Craving: A SciFi Alien Mail Order Bride Romance (TerraMates Book 8) (13 page)

A
sharp buzz
rang through the little room. It sounded like a doorbell.

"Duty calls," Kai said. He pulled away and Jenn felt a pang of disappointment. She wanted to do a lot more with this passionate alien even though time and circumstances were conspiring against them. He rose, gently pulling Jenn up with him.

"I'm still shaking. It might take me a while to put my clothes back on." She looked down at her nude lower body. She felt her face growing hot with embarrassment.

"Sit behind my desk. Only you and I will know what you're wearing."

He tossed her pants at her as she scrambled to sit on his big chair. She quickly covered her lap.

Kai wiped his face with his arm, giving her a broad grin. "Maybe you should leave them off. I can't wait for round two."

Secretly, Jenn admitted to herselv that she liked the idea.

"Enter," said Kai, sinking into the chair Jenn had occupied only minutes before. He looked casual and confident. Jenn wished she could fake half of his bravado.

A soldier walked into the room. "Commander, Oakland has docked with our ship and wants to speak with you himself. He's waiting outside your quarters.

Oh no!
thought Jenn.
Please don't let him in here right now. Let me put on these pants, at least.

"Tell him to enter. I have no secrets."

Fuck!
Jenn started to panic. She didn't have time to put on her clothes, but she tried unsuccessfully to move her chair closer to the desk.

Oakland entered, wearing blue coveralls decorated with the patches of the United Earth Alliance. He glared at Kai. "Is it true?" he asked, with an element of challenge in his voice.

Kai looked up the captain. "Is what true?" he said evenly.

"Has Earth sold this woman to you?"

"What do you mean? No trading took place." Kai looked confused.

"No way!" said Jenn. "What gave you that idea?"

"When we moved out of the Anquesh communication blackout, we started receiving intelligence from Earth again. Some of the men found reports of an Earth woman given to the Anquesh. It was the price of a treaty between our races."

"It is not a sale," said Kai darkly. "Don't make the mistake of denigrating an Anquera custom solely because you don't have the words in your language to describe it accurately. It is how we make treaties with races we conquer."

"That's the first problem. You haven't conquered anyone!" snapped Oakland. "You need our help!"

"Kai," Jenn whispered. "Please."

"I can't believe you agreed to this!" Oakland wasn't backing down. "You have no problems with being as a chip on the bargaining table?"

Jenn stared at him, not knowing what to say. Of course she wasn't okay with her predicament, and she hadn't been from the beginning. But the situation was bigger than herself.

"I don't like it. But things are happening on Earth that you haven't seen on the battlefield. The war has ruined us. Most people can't find jobs. The war with Anquera was destroying both our worlds. And the ships you see firing on the Anquesh? They want to kill us all."

"It's not right, Ms. Carden and you know it. I don't care who the Earth wants to sell out so they can get what they wants. We shouldn't be putting women in slavery. I think you should come with me."

Jenn glanced at Kai. His eyes were growing large, and she saw him starting to flex his muscles. For everyone's sake, she needed to take control of the situation before Kai entered a battle rage.

"Captain Oakland, the Anquesh operate on a strict code of honor. It's part of their culture and one of the reasons why the Earth government was comfortable with the treaty. I promised I would fulfill the agreement between our two peoples as written. You're a soldier; you should do the same thing. As Kai and I are bound together, so are our two peoples bound with each other. They are our allies in a treaty. I suggest you start acting like it."

Jenn wanted to stand as she delivered these words, but she wasn't wearing any pants. Instead, she leaned forward and looked at Oakland with what she hoped was a confident stare.

Oakland looked away from Jenn. Kai still looked like he wanted to rip the Captain's face off. He looked back at Jenn.

"Well, then. I guess I better get back to the ship."

"Wait," Kai interjected. "There is something I want to talk to you about."

Great
, thought Jenn.
He's going to talk business while I sit naked behind his desk. I hope he doesn't beat the crap out of this guy.

"I need more ships," said Kai haughtily. He was still irritated with Oakland.

"There are no more to offer."

"You can still provide something useful, but you haven't realized its value yet. Do you remember the holograms you put in front of us when we first met? We might be able to do interesting things with them. How many can you generate?"

"One per ship at the most."

"Then seven will have to do."

