Chapter 18
Maxsim
Once Echo helps put the babies to bed, he leaves me and hurries off to check on Lila’s can of tuna. I can see his worry for the merman, which makes me anxious because I don’t want anything going wrong with Echo’s pregnancy, but I can’t be selfish and demand that he doesn’t go. It’s a fine line I have to walk to keep my mate and my alpha tendencies happy.
Maybe it will be a good distraction. He was worrying something fierce about Lila, and Link said his blood pressure got too high and he needed to rest. He refused, not wanting to miss out if something went wrong with the mission, so I fucked some submission into him, and he quickly became pliable and had a nap once he was full of my cum. He looked so pretty on the end of my dick, but it did feel like something vital was missing without Lila. I’ll have to fuck her into submission when she returns too. I’m sure she will give me a reason to need to, since she’s very feisty.
I smile and reach down, adjusting my cock, which has decided to make itself known with my dirty thoughts.
Instead of worrying about Echo, who is perfectly safe, I switch my worry to the mate that is not perfectly safe.
“I’m going to the bridge to see if there’s any word from Xavier or Lila,” Link announces when he returns from putting the kids to sleep. He returned from the pool wearing nothing but a pair of tight boxer briefs, but now he’s covered in another one of his uniforms. The cyborg is a very handsome man, and Echo suggested that maybe once our babies are born and Lila or he go into heat again that Link can help us. He explained that he can create a bulge like a knot with his nanobots. It’s how he helped Lila the first time. I can’t say I wasn’t intrigued, but I’m not sure I could control my jealous tendencies and not maul him if he did. Maybe due to the fact that he doesn’t smell like a cat, my jealousy wouldn’t be too bad. After all, the omega controls who they have in the streak, and if both of mine want him to join us, then who am I to complain?
“Can I come?” I push away from the counter, abandoning my drink now that there’s finally something for me to do.
“Sure, what about you, Cas?” Link asks the kraken who shakes his head.
“No, Echo went to spend time with Nikos, and I don’t want to leave the children unattended. Let me know what happens, will you?”
I can see the worry for our wife in his eyes, and we both quickly assure him we will keep him updated.
“Maybe it’s time we started looking for a nanny,” Link muses.
“Or two,” I add, thinking about the coming four additions.
He grimaces. “You’re not wrong. We’re going to have to return to running the circus soon, which will keep us all busy. It won’t hurt to have some help with the children.”
We make our way along the corridors, walking instead of taking the sideslip. “Are you worried about the mission?” I ask the cyborg after a moment. I can practically feel the tension dripping off him.
“Kind of. I just want to be done. Waiting drives me nuts. I know I wouldn’t have been much help, but I wish I could have gone with them. This separation is hard.”
I nod my head, my tail twitching behind me with agitation. “I know exactly how you feel. I’ve never felt so disadvantaged by my species as I have since I’ve been Lila’s mate. Before, I was happy keeping to our own den and environment, but now, I wish that I had high temperature tolerance as well.” It’s been playing on my mind since they had the mission to Rilu. Both Echo and I have discussed asking the warlock for a more permanent weather charm, which he spelled Echo with so he could sit underneath the sun lights in the Aquilian living space with Nikos. That way we aren’t a liability to our wife and the rest of her mates, and we can participate in missions. Well, I can anyway. I wouldn’t risk Echo’s safety, even though he is a formidable fighter, but it’s the alpha in me needing to protect his omega. The only reason I’m slightly more relaxed about Lila going is because I’m confident in her mimic ability making her damn near invincible.
“That’s easy to fix. My lack of power is not,” Link grumbles, and I slap him on the shoulder.
“If we were all running into danger, there would be no one to look after our young. You are just as important if not more so because you protect our offspring. Lila would be inconsolable if anything happened to them. Don’t doubt yourself, my friend,” I say gruffly, not great with emotional stuff but wanting him to know he is a valued and important member of our streak.
We reach the flight deck and find Saxon with Broderick, but both Silac, Tirrian, and Ghosie are here too. I guess the three of them are just as anxious as we are, since their affections for Lila are well-known, but they don’t have the added distraction of our family to keep them busy—not yet anyway, though I doubt it will be long before they are full members of our rapidly expanding streak.
