Craving: A SciFi Alien Mail Order Bride Romance (TerraMates Book 8) (11 page)

Kai grabbed Sevit's shoulder. "We'll need warriors like you in the upcoming battles. What about Jenn?"

"The Earth woman? She's in trouble. At this very moment, Prince Warrel is performing the marriage ceremony with her."

"Already? That's impossible. How can she stand a chance against a fully-trained warrior?"

One of Sevit's men was loitering in the background, listening to something on his communicator. "She did it!" he exclaimed.

Sevit frowned. "I thought I told you to turn your transmitter off the battle and stay focused on our secure channel."

"Yes, sir. I'm sorry, but I put down a few credits on the human. It sounds like Jenn landed the first blow. She scored a direct hit on his cock. He's going to have problems using it tonight."

"I've got to get to her," said Kai.

"We're using the marriage ceremony as a cover for our activities. It's the only way we were able to penetrate the defenses. If we stop to retrieve Jenn, I can't guarantee our escape."

"If I escape and leave her, it is a pointless exercise. She is my sindare. I have to get her."

Sevit shook his head.

"By the gods!" exclaimed the gambler.

Sevit shot him a severe glance.

"Sorry, my lord. Jenn just upended the Prince, but he's angry now, and she's frightened. I'm going to double my money."

"Jenn!" said Kai in a strangled voice.

"If we need to get her, then we need to get her. The way out of the palace is clear. Everyone is watching the fight. I'll get the shuttle as close to the arena as possible. Take my transmitter." Sevit pulled out his earpiece and passed it to Kai. "We can't locate you without it."

Kai clasped Sevit's shoulder. "Thank you," he said.

"I think this is the first time a bride has tried to run out of the arena!"

"Go, Commander!" said Sevit. "May the gods run with you!"

Kai took off, running for Jenn's life, racing through corridors of the palace he knew like the back of his hand. He moved into the gardens and toward the gates that would take him to the city streets. The arena was only a few blocks away. It wasn't far by any rational measure, but to Kai, at that minute, it seemed an enormous distance. He felt his heart hammering against his chest.

He knew Warrel was a miserable bastard and would drag Jenn back into the arena so he could finish the fight. Kai was proud that Jenn seemed to be holding her own, but there was no telling when the nuxmunit would come upon the Prince. Warrel would not want to be humiliated by a human in front of his people.

While Kai was thinking, he saw the telltale flashes of laser cannons firing into the arena. Had the Similcue chosen this moment to attack? He didn't think he could move any faster, but somehow he forced himself to speed up.

Hang on, Jenn.
He wished he could telepathically communicate his thoughts to her.
I'm coming for you as fast as I can.

J
enn's heart
hammered against her chest as her feet flew over the ground. The crowd was trying to disperse but couldn't get out of the way fast enough. Spectators screamed in fear from the stands as streaks of white fire strafed the arena floor.

The few remaining security guards tried to steer people out of the stands and keep them from panicking. Jenn looked over her shoulder to see Warrel running away from her. A group of Anquesh soldiers formed a protective ring around him as he exited.

He left the arena while she was still inside.

I beat him.

Jenn didn't have time to savor her victory before a loud crack split the air in half, followed by a boom. Jenn stumbled on the ground. It started vibrating and soon the entire stadium was shaking. More screams rose from the chaos of the audience, who began to renew their efforts to get out of the arena.

They were going to turn into a mob soon. The writhing mass of bodies was on the verge of becoming a stampede in the levels above her.

Jenn regained her footing and sprinted to the arch that marked her entrance to the stadium floor. She didn't know where to go, but she had to get out of the doomed structure. Before passing through the arch, a shadow stretched over her body. She looked up. Large ships hovered above the city. Streaks of laser fire were everywhere, and Jenn realized there might not be a good place to hide.

An overriding instinct to survive drove her forward. She thought she might be able to find a place to wait out the attack. If she survived the destruction, the ensuing chaos might allow her to connect with Bretland and his crew. She could get a ride back to Earth.

It was a faint hope. She knew one thing for sure. She had enough of the Anquesh, their warriors, and their stupid ideas of what it took to settle a treaty.

Beyond the arch was a flood of Anquesh bodies. These were the ones who had successfully made it out of the stands. They came down from stairs that serviced the stadium's spectator levels. Jenn knew she would stand out in the crowd - she was a short blonde woman in a world of tall brunettes.

A discarded scarf lay on the ground. It was a little dirty, but it was all she had. She picked it up and wrapped it around her head, making sure to tuck all of her hair under the fabric. With luck, she would be able to pass for a younger alien and blend in among the other people trying to escape.

