by S. E. Smith
She felt Edge move his hand over hers. He tightened his arm around her when he felt the same warm dampness that she did. She was bleeding again.
“How bad is it?” he quietly asked.
Lina closed her eyes. “Bailey can patch me up while you get us out of here,” she replied.
As her adrenaline subsided, so did her remaining strength. She was still weak from her earlier blood loss and her side hurt like hell. She would close her eyes for just a little while and recharge herself a bit. They were still in a lot of danger, perhaps more so than before now that the Waxians and those other creatures knew they were down here. Lina could only hope that they had killed a bunch of the bastards.
“There are the others,” Gail said.
Lina tried to open her eyes, but it felt like someone had placed lead weights on her eyelids. Instead, she listened as Mechelle, Bailey, and Andy climbed onto the back. A ghost of a smile crossed her lips when she heard them excitedly talking about the ‘big bang’.
Nothing like a nice explosion to lift the spirits, she thought.
Chapter Nineteen
The only lights in the dark tunnel came from the cargo vehicle. Beyond the headlights, scattered crates, left over from the construction of the Spaceport or forgotten by thieves, littered the side of the tunnel.
The stale smell of moon dust and the poignant smell of Lina’s blood teased his senses. She was relaxed against him, but every few seconds her body would tremble.
He tenderly rubbed her hip. He’d seen and heard stories of the bravery of the human women during his tour on Earth. His mind replayed the time when, Sword, Thunder, and he had been sitting in the dining hall at the Earth compound. There had been a young human female, Taylor Sampson, in the dining hall. Young, nimble, and very vocal, Taylor had been amazing to watch as she tried to evade Saber who had been trying to catch her.
Memories he had thought forgotten flooded his mind. The young human had covered Saber in food particles before jumping up on a row of metal shelves. He had never seen anything like that before. The three huge Trivator warriors had been amused at first until the shelf had started to tilt. It was a few moments later, when she was safely on the ground, that Taylor had told Saber in a tortured voice how she had lost her father. Edge would never forget the regret he’d felt while listening to her pain.
Tilting his head to the side, he rested his cheek against Lina’s soft hair. His remorse for the devastation of Earth was a feeling that would never truly leave him. The people of Lina’s world had not been prepared for first contact. They had risen up in force, both against the Trivator forces and against each other. It had shocked Edge – and the council – that the humans were not only willing to die to be free of the Alliance, they were willing to destroy their entire planet in order to achieve that goal.
It was the Trivators’ function within the Alliance to guide new worlds through a peaceful transition into the federation of planets. Instead, the humans had fought with a stunning savagery and tenacity, despite repeated reassurances from the Trivators themselves and their own governments that the Trivators were not there to capture or harm them.
Seeing the heartbreak on the young human’s face and hearing how their presence had affected Taylor and her sisters had stayed with him. Now he had another tangible demonstration of what Earth had become, in Lina. Still, a part of him could not regret their actions because if they had never gone to Earth, he would never have met her.
“I will get you to safety, my little goddess,” he murmured, rubbing his cheek against her hair.
Ten minutes later, the tunnel opened into a large delivery hangar. Lights automatically came on as they entered the area. He blinked as his eyes adjusted to the muted glow.
Edge took a swift breath when he saw the spaceship in the center of the hangar. He didn’t recognize the ship immediately. At first, he thought it was a Waxian fast dispatch supply ship. The outer hull had been modified to resemble one of the older model ships, but there was something different about it. Edge knew that some of the supply ships were upgraded with a faster engine system and new weaponry, but even without upgrades, the ships were still considered the most agile in the Waxian fleet.
As they drew closer, he could see the retracted mounted turrets on the sides. It looked like this one had been used for pirating. He turned his gaze to the numerous empty crates.
“We found this not long after we made our way down into the bowels of the Spaceport,” Lina murmured in a faint voice. “We monitored the area for weeks before we finally decided it was abandoned. The ship was covered in dust and there was no evidence that anyone had disturbed it or even been here in years.”
Edge loosened his hold on her when she stiffly pushed against him to straighten. He immediately looked down at her wound. She was still holding her side, and he could see the dampness of fresh blood between her fingers and on her shirt.
“This hangar would have been used during the initial construction of the Spaceport. Once it was no longer needed, it would have been sealed. A Waxian mercenary probably discovered it. I noticed as we came into the hangar that the blast doors were open. It was probably used to import and export items on which the Waxians wanted to avoid paying a hefty tariff. They were probably caught or killed topside and the ship was forgotten,” Edge deduced.
“Why do you think that?” Mechelle asked, leaning forward.
Edge nodded at the ship. “If it is a Waxian supply ship, it has been modified. Regardless, I can fly it,” he said.
Mirela swung the vehicle closer so they could unload. Everyone froze for a moment when they heard a distant explosion and the ground trembled beneath them. Alarms sounded, and red lights began to flash in the hangar.
“What’s going on?” she asked, looking up at Edge.
Edge slid out of the vehicle and motioned for everyone else to hurry. Behind them, the blast door began to close. He truly hoped that the Waxian ship was in functional condition—at least the environmental system. They were going to be needing it soon.
