With more than a little grumbling, Brachia allowed himself to be ushered out the lab door. The chief medical officer remained behind long enough to assure that Matthew, Tia, and the lab technicians were unhurt before he headed for sick bay.
Matthew turned to Tia. “Now what?”
“Now?” Tia said dreading what she needed to do next. “Now we give my sister the bad news.” She glanced down at the pieces of imp melting into a noxious gray sludge. “Odds are Liz will order me back to her staff since the demon’s dead.”
A feeling of sadness came down the link she shared with Matthew.
“I know. I don’t want to go either, but the Estos rescue attempt has to be done within the next week. We knew this was going to happen.”
Matthew nodded his head. “I know. I guess I was just putting it off as long as I could.” Looking in the direction of the lab techs, he jerked a thumb at the dissolving pieces of imp scattered around the floor. “I’d recommend getting this cleaned up before it all melts. You’d better save it in something. I’ve got a feeling Brachia will want to check it out when he gets back.”
Not envying the techs their gruesome task, Tia hurried out of the lab with Matthew close behind. She made straight for her quarters. Once there, she activated the high-security halo-pad she’d acquired from Sergeant Ron before she left the Defiant to join the Trecorians. After placing her call, Matthew and she waited a full twenty minutes before a holographic image of Admiral of the Combined Fleets Bistos appeared above the pad. Tia drew in a deep breath at the new wrinkles around the corners of Liz’s eyes. Combined with the harried look on her sister’s face and the wrinkled uniform, the effect made Tia glad she wasn’t a fleet admiral. “Liz…I, uh—”
Brushing back a loose strand of hair, Liz gave a tired smile. “That bad, huh?” The smile disappeared. “I was told this was an emergency call. You’d better make it snappy. I’ve got a long line of admirals and generals demanding a piece of my time. So what’s the emergency?”
Tia straightened in her seat. “We had to kill the imp. It was about to attack Brachia.”
To her credit, Liz first asked, “Is the boy all right?”
Nodding her head, Tia said, “Yes. He’s fine. The imp’s dead though. What are your orders, Sir?”
A muffled voice sounded over the hologram. Liz glanced at someone out of sight and nodded her head. “Tell them I’ll be right there.” Looking back at Tia, Liz gave another tired smile. “I should order you back to the Destiny, but I suspect you’re so far out of the loop on our plans now that you’d only get in my staff’s way. Why don’t you see if Matt can find a place for you with the Conglomerate fleets?”
Tia felt a surge of excitement through her link to Matthew, then nodded her head in silent thanks to her sister.
For her part, Liz turned and faced Matthew. “Most of your fleets have joined our Empire and Trecorian forces. I need the rest of them here within seventy-two hours. If we wait any longer, our troops on Estos will be dying no matter what we do.”
“Understood, Admiral,” replied Matthew. “We’ll be there. You can count on us this time.”
Admiral of the Combined Fleets Elizabeth Bistos locked eyes with Matthew. “I’m depending on it. Don’t let my sister or me down.”
The hologram flickered out.
Tia looked into Matthew’s eyes. He drew close. “I won’t let you down, Tia. You know that, don’t you?”
Tia smiled. “I know. Believe me, I know.” She kissed him.
Matthew grinned. “What was that for?”
“Just wanted to make sure you don’t forget what you’re fighting for, Soldier.”
Matthew wrapped his arms around her. “Maybe you ought to remind me again.”
“Yeah.” Tia smiled. “I think I’d better.”
Chapter 38 – Redestan
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The two Crosioian scouts circled Richard on opposite sides. One of the scouts was Red Wing. His other opponent was the supreme leader. Both of the scouts moved their wing-blades in figure eight motions. Richard found the movements of the shiny, arms-length blades strangely hypnotic.
“Don’t get side tracked,” warned Nickelo in their shared space. “According to Mykias, the rhythm of the blades is designed to distract a scout’s opponent.”
Stepping to his left, Richard tried his best to keep an eye on each of the scouts. “Who the hell is Mykias?”
