Grai's Game (First Wave)

by Mikayla Lane

  Dare followed the strange scent down the almost completely empty hallways of the upper part of the warehouse where the offices had been converted into sleeping quarters.

  Easily finding the back staircase, she followed it to the ground level and turned to the re-purposed rooms that were under the sleeping quarters.

  Slowly opening the door, as if afraid of what she would find, she was relieved to see Dr. Maggie. It didn’t take long for Maggie’s nervousness to wipe the smile off of her face. It was then she was hit with the pain.

  Grabbing her head in surprise and fear she watched through hazy vision as Maggie rushed to her side, helped her into a bed and sat her down.

  “You have to block it, Dare!” Maggie said worriedly as she ran across the room to grab some water for her.

  Taking deep breaths, Dare began to separate herself from the pain emanating from behind a curtained off area in the back of the room.

  “It’s another Relian beast!” Thorn screamed in her mind, immediately afraid for them.

  Dare growled low in her throat and stood, walking swiftly to the other side of the room she jerked back the curtain, prepared to face the Relian enemy hiding among their own and stumbled back in surprise.

  Tristan? She thought with a puzzled frown on her face. What was Tricia’s son doing here? Where was the scent coming from then? She stood there looking down at the sweet little boy; they had all come to love the moment Tricia had brought him to meet them years ago.

  He’d only been a year-old, but he’d been a very smart and alert little guy. He had the most unusual golden eyes she had ever seen, and they always sparkled with happiness.

  The diagnosis of autism a year later had broken all of their hearts, but had only strengthened the bond they had all had with the child and his mother.

  Sitting on the side of the bed, she raised her hand and was getting ready to brush a lock of dark hair back from his face when her hand was grabbed quickly and jerked away.

  “You can’t touch him Dare. Even the Tezarian could barely stand his pain. You have the baby to worry about.” Maggie said gently and placed a bottle of water into the hand she was going to use to touch Tristan.

  Dare stared at the bottle of water blankly for a moment before looking into Maggie’s brown eyes. Her mind slowly processed what was going on, and she stepped back quickly from the bed, looking between Maggie and Tristan.

  “It’s not what you think. I swear to you Dare…” Maggie never got to finish what she was going to say.

  Dare watched in stunned silence as the bed began to shake violently. With Maggie’s body blocking the bed, all she could see were Tristan’s too thin arms and legs flailing helplessly as his body jerked violently.

  Opening herself a little, out of curiosity of what was happening, she almost reeled backwards from the pain. Her heart broke at the thought of the little boy she knew hurting like that, and she rushed to the other side of the bed.

  “What can I do?” Dare yelled out to Maggie.

  “Hold him for a minute!” Maggie said quickly. She waited until Dare held him securely before running across the room and grabbing a syringe.

  Dare fought desperately to hold the small child without hurting him more. His little body was very strong under the power of the seizure that had hit him. Ignoring his pain, Dare tried to open herself up a little more to him, hoping to comfort him somehow. She was more than a little surprised when she felt her son’s beasts stir and reach out tentatively to the boy.

  Maggie didn’t hesitate as she plunged the needle into the boy and waited breathlessly for the medicine to work. Counting the seconds, she was surprised that for once, it hadn’t taken quite as long to work as it normally did.

  Dare held the slowly relaxing body of Tristan in her arms and little by little scooted up the bed until she rested her back against the wall, his little body cuddled against her chest.

  Now that his body was calming and the pain subsiding slightly, Dare reached out farther to the child, not quite sure what she was doing.

  “DO NOT!” Thorn screamed in her mind, forcing her to draw back in surprise.

  “What is it?” Dare asked her beast.

  “He is the son of a Relian and a human. His beast is dying. Our young ones can’t go through that kind of pain. It is as we were with our little Relian beast, only it is worse for him as his beast has been dying since their birth.” Thorn said sadly.

  “Can we help?” Dare asked, fear for the child she knew making her squeeze him tightly to her chest as if to protect him.

  “The doctor knows. I can scent it.” Thorn said gruffly, hating that any child was in pain.

  Dare looked up to see Maggie wringing her hands as if afraid or worried. She gave Tristan another gentle squeeze, sending out waves of love to the child and could have sworn she felt a shimmer of response.

  She almost missed the slight wince that Maggie made when she did. As if Maggie thought she would hurt Tristan. What the hell was going on?

  “Tell me everything Maggie.” Dare said, her voice dangerously lower than she had intended it to be.

  “I will; I promise. Just please put him down? He needs his rest.” Maggie said nervously.

  Dare watched her friend act strangely around her for the first time in all the years she had known her. Even when she and Balduen had come back from captivity, Maggie had been one of the few that had never shown any fear of either of them. So what was scaring her so badly now?

  Giving Tristan a gentle kiss on his forehead, she tenderly moved out from behind him and laid him flat on the bed. She fluffed his pillows and covered his little body with the superhero comforter dislodged during his seizure. Grabbing the stuffed rabbit that had fallen to the floor, Dare picked it up and placed it under his arm before nodding to the other side of the room to Maggie.

