Triumphant (Battle Born Book 14)

by Cyndi Friberg

  “We also have the most to lose,” Morgan countered.

  “How many portals have been found and were humans allowed to see any of them before they were blasted out of existence?” Egypt’s president asked through his interpreter.

  “We have located nine and, for everyone’s safety, all have been destroyed,” Sedrik told him. “Humans witnessed four.”

  “What about the missing females?” Australia’s Prime Minister asked. “I know you claim some other group is responsible, but that’s rather hard to believe. The battle born need human females, and suddenly females disappear.” Challenge hardened his expression. “Coincidence? I think not.”

  A chorus of agreement quickly followed and Rebecca sighed. Clearly, this wasn’t going to be as cut and dry as she’d first thought.

  The debate continued for three and a half hours. Sedrik remained calm and composed through it all. He answered the myriad questions and showed the leaders image after image demonstrating Evonti misinformation and treachery. Rebecca watched the leaders closely, doing her best to gauge the attitude of each. Several never spoke, so it was impossible to decide which side of the argument they supported. Still, by Rebecca’s best guess, they convinced slightly more than half of the leaders that the Evonti threat was real.

  Finally, Sedrik had had enough. “I have shared all the information I have. As the Chancellor said, it is now a matter of trust. Either you believe me, or you don’t. Regardless of what you decide, I will do my best to protect you from the Evonti.” With that curt farewell, he stood and held out his hand toward Rebecca. “Come. Let’s go home.”

  * * * * *

  Sedrik spent the next four days locating and destroying Evonti portals. It was a tedious process, but unavoidable. As long as any of the portals remained operational, the Evonti had a doorway leading to Earth.

  “Was that thirty-six or thirty-seven?” Tyrale asked as he joined Sedrik at the central command station. Sedrik’s customary shift was now over, though he was never off duty. If anything significant happened, Tyrale wouldn’t hesitate to interrupt Sedrik’s leisure time.

  “Thirty-nine,” Sedrik told him. “To think we once believed there were only six.”

  “Thanks to you and your lovely mate, we now know better.”

  Sedrik acknowledged the statement with a nod, but his mood remained somber. “The United Nations voted to declare war on the battle born. It wasn’t unanimous, but the motion passed with a strong majority.”

  Tyrale’s eyes rounded and his jaw dropped for just a second before he snapped it shut. “How is that possible? You showed them all sorts of evidence that the Evonti are a real threat.”

  “According to them, ‘without provocation’, we fired weapons at locations all over the planet. No one was harmed and property damage was minimized, but that esteemed council didn’t care.” He paused for a calming breath, not wanting to take out his frustration on his first officer.

  “At least we have most of the people on our side. Social media has been buzzing about the threat ever since you uploaded the images for public access.”

  Sedrik looked at him askance. “There have been just as many posts damning us as praising us. I think the general population is undecided at best.” He waved away the topic and concluded, “The declaration changes nothing. The portals have to be destroyed even if the foolish humans choose to ignore my warnings.”

  Tyrale shook his head, apparently as offended by the myopic approach as Sedrik. “I guess it’s easier to hate an enemy you can see than to believe in one that’s mostly theoretical. Has this slowed down the volunteer rate?”

  “You could say that. We’ve had one volunteer in the past four days and she was arrested to keep her from going.” Before they’d been declared the enemy of all humankind, they’d received several hundred volunteers every day. “You can imagine what this has done to morale.” Sedrik crossed his arms over his chest, feeling downright surly as he thought about other developments. “The Triad asked Apex General Nox to submit a list of alternate planets on which feasibility studies could be conducted.”

  “Feasibility for what?”

  “Relocating the transformation program.”

  Tyrale’s jaw dropped. “And just abandon Earth to the Evonti? That would mean—”

  Sedrik stopped him before he really got going. “No. We’d stay long enough to make sure all the portals have been destroyed, then we’d move on.”

