Protector of the Realm

by Gun Brooke

  "The fighters are deployed and shields are up," Owena acknowledged from her work console.

  "Stand by for Tornado Alpha attack maneuver on my mark."

  "Standing by," said Owena.

  "Deputy M'Indo. I wish to speak to the ambassador or the commander of your fleet immediately. Take your weapons systems off-line and begin to redeploy ten of your ships out of this airspace."

  "They're not responding, Commodore."

  Rae watched with astonishment as the ambassador's cruiser opened fire. "Mark!"

  The SC fleet established a V formation with a destroyer in the lead, the frigates and assault craft taking up the flanks, and the Ajax falling back to assume the command position.

  The Ajax reeled from explosions around it. Rae felt her vessel lurch underneath the soles of her boots. "Evasive maneuvers!"

  "Aye, ma'am. Evasive maneuvers, Tornado Beta," Leanne replied. Punching in commands and handling the joystick as if it were a plaything in her hands, she threw the Ajax into a spiral dive, avoiding the torpedoes fired by one of M'Ekar's frigates.

  Rae's eyes never left the screen. "Damned Onotharians! What are they trying to do? Start a damn war?"

  Ten or more of her assault craft engaged the ambassador's cruiser, skillfully avoiding its antispacecraft defense systems. It took them three daring rounds before holes in the hull appeared in the lower decks. Two SC frigates moved in from the left flank, firing torpedoes at one of the Onotharian destroyers.

  "Their shields are down to sixty-five percent," said Lieutenant Gray.

  The Ajax shook from a series of explosions. Rae clung to the armrests of her chair as she glanced over at Kellen. Her new wife held on to the navigational console and fed it commands at a furious pace. "Damage report!" Rae barked.

  "Shields down to eighty-five percent. Hull microfractures on Decks 6 and 7. No casualties," Jeremiah read from his computer console.

  "Good. Work on the shields. This is far from over and we're going to need them." Rae raised her voice. "All right everyone, look sharp. The Infinity will start attacking their rear while the rest of the force attempts to flank them—a Tornado Epsilon attack formation. We'll begin when the Infinity initiates its attack."

  "Yes, ma'am," Owena responded. "All ships have acknowledged and are standing by."

  The Onotharian vessels were attempting to retaliate, but their assaults were disorganized. When the Infinity and the Ajax pressed the advantage and managed to divide the alien forces in half, the Onotharians couldn't regroup.

  The Infinity opened fire, engaging one of the frigates.

  Rae activated voice command. "All SC vessels, commence Tornado Epsilon."

  "Aye, ma'am, Tornado Epsilon," Leanne confirmed.

  The assault craft encircled the Onotharian ships. The rest of SC fleet began to envelop the intruders from above and below, firing in intricate patterns from port and starboard cannons. The Onotharians' erratic defense made Rae wonder if they were having a communications failure or were merely incompetent.

  Suddenly a large explosion and a blinding flash of light filled the screen.

  "Report!"

  "Our frigates just destroyed one of the Onotharian vessels," Owena answered.

  "How's the rest of their fleet doing?"

  "Less than fifty percent combat-effective."

  "Enough of this stupidity. Have the fighters lock onto their shield emitter and weapons. I want them incapacitated." Rae watched as the Onotharian vessels scattered, obviously trying to avoid the attack of the smaller craft, only to be confronted by the larger ships of her fleet.

  The Ajax approached M'Ekar's cruiser.

  "Firing torpedoes, full volley." Owena's voice sounded calm as she performed her task.

  Searing through space, the torpedoes tore at the diminishing shields of the cruiser.

  "The cruiser's shields are down."

  Rae rose from her chair. "One more time. Target their weapons again."

  They all watched a large gaping hole form in the aft of the cruiser.

  A panicked voice came across the communication array. "Deputy M'Indo to Commodore Jacelon. Cease fire. Cease fire."

  "Tell your ships to stand down at once, or I will continue this fight."

  "All Onotharian vessels stand down."

