by Reagan Woods
Nora reached up and hooked an arm around Lyon’s neck. He lowered his head and she planted a swift, surprising kiss against his lips. “It’s going to be alright. Optimism is what I’m bringing to this trinepact. God knows, I don’t have much else to offer.”
Her free arm beckoned to Zocan. He didn’t even hesitate, diving in and kissing her back with enthusiasm. One good thing had come of all this, at least. Their family was going to be completed.
Finally, Nora pulled back. “Let’s get the hell out of here.” She snorted. “My liege.”
“First, I’m too violent to love you and now I’m your king,” Zocan teased, wishing he had more time to revel in the acceptance radiating from her.
Laughing, she gave him a gentle push toward the ladder. A few steps up, and she gave his behind a stinging slap that had him cursing – and then barking out a grudging laugh. He needed her sassy optimism to help him get his mind right.
He laughed even harder, his heart lightening, when he heard the smack to Lyon’s ass and the subsequent growl. “Now who’s violent?”
Nora’s laugh echoed up the ladder as he stepped onto the bridge.
Lyon had been right; Nora was the female for them. It wasn’t just the willingness to be emotionally vulnerable or her resiliency. It was more than that. She was determined to face the darkness and bring the light – the perfect foil for Lyon’s aggressive protector and his detached planner.
And she was right; they would prevail. They were still alive, still capable and willing. Now, all they had to do was keep it that way.
Chapter 52
Nora didn’t know what she expected when she pulled herself up the ladder to the bridge behind Zocan and Lyon, but it certainly wasn’t to confront a seriously pissed female and her massive gun. She spat out a series of garbled growls and whistles that nobody understood. Frankly, Nora wondered if the other female was having a stroke.
Lyon stepped nimbly in front of her, shielding her with his body before she could get a good look at the female – she had the impression of masses of curly sun-streaked brown hair and a body with curves that she would have killed for in some sort of black skinsuit.
Nora tried to be unobtrusive as she took in what she could see of her surroundings. There were two long consoles that formed a U shape that ran the perimeter of the room. The female appeared to stand smack in the middle of it all, blocking Zocan’s access to the controls.
From her limited vantage point, she didn’t see any of the intuitive tech she’d used on Jorkan’s shuttle or anything even half as sophisticated as what they’d had on the tetraglide. Why did they need this ship again?
Junky old seats that looked like they’d come out of an ancient B film about aliens dotted the darkened consoles. Everything looked hard-used and worn down.
The female’s harsh tones sounded again, and Nora craned her neck to see what the fuss was. Lyon did his best to stay between Nora and the speaker, but she was determined to assess the situation for herself.
Her vision tunneled in on the threat immediately. The gun was two feet long and had an eight-barreled muzzlethat vaguely reminded her of the cylinder on a revolver at the firing end. It looked like it could do serious damage.
Both Lyon and Zocan had their hands in the air talking over one another. “I’m Lyon and this is Zocan. We’re here to – well, would you mind lowering your weapon, please?”
“Female, we haven’t time to dally. I need to get the crystal into the drive so we can open the hold for Kiev.”
The female – Corey, Nora presumed – looked back and forth between them with a sneer on her very Earther-looking face as she spat a series of vicious-sounding syllables. Mierda. Nora recognized that look of consternation. The female didn’t speak any of the languages Lyon and Zocan were trying on her.
A lightbulb might as well have gone off over Nora’s head. “Hello?” She chanced, elbowing Lyon out of her way. “Do you speak English?”
Green eyes locked on Nora’s face and Corey lowered her gun. “Bloody hell. You’re from Earth?” She croaked in a clipped accent.
“I am.” Nora nodded, dodging Lyon’s restraining hand. She gave the other woman a small smile and chanced a step closer, her hand extended. “My name is Nora.”
“I’m Corinne – everyone calls me Corey,” she answered, eyes wide as she approached to shake hands. “Kiev. I heard them mention his name. Where is he?”
“Zocan,” Nora gestured at her dapper mate. “Needs to key into the ship so Kiev can fly our tetraglide into the hold.”
