Dreadnought: War Mage: Book Two (War Mage Cronicles 2)

by Charles R Case

  “I get the feeling, from the fact that your friend has not tried to wander away, that he is rather stubborn about leaving you,” Nyx said with an apologetic smile.

  Sara took a deep breath and blew it out in a rush. “Yeah, he won’t leave while I’m still in there.” God dammit. I can’t just let the thing kill him… “When he becomes bonded to me, will he be able to interact with you?”

  “Yes. And your contract with Alister will extend to your bonded guard. He will be able to mitigate some of the rage you feel when casting for long periods, as well as have an increased Aether reserve and an increased flow into his well. He will also feel your general direction and some of your emotions, like Alister does. The bonding is permanent, but unlike with Alister, you and your guard may travel apart without repercussions,” Nyx helpfully explained.

  “Great. Sounds… great,” Sara said, shaking her head with her eyes closed as she processed what she was getting herself into. “Basically, I have to bond with him or he will die, because he is a stubborn son of a bitch.” She blew out another breath. “I don't really have a choice, do I?”

  No one said a word.

  She stepped up to Baxter and gently turned him around. He stumbled along at her guiding hands, as she directed him back toward the shuttle.

  When they were about halfway there, Baxter blinked a few times and looked around in confusion. “What? What happened?” he asked, shaking his head slightly as he continued up the ramp of the shuttle under Sara's prodding direction. Alister was right on her heels.

  “Oh, so much. But that’s not important for now. Right now we need to have a talk. Here, have a seat,” she said, directing him to sit on a crate beside her Aetheric armor, which was strapped to a rack.

  He sat, rubbing at his head. “Why does my head hurt? Did I hit it on something?”

  Sara unlaced her boots and kicked them off as she pulled the light leather jacket from her shoulders. “Something like that. Listen, Baxter. I have a question for you.” She sat on a crate opposite him in the small cargo area and pulled her socks off by the toes, tossing them on her crumpled jacket on the floor.

  “Sure, what’s up?” he asked, rubbing his temple with his eyes screwed shut.

  “Turns out I do need someone to watch my back,” she said, leaning forward with her hands on her knees, watching for his reaction.

  Baxter’s head popped up, one eyebrow higher than the other. “Really? That seems a little sudden, considering you just tried to convince me to stay in the shuttle.”

  “Would you have?”

  “Not a chance. Grimms gave me an order, and I follow my commanding officer’s orders. Especially when I agree with them,” he added, catching her gaze and not looking away.

  Sara sighed. “Yeah. That’s what I thought. What would you say to becoming my guard, in an official capacity? It wouldn't keep you from your normal duties; it would just connect us in a similar way to me and Alister. Would you be willing to do that?”

  Baxter gave her a hard look, trying to judge if she was being serious or not. “Absolutely. If I can help you out, I’ll do whatever it takes.”

  “Even if the bond will last the rest of your life?”

  He took a moment to consider, then his intense eyes met hers. “Absolutely.”

  Sara gave a smile. “One more question. Why? Why are you willing to do whatever it takes?”

  Baxter gave a huff of a laugh. “Your power is what’s going to save all of us. That’s a heavy burden—one you shouldn't have to carry alone.”

  Tears suddenly welled in Sara's eyes at his nobility, but she fought them back. “Oh, that was unexpected. Um, okay. You’re a good man, Baxter,” she replied, trying to discreetly wipe her eyes.

  “Why did you take your shoes off?” he asked, confused.

  She smiled, then laughed and stood, undoing her pants. Rocking her hips, she pushed them past her thighs as she said, “We need to do a spell -- ”

  “Whoa!” Baxter yelled, throwing a hand up in front of his eyes as he turned away from her suddenly bare bottom half.

  His obvious embarrassment at the situation emboldened her, making the next few minutes easier. Thanks for being a decent guy, Baxter, she thought, as she pulled her shirt off and dropped it to the side, then stepped out of the piled-up jeans around her ankles.

  “Look at me, Baxter,” she urged, leaning into his line of sight.

