Widderkin Interlude - 3. Chapter 3

 

Widderkin Interlude.

Chapter 3.

 

"How did you sleep, John?"

"On and off, I'm afraid. My mind wouldn't stop going over everything that’s happened. Is there anything you want a hand with, Kieran?"

"Yes, after we stoke the fire you can help me collect enough fish for everyone's breakfast."

John glanced at the water.

"I don't see any orcas."

"We don't need them now that I’ve got the fish pattern. There are – dozens of them close by."

"That little pause was a check?"

"It’s practically second nature for me, John."

"It’s still amazing. - The base of that big piece of driftwood is glowing. We can use it to rebuild the fire."

Five minutes later they were heading to the rocky platform.

"Do you have any specific suggestions for today?"

"Not really. Help Woorawa explore the island, and Mr B will probably have ideas about preparing ourselves more for tomorrow. I’d like you to encourage Arthur and Samuel to get involved with as many of the others as possible so they get a fuller sense of belonging. Corey thinks they still feel kind of separate."

"Really? I’ve been impressed with the way they’ve adapted to everything."

"Me too, but Corey sees things the rest of us don't."

"Who is Corey really? The more I get to know him the more puzzled I become. I know his mind is extraordinary, but I sometimes get a curious feeling that his First People features don't quite match his mannerisms."

Kieran stopped on the spot.

"Wow, John, you can see that? Yes, we changed his appearance to keep him safe from the mining company."

"Changed? You can do that?"

"I can't, not yet. I'm still learning, but I was involved. You remember that transcript you used in parliament?"

"Of course."

"Well, it was Corey who provided it. He’s a total guru with computers and when he protected us from the mining company we helped free him from their control."

"Control?"

"Yes. It was a complicated mixture of blackmail and coercion, or ‘stick and carrot’ in Corey's words."

"Good grief! Every time we have a conversation some new wonder is revealed. Is it a deep change?"

"How do you mean?"

"Identification technology is quite advanced now, with things like facial recognition, fingerprints and DNA matching."

"We changed everything. When Corey explained that the mining company had an extensive file with all that sort of stuff, Ranevargar altered every marker they might use. Just as well too, because they’ve still got a team looking for him."

"Isn't that a worry? They have worldwide resources, and that company has a reputation for being relentless."

"Corey keeps tabs on them and he’s not concerned. He rates their probability of success at less than 3%."

"Three? That’s a nice low number, but it's very specific?"

"Tan asked him how he came up with it and gave up after a few minutes."

"Okay, what’s the nature of the bond between Corey and Ban? It’s very clear, but I haven't been able to figure it out."

"Ban is from the Realms and he’s training Corey with techniques to use his mind more effectively."

"More effectively?"

Kieran laughed.

"I know. It blows our minds trying to imagine what he’ll be like in another year ... Here’s the first fish. Can you knock it on the head with that stone? I hate the feeling."

***

"It's a huge step of trust, Michael, and if you feel uncomfortable at any stage we’ll stop straightaway."

"No we won't. If it helps we haven't got a choice. What does it feel like?"

"Unbelievable, but my first time was with Ranevargar, whose experience and abilities are so different to mine it’s not a real comparison."

"Rhys said that when we’re merged I might be able to use energy like you and Mr B do?"

"Not straightaway, but we’ll experiment and see what happens. The biggest thing I’d like to understand is your connection with the orcas."

"Well, I have no idea how it works. It's just there. It feels so natural now it’s just like breathing."

"Okay, here we go."

***

"This is amazing, Nathan. You can see power flows better than I can and I can't figure out how you do it. Try turning your perception on and off a few times with our little energy globe."

"I don't like turning it off when I know there’s power close by. It makes me feel kind of uncomfortable."

Kieran deepened the level of his second merge for the day.

"Yes, I see what you mean. Think of it like you’re in a room and turning the lights on and off. As long as you don't move you’ll know where you are in relation to the power."

"Okay. How many times?"

"Keep going till I tell you to stop. If I can figure out what you’re doing I might be able to set your pattern in my own mind."

Nathan's perception of the little globe blinked off and on, off and on, till Kieran knew it was beyond him.

"That’s enough, Nathan. It’s still a mystery but can I try one more thing?"

"For sure."

"I’d like to strengthen our merge enough for mutual access instead of just sharing. It’s a weird feeling but you’ll soon get used to it."

"Uncomfortable weird?"

"It wasn't for me with Ranevargar. More like strange weird till I got used to it."

"Now it sounds interesting."

When the merge deepened yet again, Nathan's mind lit up with amazement.

"Kieran, this is unbelievable."

"It sure is. Have a check around and get yourself settled in."

"Check what?"

"Whatever you like ... My memories is an easy one to start with."

"We can see each other's memories?"

"We’re merged, Nathan. It’s like two minds becoming one. Here, I’ll start you off."

Kieran called two memories of Maurice, first as a frozen statue, then roaring with rage and pain as he demolished the Wards to Maynor’s Castle.

"Sheba! I’ll pee my pants if I ever meet him for real."

The amusement that Nathan was catching Rhys's sayings was noticed by Kieran, but shared by both of them.

