The Officer's Mess (Warriors Book 3)

by L P Peace

  ‘They look so young,’ she whispered. They had to be teenagers. ‘What about the others?’ she asked, looking at the rest of the cluster of slaves.

  ‘They may come with us if they wish. We always find room. Or we can drop them somewhere if they like. More and more, we’re handing them over to the Tessans so that they can be free and protected there. Sometimes, they have somewhere else to go.’

  ‘Are you going to feed them that stuff?’ she turned her attention back to the Aerdan and the three Temerin.

  ‘Olgi, yes. It will be in all of their meals from this point on. Then they will know who their mita is. Their mita will welcome them, teach them about their family, their history. Some rote, they will know who they are, not what the Bentari told them they were.’

  Danielle walked back into the hall and around a corner. Bedvir followed.

  ‘Danielle?’

  She rubbed at her eyes, keeping her back to him. A moment later, she was turned and arms wrapped around her, pulling her into the hard muscle of his chest.

  ‘I’m sorry. I know I’m being stupid.’

  ‘Empathy is not stupid,’ Bedvir whispered. ‘Feeling pain for others makes you better than those who did this to them.’

  ‘They don’t want my pity,’ she argued.

  ‘Then don’t give it to them,’ he said. ‘Give them the kindness they’ve had withheld all these solars. Give them friendship. They will thank you for it.’

  ‘I’m not a good person,’ Danielle admitted.

  Bedvir stepped back a little, holding her away from him, a concerned, almost angry look on his face. ‘Who told you this? You are good, Danielle.’ ‘If you were not a good person, the knowledge of what had been done to them would not cause tears.’

  Danielle shook her head, unwilling, unable to talk. Bedvir pulled her back into his arms. ‘I will make you see how good you are,’ he said.

  It felt like a vow.

  * * *

  It took a day and a half to refit the ship, which had been renamed Barradu by the Temerin. Barradu was a feeling. The Temerin had a lot of words like this, that meant a concept, a feeling, an abstract.

  Barradu represented the spirit of unity to the Temerin people. It had been a seldom used expression on Temir, but since the Bentari invasion they used it all the time to represent their vow never to abandon their own people.

  While the guys were helping refit the ships engine to make it run more like a Temerin engine, Danielle was adopted by a Temerin female called Imalia. Imalia was slightly older than Danielle and acted ten years younger. She was funny, irreverent, and in charge of changing the crew’s suites to make them suitable and homely for the freed slaves once Barradu got on its way.

  Imalia was also from Mita Kar, Haddis and Kentor’s mita. She’d heard that Danielle had taken all three males to mate—her words—and seemed thrilled to have Danielle as part of the mita.

  For the Temerin’s part, they didn’t care if Danielle took one lover, three or a hundred. As far as they were concerned, whatever happened between consenting adults was their business. Dirvan himself had several lovers, male, female, adalan, and other.

  ‘He collects them like I collect pretty rocks,’ she said, a lecherous grin on her face.

  ‘Ever thought about being collected?’ Danielle asked.

  Imalia laughed so hard she collapsed on the bed they were currently making. ‘All the time. I hear he has a talented tongue.’

  Danielle felt her face drop and heat at the same time, which only made Imalia laugh even more.

  ‘Not as talented as Aerdan’s though,’ she said, raising an eyebrow.

  For a moment, Danielle thought Imalia was talking from experience and felt a pang of jealousy shoot through her.

  ‘Or so I hear,’ she said, standing, her face falling. ‘I’m sorry. It’s not my business.’

  ‘No, wait. I’m sorry. I didn’t realise. Sometimes my face just falls into resting bitch face and I don’t realise I’m doing it.’

  ‘What is resting bitch face?’

  ‘It’s when your relaxed face is bitchy. Like you hate everyone.’

  Imalia thought for a moment before laughing. ‘You humans have some interesting terms. Resting bitch face.’

  ‘Yeah,’ Danielle said weakly. ‘I just… I don’t mean it. If I’m doing it, just let me know and I’ll stop.’