“There has been an atmospheric breach to the Spaceport,” he replied. “Mirela, move the vehicle. Lina, fi’ta, slide your arm around my neck. I need to get you inside. Bailey, she will need your help as soon as we are out of here. Gail, Mirela, Andy, and Mechelle, I will instruct you on how to use the weapons. It is time to leave,” Edge stated, picking up Lina and cradling her with the utmost gentleness.
“Got it,” Mirela stated, waiting as the others grabbed their bags and weapons.
“I think you have someone challenging your bossiness factor, boss lady,” Andy teased.
“You’re just now figuring that out,” Mechelle retorted.
The easy way the women worked together reminded Edge of how it had been with the Trivator warriors he’d served with. There was an easy camaraderie between them even while they remained focused on the seriousness of the mission.
He waited until Gail opened the back platform. The flashing red lights were beginning to switch to a solid red glow. Once the last one stopped flashing, the upper containment doors would open. It was a safety measure to ensure that any spacecraft could leave quickly in an emergency.
Striding up the platform, he carried Lina through to the storage bay. The other women quickly followed him. He heard Mirela slap her hand over the control to the platform. Running lights lit the walkway, illuminating their passage.
He stepped through the door from the storage bay into the main corridor. The ship had three levels. The top level housed the bridge, captain’s quarters, some storage and equipment closets, and access to the upper weapon turret. The middle level housed the living areas for a crew of ten or less and the medical bay. The lowest section housed the storage bay, engine room, and also had access to the undercarriage and the weapons turrets on the sides and rear of the ship.
Edge braced his shoulder against the wall when the Spaceport rocked again, even more violently than before. Outside the spaceship, he could hear the alarm sounding as the upper
doors prepared to open.
“Bailey, follow me. The rest of you move to those benches along each side of the door and strap in,” he ordered.
“I guess I don’t have to tell you where the medical bay is,” Bailey replied, hurrying after him.
Edge glanced over his shoulder and shook his head before refocusing on where he was going. The other woman’s attention was fixed on Lina’s pale face. He hoped to the Goddess that the mercenary pirate who had operated this ship had upgraded the medical bay with a surgical cylinder table.
Turning at the end of the hallway, he paused at the entrance to the medical bay. When he didn’t see a cylinder table, he motioned Bailey toward the touchscreen panel on the wall as he walked across the room.
“There’s no power to the ship,” she protested.
“It will come on when you touch the panel. The medical bay has a power source separate from that of the rest of the ship in case of an emergency. Once the landing bay loses pressure, the ship’s main power system will automatically come online,” he explained.
Almost as if the spaceship were listening to him, lights began to flicker and the ship began to hum. Bailey’s eyes widened as she looked around. She reached out and touched the panel on the wall. The cylinder table he’d been looking for slid out of the wall and opened.
He gently laid Lina down. Her eyes fluttered open and she gave him a tired, strained smile. He stroked her cheek.
“Now, it is my turn, fi’ta, to rescue you,” he murmured.
Edge leaned over and brushed his lips tenderly across Lina’s before he stepped back and closed the cylinder. Straps automatically wrapped around Lina. Several thin lights ran down along her body, pausing on the wound in her side before moving down to her feet and back again. He splayed his hand over the glass. Lina’s eyes locked with his as a light mist filled the cylinder.
“What is it doing?” Bailey quietly asked.
Edge watched Lina’s eyelids flutter for a moment before they rested like the twin crescent moons of his world. The anesthesia was working. He reluctantly stepped back and turned.
“It is a surgical cylinder. They are installed in most spaceships this size due to the limited number of crew members. They are a necessity if there are no healers available or if you are traveling alone. I ask that you stay with her. You can strap in near the door. Our escape may get bumpy,” he instructed.
Bailey nodded. She looked from him to Lina to the bench next to the door. Edge quickly exited the medical bay and turned right. He took the steps up to the bridge three at a time. He strode down the short corridor, and stepped onto the bridge. It was configured for six personnel in the small cockpit.
He slid into the pilot’s seat and pressed the control on the arm of the chair. The straps engaged, crossing his chest and lap. His fingers flew across the console. A grim, determined smile lifted the corner of his mouth when the engine powered on.
He checked the ceiling of the landing bay. Dirt and debris drifted down on the spaceship as the heavy doors parted. From this angle, he could see the Waxian home planet. He could also see the hundreds of ships fleeing the Spaceport.
Disengaging the docking clamps, he gripped the controls and easily guided the ship which began to rise. With any luck, they would get lost among the masses of panicked, fleeing residents.
More explosions shook the Spaceport. Edge tilted the ship to the side when a large boulder rolled over the edge of the bay door into the opening where he planned to exit. It didn’t fall inside the landing bay since the artificial gravity had been disengaged but floated in the air as if suspended on a string.
Edge timed their departure with that of a large evacuation ship beginning to emerge just above them. Rising through the outer bay doors, he hugged the underside of the vessel. Hordes of other ships moving at varying speeds passed by them. Once they were well clear of the Spaceport, he began maneuvering his way through fleeing ships. When he estimated that they were approximately half the distance to the planet below, he veered away along with nearly two dozen other ships.