"I can't help it, Kieran. He’s such a character."

"Call up something from my memory this time."

"How can I? They’re not my memories so I don't know how to start."

"Yes you do - See."

With the gift of instant comprehension Nathan watched Tan call truth from the High Lords and tell Woorawa to follow his heart.

Nathan jolted with sudden realisation.

"You can see private things."

"Yep! And so can you. That’s part of the trust we give each other."

"You can see I’m embarrassed can't you?"

"Well, I'm not. Being randy and curious is totally natural."

"Randy?"

"Normal randy, Nathan ... Are you ready to let me take control?"

"I guess, but I won't really know until after it's happened."

Kieran set Nathan doing some simple body movements, singing a song, and laughing.

"That’s bizarre, like I’m a puppet, but it feels completely okay. - Does a merge mean I can do the same to you?"

"It does, in theory, but we’d need to build up to it with a few more sessions first."

"More sessions? Great!"

It was time to get serious, and watching the patterns closely, Kieran switched Nathan's Power Eyes on and off, with a growing realisation that Nathan's way of looking at power was beyond him.

"I don't know how you do it, Nathan. We’ll drop the control level and go back to sharing."

"You can keep control if you like. It makes me feel like I can do anything."

"All right, but all we’ll do is look. Corey’s convinced that we need to know a lot more about Life energy, and we can't do anything serious till Rhys gets here."

"We should bring Rom as well. His Life energy’s much easier to see than ours."

Nathan reached ... And looked through Rom's eyes at his mum and dad, relaxed against the bole of a large tree.

Kieran nearly lost control when Nathan's mind surged with a mix of excitement and amazement.

"That was me. I really can do things I can't do."

Control steadied and Kieran smiled as Nathan's enthusiasm bubbled through their minds.

"I didn't expect that, Nathan. We’re merged more deeply than I realised."

"Can we do it again?"

Power Eyes and Life Force went on hold while Nathan reached to Woorawa and Tan, then shared an underwater view through the eyes of one of the food fish.

"What’s going on? Looks like we’ve got a new buddha."

"I’m not a buddha. We’re merged and it’s working better than we thought it would."

Rhys stared, then laughed.

"That’s pretty good, Nathan, but you’ll have to practice a lot more before I won't know it's really Kieran who’s in charge."

"He’s too sneaky, Nathan. I don't know how he tells the difference."

"Yo, Rhys! I thought being in control might help me learn Nathan's Power Eyes, but I can't."

This was Kieran's physical voice and Rhys made a raspberry noise at him.

"Stop that. It’s too weird. – Like there are two of you."

Nathan, still under control, laughed.

"At your command, great master."

Kieran dropped his control.

"Ask him something, Nathan, and we’ll see if he knows it's you."

"I saw what Rom was seeing, Rhys, and it was unreal."

Rhys gave a curious look.

"Mind speak something to me, Nathan. I'm pretty sure it’s really you, but something’s still a bit off."

"I’m not controlled now, Rhys, but we’re still merged, and Kieran thinks that’s what you’re sensing."

Rhys nodded.

"What happened, Kieran? Last night you said you were only going to try a light merge."

"I wasn't going to rush, like I sometimes do, but everything clicked so easily we knew it was okay."

"We? How could Nathan possibly know that?"

"I just did, Rhys. It was fun and exciting."

"Wow! I think I’m jealous. Now that you’re not just merging with mental geniuses we should try it, Kieran."

Rhys was right. Before today Kieran’s only merges had been with Ranevargar, and a partial one with Ban.

"No way, Rhys. It’s going to send us crazy!"

That wasn't a response Rhys expected.

"How come? I reckon it would be interesting for both of us."

"I do too – especially interesting – but so far I’ve always had a special purpose for entering a merge."

"I suppose, but merges with the rest of us could be called a special purpose too. You might get new understanding of Woorawa’s movement magic and chants, and Tan’s special way of seeing things. Mr B is starting to use power like you do, and merging with Corey would be unbelievable."

Kieran felt a tingle of excitement.

"Wow! Instead of just watching I could be part of your healing.

Rhys, I didn't mean crazy crazy. I meant it's another important thing to try and fit in with everything else. Ranevargar always emphasises how important our daily practices are but it's getting to the overwhelming stage ... What's with the grin?"

"Merge with Ban and Corey and learn how to learn things more effectively. - Like you did with Mr B for the maths scholarship."

The Nathan part of the Kieran/Nathan merge spoke up.

"Let's put a message in Rom's mind to come to us so we can watch his Life Energy – and tell mum and dad so they don't worry about him racing off."

Rhys mimed cracking the whip.

"He’s our new slave driver, Kieran. I thought you were in charge?"

"We dropped that when you arrived. It’s a share merge now."

John and Gwen, enjoying a quiet moment, received the message and watched Rom leap to his feet and race off with an excited yip.

"Get ready, Rhys. I’m going to make a tiny glow with my Life Force and I'll need an energy zap to recover."

"A glow? It’s daylight. We won't be able to see it."

"We won't see ordinary light, but Nathan will see it all with his Power Eyes and I’ll see it when it turns to light energy."

