Fury to the Stars (Universe in Flames Book 2)

by Christian Kallias

  Acting on instinct, Chase created a bright fireball in his hand. It crackled and sent lightning sparks that illuminated the darkly lit cell as if it was daylight.

  “No funny business.”

  The emperor nodded fearfully. “You have my word.”

  “Excuse me if that weighs absolutely nothing in my book.”

  “I can respect that. Shall we?”

  He sighed. “The commodore’s not going to like this...”

  * * *

  One thing was for sure, the emperor in human clothes definitely looked out of place. But it was to be expected, what with his red complexion and orange war tattoos all over his skin.

  The party arrived onboard the Destiny’s bridge, and, sure enough, the commodore reacted just about exactly as Chase predicted he would.

  “Lieutenant Commander! Are you insane? What is HE doing here?”

  Chase held up his hands. “It’s alright, Commodore, he wants to help. Believe it or not.”

  “The hell he does!” Saroudis raged. “This scum needs to be executed! I had no idea he was even still alive. Guards!”

  The security team raised their weapons just as Chase raised a peaceable hand.

  “Everyone cool down. I can deal with him if need be.”

  “No you can’t, Chase,” the commodore derided. “You can’t control your powers so I forbid them, remember?”

  “That… was the day before yesterday,” Chase answered with a small smile.

  “What?”

  “Long story. In summary: I am in control now. And I don’t need anyone’s help to deal with him. Trust me.”

  The commodore looked dubious at best and Daniel stepped in to help.

  “Commodore, he’s telling the truth. They both are. Chase seems to control his powers effortlessly now and the emperor has given us some vital strategic information. We’re going to need his help.”

  The commodore exhaled deeply. He made a quick gesture and the men lowered their weapons. “It’s not like I’m in command of anything. Perhaps you want to take over, Chase?”

  “Nah, thanks, Commodore, I’m fine.”

  “I was being sarcastic, Lieutenant Commander!” The commodore shook his head. “Look, I know you mean well, Chase, but there is such a thing as the chain of command. You report to me. You actually get your orders from me. You don’t go on errands like this without clearing it with me first!”

  “I know, sir, I’m... I’m sorry.” Chase flushed. “Please understand that I’m not doing anything to endanger this ship or fleet.”

  “I don’t doubt that for a single instant, Chase, but that’s beside the point.”

  “Right... My bad?” Chase tried again, raising an eyebrow.

  The commodore shook his head hopelessly. “Never mind. Now would someone please tell me why I have the Obsidian emperor on my bridge and give me a reason, any reason, why I shouldn’t blast him into space from the nearest airlock?”

  “Because he can help us put a serious wrench into Argos’ plan.”

  Chase explained the situation and the emperor added even more details this time around. He explained everything in terms of defenses, even said he knew the de-activation codes for the main shields. He brought up the star map and showed exactly where the giant shipyard was located and where to expect resistance. He even provided a safe route to avoid as many battle groups as possible on the way. All in all, extremely useful information. As if to seal the deal, he also prepared a message to be sent to a few select ships captained by people he knew would follow his orders to the letter without resistance and proposed that they meet them before the attack on the target.”

  About the time he was finished, Ryonna and Tar’Lock joined them on the bridge. At the sight of the emperor, Ryonna’s face tightened and a deep growl rumbled in her chest.

  “Easy, tiger.” Chase calmed her with a smile. “How did it go?”

  “I extracted the information we required and went to see Yanis to help us locate the person who gave Nina her orders.”

  “That’s good news. How did you convince her to talk?”

  The commodore raised his hand. “You don’t want to know.”

  Chase drew in a tight breath, but nodded. “We needed that information, so thank you, Ryonna.”

  “Finally, someone who understands.”

  “Don’t get used to it,” warned the commodore.

  “So what’s next?” Chase asked, glancing up again at the star chart.