“Compute trajectory for jump,” he ordered the computer.
“Destination,” the computer requested.
“Rathon,” Edge instructed.
“Calculations complete,” the computer confirmed.
“Initiate,” he ordered.
Edge watched the stars turn to streaks of light. He methodically began to check each system on board the ship. He paused on the medical unit. He noted that the repairs to Lina’s body were proceeding well.
His hands were trembling. He curled his fingers into a fist, breathed deeply, and returned his gaze to the stars. He could appreciate their beauty now in a way he hadn’t been able to since his first trip into space.
A strange sense of disconnection washed through him when he realized that he was truly free of the Waxians. As long as he and the women were in or near the Waxian boundaries, they wouldn’t be completely out of danger, but they were moving in the right direction.
Reaching down, he opened the internal communication system. “We have left the orbit of the Waxian planet. You may move around the ship,” he announced.
The smile on his face turned into a chuckle, which turned to a deep laugh when he heard the cheers rising up from the level below. Several minutes later, he heard footsteps on the stairs leading up to the bridge. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw Andy, followed by Gail, walking onto the bridge. They sat down beside and behind him.
“Where are we going? Earth?” Andy excitedly asked.
Edge shook his head. “Rathon,” he replied, continuing to check the systems.
“Why Rathon? We want to go home,” Gail said with a frown.
From the corner of his eye, he caught the swift look of suspicion that Andy shot at Gail. He paused what he was doing. He understood their distrust, but was also a touch exasperated by it.
“The journey to Earth is almost three times as distant. From this location, we would need to travel through several different star systems, many of which are hostile or still not within the boundary of Alliance control. Our best hope for survival is to get to Alliance-friendly territory and notify them of our position,” Edge explained.
“But…,” Andy began, pausing and looking at Gail again.
Edge turned to face both women.
“We’ll still get to go home, right?” Andy asked.
His expression softened at the worried look in her eyes. “If that is what you wish,” he quietly replied.
Tears glittered in both women’s eyes and they nodded. Edge returned his attention to the console in front of him. While he had told them the truth, he also hadn’t been completely honest, either. The rest of the women would be allowed to return to their world, but if he had his way, one of them would remain behind on Rathon with him.
He turned his gaze back to the medical bay monitor. He heard Andy and Gail quietly leave. There was still a lot he needed to check before he felt confident enough to leave the bridge. Until then, he would have to monitor Lina’s progress from here.
Chapter Twenty
Eighteen hours later, Edge left Andy and Gail on the bridge while he made his way down to the upper-level area near the bridge. Walking along the corridor, he searched each room until he found what he was looking for—the Captain’s quarters. It was the only room designed for sleeping on this level.
He stepped inside, and searched it. Whoever had owned the ship before had made sure to leave behind as few identifying articles as possible. He discovered fresh linens in one of the storage compartments. The adjoining cleansing room, again, gave no clues as to who had once piloted the ship.
He retraced his steps before continuing down to the mid-level where the medical bay was located. Bailey was lying on the infirmary bed. She sat up and rubbed her eyes.
“How did she do through the night?” he asked, walking over to the surgery unit.
Bailey slid off the bed and stretched. “Okay. That thing is pretty incredible. I thought having
the tooth cleaning stuff in your water so you never had to worry about brushing your teeth was pretty cool, but this thing totally blows the rest of our medical technology right out of the water,” she replied with a yawn.
He looked at Lina’s stats on the monitor attached to the unit. All of her bio-stats were within normal ranges. Opening the unit, he gently pulled up her shirt, so he could check her wound. Now, only a thin, pale scar existed, about the length of his palm. The skin around it looked pink and healthy.
“Wow!” Bailey said, coming to stand next to him.
His lips twitched at the awe in her voice. “She will sleep for several more hours. The monitor attached to her neck will continue to give her small doses of anesthesia. This is being done to give her body time to heal,” he said, bending over and sliding his arms under Lina’s relaxed body.
Bailey frowned when he raised up Lina’s shoulders and knees to hold her against his chest. He could see the confusion on her face. He ignored it, moving to step around her, but Bailey cut him off.
“Where are you taking her?” Bailey asked with a raised eyebrow.
“To our cabin,” he replied, stepping to the side.
Bailey followed him. This time, it was his turn to raise an eyebrow. He was tired. He wanted to refresh both Lina and himself before getting some sleep.
“Wait a minute! What do you mean by our cabin? Is Lina aware of this?” Bailey demanded, placing her hands on her hips.
He frowned at the curvy brunette. Bailey might be small compared to him, but if there was one thing he had learned over the past several weeks, it was that these women more than made up for what they lacked in size with their indomitable determination. At the moment though, his only concern was his need to hold Lina. Over the last several hours that need had grown until he couldn’t focus on anything else.
“She has slept in my arms for the past three weeks. Do you think she would not wish to do so now?” he asked in a blunt tone.