  ‘Oh, Danielle. You will find that Temerin do not care about such things. We do not hold people’s faces or expressions against them.’

  Danielle nodded, but kept her mouth shut. She wanted to believe her, but whenever she’d had similar conversations in the past, sooner or later people held it against her.

  When they were done, Imalia stood and looked at their work. Danielle joined in. Several of the thirty crew quarters had been left as single to double occupancy rooms, but the rest had been converted to family rooms. The Temerin were so efficient, which Danielle would never have thought at all, especially after the first day. After seeing to the welfare of the freed slaves and getting them set up in their own rooms, they’d all sat around talking, drinking and eating. It was a community catch up but it made Danielle uncomfortable because there was so much work to do. The following morning, nothing got done for half the day, then suddenly, everyone got up and got to work.

  They moved walls, opened spaces, blocked off parts of dead-end passages to increase home space. The old cage rooms were turned into stores and the stores were converted into three family apartments.

  All together now, the ship could house five crew, several single people and couples, and ten families. They could also change the space as needed, moving the stores into the cargo bay and changing that into a living area should it be needed.

  Everything else was done. Imalia was in charge of a group that was making everything homely for other Temerin to move in. It was the last task. In a few hours, they’d be leaving, and Danielle hated to admit she’d miss it.

  The Temerin didn’t judge her. They accepted her as she was. The only nerve that itched was their tendency to make fun of one another. No one had of her, but she felt like she was waiting for it constantly.

  Imalia walked around the room and pulled Danielle under her arm. Temerin females were smaller than the men, but their heights ranged so much, it didn’t mean much. Imalia was around six foot two, while Danielle was five foot ten, so the two women were almost even.

  ‘I’m going to miss you when you go,’ Imalia said. ‘I’ve enjoyed having you around. I hope we’re both able to make it to the next temit.’

  ‘Temit?’

  ‘A meeting of Temerin mita,’ Imalia explained. ‘If an important decision needs to be made, a meeting place is chosen by the Poogarin and any Temerin in the area can attend. Any decision made at the end of the temit must be upheld by all Temerin.’

  ‘Oh,’ Danielle frowned. ‘What’s a Poogarin?’

  The Temerin who calls the temit,’ Imalia said, as though that was perfectly obvious.

  ‘Of course.’ Danielle nodded. She’d ask Bedvir or Haddis about it later.

  They wandered through the ship, heading back to the docking bay.

  ‘So now, for this ship?’

  ‘Now it heads to one of the planets where our people without ships are hiding, to become their new home.’

  ‘Danielle!’ Haddis waved from across the deck as she entered the docking bay. Danielle smiled and waved back.

  Haddis was the youngest of the three males who seemed to be courting her. It showed in many ways, through his enthusiasm, the way he carried himself and the things he said. He was sweet, showering her with attention and space, somehow at the same time.

  Scanning across the deck, Danielle could see Kentor and Sidha loading some of the goods they’d found onto the ship. They would take them to trade, keeping some of the credits for themselves and sending some back to the ship to help the people moving in to settle down. The rest would be sent to contacts who were always on the lookout for Temerin slaves, to buy and free
them.

  Danielle had never come across a people so dedicated to their own, even if they didn’t know them. Even if those people didn’t know themselves.

  Imalia and Danielle hugged goodbye and she boarded her mita’s ship. They left a few minutes later. The other ships following, one by one.

  Aerdan walked over to Danielle and, under the watchful gaze of Dirvan, pulled her into his side and walked her back to the ship.

  Danielle sat on the bridge as they left. They waited for the other ships to leave, waited until Barradu moved off and jumped, before Aerdan and Haddis took them into FTL.

  A couple of hours later, Danielle walked into the mess. Kentor and Sidha had whipped up a delicious-smelling dinner from the stores of the Barradu, and the crew had come together to eat.

  She was breathing easier since they’d set foot on the slaver ship. Knowing they’d killed the crew and saved the slaves made her feel like she was safer than she’d been in a long time. It was almost sad that it would have to end when she went to Tessa. Danielle was surprised by the tight knot of gloom that flared to life in her chest with that thought.