"Seeing light energy is different to seeing light? That’s weird."

Kieran had no answer so he didn't give one. He cupped his hands, called on his Life Energy, and watched where the tiny glow would be. Several seconds was enough.

"That’s hard work. Give me a zap so I’m ready for the next try."

"That was quick. What happened?

"Nothing different for the first time, Rhys. Watching while we’re merged is kind of strange because we’re seeing our own view as well as each other's at the same time."

"That sounds confusing."

Nathan answered.

"It’s easy, Rhys, like switching TV channels with the remote."

Rhys stared at Nathan.

"You reckon it’s easy when you've never done it before?"

"Kieran does it automatically, so this sharing means I can too. Cup your hands, Rhys, so Kieran can practice controlling where he puts the glow."

Rhys looked to Kieran.

"Nathan’s taking over?"

"Not really. He thinks it’s a good way to start understanding Life Force and I agree."

After just three practices Kieran/Nathan realised that placing the glow was straightforward.

"Kieran, you call your Life Energy and then it gets used up when you change it into light. Try doing the call without the change so we can watch what happens."

"What’s the point of that?

Kieran answered for Rhys.

"Nathan wants to try different experiments, Rhys, about how Life Energy works and how I might be able to control it."

Rhys looked uneasy.

"Experiments? Make sure you keep my zap energy topped up then, and be careful to only do mini ones."

Nathan and Kieran nodded in time with each other.

"Only mini calls, Rhys. We promise."

"Okay, but give me your hand so we’re always in contact."

That happened, along with a smidge of assurance.

"Ready, Kieran. Call your Life Force to just above where Rhys is holding your hand so we know where to look for it."

Kieran hesitated while he checked the call pattern he'd used every time so far. Yes, it was definitely in two parts. A moment's thought separated them and he went ahead with the call only.

Healing energy zapped instantly from Rhys and, through the merge and Nathan's Power Eyes, he watched the tiny spark of Life Energy hover above his hand then, as if drawn by a magnet move to touch his skin.

Kieran shouted with sheer exuberance as well-being coursed instantly through his whole body.

Rhys's backward jolt of surprise was stopped by his firm grip of Kieran's hand.

"Sheba! Did you have to do that? I nearly had kittens."

"That was unreal, Rhys. I just had a double zap."

"Double? How come? From me you mean?"

"The first one was yours, bringing me back to normal, but then the Life Energy went into my hand and gave me another boost."

Nathan, grinning with the excitement he was sharing through the merge, reached to reassure Rom.

"That was totally unreal, Rhys. Kieran called his Life Force like every other time, but when he didn't convert it to light it was like it wanted to go back where it came from."

"Do it again, Kieran, and see if you can hold it still or move it somewhere else. Yes, call it to a few metres away and see if that gives you more time to get control."

Rhys was looking back and forth between them.

"I can't keep up. This merge is different to the ones you do with Ranevargar. Sort of like you’re turning into each other."

"In a way, but not really."

Rhys made a funny kind of snort.

"Yes and no at the same time? Fat lot of help that is."

"I know. I need lots more thinking and lots more merges to figure things out.

Nathan must be a natural with merging, or maybe his mind isn't as set in its patterns as ours. When Nathan and I finish experimenting we’ll try for ourselves if you like."

"Whoo! Spooky!"

Nathan laughed.

"Can I watch?"

Rhys stared at him then nodded.

"Cheeky little kid."

"Fussy old man."

Kieran placed his next call three metres away near a piece of kelp like vegetation and, sharing Nathan's view, watched the tiny spark of Life Force begin a slow approach.

"Just like the last time. It must be attracted to you, Kieran. Try to relocate it first and then see if you can make it stay in one place."

Relocation was an application of the practices he'd already mastered and quite easy. Holding still was almost the same and just as easy.

"What's happening? I wish I could see."

"I’m holding the spark in one place between us, Rhys. It reacts just like Opal energy so be ready with a zap when I call a second spark."

"Two Sparks? Okay."

Another spark of Life Force appeared and, after his instant recovery, Kieran made them both orbit around Rhys's head.

"What’s funny, Nathan?"

"Kieran’s given you a kind of halo. The sparks are going in a circle around your head ... Kieran, send one to touch my hand so we can see if I get zapped like you did."

Rhys goggled at him.

"That's crazy, Nathan! What if it acts like a negative or something?"

"Good thinking. Hold my hand so I can get a healing zap if I need it."

"Whoa! Rhys is right, Nathan. I caught your excitement through our merge and nearly did my usual rush act. We’ll try it on one of the eating fish first and then see whether your mum and dad are happy to let you be a guinea pig."

"They won't. Dad would want it to be him."

Rhys shook his head.

"It should be me. As long as Kieran keeps my healing pool topped up I’ve got automatic healing built in.

Save that for later, but. It makes sense to work out the exact amount of control you have got before you do anything else. Can you join the two sparks into one? You do that easily with Opal energy. And if that works you should be able to go the other way and separate the one into two or even more little sparks."

Kieran and Nathan did a coordinated nod till Rhys moved his free hand in the stop motion.

