Triumphant (Battle Born Book 14)

by Cyndi Friberg

“You promised me answers,” she firmly reminded.

  “Yes I did, but I hadn’t planned on bringing any of this up until other, more pressing conflicts were resolved. That would be incredibly selfish.”

  Somehow she doubted that Skyla had ever been selfish in her life, but Rebecca just smiled. “We’re in a sort of lull right now and I’m dying of curiosity. Why have you been helping the human volunteers? You did so long before your sons’ mates went through the transformation process.”

  “The transformation program will determine whether Sedrik—and to a lesser degree Kaden and Dakar—succeeds or fails. Is it wrong for a loving mother to want her children to do well? Besides, humans are clueless when it comes to metaphysical interactions. There is no way any of them would have been able to do it without, what did you call me, a ‘Ghost Guide’. Why no one else anticipated this complication, I can’t begin to understand.”

  Skyla was so casual about the entire situation that it was hard to argue. “But how did you know when each volunteer needed you? You said you can only sense your family members.”

  “You’re making this much too complicated. Who commands the Intrepid?”

  “Isn’t that the hospital ship?” Skyla nodded. “Sorry, I don’t know.”

  “Their commander is a handsome young man named Kaden Lux.” Sedrik’s middle brother.

  Skyla was right. The connections were a lot less mystical than Rebecca thought. “Does he tell you about the upcoming procedures, or do you just sense his reactions to them?”

  “At first I was sensing his anxiety, but he quickly figured out what I was doing. Now he’s my willing accomplice.”

  Hoping the rest was as simple, Rebecca asked, “Why were you so insistent that I absorb as much energy as possible?”

  “Because you’re going to need every drop if you’re going to become a Ghost Guide.”

  Rebecca gasped, honestly shocked by Skyla’s casual suggestion. “I can’t do what you do, Mrs. Lux. I wouldn’t even know how to try.”

  “I know. Which is why I’m going to train you. You have more than enough raw power, now all you need is the skill.”

  Rebecca just stared at Skyla for a moment, lost in thought and filled with wonder. If it hadn’t been for Skyla’s guidance, she was certain she wouldn’t have been able to free Sedrik’s magic. “Have you helped every single volunteer?”

  “Some more than others, but yes. They desperately needed a guide, so I guided them. But the program has been accelerated. I can’t keep up with all the transformations now. I want to create a team of Ghost Guides, willing and able to assist the volunteers with the most important challenge of their young lives. And I want you to be my team captain.”

  “Seriously?” She couldn’t decide if she was thrilled or terrified. “I’ve never done anything like this.”

  Skyla laughed. “What do you call last night? Sedrik’s barrier was the strongest I’ve ever encountered, yet you—with a little help from my son—reduced it to rubble. You’re good at this, whether you realize it or not.”

  Embarrassed by the praise, Rebecca argued, “All I did was show Sedrik what he needed to do.”

  “Which is basically what you’ll be doing as a Ghost Guide. You’ve been through it. There is no one more qualified. Now stop arguing with me. I have no intention of taking no for an answer. However, you can take a few days to convince yourself I’m right. Go stop the Evonti invasion, and then we’ll speak again.” Skyla waved at her then terminated the link.

  Rebecca slumped back in the chair with a helpless laugh. “What the hell just happened?”

  In the spirit of full disclosure. Skyla responded in Rebecca’s mind. Tell Sedrik you need to learn how to shield your thoughts as soon as possible. You broadcast like a beacon.

  Thanks for the warning.

  And the answer to your question is, you just found your true vocation. Accept it and move on.

  * * * * *

  It took three days for Sedrik to feel like himself again. Rebecca hovered the first day, not letting him near his datapad. The second day, she allowed him to work in bed and to take his meals with her at the table in their cabin. On the third day, he insisted on catching up and he simply picked her up and moved her out of the way when she tried to block his path. She sulked for over an hour. Apparently, she’d enjoyed the temporary shift in their power structure, but balance had been restored. At least from his perspective.

