Psionic elite 6 a psi fa.., p.1
Psionic Elite 6: A Psi-Fantasy Adventure, page 1
PSIONIC ELITE
BOOK 6
DANNY ROGAN
Copyright © 2026 by Royal Guard Publishing LLC
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
CONTENTS
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
The End
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CHAPTER ONE
WARD
Thanks to the steady and implacable progress of the elderhides, Ward and his flock made good progress on their first day of travel through the thick Galatean jungle. Once they broke out of the jungle and onto a narrow but largely open trader’s path, they gained even more speed.
The path meandered like a river through dense trees and overgrowth. Ward made sure he, Sydney, and Valentia kept one hand on the bony ridges of their elderhides at all times, even if it looked increasingly less necessary as the ride continued. Elderhides were docile creatures.
Still, the big mammals could all get spooked and start running. Or they could trample something. He didn’t want to lose anyone to an accident after they’d all survived a helo crash, jumping out of a plane, and fighting a temple full of Peacekeepers and Harriers... not to mention a giant robot.
Doctor Hano wasn’t dead, but he wasn’t a problem any longer. Malagath was a problem, but they would deal with him after they got back to Lavos, let Director Reed know he needed to put together an expedition capable of reaching the north pole of Argenhide, and undertook a journey no human on this planet had ever completed.
One that would end at a Thred temple that could turn people into gods.
For the moment, all Ward had to worry about was not falling off his elderhide. He was grudgingly pleased when they finally stopped near dusk. Riding the elderhides had cut what would have been two full days of travel down to one. His flock also wasn’t nearly as exhausted.
At some gentle urging from Tara, who could now talk to animals using psionic harmony, the elderhides settled down and allowed him and his flock to dismount. Then, as a group, the large creatures all pushed up and stomped gently off into the jungle. Trees bent and snapped as they tore branches off them with their long prehensile trunks and munched on both leaves and bark.
As Tara walked up to his side, Ward glanced at her. “So… they’re leaving?”
Her tall and slim figure drooped a little, and her long brown hair was a bit messy from days in the jungle. There was a bit of weariness around her warm blue eyes, but that was to be expected after they had spent a week trekking through the hot jungle. Her white sundress was dirty and stained from the road.
She gently wrapped her arms around his shoulders. “Just for the night. They’re going to have dinner, then go drink at a watering hole nearby and relax in the jungle. But they promised they’d come back tomorrow morning to give us another ride. They said they’d take us all the way to Marshe.”
“What did you offer them for all that?”
She smiled warmly. “Nothing. They just want to help.”
Ward glanced back at the herd. “Seems weird. This is way out of their territory.”
“And they get bored wandering around the same place. Not everyone is a human, Ward. Like Threds, elderhides just like helping people. So long as they’re nice people.”
He watched the large animals crashing through the jungle. “Still seems alien.”
“Technically, we’re the aliens here.”
“Point.”
She pulled on his arm. “Are you gonna make a fire for us?”
“We’re already sweating. We don’t need a fire, and those cots are dry and warm.” He looked around. “Suppose we could go get some more of that dark fruit.”
“Ry calls it fun fruit. I like that better. But I have to admit, even I’m getting tired of eating nothing but that. Some variety would be nice.”
“We’ll get Reed to lay out a five-course meal back in Lavos.”
“Ooh, that’d be nice.” She released his arm. “So, split up into teams?”
“Sure.”
“Great! You’re on my team.”
He leaned in to kiss her cheek. “Okay.”
She poked him. “Now I want one on the lips!”
He gave her one of those, too.
Working together, they managed to gather enough fruit to serve as a decent if all too familiar meal. After the others were all winding down from their day and relaxing, Ward took a walk in the direction of the watering hole the elderhides had headed for to refill their canteens.
As much as he loved being with his flock, there was something uniquely calming about stalking through the jungle alone. He wasn’t worried about being attacked by predators. Anything that attacked him wouldn’t live to do it again. But mostly, he was enjoying a bit of solitude after days of work.
As he approached the watering hole, he heard the sound of crunching trees. The elderhides were still having their supper. He approached stealthily and cautiously. Yet he found the elderhide matron staring at him the moment he left the cover of the jungle to approach the water.
She was on the other side of the watering hole, so he didn’t think he was crowding her. The way her dark eyes watched him felt far more intelligent than he expected. Other than today’s ride, he had only seen elderhides from afar, apart from back on Byron’s farm, when they were trying to kill him.
He nodded to the matron. To his surprise, she lightly waved her trunk, as if acknowledging his nod. He finished filling their canteens upstream of the elderhides, then left the herd to enjoy the rest of their supper. When he returned to the small clearing they’d chosen for their camp, he found his flock speaking softly.
