CHAPTER EIGHT

The Anori Scout slid back into reality just above the atmosphere of Parson's World. Screens up, Radar and Ladar saw nothing. The Tachyon sweeps finding the return from an object no bigger than someone's head. Moving slowly into the atmosphere, there was no thermal trail, no hypersonic shockwave for Doppler to see. The hulls adaptive camouflage making the Thirty-meter-long arrowhead all but invisible as it drifted down. Even the blue glow of the drive repulsors was muted

Landing near a small stream, the Scout came to rest in a wooded field not far from her old Homestead, Hayley stood in the airlock, her eyes filled with tears. Borrowing the courage of her other selves, she tabbed to open the hatch. Stepping through, clad head to toe in the stealth suit, a pistol on either hip

The scents that filled her nose had been half forgotten. The rich black loam, the night blooming Helas flowers, even the scent of Sheep. All brought home crashing down on her.

< Home. Home has such an impact, sister. I called a hundred worlds 'home' but none ever felt truly like the one I had fled, oh so long before. >

< Yes, child. Home. We might have a hundred places we live and grow to call home. Yet, only one that fully reaches the soul. >

< Frivolous sentiments. Home is the tribe, the clan, always moving, always changing. >

Hayley smiled at the bickering. Walking in to the forest, she would see for herself how much of home was left.

Walking for about a quarter of an hour, across fields and copses, a path she had taken many times as a child here. The packed gravel road led her to the homestead's signpost in only a few more steps. Sighing, as the sky lightened towards dawn, she turned off the road and walked up the access road, to the distant cluster of buildings.

Seeing a mid-teen boy exit the house, head for the barn, a young girl on his heels heading to the garden. Hayley centered herself, then set the suit to switch from background matching, to a nicely tailored work coverall. The holsters at her hips would look like extra wide hips to the casual observer. Looking to the children, as they started their morning chores,

"Excuse me? Might I ask a few questions?" she called out loudly.

The girl startling, dropping her handful of freshly picked pea pods. The boy however, spun aggressively, giving a shrill whistle. Two Cy-dogs racing out of the barn, to skid to a stop, just three strides away.

"Peace!" Hayley called out, "I mean you no harm. I just seek information."

The door slammed open, and a man came out holding a shotgun, pointing it vaguely in her direction. For a split second, Hayley saw her father standing there.

< Sister, with the gloves and hood retracted, only your hands and head are vulnerable. It will hurt to be hit, but he couldn't penetrate the suit with that weapon, no matter how many shots he fires. >

M!Tekk stayed in the background, but a portion of their skills leaked through. The two children, the father, the dogs, all now seemed the only vivid things, the background going flat and dim. A new vivid point appeared at a window, as a pair of eyes peeked out from between the curtains. A second pair appeared much higher up in the window, then with a jerk, both pairs vanished.

"Who are you? What are you doing here at this ungodly hour?" the father asked.

"I am Amanda Stewart. I used to know the family that lived here. I am curious as to what happened to them."

"A Stewart brat, eh? Figures, you all are always sniffing around." Then in an angry tone, "I bought this ranch fair and square. I have the township bill of sale. You Stewarts never know when to leave good enough alone! The people here died, in a fire, no matter what you say! Now get off my property! MY property!" The gun now pointed directly at her.

Hayley backed down the access road, the Cy-dogs slow advance keeping her moving. As she reached the main road the Cy-dogs were recalled. Only then did her vision return to normal.

< Friendly sort... > she spoke to herself.

She started jogging down the road, town was only a few kilometers away.

=-=-=-=-

"Are you quite certain that none of the evidence survived?"

"Look, Miss. I told you already. That was all misplaced, years ago."

The Sergeant in front of her was frustrated and angry, but didn't taste of guilt. Oddly, the louder the exchange grew, the more guilt radiated from deeper inside the station.

Speaking loudly, "So. How could everything vanish, if only you, the supposed keepers of the law, had access?"

Now the anger surged from several of the officers in the station, but behind one of the doors, both the minds there gave guilt and fear, not anger.

Hayley, retreated from their anger. Sitting in the Café across the street, she spent the day sipping coffee and eating. All the while maintaining her focus on the two minds. Midafternoon, one mind went into motion. An older man, beginning to go grey, in the traditional cheap suit. It was hard to tell for sure, but she thought he was nearing the mandatory retirement age of a hundred and fifteen. He walked down the street and into a quiet bar.

She made adjustments to the suit, the coverall fading to a skin-hugging gloss black. Both holsters now clearly obvious. The slight bulge of her baby bump, apparent. She examined her reflection and then shifted the settings subtly. Nipples and her camel toe now visible through the suit. She smiled and entered the bar. Every eye turned to follow her as she strutted over to where the Detective sat, already on his second whiskey. The guilt dripping off him. Sitting on a stool next to him.

"Hmm, I've seen you before haven't I? You are a detective, right?"

"Yeah, what's it to you." But he only glanced into the bar mirror, never turning to face her.

"You intrigue me. I wanted to get to know you better. Anything wrong with that?" Finally glancing her way. Then back down as he signaled for a refill.

Hayley had never tried this before, she could sense emotions, maybe she could project them? She pushed lust into the detective next to her.

< Child! Stop this! It is forbidden and dangerous! >

< Such a weapon this could be! Why did we never know of this? >

< Oh! You silly Bear-in-the-mud! Kept this to yourself all this time! >

< Hush please! I am trying to concentrate. >

Leaning into him, she nibbled his ear.

"So what should I call you?"

As he turned to look at her, she sent a spike of lust into him,

"Senior Detective Harrison Daly." He nearly panted as he answered Hayley, and she sent a spike of pleasure into him. Noticing as she did so that her focus was leaking. The lust and pleasure feeding back to her from everyone in the bar.

"So, Senior Detective Harrison Daly, shall we go somewhere more private?" Standing to lead the detective, he couldn't tear his eyes away from her bouncing breasts. As she didn't let his lust slack.

The detective never resisted as she led him into the hotel room, the clerk taking one look at her, had emphasized the hourly rates.

Cutting his cheap suit into ribbons, she tied the naked detective to the bed and started questioning him, every time he answered she sent in a spike of pleasure and opened her suit further, if he hesitated she sent pain and displeasure. Not even a full hour later she had a drooling puppy that had once been a man, whose eyes couldn't leave her naked body. Her sympathy for the man that was now an addict to her, was more than countered by the fury generated by the partial story he told.

Taking the Detective's perscom she sent a message,

'Senior Detective Bernard Ashcroft. Detective Daly is talking. Harbor Hotel, room 312. Come alone. A. Stewart.'

It wasn't even ten minutes later that she felt the furious mind outside the door. As the door slammed open and Det. Bernie stood there, gun in hand, Hayley slammed him with the most intense pulse of lust she could generate. Bernie fell to his knees, a wetness spreading at his groin, behind her, she heard Harrison crying out as he came simply from her leakage.

By dawn as she exited, the suit still set as the revealing and skintight setting, she had now grown spike heels that gave her a truly sultry strut. There was nothing more that anyone on this planet could tell her. The two had been so eager to please her as she watched them, far beyond the normal limits of endurance. Harrison's heart had failed him in the middle of the night, but she kept Bernard busy fucking the cooling corpse, until his heart failed.

< Child! Please, be careful. Such power is as addictive to the user as to the victim. >

But it was only the silent pout she received from Tyra that truly made her reconsider her actions.

Hayley mulled it over on the long walk to the ship. She had been a complete submissive to Derek, a will less slave. Here, she had gone to the other extreme, an uncaring user of others. Somewhere in between was the answer.

he chose1$#