“Have we heard from the away team yet, Rick?” Link asks as I take a seat at one of the empty consoles, nodding a greeting to the four men.
“Not yet,” Broderick Potter replies, his eyes on the big green planet visible through the flight deck viewing window. We are still cloaked from the harvesters’ ship, but it is sitting close enough that Xavier can teleport to us if he needs to escape quickly.
Link’s face falls, echoing my own disappointment.
“Ghosie and Tirrian just returned from the abandoned carevasta bear ship that’s floating on the other side of the planet,” Saxon tells us. “They were just about to tell us what they found.”
“Which was nothing,” Ghosie grumbles, putting his feet up on the console in front of his seat and leaning back with his arms crossed. “I couldn’t get into the ship logs. They were password protected, which isn’t uncommon for carevasta bears. We aren’t a trusting lot.”
“They definitely planned to return. We found two dead females chained up in the bedrooms,” Tirrian says soberly. “They had no identification, nor were we able to tell what species they were. The bodies were fairly decayed. We’re only assuming they were women because they were chained.”
“Would I be able to offer some assistance?” Link is frowning at the news. “I can try to access their records. It isn’t hard to bypass passcodes with direct access and take DNA samples of the dead females in the hopes they are in a missing database somewhere.” He holds up a finger, which changes to a port that will plug directly into the ship.
“We were just talking about Silac returning and trying to hack his way in, but that’s a better idea,” Saxon says, and Broderick agrees with him.
“Come on, I’ll send you both back to the ship. Tirrian can stay this time since you didn’t encounter anyone alive.”
Ghosie drops his furry paws from the console and stands up and stretches. “Hopefully you can find something helpful. There should be a record on who at least financed the mission. Bears don’t like to be cheated, and they would have had to pay a fifty percent deposit up front. Even if they never paid the remainder, there should be some sort of trail to follow.”
“Something that hopefully points to the Syndicate if Zamala is correct,” Link agrees, and the three of them head to the teleporter room.
I’m feeling agitated and restless, so I stalk back and forth across the viewing window. My gaze remains on the large green planet, even though it’s way too far away for any of us to make out any detail.
“They should have contacted us by now, right?” I ask the room as I try to work out in my head how long they’ve been on the planet.
“We registered a teleportation signature about twenty minutes ago. It went back and forth a number of times and just went quiet.” Silac’s finger runs over the screen in front of him. He is tech savvy as well and has been helping to keep his mind off the fact that his father has been turned to stone by the head of the Bravlana basilisks.
A low rumble escapes my chest before I can stop it, and I feel my lightning spark unbidden.
“Easy, Alpha. I know it’s hard to have your mate away for so long. It should be any moment,” Tirrian cautions, holding his hands up in a placating gesture. I snarl at the alpha dragon, and smoke starts to drift out of his nose. “We are all worried too. At least you can feel her since you’re mated to her. Some of us don’t have that.”
“You would if you hadn’t been such an asshole to her,” I snap at him. I’m not ready to forgive him as quickly as everyone else—probably because I still feel residual guilt from my treatment of her. Both of us were horrible to her, and I want to shake him and tell him to get his shit together so he doesn’t regret it like I do.
“I know, my friend, and I promise I’m trying. I will grovel if she will forgive me. I have a lot to make up for,” he says calmly, and I feel my anger ease at his promise, but my agitation doesn’t.
“Make sure you do. It makes Echo anxious when Lila is upset,” I growl at the dragon before turning my attention to the snake.
“You too.” I know why he’s been holding back, but again, his rejection hurts her even though she understands why. She is an emotional creature, and her feelings need to be protected. I can help with that, even though I made my own mistakes.
“Yes, Alpha.” Silac bows his head, wisely knowing not to argue with an agitated mate, but then his whole face changes, and he goes on high alert. His hood flares, and his eyes flash to the black of his beast. I unsheathe my claws just as Xavier and Brannock appear on the flight deck.