As he emerged from the jungle carrying their canteens, Valentia looked up and smiled. Like Tara’s brown hair, Valentia’s raven-black was a bit dirty and not nearly as glossy as it normally looked, though she still looked fantastic. Her sleek and regal beauty meant she could mingle freely with the wealthiest citizens of Galatea, even though she preferred rougher folks. And while mud and dirt had spattered the long red leather coat over her black catsuit, that only made her look more sexy.
She winked. “Glad you didn’t get lost.”
“It was a nice walk.”
Rylee hopped up and rushed over. “Oh, I’m so thirsty. Water, please?”
Now that Rylee had spent almost two weeks away from a salon, her hair had grown out to the point where the roots were showing blonde under her more brilliant pink. Ward found the contrast beautiful, even if Rylee disagreed. Her light gray eyes held his hopefully.
He handed her a canteen. “Sure. But save some for tomorrow.”
He passed out the other canteens, then settled on one of the mats they had retrieved from the depths of the Temple of Omphalos. The others all scooted in close around him, and soon the only light was the blue fire burning on the tip of Fayleen’s tail. He had given up asking about how that came to be. He simply accepted the light and how cool it looked.
Fayleen was built like a muscular ballerina, slim and sexy, with long silver hair that fell to the middle of her back and light blue skin that could still turn a bit pink when she blushed. She often crouched like a mauler rather than sitting beside him, as she was doing now.
Fayleen’s flame plus the bright moon meant they weren’t in complete darkness. As Ward looked up, he enjoyed the sprawl of stars above. Given he’d been sleeping either beneath a thick jungle canopy or inside a dirty tunnel, he hadn’t had time to appreciate the Galatean sky like he normally did.
This sky was so completely free of competing light that it looked like the spattering of Rylee’s freckles. He had enjoyed many nights like this while wandering the wilds of Galatea, but he’d never get tired of how impressive the sky looked on a dark night.
Sydney soon came over and snuggled into his arms, which made the rest of his flock look annoyed they hadn’t thought to do that earlier. Still, none of the other women who loved him, or would one day soon, begrudged Sydney her place... for now. They would all have their turn.
He brushed a bit of her silky black hair from her face, then kissed her nose gently. Her brown eyes held his with love that always made him feel like the luckiest man in the world. She was also the most fit and athletic woman he’d ever met, even if her breasts were bigger than the average gymnast. Quite a bit bigger, actually. Which she and he both knew he enjoyed.
Once everyone had their fill of the canteens and had enjoyed a pleasant and comfortable stargazing interlude, Tara spoke up. “So, I’ve been thinking.”
Sydney squeezed Ward. “Imagine t hat.”
Tara blew a raspberry at her, then looked around. “I want your thoughts on how we can help folks deal with the end of the world. Or, at least, the end of hecoline. I’m all thought out.”
Ward raised an eyebrow. “Not much we can really do, is there?”
Tara frowned with visible disapproval. “I don’t think that’s true. We already have one advantage over everyone else on Argenhide. We know what’s coming.”
Ward listened. Tara wasn’t wrong. He’d learned to trust her judgment. She continued.
“For one thing, I think it makes sense to tell Aiden as soon as we get back to civilization. That way, SigHome can start stocking up on emergency supplies. They can plan ways to distribute food and water to folks whose vehicles may basically be bricks in a few weeks.”
Rylee nodded eagerly. “That’s a good idea. Let them get ahead of the problem. I’m worried about people like Byron and Ayla, too. It was a long drive from their house to that little town where we bought the wire we used to secure their farm. Maybe we could warn them to buy an electric vehicle?”
Sydney frowned. “With what money, though?”
“They could sell some of their hecoline vehicles.”
“And screw over someone else because they got a head’s up those same vehicles won’t work in a few weeks?”
Rylee winced. “Ooh, you’re right. That’s worse. That’s like scamming people.”
Valentia nodded. “There’s going to be riots once people figure out there’s no more hecoline coming, too. People will be desperate to stock up on food, water, and supplies. So we should probably ensure both Galatea and Haven’s armies are ready to secure relief centers so they don’t get overrun.”
Rylee paled. “Geez, really? Riots?”
“Wouldn’t be the first time, love. We had a similar kind of chaos after Haven pulled out at the end of the war. All the small groups that had banded together realized there were only so many supplies to go around that weren’t already claimed by the government. It was a rough few years.”
Ward remembered those years all too well. He’d been doing what he could as Watchdog to help people however he could. Yet he suspected the things he’d seen in Galatea would be nothing compared to the chaos that would erupt across Haven, once it became clear everything was going to change.
Haven had been spared the worst of the post-war chaos at the end of the First Intercontinental War. They weren’t going to be spared this, and the sudden disappearance of a universal fuel that powered almost everything on the continent was going to hit harder than any post-war slump.
