Defying The Alliance (Novokin Alliance Invasion 1) (4 page)

A great force struck my chest and I was enveloped in darkness. But I knew I couldn't be dead. There was no way death hurt this much or was this warm. Taking a deeply painful breath, my nostrils were filled with a musky aroma of apples and summer mixed with man sweat. I took another long sniff, licking my lips as I drooled a bit. Maybe I was on my way to paradise after all.

A low growl let me know I wasn't alone. I cracked open an eyelid and saw the face of the golden alien, gritting his teeth and staring down at me. His long, gold kissed, brown hair tickled my cheek as explosions rained down all around us, energy beams biting into his exposed back.

Yet, his sculpted lips curved in an amused smile. "When you are finished sniffing me, we need to run."

Was the barbarian mocking me? He was the one laying on top of me and getting all handsy after almost killing me. Several plasma bursts exploded around us.

I craned my head sideways to assess our surroundings and then jutted my chin out to the right, away from the detachment of reassembling Novokin guards.

"That way,” I said, furrowing my brows and darting my eyes toward our exit since he had my arms pinned to the ground. “There's a service access tunnel we can slip into and then circle back around to my ship."

He nodded his understanding and started to rise but I grabbed the hair –fur?– on his chest. "Wait." With him still straddled over me I raised my pistol and fired several times at more energy junctions. We were rewarded with three large explosions creating a nice diversion for us to escape. I turned back to my new, barbarian friend. "Now." I said.

Before I could even get to my feet he scooped me up like a child and pressed me to his chest. He crouched low over my form and ran like a Stralaxian horse for the access tunnel I had I had suggested. All the while weapons fired around him. I felt him take several shots to the back, but he was going strong.

Still being carried like this... If I wasn't so happy to be getting out of this skeck-fest alive, I'd have been mortified by the indignity of it. I resigned myself to wait until we were safe, and then I’d kick his gorgeous ass.

I lost track of time, comfortably huddled in the golden beast’s...err alien’s warm, expansive chest. For the first time in years I felt, oddly safe. Yet that feeling only lasted for a few minutes, maybe seconds, before it was replaced by wariness. I had just met this gorgeous alien. I didn't even know his species. For all I knew he could be a convicted felon or a cannibal from some backwards outer rim planet. Maybe the only reason he saved my ass was to serve me up for dinner to his family or so he could make a quick credit on the interworld web selling me off for parts. Nah, given his size I’d only be a side dish.

A sick thought wormed its way into my mind, maybe he was a female Dauniete, and he was in love. I didn’t know really what they looked like behind their environmental suits. I'm not sure anybody did.
Yup, that’s it.
It didn't matter how enticing he smelled, I was convinced whichever probability had the worst outcome, that was it.

We'd been running for a long time, but I hadn't heard any Alliance guards for the past few minutes. I peeped over his shoulder for a visual scan and I confirmed the corridor we were speeding down was quite clear.

"Put me down," I told him. Well, it may have sounded like an order. It’s every captain’s bane. Soon all your conversations with regular people sound like orders. He totally ignored me and kept running. My pulse rose and my cheeks burned from my now boiling blood.

“Put me the prak down, you dim-witted, golden Blethdian apebeast!” I yelled. A tinge of anger with a spice of panic colored my voice. Again nothing. It was like I wasn’t even there, all of a hundred and something pounds of me. I smacked my balled fist on his back. "Put me down now! Dammit we're clear!"

He tilted his head lightly in my direction, cocking a single questioning eyebrow, which animated his stunning face. Finally, I had his attention. He slowed down, spun around once to check for himself and then gently lowered my feet to the floor as if I were a newborn colt.

I glowered at him. Lava spewed from my eyes and all my muscles coiled, ready to fight.

He just flashed me a crooked smile, which only infuriated me further because it made him look that much sexier.

Then it dawned on me. My holographic projector was still on. Turning away from his stupid grin I signaled my ship. "Give me a report."

Dodson, one of my two remaining lieutenants answered. "Jaxx and the Ensign have made it back safely with eight of the additions, Captain."

I shook my head. Names people. Protocol, look it up.

"What happened?" I responded, allowing a smidgen of irritation to escape with my voice.

"One of them just disappeared. Ran off from what we can surmise. Three of them were gunned down before they made it off the promenade. We're waiting for you Captain, but we're reading Alliance guards being deployed all over the station. It's just a matter of time before they start searching the ships too."