"What?"

"Move the sparks away from my head first. I don't want to be the guinea pig if there’s a life explosion."

The life sparks moved near the kelp stuff, melded into one, then separated and became four.

Kieran and Nathan exclaimed jointly.

"Wow! That’s brilliant, Rhys."

"It worked? I can't see anything

"Straight off. So far it acts exactly like Opal energy or White energy."

Kieran tightened his grip on Rhys's hand.

"I’m calling another spark so we’ve got more material to experiment with."

Kieran called, a new spark appeared, and healing energy rushed to compensate for the effort it had needed.

"Why did you need another spark? A buzz feels good but it disguises the strain you’re putting on your body."

Rhys was right and Kieran remembered Ranevargar’s injunction about developing fine control.

"That’s Nathan's fault. He wants to try everything and his eagerness overrides my natural cautiousness."

Rhys stared in disbelief.

"You’re blaming Nathan?"

"It’s all Kieran's fault. He’s taking advantage of my youth and inexperience."

Rhys caught on.

"You’re both idiots ... What are you really going to do next?"

"We’ll practice the moving and separating for a while and see how fine we can make the control."

"Yep! That’s better than rushing into new stuff ... How far away can you move it?"

"Hmm! I wonder what happens if it gets released or lost?"

"It probably comes back to you. The first one did until you stopped it."

Fine control came easily. Time to move on.

Kieran/Nathan and Rhys watched the big eating fish relax in the shallow gully, while Rom, held in place by Nathan's stay command, quivered with excitement and anticipation.

"Can you see how much Life Force it’s got?"

Nathan/Kieran was doing just that.

"We’re going to be extra careful, Rhys. Just as well we worked on the fine control because it’s got nowhere near as much as a person and we don't want to kill it."

Calling any Lifeforce other than his own was a huge step which, from the earlier discussion with Corey, Kieran was convinced he needed to try.

Ranevargar had also suggested that experiments, very careful experiments, could be important, so with a degree of trepidation he held the big fish in a state of contentment.

The merge studied the particular pattern of Life Energy.

"It’s tiny compared to us, or even Rom."

"That doesn’t matter, Nathan. We’ve got enough control to be able to work with amounts much tinier than that. The problem is that I haven't got a clue. All my other energy calls are kind of automatic."

"... They can't be. You must know a key or something because you always get the exact kind of energy you want.

We’ll call some Opal energy and some White power. We won't get any because they’re blocked, but the calls will last as long as we like and we might be able to see what’s different."

The Kieran part of the merge was amazed.

"It’s not me working it out, Kieran. It’s both of us. It must be some kind of pattern and that’s what you’re good at."

The two calls went and, flicking between them, the merge watched closely. Pattern recognition kicked in and the process resolved into two distinct parts – the call itself and a distinct identifier.

"Yay!"

The mutual yell of excitement made Rhys jump.

"Okay, Buddha brains! Now what’ve you done?"

"We found calling patterns I didn't realise I was using. They might be important. Hang on while we experiment."

"Let’s try the Rubies. The patterns must be there too."

"Call slowly so we get more watching time, and make them red so Rhys can see something happening."

This was easy and two floating globes slowly increased in size. Yes, the identifier was there.

"We’re seeing the nuts and bolts of what I actually do when I call energy, Rhys. We’ve found the patterns for Opal power, White power, and Ruby power so far, and we’ll check the Life Energy next."

"Life energy again? – You’re making me nervous, Kieran. You’ll be gonked for the rest of the day."

"No I won't. We’ve figured out how to look at a call without making it happen. Merging’s even more weird and wonderful than we thought."

"You can make a call without making it? Weird’s right ... So how do you call on different Rubies? There must be an extra pattern for whether you want mine or Nathan's."

Kieran saw what Rhys meant and his excitement fizzed through the merge.

"We’ll use both Rubies again, Nathan, and this time we’ll check for the difference between yours and Rhys's."

The two Ruby globes started growing again and, stumped by the apparent similarity, the merge probed deeper and deeper till a subtle difference revealed itself.

"Look at this, Nathan. We’ve found a personality pattern for your Ruby and a different one for Rhys's."

"Yes, but why do you call it a personality pattern?"

"... I don't know. It clicked in kind of automatically – Hang on. I’ve got an idea."

The merge mind spoke.

"Buddha moment again, Rhys. Don't answer. We’re trying something."

"Good boy, Rom."

"We’re mind speaking to different people as an experiment, Mr B. You don't have to answer."

Three tries was enough.

"It’s a projection instead of a call, Nathan, but mind speaking uses the same personality patterns."

"Okay, let's look at your Life call, Kieran. The pattern identifies who you are, so it must be there somewhere."

It was, and when Kieran/Nathan turned to look at the fish, Rom’s head lifted eagerly and, without losing contact with Kieran's arm, Rhys jockeyed for a better view.

"Now what?"

"We’re going to put the fish's personality pattern into the Life call instead of mine, Rhys."

"Great! And what if you end up being the fish and the fish ends up being you?"

This sounded so much like a Rhys stir that it took a moment to realise he was serious.

