Their mouths locked back onto each other and fused together, face to face, burning eyes to burning eyes.
Naero leaped upon Khai, wrapping her shining arms and legs tightly around him as he surged up into her. Both of their psyonic voices shrieked in blinding joy. They were spinning and driving together in near mindless delight, riding the crest of a sirocco of passion on the solar energy waves.
Both of them pulsated with Cosmic power in total synergistic unison, waxing as they filled to overflowing with energy and joy. They swept up toward the surface, whirling faster and faster, gaining energy and speed.
They lost track of time, caught up in their Cosmic induced madness, building and building until the powers and emotions within them reached critical mass and detonated.
They screamed again, and even in their energy forms, it seemed as if they suddenly both became not only transparent as glass, but insubstantial.
Cosmic and solar energy flowed between them, into them, out of them, and through them.
For an instant, they were as completely as one as two separate entities could be. All of their forces and energies combined into one.
Khai healed Naero, revitalized her, and gave her her strength back, and she did the same for him. They gave each other back to themselves, yet they were each, still a part of the other now.
That secret would always remain between them.
Khai took hold of her Cosmic sickness and incinerated it.
He burned it right out of her with but a thought.
Naero strengthened weaknesses Khai had yet to uncover within himself. She did so automatically. They made each other better, stronger.
They parted abruptly, so much so, that it was like a sudden agony that brought them both nearly to their knees in anguish.
They strove to become two separate entities once more.
It was torment to be separated from such a perfect state of ecstasy and bliss. Yet both of them recognized that at least now, they could focus once again on being themselves.
Being so completely joined together was far too intoxicating.
Far too beautiful.
Way too terrifying.
The danger lay in never wanting to depart from that perfect state, and becoming lost within its tempting ecstasy–forever–to the abandonment and exclusion of all else.
Much too tempting.
Naero averted her gaze, trying not to look into his eyes again.
It took all of her force of will suddenly, just to do that much.
Khai, what just happened was…amazing. Too amazing, in fact. I can’t take it. We’re not used to anything like this–neither of us.
Yes. You are right, Naero. I agree.
We’re not used to doing stuff like that in our energy forms. It made me want to…give up everything and just stay like that, forever. I can’t do that, not even for you.”
He tried to touch her again, and Naero shied away from him.
She barely saw Khai avert his gaze the same way she did.
For an instant he looked completely shattered and grief-stricken.
You’re right, Naero. I felt the same. Neither of us can control such heightened, extreme feelings and emotions in these forms. Although it pains me to my very core, I know you are correct. We can’t risk losing ourselves to this…this madness of desire.
I agree, Khai. This is neither the time, nor the place for such folly. Things are…far too complicated between us. Too much hangs in the balance.
Very, well, Naero. Let’s set this all aside and focus on getting you out of here, and back to your physical form. I think we need to be apart from each other for a time. You rejoin your ships. I will continue re-charging Yii. Then these heightened feelings between us will fade.
Naero almost covered her mouth with both hands.
Part of her didn’t want all of those special, dazzling feelings to fade.
But she couldn’t dwell on that, now–or she’d go crazy with lust again.
First, they both propelled themselves as rapidly as they could, back up toward the star’s surface. Thankfully, it took most of their abilities and their concentration to accomplish that much.
Before we got…distracted, Naero. You were going to update me. I think you’d better talk before one of us gets too…distracted, again. I don’t know about you, but I’m having some serious trouble staying rational here.
She felt it, too. Likewise, Khai.
As quickly and as briefly as she could, Naero caught Khai up on everything that was going on with the enemy and their current mission.
See? We must stop these plots of our enemies. They are your enemies too, Khai. They were the ones behind the attacks on the High Masters. The G’lothc and their allies were trying to capture or destroy them. Just as they intend to do to the Driathans, the Yattai–even your people the Oden, if they can find them. That’s what the enemy does. They mean to subjugate or destroy us all. We must join forces to oppose and defeat them. If we don’t, whether I am brought to justice for my crimes or not won’t even matter. Me. You. Everything we care about will be dead or enslaved. The surviving remnants of our people will be reduced to mere slaves and hosts–for our new, eternal masters to torment or use as they see fit.
Khai tried not to stare at her.
Naero realized now that there had always been something so sad in his eyes whenever he looked at her, before. They had been friends, once. What did actually Khai feel towards her, outside of their energy-form-induced craziness?
Naero just hoped it wasn’t pity. She couldn’t stand that.
I’m sorry, Naero. You speak well and make a very convincing argument, but under the circumstances, you know that I cannot fully trust you.
Naero looked down and away from him in shame, frustration, and anger.
I want to trust you, Naero…but I can’t.
Naero uttered a deep sigh and shuddered. Khai was right. She had tricked him and many others before, time and time again. That was her nature. Why should anyone trust her any longer–especially after what she had done?
Yet, I shall tell you what I can and will do, Naero. I will withhold judgment until we return to our stars in the Alpha Quadrant, and our truce ends. Until that time, I will look into what you say is happening to the Driathans on Dotar-2. If what you say is in fact true–
She glared at him. It is. As the Mystic Enforcer, you will be forced to take action against our brutal foes. You must join with us in this fight. We need you, Khai.