  He’d had breakfast with Rebecca this morning, not wanting her to feel neglected by his return to active duty. She’d spent a lot of time communicating with his mother, but she’d yet to explain what all of the coms were about. He’d asked several times. She just smiled and told him it was “girl stuff”. If Rebecca continued to be secretive, he’d com his mother and insist on knowing what they were planning.

  He walked onto the command deck and the bridge officers stood and applauded. He made a face and waved them back to work. “I know for a fact that Tyrale lets you get away with murder, so we’ll see how long your welcome lasts.”

  He spent a few hours at central command just to make sure his bridge officers didn’t forget what he looked like, then returned to his office. It had only been little over a week since he stumbled across Rebecca and yet his entire universe had changed. Rodyte courtships were always fast, but the speed of this one was staggering. He hadn’t had any more visions, but he’d had several psychic impressions and two prophetic dreams.

  One of his dreams concerned his lovely mate. She wore a feminized version of a Rodyte uniform and stood in front of six other females all similarly attired. She spoke in authoritative tones, though he couldn’t make out her specific words. She’d looked like a commander briefing a special ops team, but that made no sense. Rebecca had no military experience. In fact, she had little work experience of any kind thanks to the son of a bitch she’d married. He dismissed the unpleasantness before it had time to take root within his mind. Jim Dayton was dead and Rebecca’s past was behind her for good.

  Forcing away all the distractions, he checked his com-queue and found several messages from Morgan Hoyt. The last was marked urgent. She had access to a Rodyte com unit, so he pinged her, but received no response. So he activated a cell phone emulator and rang her mobile.

  “This is Hoyt. It’s about freaking time.”

  He chuckled. “Sorry, Director. I’ve been indisposed.”

  “So your fist officer told me. I secured permission for your people to access the L.A. portal, but the entire thing is rather moot now. The human team found some sort of schematic that allowed them to repair the portal themselves. You’re still welcome to run tests and—”

  Jarring trepidation brought his senses to high alert. “The portal is active, right now?” With L.A. back online, three of the portals could be networked to form a larger portal directly above the most densely populated areas of California.

  “I believe so. Why do you sound frantic?”

  “Tell the human team to deactivate it immediately. All of the portals must be destroyed.”

  “Care to explain why?” She sounded annoyed, not frightened.

  “Get that portal offline and I’ll answer all your questions.”

  “Answer my questions and I’ll get the portal offline,” she countered.

  Not willing to take chances with more human lives, he brought up a chart displaying the current location of all battle born fighters. There were two within striking distance of L.A. He sent a target order to each with the exact coordinates of the portal, but told the fighters to stand by.

  “You have two minutes to get your people out,” he told Morgan.

  “What is wrong with you?” Her voice sharpened. “There is no reason for threats.”

  “I’m trying to protect you! Ninety seconds.” He brought up the feed from one of the fighter’s main viewscreen so he could supervise their progress. Both ships were already in position and waiting for his order to fire.

  “Hold on!” Morgan yelled. “Let me make sure
they’re all out.”

  “Hurry!”

  It took her over two minutes to return, but she assured him, “We’re clear.”

  “Fire at will, but obliterate that target!”

  “Copy that, General Lux,” one of the fighter commanders responded and thin streams of energy from both ships drilled into the rubble, exposing an open doorway. The interior of the room glowed red from the repeated blasts, but Sedrik wasn’t taking any chances. “Rebel Three, shoot a thermo-bomb right through that doorway. I want everything inside it vaporized.”

  Rather than responding with words, Rebel Three deployed the requested ordnance. The thermo-bomb arched slightly, then dove fast and true right through the doorway. The resulting explosion rocked the fighter, making the display heave for a moment. When the view stabilized, the doorway was gone and a section of the rubble had been flattened.

  “Well done, men. Lux out.”

  Morgan’s irate face flashed onto a nearby screen as she switched from her cell phone to video-com. “What the hell just happened? You told me you wanted permission to repair the portal, not destroy it.”

