Rykhan (Book 1 of Mate Search Series)

by J. A. Hornbuckle

  Pam’s look when she gazed at Leah seemed to emphasize her earlier words about getting Leah off the star-ship.

  Even without knowing the full story, Leah whole-heartedly agreed.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Rykhan had not been down on the surface in days and he found that he had missed being there. Not just because of the sheer space in the house but he had also missed being with his warrior-brothers.

  Even if they all now carried the mantle of worry and as they told him of their conclusions, he realized his fears were no longer his alone. The other males were putting the different pieces together and all believed the committee hid the full truth. As in Rykhan’s case, held in the dark regarding Stege’s real plans for their quest.

  “Dr. Jyrl advised Leah must be kept onboard for her and our youngling’s safety. I believed him.” Rykhan sighed and rubbed his forehead. “But I think it was more to keep her under his control.”

  No warrior responded but Rykhan saw agreement in their eyes and faces.

  “So what’s our next step?” He liked that they were all united in belief that the Rysling in and of itself was simply wrong on every level. The fact that they, the most loyal of all Protectorates were willing to go against orders, was mind-boggling.

  “To get your female off the Searcher is the number one goal at the moment,” Wyst voice was a dark, firm growl. “The pixie said she would make your mate aware of what is happening.”

  Bronsyn’s tresl beeped and he looked at the screen. “Commander Stege has requested a meeting with you, Rykhan. I suggest you take the call in my quarters.”

  Rykhan swallowed thickly. He had never met with the Committee leader but with their new knowledge, he found the timing of the request suspicious. “Certainly.”

  As the two men walked away from the others, Bronsyn clapped a hand on his warrior’s shoulder. “You need not meet with the male alone. I will remain in the food-prep area where our leader will not be aware of my presence.”

  The nod Rykhan gave felt like more of a jerk. The situation must be much more serious than he originally thought if Bronsyn was offering to act as a witness.

  Soon the image of the blonde leader, the supreme commander of their quest, filled the large screen in Bronsyn’s tiny house. As promised, Bronsyn was tucked out of view of the screen. Rykhan gave the formal Picari greeting and the gesture of abeyance to the man, but his movements were ones of rote, not given out of any measure of respect.

  “It has come to my attention that your female refuses to give her approval for the harvest of her eggs,” the older male started without preamble.

  “Yes,” Rykhan quickly answered. He wanted to get through this meeting as fast as possible. “According to our laws, she is allowed control of her body, to do with it as she wills. My mate has every right to deny the request.”

  Commander Stege glared into the screen. “Not once we evoke the writ of Rysling. Once in place, your human female mate will have no say in the matter now will she?” There was no denying the sneer in Stege’s voice.

  “She is not Picari, therefore not subject to our laws,” Rykhan asserted as calmly as he could, but his response only gained him another narrow-eyed glare.

  However, Stege swiftly changed his attitude and Rykhan watched as a self-satisfied smile replaced the scowl. “She is if she is aboard a Galaxi vessel.”

  Rykhan’s stomach dropped to his knees and he gripped the table edge until the wood groaned in protest. Oh Tsiran! What was his commander planning? Moreover, how would Stege’s plans affect his beautiful Leah?

  “Therefore, I have withdrawn your access to the TIPS system,” his leader continued, in a voice both haughty and seemingly proud of the power he was able to wield. “Until your little, fragile female has given up the right to both her youngling and her ovum, you are banned from the Searcher and are to remain planet-side.”

  “Our youngling?” Rykhan stuttered in bewilderment. “You cannot possibly think you have any rights to the life she and I have created.”

  “Both can and will, Protector Rykhan.” The gleam of triumphant in the supreme commander’s eyes turned the warrior’s stomach. “I have the wherewithal to make any and all decisions for this mission. And I have plans for the tiny female hybrid you’ve planted inside your human mate.”

  Rykhan could not take a deep enough breath with which to voice his objections. Not that he had any that were viable in order to stop Stege from doing exactly as he wanted. No, by remanding Rykhan to the surface and keeping his Leah as prisoner, Rykhan had no way of fighting the man.

