“He has no idea who I had implanted. He may have created the device, but I had sole discretion and wherewithal of who to use. It was a simple procedure. This body had no idea.”
“I didn’t mean to kill you. It was an accident. You jumped at me just as Lourde pulled me back to him. It wasn’t my fault you landed on the knife.” The ramifications of him being alive confronted me. “I’m actually really glad you’re here, believe it or not.”
He raised an eyebrow. “Really? I’m supposed to believe you?”
“After I got back and we discovered you were dead, Kenix told me he’d been informed of your council’s plot to eliminate humans and take back Earth. He said you were against it.”
“Of course I’m against it. The main objective has always been to remain anonymous. It was never our intention to allow humans to be aware of our existence—at least it wasn’t in the past. It makes things very complicated. Some of my council members have forgotten that. And if all of you were eliminated, who would we use for our games? If any humans did remain alive they’d be virtually impossible to catch. They’d be terrified and hide, or fight. So much trouble.”
Indeed. “We were afraid the council would view your disappearance as a go-ahead to begin killing us off for Calixtus’ entertainment.”
Baynard slammed Danny’s hand down on the table in rage. “We’ll see about that! No one defies me. I must get in contact with my planet right now. I will put a stop to this immediately.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I am relieved you’re here. I can get you to the ship. I’m sure I can find it.”
“Why do I need you?” He waved his hand toward the map I’d drawn. “Did you think I would forget the fact that you tried to kill me? And after I contact Calixtus, and order the attack stopped, what’s to prevent you from killing me then?”
As a show of good faith, I stuck my knife back in my boot. Hell, I’d kicked his ass before and I could do it again—if it came down to it. “Like it or not, we need each other. If you approach that ship without me, even looking like that, Ayres will kill you on sight.”
He stared at me for a full minute or so before he finally sighed in defeat. “Well, what are you waiting for? Lead on.”
Leaving my note on the table, I picked up the flashlight and headed past Baynar out the door. I didn’t want to tell him that when we crashed the ship appeared to be without any power. At least it was when I tried to contact Kenix. It was, however, an Akkadian ship and I wasn’t entirely sure how to work it. Getting to Ayres first was my priority. My need to see him and make sure he was all right far outweighed any other factors right now. If the ship’s communicators were down, I was sure we’d be able to find Kenix soon enough, especially with Ayres’ help.
Never in a million years did I think I’d be trudging through the woods at night with Baynar. It was weird hearing his voice come out of Danny’s mouth. I don’t know how he’d managed that one. Although, maybe when I’d taken complete control of Lara, my voice had been different too? It could be why it had been so easy to convince Cade of my identity.
All around us the dark forest loomed. We’d left Danny’s car where those two guys had parked their truck and then we’d headed in on foot. I shone the flashlight around, searching for that small mound the ship rested beside, or even the little bubbling creek as a marker point that I was headed in the right direction.
“How much farther?” Baynar demanded. “Your planet will be overrun before I even have a chance to call off the attack.”
“Keep your shirt on,” I snapped, his constant complaining and threats were getting on my nerves.
“Feel free to take yours off.”
“Piss off, you bloody pervert.”
“Why don’t you piss off, you useless piece of trash. Why did I ever think you’d be able to…”
“That’s far enough,” came a deep voice in the distance.
My heart leaped with joy. “Ayres?”
“Amanda? Who is that with you? Damned if it doesn’t sound like…”
“Baynar?” I supplied.
Ayres stepped into view of my dim light but didn’t come forward. “He sounds like him, but isn’t that one of the men from your cottage who was brought up to the Lariton?”
“They were returned home shortly after they were taken, apparently.”
He appeared confused. “Why does he sound like Baynar?”
“That’s because I am him, you damn fool!” Baynar snapped.
“How the hell?” Ayres strode forward and moved between Danny’s body and me.