  “I’ll report to Admiral Thassos, see what size fleet we can devote to the destruction of this tactical target. And since it’s getting late, you can all go get some rest. As for you, emperor, while I appreciate the help and information you’ve provided, you will sleep in a nice bunk located in our brig.”

  “Absolutely,” the emperor complied immediately.

  His nonchalance was unnerving and Chase had no doubt that he had something up his sleeve. But at the moment, he had provided the Earth Alliance with valuable information, information so valuable it could possibly save all their lives. He’d have to bite his tongue.

  “You two.” The commodore glanced at Ryonna and Tar’Lock. “While you aren’t members of my crew, and therefore not subject to my orders, could you please try to locate the person or persons responsible for the acts of terrorisms before it gets even further out of hand?”

  Ryonna nodded. “Absolutely. We’d be honored to help.”

  Chase approached her. “You alright? You seem a little on edge… Can I help?”

  “As a matter of fact, yes. I would like to keep guard outside the brig while that thing”—he cast the emperor a vicious look—“is amongst us. I don’t trust him.”

  “I don’t trust him either, and if it makes you feel better, then sure. How’s Ronan?”

  “He’s fine. He’s onboard one of the Droxian ships in orbit. I convinced her captain to let him observe and see what it is to be a true Droxian warrior.”

  “He must be having loads of fun then.” Chase flashed her a grin.

  “No, no fun! He must learn to be part of our military; this war has only just begun—”

  “I was joking, Ryonna.”

  “Oh…” She tried to smile. “I see.”

  Chase looked at Tar’Lock. “And you?”

  “Me? I’m actually just bored. So where she goes, I go.”

  C H A P T E R

  XIX

  After leaving the bridge, Chase hopped into a quick shower before heading over to Sarah’s. As the hot water eased his tired muscles, he took deep breaths and tried to remember what Ares had told him. Despite his fatigue, he was actually quite pleased with the results. It was getting easier and easier every time.

  The sound of an incoming comm disrupted his reverie, and he got out of the shower and hurried over. Thinking it was Sarah, he answered without bothering to put on any clothes.

  “Now that’s a greeting.”

  Chase gasped and covered himself as a woman laughed loudly on screen.

  “Fillio! I... I thought you were someone else. Give me a minute to put something on.”

  She grinned coyly. “It’s not like it’s something I haven’t seen before, Chasy.”

  “Yeah well, that… was a long time ago.” He jumped into the first pair of pants he found.

  “I take it you’re seeing someone now,” she deduced. When he said nothing, she flipped back her hair and leaned closer to the screen. “What’s her name? Spill! I want details.”

  “You haven’t changed a bit. Her name is Sarah.”

  “Why would I change? I think I’m great!” she answered with a genuine smile.

  “Difficult to argue with that logic.”

  “How did you two meet?”

  “We met when we came to save Earth from the Zarlacks.”

  “Yeah, I actually heard about that! From what I heard, it was more like you against a whole fleet.”

  Chase shrugged. “Well, kind of. But just until the Destiny battle group arrived; in the nick of time, I
might add.”

  “Still, ballsy move, Chasy boy. That was quite the suicide mission. You do realize that one of these days, your crazy gamble tactics might not work, right?”

  That remark hit home, and for the first time Chase suddenly realized everything he had to lose. It wasn’t just him now. There was Sarah. And… the baby.

  “Did I say something wrong, Chasy boy?”

  “Don’t call me that, please. And no, I was just reflecting on what you said.”

  She laughed aloud. “Hello! Chase actually listening to sound advice? I don’t know this Sarah, but she must be quite the gal. I like her already.”

  “Perhaps I should have mentioned she’s pregnant. We learned it two days ago.”

  “Oh... that explains it then. Congrats!” Her face softened. “Of course you can’t take any crazy risks anymore, or you run the risk of making your new little one an orphan.”

  Chase ran his hand back through his wet hair. “Yeah... but on the other hand, I might need to take crazy risks sometimes to insure my child’s future.”

  “Still obsessing about things you can’t control.” She grinned happily. “You’re nothing if not predictable, you know that?”