“Where’s Lila?” I demand as the two finish forming, my lightning sparking more violently around my body. Saxon is on his feet, and both Silac’s and Tirrian’s eyes keep flashing back and forth, both of them having trouble controlling their beasts.
“Easy, alphas.” Xavier sends a wave of reassurance my way, and I feel my body relax under his power, the sparks dying away. The other three men seem to relax as well. “She is fine, but we have some news, and we thought it would be better to share it personally so you and some of the others don’t lose your shit,” Xavier explains.
Neither of them look particularly worried, so I wait patiently.
“Where is everyone else? They should probably be here so we don’t have to explain it twice,” Brannock asks, making a smart suggestion.
“Link and Ghosie are on the carevasta ship that brought Lila’s grandma to the planet, but they never left. There are a couple of dead bodies, and they are trying to access the mainframe since everything was password protected,” Saxon answers calmly.
“Caspian is watching the babies, and my omega is visiting with the can of tuna,” I tell them. “I’m not sure where the Adams brothers are, and Broderick is manning the teleporter for Link and Ghosie.”
“Let’s head back to our suite and gather everyone so I only have to tell the story once,” Xavier suggests. “The flight deck will be fine unmanned for a little while.”
“Is this going to be upsetting information?” I ask as we use the sideslip elevator to return to our suite. We step out in front of it, and Xavier shrugs casually.
“I can’t predict how any of you are going to react, but it is surprising,” he admits, and Brannock snorts.
“Surprising is an understatement. The warlock lost control of his mist when he found out.”
“Maybe we should leave Echo and Nikos out of this for now. They are both in delicate conditions, and I don’t want to alarm them,” I suggest, and both Silac and Tirrian nod their heads, agreeing with me, but Saxon just raises an eyebrow.
“Fine, but we are telling them it was your idea when they are upset about being kept in the dark.”
I wince and run a hand through my mane in agitation, but I finally nod my head, willing to take the fallout he is most likely correct is coming.
When we get to the suite, Caspian has the same reaction Tirrian and Silac did, jumping to his feet, his beast surging into his eyes.
“Where’s Lila?” he demands with a growl that’s almost worthy of a lightning cat.
“Hey, easy, my friend.” Xavier releases another wave of reassurance, and Cas’s body shudders before he relaxes back into his seat. “She’s fine. We’ll explain what’s happening when everyone arrives.”
While he says this, Saxon uses the communicator on the wall to establish the whereabouts of the Adams brothers, asking them to join us in the suite.
“I’ll just go retrieve Link and Ghosie.” Xavier doesn’t wait for an answer before he disappears. Saxon shakes his head and makes another call to Broderick, also requesting his presence in our suite.
The living area is much larger now due to the expansion, and there is enough seating for us all, but I’m too wound up to get comfortable. Instead, I pace back and forth, waiting for everyone so we can hear the news.
I’m so caught up in my worry, I don’t notice Brannock approach me, and I almost fry him with my lightning when he puts a hand on my shoulder.
“Easy, Alpha. Your omega is fine.” Brannock’s voice holds a hint of power. The Aaz’axians can mesmerize, but I don’t feel like my mind is being taken over, just that he made me feel a little calmer. “Trust us. If we were worried, we would have launched an attack on the being who has our Lila.”
“Someone has her?” Tirrian’s voice is deep and rumbly, his dragon merging with the male, driving his aggression higher.
“Yes, but if you take a moment to breathe and let us explain, you will understand she is perfectly safe… I think.”
“You think?” Tirrian bellows, and I start to growl, all the tension returning to the room.
“Yes, Xavier believes she is, and I trust the warlock. If he is comfortable leaving his mate behind, then I have to be.”
The room to the suite opens, and the Adams brothers hurry in, looking heart broken and worried. They see Brannock, and panic enters their eyes.
“Where are Lila and Xavier?” William demands as John collapses onto one of the sofas, Eric taking his hand and giving it a squeeze.
Brannock tries to calm the room again. “She’s fine. That warlock better hurry up, because this is ridiculous,” he mutters, rolling his eyes at the dramatics.
Thankfully, the warlock appears with Link, Ghosie, and Broderick, and everyone turns to him.