“Zocan?” Corey’s eyes widened. “Of course.” She lowered her weapon even further and stepped to the side for him to pass. “This must be Lyon, then?”
He’d dogged Nora’s footsteps and remained planted at her side, his hand resting possessively on the small of her back.
“My mates,” Nora explained quickly, feeling mildly ridiculous for the proprietary words but unwilling to take them back. “Or will be soon enough.”
Corey’s smile tightened but she nodded cordially at Lyon. “Congratulations.”
Lyon nodded back, his expression foreboding He glanced from Nora to Corey’s gun and back again.
“Go on,” Nora told him, motioning him toward Zocan. “Corey isn’t going to hurt me. Go help Zocan.”
He leaned down and kissed her forehead, pausing to give her a speaking look, before joining Zocan at the controls.
“You might want to turn the translation system on,” Nora advised in a carrying voice. “Corey speaks English but if Kiev and I aren’t here to translate…”
Zocan raised a hand to let her know he’d heard her. “He’s in. Get to a seat and hit the safety icon.” His words repeated in English.
Corey shot Nora a grateful look as she stowed her gun on a magnetic strip that appeared to be for just such a thing. She dropped down into a jump seat set along the wall that separated the bridge from the open hold. An intricate harness immediately snaked around her. Nora followed suit.
Hmmm…she hadn’t been paying much attention, but she could have sworn the bridge had looked different, less impressive, when they’d come aboard. Now, there were three dimensional holographic screens showing their ship and the surrounding space dock.
Kiev launched onto the bridge like a giant blue bullet. His eyes sought Corey and he visibly relaxed both sets of his impressive shoulders before he joined Lyon and Zocan at the helm.
“Does he always do that?” Nora whispered.
“Only when he thinks someone needs saving,” was Corey’s derisive answer. “Kiev can be counted on to swagger in, save the day and move the hell along.”
Wow. “So, you don’t like him much, then?” Nora prodded.
“How I feel and what I think don’t matter at this point,” Corey answered grimly before changing the subject. “Now, have you ever ridden out a battle in a ship like this before?”
Nora shook her head. “No. I didn’t fare so well during my first battle, either.”
Corey relaxed back against her seat and closed her eyes. “The key is to let the harness hold your head and absorb the shock. It’s best if you keep your eyes closed so you don’t anticipate movement and hurt yourself by working against the restraints.”
Nora frowned. “That seems counterintuitive.”
Corey shrugged and kept her eyes firmly shut. “Do what you want but they’re getting ready to kick ass and no matter how good the pilot is, it’s going to be a bumpy ride.”
She wasn’t wrong.
Chapter 53
Lyon had to nudge Kiev away from the controls twice before they’d settled on an appropriate strategy to get them out of the Xani public docks. The drones spotlighted them from a myriad of angles and, unfortunately, they’d been delayed long enough that the port authority was undoubtedly dispatching security their way. The good news was that the security teams on Xani weren’t as well-equipped as themselves. However, often pirates that were between crews or other itinerant military-types made up the securit
y teams, so they were deft improvisers.
He wasn’t worried though. Zocan was an amazing strategist and a magician when it came to disabling enemy ships. Though he hadn’t had much experience fighting alongside Kiev, he knew the Novink War Lord had lived as a rogue, slipping off and on planets like a ghost for many, many years. It was said even the great psychic Emperor himself couldn’t track Kiev.
“Nora?” He called over his shoulder.
“We’re good,” she answered promptly. “Let’s get the hell out of Dodge.”
“Your female speaks most oddly,” Kiev muttered. He was surly because Lyon wouldn’t let him pilot, but he had his weapons, the forward and starboard guns, sighted in and ready.
“Do all Earthers not talk strangely?” Zocan put in from his seat as he made a few last-minute adjustments to his own targeting system.
“Talk strangely, think strangely, act strangely,” Kiev grumbled. “They’re a fucking nightmare. A sexy, irresistible terror that you can’t wake from no matter how you fight.”