  “If you say so. But there’s a few hundred wrecked Zarlack ships floating in orbit that would disagree with that statement.”

  “Aww... There’s my show-off, know-it-all, over-the-top, arrogant Chasy—” she caught herself. “I mean… the Chase I know.”

  He smiled. “Not that I dislike being called an avalanche of names, but was there a reason why you called, or did you just want to say hi?”

  “Well that, first and foremost, of course. I actually had a rather specific activity in mind—we never did go all the way, if you remember—but apparently that’s not possible anymore.”

  He chuckled. Same old Fillio. “Yeah, I’m afraid that ain’t gonna happen. Hope you understand.”

  “Are you kidding? If you had said yes, I would have kicked your ass!”

  “Now who’s predictable?”

  They both laughed.

  “I’d like to see the Omega fighter in action one of these days though,” he said wistfully. “I barely got a taste of it flying to Hellstar. I’d like to see what it can do in a dogfight.”

  “It can do a lot, believe me. And sure, but from what I gathered, you’re installing stealth on your Earth modified fighters, no?”

  “Yeah, but it’s not an exact match in terms of functionality. In fact, we lose shields entirely on the StarFury.”

  “I thought it was called a StarCrusher.”

  “Don’t get me started with this.”

  She laughed. “Let me guess, Yanis named it that way.”

  “Did you really need to ask?”

  “Gotcha. Please don’t be too hard on him.”

  Chase grinned. “Aside from his sheer suckage at naming things, he’s the best engineer and a dear friend. Of course… that doesn’t mean I can’t tease him from time to time…”

  “Hey! Be nice to my little brother. He’s the only family I have left.”

  “You have my word,” he promised.

  She stretched out her arms with a yawn. “Alright, so it looks like I’d better go for a run or take a turn in the simulator to get my tension worked out.”

  “You’ll be alright either way, I’m sure. Take care, Fillio.”

  “Take care, Chasy.” She winked and turned off the comm.

  Chase stared at the blank screen for a moment. In addition to being a skilled pilot, Fillio was a longtime friend. Of course, over the years she’d become a bit more than just a friend. Not in the same way as Sarah, but still. Now that she was assigned to the Fifth Fleet, he wondered what awkward complications might be in store.

  He tried to put it away from his mind as he picked up the comm again and tried Sarah. There was no answer and he tried again. Still nothing. When she didn’t pick up on the third ring, he decided to go to her place anyway and slip into bed. No need to wake her if she was asleep.

  Thirty minutes later, he landed a shuttle on top of her building and headed down the stairs to her apartment. It was two in the morning on Earth—she was surely asleep. He felt bad, then, when he was forced to ring the doorbell to get inside.

  One of these days, I’ll have to get my own key, he thought as he waited.

  There was no reply. He rang several more times, but nothing happened. An anxious frown creased his forehead as he looked automatically around.

  Where could she be?

  He was actually beginning to consider the idea of a search when he heard footsteps getting out of the elevator. He turned around in relief as she headed down the hall.

  “Hello there,” he said cheerfully.

  But the strangest thing happened. She passed right by him without registering his presence in the slightest. His smile faltered as she began rummaging around for her keys.

  “Sarah?”

  No answer. She unlocked the door.

  Seriously concerned, Chase leapt in front of her and shook her shoulders. “Sarah!”

  She blinked and took a step back, disoriented and surprised all at the same time. “What the hell? What are you doing here? In fact… what am I doing here?”

  Chase paled. “Are you alright? You just walked right past without even seeing me.”

  Her face clouded. “That’s so weird. The last thing I remember was coming home after the funeral and crashing on the couch. I…” She glanced around. “I don’t know why I’m outside.”

  A chill ran up Chase’s spine. He didn’t like this one bit. “How do you feel now? Has this ever happened to you before?”

  She shook her head. “Maybe I just sleepwalked. I know my mother used to do that when she was pregnant with me.”

