The Commander's Virgin Queen (Warlords 0f Farian Book 3)

by Bailey Dark

  “That should only be an hour away. We need to get back to the battle and update Cartari with what we have found.”

  “Yes, and use the speeder to help out the Spec Ops teams.”

  “Did you disable these ships?” Axis asked.

  “Yes. The rudders are dismantled. It will take a few hours to fix, so the ships are at least grounded for now. They can’t use them for this battle.”

  “Brilliant work, Bravo.” Axis nodded to his solders then he lifted his hand to signal the silent, dark floating silhouette of the speeder closer. It lowered parallel with the deck. The soldiers all jumped in. Axis gave me his hand to help me in. “Back to the courtyard of the castle, quickly.”

  Axis winked at me as we sped away and I held to the side of the speeder, watching the early time before dawn start to brighten the land and waters. I was leaving behind my place of captivity, but we were returning to the true battlefield…

  War awaited us.

  Seventeen

  Axis

  Cartari’s eyes flashed at me as I entered the command room. He was shouting orders and hardly had time to relinquish command, he was so in the flow of commanding the combat himself. The control panels were flashing with symbols of sunken ships, downed laser cannons, injured telekinetic warrior counts, crashed aircraft, and buildings on fire.

  I had missed a lot.

  Is he going to forgive me?

  When Ceritha appeared behind me, Cartari’s eyes softened a little and he smiled, nodding to the Princess, a shock of his reddish-brown hair slipping down, forcing him to toss his head back and grin. He stopped with his sharp orders and came over to bow low over her hand.

  “Princess, I am glad you are safe.”

  Ceritha bowed to him as well. “Thank you, Commander Cartari. I am in your debt. Thank you for letting the Prince and his unit come to my rescue and for holding down the command while they did.”

  “You are most welcome. You are one of us now. A Curan of Farian. You are destined to be with us.” Cartari’s green eyes laughed again and I shoved him gently in the shoulder, the jibe about Destiny not missed by either me or Ceritha, clearly, for she blushed and squeezed my hand.

  “Bravo, Princess, please make yourselves welcome.” I said the words as way to acknowledge Ceritha, but also as a way to indicate that I had to dismiss myself from them now and take care of business. Also, as a way to remind Ceritha that she was now under guard of Bravo Ilisa and could not leave her side. Ceritha moved to the side of the command room and looked at one of the large control screens, asking Ilisa for explanation about the legends and flashing lights. I turned back to Cartari.

  “I am glad you found her, Axis. Anything else I need to know?”

  “We disabled three of their twelve ships that are waiting back in the Darken Coves, killed a few pirates, tied up and knocked out a few more. My speeder is back and available to help out the Spec Ops teams. Word is that Gorgin does have Scientist Murex and has been trying to train himself and a few of the other pirates to speak to ocean animals to control them as war steeds, but so far unsuccessfully, which is why he wanted the Princess.”

  “That might explain the firefin and dolgon pods that we have sighted outside the harbor.”

  “How many?”

  “Three total. One scarlet firefin, one orange firefin, and one dolgon pod. The firefins seem to be together, and the dolgons seem to be with the pirates. Is it possible we have firefins on our side?”

  “Yes, the Princess asked the firefins that we went to analyze to come to the harbor by dawn. That is the scarlet tribe. They must have spread the word to the other firefins. The dolgons must have been reached by the pirates, somehow. We shall have to ask the Princess to try and speak with them, persuade them to not assist the pirates.”

  “What harm can they really do?”

  “I don’t actually know. Fables on Serpul say that any navy that fought with ocean steeds on their side were the victors. They had the power to control the ocean with their minds.”

  “Hmm… We can see if the Princess and her guards can talk to the dolgons from the gazebo. It’s under telekinetic shield.”

  I nodded at Cartari’s suggestion and advised Ilisa. Ceritha was briefed quickly. She looked stunned.

  “The pirates are actually trying to get the dolgons to fight for them?”

  “What would that do?”