Double Skeck!
“Ok lieutenant. Listen to me. You need to leave this station now. I’ll catch up with you later.”

“But Captain -.”

“No arguments Lieutenant. Please, inform the Commander and disembark immediately. This is an order.”

“Sure Captain,” the lieutenant said reluctantly. “Is there anything else I can do for you Captain?”

"Yes. Give me an estimate of how long we've got before they call in reinforcements?" This will tell me fight, take flight or hunker down and hide.

Hzzzzzz...The signal was starting to break up. "Uncertain this far out Captain. Captain...hzzz I'm reading a scan. Ithzzzz... looks ...hzzzzzlike it's scanning for Daunietes. You better drop–."

Dammit, I don't know why I bothered with the disguise. I should've just painted a big red target on my ass when I left the ship today and save everybody the trouble. I’m pretty certain my big golden barbarian had listened in to my conversation.

Now, I'd have to drop the disguise. Even if they weren’t looking for a Terran, when they went back to their scans they’d be able to identify me. All of the Protectorate personnel's DNA was registered in the home world database which was now conveniently under Alliance control.

My skin prickled as a large shadow swallowed me. "Why did you free those slaves?" A husky, demanding voice spoke from behind me. I took a sec to ready myself and I whirled around only to find my face an inch away of his gold, musclebound, lightly fur-sprinkled chest. I froze breathless and overwhelmed by his enormous presence and...something else. I tried not to stare at the loincloth.
Don't stare at the loincloth Caspia.
Hmmm.
Caspia? Yes?... Don't stare at the loincloth!

It was no use. My eyes shamelessly drifted downward, on their own accord, spotting the most magnificent bulge in the universe. A tingle raced through my body and I was overwhelmed with a need to pet it. To coax it out of its hideout.

His warm, sweet breath gently caressed the hair on the top of my head, igniting my cheeks aflame while shudders ravished my body with anticipation and excitement. I slowly wretched my sight from his rich endowment and I moved to gaze up at my gold companion, taking strenuous note of the sexy, sensuous lines of the taut muscles of his neck, his straight, strong nose, his mouth watering luscious lips. Lips that called to be kissed.
Caspia.
My face slid forward and my breasts connected with his hard abs...

A soft growl reverberated through his massive chest and made me jump back a foot. I breathed deeply and blinked a few times trying to break the spell this male held over me.

Wow!
I couldn’t remember the last time my body went bonkers like that. It almost got me killed once today. My crew depended on me. It’s time to get it together.
Seriously! What the prak was wrong with me?

"I don't have time for this.” I snapped. Partially to him and partially to myself. “They're going to be scanning for me, or more precisely for a Dauniete,” I said peering intently into those sexy, hazel pools of light. I expected some sort of reaction as I tried to decide if I could trust this guy.

Well, no reaction. Just the corner of his lips curling slightly to the left, his big eyes gave me nothing. I didn't have time to ponder over this one and considering he wiped the floor with their Novokin asses today, I decided I would take a chance on him.

“You know, I'm not really one. I mean Dauniete,” I clarified before continuing, “but if they find me instead, I'm still not exactly on good terms with the Alliance," I admitted right before I pressed the subdermal implant on my right shoulder and the image of the masked Dauniete flickered off.

No flinching, no eyebrow creasing, no grimacing, no sound, nothing. My new big friend didn't appear surprised in the least. He didn't even blink. He just looked at me, now with a strange sort of hunger. I hoped they thought to feed these guys before they tried to sell them.

His eyes slid back into focus, though they never left mine. "Will they scan for you just once or will they scan continuously until they locate you?"

Ah, so there was a brain in there to go with all that sexy. "Since using the main scanners is a major drain on the power of the energy banks of a station as big as this, they’ll just scan once. The problem is that even if they don't find the Daunietes they’re searching for, they'll find me. The real me. Even if it's after we leave, my cover will be blown and the Alliance will be up my ass."

His big hazel eyes twinkled. "We don't want the Novokin Alliance anywhere near your ass. Where will be the most difficult place for them to get a reading?"

Did he just reference my ass? Can’t blame the man. It really is one of my better assets. I haven’t had a chance to get acquainted with his yet. But enough about asses. I didn't need this now. What I needed was some sort of distraction to escape. Or maybe, I could simply blow up the station’s central command post before the scan was complete. I was annoyed, monumentally annoyed. But he kept staring at me, so I finally retorted, "I don't know, near any one of the power junction relays," with a petulant toss of my head.

