Loren of the Order was probably the best match genetically, and socially of course a mate in the Order was desirable. Still, though he was nice enough, he simply wasn't very bright. Lovad Koversa might be all right; he was quite intelligent, if no more Talented than she—
Suddenly she heard him talking to himself about the Academy, though she hadn't heard him approach. "Lovad?" she called, sitting up and looking around. As soon as she did that, the voice disappeared. He was nowhere in sight, and she wondered with some irritation what kind of stunt he was up to now.
That was Lovad's worst point: he was a joker, and liked to use his knowledge of electronics to play tricks. It was never anything harmful, though, just annoying. She got up, deciding to see if she could turn it against him. None of the trees near the fountain had trunks large enough to hide behind, so she wandered around, looking up through the silvery-green foliage to find him. No trace; he must have come up with a long-distance gadget and was trying it out on her.
She'd get back at him somehow, but meanwhile this day was too nice to waste worrying about him. She returned to the fountain and stretched out again, relaxing to the sound of the falling water. She thought idly of her mother, who owned a moderately prosperous kilt shop. An indignant Mother: *Trade vegetables for kilts indeed! This is no back-country village—*
She sat up again suddenly, and again the voice disappeared as she tensed. This couldn't be one of Lovad's jokes, not with her mother involved. It had to be telepathy… and that meant she did have Talent… and that meant…
NEVAN
As she explained, Nevan could feel himself beginning to smile. She was offering him a chance at real combat, at what he had trained for since his fifth birthday, and she thought he might refuse? He'd missed the war by less than two weeks, a disappointment made worse by his assignment to SecuDiv rather than the Combat Division. Now he would get to fight!