The Kineticist Ch. 02

Kara stared at the Golden Eyed man in shocked horror, "It all makes sense now, why he was so powerful and semi-deranged when I ran into him."

Nico shook her head, "No. As far as we know, there is no way to artificially increase a Kineticist's natural power. It can be controlled and focused using special materials, like resonance crystals, but no one has been able to amplify it yet. This man is naturally as potent as you all have described."

Kara rubbed a hand over her face, "Awesome. Now we have to figure out what to do with Mr. Powerhouse when he wakes up. How long will it take him to recover?"

Nico looked over at the man's readouts, "I'm going to keep him sedated until the worst of his recovery is over. Once his body is strong enough from him to be able to eat unassisted, I can bring him out of it. My estimates are at about two weeks."

"Notify me the moment he is awake," Kara said firmly. As relaxed as she was minutes before, her anxiety had ratcheted up with the new clarifications. The unknown power of the new Imperial technology was cause for concern, but the thought of sacrificing people was almost enough to turn her stomach. A pang of sympathy twisted in her gut at the sight of the comatose man. Knowing what he had endured for four whole years, her mind shied away from the thought.

The darkness was different this time. The insidious humming was gone along with the gluttonous hunger that always threatened to devour him. The darkness surrounding him was calm and peaceful, blissful sleep had finally come to him after so long.

As Kyle floated serenely amidst the empty space, ghostly phantasms flickered past. Flashing strobes with their dull pulsing glow, wheezing sirens coughed their call to arms. Shadowy figures gently pulled him forward, then suddenly floating away. Other figures glided towards him, then fell back.

A beautiful woman with blond hair and piercing stormy eyes strutted towards him. She raised her hands surrounded in storm clouds, a duo of thunderclaps echoed around the empty space as two brilliant bolts of lightning leapt towards him.

The searing bolts met an unseen barrier, tendrils of electrical energy licking across the surface. The woman lowered her hands as she flipped backwards in a graceful billowing of red and black before she surged forwards. Waves of power sang out from her as the distance closed, crashing once more against his stalwart defense.

The ferocious assault ended abruptly, the woman standing straight. With twinkling eyes and a dazzling smile, she bowed low before disappearing into the nothingness.

More images flared to life. Little black beetles flitted too and froe, buzzing angrily around Kyle's head. He instinctively swatted at them. Where his hands connected, trails of blood red flames trailed to the floor and settled into a pile of white ashes.

The void shuddered. Kyle looked around for the source of the disturbance. A massive shadow loomed in the distance, three pairs of glowing red eyes glared at him balefully. A low discordant growl snarled from the shadowy mass. As the creature prowled closer on four massive legs of darkness, it became distinct. Three massive heads towered above him, fangs as long as Kyle's arm gnashing against each other in the foaming maws.

Kyle stumbled back, his eyes wide as every instinct told him to run from the towering demonic dog. The paralyzing chill of fear warred against smoldering embers of defiance, locking him into place with indecision. He could smell the stench of death and decay pouring from the creatures snapping fangs, and the flames of defiance incinerated the icy hands of fear.

Kyle felt the blaze rage through him, enveloping him in a massive brilliant golden inferno. He thrust out his arms, blasting the monster with gouts of radiant fire. With a howl of pain the beast reared back, clawing impotently at its assailant.

What the fuck is going on?!

I don't know Cap'n! Something is yanking us out of subspace, the whole navigation system is frozen!

Mercy!

The engines are fully taxed, I've overridden the safeties but they're overheating. I've already sent a tech down to flood the cooling systems to try and buy us a little more time.

Cap'n, the Doc is requesting your presence immediately, she said it's urgent.

Oh, and the rest isn't?! My ship is being pulled apart; I don't have time for a check-up!

No, Ma'am, it's him.

With a silent command, the hungering flames coalesced into an ornate winged spear. The golden shaft of the weapon was alive with dancing flames, the blade of the spear honed with wrathful intent whilst guided by the glimmering white wings of determination.

Nico, what in the blood soaked pits of hell is going on!

Captain, he's burned through the sedatives. His higher consciousness is unresponsive but his subconscious is lighting up like a supernova.