  Not realizing it had been several moments since Stege had spoken, Rykhan jumped when the voice boomed again. “I’m waiting for you to accept my orders, warrior.”

  At the manner the Committee leader demanded his acceptance of a directive not based on the vows of the Picari Protectorate and all that they stood for, Rykhan straightened, staring directly back at the screen. “You can force me to remain here and you can hold my mate hostage. But you cannot expect my approval for an order that negates my allegiance to the Picari Protectorate credo.”

  “We’ll just see about that,” the other man spat before he disconnected abruptly.

  As the screen faded to black, Rykhan was unable to stand and dropped back into the chair as Bronsyn swiftly moved towards him.

  “What are we going to do, commander?” Rykhan asked on a shaking voice. “What in Tsiran’s name can we do?”

  *.*.*.*.*

  After relaying all that he had overheard, Bronsyn sat back in his chair and allowed the voices of his warriors to swirl around him. Listening to Stege without giving his presence away had been the hardest thing he had ever done. The boy, the friend he had known in his youth was nothing like the crazed male who controlled their mission. Bronsyn was absolutely certain the supreme commander of the quest was insane, drunk on the power he now wielded.

  Bringing himself back into what the warriors were discussing, Bronsyn saw Arbrynt bent over his tresl, his ever-present case of tools on the table in front of him. Perhaps the warrior needed something to occupy his hands as he thought, because Bronsyn was also feeling the need to do something…anything!

  “I still vote for transporting up to the Searcher and snatching Rykhan’s mate from beneath their very noses,” Gyard ground out. “Who is going to fight against us? The crew?” His snort of derision scoffed at the idea of the much smaller crewmembers battling the elite of Picari’s finest warriors.

  “Since the writ has yet to have been approved, I think we need to contact the presidents of both Galaxia and Nutrol and advise them of our situation.” Tyshar’s voice was as calm as ever and made Bronsyn sit up in his chair.

  “You think they are unaware of what the Committee is doing?”

  Tyshar looked directly at his mission commander and nodded firmly. “I do. And I believe once our governments learn what we suspect, of the measures Stege is precipitously taking, they will be able to circumvent the Committee’s plans.”

  “Do you think your cousin would be willing to gain us an audience?” Bronsyn thought quickly. Did he know anyone on Nutrol who could get him an appointment with the president of the agrarian planet?

  “My mother’s sister was married to the male who now holds the Presidential gavel on Nutrol,” Laxon offered. “I can contact him if you wish.”

  “Do you think he will take your call?” Wyst asked sharply. “How long has it been since you’ve spoken with him.”

  The younger man’s blush was a deep, bright red as he replied. “He came to see us off, remember?”

  Arbrynt’s device went off on a series of beeps interrupting all the different conversations on the patio.

  “What the Posket are you working on, brother?” Gyard demanded. “Can’t you see we’re trying to come up with a plan of action here? Why aren’t you contributing instead of playing with one of your toys?”

  Taking no umbrage at Gyard’s harsh rebuke, Arbrynt slowly smiled. “I’m not playing. I was si
mply trying to find a way for Rykhan to communicate with his mate. And do so in a way that will allow him to warn her without any of the crew or the Committee knowing his words.”

  Rykhan face held a look of incredulity as he turned to Arbrynt. “You can cloak my speech?” He’d been beating himself up over the fact that he couldn’t even talk to his mate without others avidly listening and recording. There was no way to warn her without giving away information he somehow suspected might cost both of them their lives.

  Arbrynt shook his head and then turned away before nodding. “In a manner of speaking, yes.”

  Wyst rolled his eyes. “Why can’t you ever speak plainly, Arbrynt?”

  The other warrior kept his smile in place as he slid his tresl towards Rykhan.

  Rykhan looked at the screen and scowled. “I can’t read this! It looks like English, for Tsiran’s sake.”

  “Exactly,” Arbrynt said with a waggle of his eyebrows. “But your mate can.”