  “Well, they can breathe poison. The same poison that comes out of the firefin’s barbs. So, they can shoot it telekinetically in a cloud toward anyone near them, and it spreads quickly in the air or water. They’re incredibly strong, difficult to take down. I can’t imagine that they would be tame enough to follow the instruction of the pirates, though.”

  “Murex must have convinced them,” I said, trying to say it gently. “You convinced the firefins to trust us.”

  She nodded, gorgeous blue eyes sad.

  “That could be… I will go down to the waters and see what I can find out.”

  “Thank you.” I squeezed her arm as she walked by and she flashed me a sunny smile, one that didn’t entirely hide the fear in her eyes. Her fists were clenched as she walked by. I could feel the anger that raged in her; someone was using her faithful animal friends as beasts of war. This went against all the animal rights she fought so hard for on Serpul.

  I turned back to my wartime duties. “What is the update on the Spec Ops teams?”

  “Most of them have returned. They were able to take six of the ten forward ships with only six of our soldiers lost. Two of the other ships have been disabled but not taken and the last two ships are still fighting. Our laser cannons are no longer needed. Some thirty percent of the city has been damaged and some of it is still burning. There are pirates on shore fighting hand-to-hand and most of our aircraft has been blown up by a covert operation. We were so distracted by trying to upend their telekinetic hold, we didn’t realize they would also be trying to blow them up by hand.”

  “Damn.”

  “Yes, that is a killer blow.”

  “Ok, well, what is the civilian loss of life?”

  “Counts have not yet been made, but we have reports coming in of up to twenty. It has been minimized by the early alarm and evacuation.”

  “Good.” I clapped Cartari on the shoulder. He was a brilliant Second, my best friend, and soon-to-be Best Man in my wedding. I just hadn’t asked him, yet. I shook my head. How can I be thinking of that right now? Because Ceritha is the happiest most important thing in my life… She overwhelms any other thought.

  Cartari laughed and punched me, a little too hard, in the shoulder.

  “Axis! Come back to Farian, brother. I understand you’re transfixed by your Serpul mermaid but you have a war to win.”

  “I’m sorry, was it that obvious?”

  “Well, your look was faraway and goofy. Way goofier than usual. You need to focus. It’s half the reason she needed to be sent down to talk to the fish. Make the call: what’s our next move.”

  I rubbed my shoulder and smiled wryly at him. “I’m sorry. I’m just in love, Cartari. I’m in love…”

  “Better to live to be in love than die because of it. Focus, man!” Cartari was attempting light humor, but his words and eyes were serious. He gestured to the control panel. I looked up at the flashing lights.

  I pointed up at Gorgin’s lead ship. “What’s that ship doing? Why is it coming closer in? And those heat signatures in the water around it? Is it likely those are dolgons? They are big enough to be. Call in the Spec Ops troops that are at the airfield, get them to the skiffs and manning the cannons, let’s meet him in the shallows. He can’t come much closer in on that ship. He must be planning on attacking with the dolgons’ poison. Tell everyone to be wearing a gas mask.”

  Cartari smiled, clearly happy I was taking back command.

  “Confirmed.” He rattled off the commands and the world was swept into a blur of new action. Cartari handed me a gas mask, and an extra one for Ilisa and Ceritha.


  “Let’s get down to the gazebo and see what they’ve discovered. It looks like his ship has stopped. Though tide is high, he draws too deep to come in tighter without running aground there.” We jogged out of the command room, two soldiers following to support us automatically.

  The sight that greeted us at the gazebo was awe-inspiring. Sunrise had just broken and the glow on the high tidal bay waters was sparking oranges, reds, and pinks in pastels stretching out from the burning demise of my city to the burning wrecks of ships in the harbor. Telekinetic warriors were still at their stations, working hard to shield the city, trying to fend off any random projectile attack that might come from the only two ships with pirates still in command, though they were quite distracted by the hand-to-hand combat going on board with trained Spec Ops units. The skies were much quieter than they had been the entire dark night.