Nico!

He's dreaming!

Snap him out of it then!

I can't. There is a kinetic barrier sealing him in. You're the only one strong enough to even attempt to get in.

Kyle leveled the spear directly at the creature's heart. His eyes locked with the beast's, and with a wordless battle cry he lunged forward. A flash of black and red intercepted him, the tip of his spear fighting to penetrate the interceding vortex of storm clouds. He leapt back, readying his weapon for a second strike.

The blonde woman with the stormy eyes smiled up at the beast, stroking the charred fur on its breast. She spoke softly to it, her voice sounding like a chorus of winds ranging from a gentle breeze to a roaring storm. The beast knelt, one large head nuzzling into her side while the other two spat and snarled at him.

Kyle watched in disbelief as the massive beast's shadowy form swirled and billowed outwards before collapsing in to form a much smaller three-headed dog that stood at hip level. The woman knelt down and lovingly rubbed all three heads, singing to it in a soothing voice. Once she was satisfied that her pet was now docile, she turned her gaze on him.

Her radiant smile from before was nowhere in sight. Her eyes flashed like lightning across blackened storm clouds, a promise to unleashing all of nature's fury upon her enemies. Her hands were no longer surrounded in a vortex of storm clouds as she raised a slender hand to point over his shoulder.

Kyle eyed her warily before turning his head to look in the proffered direction. There was nothing but void behind him, he glanced back to the woman who made an impatient gesture. A gale of hurricane winds lashed out across the void, a sound like taring fabric filled his ears as a black curtain fell. Kyle now stood restrained once more, his arms and legs locked into unfeeling metal.

He struggled and fought. He lashed out with his power with all the force he could muster, but to no avail. He could feel the machine sucking out his life force, feeding it to an endless number of metallic men that knelt before his prison. One raised a gruesome goblet made of steel and an upturned skull, filling it to the brim with his blood. The metallic man drank deeply, radiating a dark power the made Kyle feel sick. An endless line flowed by, each drinking from the occult goblet, each bathed in sinister shadow.

The void trembled once more as thundering footfalls raced towards him. Kyle looked up to see the massive demon-dog materialize from the blackness and pounce upon the unsuspecting queue. The arm length fangs tore through their metal flesh as if it were foil, its massive paws shredding through anything it could reach.

Roiling black clouds filled the void above them, white flashes of raging power arcing across its surface. The blonde haired woman held aloft by screaming winds opened her arms wide to greet the storm. Sizzling droplets of sapphire electricity rained down in a deluge of sparks. Bolts of lightning smashed into the infinite number of metallic creatures below, smiting them with lances of power that detonated upon impact with a violence that was befitting the will of a wrathful goddess.

Kyle roared out his frustration as he struggled against his bonds. The greedy shackles sucked away his power just as quickly as he summoned it. His rage built in his chest as no matter how many disgusting metallic men were devoured or torn asunder by the demon-dog or vaporized by the vengeful storm goddess, still more came to drink from his blood. No matter how much rage was boiling inside of him, he couldn't find the strength to fight against his captors.

When his will was all but extinguished, the blonde haired storm goddess began to sing. Her voice of chorusing winds filled him with a surge of emotion. The flame of defiance was stoked by her coaxing winds, her lightning giving birth to hungering flames. Burning tears flowed from his eyes leaving trails of fire down his face as he added his own voice to hers. Her chorus of winds was harmonized with his soaring melody of balmy summer days under a blazing sun and searing passionate nights howling at the full moon.

The two songs became one as Kyle felt his strength surge from him in an unrelenting torrent, melting his bindings into a pool of molten slag. The winds took him up to his place amongst the clouds, next to the golden haired goddess with the lightning eyes and dazzling smile. She took his hand in hers, stroking his dark hair out his eyes, "My Golden Eyed man."

She pulled his face down to hers and their lips met with a spine tingling jolt and skin melting heat. Wind roared around them as golden flames licked over their skin, lightning arcing between their bodies as their songs rose to a climactic conclusion. The world was enveloped in a raging golden inferno, sapphire lightning bolts piercing the void and ripping through the once serene darkness. The demon-dog glided up to meet them as the woman pushed him down onto its back. He sank into the soft black fur as he closed his eyes, reveling in the sensational kiss he was sharing with this woman.