  *.*.*.*.*

  Leah was worried. Rykhan had never been gone so long before and Pam claimed she didn’t want to leave her unattended.

  “I don’t trust that Jerry dude, Ley,” her friend had finally admitted. “I’ll just stick around until your guy gets back.”

  Checking the clock on her computer, Leah saw Rykhan had been gone for over three hours. “You don’t think anything’s happened to him, do you?”

  “Like what?” Pam asked distractedly, her face never rising from her cellphone. “Geez, honey. No one’s gonna mess with that group!”

  “But what if he fell or hurt himself? What if he had a heart attack or caught one of our earth diseases and can’t move?”

  Pam’s eyes shifted up to her friend without lifting her head. “Jay-sus. Paranoid much?”

  Leah couldn’t sit still and began to pace never realizing she wrung her hands as her feet led her up and back in the only open space in the room. “Do you think he’ll be back soon?”

  “Dunno,” Pam replied with a sigh. “But I do know that you seem to be riding that hormonal highway all pregnatos seem to hit at some point. Calm down, girlfriend! He’ll be here when he gets here.”

  Leah knew her bestie was only trying to help but Leah felt something along her connection with Rykhan that told her things were not right. He was very worried, but the worry was edged in helplessness. Maybe her interpretation was wrong. Her Rykhan was decisive and strong, the only man who could quiet her fears, calm her with only a touch. He was not a worrier and she’d never seen him helpless. She paced for more than a few minutes.

  “They’re gonna complain if you wear out their carpet,” Pam eventually stated into the silence. “Plus all your pacing is making me dizzy.”

  “I can’t just sit still and…” Suddenly the opening bars of the Star Wars theme filled the room and Leah raced for her cellphone. Rykhan! But it wasn’t a call, just a text. As she put in her security code and went to her messenger menu, she wondered why he didn’t just talk to her direct. She knew with all the kick-ass enhancements Arbrynt had made to both hers and Pam’s phones, Rykhan should’ve been able to reach her even on the other side of the moon.

  “Oh my god!” she exclaimed as the full message came up. “When did they learn to write?”

  Pam ran to her friend and grabbed the phone, tilting it enough so she could read along.

  My Leah the text began. My orders are to stay on the planet and not return to the Searcher. You are to remain onboard. Your friend must help you escape immediately. Wyst says to use girl-power. I await your arrival and pray for your safety.

  “Well, isn’t that sweet?” Pam announced loudly, staring up into Leah’s friends face as she bugged out her eyes. “A little Earth-side sexy-text to let you know he’s all right. Seriously cool, girlfriend!”

  Leah felt her eyebrows draw together until she realized what Pam tried to silently convey. The message, written in perfect English, gave no clue how Rykhan had accomplished it. However, she more than understood the warning.

  They were keeping her man from her.

  While holding her and their child hostage.

  Leah read the message again before she took a stab at speaking. “He’s so romantic.” Moving to the table, Leah grabbed the pen and pulled the pad of paper towards her. “That’s one of the best things about those guys, don’t you think? That they’re all just a bunch of softies at heart?”

  “I guess,” Pam replied dubiously as she trailed after her friend. Reading the words Leah wrote, Pam quickly got with the program. “A lot more than the human guys I know.”

  Do you know the way to the TIPS room? And how willing are you to kick some alien ass if the need arises?.

  Pam’s sapphire eyes caught on Leah’s dark green ones. She nodded once and then gave her reply. “Yes! These warriors are better than most of the men I’ve dated. Well, with the exception of that dude from Hawaii. He was seriously off the charts.”

  Leah bent down and removed her shoes while her eyes moved over all her possessions scattered around the room. As far as she was concerned, she had nothing onboard she considered irreplaceable.

  Wait! Maybe her cellphone. She might need her phone in the future.

  Tucking it into the deep cup of her bra, she watched as Pam removed her shoes and secured her own phone. Taking a deep breath, Leah pulled her tinier friend into a hug. “For good or for worse, we’re in this together,” she whispered fervently, proud her voice only shook a little.