  Gorgin’s own ship had broken through the line of the original ten ships and was now anchoring as far in as he could get into the harbor. Gorgin stood in the bow, holding onto the foremast, looking out at the city. Dolgons jumped and splashed around the hull, their massive dragon frames arching in and out of the water with huge splashes. Making a wall in between the gazebo’s dock and the pirate ship was a tumultuous line of coiling and uncoiling mass of firefins, both scarlet and orange, churning the water as they spun and hummed, the occasional shriek, and chitter, one or two jumping into the air, glistening in the dawn’s light. A dolgon’s whistle might stretch across the hundred yards to be answered back by a firefin shriek and then another rising clamor would ensue.

  At the end of the gazebo stood Ceritha, in her torn turquoise dress, its ethereal fabric whipping in the wind, graceful against her shapely legs, her arms up to the newborn sun, communicating with the ocean animals, Ilisa standing guard, throwing knives arrayed around her like a halo, three other soldiers nearby, all in ready stances, prepared to fend off any attack.

  It was a scene fit to immortalize in a painting.

  A firefin jumped out of the water and nudged Ceritha’s extended hand. The sensation split through my mind. “They don’t want to fight, but they don’t trust the Prince. He hurts them.”

  The firefin’s words broke my heart. The impression was accompanied by images of scientists in white hazmat suits with tranq guns and needles and medical kits as we tried haphazardly to solve the blue flu. Yes, we hadn’t really known what we were doing, which is why we finally reached out to Serpul. Of course these dolgons would be scared – and furious – with me. Ceritha would have a job ahead of her, trying to convince them to trust me. I wondered what the pirates were offering the dolgons to get them to work with them. Vengeance? Were these animals inspired by such a thing?

  My Spec Ops units, all in gas masks, were filtering onto the beaches. I had them hold off entering the waters in skiffs, to keep the firefins safe. But they were all skilled telekinetically and could float, at least for a little while, over the ocean waters, if needed.

  I walked up behind Ceritha, afraid to break her telepathic connection, but touched her gently in the small of her back. She looked to me, tears in her eyes, and nodded when she saw the gas mask extended. She allowed me to slip it over her face and seal it to her mouth and nose and up over her eyes.

  “They are really angry,” she said.

  “The dolgons? They should be. I imagine they are the pride we have easiest access to and the one whose breeding and feeding ground has been hit the hardest. We need to help them the most.”

  “I am trying to talk to them, but they are just so mad… They want to hurt you. To hurt us…”

  “What can we do?”

  “I’m not sure…”

  “We have to just keep trying. Can the firefins help us?”

  “They don’t have much reason to trust us yet, either, and can turn on us, too. The pirates are promising them many things. I don’t know how to reach them. I need help. I need help from all of you.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I need all of you to join hands with me and send wellness and goodwill to the dolgons and firefins, tell them we trust them, love them, welcome them, need them. That we are good, that we are here to help them. That we will heal them.”

  “But, my soldiers don’t know how to telepath to the animals.”

  “They are going to have to try. The pirates have been trying for days now, it’s why it is working with the dolgons. It’s more of an impactful force than just me trying. I need all we can muster.”

  “Ok, I will tell my soldiers.”

  I turned away from Ceritha and looked out to the shore where my men and women were gathered, all armed, all waiting for orders. “Bristola Soldiers, we must bond telepathically and open ourselves to speaking to the firefins. You have all by now come to know that Princess Ceritha of Serpul and I can communicate with the firefins. You must try to talk to the firefins and dolgons here, too, now, otherwise, the dolgons might open their poison on us. They might bolster the strength that the pirates have. We must tell the animals that we love them, that they can trust us to heal them. Give them the impression of love, goodwill, hope, and healing. I know it seems odd. It is never anything we on Farian have done. But, you must believe it possible in order for it to work.” I paused. All the soldiers were looking at me, and then at one another skeptically. “This is an order. On the count of three, everyone focus their Will on the animals in the water. One…two…”

  With a huge crack, as if lightning and thunder were splitting the ship in front of us, a flash broke and then Gorgin leapt from the deck and soared into the air, floating up and forward, one arm in a sling, rippling his telekinetic intention outward, blasting everyone on the shore with a dramatic push of his shield, making us all take a wild step backwards to catch our footing. My telepathic call to everyone was broken and I dropped my hand from Ceritha’s back.

