Chapter 22
I wanted to be free of war, but it came for my new friends, anyway.
Sky is here. Quinn too. Eluni has us on encapsulation guns.
We may have broken our promise to Aura to stay on Gravion.
But I can’t stand seeing people die. It’s one of the reasons I tried to get out.
I am tired of this war. But the universe led me to Jorusk and back to this battle.
There has to be a reason. DIA says it is because I am an anchor.
I think I’m just a person who’s pissed off enough to not want the greedy assholes of this universe to get their way.
If we want to fight over goods and control and ore, fine, but I’m tired of lives getting sacrificed for someone else’s bullshit ideas.
I try not to think about Jorusk out there among the Neb ships. It makes my hands unsteady.
Sky is particularly good at hitting her targets. Quinn too. I’m a good shot, but not as fast as they are. Sky’s experience with robotics definitely helps her. Quinn is an expert marksman who was told she was too heavy to serve in Terran forces. So she’s more than happy to be here.
We target our allies, the enemies with damaged vessels, and the bodies that get evacuated into space. They glow like clusters of green lightning bugs as we leave them behind to hunt for more to save.
Our fleet of Orillium ships splits into two. Eluni’s at the helm, flying us through the battle and frantically communicating with the other Rogue Amphirans.
“He’s what?” she screeches and switches screens. The updates load on the screens beside us.
A video of a fiery demon charging across space fills the window. Someone’s recording him. They zoom in, and I’m certain it’s Jorusk amid the rain of missiles that light up the space around him.
“Oh, stars.” My hands release the stasis controls.
“Fucking idiot!” Eluni’s pissed. “That’s suicide!”
Whoever she talks with agrees.
Then a Neb ship explodes and takes three more with it. Seconds later, another ship blows, taking an additional five.
War cries fill the com feed.
My guy is saving more lives than he may ever know. And it wrenches my heart to watch. Every second could be his last.
Our pieced-together alliance of Amphiran, Drathious, Terran ships and more light up and surge out to confront the empire head-on.
Another empire ship explodes. Then another.
“Your guy is insane,” Quinn says. “It’s like he has a death wish.” Her deep brown eyes widen. “I don’t mean…”
I get up because I can’t watch it anymore. Crawling my way through the ship as it sways, I make my way to Eluni’s copilot seat. She’s already headed back toward Mindor like she’s just as worried about him as I am.
An Amphiran rockets across the sky that’s quickly filling with smoky clouds instead of the silhouettes of Nebulous ships. “Jorusk!”
“Aura?” Eluni banks us out into space and talks to herself. “He’s chasing him. They’ve all lost their minds.” Eluni flips on a switch beside her. “Brynna, I need you on defense guns. Sit.”
I drop into the seat.
“They’ve got him!” Aura reports. An electric green pulse crackles around a smaller Neb ship that moves in the direction of Mindor. He sends out another angry pulse ahead of us, electrocuting and darkening a second ship. “Mother… They took Jorusk!”
“Who?” I ask.
“A Denarsoan ship. Encased him in ice!” Aura shouts back over the drone of thrusters from his Hellion suit.
Anger rises like a hot tide as we near his position. “Move, Aura!”
I grab the guns and target the next ship that’s trying to block our advance toward the Denarsoan vessel that has my mate. The moment Aura’s out of the line of fire, I target the ship and squeeze the triggers. Rapid gunfire streams out of Eluni’s ship.
“Get inside!” Eluni shouts as the Neb ship fractures ahead of us. She dips down beneath the spray of junk. A clunk on the hull suggests Aura’s on board with us. Another Neb ship moves into our path. I target it and blow it to oblivion.
“Fuck, girl,” Sky mutters, gently punching me in the shoulder. “Save some ammo for us.”
I’m shaking with rage and can’t seem to control it. Fire crawls through the veins of my hands, earning me a worried look from Eluni.
She powers up the thrusters and chases the departing Denarsoan ship. Everyone who as much as looks like they’re going to get in our way, I swing the gun and fire until it becomes parts and a cloud of gasses.
I never wanted to kill anyone. But sometimes, out here, I have to.
And now something in me has cracked. I used to only want to cultivate life.
But I’ve seen plenty of worlds burned by Nebs, the inhabitants and crops cut down and senselessly torched.
I’ve revisited worlds I’d helped seed just to have to reseed them.
Nebs are just a different kind of pest. And this one needs to be eradicated.
Aura steps inside, hustles to my side, and taps my shoulder, but I’m not ready to give up my gun.
“Brynna… Stop. Come here.”
I get up and slip past him to fume in the back. Aura catches me. He takes me gently by the collar of my suit and moves it aside to inspect the veins of fire in my neck.