“Oh, didn’t I tell you? Sorry. Mykias is Red Wing’s fighting-computer. Mykias is the same fighting-computer that belonged to Red Wing’s mother. The connection between a Crosioian scout and her fighting-computer works differently than it does for wizard scouts and battle computers. Red Wing’s frequency is close enough to her mother’s to allow a shared space with Mykias. By the way, the supreme leader’s fighting-computer is Trypredor.”
“Thanks for the update,” Richard said more concerned about the blades attached to each end of the scouts’ weapons than he was about fighting-computer names. He knew from painful experience that the sharp blades could cut a limb completely off if given the chance. “Now, how about putting that nanosecond brain of yours to good use and give me an idea how to get myself out of this mess?”
Red Wing stopped moving her weapon and set one bladed end on the dust-covered floor of the arena with the other blade rising slightly higher than her head. “Are you talking to your battle computer, Wizard Scout? I thought I explained that it is against tournament rules for applicants to receive any aid from their fighting-computers.”
Richard lowered his own wing-blade and placed one end on the arena floor. The other end of the awkward weapon was a good arms-length over the top of his head. “You’ve obviously never had Nick talking in your head during a fight. He’s as much of a hindrance as a help.”
“Hey,” came Nickelo’s voice out of thin air. “I resent that.”
“This is no time for jokes, Wizard Scout,” said Red Wing. She waved a hand to indicate the cavern walls and perches surrounding the large arena. “This is an exact replica of the arena on Astaris. Applicants for the honor of descending into the Hole and performing the recon on the rift may only use their natural abilities and their wing-blades to conquer their enemies. Our fighting-computers will be locked in a high-security vault embedded with energized titanium to prevent communication. If you are to accompany our recon team into the Hole, you must be one of the eight fighters deemed survivors at the end of the battle royal.” Red Wing rubbed a thumb down the length of her upper wing-blade, leaving a trail of blood behind. She gave a Crosioians’ version of a grin. “Are you sure you still want to go through with this?”
“Not particularly,” Richard admitted. “Are you sure the two of you won’t just take my word for it about the demons and join the Empire in a united front against them?”
The supreme leader lowered her weapon on the other side of Richard and walked to within three steps of him. “I will admit a lot has happened in the last ten days, Wizard Scout. You brought us to the magic dimension, and I have met with the United Galaxy Alliance’s leaders. I have seen their memory discs on the Dragars and their prophecy of the Great Battle to come. My fighting-computer, Trypredor, has even shared some of the videos passed on to her by your battle computer of your missions for the entity you call ‘the One.’ Despite all I have seen and heard, I will not jeopardize my species without hard evidence seen by a Crosioian. Our species has fought too long against the Empire to take any human’s word for it. We have each killed too many of the other for us to work together without solid proof of the conspiracy by the demons that you have told us about. My fellow Crosioians would skin me alive, cut off my wings, and leave me hanging in the sun was I to suggest we end our war with the Empire based upon your word of what is happening.” She waved a paw at the halo-square’s rendition of the Crosioians’ tournament arena. “I can bend enough to allow you to participate in the tournament to seek a spot on our recon team, but that is all the bending I will do. Even that entails
political dangers I do not care to try to explain. As it stands now, our plans against the Empire will continue unless you can prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that the demons are conspiring against us, and that proof must come from a Crosioian.”
Richard glanced around the cavern and tried to imagine it filled with bats from floor to rafters. He didn’t need anyone to tell him they’d all be screaming for his blood. He glanced at the reddish-brown patches on the arena floor. Some of the bloodstained spots were his while an equal amount was that of the two scouts.
Richard thought back to how the triplets had gated them to the magic dimension at his request. It hadn’t taken long for Sergeant Ron to make contact with a UGA patrol ship. Two days later had found the Defiant and the battered hull of the royal yacht Gaze at the Stars in a maintenance hangar on the orc world of Redestan.
“You’re lucky the orcs made some of their best maintenance equipment available to Sergeant Ron,” said Nickelo in their shared space. “You’re also lucky the Crosioians’ supreme leader let you convince him to allow the orc and elf technicians to install the yacht’s intergalactic-drive in the Defiant.”