He glared back at her suddenly, his force of will just as strong as her own. I will decide what I must do, Naero. Not you.
Come with me then. Let me prove it all to you.
Khai hesitated. It will take me a while longer to fully re-charge Yii, and myself within this star. Then I shall join you and your brave friends. My powers are not like yours, Naero. We are both very different, in many ways. I hope that the day comes, when we can speak together as true friends. I would relish that.
We can still be friends, Khai. No matter what happens to either of us. I never stopped being yours. Remember that. You’re right. I must return to the others. They probably think I’m dead by now. I’ve never been inside a star before–or escaped from a star like the way you are proposing. Please, can you help me do so?
I’ve helped heal and regenerate you somewhat, Naero. But you have another dire condition as well. One that I have never encountered; I fear that it will only return. But how did you damage yourself in such a fashion in the first place?
Naero explained what she needed to about the bizarre wormhole they had generated, in order to propel them all to their current positions.
If you do not find a way to heal the Cosmic sickness that is slowly growing inside of you, Naero–it will eventually consume you.
Naero shrugged. So, what else is new? But we kind of have a lot on our plate already, Khai. Don’t you think? My condition isn’t going to kill me just yet. But our enemies might. I choose to deal with them first, and all other concerns late
r.
When there is time, please allow me to examine you, Naero. During my own ordeal, I experienced just about every kind of Cosmic illness and injury that was possible–and learned how to survive and over come them.
Part of her wanted to play doctor with Khai very much.
She stopped herself right there.
Naero recalled how Khai had explored his energy form, more than anyone she knew, in order to forge his Cosmic sword. And he had endured and overcome many terrible injuries and near lethal effects in the course of doing so. His direct knowledge could prove invaluable to her and her lethal disease.
“Perhaps my own experiences and insights can be helpful to you,” Khai noted.
Naero nodded and smiled up at him. Great minds.
See, our truce could be good for both of us, Khai. Now, show me how to get out of this damn star.
Khai traveled beside her, both of them stepping up their velocity.
They spotted a bursting solar flare nearby and raced up into it.
Khai used his own energies to hurl Naero into the flows of the expanding, erupting solar flare, racing out from the surface.
Naero shot away from him, still gaining speed.
I liked what happened between us, Khai.
Me too, Naero. Too much. That’s the problem.
It was still beautiful. Naero laughed.
First she exploded out from the star. Then she burst forth from the solar flare itself.
Finally the thought came to her.
Free from the star, she was brimming with Cosmic power, like a small, speeding pulsar in her own right.
In an instant, with barely a thought, she translocated herself back on board the tek bay of The Darkstar.
Tyber blinked and gaped at her as she suddenly flashed in next to him.
“Hey Ty…everyone.”
Tyber flung his arms around her. Zhen did so an instant later. “N-Naero? Jia and Alala said you–that you just died in that star!”
Naero grinned back at them. “Do I look like a ghost? You know me Ty. Haisha, would I let a little thing like a star kill me? Heck, no!”
She hugged her friends back and cried a little.
Tyber gasped. Zhen shivered and cried with her.
“Naero!” the ship’s voice called out.
“Greetings, Alala. I sense that many of your systems are still damaged from passing through the unstable wormhole.” Naero placed her hands upon the hull of the ship, and instantly became one with it through her teknomancing powers.
“Let me refit your damages, and give you a few more upgrades while I’m at it. Part of me is sorry that you got pulled into this with us. The other part is very glad you’re still here. We’re going to need you and your ion guns in this fight that’s coming up. Things are going to get very rough.”
“If you go into danger, then I cannot remain behind. I know my great friend, Captain Tyber and his entire crew will agree with me. We shall fight at your side, at all costs.”
“There,” Naero said, removing her hands from the hull. “Don’t let Ty meddle with that leap drive again, until we have it working right. All of your other systems have been optimized with everything I’ve learned from the KDM and The Shadow Fox. Now your ion guns will fire twice as fast.”
“Naero. Wait,” Ty said. “I’ve got some new ideas about bypassing that heavy alien security around Alala’s ion cannons. Baeven and Jia helped me figure it out.”
“I’ve had similar thoughts. No time like the present.”
And while she was up to snuff and still chock-full of Cosmic energy.
“If that alien tek is based upon the Darkforce, like I’m almost positive it is, then I think I know how we can defeat it. I’ve had some further experience since then on countering that kind of tek, and negating its power sources. If we do this right, the rest of our ships could sure use some further upgrades of their own. But first I have to go over and rejoin my crew on The Dagger. I don’t want them to think I’m dead, either. I’ll return in about an hour.”
Naero transported over to the somber deck of The Flying Dagger.
Enel and Surina were in the process of still comforting the rest of the crew.
When she spoke up, the pair screamed in joy an knocked her to the ground.
“Naero! You’re alive,” Surina shouted.
“Haisha! The captain’s back!” Enel yelled. “Alert the entire crew. The captain’s back. She’s alive. Those other reports were all wrong!”