"The holograms consume a good deal of power when they're running. They take away some energy from the weapons system. That's why we used them during our last encounter. You had disabled our lasers, and the only defense we had was to lead you in a different direction with a decoy."

Kai thought about Oakland's revelation. "Even so, it's something the Similcue won't expect. Prepare your ships."

"You've got to be kidding me." Oakland looked incredulous that Kai had the audacity to issue him an order.

"Please," said Jenn. "We need every advantage to fight against the Similcue."

Oakland sighed. "Okay. I'll tell our ships about your plan, and we'll see what we can do."

"Thank you," said Jenn.

"Follow me." Sevit extended his hand and ushered Oakland out the room. As he departed, Sevit looked over his shoulder, letting his gaze linger on Jenn before it drifted to Kai, finally giving him a naughty smile.

"Get going," Kai growled. "My sindare and I have more things to discuss in private."

"I'm sure you do." Kai snorted as the door slammed shut.

Finally given the opportunity to dress herself, Jenn stuck her feet through the ankles of the pantaloons and held up the garment, looking for a way to secure it around her waist.

"Let me help you." He stepped behind the desk and pulled some tabs on either side of her waist. The pants automatically adjusted themselves to Jenn's size.

"You sure know your way around a woman's pantaloons."

"It is familiar territory to an Anquesh warrior like myself," he replied casually.

"You have a lot of experience, then?"

"Don't worry, sindare. I'll always like yours best. You're all set now." He gave her a swat on her ass.

"Hey!" she protested. "So what precisely do you like best? Territory? Or pantaloons?"

He put his arms around her. "Both. Thank you." He rested his forehead against hers. "I noticed you wrapped Oakland around your finger."

"Momma always told me you can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar."

K
ai kept
his arm around Jenn, holding her tightly while he studied the battle board. He was proud that she had stood up to Oakland and declared her intent to honor the treaty. Sevit looked at her differently now, too. She had earned his respect and Sevit would defend her if anyone from Anquera spoke about her inappropriately. His sindare had the right instincts. Jenn had done her part getting the Earth commander to fight with them. Kai's part was to win the battle.

He ordered the computer to display the magnetic fields surrounding the planets in the solar system. The battle board lit up, showing lines of color surrounding the planets and their rings. He slowly traced the magnetic lines of solar flares from the sun.

The magnetic distribution of the solar system gave information about where the enemy ships could safely move. Although it was possible to make inter-solar jumps, no pilot would want to direct their spaceship too close to a planet or through a flare. The first would send them careening into the atmosphere. The second would burn them to a crisp. Kai made notations on the holographic battle board by tracing his fingers through the fields, crossing out areas the enemy couldn't travel.

There was only one place for them to hide.

"Do you see it?" said Kai.

"Yes, Commander."

"I don't see anything," said Jenn.

"Look here, behind our second moon," Kai said. "They have to be hiding on the far side. The third moon will shield them from solar flares, and the first moon conceals their position."

"I think you're right, Commander. It's the only place that makes sense. If they tried to jump through the other magnetic fields, their ships would be destroyed."

"Can you explain it in English to an Earth girl?"

"All star drives generate magnetic fields. It's similar what you encounter on a planet."

"You mean like when you put two magnets next to each other? Depending on their positions, they stick together, or they repel one another."

"That's correct, depending on the alignment of electrons in the magnetic field. In fact, the ship's propulsion is created through interaction with a magnetic pole."

"So if they're not here, they're going to blow themselves up?"

"If you want to be inelegant about it, yes. The Earth ships should approach the dark side of the moon and project their false holographic ships below the Similcue. We'll come over the top of the moon and trap them between us. Relay the orders to the battle group. Coordinate with the captains and assign them approach vectors."

Jenn was staring intently at the board. "Are you sure this is going to work?"

But before Kai could answer, the communications officer began speaking.

We're receiving a communication from the palace. It's from Emperor Warrel."

"Emperor," Kai said sadly, shaking his head. "Put him on the screen." He escorted Jenn to the center of the bridge.

Warrel had chosen to communicate from the conference room behind the throne. It was the safest room in the palace.

"Commander, I order you to stand down immediately. We have made an agreement with the Similcue." Kai watched a Similcue ambassador move into view of the camera.

"The promise of one of these dishonorable wretches is worthless. They follow a similar pattern whenever they plan to annihilate a civilization. They make promises they don't intend to keep, and the next thing you know, they stab you in the back."