  The three guys were all wearing their hair down again. Danielle admired it. There was still a part of her that thought it was unprofessional, but having seen the rest of the Temerin, who all wore their hair long and hearing how important hair was to them, she didn’t begrudge them their culture and traditions.

  Aerdan’s was almost a Cadbury purple. Rich, dark, and vibrant all at the same time. Haddis’s was crimson and beautiful, and he always wore it over one shoulder or the other while Bedvir’s was orange with grey streaks through it. His eyes were the same and brightened when they landed on her.

  Aerdan turned and grinned. ‘On our way to Tessa,’ he said. ‘It’s still going to take some time, so we can ensure we don’t pick up any more tails.’

  ‘That’s wonderful. Thank you, Aerdan.’

  Aerdan nodded and gestured for Danielle to take the seat next to him at the head. Swallowing down her nerves and disappointment that they were heading to Tessa so soon, Danielle sat.

  ‘We were just talking through the ambush,’ Bedvir said. ‘Seeing if there’s anything we could have done better.’

  Kentor walked over from the galley side and placed a dish in front of her. She looked up at him and smiled her thanks. Immediately Kentor’s face softened and he patted her on the shoulder before returning to the galley and giving Sidha a kiss on the top of his head.

  ‘You’re military,’ Aerdan said, sitting back. ‘What do you think?’

  Danielle thought through the entire episode. She’d watched it with Sidha in her room terrified out of her mind and hadn’t really thought of it since.

  ‘Erm, no. I think for the level of ship, it was a sound strategy. It worked well.’ Danielle shook her head, her lips pursing. ‘I honestly wouldn’t change it for a ship that size. I’m a bit confused why they followed us for so long,’ she said. ‘But it worked.’

  Danielle saw Aerdan and Haddis exchange a quick look.

  ‘What do you mean the level of ship?’ Aerdan said, putting the look out of her mind.

  ‘Well, for the size of ship, the strategy works because they don’t really have room for many slaves, so they’re going to go after vessels this size. But if you were to go after Crucible—’

  Several huffed laughs cut her off.

  ‘I said, if,’ she laughed. ‘Because Crucible’s huge.’

  ‘We’ve seen it,’ Aerdan said almost dismissively.

  ‘Not inside,’ Sidha said, and shook.

  ‘Exactly,’ Danielle said, feeling Sidha’s shudder in every fibre of her being. ‘It’s… the slave cages are horrible. The room is…’

  ‘Vast,’ Sidha finished for her.

  Danielle nodded in agreement, her eyes locking onto the Sindaal’s. ‘You’re shoved into cages with a dozen other people.’

  ‘Unless you’re prized, like a particularly well behaved Aavani or Zavi. Or Tolomus has a grudge on you, like he did Makios.’

  ‘But most of you are just shoved in with other people. There’s a hole in the ground to toilet in. Food and water packets drop in from the ceiling maybe twice a day if you’re lucky.’

  Sidha nodded, his body had gone stiff with memory, and Danielle felt herself going the same way.

  ‘He can probably fit two, three hundred slaves in there at a time.’

  ‘Easily,’ Tolomus said. ‘More on a good raiding trip. There were at least three hundred of us in there when I escaped with Makios. Most of them he left on the ship for other auctions.’

  ‘Bloody hell,’ Danielle whispered.

  ‘So how would you handle Tolomus?’ Aerdan moved closer to her, genuinely interested.

  ‘Tolomus needs a bigger catch,’ Danielle said. ‘Going after one small ship isn’t enough for him. I’m sure he’ll take them when he finds them, comes across them, but…’ Danielle thought back to her multiple briefings about Crucible when she was working the Mars-Earth run on the ISAFV Victory.

  ‘Tolomus jumps in, opens the landing deck he has inside the ship and releases twenty or thirty spaceships that grapple and tow ships inside. He is looking for a big take,’ she smacked the back of her right hand into her left palm, ‘more slaves,’ she slapped it again, ‘more profit.’ She smacked it one more time. ‘He goes for maximum take, every time. That’s the weakness you need to exploit. Promise him a big take. Promise him something he doesn’t have. Promise him an undiscovered world of Temerin and he’ll fall over himself to claim it.’