Naero gathered that she had been gone for a little over three standard hours.
Gaviok blasted out of the lift to the bridge and picked his way rapidly through the other crew, pulling them to either side in his joy. He glowed bright pink.
He picked Naero up and repeatedly tossed her up into the air like she was a toy. The mantid was the strongest being she had ever met, besides Baeven.
“Naero!” he shouted. “They said you had perished. I’m so happy to see you alive!”
Naero laughed. “Gaviok! Good…to see…you, too. Put me down, you crazy bug…Before you…rattle…my teeth loose!”
The reunion with her crew was the happiest Naero had been in many days. She spent the first half of the hour going through her flagship, personally hugging and talking to everyone.
But the facts remained–they were all about to go into great peril once again.
The last half hour, she held a planning session with her officers and department heads. Everyone needed to understand what they were getting into.
At the end of that hour, Naero transported back onto The Darkstar to save time, even though by then, all three ships were docked together.
When everything was set, Alala opened the hatches leading to the ion cannon control systems.
Naero led her pacification team in.
This time, Naero was ready. She and Ty were armed to the teeth, and they brought Baeven, Jia, Gaviok, Danjen, S’krin, Zhen, and Tarim with them. All of them ready to do battle.
Black tentacles and tendrils exploded out of the walls.
Gaviok and Baeven simply ripped them apart. Behind their might, the others fought and blasted their way within.
In less than a minute, Naero, Ty, Jia, and Zhen reached the main controls, while the others fought off the alien defenses.
Jia attacked the security system directly, backed up by Naero and Tyber, penetrating the defenses with teknomancy.
“I’m keeping the security system from resorting to a self-destruction sequence,” Jia said. “I can’t hold it off forever. You two get in there and shut it down. Disable that security system.”
Alala and Om cut in. “The alien system is trying to take over the rest of the ship and cause it to explode.”
We’re fighting it off, N. This system is powerful and insidious. Destroy it!
Naero and Ty struggled to shut it down. Every time they thought they had a lock on it, it seemed to regenerate and emerge from another place they did not expect.
Ty tore back the shielding on the very core.
Just as Naero suspected, the security device was completely powered by what appeared to be a small Darkforce generator, the size of a person’s skull.
Positive energy. They needed to use positive energy directly against this lethal entity. But Jia and the her were both too busy holding the device’s attack abilities off.
“Zhen!” Naero called out. “Attack this thing with biomancy.”
Zhen hit it with everything she had.
“No good, N. I can’t harm it. This thing absorbs anything I throw at it.”
“No, Z. Don’t try to hurt it. Heal it. That’s the only way to damage this damn thing.”
Zhen could heal with the best of them now–even Shalaen, and that was saying something.
She put the whammy on the Darkforce core and the entire section bucked and shuddered. She gritted her teeth and poured it on.
The alien defenses started to collapse as the core broke down and dissolved.
Finally the g
enerator imploded, just as Zhen passed out.
Naero caught her as she fell back, and checked on Z’s condition. Her abani was spent, but all right. She had won the day for them.
Jia waded into the core herself, fearless now, dismantling the system as she did all around her, utterly crushing it in waves of teknomancy force, shutting the systems down.
She eradicated any part of the alien defensive tek that remained.
“It’s done,” Jia announced. “Alala, you and all of your tek are now completely free.”
“Many thanks, Alala said.”
Naero carried Zhen out as she started to come to.
Ty and Tarim both looked a bit concerned.
“Oh, don’t worry, guys. Our great hero here will be all right, as soon as she wakes up. She just needs a nap. Come on, Ty. We’ve got a lot of work to do. Get all your tek monkeys hopping.”
41
When they reached Dotar-2 to begin their assault, Jia linked with the burning, ravaged sentinel world and cried out in pain.
“We have to hurry, the enemy has already overwhelmed and penetrated the planetary defenses. I can’t reach Govae. They may have already taken him. Get us down there, Bae.”
“Naero,” Baeven said. “Let’s start the excitement.”
“Roger that,” Naero said, signaling commands over her wristcom. We’re sending in The Dagger to draw the enemy’s fleets off and keep them busy. The Darkstar will sweep in and back them up. Next, Baeven, you, myself, and all of our available fighters will assault the surface to find and secure Govae, and take him back from the enemy.”
Tyber called over their secure link. “Beginning our attacks. Keep Tisa safe for me, will you, N?”
“I’ll do my best, Ty. Like all of us, she can handle herself in a fight.”
Khai still hadn’t rejoined them, but they could not wait for him.
Even at the start of a huge battle, Naero chuckled to herself as they sped toward their objective, packed into the hold of The Shadow Fox.
What she wouldn’t give if her only problem was just some smitten guy chasing her tail–for obvious carnal reasons. That should be the least of her worries.
Hell, she might even give a hunk like Khai a shot at the gold ring–if only things were simpler and different. But they weren’t, and nothing seemed simple for her any more. So much complicated, messed up crap in her life. And like usual, she hardly had enough time to catch her breath, let alone attempt to figure it all out.
Spacer Clans Adventure 3: Naero's Fury Page 40