“We have information on the being who controls the planet’s occupants.”
“Was Lila able to mimic him?” Link asks, remaining calm as he and the bear find seats. I’m not sure why the bear is actually needed for this conversation. Sure, he and Lila are wearing each other’s attraction marks, but they have barely spent any time together. I growl quietly under my breath when I think about what his shipmates wanted to do to her. He gives me the side-eye but says nothing.
“I’m not sure, to be honest,” Xavier says, wincing slightly, “but I do know who he is.”
“Well?” Eric prompts before anyone else can. “For fuck’s sake, Xavier, spit it out, and where is Lila?”
“The being is the forgotten earth elemental god, Zeydan, and Lila is with him. He claims she is his mate and requested she stay on planet. Her Elementi form is sick, and she would have perished had she returned to space in that form.”
“Why didn’t she just change?” Caspian asks.
“Because it still won’t help that form in the long run, and she knows that.” Xavier sighs. “Zeydan promised that he would protect her with his life.”
“Does he know she is a mimic and not an actual Elementi?” Saxon asks, rubbing a hand over his chin. He is just as calm as the cyborg. I guess the lack of a beast inside makes it easier to stay levelheaded despite the situation.
I grit my teeth and retract my claws as I try to do the same.
Xavier shrugs. “I’m not sure. He didn’t say anything, but he did say that the dragon was welcome to return tonight if we were worried.” Xavier’s gaze locks onto Tirrian. “You weren’t exactly stealthy,” he scolds.
“What did you expect? I’m a giant dragon. It’s kind of hard to stay hidden when there is no cloud cover.” He doesn’t sound apologetic. “Send me down now. I will protect our mate. It’s the least I can do to make up for my behavior.”
I nod my head in agreement. It is the least he can do, and having a big, fire-breathing dragon around will make everything think twice about attacking Lila.
“Come on, I’ll send you down now.” Broderick pushes off the wall. “Where should I send him?” he asks the warlock who winces.
“I’m not sure.”
“I’ll find her. My dragon will be able to smell her. We’ll keep searching until we do,” he assures us.
“Please contact us when you get a chance and keep us updated,” John asks the dragon.
“I’ll lose any communicator I might wear when I shift,” he tells us, “but I will use the one Lila has on her once I find her.”
With that, he and Broderick hurry to the transporter. The room is filled with tension, even though Xavier keeps trying to reassure us Lila is fine. He and Brannock don’t seem as agitated as we are, but I still get the distinct feeling he’s trying to convince himself as much as he’s trying to convince us. My fur bristles, and I stare out the window of our home, the feeling that something is coming strong.
“I want a charm to protect myself from the elements,” I announce suddenly, interrupting the conversations going on around us. “Please,” I tack on, realizing I was a little abrupt. “I want to be able to go on missions too.” I love helping with the little ones, but I would much prefer to rip the entrails from Lila’s enemies if I can.
“Yes, I’m sorry I hadn’t thought to offer it to you before now. That was inconsiderate of me.” Xavier bows his head in apology.
“No, it’s okay. I haven’t wanted to be involved previously. I’ve been happy staying behind, protecting the children and my omega, but I feel like they are perfectly safe here, and I have battle abilities if needed.”
A charm appears in Xavier’s hand, and he comes over and slips it over my head. “This is spelled to change with you. It will keep your body cooled to the ideal temperature for a lightning cat, even if it’s hot as hell outside.”
I feel a wave of cold wash over me. Although I can deal with the temperatures of our living area, it isn’t the most ideal, but this makes me feel like I’m in our den. Another charm appears in his hand.
“This is for Echo.”
I take it, pleased that he thought to provide one for him too, even though he won’t join us on missions.
“I think you should all get some rest,” Brannock says. “Xavier and I need to return to the ship so we can head back to the planet tomorrow. Keep us updated on any news from Tirrian, and be ready to go if you are needed.”
They return to the harvester ship, and the others take their advice and disperse to rest. I head to our den to wait for Echo. I’m going to have to tell him what’s happening, and I hope he isn’t going to be too upset.