“You’re obviously in the right frame of mind to rain fury on these unsuspecting Xanites,” Lyon observed cheerfully. “Let’s do this.”
The excitement of battle bubbled through his veins. With practiced ease, he disengaged the docking clamps. Rather than pulling away from the dock via the accepted route – up away from the dock, around the traffic pattern, down to the main entrance, and out – he hit the lever and turned the thrusters up which had the effect of accelerating them down. Quickly.
It took a moment for the security drones – the ones he hadn’t smashed with his unorthodox disconnect – to catch up and report on his position. The bi-wings flown by dock security swarmed to meet them. They were small and black with short wings that were stacked for optimal mobility and glide in the tight confines of the spiral dock.
They fired grappling nets at the Nom’magata, but Zocan was already heating the outer shell of the cereshields to burn the nets off. Once they were clear of Xani, they could assess any damage left by the magnetized hooks. In the meantime, all systems checked out. They were just getting started.
While Zocan and Kiev fired at the pesky bi-wings, Lyon braked hard and sent the ship into a vertical acceleration. As a freighter, the Nom’magata shouldn’t be able to execute maneuvers like these. The element of surprise was an asset he intended to exploit.
He deftly dodged the unfortunate pilots whose rigs stood between him and the exit. Weaving through the traffic, he led the security fliers on a merry chase.
The second wave of dock security converged on them as they careened from the mouth of the massive skull-shaped sphere that enclosed the planet. Four cruising ships of various makes attempted to trap them in a standard pincer move. Lyon braked and waited for them to fully commit to the formation.
There would be more ships waiting just around the curve of the sphere. Those ships would either provide backup for the four facing the Nom’magata now, or they would join the escort when it was time to tow the Nom’magata back to the docks. This was standard operating procedure at most of the black-market trade docks.
Over the com, a nasal-y voice demanded they surrender and prepare to be boarded. Lyon smiled darkly. It had been far too long since he’d been allowed to pick a fight for the sake of fighting – and getting out alive, of course.
With one final glance to reassure himself that Nora was safely strapped in, he gave Kiev and Zocan the nod. Using auxiliary thrusters, he started the ship spinning like a top. Zocan grunted when the ships he’d sighted in were down. Kiev merely sent him an unimpressed look. The War Lord was bored.
The four ships went dark almost immediately and began drifting uselessly. Those ships worked great as cover.
Lyon bolted, throttle fully engaged as he steered them toward the Dead Zone, away from the swarm of short-range ships that came pouring out of their hiding places to pursue the Nom’magata. The pilots were persistent, dogging his every zig and zag, working together to anticipate his movements.
His focus was on making the Dead Zone without having to head toward Siimcoe Station, a satellite station that orbited Xani. At any given time, Siimcoe Station could provide a wealth of allies. It was just as likely to prove full of bounty hunters which were to be avoided until they’d resolved the issue of the CGA assassin.
Plus, the station’s orbit had them going in the wrong direction. They needed a completely different heading if they were to get into position to check on the colony. The need to do so pressed heavily against his heart, but he pushed it back.
For the most part, Lyon dodged and evaded, skillfully causing the other pilots to spin out of control or occasionally clip one another. However, one pilot managed to stick with him and avoid the Nom’magata’s guns for several tense minutes. Finally, Lyon decided to put an end to the talented pilot’s shadowing and dove steeply. Using the braking system, he slipped the Nom’magata in a deep, backward arc and brought them up behind the agile bi-wing. Zocan shot it dark.
“Did that seem easy?” Kiev asked, his face scrunched up in suspicion. He only had two hands on his weapons console. The other two were folded across his massive chest.
“It was,” Corey answered, making Lyon jump as the translation system kicked in. He’d almost forgotten about the other female.
“There is something large, a ship with a lot of people on it, out here somewhere,” she continued. “I sense it. There is a disturbance in the energy web.”
“Seriously? Now we’re talking about the Force?” Nora snorted. “Classic.” When everyone stopped to look at her, she waved them off. “Never mind me. Carry on.”