  Just a fraction of the tension lifted, but Chase was still uneasy. “I… I guess that could make sense.” He held open his arms, and she stepped inside with a tight embrace.

  “Crazy couple of days, huh?” she said with her head pressed against his chest.

  “You can say that again. And there’s more.”

  “Please have mercy.”

  “You’re right,” he agreed. “We’ll talk about this tomorrow after a good night’s sleep.”

  She lifted her head with a mischievous smile.

  “Who said anything about sleeping?”

  Two hours later, they were lying in a tangle of sheets. Sarah was quick to fall asleep, happily exhausted to the point of unconsciousness, but Chase lay awake for hours. He kept thinking about what it meant to soon be a father. The responsibility, of course, but also the world they would bring their child into. In the middle of a war...

  Sarah turned in the bed but did not wake up. He kissed the top of her head and stroked back her hair until she was finally still.

  What a crazy couple of days. Crazy couple of weeks, was more like it. Everything was happening so fast. How was he supposed to protect the people he loved when it felt like the room wouldn’t stop spinning?

  And speaking of spinning…

  Sarah was twitching and moving so much in her sleep, it was like she was gearing up to run a marathon. Her face was tightened into a frightened pinch and when Chase reached out to steady her, she moaned aloud.

  “Sweetie?” he whispered. “Sarah.”

  Her eyes snapped open and she flew without thinking into his arms. He caught her and kissed her in surprise.

  “Are you alright?” he murmured between kisses. “I think you were having a nightmare.”

  She pulled back with a little shiver. “It’s the same one I keep having… I’m trapped in a confined space, completely submerged in water. There’s a breather on my face, so I don’t drown, and cables are attached all over my body. I see those awful reptilian Zarlacks again, and even though I try to get away… I can’t move. I’m trapped. And… and always very alone.”

  Chase’s heart constricted in his chest. “I’m so sorry. I wish there was something I could do to help…”

  “Y
ou just being here is enough.”

  He smiled sadly but shook his head. “That’s not what I meant. I wish… I wish there was some way I could go back in time and stop that from happening to you. All I can do now is promise you that Argos will pay.”

  He looked up at her with fierce passion and was surprised by the soft expression on her face. “Chase, while that’s very sweet of you, I don’t want my man to be consumed with revenge. Forget about getting even with Argos. We have to stop him, sure, but not because he tortured me. Because he must be stopped, for all our sakes. All this hate inside… let it go.”

  He stared at her in a moment of illumination and slowly nodded. She was right. It’s what was best for them all. And it was all he could do.

  “You said there was more to tell me earlier,” she added. “Wanna talk about it now?”

  Chase glanced at the clock. “It’s almost five in the morning. Don’t you want to get a little more sleep? If not for you, then for the baby?”

  She smiled. “The baby is about this big right now.” She pinched together her fingers. “I don’t feel any different.”

  “Surely you do a little,” Chase coaxed.

  “Well, mentally and emotionally, yes of course. Just not physically.”

  Chase sighed. “I think about it all the time. About the… the timing.”

  She nodded gravely. “I know exactly how you feel.”

  He brightened slightly. “You do?” It helped to know that he wasn’t alone in it.

  “Sure I do, but then I just remember. Life is an ongoing thing. Babies are born all the time. We can’t just put our lives on pause because the timing isn’t convenient. It’ll be fine.”

  Chase just stared at her in stunned silence. She was absolutely right.

  “You know,” she continued thoughtfully, “lately I’ve been thinking a lot about things like that. The idea of controlling what’s going on around me to protect myself. And the other day at the funeral, I came to a very important decision.”

  “Oh yeah, what’s that?”

  “Screw it.”

  Chase blinked. “No… what was your decision?”

  “That was it.” She giggled lightly. “Screw it. I’m done fighting for control of things that realistically I have no control over. This war is happening. This baby is happening. This is our reality now. All we can do is the best with what we’re given.” She wrapped her arms around him. “And I happen to think I’ve been given an awful lot.”