During the fight with Warrel, she realized she was correct about the effect of Earth's gravity on her body. Even without the nuxmunit, she was a little faster and a little stronger than an Anquera native. Her Earth strength helped her fight against the mass of people pressing around her, moving without direction as the ground rocked.

Eventually, her group spilled into the streets. The exterior of the stadium was less crowded but still clogged with fleeing Anquesh. Jenn pressed herself against the enormous stadium wall and surveyed the tumultuous scene. Most people were running to the left. Jenn wondered if they were fleeing to safety or away from danger. A small fighter flew down the road, firing laser blasts at the aliens in the open.

Aliens screamed and wailed as bodies fell to the ground. Another flash of white light temporarily blinded Jenn. When her vision came back, the building on the opposite side of the street was engulfed in flames. Fire and sparks erupted from the site, and the building gave a final roar as it crashed to the ground, filling the air with debris and smoke.

Jenn started coughing. She decided to move to the right, against the crowd, in the opposite direction of the oncoming aircraft. She was afraid more ships would come firing their weapons. Jenn stayed close to the buildings, hoping they would protect her from any stray laser blasts, and not be the victims of more explosions.

She passed people on the street who were moaning and gasping. She wanted to stop at each one and see if she could do anything to help them, but physical therapy was not the same thing as emergency medicine, and she knew nothing about alien anatomy. Jenn tried to avoid eye contact with the injured people and pushed forward. She walked by Anquesh of all types and ages - children, mothers and fathers. Whoever had decided to attack was cruel and cold-hearted. It was one thing to fight a battle against trained warriors, but quite another to bring a war to the general population.

She wondered if Earth was behind the attack.

Jenn passed a side street on her right. She saw a figure running down the street toward her. With a shock, she realized it wasn't another random Anquesh warrior. It was Kai, and he was screaming her name.

She was happy to see him but didn't want them both to die. He was next to her in a second. He didn't speak a word, but picked her up and tossed her over his shoulder.

She pounded on his back with her fists. "I can move by myself!" she shouted.

Kai barely paid attention to her and sprinted back down the street. He ran much faster than Jenn thought possible, considering he was carrying a one hundred and fifty-pound woman. Jenn bounced around on his back as he held her legs.

He began shouting something in Anquesh. Jenn had no idea what he was saying. For all she knew, he could be swearing at her because she weighed too much. Well, she had never been good at dieting, though now it seemed like she should have put more effort into it.

Things around them started exploding. Kai spoke into his communicator. A shadow passed over their bodies. When Jenn looked up, a small spaceship hovered overhead. A hatch opened in the metal underbelly of the ship, and a ladder descended in front of them.

"Hold on, sindare," yelled Kai. He shifted her to his back. "Grab my neck tightly." With a frightening growl, she felt his muscles contract beneath his body. He leaped from the ground, grabbing the bottom rung of the ladder. Kai climbed it rapidly like a predator sprinting after its dinner. Jenn's breath caught in her throat when she looked down. The ground was slipping farther and farther away.

When he reached the opening, many hands reached out to haul them into the spacecraft. Someone peeled Jenn away from Kai. He made a frightening growl as the hatch closed beneath them. His face contorted in anger, his eyes were wild, and his muscles flexed like he was about to attack.

A voice crooned out from the shadows behind Kai in a calming tone. The warrior holding Jenn backed away. Jenn was left to face Kai and his battle rage by herself. He looked like he could kill something. Kai took a step forward, and Jenn shrieked, convinced that the alien was about to hurt her. Perhaps he blamed her for the attack on his people. Nothing the Anquesh did made sense to Jenn.

When Kai saw the fear in her face, he retreated. His twisted face looked hurt and confused. Behind him, Jenn could see the Anquesh warrior who was trying to calm him down with his voice. Jenn didn't understand all the words, but she thought he spoke Kai's name several times.

Kai let out a roar that made the room shake. The other man gave a cry for help and Anquesh started filling the room. One of them held a syringe. As soldiers restrained Kai, he plunged the needle into Kai's neck. He was struggling against the soldiers until the end.

Jenn watched the scene in horror. She couldn't believe she had witnessed Kai's metamorphosis into the unreasoning beast in front of her. She watched the injection take effect. He slowly sank to the floor of the ship, panting, sweaty and spent.

Once Kai had calmed down, some of the Anquesh warriors helped Kai get back on his feet. They guided him toward Jenn, but she was still terrified. She looked around for a place to hide.

The ship started to vibrate, and the warriors began shouting. The men began to rush Kai out of the room, but not before he turned his eyes to Jenn. He spoke one sentence in English before they took him away. "I know you are my sindare."