  “We have new information. The portals can be networked to form larger portals, ship-sized portals.”

  She just stared at him for a long, silent moment, blue eyes narrowed and intense. “How do you know this? I was told Jim Dayton was too damaged to question.”

  Morgan’s mate was an Ontarian/Rodyte hybrid, so she understood paranormal gifts. “My mate and I went through transformation. I now have access to my magic.”

  She closed her eyes with an exasperated sigh, then opened them and looked at him again. “I can’t go to the generals with mystic dreams and visions. They expect tangible evidence.”

  “Tell them a fellow general had the vision,” he suggested with a smirk, hoping to deescalate a bit of the tension.

  Her only response was a glare.

  “Tell them whatever you need to, but I am going to destroy every portal I locate. They better not get in my way.”

  “You just fired weapons at the United States. Many will consider that an act of war.”

  Sedrik tensed, hiding his clenched fists beneath his desktop. “Obviously, that was not my intention. Do I need to speak with the generals directly?”

  “I don’t think a pissing contest will help at this point and that is inevitably what would happen. U.S. generals are used to being the most powerful men in the room.” She shook her head. “I’ll deal with them myself. You go prevent a war with the Evonti.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  By the following afternoon, Morgan had changed her mind about not needing Sedrik’s help. She explained that the generals had taken the developments remarkably well. However, the situation quickly escalated beyond U.S. borders. Governmental leaders from all over the globe were demanding action and threatening declarations of war. And because the majority of battle born interaction had been with the United States, the world leaders looked to America for guidance and military backing.

  “We have to nip this thing in the bud,” Morgan stressed, looking anxious and frustrated. “If we can’t convince these people that the Evonti threat is real, you’ll find yourself at war with Earth.”

  Rebecca reached over and entwined her fingers with Sedrik’s. They’d been in his office studying the newly discovered diagrams when Morgan commed. Charts similar to the one etched into the cavern wall had been found at each location. By comparing the charts, they were able to identify new portal chambers. The network literally spanned the planet.

  “Even combined, the armies of Earth are no threat to the battle born.” Sedrik’s tone was as tense as his posture, though his expression remained neutral.

  His ability to hide his feelings was both admirable and sad. Rebecca gave his hand a little squeeze. “None of us wants war.”

  “Then you need to be here in person for this video conference call. I already have confirmations from Canada, Mexico, France and the U.K. I’ve extended invitations to sixteen other countries and I expect most of them to accept. But none of it will mean anything unless you’re here to explain.”

  “If the meeting is taking place remotely, why do I need to be there in person?” Finding and destroying the portals was Sedrik’s top priority. Even in a Phantom, it would take several hours to fly back and forth to Earth.

  “A personal appearance will indicate the seriousness of the situation, and your dedication to finding a peaceful solution. You need to be here.”

  “Fine,” Sedrik growled out the word. “Give me an hour to gather what I need for the presentation and two for the flight.”

  “I think you should bring Rebecca.” Morgan’s bright blue gaze shifted to Rebecca as she added, “You’ve seen this conflict from both sides. And being human might help as well.”

  Rebecca glanced at Sedrik. His gaze was narrowed, jaw clenched, but he didn’t object. “I’ll be there,” she assured.

  Morgan thanked them both then ended the call.

  The video conference was scheduled for seven thirty that night. Rebecca had never been in a Phantom before, but the small, super-fast ship wasn’t that different from Zilor’s Hunter. The Bunker, on the other hand, was endlessly fascinating. The sprawling, complex more than lived up to the stereotypes of secret government facilities. Located in the middle of the Arizona desert, the majority of the base was underground. A portion of the parking lot opened and the Phantom gracefully sank into the hanger below, then the parking lot closed like a massively oversized door.

  Morgan greeted them in person and took them to the conference room in which the meeting would take place. “We’ve got little over an hour. Can I get you anything?”