  Rae punched her communication console. "Gamma VI vessels, this is your commodore. Cease fire. Remain on red alert and stand by. Confirm. Jacelon out." She paused for a moment. "Tell me, Deputy M’Indo. Are you and the ambassador in charge of these forces? Are you the senior personnel on the scene?"

  "Yes, we are."

  "Then by the powers of the Council, I place the two of you under arrest. Prepare to be boarded."

  "You cannot arrest us! We enjoy diplomatic immunity and have obtained special permission from the SC Council to approach the Gamma VI Space Station with the forces we deem fit to carry out our mission. I have the documents here. Transferring them now, as well as our credentials."

  Biting back a curse, Rae watched the documents in question appear on her and Jeremiah's computer screens.

  "Deputy M'Indo, you and Ambassador M'Ekar might, and I do mean might, enjoy diplomatic immunity for the moment, but your fleet does not. It lost that standing when it opened fire on my vessels. Your actions were an act of aggression, if not an act of war, but I leave that to the Council to decide."

  "How dare you! It was you who forced us to act in our defense. We will see how your superiors react when they learn how you handle such a minor border skirmish. Of course, Ambassador M'Ekar might be willing to forget the entire matter if you turn over Kellen O'Dal and Armeo M'Aido."

  Rae shook her head at his choice of words. She had to hand it to him; M'Indo didn't waste any time.

  "Onscreen," she ordered, and the image of Ambassador M'Ekar's aide appeared in front of them. "That last explosion must have left you delusional. I am in charge of this battle space on behalf of the SC. You obviously do not understand your situation at the moment."

  "And neither do you."

  "I will not hand over anyone, let alone Kellen O'Dal and her foster son, to you."

  "You have to. SC law is clear on that point."

  Rae found it almost amusing at how conveniently the deputy now quoted SC law, when only moments ago, he had blatantly ignored it with his unlawful approach.

  "I am following the law. Unlike you and the ambassador, I always follow it—to the letter. Kellen O'Dal stays here and, until an SC court settles the custody issue, so does the boy."

  Deputy M'Indo seemed to waver for a moment at her confident tone. "You can't do this! SC law states you must carry out this extradition immediately."

  "Pretty hard to carry out extradition when you don't have a ship to stand on, so to speak. Better talk to the captain of your vessel and check out your fleet. You'll find you're not going anywhere unless it's in my custody."

  "Of all the—"

  "While you're at it, check out your computer screens and reports for the message I'm about to send you about Ms. O'Dal. You'll find it a fascinating read."

  Growling orders to someone off-screen, M'Indo shot Rae a disdainful look while he drummed his finger on the console in front of him. "If this is another one of your tricks, Commodore..."

  "I don't know what tricks you could possibly be referring to. As I said, legal and aboveboard."

  A crew member walked up to the deputy and mumbled something inaudible. Slowly raising his eyes to look at Rae, M'Indo snarled. "You married her! A marriage of convenience, so you can get your hands on a boy who is not of her blood. We will contest this," he spat.

  "You can try." Rae realized she sounded more casual than she felt. "Kellen is now my wife and enjoys all the benefits and obligations of SC citizenship. Armeo will stay with us while an independent court, which the ambassador cannot intimidate, coerce, or otherwise manipulate, will try the custody case. You should point out to your boss that he will not have diplomatic immunity when the trial starts. He will be merely one of t
he parties involved, unless he's serving time for this fiasco. Check the SC law book again and you'll see I'm right. That's called equality under the law."

  Rae glanced at Kellen, who stood next to Ensign S'hos, her hands clasped behind her back, a stance Rae had come to interpret as her way of keeping composure. She looked into brilliant blue eyes and, before she could analyze her own intentions, she reached out. "Kellen?"

  Her wife shook her head and looked dismayed, perhaps at having to face an Onotharian, but walked across the bridge to stand next to her. Placing her arm around Kellen's waist, Rae looked steadily at M'Indo. "My fleet is standing by to assist in the rescue-and-recovery efforts. I will validate those that cannot make it back to Onotharian space safely and approve their docking at the space station for medical and repair assistance. We will escort the rest of your fleet to the border."

  "You will be sorry for this," M'Indo replied, but he sounded shaken.