"Could that happen, Kieran? We are experimenting with the fish’s personality pattern."

"I doubt it’s even possible, Nathan, but it’s another reminder that we need to be extra careful. I know ... You take control of our merge while I try the call. That way you can stop me if anything strange starts to happen."

"Rhys, you’ve made us think, and Nathan’s going to be in control while I try the call."

"Nathan knows how to control a merge? How is that possible?"

"He doesn't really, but I do, and he uses that knowledge."

"Sheba! Will that work for me too?"

"We’ll find out when we try but I don't see why not."

"Make a tiny call, Kieran – just a fraction of the Life Energy we can see."

They’d said this repeatedly but, now under Nathan's control, Kieran decided a 10% call should be safe.

The fish’s identity pattern was easy.

Putting it into the overall call pattern was easy.

The call itself didn't work.

"Something’s wrong, Nathan. It’s like there’s nothing there."

"Your own awareness doesn't see Life energy, Kieran. Work through my Power Eyes instead."

The fish flopped on its side and a tiny tiny store of life energy hovered above the water surface. It sank, quite slowly, in the automatic reconnect process.

"Grab the energy, Kieran, before you lose it."

Kieran did that and sensed malaise.

"Quick, Rhys. Give the fish an energy zap so it recovers."

Rhys hesitated.

"Are you all right? We’ll lose contact if I reach down there."

"Yes I am, and this is exciting. My call didn't work till Nathan pointed out what I was doing wrong, then his Power Eyes made it happen."

When Rhys's touch restored the fish to full vigour Kieran sent it on its way.

"Hey! Did you let it go on purpose? Aren't you going to practice till you know what you're doing?"

"We’ll do lots more practice, Rhys, but with a different fish each time."

"Will they all need a healing zap?"

"None of them. From now on I’ll call just a smidgen so they only feel lazy for a while."

After three more fish Rhys decided this was a tedious process.

"Why don't you try with more than one? Are there many of these fish out there, because controlling groups of animals is one of your easiest things?"

"Hmm! Twelve within fifty metres but there’s a big bunch of them circling and feeding near those rocks."

Nathan got excited.

"Can you bring the cruising ones close and leave all the others alone?"

A mini mind net brought quite a school towards them.

"Wow! It’s just the ones we wanted, Kieran, so you’ve set them apart somehow. You must be making a special pattern."

Kieran had been casting mind nets with increasing facility and control ever since Maurice showed him how, but Nathan was making him look at the process in a new way.

"You’re right, Nathan, and since a mind net’s just another kind of call we’ve got a good idea of what to look for."

Yes, the fish identity pattern itself was clear, but complicated by a series of other attachments.

"This is amazing, Nathan. Look at all the extra patterns. They’re the codes that set the mind net conditions."

"You’ve gone quiet. Are you thinking or something?"

"We’re waiting for the fish to arrive, Rhys. When they get here I’ll relax them while we see if we can get a group call to work."

"How big’s the group?"

"Lots. Um! ... 113."

When the fish arrived the water became a roiling area of activity with glints of silver skin and moving bodies. Rom’s ruff rose at the strange disturbance then settled when Nathan and Rhys both rested a calming hand on his head and back.

"Oh boy! That’s a lot of fish."

Rhys got no answer because Kieran/Nathan was concentrating so deeply.

"The call should be the same, except we’ll try the group identity in place of the single identity we’ve used so far."

"Don't change the amount for this first try, Kieran. All we need to know is how well it works before we do anything else."

The newly structured call reached and, by virtue of Power Eye vision, locked on.

Life energy drained from 113 unwitting life forms and gathered in a small glowing red globe.

Kieran/Nathan stared, stunned.

"Woo hoo! That’s spectacular. I thought it was going to be a tiny spark like all the others."

"So did we, Rhys. We’ve done something wrong."

"Where did all the extra come from, Kieran? You called the exact same amount."

"Hang on while I measure ... Yes, it’s 113 times as big as it should be. We’ve called from every fish in the mind net. We can fix that by calling 113th, but there must be a better way."

Rhys watched patiently while yet another buddha moment went ahead.

"This is tricky, Nathan, but the mind net knows how many creatures it’s controlling so if I use that in the call pattern it will calculate the right amount without me having to work it out myself."

"That doesn't sound too tricky."

"Only because we’ve discovered the pattern parts of the call. Before today I wouldn't have had a clue."

"Are we going to use these fish again? If we get it right they won't even notice."

"And if we don't, they’ll be in a bad way and there are plenty more."

Rom yipped when every fish in sight swam lazily away.

"You’re finished with them?"

"We think we’ve got it, Rhys, but we’re getting fresh fish just to make sure. They’re coming from that direction."

Rhys glanced where Kieran was pointing but there was nothing to see of course.

"Grab your new globe, Kieran. It’s following them to the ocean."

That was quickly fixed.

"Separate the new fish into more than one group so we’ve got options, Kieran. Can you work more than one mind net at a time?"

That was no problem and when twenty-three fish arrived Kieran brought six of them close and called. A tiny spark of Life Force appeared and Rhys watched Kieran and Nathan share a high five.