  Aerdan sat back in his seat, a contemplative look on his face.

  ‘The rest of your strategy is sound. But all of our data about Tolomus suggests he’s smart. He won’t fall for the limping animal trick. You have to make him think you’re trying to lead him away to get him to go where you want him. If he thinks it looks too easy, he won’t fall for it.’

  Aerdan nodded. ‘And you think we could do this?’

  Danielle thought about the tactics she’d seen them use. The equipment, which Sidha had told her was called a cronitone field generator.

  ‘With the right strategist, yes.’ Danielle nodded enthusiastically.

  Aerdan seemed to be about to ask her something, then seemed to think better about it and quieted.

  Kentor and Sidha delivered the food. The conversation over, Danielle turned to the meal and inhaled. She was going to Tessa. She was going to be safe finally.

  If she felt more than a little disappointment, Danielle ignored it.

  * * *

  Aerdan sat on the bridge staring out at the stars, unable to get Danielle’s words out of his head.

  That’s the weakness you need to exploit. Promise him a big take. Promise him something he doesn’t have. Promise him an undiscovered world of Temerin and he’ll fall over himself to claim it.

  The more Aerdan thought about it, the more sense it made.

  He’d often had slavers, captors, mercenaries asking where all the Temerin hid. Their world had been almost abandoned when the Bentari arrived. They’d planned to come back for everyone, but the fact is that the Bentari military complex was just too big and privately owned by the largest slaving families. Going back would have meant death or slavery and the end of their people.

  Someday, they would reclaim their home. But they knew they couldn’t do it alone and until slavery was dismantled from the IGC out, the Temerin would be homeless.

  In truth, more than half of their people were itinerant. Living in the stars, trading, thieving, pirating, and smuggling. More than half of them were members of the Calidon Crime Syndicate.

  But the rest were spread out on planets across the stars. They lived in small groups, naturally in the wilds with little technology to give them away. Occasionally, they had to be moved, as civilisations explored and colonised.

  Aerdan knew that most people believed they’d claimed and colonised another planet, and there were slavers constantly on the lookout or listening for where that colony
might be.

  Temerin were a rare slave. Especially as Aerdan and his people worked so hard to free, rescue, and buy their kin and bring them back into the fold.

  Promise him an undiscovered world of Temerin and fall over himself to claim it.

  The thought was a promising tease that Aerdan wanted to explore.

  No. Not explore. He’d been exploring it all night. He wanted to talk about it now. Talk about it to his people. Come up with a plan. Argue about it. Rage about it. Rave about it.

  He wanted to call a temit.

  Mind made up, Aerdan put a call into the Poogarin.

  The screen flickered to life as the call went through and a yellow marked Temerin turned his titanium eyes on Aerdan.

  ‘Madar,’ the Poogarin nodded in respect.

  ‘Cuulden, how are you?’

  ‘I’m getting vrokking old and annoyed,’ the old Temerin admitted. ‘I’m short on patience, rich in foolish young students and fed up of games. What do you want, Aerdan?’

  Aerdan grinned which just seemed to annoy Cuulden even more. Cuulden had been Poogarin back on Temir, and Aerdan had grown up around the old male. He had nothing but love and respect for him and no small amount of bemused humour.

  ‘I want to call a temit,’ he said.

  ‘The last time you called a temit, you won, went off to that meeting at the IGC, and next thing I know, you’re running from an explosion and being chased by slavers. I hear the ambush went very well and we have another ship for our people.’ One sentence followed the other almost with no break, making Aerdan’s head spin at the change in conversation.

  Aerdan nodded. ‘Very good. Got the ship, took care of the slavers, and saved three facility-born Temerin.’

  Cuulden nodded. ‘Good. Why do you want a temit?’

  ‘The Tessans have placed a bounty on Tolomus.’

  ‘So? That’s not our business.’