“Lucky?” Richard snorted. “Sergeant Ron had to sign a contract to perform duties as the replacement royal yacht until the bats get a new one. I think the only reason Red Wing was able to convince the yacht’s crew to help with the installation of the intergalactic-drive was because their supreme leader threatened to leave them all as prisoners in the magic dimension when the Defiant takes us to Astaris.”
“Oh, I calculate there were many reasons besides that,” said Nickelo. “There are a lot of things the supreme leader isn’t telling you. I calculate she has a suspicion about who might be secretly working with the demons. She’s a smart old bat. I believe she’s privately hoping you will be able to go with the recon team and prove the demons are passing through that rift of theirs without authorization. That’s why Red Wing and she have been so diligent this past week, training you with their wing-blade and explaining the tournament rules.”
“Yeah, lucky me.”
“I can tell by your facial expression that you are communicating with your battle computer again, Wizard Scout,” said Red Wing. “The blank look on your face is an obvious giveaway.”
“Fine,” Richard said out loud. “No more talking to computers while training for the tournament. Nick, how about keeping your mouth shut for another thirty minutes or so while I teach these two scouts a thing or two about wing-blades?”
The supreme leader hissed what sounded like a laugh, then nodded her head and returned to her spot opposite Red Wing. Raising her weapon, she said, “Shall we begin?”
* * *
Jeena sat in her chair at the maintenance table in the large hangar. Dozens of orc and elf workers as well as a score of the yacht’s crew were arrayed around the Defiant and the Gaze at the Stars as they made last minute repairs. Several elf and orc magic users stood to one side talking to Sergeant Ron and the Crosioians’ chief engineer.
“Sergeant Ron is lucky the mages were able to teleport the intergalactic-drive into the Defiant’s engine room,” said Danny in Jeena’s mind. “If the mechanics had been forced to cut a hole in the Defiant’s hull to make the installation, I calculate our little recon ship would be out of action for several weeks yet. As it is, the Defiant is once again space worthy.”
Jeena glanced past the Defiant, at the Crosioians’ Gaze at the Stars. “The same cannot be said about the yacht. Charlie tells me it is only fit to serve as a lifeboat now.”
“That works to Rick’s advantage,” said Danny. “If the Crosioians’ ship had been space worthy, I calculate he would never have been able to convince the bats to install their intergalactic-drive in the Defiant. Despite Sergeant Ron’s continual complaints about the patchwork set of controls the Crosioians’ chief engineer had to install in the Defiant, I calculate he is happy to have an intergalactic-drive in his ship. I must admit we battle computers were surprised to find out an intergalactic-drive existed. The information was not in our databanks.”
Jeena had a feeling ‘the One’ probably knew about the intergalactic-drive but chose not to share that information with the battle computers. From what little contact she’d had with the Crosioians’ fighting-computers, she was fairly confident they were also part of ‘the One.’ She was also pretty sure that just like the battle computers, the fighting-computers had more than a little information withheld from their databanks.
A feeling of pain came down the link she shared with her bondmate. She turned to glance at the halo-square’s control panel located on the maintenance table where she sat in the center of the hangar. She was tempted to activate the emergency shutdown switch for the halo-square, but with great force-of-will she resisted the urge. She knew her bondmate would not appreciate the gesture, and he would just reset the halo-square and continue the training. Closing her eyes and wrapping her arms around her chest, Jeena willed herself to ignore the emotions of pain coming down the link. Of course she failed miserably. She was more successful at keeping her own emotions of stress from flowing up the link to her bondmate. The last thing she wanted to do was distract him.
After another torturous thirty minutes, the emotions of pain coming down the link ended. Jeena opened her eyes. The energy field coming out of the four rods forming the corners of the halo-square wavered before blinking out. Three bloodied forms lay on the floor of the hangar a dozen paces away. Two were bats and one was human. Jeena remained where she was. Too many times during the past week she had rushed forward to hold her bondmate as he recovered from his wounds. She refused to do so this time.