  Tyrale scoffed, a frequent battle born reaction to these subjects. “I expected more from the Triad. Do they actually believe it will be that easy? It took us two generations to make the program viable on Earth. We’ll all be dead before we find another compatible species and alter the protocols accordingly. None of that happened overnight.” He shook his head in disgust. “Earth is our only chance. So how do we convince human governments the threat is real?”

  “Diplomacy is obviously pointless,” Sedrik muttered. “I have a couple of ideas, though I’m not proud of either.”

  Tyrale moved closer and lowered his voice. “I know that look. What wicked strategy have you cooked up now?”

  Sedrik shook his head, lips curving in a secretive smile. “Not yet. There are too many details to work out. I’m not sure either approach makes sense.”

  Clearly disappointed yet accepting, Tyrale squared his shoulders. “If you need anything, you can count on me.”

  “I know. You are one of a very few I trust with this ship.” He clasped Tyrale’s forearm, then left the command center.

  Sedrik had meant to share the evening meal with Rebecca, but the long string of portal demolitions took longer than he’d expected. It wasn’t late, but when he entered their quarters, he found Rebecca curled up on the sofa, fast asleep. Now that they were mated, she had permission to go anywhere she liked and, with the help of Sedrik’s favorite assistant, she’d explored to her heart’s content for the past few days. Had she simply worn herself out?

  Concerned by her uncharacteristic behavior, he hurried to the sofa and brushed the hair back from her face. “Sweetheart, are you okay?”

  She blinked sleepily, then stretched. “I’m fine. Your mom just—” She bit off whatever came next and looked at him guiltily. “How was your day?”

  He narrowed his gaze and let her feel his suspicion. “What did my mother do now?”

  Rebecca sat up and smoothed down her skirt, it was a calf-length, billowy affair with a mixture of bright colors. She’d accepted the Rodyte custom of females in skirts or dresses without much argument. She’d been dealing with so much when she first came aboard that he hadn’t worried about the standard. But now that their situation was developing nicely, he asked if she was willing to adapt and she agreed. Of course her agreement was immediately followed by her request that he help her print a new wardrobe.

  “Your mother has been training me,” she finally admitted. “Mental exercises are surprisingly exhausting.”

  “Training you to do what?” He was almost afraid to ask. His mother was notorious for her well-meaning mischief.

  “To do what she does.” Rebecca grinned, apparently enjoying the secret she’d been sharing with his mother.

  “And what is it ‘she does’?” Her sudden cheer was a much needed shift from his shitty day, so he played along.

  Standing up, she moved in front of him and placed her hands on his chest. Her scent and nearness soothed him as nothing else could. “Your mother is the Ghost Guide.”

  He stared at her, dumbfounded by the casual revelation. “Why didn’t she tell me?” Because he wasn’t the son who needed to know. “Kaden is helping her, isn’t he?”

  “It was more like she was helping him in the beginning, but now they’re working together to ensure that each transformation is as smooth as possible.”

  Shaking his head at his own foolishness, he even managed to smile. “I should have known. It never felt random. Who else has the skill and motivation to assist the volunteers? Of course it was her.”

  She lo
wered her arms and took a small step back. “You’re not angry, are you?”

  “Not at all. I just wish she would’ve told me.” He scrubbed his head with both hands. His hair needed trimming. He liked it short enough to forget about, one less detail to work into his busy days. “When and why did she drag you into her clandestine activities?” He infused the question with mock drama and she snickered.

  “I realized who she was—or she let me realize—anyway, it happened during our transformation. She’s the one who encouraged me to soak up as much energy as possible.”

  “I wondered about that. You seemed hesitant, so I wasn’t sure what made you do it.”

  “She wanted me well-equipped to become a Ghost Guide.” A hint of nervousness reached his mind, but she explained before he could ask her about it. “I want to do this. I love you with all my heart, but I’ve had a hard time imagining myself as anything other than your mate and that’s not the life I want for myself anymore. I need to be more than the general’s wife.”