  "It might take your ship a while to go anywhere," Rae informed him. "Seems it needs a great many repairs. I would prefer, since you profess to have diplomatic immunity, to deal with the senior officer in charge. That way we will have no misunderstandings. Jacelon out."

  When she'd cut communications, she looked at Kellen with concern. "Are you all right? How's the leg? You're trembling."

  "My leg's fine. It's just adrenaline."

  Rae squeezed her arm. As she turned her attention to the officers on the bridge, she smiled faintly. "Thank you all for a successful mission, and for keeping Ajax and the other vessels intact. Let's go back to Gamma VI. Commander Todd, you have the conn. Make sure enough frigates remain to assist. I'll be in my office. Kellen?"

  The newlyweds walked across the bridge to the office, where Rae finally let go of her spouse so she could enter it. After striding over to the porthole, Kellen turned around, her face serious.

  "Commodore... I mean, Rae... we have to talk."

  CHAPTER SIX

  Rae sat down on the corner of her desk, her outstretched hands on her lap.

  Kellen regarded her, trying to grasp that this dynamic human was now her wife. "You should know some of the things that happened when Armeo and I escaped from Gantharat."

  "Go on."

  Kellen slowly exhaled. "The men, the ones the ambassador sent, I believe they had orders to destroy any evidence regarding my custody claim. Armeo and I ran for the spaceship. It was well hidden in the barn, which I had outfitted with hydraulics to open the roof. When we took off... they were burning down the house, the stables, everything."

  Rae rose and walked up to her. "They killed your animals?"

  "Yes, without hesitation. I'm a coward. I haven't told Armeo the truth about that yet." Kellen slid her hand along the transparent aluminum in the porthole. "But this is secondary to something else I've kept from him. When we blasted through the half-open roof to the barn, it was already ablaze. If it had been a regular barn, we would have died in the fire."

  Rae's eyes hardened, turning slate gray. "In other words, M'Ekar ordered you both to be eliminated. He's trying to get his hands on Armeo, but if that fails, he's not above murder."

  "That was my deduction also."

  Rae cupped Kellen's chin, turning her face toward her own. "Was that why you blasted my vessel with everything you had when we ran into you?"

  "I can't trust anyone." Kellen found the words hard to say now that she felt a burning hope for the first time in years that they weren't true anymore. "M'Ekar has many allies."

  "You're wrong on the first one. You can trust me. I'll do my best to keep you and Armeo safe."

  "You don't understand," Kellen murmured huskily. "I will not risk Armeo. If I ever have the opportunity, I'll deal with M'Ekar myself. He's a dead man."

  Rae grabbed Kellen by the arms. "Now you listen to me. You will not go off like a loose cannon. We are fighting this man by the book. We will battle him in a court of law, not by becoming exactly what you're accusing him of."

  "He will stop at nothing! If Armeo is dead, all the M'Aido estate will go to M'Ekar. Or if he has Armeo at his mercy, he will control it through the boy," Kellen growled. "I cannot let this happen."

  "I know. It won't, but you're going to have to trust me and do this my way—by the law." Rae gently shook her by the shoulders. "Give me your word."

  Her jaw squarely set, Kellen did not avert her eyes. "I can't lie."

  "I'm not asking you to lie. I'm asking you to trust me and the plan we've set in motion."

  Kellen stared into Rae's uncompromising eyes, and her heart contracted painfully. She realized Rae meant every word. "It's a lot to ask." She drew a trembling breath. As far as she knew, Rae had been honest in every instance since they met. Or is that what she wants me to think? For all I know, she could be paving the way for more far-reaching plans than keeping Armeo and me on the station.

  The commodore was obviously using her resourcefulness, together with her strong claims that she was doing what was right, to reassure Kellen, but she might also be keeping herself open to other options. She doesn't strike me as an opportunist, but what do I know? Her strength is obvious and may well turn against me at a moment's notice. Right now she's dangling Armeo s well-being before me. Very well. I'll play along for his sake.

  "Your actions speak in your favor," Kellen said. "I will do as you suggest. For now."

  "All right. Fair enough." Rae released Kellen's shoulders. She opened her mouth to speak, but the comm system interrupted her.