A dozen heartbeats later, Jeena could take it no more. She jumped out of her chair and ran to kneel beside Richard, placing his bloodied head in her lap. “You fool. You foolish, foolish human.”
Richard said nothing, but he did open his eyes long enough to look at her before closing them again. Four Crosioians rushed forward from the other side of the de-energized halo-square to squat beside Red Wing and their supreme leader. The fur of both bats was as blood soaked as was her bondmate’s ragged clothing. The two Crosioian scouts began moving at about the same time Richard was able to rise to a sitting position.
“No more,” Jeena said. “I cannot bear to have you hurt more in the name of training.”
A hiss to her left was followed by Red Wing’s voice over the bat’s translator. “The training is complete, High Priestess. Truth be told, your wizard scout is as ready as he will ever be for the tournament. Not to mention your Sergeant Ron told me this morning that we must be ready to return to the physical dimension after the evening meal. Time grows too short for additional training.”
“True,” said the supreme leader as she shoved off the helping paws of two of the yacht’s crew. Even with the intergalactic-drive installed in the Defiant, we will be hard pressed to make it to Astaris in time for the tournament. The Defiant is too small to hold the entire yacht’s crew, and we will leave none behind. The recon ship will need to drag the yacht behind her as she makes the trek to Astaris. Your ship will be unable to use the intergalactic-drive to its full capabilities until the yacht is released.”
“We’ll make it work out somehow,” said Richard. He waved a hand to indicate his bloodied uniform. “In the meantime, we’d better get cleaned up. If I look as bad as the two of you, I’d probably scare a rabid pactar into walking the straight and narrow.”
Red Wing nodded. “I do not quite understand your analogy, human, but you do look bad. I suggest we meet on the Defiant in an hour and plan our next move.”
Richard nodded agreement.
Jeena said nothing. She’d found out during the past week that her bondmate could be as stubborn and hardheaded as she when it came to doing what he felt was important. It does not matter, she thought. When the time comes, I will be there with him. He will not go into the Hole without me. I swear it.
Chapter 39 – Astaris
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&
nbsp; The Defiant gated into the physical dimension half a light year from Astaris, towing the Gaze at the Stars behind her. As soon as the recon ship did, the glowing sphere of the dimensional gate created by the triplets wavered before disappearing completely. Richard was in the battered hulk of the Crosioian yacht along with Jeena, while the rest of the Defiant’s crew remained onboard the recon ship.
“Are you sure you want us to drop you all off here?” said the flickering, half-meter-high holographic image of Sergeant Ron. The makeshift halo-pad was located in the spot in the engine room of the Gaze at the Stars where its intergalactic-drive had once been. The halo-pad wasn’t much to look at, but at least it worked. The image of Sergeant Ron scratched his beard and looked at Richard. “Maybe we should keep the Defiant here in case, uh, in case the yacht has trouble, uh, mechanical trouble or something.”
Richard glanced at Jeena before looking back at Sergeant Ron’s image. He shook his head. He knew full well why his friend wanted to stay, and it wasn’t because he was worried about the yacht. “No. I need you to skedaddle before any Crosioian warships show up. The last thing we need is for the Defiant and some trigger-happy Crosioian ship’s captain to start shooting at each other.”
The winged form of the royal yacht’s chief engineer appeared behind Sergeant Ron. The Defiant’s captain flinched but kept his eyes straight ahead.
Richard smiled. He knew his friend hadn’t yet gotten used to the fact that the supreme leader had assigned five of the Gaze at the Stars technicians to the recon ship to handle the controls for the intergalactic-drive.
“It’s a good thing too,” came a thought from Nickelo. “A lot of the drive’s controls depend on sonic transmissions for input and output. Only the Crosioians can work them correctly.” Nickelo laughed. “I calculate that what’s really got Sergeant Ron’s goat is that at least two of the bats the supreme leader put on the Defiant are probably security personnel disguised as technicians.”
Wizard Defender (Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles Book 8) Page 33