The soft black fur turned stiff and cold. The air around him was no longer filled with howling winds, but calm stale air. He could feel long slender fingers caressing his face coupled with the tingling sensation on his lips as he registered radiating warmth pressed into his own lips. He blinked to focus his eyes. A mane of golden hair cascaded down the side of a woman's tilted head, brushing against his neck and shoulders.

Kyle realized he half sitting half laying down, supporting his weight by pulling the woman down towards him. His heart hammered in his chest as their lips moved against each other, tantalizing strokes of her soft tongue sending jolts down his spine. He caught her bottom lip between his teeth, licking his own tongue over the captured flesh. Her eyes fluttered as a throaty groan sent fresh waves of heat through his body. His mind reached out to stroke through the waves over power rippling out from her, easily resonating with her. The song began to play again, swirling around his mind as their tongues danced.

A sharp intake of breath drew him back to reality. His eyes met with hers, a look of confusion matching his own. The confusion rapidly changed to one of wild desire as she kissed him hungrily, her hands holding him to her with surprising strength. Kyle responded in kind, his fingers tangling in her hair as he pulled her on top of him.

Kyle gripped her golden mane and pulled her head back to expose her slender neck and heaving chest. He kissed every inch of skin he could reach, his free hand pulling her hips to his as she pressed herself into him. Her tanned skin was flushed dark along the top of her chest as he followed the heated blood up her neck with ravenous bites and sensual licks along the offended areas. Her cries of pain and soothing sighs were highlighted by her nails raking across his back and neck, leaving sharp trails of pain in their wake.

Their song rose in crescendo to the cadence of their thundering hearts, the roaring of an all-consuming inferno filled his ears as the woman hooked her fingers under her tight top and hoisted it up. The garment was halfway up her body revealing the tantalizingly deep valley of her cleavage when a hissing sound froze the pair in their tracks.

Kyle whipped his head around to see a disheveled looking woman in a white lab coat, her chestnut hair a messy tangle atop her head. She was breathing heavily as she stumbled into the room. With a single look at him her face went pale. She glanced at the woman straddling him and taking in her provocative state, then his own flushed state of arousal.

"How are you feeling?" The doctor asked him cautiously.

Kyle looked at the blonde haired woman who was now rested back on his legs, her arms propping her up as she struggled to catch her breath. He took a few moments to settle himself before replying honestly, "I'm not sure."

The doctor moved slowly to her console, glancing at him nervously. He gave her a quick nod which seemed to put her at ease. The woman turned back to him after a few moments and said, "You were in a medically induced coma while your body recovered from your...extended stay with the Imperium."

Kyle looked at the small collection of tubes that were still connected to his body, cold fear gripped his stomach once again as he watched the steady dripping of clear fluid into the feeding bag that was sending its contents directly into his blood stream.

"You drugged me," The muscles in Kyle's neck twitched as he worked to control his fury.

"It was necessary to treat your wounds; I was going to wake you up once your body had recovered..." Her voice trailed off into a frightened whimper under his glare.

"Hey, Golden Eyes, what's your name?" The blonde haired woman asked, not moving from her resting position over his hips.

"Kyle," He moved to shift her off of him, but she rode him expertly. "And since you won't get off me, what is yours?"

The golden haired woman snorted derisively, "Oh, you don't want me getting off of you."

Kyle frowned at her, his power bubbling to the surface, "I'm not in the mood to ask twice."

The woman's eyes twinkled with laughter as she slowly rocked on his lap, "My name is Kara. You can also call me Captain if that fits your bill."

Kyle let out an involuntary groan, "You aren't making it easy to control myself."

"I would recommend cooling off in the shower, then I can put you back under so you can completely heal," The doctor offered.

"No," Kyle refused adamantly.

"Kyle, your body is still severely damaged on almost all levels, from skeletal to neurological. If you stay awake for the rest of the treatment, you will be in considerable agony as the stem cell replication and neuroplasty therapy take effect," The doctor pleaded, her fear of Kyle warring with her compassion for his pain.

