Chapter 26

It took all of Chigs's will not to slam himself against the barrier separating him from Emmy. The cool, blue light of the energy shield between them cast an ethereal glow over her features, enhancing the deadened focus in her eyes. She was here, standing almost within his reach—and yet she wasn't.

"Emmy, you must listen to me," he called out, at the same time trying to touch her through their mate bond. But the threads slipped from his grasp like beams of light.

Tovik was repeating, "We're not here to hurt you!" as the females who'd ambushed the team filed out of the brig.

Chigs couldn't see his friends trapped in the neighboring cells, but Rust's thunderous voice rattled the walls. "What the fuck is going on, Emmy?"

Emmy remained standing rigid at the center of the room. He could sense the struggle going on inside her, but there was nothing he could do about it from here. If I could only touch her. Then he might be able to summon enough ionic power to help her block Dollard's mental influence.

Rust shouted more obscenities.

"Calm down, Rust!" Chigs shouted back. "She's being mind controlled. Let me talk to her."

The cursing and confusion from the other cells quieted to tense muttering and pacing footsteps. Emmy opened her mouth, then stood there gaping as if she wanted to say something and couldn't.

Holding his cuffed hands tightly against his chest, Chigs moved close enough to the energy shield to feel its hum against his skin. "Emmy," he said with all the encouragement he could muster. "Your mind is being manipulated. Fight it. Please."

"Don't be ridiculous, Chigs." Her words felt forced, his name on her lips strained.

Only two denaidan women remained in the room now. The nearest one placed a hand on Emmy's shoulder. "Come with us, Dr. Voss."

Chigs watched a flicker of resistance cross Emmy's face, her muscles tensing slightly as if preparing to shrug off the touch. Hope surged in his chest. If she could still resist, even subconsciously, then she wasn't completely lost—not yet. "Stay with me, Emmy," he said. "Tell me what's going on."

Emmy slowly looked at the woman next to her. "Go on ahead. I need to discuss terms of cooperation between the rebels and Syndicorp."

A lump filled Chigs's throat. Cooperation? What was Dollard playing at? Despite the questions filling him, he kept silent. If he pushed too hard, his words might do the opposite of his intention.

The denaidan tilted her head as if listening to a far-away voice, then removed her hand from Emmy's shoulder. "Very well."

Pivoting, the woman exited, leaving Emmy alone to face the cells.

Chigs grinned. The more distance between her and the women, the weaker the mind control should be. As the last denaidan disappeared from view, he opened his mouth to speak, but Rust beat him to it.

"Tell us what's going on." The sound of a fist hitting a metal wall punctuated Rust's demand.

Emmy turned, looking away from Chigs into one of the other cells. "Syndicorp seeks a peaceful resolution with the rebellion." Her voice was steady, but her fingers twitched at her sides. "They want to make amends for past transgressions—to offer a future where we can coexist."

"Coexist?" Noatak laughed bitterly. "After everything they've done?"

"What the fuck, Emmy?" Marlis added. "You hate Syndicorp."

"I misunderstood their purpose."

"Emmy, this isn't you talking," Chigs said.

"Peace requires compromise," she countered, her tone taking on a forced edge. "I want to avoid any more bloodshed. Especially yours."

Chigs's hearts raced. The control over Emmy's mind was strong, twisting her genuine desires into a new direction she would have never agreed to. "You know better than anyone the lengths Syndicorp will go to maintain power. You've seen their atrocities firsthand."

Emmy's brow furrowed. Within her eyes swam a tumult of doubt, like a star struggling to shine through a nebula's dense haze.

"You can do it, Emmy!" he urged, allowing all the love he felt for her to seep into his words. "Remember who you are, what you stand for."

"Help us rescue these women," Tovik said.

Emmy's voice quivered with forced laughter, her agitation palpable even through the energy barriers. "Did they look like they need rescuing? They're stronger than they've ever been, not land-locked to some planet where they'll never achieve their full potential. For the first time in history, denaidan women are free."

Gut churning, Chigs said, "Those women are not free. Their minds are being controlled, just like yours is."