Kai couldn't believe he was having this conversation. How to defend against other alien races was something a first-year Academy cadet would know. The problem was, Warrel never attended the Academy.

"Your words border on insubordination. It's bad enough that you're contemplating treason, but I see you have my fiancee at your side.

"About that," said Jenn. "The wedding's off. I've spent my life looking for a man who wants to keep me happy, not keeping me prisoner."

A few officers aboard the Ruvien chuckled while Warrel's face grew red.

"You will not refuse me, human."

"You had your chance to impress me with your fighting ability and frankly, your Highness, you did not. I'm choosing to go with the original agreement between our people."

"That agreement is no longer in place," Warrel growled.

"Let's be clear about what you're saying. You have no intention of fulfilling the treaty?" Warrel shook his head. "I'm not an expert on Anquera, but tell me something, Kai. Isn't that considered dishonorable? Your Highness, if you have no intention of fulfilling your end of the bargain, we have no need to satisfy ours. It's goodbye for us, Warrel. Better luck next time."

Kai made a hand motion to cut off the communication. Warrel's face faded from the screen as he sputtered over Jenn's monolog.

Jenn looked up at Kai. "I didn't go too far, did I? He looked terribly angry."

"I'm not going to worry about that until my court-martial. We've lost the element of surprise. Send a message to the remaining ships. It's time for us to move."

The Ruvien and the other ships of the Anquesh fleet made a jump to the second moon in the system. The ships spread out in an arc and slowly moved over the north pole of the moon.

Jenn breathed in sharply when she saw the scene below the Ruvien. Beneath the Similcue ships were seven United Earth Alliance vessels, like pieces on a three-dimensional chess board.

"Are those the holograms? I can't believe they look real to our eyes and the ship's computers."

In front of them, the Similcue ships fired at the holograms. The shots passed harmlessly through the images.

"The Similcue spacecraft are unable to fire right now while their weapons recharge. We have an opportunity as long as we can move fast enough. Jam their signals. All ships, engage the enemy!"

The Similcue ships were caught in an attack from all sides, receiving blasts from both the United Earth Alliance ships and the Anquesh. A few enemy vessels on the outside of the formation were quickly disabled, but those in the middle had more time to react and used the outer ships as shields. Some moved away to avoid the destruction and others returned fire.

"We've disabled five of the enemy ships. Two Earth ships are critically damaged. Sir, we just lost another spacecraft. It's a total loss. The Similcue spacecraft in our vicinity are surrounding us."

"Stay calm and engage the closest ship in one-on-one combat," commanded Kai. "Don't let up, and don't be afraid."

Jenn didn't need a viewscreen to see the fighting any longer. Flashes of laser fire illuminated the bridge like lightning across the night sky. Suddenly, an enemy shot found its target and the Ruvien started shaking. The bridge shifted into a scene of controlled chaos. Different voices reported on damaged sections, shield strength, and casualty estimates.

Kai released Jenn, calling out orders to fire the Ruvien's weapons. The ship vibrated again. Jenn watched a green Similcue ship grow larger as it filled the main viewscreen. It was approaching at a dangerous speed.

"I think they intend to ram us, Commander."

"Brace for impact."

The Ruvien lurched as the two ships collided. A workstation exploded, starting a fire that threatened to spread around the bridge.

"Jenn, you need to get to my office."

"I'm not going without you."

"It's a secure area, triple-reinforced with a self-contained breathing system. You'll be safe there. I can't work if I'm distracted."

Jenn didn't want to leave Kai. She looked at him, eyes filled with tears and disbelief on her beautiful face. Reluctantly, she started to move to safety.

In front of her, one of the officers fell to the deck. His workstation was burning in an uncontrolled fire. Kai rushed to move him to a secure location, but as he picked up the body, a sickening squeal filled the bridge. A girder started to fall from the ceiling, starting a rain of plastic debris in the bridge.

He couldn't get out of the way in time.

"Kai!" Jenn yelled.

The thick metal beam fell on top of Kai and pain seared his shoulder. He found himself trapped beneath an immovable weight as flames from the workstation licked at the legs of his uniform, burning him. Kai couldn't move, he couldn't breathe, and he was being burned alive.

The last thing he heard was Jenn's voice calling to him. "I'll get you out!"