  “You need a purpose, an identity all your own. I understand completely.”

  “And you’re okay with it?”

  He took her hands between his and showered her mind with affection. “You don’t need my permission, love, but you have my support. If it makes you happy, that’s all I need to know.”

  Closing the distance between them, she pushed to her tiptoes and kissed him on the mouth. “Thank you.” She kissed him again.

  Desire stirred, tempting him away from the worries of the day. It would be so easy to pick her up, carry her to their bed, and spend the rest of the night pleasuring each other. However, her recent training brought to mind an opportunity that hadn’t been possible before.

  He eased her back, hands lingering on her hips. “Has she assessed your aptitudes yet?”

  Rebecca nodded, but her gaze drifted toward the bedroom. Clearly being this close was having a similar effect on her. “She identified several, but told me more could develop.”

  Her abilities should be similar to his, telepathy, clairvoyance, and prophetic dreams. But there was no way of knowing which gift would emerge first. “I want to do a psychic projection, but it requires an anchor. Did any of the exercises Mom took you through deal with balancing someone else’s power?”

  She laughed then shook her head. “It must have been fun growing up with her. Did you ever get away with anything?”

  Her reaction made no sense and he was too grumpy to try to figure it out. “What are you talking about?”

  “All day your mother had me practice anchoring her while she attempted a variety of activities. She must have known you’d suggest we do this tonight.”

  His hands slid up her back then back down to her hips. It was impossible to stop touching her when she was within reach. “It’s possible. Her impressions can be incredibly accurate. However, anchoring others is one of the first skills anyone is taught.”

  “Oh.” She sounded disappointed. “It’s more fun to think she knew.”

  He motioned to the sofa. “Let’s get comfortable. This can be time-consuming.”

  They sat down and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She snuggled in under his arm. “What’s psychic projection?”

  “It’s when you use an image from a vision or an object as a launch point for a deeper exploration. I’d like to use the teleportation disk. You do still have it, don’t you?”

  She looked up at him, curiosity clear in her eyes. “What do you hope to learn from the disk? There’s nothing interesting in that cave.”

  “Not now, but I might be able to tune in to past visitors, see what they stored there, that sort of thing.”

  With a carefree shrug she got up and walked into the bedroom. He watched the sway of her hips, desire smoldering.

  She returned a short time later and tossed him the disk. “My favorite hiding place is no longer a secret, so that thing doesn’t do me any good.”

  He arched his brows in playful challenge. “Is that the only reason?”

  She made a face. “Oh yeah, there’s the whole we’re bonded for life thing too.”

  Placing the disk in the center of his palm, he ran the fingers of his other hand back and forth across the smooth surface. She sat back down and moved as close as she could. Their thighs touched, but he needed his hands to establish a connection with the disk. He opened his mind, absorbing psychic echoes and the energy patterns imprinted on the disk.

  To her credit, Rebecca didn’t speak. She opened her mind as well, then simply waited, quiet and focused, ready. Already her training had increased her control.

  “Push up my sleeve and touch my arm, skin to skin,” he urged.

  She did so carefully, touching nothing but his arm.

  He closed his eyes, tuning out everything but what the disk revealed. First he saw the cave, but Rebecca’s supplies were absent. This must have been before she set up her secret camp. Then he saw Jim standing in front of the diagram, staring at the wall as if to memorize the shape. A dizzying montage of rapid-fire images followed. The cave was filled with crates, boxes and alloy containers only to be emptied again. Sedrik never saw the workers, just the stacked merchandise. A long period of emptiness came next. The cave sat idle, not a single visitor to trigger the lights. When the image shifted again, Jim faced a person mostly concealed by a hooded cloak. The newcomer’s features were shadowed, but grayish-green fingers, tipped with pointed claws, extended below the long sleeves. It was likely the person was Evonti, but to be fair, many other races also possessed grayish-green skin and pointed fingernails.