  He crossed his legs and looked down at his lap, his eyes hooded behind his hand. “I’m actually good, Captain. I don’t need to—what the hell, Captain!?” he exclaimed, as her crumpled panties slid across the deck and bumped up against his boot.

  “Oh, now I’m ‘Captain’? I guess that means I’m your commanding officer again?” she said, with a little heat. The cool, metal deck was sending shivers up her spine. “Look at me, Baxter. This is going to be as awkward for me as it is for you, trust me.”

  His foot began to bounce with nervous energy, making both legs shake in their crossed position. “I don’t think that would be possible. This is about the most awkward situation I’ve ever been in, and that’s including the time my pants caught on fire at a wedding.”

  Sara snorted a laugh at that. “How on Earth did you manage to catch… you know what? We’ll save that story for later.”

  She stepped forward, her bare feet making no sound on the deck, and with a gentle finger, lifted his chin so he was forced to look at her.

  To his credit, he skipped right past her exposed body and looked her right in the eye.

  “I know you’re a gentleman, but just this once, I’m going to need you to leer a little. You’re going to have to use my body as a spellform, so take it all in, buster. This might be your only chance,” she said with the warmest smile she could muster.

  He took a deep breath and gave her a nod.

  She stepped back and began explaining what he needed to do, while he slowly began looking her over.

  His legs were still crossed.

  17

  With a flash, they dropped out of warp.

  “Get me a scan of the area, Mezner. Ensign Hon, power up weapons, and be ready for anything,” Grimms ordered from his command chair. He was gripping the armrest with white knuckles, and made himself relax. Don’t let your people see your anxiety, Grimms. You know better.

  “Sir, I have one ship on scans, the prince’s yacht, Empori. The sector is clear,” Mezner reported. “It’s three million kilometers out, and heading our way.”

  “Connors, get us over there,” Grimms said, narrowing his eyes as he thought for the thousandth time of how this could go wrong.

  The gravitic engines hummed to life, pushing them through the black. The golden icon and the green icon of the Empori began moving closer together in the holo projector.

  “Six minutes till rendezvous, sir,” Connors reported.

  Everyone was on edge during the short journey, making the bridge unusually quiet as everyone focused on their consoles, watching for the slightest problem.

  “Mezner, contact the pilot and be sure they know to attach to the hard point as quickly as possible. If we need to run, I don't want to leave them behind,” Cora said.

  “Aye, ma’am,” Mezner said, punching a few buttons on her console and speaking quietly into her comm.

  “Thirty seconds to rendezvous,” Connors updated.

  Grimms watched as the icons closed until they were almost on top of one another. He caught himself gripping the arm of his chair again and relaxed his fingers.

  “Fifteen sec—”

  “Contact! A Teifen cruiser just jumped in, twenty two hundred kilometers to port. Firing gauss cannons,” Hon reported, and quickly jabbed at the fire-control system.

  The ship thrummed as twelve slugs, at a hundred kilos each, accelerated from its four large tri-barreled turrets. At the same time, Grimms could see another red icon appear on the holo projector. Then another, and another.

  “Multiple contacts, sir. Three cruisers and a destroyer. A second destroye
r. Sir, they keep coming,” Mezner reported, as Hon targeted more ships, sending out slugs as fast as the auto loaders could feed them into the barrels.

  “Charging the Aether cannons. I need a firing solution, Hon,” Cora said, her voice calm despite the tension.

  “Aye, ma’am. Taking aim at the first and second cruisers. Targeted,” he said.

  The ship shuddered, and two streaks of blue energy appeared on the view screen. They lasted a few seconds before blinking out.

  “Direct hit on cruiser one; it looks like their shields are down. Yes! Direct hits with the gauss rounds. The ship is listing, sir. The second Aether bolt missed,” Mezner reported.

  “Connors, get us right on top of the yacht. As close as you can, and make it fast,” Grimms ordered. “Cora, can you jump both ships if we’re not connected?”

  “Yes, it’s just like the warp bubble.”

  “Good, as soon as you have them, jump us out of here. We can't take on this many ships without Sara,” Grimms said, cursing under his breath.

