At the end of her contract, she is about to be freed when an attack brings on her rising, and lives are at stake. Now, her life is no longer her own.
Dylia was bonded as a private musician for the wealthy. She spent five years paying off her brother's debts, and the day before she was to be free of the bond, her future plans went up in smoke.
Using the bad judgment to get between a psycho and his prey, Dylia was the recipient of a blaster using kekxite energy. She was sent flying, and her dress was ruined, but the stalker wasn't done yet. Dylia walked to stop the next blast, caught it, and sent it back through the gun. It shattered and disabled the attacker, but she had a bigger problem. The kekxite had brought on her rising.
Farway was on duty when he got the call to get to a rising. Instead of the normal body count, he found a man who was wounded but still alive and a shuttle heading for a lake. The wild power signatures were pulsing inside the ship. This being was intensely strong. The hovering above the lake was odd, but he kept back. The rising was ready to blow.
The delicate woman who stood on the open hatch and seemed to be waiting for something caught him by surprise. He watched as she timed things out, and when she felt it was time, she jumped. Cascades of power pulsed out of her, harmlessly into the air. She fell for five seconds and could have powered a city with her output.
She struck the water; he retrieved her and then flew her to the training center where she would get medical help and training. As a rising, she belonged to the empire. She belonged to him.
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