  “All I need is the password to your wireless network and I’m good to go,” Sedrik told her. They’d arranged a presentation they hoped would be compelling and uploaded it to a datapad. Holographic images weren’t nearly as effective with a remote audience, so they tried to find the most dynamic stills and video clips possible.

  At seven twenty-eight, Sedrik, Morgan and Rebecca took their places along the long side of the conference table. Sedrik sat in the middle with Rebecca on his right. They faced the largest wall in the room, knowing they were about to be joined by fourteen of Earth’s rulers. One by one the images snapped into place until the wall displayed two rows of seven.

  Rebecca looked over the presidents, kings and prime ministers staring back at her with a surreal sense of wonder. All of these powerful humans had agreed to listen to information provided by her mate. It was thrilling yet humbling to see Sedrik’s power in action, and to realize the true scope of his responsibilities.

  Morgan greeted everyone, rattling off a list of titles that made Rebecca dizzy. How did Morgan keep it all straight? “I’m the official representative of the United States.” She motioned toward Sedrik. “As most of you know, this is General Sedrik Lux of the Rodyte Planetary Defense Force. I’ll let him introduce his companion. General Lux, you have the floor.” With no other introduction, Morgan sat down.

  Steely determination slipped into Rebecca’s mind as Sedrik pushed to his feet. He wasn’t intentionally sharing his emotions, but he wasn’t shielding them either. The access pleased her. She started to reward him with tenderness, but held back, not wanting to distract him. This was too important. She would reward him later.

  He spoke in a clear, authoritative voice, outlining the sequence of events without editorializing. He didn’t mention psychic dreams or memory scans. Instead, he stayed focused on facts. “This is what we found on the moon before we destroyed the portal.” He triggered the corresponding image. “The other portals we’ve located have been similar. Much of the grotto was damaged when the portal was destroyed, but our scientists are still examining the various forms of plant life. Terraforming is beyond our technology, so the researchers are hoping to learn more about it by studying the result.”

  “Do you have actual proof that the Evonti are responsible for any of this?” The Prime Minister of Austr
alia wanted to know. “If the portals are inactive, they could have been here for much longer than you realize.”

  “They’re not inactive.” Sedrik paused for a deep breath. “I think it’s time you met my m-companion. This is Rebecca Dayton and she has firsthand knowledge regarding your question.”

  Rebecca nodded, acknowledging Sedrik’s introduction. She wasn’t insulted by his choice not to define their connection. Her testimony would seem more valid if the human leaders didn’t know. She explained about her connection to Big Jim and how she’d used the Evonti disk to teleport back and forth to the cave.

  “Have you seen one of the Evonti, or do you have only secondhand information?” the German Chancellor asked.

  “This is an Evonti.” Sedrik triggered one of the few images he possessed of their elusive enemy. Captured during a sting involving Thea and Jenna Fermont, the image was grainy and slightly out of focus, but the creature was clearly non-humanoid. “This one calls himself Abaddon. He has been passing himself off as human for months as he organized the Resistance Force.”

  Gasps and murmurs rippled through the room as the leaders reacted to the likeness.

  “How in the world would that thing pass itself off as human?” one of the leaders sneered.

  “He never appeared in person and kept his face shadowed during remote communications,” Sedrik explained.

  The German Chancellor seemed unmoved by the image. “Again, I have only your word that any of this is true,” she told Sedrik. “That’s why I asked Ms. Dayton.” She looked at Rebecca and tried again. “Have you directly interacted with an Evonti? Did you meet this Abaddon?”

  It was so damn frustrating. She’d seen Abaddon, and others, in Jim’s memories, as well as her psychic dreams, but never in person. Bringing up the metaphysical would only cloud the issue, so she just shook her head.

  “I thought not.” Her sharp gaze shifted back to Sedrik. “This all comes down to whether or not we trust you.”

  “He has earned the trust of the United States on—”

  The Chancellor waved away Morgan’s comment. “Your opinion is irrelevant. The U.S. has the most to gain by supporting the battle born.”