  “Several ships are powering Aether cannons,” Mezner reported. Her eyes went wide, as her fingers danced across her console, confirming what she was seeing. “Sir, a dreadnought has jumped in.”

  Grimms looked to the projector, and saw a new red icon flashing. A dreadnought means this is not just any fleet. A dreadnought was not just a ship; it was a seat of government, a flying capital city, thirty kilometers long and powered by hundreds of mages. It’s the regional governor.

  The same governor who had just defeated the Elif in their own home system. They couldn't stand against the dreadnought even with Sara.

  “Five seconds ‘til the yacht is in range,” Connors updated.

  The ship bucked and rolled slightly to the left.

  “We’ve been hit with an Aether bolt, port side armor is compromised,” Mezner reported.

  Connors rolled the ship over, exposing the undamaged side, in case of a second hit.

  “Incoming gauss rounds.”

  “We are in range of the yacht, sir.”

  “Jumping,” Cora announced, and the icons in the display disappeared. The projector zoomed out until they crept into view again.

  “We’ve jumped six point four million kilometers, sir. They will be able to warp here in less than thirty seconds.”

  “Not if they can't see us, Connors,” Cora said confidently. “I’m masking our gravity print with the engines. We should look like a small asteroid to their sensors. I was able to extend the effect to cover the yacht, as well. We need to get that ship attached to a hard point now.”

  “You can cloak us?” Grimms asked, surprised.

  “Not very well with this yacht, but yes. I can change our gravity signature. The core is burning through calculations at an unbelievable rate, and making all the necessary microadjustments to the gravity drives. I haven’t had a chance to try this method since learning about it from the core. I know it’s working, though.”

  “How?” Grimms asked, not sure how she could take a sensor reading of their own ship.

  “Look at the projector,” Cora said.

  The holo image no longer displayed a golden icon to indicate them, but it still contained the fleet, at a distance.

  Then Grimms understood.

  The sensors worked in the Aether, detecting things through the imprint they made with their gravity field. Everything had gravity, even if it was only a tiny amount, and that gravity pressed on space-time, causing it to warp. Cora was projecting the exact same signature they were making, and, like opposing sound waves, they were cancelling each other out.

  “I’ve heard the theory, but I didn't think it was possible,” Grimms said, watching as Connors guided the yacht to its docking point.

  “It wasn’t, ‘til we found the cores.”

  “Sir, the dreadnought has gone to warp,” Mezner noted with concern.

  “Hon, keep those weapons primed. Connors, when will we have a lock?” Grimms barked.

  “Thirty seconds, sir,” Connors answered, his brow furrowed in concentration as he guided the yacht remotely.

  “Contact. The dreadnought just dropped out of warp, three hundred kilometers starboard.”

  “Hon, get a solution for Cora, and open fire with the gauss cannons. We’re going to need to hit them hard and fast,” Grimms said, leaning forward and not liking the odds.

  “Belay that, Hon. I don't think they can see us on their scan, otherwise they would have opened fire right away. I think they know we’re here, but not exactly where,” Cora said.

  Grimms bit his lip, hoping she was right, though he didn’t understand how the Teifen could know to follow them here.

  Unless someone told them.

  “Mezner, has a signal gone out from us or the yacht since our jump?” Grimms asked urgently.

  “Checking, sir,” Mezner said, leaning into her console to check the log.

  “They’re firing gauss cannons, brace for impact,” Hon reported, holding onto the edge of his console. After a few seconds, he double-checked his scans. “They missed. I think they are firing blind, sir; they are just peppering the area, hoping for a lucky hit.”

  “The yacht is locked onto the hard point, sir,” Connors called out. “Warp coordinates Alpha set.”

  “Change to jump point Theta,” Grimms ordered, a bad feeling in his gut.

  “Theta set, sir.”

  “Warp in three, two, one,” Cora quickly counted down.

  The view compressed, and they were away, just as the area they had recently occupied was filled with hundreds of slugs.