"Looks like something worked?"

"Perfectly, Rhys. It’s too small for you to see but we called the exact amount of Life Force we wanted."

"Rearrange the mind nets into one and check with a call of the same amount, Kieran."

"Mind nets? More than one?"

"Nathan must be a merge master or something, Rhys. New things keep sneaking up on us. Hang on!"

When the check was spot on, Kieran released all the fish.

"Are you finished this time?"

"Not yet. Rest your hand on Rom's head, Rhys. Compared to the fish he’s bursting with Life Force and if we call the same amount again he shouldn't even notice."

"Rom? Are you sure?"

"We need to practice with different creatures, Rhys, but we’re completely confident we know what we're doing."

Rhys groaned.

"Okay! ... I suppose that means I’m next?"

"What’s with the groan? You won't even notice."

"You’re going to turn me into a zombie. I’m groaning while I still know how."

"Zombie?"

"He’s being an idiot, Nathan. Draining Life Force is his definition of how to make a zombie."

"Hey! That can be our next experiment ... Except if it works we mightn’t notice any difference."

Rhys shook his head in disgust.

"Kids these days! No respect for their elders."

Rom's head, turning with every change of voice, settled expectantly on Nathan.

"Good boy, Rom. Lick Rhys's hand."

Rhys couldn't help smiling.

"When you're out of this merge, Nathan, it’s definitely going to be zombie attack time."

"Can we try a tiny call first, Kieran. One that Rom won't even notice. Then we’ll know it’s okay for a bigger one."

Kieran agreed and studied the strong aura of Rom's Life Force.

"I wonder why it’s so concentrated? Have you noticed anything else as strong?"

"We’ve only properly checked ourselves and Rom and the fish with the merge. When we’ve done Rom's call we should look for other live things."

Rom's tail wagged because for some reason his big friends were all looking at him, stopped wagging when his body flopped tiredly to the rock, then resumed when well-being coursed through him.

"You called too much. Rom collapsed."

"He’s okay, Rhys. We made two calls and they worked perfectly. The second one was big enough to call your healing and he only collapsed because he wasn't expecting it."

"So, does this mean you can call Life Force from anything you want?"

"We think so, as long as we know its identity pattern."

"You keep saying we. Will it work when you’re not merged?"

The answer came after a pause.

"We think so. I do need Nathan's Power Eyes, but he’s happy for me to access them anytime I want. We’ll check that later though. We’re finishing this merge now so you can have a turn."

***

"I’m not sure what to make of this new ability, Kieran. I know I encouraged you to experiment, but taking Life Force from another creature is an innately destructive process, and being able to augment it with a mind net gives you power of over life and death on a vast scale."

"Corey, I’m not going to take anyone's life. That goes against everything we’ve learnt from Ranevargar and the Realms."

"You took the life of two eating fish for the meal we just had."

"That’s different. We have to eat and we thought it was more humane than bashing their heads with with a rock."

"I suppose. Kieran, I advise you to work constantly with Nathan to develop this new control and understanding to the highest level possible."

"We’ve already planned to do that while we’re on the move tomorrow. Michael says we’ll be travelling for at least four hours and I’ll be practising new stuff most of the time."

"Four hours? Why are we making such an early start then?"

"That’s Mr B's idea, Samuel, and it gives us time for a return trip if something stops us from landing."

"Is that likely?"

"It could be. The orcas went close enough with their reconnaissance yesterday to see a long line of abrupt cliff faces."

"Michael didn't tell them to cruise right round the island?"

"They started but they got spooked when a mob of huge sea things came after them."

"Our orcas got spooked? Good grief! What happened, Michael?"

"The big male was scouting ahead as usual and his Sonar detected a group of shapes that might be bigger versions of the things that attacked him yesterday. He was a couple of hundred metres ahead of Big Momma and the rest of the pod and when all the ones he could sense headed toward him he warned the pod and they used their speed to get out of there."

"They were chased?"

"Not for long, Arthur. We kind of sense that it was a territorial challenge."

"When you say bigger, how do these things compare with the orcas."

"Probably as big, but the scare factor was the numbers."

"And this is where we’re going tomorrow?"

"We won't resolve anything by staying here, Arthur, and once I’ve got their pattern they won't concern us."

The binoculars show the island kind of disappearing into the distance and since it's way bigger than this one that makes it more likely there’ll be somewhere we can land."

"Nathan said the green fog looked thicker this afternoon, Kieran. Have you got any ideas about that?"

"No real clue, Woorawa. If it was ordinary fog it might mean a change in the weather, which would be bad news for travelling with the orcas."

"You said there were more flights of birds than yesterday evening, so there’s a possible connection there."

"Birds could bring fog?"

"Green fog, Samuel. And the bigger the flight of birds the thicker Nathan sees it."

"Through his .... Power Eyes?"

"When I look with normal eyes I see what everyone else sees, Samuel. When Michael told us about the cliffs, Woorawa and I took the binoculars to look for ourselves. We could just make out the cliffs, but all the birds wheeling over the island was far more interesting.

Kieran, grab that memory from my head and show it so everyone can see for themselves."