"Controlled? How?" Tovik asked, a question that was echoed in the other cells.

"One of Dollard's projects," Chigs said. He quickly recounted what he knew, including that Dollard had reanimated himself into the body of one of the women.

Mutters of shock and revulsion echoed through the neighboring cells. Throughout his explanation, Emmy's stoic expression never wavered, though her fingers now jittered at a faster pace.

"That bastard is alive?" Rust's voice ricocheted from every corner. "I knew it!"

The floor shook as Rust attacked the walls of his cell with renewed ferocity. Metal groaned, and the energy shield crackled, casting erratic shadows across Emmy's face. Her eyes widened, and she took a step backward toward the exit.

"Rust! Control yourself!" Chigs shouted over the commotion, but it was like whispering into a storm.

"Break, damn you!" Rust bellowed, continuing his assault on his prison.

Emmy pressed her hand to the control panel, and a blinding flash filled the air, sending a tingling shockwave through the floor. Chigs wondered if Rust's brute force might've actually triumphed over technology. But then the solid thud of a body hitting the deck was followed by a silence as deafening as the outburst had been.

"Rust?" Tovik called out, his voice suffused with concern. "You okay, buddy?"

No response.

"Please don't make me do that to anyone else." Emmy stood motionless, one hand still poised over the brig's control panel.

A beat of shocked silence settled over the brig, then Marlis whispered, "Fuck. Emmy, did you kill him?"

"No." She licked her lips in a nervous gesture. "But the next shock might. Don't try to escape again."

Chigs gritted his teeth. The violence of Rust's attempted escape seemed to have fortified Emmy's belief in Syndicorp's cause. He closed his eyes briefly and murmured under his breath, "Ellam Cua, help me get through to her."

Keeping his voice calm but insistent, he said, "Remember who Dr. Dollard is. What he's done. The experiments, the manipulation. Rust was tortured by the doctor's very own hand." He wanted to reach through the energy shield and shake the truth into her, but forced himself to remain calm. "I'm sure the denaidan women here didn't volunteer to become test subjects, either."

Emmy's jaw set, her eyes hardening. "Yes, they did. We have the contracts to prove it. But that isn't the issue at the moment. Dr. Dollard wants to rectify Syndicorp's mistakes. He—she—wants to give the denaidan people a glorious future."

"Dollard wants to use me for some twisted breeding program," Chigs said, his voice shaking. "Are you really okay with that?"

Her eyes clouded with confusion and torment. "The continuation of your race is at stake, Chigs. This is bigger than you or me."

"I refuse to take part in Dollard's sick experiments. You're the only woman for me, Emmy. You're my mate."

Emmy's hands fluttered to her throat. "Remember your dream, Chigs. You're meant to be with one of these denaidans. It's your destiny?—"

"No. Ellam Cua only revealed them to me so I'd find my way to you." He pleaded with every fiber of his being. "My destiny is with you, Emmy. And no one else."

Emmy wavered on her feet. "I'm saving your lives," she said. "You'll see."

She turned and stumbled toward the exit.

A wave of dread crashed over Chigs. He had to reach her. To touch her, even if it was the last time. "No! I refuse to accept this. Ellam Cua, give me strength."

Gritting his teeth in determination, he summoned what he could of his ionic power and slammed both fists against the energy shield. The room exploded with crackling light, engulfing his vision in a searing kaleidoscope of colors. Waves of electricity surged like a tidal wave through his veins, leaving him gasping for breath as it clenched his muscles and contorted his limbs. Focusing on their mate bond, he plowed forward through the storm, every muscle straining against the force of the barrier.

Emmy turned back and screamed, "Chigs! Stop, you'll kill yourself!"

He continued, knowing this was the only way he was going to reach her. Blue sparks of light clung to his skin like adhesive as he cleared the doorway, refusing to let go. The intensity of the agony searing through his body increased with every shuffling step forward. Even the restraint cuffs circling his wrists felt like they were going to burn through his bones. His vision swam with white-hot dots of pain, but all he could see was Emmy. "Unqu akhala…"

He managed one more step before collapsing to the ground, consumed by darkness.