I took hold of his hand, thrilled to see him awake. “It’s a long story. But hey, it’s actually a good thing he’s not dead. Now he can contact Calixtus and tell them to call off the attack.”
Ayres snapped his gaze to Baynar. “You’re willing to do that?”
“Of course I am, you idiot. I never wanted this to happen.”
“I was hoping Kenix would be back at the cottage, and you along with him. After I woke up from the crash I went scouting around looking for him this morning, but I came across a couple of guys who’d seen our ship go down. I convinced them I was alone and that it was a plane. I let them take me into town figuring it was better than letting them find you. I figured from there I’d head back to my cottage to search for Kenix just in case he went there. But the cops identified me and returned me to Lindove.” I looked over at Baynar. “I guess that turned out for the best.”
“How the hell is he in another body?”
“One of Lourde’s devices,” I told him.
“Will we stand here all night or do you plan to save Earth or not?” Baynar snapped.
“My ship’s down, completely dead. You can’t contact anyone from it,” Ayres informed him.
“Then why the hell did you lead me out here?” He glared at me.
“It’s the only ship I know of right now. I don’t know where Kenix is,” I said.
“I do,” Ayres informed us.
With Ayres in the lead, we all began trudging through the forest again. He first led us back to the downed ship to retrieve the duffle bags.
“So, you know where Kenix is?” I asked.
Ayres handed a bag to Baynar who took it but glared at him. “Hand-held communicators,” he said, indicating a small device strapped to his hip. “Not enough range to reach very far,” he added.
“So why did you stay here?” I asked.
He looked down at me. “I didn’t know where you were. I didn’t want to take the chance that you’d return and me not be here. I was worried.”
I reached out and took hold of his free hand. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to be gone so long.” Baynar grunted behind us as we walked, struggling with the heavy bag he carried.
“How was it for you being back there, at Lindove?”
“Weird.”
“I’m glad you’re back.”
“Me too.” More than you know.
Chapter 28
It was some time before we, at last, made it to Kenix. He’d set up camp in a large clearing where the ground was covered mainly with smooth rock. Tall trees surrounded the area making it virtually invisible from the ground. I was relieved to see his ship was intact and Lourde standing close by. Lissa was there too, off on her own, sitting on a log in front of a bonfire. I ignored her. Ayres and Baynar dropped the bags as Kenix approached us and he and Ayres grasped forearms in greeting.
“Glad to see you in one piece,” Kenix said nodding at us both.
“We are, but as I told you earlier, the ship took a hit. It made it here, but crashed on landing. The ship’s no longer viable,” Ayres told him.
Kenix turned his gaze on Danny. “Who’s this?”
“Hold onto your hat,” I told him.
“What? Why?”
“Tell him,” I said to Ayres. I left them to walk over to Lourde who was fiddling with some equipment, a duffle bag lay open at his feet. “Good to see you.”
He s
miled. “And you. Sorry about your ship. I’m glad you’re both safe, though. Who’s he?”
“That’s your handy work.” He stared at me quizzically. “Baynar’s consciousness is residing in that guy. Same voice, same bastard. I’m relieved he’s alive though.”
“Incredible! It worked.”
“It makes me really nervous the way you get so excited when your inventions actually work.” I shook my head. “Anyway, it’s good news. I told him his council was most likely in the process of launching an attack. He said he needs to contact Calixtus—someone he trusts—and he can put a stop to it.”
“You believe him?” Lourde asked, his appraising gaze fastened on his handiwork.
“What choice do we have?”
Ayres joined us. “Kenix and I will take Baynar aboard and allow him to contact Calixtus. We’ll watch him.” He pulled me into his arms and kissed the top of my head. “Don’t worry. If he tries anything I’ll kill him.”
“I hope this will end the threat,” I said.
“We’ll soon find out,” Lourde said. “I’ll come with you.”
The four men entered the ship. I walked over to the fire to join Lissa.