The Anquesh warrior who tried to calm Kai walked toward Jenn. "You haven't seen an Anquesh warrior in the nuxmunit before, have you?

"He was like that once before during an attack on Earth. It made him stronger, but not crazy. This time, he looked out of control."

"The commander has entered nuxmunit too often in a short amount of time. It takes a toll on the body. Each time he responds to a threat, it increases the reaction. We have given him medicine to sedate him."

The floor moved violently again. "We're running out of time. Come with me. The commander needs you now."

"Why would he need me?"

"You just won your wedding battle." It was a statement, not a question, but Jenn didn't understand what he was saying.

"Of course I did. That motherfucker ran off with his tail between his legs."

"Prince Warrel has tried to influence public opinion and paint a picture of Commander Imwaden as a man without honor. He tried to steal you from the Commander under the pretense of fulfilling our agreement with Earth. You were willing to fight Warrel and defeat him in battle. It was more than a wedding ceremony. You sent a message to Anquera. People think you are fighting for the honor of Kai Imwaden."

"Look, I was trying to stay alive, and not get raped in front of a crowd."

"Your intentions don't matter, Jennifer. How your actions are perceived is important. Right now, you are important to the Anquesh. I'll be honest with you. Kai is the only remaining member of the royal family capable of leading us to victory against our enemies. Right now, we need you to stand with him in front of the soldiers. Show us you believe in the Earth agreement. You can help us out of our mess."

"
B
ack off
, Lieutenant," said Sevit. "You can see nuxmunit has immersed the Commander. Stay away from the Earth woman. He thinks she's his sindare. Move away so he sees you aren't a threat."

Even though the alien walked away from Jenn, Kai only growled some more.

Mine!
was the only thought in his head. Kai wanted to tear the warrior apart for touching his sindare. He moved to retrieve her, but she started to scream. Her face was lined with fear, not showing the smooth loving features of a sindare proud to have her mate fighting for her.

Did she want that other male? He could easily fix that problem. Kai roared a challenge to the warrior. He would fight his rival to the death.

"Doctor, he's not calming down! Everyone help me restrain the commander!"

Bodies rushed at Kai, blocking him from reaching his mate. He struggled until he felt a sharp pain jab him in the neck. Immediately he felt dizzy and lightheaded. The strength drained from his body and slowly reason returned to his mind.

Kai rose shakily to his feet.

"Take him to the bridge," called Sevit.

As they passed by Jenn, he couldn't resist saying something to her. "Sindare?" he called gently. It felt terrible to see the fright in her eyes. Did she realize he was prepared to fight for her? Or was she merely frightened of him? He didn't have the opportunity to say anything else. His warriors led him out of the loading hatch and through the short corridors of the transport. The ship was violently rocking the entire time.

"Are we under attack?" said Kai.

"Yes, commander," said one of the warriors. "We're only on a transport ship, but we've upgraded the shields from what we've learned of Earth technology."

"Let's hope they hold up." The shields of the Earth ships had impressed the Anquesh. They were more efficient and seemed to take more hits before failing. He waved the warriors away. "I can walk by myself."

"Of course you can, commander." They released him but hovered around in case he lost control of himself again. Kai's head hurt from the shock of entering and exiting the battle rage. He had now had an injection to reduce nuxmunit twice within seven days, which wasn't healthy. He was determined his men would not see him in a weakened state.

Kai walked onto the bridge of the transport. The officer sitting in the captain's chair stood and saluted. "Commander, we are entering the upper atmosphere of Anquera. We're almost out of her gravity well."

"Is anyone pursuing us yet?"

The officer smiled. "No, Commander. Apparently the Earth shield upgrades have the side effect of concealing our movement."

"But they were firing at us."

"They were aiming at our projected flight path, nothing more. When we changed our course, we were able to avoid additional damage.

No wonder it seemed like the Earth ships could suddenly appear in battle,
thought Kai. It made sense. Any technology capable of producing phantom ships might be able to cloak as well. Perhaps an alliance with Earth people wouldn't be as distasteful as it seemed if it could provide technology like this to Anquera.

"Unfortunately, the Ruvien is in orbit and not faring as well. A squad of Similcue ships is attacking."

Sevit entered the bridge with Jenn. He bent over and whispered in her ear. She nodded her head and slowly walked to Kai.

"Commander," she said. He noticed her Earth words were repeated in Anquesh. Sevit had activated the ship's translation protocols so Jenn would understand the conversations around her. Kai saw fear in her eyes. Did she want to be somewhere else? For the first time, he thought she might only be here for the treaty, and she was merely playing a role for her government.

"It's good to see you, Jenn." Kai settled back in the command chair. "Are there any problems with our approach to the Ruvien?"

