle of his partner’s blaster, which he felt digging into the small of his back. The thought of a non-lethal but extremely painful wounding was a lot less appealing than a single shot to the brain that would end his inner turmoil immediately.
“You don’t have to hold your blaster on me,” he told Andi, as they made their way down the long metal corridors towards the center of the Mother Ship. “We’re in public now—I’m not going to fucking do anything in public.”
“I don’t trust you,” she snapped. “Now get moving.”
People cast sidelong curious glances at them as they made their way through the Mother Ship. Andi’s blaster was pressed to his back and she was standing close behind him, hiding it with her body and the folds of Thrax’s own shirt, so no one could tell he was being herded through the hallways at gunpoint. But they must have made a strange looking couple walking as they were with Andi looking like she was pretending to be his shadow.
Luckily—or maybe unluckily, depending on your point of view—there weren’t many people to see them. It was evening now and most of the warriors and their wives had gone back to their own suites. Thrax thought ruefully that he ought to be back in his suite too, finishing what he had started. But it was clear that Andi wasn’t going to allow that—not that she could stop him forever. This was just a short detour, he told himself. He was still looking for the exit door—it was just going to take a little bit longer to get there.
At last they reached the parklands that surrounded the Sacred Grove—the miniature forest at the heart of the Mother Ship where the priestesses who served the Goddess lived. Thrax didn’t come here much as a rule—he wasn’t especially devout, though of course he believed in the Goddess as all Kindred did.
The last time he’d been there was for a Joining Ceremony for a couple of coworkers that Andi had insisted they attend, he remembered. He couldn’t help contrasting that occasion to this one. Last time the artificial green sun which powered the Mother Ship had been shining down brightly through the purple and green leaves of the sacred trees. The Grove had been crowded—people had been laughing and talking and having a good time.
Now it appeared deserted. The sun was dimmed so that the light it gave off was no brighter than moonlight and there was silence except for the breeze rustling through the leaves and the grass. Nobody was there except for him and Andi…or so he thought until Kat stepped out from behind a tree.
“Hey? What the fuck are you doing here?” Thrax growled, glaring down at her.
“Arranging things—like I always do, doll.” Kat blew him a kiss and looked at Andi. “Well, did you have trouble getting him here?”
“More than I want to talk about,” Andi said grimly. “Are they ready to go with the ceremony?”
“We are,” another voice said before Kat could answer.
A priestess in a pure white robe stepped out from among the trees. She had long silver hair streaked with green and the green-within-green eyes which denoted one who has served the Goddess for a long time and communed with her closely.
“All who enter the Sacred Grove must remove their footwear. You are standing in the presence of the Goddess—this is holy ground,” she informed them.
“Oh right,” Andi muttered. “Kat, could you come hold these for me so I can take off my shoes?” she asked. “And keep them away from Thrax!” she added as she handed both his blaster and her own to the other woman.
Kat’s eyes widened when she saw what Andi was giving her.
“Wow, you really did have trouble getting him here!”
“I got him here though—that’s what counts. Hey—take off your boots!” Andi ordered, looking up at him. “Do it now! Just because I gave Kat my blaster doesn’t mean I can’t take it back again and shoot you.”
Thrax started taking off his boots, but the priestess came forward, frowning.
“There can be no talk of violence or bloodshed here,” she admonished Andi.
“Sorry, your Holiness. I just…had a difficult time getting my partner to come to this ceremony,” Andi said apologetically.
“And why was that?” the priestess asked, arching an eyebrow at Thrax.
“Because I didn’t fucking want to go,” he growled rudely as he finished taking off his boots. The long grass felt cool and ticklish against his bare feet.
The priestess’s frown deepened.
“The Goddess cannot cleanse one who does not wish to be cleansed.”
“Yes, he does want to be cleansed, he just doesn’t know it!” Andi exclaimed quickly, stepping forward. “Please, your Holiness—this is a matter of life and death. The Goddess herself came and spoke to me and told me my partner’s life was in danger. He has to have this ceremony!”