  “Do they all have to be activated at once?” Jim asked in English.

  The cloaked person moved closer to the wall drawing, then used his spindly fingertip to illustrate. “With three, we can create a mid-sized portal.” He traced a path from one intersection to another until he’d formed a triangle between the points. “Four opens the transport conduit even wider.” He traced a square this time. “But six are necessary to throw each gate wide open.”

  “So with sixty portals, you can form ten full-size gates?”

  “Correct. And with all ten gates open, we can deploy our invasion force in less than an hour.” His eerie laugh made the statement sound cataclysmic. “Earth will surrender without firing a shot once they’re faced with our true might.”

  The image blurred. Sedrik poured energy into the vision, but it slipped away, leaving him breathless and lightheaded. “Damn it. I lost my hold on the image stream.” He slumped back against the couch and rubbed his temples.

  “You’re exhausted.” She took the disk from his hand and set it aside. “I can feel how drained you are. You need sleep before you attempt this again.”

  He smiled without opening his eyes. “You already sound like my mother.”

  “Not surprising. We both love you very much.” She rubbed his leg, her concern for him overflowing her mind. When he finally opened his eyes, she asked, “Did you see anything useful?”

  “I did and it validates one of my strategies. All we have to do is figure out the specifics.” He sat up a little straighter the rubbed the back of his neck. He was in desperate need of sleep, but this was more important. “I don’t know if you heard, but the U.N. declared war on the battle born this morning.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding.” She sounded disgusted as well as shocked. “We’ve done nothing but assist and protect humans. How can they treat us like the enemy?”

  She’d worded her protest as if she were battle born and her loyalty pleased him greatly. “They’re frightened and need to lash out. We’re a convenient target.”

  “That’s probably true, but it’s no excuse for this sort of disrespect.” Her brows scrunched together and displeasure pursed her lips. “You should leave a portal active until a couple of Evonti ships come through. Maybe then Earth will be able to see what an enemy looks like.”

  He laughed and pulled her into his arms. She climbed onto his lap, legs folded to either side of his hips.
Her skirt disguised their exact position, so he took advantage of the coverage, sliding his hands up her legs until his fingers rested on the upper curve of her behind. “Now who’s the psychic? I’ve been debating just such a strategy ever since the U.N.’s announcement. If those pompous bureaucrats think they’re ready for war, I say we give them a taste of what an alien invasion would really be like.”

  Her indignation crumbled as worry surged through her being. “I was sort of kidding when I suggested that,” she told him. “There are all sorts of holes in the plan.”

  “Which is why I wanted to learn more about the portals. We need to allow, or maybe even lure, a few Evonti ships through the portal without allowing them to harm anyone on Earth.”

  “You’re not going to be able to relax until you work this out. Are you?” She sighed and moved to sit beside him and shifted her legs to rest across one of his thighs. “What did the disk show you?”

  “That my mate is brilliant.” He wrapped his fingers around the back of her neck and pulled her toward him for a quick kiss. “You’re exactly right about how the portals work. Only it’s much worse than we first thought.”

  “In what way?”

  “It’s not all or nothing. With as few as three portals they can form a larger opening. It only takes six to create a full-size conduit, and there are a total of sixty portals.”

  Her lovely face paled and she pressed a hand to her upper chest. “Holy shit. Twenty some are still out there. I thought for sure you’d found nearly all of them.”

  “As did I, but it’s better to know the truth.” He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before he piled on more bad news. “With all ten gates open, their invasion force can—”

  “Invasion force?” Her voice cracked, so she paused to swallow. “Then they do plan to invade Earth?”

  “Was that ever in doubt?”

  “Not really, but it’s hard to hear stated as an absolute fact.”

  He slipped his hand under her skirt but stroked no higher than mid-thigh. “The only way I can be effective is if I’m brutally honest with myself, but you’re not part of my crew. If you’d rather not talk about this, I’ll understand.”