His face took on a strange mixture of relaxed and mischievous. I bet he played a helluva poker game. "Can you find us one of those?”

“Of course, I can.”

“Good, take me to it," his voice commanded.

Taking orders from others, and especially civilians roused my inner toddler. I fought hard not to buck and kick. Exasperated, I pointed to the ceiling directly above us. "There. Behind the panel with the orange stripes, next to the air reclamation vent."

As soon as I finished, we heard the sound of booted feet heading our way from multiple directions. I looked at the gun in my hand. It had overheated during the fight and was currently in a cool down cycle. I needed at least two minutes before I could fire.
Prak me running.

Without asking, big, gold and handsome wrapped his impressive arm around my waist, squeezed me close to his chest and lifted me into the air. This relationship is going nowhere good, fast. He stretched out to his full imposing height and with his free hand snapped the latch on the air vent. He hauled us both into the metal tube and I heard the grate close below us. How it remained shut with a broken latch, and us both in the air, I had no idea. Footsteps below meant I wouldn't get a chance to ask about it either.

Voices rose up to us through the grate. They were standing right under us. "The last time they were seen, they were heading down this way, Sir."

Face to chest in a tiny air vent, I held my breath. Using what little room I had, I craned my neck to try to look down to the grate but couldn't make out much more than scattered motion. Apparently the commander of this Alliance Imperial guard regiment had decided to hold forum at our feet.

Worst-case scenario, if they found us, I could always just shoot the power junction next to the air vent we were in, crushing him with our dead bodies. The commander hadn't shouted an alert so I was taking it as a good sign. He addressed his subordinates.

"The station’s central command should be scanning this area in a minute soldier. You, you and you fan out and search the area while we wait for word from HQ. Radio in if you find them or else rendezvous back here in five."

Oh good, they were coming back. I leaned my head back so I could look up at golden boy after the last of the enemy’s footfalls dissipated. The shadows in the tube absorbed most of his beautiful form except for his sparkling, hazel eyes staring right through me. Sparks of electricity trickled down my spine revving up my core. I felt his back muscles stiffen and his chest heaved a little faster. I couldn’t tell if it was from the strain of holding the both of us up, or from working hard not to tear through the thin metal of the air duct we were suspended in. Considering what he had done with the manacles, I was leaning toward the latter.

We may have avoided the guards, but the scan was an entirely different matter. I was personally working hard to keep myself from taking another deep breath of the musky, apple and summer flavor that seemed to drip off my new golden, fuzzy friend in waves and whispered to him. "This was a good idea, but the power junction may not be enough to hide us from the scan, particularly since they’re already looking for us in this area."

He nodded to me, dug in to the soft metal a little more with his left hand and pulled me tighter against his body with the other. He smiled. "Maybe this will."

A soft prickling sensation began to creep up and down my spine. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end and my muscles began to gently contract and relax –goosebumps, like the kind you get from the breath of a lover who gently exhales on your belly, but everywhere. And I mean everywhere. I was trapped somewhere between amazement and arousal.

I looked back up to him. "Is that you?"

He merely nodded his head with a light curl of his lip. I couldn't help but close my eyes and sink back into the tingling, warm sensation, and the strength of his arm around me. When I opened my eyes I realized I was leaning my head on the silky fur of his chest. I clenched my teeth to keep from biting the nipple taunting me less than an inch away from my mouth.

Holy skeck!
Here he was saving my life again. Hopefully whatever he was doing was diverting the scans, while I was busy thinking of ways to take advantage of him.
Heck, where we even compatible?
I let out a quick breath, causing his golden-brown nipple to harden and pull taut.

He responded with a stiff pressure that pushed against my belly from below his coiled gold belt.
Yup!
We certainly seemed –
compatible
. The vibrations he was generating stopped, and the only thing that remained was the pulsating hardness of his arousal against my stomach.
Oh yeah, we were definitely compatible.

In the ultimate display of bad timing the communicator squawked in my ear. "Captain are you there?" Jaxx chirped.

I sighed. "Please, tell me you’re off the station and headed to our usual fallback rendezvous."

“Negative Captain. You know I’d never leave you behind. But I’ve got good news. The scan is complete. We were able to send some Dauniete ghost images to one of the upper decks during the last part of the scan to confuse their sensors. We are tracking major Alliance movement to that area. The coast should be clear. Come on home."