"I. Said. No," Kyle growled, his agitation boiling over as the room began to tremble. "I will not be drugged, or sedated, or put into a damn coma!"

A few things happened in very quick succession. The doctor cowered back against her console, shaking violently. Kara's weight had vanished from his hips, and in a whirl of movement he was slammed onto his back. He found himself staring up at Kara. Her face was contorted with such fury that her eyes shone dangerously in the washed out light. There was a flash of gunmetal and unpleasant taste of iron as the long barrel of her revolver was shoved into his mouth.

"Listen up," Kara Snarled. "You might think you are a hot shit just because you have stupid amounts of power. You might think you're special because the Imperium wants you so badly. Reality check, you arrogant son of a bitch. I don't give two flying fucks who you think you are, you will bleed and die like anyone else when I put a .44 slug through your precious little brain at eighty percent of light speed."

Kyle was speechless as the foul mouthed Captain continued her tirade, "You think that just because I was about to take your skinny ass for a ride because of whatever the hell just happened, that I won't space your ass or send you packing straight across the Imperial border? You not only endangered Nico, but the whole of my crew by letting your emotions get the better of you and your power. You almost turned us all into dust, yourself included, because you were having a God damned nightmare!

"So do what the pretty doctor tells you, take the fucking shower, then go the fuck to sleep while we try to reverse the damage the Imperium did to you. A little God damned gratitude would be so refreshing right about now." Kara finally finished and was breathing heavily, the barrel of her gun still pressed uncomfortably into his mouth. She sighed and she forced herself too calm down.

When Kara took the revolver out of his mouth, Kyle rolled his tongue around his mouth to alleviate the bitter taste of the gun, "Look, Kara, I'm grateful for the help. I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused, so if it's all the same, you can just drop me off at the nearest inhabitable planet and ill disappear."

Kara's shared an unreadable look with the doctor, "Was he always this dense, or is that a side effects of the sedation?"

"It's quite likely he is suffering a temporary deficit of metal cognition due to the excessive use of sedations," Dr. Nico assessed, her trembling hadn't completely subsided but she had relaxed to a degree. Kyle could only see two options, either she had gotten over her fear of him, or she was much more confident in her captain's threat to put a bullet in his brain despite his best efforts. One thing was for sure though; he held a new found level of respect for both women.

"I am not suffering for a drug induced stupor," Kyle glared at the doctor. "Seriously, you can let me go as I am, I'll be fine."

Kara let out a low growl, "After all this? You're lucky I don't space your ass!"

"I thought you wanted to get rid—" Kyle began hotly.

Kara pushed him down onto his back again, lower her face so that she hovered an inch from her own. Stormy grey eyes bored into him as she said in an eerily calm voice, "Look, Kyle. You're cute in the half mummified kinda way, and something about you completely drives me up the wall. I can't let you go. As much as I would like to say they were for selfish reasons that you would thoroughly enjoy, you are just too powerful to run around unchecked."

"I refuse to be enslaved again. You people are no better than the Imperium!" Kyle snarled, struggling to push her off of him. Kara was deceptively heavy for a woman her size, he cursed his weakened state. He tried to summon his power but was quickly rebuked. Both a physical and mental hand slapped him hard across the face. His teeth rattled violently in his mouth.

"I suggest you watch what you say," Kara said coldly, "I'll let that slide once. I've marooned people on hostile planets for much, much less."

Kyle swallowed hard, "Right. My apologies, Captain."

Kara brightened considerably, "Glad to hear. Now, back to where I was before you jumped the gun. Save the stupid questions for the end, and then keep them to yourself. Clear?"

"Crystal," Kyle resigned himself to his fate. He wasn't going anywhere any time soon. This was probably a blessing in disguise. He didn't know much about the Coalition, and if he was going to make a run for it, or make a life for himself, he needed to know the lay of the land.

"As I said before, we can't let you run around unchecked," She glared down at him as if daring him to interrupt; he wisely chose not to accept that particular invitation. "All Kineticists are vetted by the civics department of any system capital. Lucky for you, we are heading to one now. Once you are vetted, your level of restriction will be given and you are free to go. The restrictions only apply when you are in public or military zones.