  "Bridge to Jacelon. Onotharian casualties coming in."

  "On my way." Rae walked toward the door and glanced over her shoulder. "Are you coming? If your leg isn't hurting too badly, we can use an extra pair of hands."

  Though the idea of helping Onotharians repulsed her, Kellen found herself nodding in agreement. "Of course."

  As much as she resented the people they were about to help, being alone with her jumbled thoughts didn't appeal to her. In fact, being alone even under close surveillance made her uneasy in a way she could not explain. For some reason she knew she would feel safer if she remained close to her spouse.

  The cruiser docked at the brightly lit port, and medical personnel and crewmen scurried to assist the injured. Kellen observed from the porthole in Rae's onboard office as more than twenty wounded Onotharians were carried off the Ajax. Kellen had watched Rae oversee their care en route for Gamma VI before a security guard had escorted her back to the commodore's office an hour ago. Rae had joined her shortly before the Ajax reached the station.

  "What happens now?" Kellen murmured. "Armeo doesn't know anything. I have to prepare him, even if our arrangement is one of convenience and won't affect us on a daily basis."

  Rae looked surprised. "What do you mean, won't affect us? Didn't you understand what I explained?"

  Uncertain what Rae was referring to, Kellen mentally reviewed the tumultuous day. "Obviously not. I thought Armeo and I would return to my quarters, like before."

  "No, you have to go pack immediately." Rae checked her chronometer. "It's early in the morning. Armeo will join us when he wakes up. You can talk to him then."

  Kellen wasn't sure she liked where this was going. "Pack? Explain. I don't understand."

  Rae rubbed the base of her palms against her eyes, suddenly looking fatigued and impatient. "You and Armeo need to stay with me in my quarters. We have to live together for five years, as spouses, sharing everything. Ambassador M'Ekar won't hesitate to use any sign of fraud against you."

  Kellen flinched. She hadn't thought of that. The idea of five long years under the same roof as Rae gave her a feeling of tindras in her midsection. "So it's not enough we're married on paper? I have to stay in your quarters and pretend to..."

  "You don't have to pretend anything." Rae's eyes took on a frosty expression, going from soft gray to dark ice. "We'll live in the same household, but you can rest easy, because I'm rarely there. I'm on duty around the clock."

  Taken aback by the coldness in her so-called spouse's vo
ice, Kellen forced herself to take a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but everything has happened so quickly. I really appreciate your sacrifice for me... and Armeo. I'll try not to disturb your routine."

  Rae glared at her. Then her expression changed, and she surprised Kellen with a slight smile. "And raising Armeo, a child who needs to feel safe and wanted by both parent figures, can you guarantee he won't disturb me?"

  "He's polite, with good manners...Ah. You are being facetious." Kellen returned the sharp look. The unexpected case of nerves increased at Rae's smile.

  "I am. I'm sorry. I know we have a lot to work out. But facts remain. We have to make this work. Talk to Armeo when he wakes up and explain the situation to him. If you wait, he'll hear it from somebody else first. News travels fast on a station."

  "Is that an order, Commodore!" Kellen asked pointedly. "I do not foresee a happy marriage if you regard me as a subordinate. My parents' marriage was one of equals. They shared each other's lives, and neither of them outranked the other."

  Rae bit her lower lip, as if pondering what to say. She studied Kellen for a moment, then visibly made a new effort to communicate. "I meant it as a suggestion. Speaking as if I'm giving orders is an occupational hazard. I didn't intend to boss you around."

  Kellen's attitude mellowed at Rae's slightly awkward statement, and she donned a cautious smile. I have to think before I speak. I can't afford to alienate her. "Apology accepted. And you are correct about informing Armeo immediately. Rae..." Calling the commodore by her first name would take some getting used to. "If you have time, would you accompany me? It would make more sense to Armeo if he sees us together. He's a child, and he can't know the truth."

  Rae dug white teeth into her lower lip. "Damn it, you're right. If he told anyone this was a marriage of convenience, we'd be in trouble. As much as the ambassador may suspect it, he has to have proof or a living witness to testify to it. We can't ask Armeo to lie."