“Give me something to do,” I growl at him. “Or I am going to quite possibly start lighting shit on fire.”
Aura laughs once in shock, sniffs the air, and nods. “Eluni, do not lose sight of the ship that’s taken Jorusk. Quinn, on guns.”
She slides into the gunner’s seat and takes out vessels with much greater precision and less wasted ammo.
“Eluni, Call Elix, Blaize, and Fieri. We need Allele, MONA, DIA, and Jorusk’s crew. Shadow mission. ASAP,” he adds.
“On it,” Eluni replies, opening up her coms dashboard.
Aura calls to Quinn. “Only shoot if we’re about to die. Otherwise, I want us in stealth mode. Copy?”
She guides her braids into a larger bun and reties it. “Yes, sir.”
“Sky, if you see anyone drop out of that ship, you encapsulate them. Eyes sharp,” he adds.
“Yes, sir.” Sky nods, gives me a look of concern, then focuses on her screens.
Aura guides me into the back and into a private room, where he opens a slot, exposing a better set of armor. “You and I are going to get Jorusk back. But I have to make something very clear.”
“What’s that?”
“I know you’re pregnant. You need to consider that when you go in after him.”
“That was just hours ago.”
“Doesn’t matter.” Aura sighs. “I can smell it on you, and those veins are brighter with every pulse. Now, climb in. Keep your base armor on.”
Aura helps me into the female Hellion suit. “If your life is at risk, I want you to call it and get out of the line of fire. I will take it because I can.”
“Okay.”
He runs a hand over his face. “Jorusk is going to kill me for leading you into this.”
“Give her the wings!” Eluni calls back.
Aura grabs the cylinder Jorusk reshaped before the battle began, affixes it to something he pulls out of a wall, then hooks a hard, shiny black backpack between my shoulders. It ratchets into my suit, and commands light up in my visor.
Aura grabs two handguns and attaches them to the belt near my hips. Then he grabs a sword and lights it up. It blazes red. “Be careful with this.”
“I’ve hand-cut fields with a sickle. I’ve got it.” I take the blade when he extends it. “Sheath?”
“Between your shoulders.”
I slip it into place and feel it latch while Aura arms himself with a variety of guns and knives.
My visor blinks at the same time as Aura’s with communications from the living ships.
MONA: Tracking Jorusk’s position. Stealth mode engaged. Elix will meet you on board. DIA?
DIA: I am tracking Jorusk’s vitals. He has been poisoned with creosotine. Sidius and Osiris are working on a serum for him. Rykarn is injured, but here. He will remain with me. Vryskas will join the others.
ALLELE: Blaize and Fieri are gearing up now. Approaching your position. We have a tag-along: Cinuska.
When Aura and I exit the armory and rejoin Eluni, I notice a dark ship rise into line with us to our left, piloted by a familiar green face with gold eyes, and it makes me wonder where Zariah is.
But then she steps up beside him, and I’m grateful to my friends, who are willing to risk everything for my mate.
Out the starboard window, I see a pale Orillium with Blaize and Fieri inside. Beyond Allele is DIA, Jorusk’s ship, carrying his Drathious brothers.
“We fight together, we die together,” Aura says, his eyes shining with determination.
“What about Jovie?” I ask.
He rests a hand on my shoulder. “She knows this is my purpose. And she has three little ones to remember me by, should anything happen. If we do not fight for each other, we will never know peace, only chaos. That is not the world I want my children to grow up in. They must learn to stand up for what they believe in, even if it’s the hardest thing they’ll ever do.
“Now let’s walk you through the commands for these.” He pats my shoulder. “Eluni, keep me posted.”
“Yes, sir.”
I follow him into a cargo bay.
He walks me through how to open the wings and fold them back into the pack with the commands on my visor. “You also have thrusters built in and a shield. But so does the Hellion suit. So if you should get your wings ripped off, you have backups.”
“Thank you.”
“Just put in a good word for me when Jorusk finds out that I let you go on this mission.”
“Why are you?” I ask.
Aura rubs a hand over the chest of his suit. “Because there is no motivator more powerful than that of a pregnant mate. He is encased in the poison ice. Jorusk is going to need to dig deep to make it out of this alive.”
The thought makes me tear up.
“Don’t.” Aura tips my chin up. “Use it. Don’t linger in the pain. Give it a purpose. Got it?”
I purse my lips and nod.
“Okay. Let’s go get your mate back.” Aura holds up an armored fist.
I tap it with my own and hope we aren’t walking into a death trap. But the thought of going back to my life without Jorusk now makes me desperate to do whatever I must to have him in my arms again.