Kieran did that, then along with everyone else, turned to Michael who’d reacted with a loud gasp.

"That’s astonishing, Nathan. There are so many. I’ve seen flocks at Phillip Island with hundreds of thousands of mutton birds and they’re small compared to some of those groups."

"That matches with our orcas’ report that the ocean is teaming with giant schools of fish and other things."

"Other things? Like the things that chase them?"

"Things like big prawns and squid."

***

Excitement and wonder wavered.

"That’s Michael's shields. Something’s affecting them."

The Kieran/Rhys merge reached for full contact.

"Are you okay, Michael?"

"Hi, Kieran. What d’you mean? We’re all excited by so many life signs and we’re exploring towards Green Island for another hour before we head back."

"You didn't notice anything? Something pushed against your shield with enough force to set off my trigger."

"Really? We’re just bypassing the biggest school of creatures we’ve seen so far but prawns wouldn't do anything to my shield would they?"

Through the link, Kieran/Rhys reached to make an assessment.

"Ask the pod to move closer, Michael. We can't check them till we’re close enough to get their pattern."

"Sure, but why are you saying we? Getting patterns is your thing, not mine."

"It’s me talking, but I’m merged with Rhys."

"Wow! I thought that was tonight."

"It was but we wanted to try for ourselves after so much happened when I was merged with Nathan."

"?"

"I learnt so much about Life Force I can't believe it – there is something. Veer the pod that way."

The big male was ahead as usual so Kieran/Rhys checked through his eyes. With a little push to get past the green fog, Kieran took the pattern, studied its basic mental processes, then reached to take in the extent of the school.

"Michael! This is unbelievable. They’re spread over more than a kilometre."

"Just as well we decided to bypass them. Our sonar only reaches about 400 m and they’re crowded so close it would have been weird pushing through. – Are they easy to control?"

"Easy as, but we’re only working with one at the moment because the fog thing gets significant with the huge numbers."

"Would it be hard to control them all?"

"It would be a waste of our stored energy, Rhys. - Hang on! It might be possible if we use some of their Life Force instead. I’ll have to work out whether calling Life Force is justified."

"You mean you could use it to push through the green fog?"

"I’m going to try, Michael. I need to learn as much as I can about controlling all these large groups of creatures the orcas are telling us about.

It means I have to merge with Nathan again, Rhys. I can't see the Life Force without him."

"Can you make a three-way merge?"

Kieran was startled.

"I don't think so. Wow! It might be possible. I wish I could talk to Ranevargar. I’ll need a good think before I’m game enough to try."

Nathan was with Gwen and John and all their attention was on Rom.

"Kieran, you called? We’re learning a new trick."

"I hope it's okay to interrupt for a while so we can have a merge. The orcas have found a huge school of big prawn creatures and I need your Power Eyes for a control experiment."

"No problems! I'll tell mum and dad."

"Mum! Kieran wants my help so I might look like I’m not with it for a while."

Gwen and John stared.

"Where are you meeting him?"

"It’s a merge, like I explained and I’ll be here."

"Another merge? And you don't have to be together to do it?"

"We must be able to. We were together with Rhys till we got The Life Force stuff figured out, but it's mind work so I guess it doesn't really matter where Kieran is."

Through Nathan's eyes Kieran saw the dubious looks.

"Nathan’s a natural with merging Gwen and John. There’s an interesting situation with Michael and the orcas and I need his help for a while."

"The orcas? Nathan told us they’re scouting the way to Green Island."

"They are. We’ll be working through Michael."

"Good grief! I can't keep up!"

"Don't worry, dad. When I finish looking like a buddha I'll fill you in."

John laughed.

"Confuse me even more you mean."

Nathan nodded then closed his eyes.

"Are you merged with Rhys?"

"Not now. I need your Power Eyes."

The merge was instant and seamless.

"I don't get this, Nathan. Merging with you is easier than merging with Ranevargar."

Nathan was busy reviewing Kieran's recent memories.

"That’s a lot of prawns. How are we going to do this?"

"Not all at once. That’s for sure. We’ll start with a single prawn and when we’ve figured a safe level we’ll steadily add more."

"Does Michael know we’ll be merged?"

"He’s ready and waiting. I dropped his link because when he’s so far away I have to use extra power to keep connected."

"Yo, Michael! Nathan’s with me and we’re ready to go."

"That was quick. Is Rhys watching?"

"He’s trying. He’s right next to me but he struggles to get through when I’m merged with someone else.

Why are the orcas in such a tight formation?"

"They’re on high alert from a sonar pulse."

"They picked up something with echolocation?"

"Big Momma says that’s what it’s like, except with a different frequency and very powerful."

"Something’s using echolocation? – Michael, I’m the one on high alert now. Something definitely touched your mind shield before, and now this ... Nathan, our control experiment will have to go on hold for a while."

Michael's eyes were directed to search for any reachable bird but, except for two great flocks wheeling way in the distance near Green Island, there was nothing.

The big male’s hearing was focused keenly in the direction the pod was heading but there was nothing new.

"Can the pod swim through these prawns instead of around, Michael? Something might be hidden by their vast numbers."