  Everyone took a breath, letting the nervous energy out in a rush—everyone but Grimms and Mezner, who were looking at each other from across the bridge.

  “Mezner? Was there a signal?” Grimms asked again, his brow furrowed with anger.

  “Yes, sir. There was an Aetheric burst right after we jumped, then again before the dreadnought began firing on us,” she reported, confirming his worst fears.

  “Sir?” Connors asked, not understanding the significance of this.

  “The prince’s ship is signaling the Teifen, Ensign,” Cora said, her voice dark.

  “It was a trap,” Grimms growled.

  18

  Sara laced up her boot, her face still burning from having Baxter’s eyes on her so intently. Though if his squirming was any indication, he hadn’t enjoyed it much either. We should try that under different circumstances. Stop, Sara. This is ridiculous, and not appropriate.

  Alister rubbed his head against her side in solidarity. “Mrow.”

  She smiled down at him, “Thanks, man. That means a lot.”

  He bunted her side again, and she gave a laugh. She noticed Baxter was smiling at the cat’s antics as well.

  It had taken him twenty minutes to feel confident enough to use her as a focus for his Aether, but the entire time, he had kept it professional. There was no leering, no comments, just focused determination. She appreciated his demeanor.

  That didn't mean that it wasn’t the most exposed she had ever felt in the presence of another person. But she realized that was the point, in a way. She had revealed her vulnerability to Baxter, linking them for life.

  Now she could feel his Aether nestled in her well, its flavor slightly different than her own. She cherished the odd feel and what it meant.

  “So, pixies?” Baxter asked, standing with his back to her.

  He had turned around once the spell was done to give her some privacy. She said it was stupid, since he had just stared at her naked body for a full twenty minutes, but he insisted. Her heart fluttered a little at the gesture.

  “Yes. Pixies,” she said, finished tying her laces and throwing her jacket on.

  She stood and put a hand on his back to let him know it was time to go. She felt his muscles tense under her hand, before he turned and gave her a bright smile.

  “And Alister is one of them?” he asked, motioning for her to go down the ramp first.

  Alister jump
ed to Sara’s shoulder and gave a “Merp” in answer.

  Baxter nodded. “Okay, good to know.”

  “So, this is going to be odd for you; I know, because it still is for me. Just try not to stare, okay?” Sara smiled over her shoulder at him.

  She felt a small surge of trepidation and determination, and knew it was his. Great. Now I have two people’s emotions in my head, in addition to my own. I suppose it will take the guess work out of our relationship…

  They crossed the open, grassy area, headed toward Boon and the forest. Boon was sitting on the ground, cross-legged, with Silva wrapped around her neck like a too short scarf. Nyx was sitting in front of her in a similar position, but she was leaning over Boon’s tablet, which was on the ground between them. The ten guards were still standing in a half circle behind her, but in much more relaxed positions than they’d been in when Sara had led Baxter away.

  Sara looked back at Baxter to see how he was taking the sight of his first pixies, but his face was undisturbed, a half-smile etched into his dark features.

  When they got closer, Sara could see that Boon and Nyx were playing a game of chess on the tablet. As she watched, the pixie slid three fingers across the screen, dragging a rook across the board. “Checkmate,” Nyx said excitedly.

  “Seriously? Again? Are you sure this is your first time?” Boon said skeptically, holding the tablet up to inspect the board.

  Nyx held up her hand solemnly. “I swear, it’s beginner’s luck.” She saw Sara and Baxter approaching, and stood to her full height, not even coming to Baxter’s knee.

  She held out a hand to shake with him, and he knelt down, taking her hand between his thumb and forefinger and shaking gently.

  “Hello, Sergeant Major Baxter. My name is Nyx Morenna, Keeper of the Records. It is a pleasure to meet you. Our friend Boon here told me a lot about you while we played some chess,” she said graciously with a half-bow.

  Baxter, for his part, was much more composed than Sara would have been if she had been handed the same circumstances.

  “A pleasure, ma’am,” he said with a bow of his head. He noticed the ten guards and, standing, gave them all a salute. “Gentlemen.”