"The Ruvien has her shields up. The Similcue ships are beginning their attack."

Kai watched helplessly as the Ruvien took multiple rounds of fire from the assault squadron. Their transport had no weapons and couldn't participate in the fight. The Similcue would break through the Ruvien's defenses in a few minutes. His fist curled on the armrest of his chair.

"She can't take much more of this. After the Ruvien goes, we're next."

"Sir!" said the communications officer. "The Ruvien is receiving an encrypted message. Some spaceships from Earth are going to assist us. They say the calvary is coming."

"What does that mean?"

Kai felt something brush his fist, and he saw Jenn's hand touch his.

"It's an Earth expression."

On the screen showing their surroundings, five Earth ships shimmered into existence behind the Similcue spacecraft, immediately launching volleys of laser fire. The Similcue ships exploded one after another, disintegrating into a large debris field.

The bridge crew cheered.

"We're not done yet. We have to dock with the Ruvien. Send a message that we will be boarding."

"Yes, sir. The computer has calculated the approach vector. We'll need to drop our shields so the Ruvien's computer can detect our ship and pull us in."

"Proceed," said Kai.

"A single Similcue fighter is on our tail," said the communications officer. "Their weapons are locked onto our ship. They're too close to us. The Earth ships won't be able to attack it without risking our ship in the process."

On the bridge, screens showed multiple views of the Ruvien and the transport's surroundings. Most of the display was empty, but a movement caught Kai's eye. It showed a combat ship moving directly to their location.

Jenn saw it too. "Can we shoot it down?" she whispered.

Kai looked at his sindare's fear-filled face. "We're on a transport vessel. We don't have any weapons." He turned to the navigator. "Hard to starboard."

As the ship maneuvered to the right, a lance of laser fire barely missed their wing.

"They're charging their weapons again, sir."

The ship was getting close to the Ruvien now, and there wasn't much space to maneuver. "Tell the Ruvien to open the landing bay. We're going to have to do a hot landing."

"Sir? I'm not sure I can do it manually."

"Ensign, if you don't, we're all going to die anyway."

"Yes, my lord," said the navigator.

"Jenn, find a chair and strap in."

She looked around nervously. Spying an unoccupied seat, Jenn moved toward it and started to fasten the belts that would secure her.

"We're receiving a communication from the Ruvien." The view on the central screen changed to the command deck of Kai's ship.

"Transport, you can't land like this. In the best-case scenario, you're going to blow yourselves up. In the worst-case scenario, you're going to destroy both ships."

"Lieutenant," said Kai. "Clear the deck for us. We don't have a lot of options." The screen went blank as the transport shuddered.

"We were hit on the port side engines, sir."

"We're not going to last out here much longer. Take us to the Ruvien."

The spaceship lurched toward the underbelly of the Ruvien. A hole opened in the sleek plating of the larger spacecraft, inviting them to safety. The small vessel shook once more when it was struck by enemy fire again.

"Commander, another fighter is approaching our position." Kai cursed. "I don't think we can take another hit."

The new combatant moved faster than the Similcue fighter, closing the distance between the two, but Kai noticed that the profile was different. He wondered if the Similcue had an experimental craft. Laser fire erupted from the new ship, and Kai braced himself for impact.

Instead of hitting the transport, the laser blasts slammed into the Similcue fighter, which broke apart in a silent explosion of light.

"We're being hailed." The forward screen flickered, revealing a human staring at them.

"There's more of them coming. If you plan to dock with your bigger ship, I suggest you do it now."

The screen flickered again, and the human disappeared. Kai made a mental note to find out how the humans had broken Anquera's communication security. The humans had more tricks up their sleeves than magicians.

Jenn sat quietly in her chair with a grim expression on her face. She was tightly clutching the edge of the armrest with her fingers. They had turned white. Kai tried to give her a reassuring smile, but she turned away when she looked at him.

He shook his head. When the battle was over, he didn't know how he was going to win the heart of his sindare.

The open bay door was approaching quickly. The navigator's hands shook as his fingers danced over the control panel. Docking was usually an automatic process, but it was slow, and they needed every second. The ensign had reduced the transport's speed, but they were still coming in too fast for a smooth landing.

The Ruvien's body enveloped them, and suddenly they were in the landing bay. The navigator activated braking jets to slow their crash into the deck. The ship began skidding down the deck, rushing toward a bulkhead at the far end of the bay. Kai held his breath as flames engulfed the transport; the jets were now in an oxygenated environment. With a final lurch, the vessel stopped when it crashed into a wall.

Kai gathered himself, stood up, and helped Jenn to her feet. "Let's go to battle stations."