  “Let’s rock the girl-power, friend of mine.” Pam’s voice was barely audible but Leah knew the other woman was more than ready, willing, and able to get off the Picari star-ship.

  With a hair toss done in tandem, the women faced the door.

  *.*.*.*.*

  “What a pleasant surprise!” President Allwyne’s light eyes danced as he took in the two warriors on his screen. “I didn’t expect a direct report although I’m happy to see Commander Stege gave in to my request.”

  Rykhan and Bronsyn exchanged a look. “We are not contacting you as the result of a direct order.”

  “Well, be that as it may, Commander Llent. It is still my pleasure to share a conversation with you and to obtain news of your glorious mission.”

  Rykhan felt his stomach knot as he realized the President of his home world was blithely unaware of what was transpiring. At Bronsyn’s next words, Rykhan knew the man experienced the same. It was never good to be the bearer of bad tidings.

  “So you are receiving regular reports of our progress here on Earth?”

  Allwyne’s laugh was almost contagious and if Rykhan had not been in such a state, he probably would have joined in. “Not as frequently as I’d prefer, but I do receive updates, yes.”

  “Then you know that I’ve found my mate, she bears my mark as a warrior, and she is carrying our female youngling.” Rykhan’s voice sounded so flat, unable to inject all the emotion those words should’ve contained. He wanted the president to glimpse what he held in his heart for his Leah.

  The man on the screen sat back in his chair, his eyes blinking as he processed Rykhan’s words. His lips opened and closed as if he wanted to speak but did not know what to say. “But that’s not possible! I have received no reports of anything other than the warriors are still on search.” The man took in a deep breath before smoothing a hand down the front of his blue and white robes. “A youngling, you say? And it’s a female?”

  “Yes, your eminence,” Bronsyn answered as he lowered his head. “I would’ve expected you would have been told immediately.”

  “As would I,” the man sputtered. Allwyne turned his head away as if he was thinking deeply. “I always thought the stories about a shared wahrom were just tales the priests liked to spin.”

  Rykhan and Bronsyn shared another look. “As we all did. But Rykhan’s mate grew her armband which is an exact replica to the one he was given by Tsiran at the academy.”

  The face on the screen came back to face the two warriors. “So Tsiran obviously approves o
f the match. And what our maker approves cannot be taken away.”

  “There are those who are trying, though,” Rykhan started, not exactly sure how he would explain what the warriors had uncovered.

  Bronsyn placed a hand on Rykhan’s forearm to silence him. “As you know, a writ was submitted calling for the evocation of the old Rysling edict. We firmly believe that Commander Stege and the other members of the Committee seek to harvest human female ovum.”

  “Stege is behind the writ?” Rykhan’s eyebrows rose at the anger he could detect in the president’s voice. “I was told it was driven by the Coalition for Pure Bred Picaris or whatever name the dissenters are using these days.”

  Rykhan swallowed thickly when Bronsyn did not reply. It would be up to him, which was probably the correct way for things to proceed. “When my mate was injured, she was taken aboard the Searcher for medical care. She is now being held against her will until she agrees to allow her ovum to be removed.”

  The president frowned as he pulled at his lower lip as he mulled over Rykhan’s words. “Why would anyone need her seedlings? They are not fertilized, are they? So what good would come from obtaining them?”

  Bronsyn shifted in his seat before answering. “As I understand it, the plan is to infuse Rykhan mate’s unfertilized ovum with the life-force of other Picaris in order to create additional younglings.” He stopped and swallowed. When he spoke again, his voice was husky and rough. “These manufactured younglings will be sold to the Picari elite.”

  “What?!” President Allwyne bellowed coming up out of his chair. His hands dragged through his hair and he sucked in his cheeks. “That’s the most preposterous…I cannot believe anyone with an ounce of decency…”

  It was the reaction Rykhan hoped for, the exhibited disbelief that another could be so despicable as to steal living body tissue in order to achieve their own ends.

  “This is not what I or the Herald of Galaxia agreed to,” the president finally said into the quiet. “Not even close to what any of us had envisioned as your mission.”