He still believed they had made the right decision in leaving Nalira—or rather, the Thred core that was a recording of Malagath’s dead wife—in place beneath the Temple of Omphalos. Humans were never going to stop enslaving Threds so long as they needed Threds to refine hecoline. But Tara was right to be considering how they could mitigate the impact on humanity, however minor the results of their help might be.
Rylee tapped her leg in thought. “There’s lots of people on the Net who build EVs as hobbies. Maybe I could put them in touch with Reed or Pierce to help scale up their designs? SigNet is really good at producing war machinery, so it can’t be that hard to move production over to other things.”
Ward shook his head. “It’s harder than you think. Factories are mostly designed to produce very specific parts. They’d have to retool entire lines, which would take months.” As Rylee watched him hopefully, he shrugged. “But you’re right about one thing. Better they get started now.”
She smiled hopefully. “Right! Like Tara said, we can’t stop it, but we can let people know it’s coming so they can prepare.”
“And I imagine I’ll have plenty of work waiting once things start getting bad.”
Sydney touched his arm. “We’ll all have plenty of work.”
He glanced at her. “Planning to become a merc, Syd?”
“I think we all should, after this is over. After Malagath is dealt with, there’s no reason we can’t all do what you and Val did in Galatea. Helping people. Except now, you won’t have to be all heroic alone. We’ll be with you. We can do what we can for Haven and Galatea’s people together.”
Rylee nodded eagerly. “Oh, I like that. We can be this badass band of mercenaries going wherever people need help. Kind of like the Masters of Steel!”
Ward grinned knowingly. “Steel Man? Again?”
“He’s really heroic, Ward! Just like you. And he has lots of hot ladies at his side.”
“Is he dating them all, though?”
“Well, no. It was a kid’s show.” Rylee smiled thoughtfully. “But I always shipped him with the Battle Maiden, since I really liked her hair and outfit.”
Ward remembered the sexy costumes Rylee had picked out for everyone to wear around Costa del Mara. Maybe when this was over, they could do something that silly again. He definitely wouldn’t mind spending time with Tara in her sexy bunny costume.
Sydney looked around. “So that’s what we’ll do, then. We deal with Malagath, then we head back to Valor’s Landing and help Tara with whatever she needs to stabilize VL. We’ll also help people deal with the disappearance of hecoline in whatever way we can. We owe them that much.”
Tara’s smile grew warmer. “Aww. You all would really do that for me?”
“You already said you’ll have to go back to take care of VL after we stop Malagath. There’s no reason we can’t help you stabilize things. A flock is stronger together.”
Tara scooted closer to Sydney, then gave her a big hug. “Thanks. I could use the help.”
Sydney patted her back and smiled. “It’ll be rough, but we’ll get through it together.”
As Fayleen cuddled up against his leg, Ward was struck once more by how resilient each of these women was. Sydney was right. A flock didn’t just come together to support their First, but to support each other in all the ways he couldn’t alone. It wasn’t the way humans did things.
But every day he spent with these brave and impressive women, it made more sense to him.
The conversation died down after that. Soon he was on his back with his wives all sprawled out around him. He could relax. There really were no threats out here. Maulers would steer clear of this many people, and SigNet had no way to track them.
This was nice. This felt nice. He doubted they’d get many nights to simply relax and enjoy each other’s company in the next few weeks, especially if they had to cross a northern continent that was racked with blizzards, windstorms, and earthquakes. If they could even reach it.
But that was a problem for tomorrow.
The morning dawned without any problems, and the crashing of the elderhides returning woke everyone up. Tara once more assured them that the herd had no problem letting them ride again today. So after packing everything up and eating the last of their dark fruits, they rode.
As the day progressed, the explorer’s trail widened into a full-sized road, though it was unpaved and a bit muddy. None of that slowed the elderhides, who only increased their pace as they approached their goal. They actually seemed to like having humans riding them.
Ward wondered if any of these elderhides had been to Marshe before. Given how far the small fishing town was outside their territory, he doubted it. He also wasn’t sure what he and his women would do after they arrived in Marshe, especially if they couldn’t easily secure transportation home.
The last time they had seen Zane was almost two weeks ago. He wondered if the pilot would actually be there and waiting when they arrived.
If he wasn’t, they could lose precious time trying to secure passage back to Lavos, but at least Marshe would have a radio and a way to report back to Director Reed in Lavos. Ward didn’t want to send a warning on an unsecured channel, but he might not have a choice.
Malagath was on his way to wipe out humanity. Ward had no idea how long it would take or how he planned to do it, which meant he couldn’t plan a defense against it or even warn folks when the end might come. Even if it risked starting the riots early, Galatea and Haven needed to be warned.
Fortunately, the elderhides seemed to gain steam throughout the day. It was close to sunset by the time they crested one last gentle rise and spotted Marshe in the distance. Ward was relieved they’d made the journey in two days instead of four. Tara really had come through for them.
