The debriefing had continued throughout the morning. During his mission, Xavier had discovered several new leads, eliminated a threat to the Empire’s peace, and found himself a cute little wife, if not a dangerous one. Jazon shared a telepathic grin with his pod brother, Walter. He, Zared, Zeth, and Walter had been created in the same batch and grown within the same amniotic chamber. The bonds between them were strong. However, the telepathic and empathic bonds between all of the surviving Laconian hybrid brothers inextricably tied them to one another.
They had been created in a lab by their father, Dr. Stanley Crispus. His mind had broken after his wife’s suicide and had led to their taboo existences. Nora Crispus hadn’t been able to heal her heart after the miscarriages she had suffered, and Stanley had made it his life’s mission to successfully breed their two races. There was a reason the Laconian races of Eriopis and Enyo didn’t mix. Telepathic Eriopis and empathic Enyos who managed to reproduce created doomed offspring.
Eriopis males formed telepathic bonds with their wives for mental stability in exchange for addictive physical intimacy. Enyo males bonded with female clan members or wives to give them peace from their violent emotions. Enyo males had adapted and evolved to survive in harsh frozen climates and were fiercely protective of their females. Mentally and emotionally, such combined offspring, without anchors, often succumbed to insanity.
Two of Jazon’s brothers had found anchors which, through their tight bonds, stabilized the rest of them to one degree or another. Zared’s wife had been experimented on by Stanley Crispus shortly after her birth. The stimulation of her supramarginal gyrus had strengthened her empathic senses to the extent that she had been able to bind Zared to her empathically. With him, she had taken all of the rest of them, and they had benefited from it. They no longer needed hours of meditation each day to be able to function. However, without intensive physical training each day, he and his brothers were dangerously aggressive.
Now, Xavier had come home with a wife. Xavier was all professional courtesy to Inquisitor Eli Beck and Captain Kaoti Aegisthus as he gave his mission statement. However, Jazon and Walter made eye contact and then grinned. Trapped in the debriefing, Xavier forced himself to go over every detail and answer each question with meticulous care. All the while, he battled thoughts of Sparrow’s soft skin and small white breasts.
If Sparrow and Teagan knew the extent of the telepathic connections shared by the hybrid brothers, they would be mortified. A man couldn’t always be guarded against his brother’s erotic thoughts.
“The threat of a thermo-resonator missile attack is no longer at the apex of our militaristic concerns. With both the supplier and buyer of the missiles in Galaxic Militia custody, and the weapons expert rescued, we can move onto other concerns. Have you spoken to Lady Ponidi about creating for the Empire her frisson dampeners as safeguards against any remaining missiles?” Eli asked.
“I have,” Xavier answered.
Eli’s cold, dark eyes peered back at him waiting for elaboration.
“Sparrow will design and create as many of the stabilizers as you want, but her research facility needs and the materials she would require are rather extensive. I have never even heard of some of the necessary machines.”
“We will put the correct individuals into contact with her. Now, let us move onto other matters. Felix Jiri remains at large. The clone that murdered General Luca Braga has been executed, and through the Princess Probus, Zared killed a second clone. Our orders are to discover who is creating these clones, capture the scientist, and bring him or her into custody for questioning. We must learn how many of these clones have been created.” Eli paused to allow his words to sink in. “The clones must be questioned and destroyed.” The Inquisitor made eye contact with each of them.
The man had often chilled Jazon’s blood. Eli Beck was ruthless and on several occasions, had brutally tortured and executed criminals to protect the Imperial family. Emperor Probus had assigned Eli to protect and serve his only child for that very reason. Eli’s loyalty to Teagan was absolute, but the man’s fantasies for what he would do to Inquisitor Drex Licinius should Teagan tire of the man were vile.
Xavier’s thoughts had returned to Sparrow and the way she felt around his cock. His errant thoughts sent Zared’s thoughts about Teagan down a similar path.
“I’ll go,” Jazon volunteered.
“The rest of you are dismissed,” Eli said.
While his brothers filed out of the room, Jazon studied his console where the cumulative data of the inquisitors’ investigations into the clones appeared. His brothers knew why he had volunteered. Dreams of the persona that Teagan had adopted on their last mission, Sara Eos, continued to plague him. There was nothing worse that Jazon had ever experienced than suffering from the unrequited love of an imaginary female.
Later that evening, he had devised his preliminary mission plan. He wasn’t going to say goodbye to Teagan. It would just make her cry. For a time, he had hoped that she might take him as a husband as well. However, when Zared had almost been lost to them, and his consciousness had been trapped in a comatose state, Jazon had realized that he wasn’t in love with Teagan. He loved her, but it was the same platonic love that she felt for him. The realization had come like a cold, wet slap.
Jazon needed some time and distance. This mission was just what he needed. He put in a request for a small merchant ship and a crew. His mission would be taking him to the Laconian Sector.