  "Axis!!" Gorgin roared and flashed through the air toward me, a streaking rush of power, pushing air before him, lasering through the air, dolgons ripping through the water with him, and I instinctively leaped into the air to meet him, floating up to crash into him in his trajectory.

  The wind burst from my lungs as he pummeled into me but I smashed his jaw with my fist as he burst by and through me. He was thrown out of his straight flight and angled off wildly but spun to a halt and sped back toward me, a burly, stout man. He began flinging knives at me as he came toward me and I lanced my own his direction, some of mine deflecting his off course, others of mine slipping inside his to barely miss his body as he flicked them away at the last moment with telekinetic power.

  One of his narrowly missed my eye, another caught the edge of my shirt by the elbow, another slashed through my pants and nicked my thigh, just barely. All three I caught and spun around to speed back towards him. He had let mine sail right past him without catching them, and I commanded them to turn around and boomerang back in his direction. He sensed them coming from behind him and lunged out of the way just in time, but not before one caught his quad and another through the back of his shoulder.

  “Axis, damn you!” he roared. Then I closed in with a sweeping swim of a leap in the air and slammed my fist into his jaw, feeling the glory of payback for the blows he had landed on my Destin.

  I looked down below me, fifteen feet away, to see my soldiers and Ceritha looking up at me, waiting for my command, as they watched our duel, and then I saw the way the dolgons and firefins were squaring off with each other, darting in and biting at each other, and Ceritha turned to them, hands flailing, trying to communicate, trying to soothe her friends, and I knew I had to save these animals before they hurt each other. Not only for their sake, but for Ceritha’s, too.

  Gorgin flashed around in the air and tackled me, sent us flying back to smash into the roof of the gazebo and I found my feet, picking him up easily, holding him up in the air, then body slammed him to the roof, wincing as I heard the rafters underneath splinter with his bodyweight as I smashed shingles to smithereens underneath his back. He fo
ught against my hands at his throat as I knelt into his chest and he slipped one leg around my other leg and kicked. I slipped to the side and he managed to crawl out from underneath me and sail back into the open air, kicking me hard in the gas mask with his boot as he let loose.

  I cursed and licked the blood from a hard bit lip. Damnit…

  I looked down at Cartari. “Get a unit on that ship!” I shouted telepathically to him. Cartari nodded and quickly assigned a set of twelve soldiers, who ran toward a skiff, far off from danger of the firefins. They sped away to tackle overtaking Gorgin’s ship.

  Then I ran off the gazebo and telekinetically flew myself through the air again, but toward where Gorgin was waiting over the heads of some of the aggressively frothing and flailing dolgons. There were puffs of a dangerous seeming purple cloud in the air above a couple of them, just a whiff of poison gas in the air. The firefins were still guarding Ceritha on the gazebo dock, but the dolgons were getting closer and closer, biting out at them, and they were a larger, huskier animal. The firefins had their tails up, threatening to let loose their poison barbs, and the dolgons were going to let loose their poison breath.

  “Can you calm them, Ceritha?” I asked, gliding through the air to confront Gorgin again, fists up.

  “I’m trying. I need us all.”

  “Ok…” I opened myself to my soldiers again. “Soldiers. Everyone. Focus on the animals like I was saying. We need to calm them, now. Before they unleash their breath that might hurt the town… One… Two… Three…”

  I felt the collective deep breath my men and women took as they let mindfulness Will overwhelm their minds, the way to access telepathic control, letting a bit of their emotion into their intention… and then they were reaching into their souls and trying to communicate with the animals.

  “Love… Hope… Healing… Trust… Love… Hope… Healing… Trust…”

  I could feel the message. It was heartwarming. My men and women were trying so hard. I was proud of them…