  When they reached the other side of the room, Dare turned quickly on her friend. Pinning her with a sharp look that spoke volumes, she repeated her demand. “Tell me everything. Now.”

  *****

  “Grai! They’re coming!” Traze yelled out moving to a sitting position as his fingers flew across his comm.

  Everyone watched as the screens in the room became the views from the streets that surrounded the warehouse. Each screen reflected a different view, including an aerial.

  Drew, Bree and Jane gave their head gear back to Ivint, Jax and Reven. The three women looked at Grai for a moment before heading out of the conference room. Obviously following a silent command.

  “Sir, Viper and I can see them without the lens; we have our swords and can go outside and try to prevent them from entering.” Dread volunteered, not taking his eyes from the dark figures moving slowly along the shadows of the streets toward the warehouse. He could easily pick out a dozen of them.

  Ivint stared at the screens with the headgear on and sucked in a deep breath.

  “Notify Balduen, we can use as many eyes on this as possible. But not Dare.” Ivint stressed the last to Dread, hoping that he would ensure that Dare would not involve herself.

  “Can you make sure your people give them the weapons they need?” Ivint turned and asked Grai, surprising him that he had been included.

  “Yes, they’ve already grabbed the stores and have been handing out the head gear and weapons to the Valendrans and humans. Everything Banatar’s people are currently using is already equipped to deal with the dark ones.” Grai answered, still shaking off his surprise that the High Councilor had asked him.

  “Like the Tezarian’s I should be outside where we have the best chance of repelling them. Traze, stay in here and make sure Risk has access to everything we have on Dagog, their forces… everything. I will be back soon.” Grai gave Traze a hard look and whispered quietly through their link that he was to protect his mate and child as well. Traze gave a hard nod of agreement before looking back to his comm and Risk.

  “Here, I’ll show you how to use that one.” Traze offered, waiting to see if the hybrid would come to him. He
hid his smile when Risk stood and walked towards him, eventually taking the seat beside him. Moments later the two young men were so wrapped up in the devices it would have been hard to get their attention.

  Grai turned to the now standing Tricia and gently took her small, cold hands in his own. He stared for a moment at the difference in their hands, marveling that such a beautiful and delicate person could ever love him. She had been the one thing that had reached into the darkness surrounding his soul and had pulled him into the light, and he would do whatever it took to protect her and his son.

  “Go to Tristan and stay with him and Maggie. I will come for you when it is safe.” He said gruffly, running his thumbs softly across the back of her hand.

  Ivint watched the emotions between the Relian and his mate, making a decision he nodded to David and Gibly.

  “David, take Gibly and make sure she gets to her son safely. Gibly can help watch for the dark ones. Guard them and the doctor until we can get this situation under control. Grai, I give my word; no harm shall come to your family.” Ivint ordered.

  He and Grai stared at each other for a moment, and Ivint would have sworn that the Relian was judging his honesty. He was not the only one surprised when Grai nodded his head and bowed slightly in respect to him. Then without another word, he left the room.

  Moments later he reappeared on one of the screens showing the dock area, moving swiftly he placed himself in front of the other beast bonded hybrids and the Tezarian’s. Ivint didn’t ignore the glimmer of respect he felt for the young Relian.

  Looking around the room, he could see that the others were not immune to his quiet honor and the respect he showed to his people. And no one could ever look at the way he was with Tricia and doubt for a moment that they were indeed mates.

  If it was all an act, it was a carefully planned one. However, Ivint didn’t think it was an act at all. And he hoped like hell that he was right; he thought as he watched Gibly and David follow a shaken Tricia out of the door.

  *****

  “I don’t want to hear anymore!” Dare growled dangerously at Maggie, her anger escalating the more she realized how she’d been betrayed.

  “Dare, please! You have to know that…” Maggie’s plea choked in her throat, unable to pass the fingers clamped tightly around her neck.

  “Don’t get me wrong, I’m really pissed at her too. But I don’t think killing her is a good idea. Besides, Balduen said that we have something coming called a dark one. We can kill them instead.” Thorn interrupted in a lazy fashion. As if she didn’t have Maggie pinned eight inches off the floor by her neck.

  “Please don’t hurt her. It’s me you’re angry at. Please put her down.”

  Dare dropped Maggie and quickly spun around to face the person she was most angry at… most hurt by her betrayal.

  “Uh… Dare I can’t let you kill them. Or even hurt them. Don’t get me wrong, I understand why you would want to… can’t say I blame you. But Ivint ordered me and Gibly to protect them. And since you’re here too… well we gotta protect you too. So promise not to kill them.” David said to the enraged woman, trying to hide his nervousness at the swirling amber of her eyes.

  Dare stared at the Navy seal that she had helped Jax recruit before she’d been captured and could see his determination to follow his orders. It was one of the things that had impressed her and Jax.

  Tricia ran to Maggie to make sure she was alright and Dare allowed Thorn and the little ones to calm her before nodding her head to David.

  “I’m fine David. Thank you. Balduen is telling me about the dark ones now. Give me a second.” Dare ignored everyone as she listened intently to what Balduen and Dread were explaining to her through the Shengari’.

  *****

  Koda stared nervously at the Valendran Commander, before clearing his throat.