“There is nothing unexpected on the scanners,” Zocan put in, his hands and eyes busy as he brought up every available angle from their surveillance system.
“They must be cloaked,” Nora stated the obvious, a bewildered expression moving over her brow. “What if it’s just someone heading toward Xani? We haven’t moved all that far away in the scheme of things.”
“I can’t tell you what about them caught my attention,” Corey sounded frustrated. “I just know they’re a threat.”
“What manner of beings are they?” Kiev barked as though demanding a report from a subordinate.
Lyon turned to survey the female. She appeared unaffected by the harsh demand. Hash-Han only harvested psychic females; however, Lara had intimated that Corey was minimally powerful. Had Lara been protecting her friend by downplaying her powers or was something else going on here?
Corey remained seated, silent and still, with her eyes closed, eyelids twitching. Finally, she opened them wide. The odd green color was completely swallowed by her dilated pupils and unnatural flashes of light seemed to pulse in the dark pools.
“My mind hits a void when I try to pin them down. It’s as though nothing is there, but I feel the static of their thoughts. They’re definitely closing in.” She squirmed uncomfortably in her seat, her irises spiraling back into view. “I don’t like this, Kiev. We need to go. Now.”
Lyon looked to Zocan for his input. Zocan gave a curt nod and they both turned to Nora for her input.
Nora’s eyes were wide and trusting as she gave him a tremulous smile, fingers digging into the harness straps at her shoulders. “You heard the lady.” She shot a sideways look at Corey before looking back toward him. “If that was an easy escape, I can’t wait to see what the three of you can do. Dazzle me.”
Kiev engaged the targeting system on the auxiliary console to his left. Apparently, he took Nora’s challenge personally as he fixed one set of controls in his left hands and the other in his right hands.
Lyon hurtled them forward toward their goal. Siimcoe station had a fair amount of traffic coming and going around its docks. If they could get close enough, fast enough, the other ships would provide a decent amount of coverage.
Zocan had his weapons at the ready as he kept an eye on the scanners for energy blips. They’d learned a valuable lesson from Lacy, an Earther they’d known briefly, abou
t keeping an eye on the screens constantly. No stealth tech was totally without tells. Something would give away an enemy’s position.
“Do you feel like we’re closer or further away from the cloaked ship?” Kiev called back to Corey.
“If I knew the answer to that, don’t you think I would have told you?” She replied testily. “The overwhelming feeling I’m getting is that if we don’t move quickly away from here, we’re going to die.”
Lyon barred his teeth in a ferocious smile as he poured on speed. As a precaution, he let a field of scree loose in their wake. It would slow the enemy ship down even if they didn’t fire. If they fired, the scree would detonate the charges before they reached the Nom’magata.
He sent the Nom’magata into a corkscrew spiral to give them more of a chance to anticipate and dodge any incoming fire. In the viewscreen, he saw an explosion, a charge coming up short of their position. Corey’s advice had been timely.
“You’re going to need your aft cannons,” Corey called to Zocan. “They’re giving chase.”
“I’ve got them now,” Zocan gritted, sighting and firing. “They’re causing a wave of distortion across the surveillance lenses. The scree helps us get a better reading – that Bram was a genius. Without it, nothing shows up.” He paused to send off another volley. “Too bad we don’t have any more of the shield eating shells he loaded.”
Lyon waited for the ammunition to collide with the cereshields on the unknown vessel before he took them into a deep dive and changed course.
“It’s a CGA destroyer,” Zocan verified. “I caught a glimpse of its outlines when the charges lit up their shields.”
“Their destroyers aren’t usually that agile,” Kiev stated with a concerned frown as he fired a barrage at the assumed position of the pursuing ship. “What are you thinking?”
“I say we do what we normally would when encountering a CGA ship,” Zocan opined. “We run fast and far.”
“A sound plan,” Kiev agreed. Mouth twisting sardonically, he pointed out, “Though, they seem to have no issue keeping pace right now.”