"Yes, but it interferes with their sonar and they won't like it."

"Doesn't that mean that the signal they heard must have come from a different direction?"

"It was sort of through the edge of the prawn swarm, pretty much from where we’re heading now. That’s why we’re so wary. Big Momma’s thinking of turning back because carrying me reduces their speed and manoeuvrability so much."

Nathan's thinking came through.

"Let’s hold the pod here and go ahead with getting control of the prawn swarm, Kieran. Once we’ve done that we’ll know if anything’s using them for cover."

Kieran was impressed.

"Stop the pod, Michael. We’re going to find out what the prawns know before you travel any further."

"The prawns? What do you mean?"

"When we get control we’ll be able to see what any prawn on the other side of the swarm can see."

"That’s a lot of prawns!"

The pod came to a halt and through Pod Momma’s eyes Kieran/Nathan took control of the closest prawn.

"It's Life Force is very basic, Kieran. You won't be able to take much."

"Everything’s very basic, Nathan. Just as well we experimented with the eating fish."

Power Eyes, working through Pod Momma’s vision, calibrated the Life Force available and after calling a small amount the merge assessed the physical state of the prawn.

"We judged that well, Nathan. It’s kind of lethargic but it’ll be okay after a while. Let’s see what a mind net with a hundred feels like."

The next call worked, but the surprised merge watched a tiny trickle of Kieran’s energy join the process.

"What happened?"

"I’m not sure, Nathan."

The process replayed with careful scrutiny.

"Good grief! That’s awkward. The Life Energy we called wasn't quite enough to push through the green fog and give us full control. And if we take a higher proportion of Life Force the prawns will be out of action for ages. We’ll try with a bigger mind net and watch carefully."

"How many?"

"The same jump as last time."

"10,000 in one go? Wow!"

"If the swarm’s as big as the orcas think, that's nothing."

The new mind net formed and the process proceeded without a hitch.

"We still only needed my personal energy, Nathan. The next jump will need stored energy.

The final numbers were beyond belief but Kieran/Nathan was too busy to take it in properly. The vision through any individual prawn was very limited and it was only when Kieran figured how to build a composite picture through many eyes that the cause of the many disturbances became clear.

"Just as well your orcas retreated, Michael. They are like bigger versions of the first shark things and there are so many they wouldn't have had a hope."

"Gods! They’re scary. How many are there?"

Four times the composite view shifted.

"Forty-seven altogether, Michael, and they’re in groups of ten or twelve."

"Should we head for safety or can you control them?"

"Forty-seven creatures should be easy. Hang on while we try."

"Can we control more than one group at the same time? – I see. We can."

The Kieran part of the merge was fully occupied constructing a complete identity pattern via the composite vision.

"I’ve got the pattern ... and I’ve got control."

"Michael, full speed ahead. There won't be any trouble from now on."

Kieran turned inward and smiled at Nathan's excitement.

"Wow! We’re going to control them all aren't we? They’re crazy wild. This one’s got a ton of Life Energy if we want to use it. What about the prawns? Are we going to keep them?"

"Just long enough for a practice with two mind nets at the same time. And we’ll definitely use Life Energy for the rest of the sharks."

"Michael says they look like Great White Sharks. Did you notice."

"Hmm! That’s interesting. Hey! With that amount of Life Energy we won't need stored energy to push through the fog. Here we go!"

The new mind net formed and forty-seven creatures, suddenly lazy and subdued, continued feeding while the merge started its assessment.

"They’re pretty stupid. But let’s see what’s in their memories."

The foremost memories were related to hunger and food, with images of a range of fish, squid, prawns and more.

Almost as powerful were memories of foes and how to fight them and, among them, a particular standout.

"??? – Isn't that an orca?"

"Sort of. The markings aren't right and its shape looks kind of dangerous."

Kieran laughed.

"Orcas are definitely dangerous, Nathan, but that thing looks extra bad because we’re seeing it the way the shark sees it."

"There’s a shark with big scars. Check its memories."

Stunning images of a coordinated attack and a narrow escape from even bigger enemies played to the merge.

"These things are way scarier than the sharks, Kieran. Show Michael and see what he thinks."

"Ok”

Michael, not quite believing what he was being shown, relayed the images to Pod Momma.

"Pod Momma’s puzzled, Kieran. They look and act like orcas but their size doesn't make sense. Our big male is close to the maximum for any orca the pod has ever met. If you’ve got your scale right they’re nearly twice as long."

"Something might be grabbing earth orcas and making them grow extra big."

"Earth orcas? No way, Nathan!"

Kieran had watched the flow of imagination as Nathan put his ideas together.

"It is weird but it could be possible, Michael. How could orca wisdom have a song to fight against ‘calling’ if it hasn't happened before? I think Nathan’s on to something."

Michael had his own moment of insight.

"That could explain the spooky sonar signal too. Kieran, if they really are orcas they might be friendly."

"We have to find them first. It’s using quite a bit of energy, but we’ll keep the big sharks scouting for a while.

Michael, I suggest you take the pod home. Time’s getting on and I want another one of Mr B's councils after tea."

***