  “Commander Torenson, I have been informed by my brother Traze that your father has spoken to you. He and Risk should be sending you the information we have on Dagog’s ships. The quick lesson is aim your weapons at the hull on the underside of the ship. You’ll see a large protrusion that stands out from the rest of the hull.”

  “It’s a major power center. The crystals he used to power the vessel are very unstable and required them to be ‘vented’ directly into space. If you hit that power center, the entire ship blows.”

  “Other areas of weakness are being sent to you. If you have any questions, you better ask them quick, we only have another few minutes before they arrive.” Koda explained to the High Councilor’s son and commander of the Valendran ship, Adaria.

  He would never admit it, especially not to Grai or Traze, but he was nervous. Not about his brother Dagog, he did not fear death; it was the Valendrans, who worried him. His blessed mother had told him, Grai and Dagog so many stories about her people. About a world where people didn’t enjoy your pain or seek to cause it.

  It was a dream world where he would hide within, in his mind, when the pain became too great or when he felt like breaking. He’d never thought to ever be a part of that world. However, here he was, and he was terrified that he would screw it up.

  “You must be Koda. We’ve been getting the information from the kids for several minutes now. Did you notice there is a door, near the dining hall on the plans that they use to eject waste? It looks like another power core is on the other side, right?” Scaden asked the Relian.

  He and most of the ship not currently at battle stations, were watching the Relian curiously on the vid comm. All the people staring at him didn’t seem to faze the Relian at all and Scaden had to give him a little grudging respect for his steady nerves under the circumstances.

  “Damn, I can’t say I’d want to be him right now. His brother is coming at him head on to kill him, and his eternal enemy is at his back. He’s either brave or seriously stupid.” One of Scaden’s men uttered from behind him causing snickers to erupt among his men.

  “I would call it hope. And an unwavering faith in the hope that one day we can find a place of peace. The same peace you probably take for granted. And yes Commander, that is one of the locations they should be sending to you.” Koda responded without any anger. He could understand why they would mock and distrust him. He and Grai had known that they would have another fight on their hands just trying to make anyone believe that they were being truthful.

  Scaden studied the Relian as he spoke and noted the resignation in his tone and body language. He realized that they expected to be treated badly by them. The cutting words of his crew not only unnecessary, but expected. And he realized he was no better than those who’d spoken so cruelly.

  “You will apologize and you will damn well leave the bridge when you’re done. I will not have an ally treated in this way, especially not when his ship is the one standing in front of our own!” Scaden said grabbing the man by his neck and making him face the vid screen and the Relian commander who looked stunned that someone had said anything in his defense.

  “Uh…, please don’t punish on my account. I understand his… the concerns of your people. Get prepared, they are approaching!” Koda turned his attention from the puzzling situation with Scaden and his people and focused solely on the approaching ships. And killing his own. He just prayed they would all survive it.

  Chapter Five

  Grai sensed Balduen coming up behind him but refused to turn around. The swiftly approaching dark ones held all of his attention. Traze had informed them all through the comm moments ago that the number coming down the streets towards them were exceeding forty. Far more than he expected Dagog to send.

  Sending up a prayer to his Gods to protect his family, he pulled his swords from the scabbard on his back and stepped farther ahead of the others. He was determined to kill as many as he could before they reached anyone else.

  “This would be a good time to remember that you are not alone. We fight this battle together.” Grai was so stunned by Dread’s words that he was momentarily speechless as he watched Dread
draw his swords and stand to his right, while Viper did the same on his left.

  He was even more surprised when Balduen sent him a glare that promised they were not done with their personal battle, nodded, then stepped up on Dread’s other side.

  Grai was so choked up by the three men standing beside him, as warriors, not enemies, that all he could do was nod his head before standing ready to face the first wave of dark ones.

  “Get ready!” He warned through the Shengari’ to all his beast bonded hybrids behind them. He breathed a sigh of relief when he heard them draw their bows; the salt soaked arrow heads ready to fly.

  He had hoped they could have used the guns and rifles but in the open, they couldn’t take the chance of drawing human attention to the area. At least, the sound proofing Banatar had installed in the warehouse years ago would allow them to be used in the warehouse if needed. He prayed it wouldn’t be necessary as the first shadows moved quickly down the alley towards them.

  *****

  Ivint, Banatar, Risk and Traze were all that was left in the conference room. Both boys kept their fingers flying across the comm’s as they pulled up the different screens for the two leaders, showing them the different battle fields that seemed poised to erupt into chaos at any moment.

  There was a bizarre silence in the air, a feeling of expectation as old and new enemies and allies faced each other across a dozen different battle fields on the ground and in space.

  One moment there was silence and the next there was anything but as the sound of shouting and weapon's fire erupted on the screens and in front of the warehouse.

  Ivint’s attention was caught between the screen showing the front of the warehouse and the one showing Scaden’s fleet as he feared for his family.

  Burning debris littered the area in front of the Grai’s ships, who were spinning and firing at the oncoming ships in an impressive display of skill and advanced weaponry. It was obvious that Grai had not been exaggerating regarding his brother Koda’s proficiency at weapon and ship design.