“Is that really Baynar in that guy’s body?” she asked, obviously having overheard the news.
“Yep.”
“So he can phone home and stop this, right?”
I shrugged. “Hope so.”
Suddenly a light appeared and Lissa and I both saw a small ship hovering over the tree line. Lissa jumped to her feet. “Oro!” she said.
We waited while he brought the ship in for a smooth landing on the other side of the clearing. Lissa ran over and threw herself into his arms as soon as he disembarked. I walked over to join them.
“Had to make sure you weren’t Akkadian’s before I landed,” he said.
The last time I’d seen this giant he’d been about to remove my head from my shoulders. Both of us gave the other a quick nod in greeting. Like it or not, we were on the same team.
“We’ve got Baynar,” Lissa told him. “He’s on Kenix’s ship right now giving the order to halt any attacks on Earth.”
“What? I’d heard he was missing, assumed dead?” Oro said, confused.
“He did die. But his mind transferred here to Earth into some guy—some invention of Lourde’s. He sounds exactly the same.”
“Shit,” Oro said. He began striding toward Kenix’s ship. I guess he had to see it for himself.
Lissa and I jogged alongside him. Just as we got to the ship the four men were coming out. “It’s done,” Ayres said, his cold gaze fastened on Oro.
Oro stared at Danny. “Baynar?”
“It’s him,” Kenix informed him. “He got hold of his contact on Calixtus. He’s sending a ship. Everyone will soon know he’s alive and well. This should end any threat of attack.”
“Of course it will,” Baynar snapped arrogantly. Shrugging his shoulders and shaking his hands in front of him he appeared to be trying to accustom himself to his new skin. As though feeling our scrutiny he stared around at our little motley group appraisingly. “If I don’t return to Calixtus safely, I make no guarantees your precious Earth will be safe.”
“What guarantees can you make that you being alive will keep it safe?” Ayres said, fingering the sheath holding a long blade he kept strapped to his belt.
Baynar narrowed his stare. “I suppose we’ll just have to trust each other.”
“What’s to stop you from sending your goons to finish us off?” I asked. Granted, we could jump in our ships and be gone before Baynar’s backup arrived, but now that I was home I was reluctant to leave. At least until I knew for sure that Earth was safe. Well, at least as safe as it was before.
All of a sudden the night sky lit up with what appeared to be fireflies. “What is that?” I asked, then gulped in fright as the lights revealed themselves to be not harmless flies, but several small ships.
“Good guys or bad?” Lissa asked.
“Let’s not take any chances,” Kenix said heading for the weapons.
“Damn it, they must have followed me here,” Oro said. If not for the angered and surprised look on his face I wouldn’t have believed him. I guess we’d soon see what side he was on when the fighting began.
Ayres seemed to buy his sincerity as well. “Don’t worry about it now. Mandy, get onto Oro’s ship with Lourde and Lissa. Lourde, if it looks bad, I want you to get them out of here.”
“What about me?” Baynar asked. We could all see he was scared.
Ayres glared at him for a moment. “You go with them. We need you alive.”
Baynar nodded. Kenix strode back over, carrying a bag of weapons and tossed it on the ground. Ayres reached into it and handed Lourde and I a weapon each—just in case. Then he pulled me into his arms and kissed me hard. Oro kissed Lissa and then shooed us onboard the ship. Lourde and I went and sat down in the control seats, with Baynar and Lissa looming behind us. All of us anxiously watched the three warriors outside stand in a line, armed to the teeth, several feet in front of us.
Lourde prepared the ship for flight in case we needed a quick get-a-way. It wasn’t long before a dozen small fighter crafts hovered in close to our location and then set down on the other side of the clearing.
The Roamyns’ exited their crafts and went to stand before them. One of the men began walking out and Ayres went out to meet him halfway.
“What’s happening?” Baynar snapped. “I can’t hear a damn thing.”
“Please tell me that’s one of your guys,” I said.
