Korsha groaned. Every fiber of her being ached. It was a dull cacophonous thing that disturbed any rest she could have gotten. Trying to pry her eyes open she found them unyielding. Surrendering, she’d have to remain drifting in darkness for now. Deep down the pit of her stomach, at her core, was nothingness. That familiar sensation, that magic, that corruption, that ever present companion was no longer with her. She was alone save for the soft murmur of her heart.

For the first time in her life Korsha found herself wishing she could feel that power. During her training in the Academy the instructors had stripped her of her power numerous times. It was a brutal, yet efficient, way of ensuring she didn’t rely upon the source of her corruption as a crutch. And that's what it had become to her. A crutch. Yet that hadn't come from over using it, her skills were… good enough. No, it was a social thing. A way of withdrawing from people and not wanting to connect with them. Just as it had been used to mark her, she had turned it into a barrier. An excuse to isolate herself and in doing so she found herself alone.

With nothing else but her power.

For the first time in a long time she felt that deep and abiding loneliness. It flowed through her like ice upon the surface of the lake until every bit of her was coated in its frosty embrace. She would've shivered if her body was listening to her but it seemed that it too had abandoned her. Though not entirely. Hot tears gathered at the dams of her eyes, a rising flood ready to finally burst free. It was as if she was back at the Academy all over again. The knowing that she was a small and fragile thing permeated her. Something easily picked up and discarded. She curled up into a ball inside herself and wept.

How had things become so messed up? All she’d ever desired was to know that she was wanted. Valuable. Useful… Somewhere out there, in the vastness of Dominion space, was the only person who now cared she was alive. And he was lying in a stasis chamber. Helpless. Slowly being consumed by a vendetta that she’d allowed to happen. It had been her mistake. Her failure from all those years ago had led her to this moment.

Something woke up within her. That wasn't true. Her master wasn't the only one who cared.

The image of Tal appeared in the inky blackness of her mind. His features were hard and glaring but in those eyes she saw concern. She'd heard it in his voice the last time they talked. Just the thought of him caring was enough to keep her going. She had to get the data to him somehow. Then she could find Deidra. Somehow she would convince her sister to return.

To make everything right.

Once more Korsha struggled to open her eyes. This time the darkness was slashed by a blurred horizontal beam of grayish light. It was the most beautiful color she'd ever seen. She continued to force her eyes open. Bit by bit the weariness that had enveloped her like a warm blanket unraveled. She stared up at a gray ceiling devoid of any characteristics. Her heart raced. Had Ina dragged her back to the Academy?

She concentrated on moving her fingers. The effort was monumental and painstakingly slow. She groaned as she pulled her fingers into a loose fist. She brought her hand up. The motion was exaggerated and caught her off guard. Her hand came and fell down against her chest. She winced. She wasn't wearing armor. Lifting her hand again she saw that she was in her under armor. She was vulnerable. That wasn't necessarily a bad thing. Her suit had recording equipment. She could use it to justify her actions. Show him her intentions were pure.

After several more minutes of strained effort, she was finally sitting on the edge of the bed she'd been on. She had to force her head up, as it kept wanting to fall down and rest her chin against her chest. She gazed around the room and realized she was in a prison cell. Now that she was concentrating she could feel the familiar tremor of hyperspace travel through the floor.

She blinked as she gathered her thoughts. She needed help. If she could commune with Enaru perhaps he could do something for her. She didn't know what he could do for her but she had heard stories of power animals did have the ability to lend certain abilities through their connection. She’d never attempted it as it would require her to draw on her power to establish the connection. Up to now she’d wanted as little of that corruption flowing freely through her as possible.

She lifted herself up and scooted back on the mattress until she could lean against the wall. She assumed the lotus position and knew that it was sloppy but she was willing to forgive herself this one time. Taking a deep breath she concentrated. The emptiness within her loomed over her like a mountain. She stood within the deepest valley lingering within its shadow. She continued to concentrate. There were cracks in the mountain. Caverns filled with power.

Her power.

She followed the sensation to its source. Taking a deep breath she reached out to her magic. It didn't respond. Desperate, she ventured into the darkness of the cave. Pressed between suffocatingly small crevices of rough rock that grabbed at her, threatening to pin her in place. She reached a dead end and nearly gave up. That's when she sensed it. The crack. She pressed herself against the barrier and reached out, calling to her magic. It didn't respond.

"Please. Please. Please." She said, begging her power to return to her, "I need you."

The magic hidden within the mountain shifted. She gazed at the shimmering multicolored aether that swirled up as though it were lava within a volcano. Everything within her trembled. Suddenly the words poured out of her, rising up instictively.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

"I accept you as-"

"You're awake."

