When they came together, they touched shoulders again and formed another circle. Power flowed once more. A vast beam of white light filled the space in front of each of them and flowed in a massive stream up to the ceiling.
Leto had to shade his eyes.
At last the light faded and the circle broke.
He stopped filming and returned to the triad.
Thorne glowed his silver aura.
As they spoke about their experiences, Leto confirmed what each said with his own observations. Thorne did as well. Because they had video, it was decided to return to the palace and watch the feed on the large screen.
When the video had been reviewed about ten times with Endelle, she summed it up succinctly. “Well, damn.”
Seduction comes in many forms.
—Collected Proverbs, Beatrice of Fourth
CHAPTER 10
Twenty-four hours had passed since Greaves had last seen Stannett. He entered the heart of the new Seers Fortress in Illinois Two, instead of Stannett’s private room. The surroundings were lovely: black marble on the ceiling, part of the walls and floors, black leather padding on the rest of the walls, a few dim inset lights around the perimeter to cast the inner sanctum in a nice glow. The Seers’ chaise longues were actually set in a lower level and reached by a flight of stairs at either end, almost like an orchestra pit. The viewing platform was quite large and finished with a fine polished mahogany.
Doors on either side of the inner sanctum led to an outer hall and the rest of the Seers palace.
From the platform, Greaves could watch Stannett and his bound Seers in action.
The chaise longues were arranged in a straight row, but each was tilted ever so slightly, almost imperceptibly. The concept behind the tilt was to keep the body slightly off balance and therefore the mind better focused.
Greaves moved to the edge of the stage and stared down into the pit. Stannett had his Seers strapped in place. His eyes were closed, and he had a sublime expression on his face. No doubt he had just filled his embroidered, red leather pants.
The vampire was hopeless.
“Stannett, we need to talk.”
The Seer opened his eyes. “Hello, Greaves.” He blinked rapidly several times. “I suppose you’d like an update.” He sat up, then glanced at the three women bound to his right and the three to his left. “None of them is conscious yet. The power we just shared has put each in a stupor. Not a bad place to be. At least, they’re not dead.”
Greaves glanced at the women and noted the dark brown skin. “From Mumbai?”
“Yes. Some of your most powerful Seers.”
“How long have you been working them?”
“Not long, about an hour. I allow them to rest for two afterward and make them drink lots of water. I’ve only had two die on me since last night.”
Greaves repressed a sigh. “And what have you discovered about our present difficulties?”
Stannett looked up at him wide-eyed. “Nothing yet. I have kept these early trial runs relegated to less strenuous matters.”
“You mean you’ve been hunting for future stream tail?”
“Well, yes. It seemed the most sensible way to get the women accustomed. I assure you, I haven’t been the only one enjoying the process. If you’d arrived earlier, you would have heard a great deal of delighted moaning.”
“And this is meant to reassure me?”
Greaves knew it was impossible for Stannett to comprehend the difficulties Greaves faced, but he began to suspect that the man was an idiot. Or if not a complete imbecile, then so given to his own pleasure that nothing else seemed to matter.
Greaves folded to his position in the pit. He put a finger beneath Stannett’s chin and used resonance. “Have I not told you how badly I need pure vision? That I must have the best possible information from moment to moment over the next several days?” He could feel Stannett tremble. “Why have you not done as I asked?”
“I … I thought I did,” Stannett said, wincing. Greaves had used resonance and he meant for it to hurt. “You didn’t tell me to start amassing information. You told me to work the skills of your Seers.”
“Then let me be very clear right now. I need an abundance of prophetic material as close to pure vision as you can achieve.” Greaves swept a hand over both sets of women. “Go back in and find me some useful information for tonight. And I do mean tonight.”
Stannett didn’t hesitate. He stretched back out and began the process. Greaves folded back up to the platform. He could feel Stannett’s power moving through the women. He wasn’t surprised when many of them cried out as if in pain.
Good.
He waited for a moment, then when the Seers relaxed, he drove his mental power straight at Stannett, pierced his mind, and found himself in what looked like great chaos. A battle of some sort. Greaves recognized the Seattle hidden colony and the warrior games setup. He watched his death vampires flowing over the citizens and striking them down.