A Waiting Game

[Tory Knight 0]

A Waiting Game

"Willow," SGV

 

 

Eviess t'Mahren flopped down onto the sofa in her quarters, the unusual necklace she'd taken from t'Ksa twisting in her fingers. She stared, admiring how the light glinted off the crystalline facets. A smile flickered across her lips. Something so deadly concealed in something so beautiful.

 

...that was how someone once referred to her, wasn't it? A deadly chameleon – her heart's name, the name by which the Elements knew her. It was a name bestowed not through a vision or soul searching, but by a revered enemy. There was no revered enemy here, however; only muddy politics and old rivalries. The “chameleon” felt more than a little trapped.

 

But how had she ended up here? She was always so very careful, always did her homework. Then she'd been approached for this job. Secret meetings, no names used, and yet she knew her contacts were Tal'Shiar – it was written all over their tradecraft. The terms dictated that she was unable to choose her own muscle, her own exit strategy, and her own interrogation methods. Yet, if she did this job, according to their rules, might she be able to end her unofficial exile? Her instincts had rebelled, but she'd taken the job.

 

Eviess wished now she had listened to her instincts. The research she should have done prior to accepting the assignment told her one thing she didn't want to know: Their intended target, Morgana t'Ksa, was a loyal officer aboard the RES Talon – a ship once captained by t'Rexan, the bondmate of honored family friend and ally, Varlon tr'Vatrix. After the equivalent of a lloann'na lifetime, no political favor with the existing regime was worth alienating the Galae leader.

 

So now the not-so-deadly chameleon faced the challenge of freeing herself and t'Ksa. With body and brain addled by fever and toxins, however, t'Ksa would be in no condition to travel for at least another two days. Eviess would also need to find ways of dispensing with not only her own hired muscle, but also Alura t'Prin and her entourage. That done, they would then still need to find an extraction point – not an easy task in Othan space, especially with Othan involvement in the current problem.

 

Sighing, t'Mahren activated the necklace, counting to thirty. She then deactivated it and slipped it back into her pocket. Two days. She would have to make the most of them, orchestrating their escape. She only hoped that someone – the right someone – would be waiting.