Close Obsession (The Krinar Chronicles 2)

“Yeah, he had one a few days ago,” her mom said, sighing. “It was not one of his worst ones, thankfully.”

“Tell dad to stop stressing and take it easy with the computer. And take regular walks, okay?”

“Of course, honey, we’re trying.”

“Take care of yourselves, all right?”

Her mom promised to do so, they chatted some more, and then Mia said good

bye and went to find Korum before he left for the trial.

He’d offered her the opportunity to observe the proceedings, and Mia intended to take him up on that offer.

Chapter 5

Mia entered the tall white dome without hesitation, a chunk of the wall disintegrating to grant her passage. Korum had assured her that nobody could see, hear, or feel her in this particular version of his virtual world, and she could get the full experience of attending the trial without any stress or unpleasant encounters with the Protector. There were interactive versions of virtual reality too, he’d explained, but those were not appropriate for this situation. He himself would attend in person; it was his responsibility as a Council member and one of the chief accusers in this case.

Stepping inside the dome, Mia gasped in amazement. The place was teeming with Krinar, both male and female, all dressed in the light-colored clothes that their race seemed to favor. It was an incredible sight, with thousands of tall, gorgeous, golden-skinned aliens occupying the giant building from floor to ceiling. The spectators – at least that’s what Mia assumed they were – were literally stacked one on top of another, each occupying the floating seats that Mia was beginning to learn were a staple here in Lenkarda. The seats were arranged in circles around the center of the dome, with each circle floating directly on top of the next. It was a neat arrangement, Mia realized, like an arena of sorts, but with floating seats.

At the center, there were about a dozen podium-like places, with roughly a third of them occupied by Krinar. The rest were empty.

Carefully making her way toward the center, Mia tried to avoid bumping into anyone, but it was unavoidable. The place was simply too tightly packed. The attendees couldn’t feel her, but Mia could definitely feel them when she would get rammed by someone’s elbow or have her foot stepped on. How this virtual reality business worked, she had no idea, but it was annoying and rather painful to be the invisible girl in a crowd. Finally, she succeeded in getting through to the center, where a large circular area was completely empty.

Standing safely in that area, Mia looked around with awe.

From the inside, the walls of the dome were transparent, and bright sunlight poured in from all directions, reflecting off the white color of the seats and the light-colored clothing of the Krinar. Unlike the loose, floaty outfits she’d seen them wear before, their clothes today seemed less casual, with more structured lines and fitted shapes for both males and females. Most of the Ks seemed to have dark hair and eyes, although here and there she could see a few with lighter brown and chestnut-colored hair. Korum was of average height here, Mia realized, observing the tall aliens all around her. Someone like her – 5’3” tall and weighing a hundred pounds – would probably be considered a midget.

Turning her attention to the podium-like structures, Mia saw Korum sitting behind one of them. Grinning at the thought of observing him while he couldn’t see her, Mia walked over to him. He seemed occupied with something in his palm – probably the computer he had embedded there – and paid no attention to her virtual presence. Smiling wickedly, Mia approached him from behind and touched him, running her hands over his broad back. There was no reaction from him, of course, and Mia laughed out loud, imagining the possibilities. She could do anything she wanted to him, and he wouldn’t have a clue.

Testing out a theory, she licked the back of his neck. No reaction from him again, but she could taste the faint saltiness of his skin, smell the familiar warm scent of his body. Predictably, Mia could feel herself getting turned on, and she pressed against him, rubbing her breasts on the soft material of his ivory shirt. They were surrounded by thousands of spectators, and it didn’t matter because no one – not even Korum himself – knew what she was doing.

Grinning hugely, Mia lightly bit his neck and reached for his crotch, stroking the area through his clothes. She felt incredibly naughty, like she was doing something forbidden, even though she knew the entire thing was more or less taking place inside her head. Before she could continue further, however, the noise from the crowd suddenly dropped in volume, and Mia pulled away, realizing that the trial was beginning.

The time for games was over.

The podium-like table in front of which Korum was sitting was low enough that Mia could climb on top of it, and she did so, making herself comfortable. It seemed like a good spot from which to observe the upcoming drama.

Carefully examining her surroundings, she came to the conclusion that the other podium areas were occupied by the other Council members. A third of them were there in person, while the other seats – the empty ones – were now filled with holographic images of both male and female Krinar. She assumed the holographs were for those who couldn’t be there in person – perhaps because they were on Krina. She spotted Saret sitting across from them, but she had no idea who the other Krinar were. Mia counted fifteen podiums standing all around the empty circle, but only fourteen were occupied. It was probably the Protector’s seat, Mia thought; it made sense that he wouldn’t be judging the trial, given his son’s role as one of the accused.

A chime-like sound echoed through the dome, and the crowd went completely silent. All of a sudden, the floor in the center of the circle dissolved, and seven large silvery cylinders floated out.

The floor solidified again, and the cylinders landed on it. As Mia watched with bated breath, the walls of the cylinders disintegrated, leaving only the circular tops and bottoms intact. And inside each one, Mia saw the Keiths – the seven Ks who had risked all to help humanity achieve a brighter future.

Or, according to Korum, to try to rule the Earth themselves.

* * *

The Keiths stood there, each within his or her own circle, their expressions bitter and defiant. Silvery collars encircled their necks – the same collars Mia had seen the guards put on them when they were captured. She guessed they were the K version of handcuffs. There were five males and two females, all tall and beautiful as befitting of their species.

Curious to see Korum’s reaction, Mia glanced behind her and nearly recoiled at the icy contempt on his face as he looked at the traitors. She could see the dangerous yellow flecks in his eyes, and his mouth was drawn into a flat, cruel line.

He truly hated and despised the Keiths for what they’d done, Mia realized with a shiver, and she wondered again how he’d managed to forgive her for her actions.

The arena was still deathly silent. There were no jeers or boos, as one might have expected from such a large crowd. It was the biggest trial of the last ten thousand years, Saret had said, and Mia could see that reflected in the grave mood of the spectators.

A portion of the floor dissolved again, and another Krinar male came up. He was sitting on a broad floating seat, and he got up as soon as the floor solidified again. Unlike every other Krinar there, he was wearing clothes that were black in color. Probably the Protector, Mia thought.

Another chime echoed through the building, and all the Council members got up from behind their podiums. One of them stepped forward and approached the new arrival. Touching his shoulder, the Council member said, “Welcome, Loris.”