Baynar was pale when I looked at him. “No, it’s not.”
Ayres and the other man appeared to be yelling now. “Doesn’t look like it’s going well,” Lissa observed.
I got to my feet. “I can’t just sit here.”
Lourde jumped up and snatched my hand. “That’s exactly what Ayres wants you to do. He needs to know you’re safe so he can do what he needs to.
I didn’t know what to do. Part of me wanted to march Baynar out there and make them understand he was their leader and that they must do as he says. But if they killed him before he had a chance to make things right, then we were screwed.
I looked out the front of the ship in time to see Ayres punch the other man in the face. Laser shots from both sides began to light up the night sky. I could hear pings and pongs as the spacecraft deflected the shots, which thankfully weren’t as powerful as ones blasted from a ship.
Though I longed to help our side by firing on the enemy with the ship’s lasers, I knew the other side would blast us to pieces if they did the same thing. Ayres, who crouched down nearby, came into our view and waved his arms in a signal to take off.
“No,” I gasped.
Ignoring me, Lourde ordered everyone into their seats. He turned his attention to the controls. Soon we were lifting off and zooming away into the night sky, leaving the man I loved on the ground to fight for Earth, and his life.
Chapter 29
Almost as soon as we lifted off, three other ships took to the sky to chase us. Lourde swirled and ducked and veered, all to no avail. When our ship took a hit we were forced to turn around and land. So much for fleeing for safety. As we came in and set down practically right back in the same spot, I could see mayhem reigned. The ships pursuing us came down as well, not taking advantage of their superior firepower from the sky. I guess they feared hitting their own men. Sweeping my gaze around the clearing, I could see that a few bodies littered the ground. With the glow of the several ships’ lights I saw with relief that none of them belonged to our side.
Baynar left his seat in the back of the ship and came up to the front now that we’d landed. Lissa was right behind him. He stared outside openmouthed. “I…I can’t believe the outright defiance.”
The defeated and terrified look on his face revealed that he knew his men would arrive too late to save him. Staring at the bloody scene outside, I was inclined to feel the same.
“You did this!
” he snarled at me. “If I was on the Lariton where I should be, none of this would be happening.”
He was right. What could I say?
“You’re a damn fool!” Lourde snapped at him, leaping to his feet. “Look at those men out there. If you were any kind of leader, you would have known your own council was biding their time to overthrow your command. They did it when you were stranded on Taleon. No one was willing to go down there to rescue you. They were all too busy placing bets on who on that planet would have the privilege of killing you first. You’re no leader. You’re a bully and a coward.”
Baynar stood still as stone; the only thing moving was his mouth that opened and closed several times like a fish out of water.
“It’s time to step up,” I told him. “Time to show those thugs out there who’s in charge. You are leader of Calixtus by right of birth. Now it’s time to show them it’s also by right of blood.”
Baynar closed his mouth and pushed his shoulders back, taking full rein of Danny’s body. “You’re right.”
“What?” I must not have heard him.
“I said you’re right.”
He suddenly snatched my weapon off my belt and strode toward the hatch.
“Can’t let him go alone,” I said to Lourde.
He sighed and got to his feet. “Stay behind me,” he ordered coming up to the now open doorway. Baynar jumped down and Lourde and I followed. Lissa surprised me by jumping out as well.
“All for one,” she said with a shrug.
I gave her just a hint of a smile.
Ayres spotted us and, keeping low, he scrambled over. “What are you doing?” he had to raise his voice above the sound of laser bolts blasting all around us.
“We tried to leave and they forced us back down,” I said.
He grimaced. “I saw.”
“If I’m gonna die, it’ll be by your side. Not hiding in some ship.”
He handed a weapon over to me. Slowly, Oro and Kenix made their way over to us as well. Before long, all of us stood, side by side, facing the now silent enemy. Seeing us taking a stance, they too gathered together and stood across from us.
Survivor Planet III Page 12