The voice boomed like thunder and the world shattered around her as her eyes flung open. Standing on the other side of the energy barrier at the other side of the room was Ina. His eyes were cold and narrowed. It was the dispassionate stare of a predator before it pounced upon its dinner. His eyes became bloody. Glowing. They were natural. She could feel the cybernetics analyzing her, calculating and reducing her to her most basic components. She shifted until she was on the edge of the bed.

"I didn't try to kill my master."

"I'm supposed to take the word of a mage?" He said with a raspy hiss.

Korsha shook her head. Irritating and frustration forced her onto her feet. She was wobbly and stumbled. She threw her arm out, leaning against the wall.

"Think about it. Without him, I’d have nothing. Would be… nothing.”

"Then tell me who did it?"

Korsha clenched her jaw, refusing to speak. She didn't know what all powers he had but she sure as the Nines she wasn't about to betray Deidra. Her master would understand. She was too useful. After they got her back and fixed whatever had gone wrong with her, she’d be able to prove her worth.

"Silence is guilt's screaming."

"Have you ever had a friend before?"

"Anadrov's my ally."

“Have you ever had a friend before?”

Ina was quiet. His grayed iridescent scales rustled as he looked away. His tongue shot out, whipping the air before slithering back into his mouth. He turned back to her.

“Then you know what you’d do to protect them.’

"So you admit that you betray your master for another?"

"No, "Korsha said, shaking her head. She ambled forward on jellowed legs until she was right up next to the barrier. She stared Ina in the eye, "I would save them both."

"Even at the expense of your own life?"

"Isn't that what friends do?"

Ina was quiet for a long moment. He looked away from her again, then down at the floor. Korsha continued to watch him, refusing to look away. He lifted his head. It was a slow deliberate movement riddled with hesitation.

"What will happen if I open the cell?"

He'd said will. Not would. Korsha latched onto that hope.

"You gain an ally."

"You're a mage. How can I be sure that you wouldn't just stab me in the back?"

"Because that doesn't help Anadrov."

"You walk a narrow path,Vel'korsha'rahnan"

"It's the only one I know. Now are we in this together or not? Because if so you can just call me Korsha. All my friends do."

He stared at her for a long moment. Then his hand lifted and tapped something just outside the door. The barrier disappeared. He lingered there in the doorway. He stepped aside, his hand resting upon the staff buckled to his belt. Korsha gave him a nod as she stepped out of the cell. She made sure that each movement was slow and deliberate. The last thing she needed was to run this chance.

"Sit." He said as he pointed over to a nearby table.

She did what she was ordered and plopped down into the chair. The hard metal backing of the chair, though sculpted to be ergonomic, told her that if she sat here long her back was going to hurt. She watched as Ina lowered himself into the chair with a strange grace. He moved with the deliberant carefulness of an old man who knew his body was at its end, as though one mishap of change would leave him ruined. Yet she'd seen him act back in the hangar bay. He was more than a match for her.

He reached into his jacket and produced a series of data discs. He slapped them down on the table and slid them across to her. Korsha tapped them and gazed at the information that populated the air before her. Her brow furrowed. She grabbed another and checked its data. And then another. None of this had to do with Deidra's whereabouts. All the information that was here was evidence of illegal activity and it all pointed to her master and herself

"What do you know about these documents?"

Korsha shook her head as she tried to find the words. What was his angle? Was he going to use this information to blackmail her master?

"They're fake. This… That's not my master’s work. I would never do that." She said pointing to one of the data discs that showed her trafficking arcane drugs and hexitek.”

"I know."

Korsha was about to open her mouth to protest again but stopped.

"Wait, what?"

"The encryptions are wrong. It's been backdated. The data was sliced into the system and planted there. Had I not caught it so quickly it would have been nearly indecipherable from actual factual data. I was able to use the remnants of other data files there to prove their inauthenticity. Someone was trying to cover the tracks while leaving a trail. It's solid work. If I hadn't known what I was looking for then I wouldn't have guessed it had been altered."

"Who has this ability?"

"If I were an allusv, I'd bet that it was a fellow technomancer. A pretty talented one too."

"What kind of talent does it take to do this?"

"Any good technomancer worth their tithes could do this." He said and then quickly added, "Given enough time and creativity."

Korsha's eyes widened slightly as she realized that Ina himself couldn't pull this off. That meant whoever had done this knew their craft.

"So then it's a matter of who has that ability and wants my master dead?"

"Precisely. I don't know about the second one."

He gave her a knowing look and she shook her head. Korsha leaned back and closed her eyes. All the pieces were there, she just needed to put them together. A dreadful sickening feeling crept into her stomach. It clawed its way up to her chest and then slithered up her throat and into her mind. Her eyes shot open. She took in a shuttered breath as a fresh pang of loneliness hit her.

"Goddess, I know who's behind this."