Chapter 16
The emergency alert blasted through Carys’ implant.
All senior knights to the war room. All senior knights to the war room.
She jerked awake. She was held in Sten’s arms. For a second, she thought she was back on Ti-Lore. But as he sat up and turned on the bedside light, she realized they were in her room at the castle.
She had a naked Sten in her bed. She almost smiled, but she knew he’d heard the emergency alert as well.
He quickly rose and dressed.
“Do you have more information?” She knew he’d be in contact with Ashtin. She slipped off the bed and hurried to pull on some clothes as well.
“Sensors picked up an anomaly. A cloaked ship was spotted near the Kreora moon.”
That was close to Oron. She felt like a fist formed in her chest. She quickly pulled on some black trousers and a white wrap shirt that she tied into place.
Let them come. She and her knights would stop them.
Once they were both dressed, Sten pulled open the doors and strode out. There were two guards outside, and two of Carys’ maids, who’d clearly rushed from their beds. Everyone froze, startled gazes falling on Sten.
“We need to get to the war room.” Carys waved her maids off. “Please, go back to bed.”
The maids eyed Sten, then her, then the two of them smiled. Carys couldn’t worry about gossip right now. She half jogged to keep up with Sten as he marched down the corridor.
Moments later, they stepped into the war room.
Ashtin was leaning over the light table, frowning. Kennedy was beside him, tapping on a handheld device, with Nea and Kaden. Another pair stood with them.
“Davion,” Carys said. “Eve. I didn’t know you’d arrived.”
War Commander Davion Thann-Eon and his Terran mate Eve looked up. The brunette woman smiled, but her mate’s face was set in serious lines. His sleeveless black outfit showed off his brawny arms.
“We arrived an hour ago,” Davion said. “We will not leave you to deal with the Gek’Dragar alone.”
“Thank you. I hope your son is well.”
Eve smiled. “Kane is healthy, far too mobile for his age, and delights in getting into everything.”
“We have more warships on the way,” Davion continued. “Gayel ordered several to your secondary fleet at the border. In case the Gek’Dragar try to attack on two fronts.”
“You have the gratitude of all the Oronis,” Carys said.
The warrior inclined his head. “King Gayel is arriving soon. You have our full support.”
She swiveled to face Ashtin. “Do you have more intel on the Gek’Dragar ship? How did it get this close? Where is it now?”
It was Kaden who stepped forward, resting his palms on the light table. “It got this close to Oron because it isn’t a Gek’Dragar vessel. It’s an Urata ship that they’re using.”
Carys nodded. The Urata were traders and welcome in Oronis space. One of their ships wouldn’t raise any suspicion.
“And it’s not a cargo ship,” Nea said, her face set in hard lines. “From what the sensors detected, it is a warship. A large one.”
Carys sucked in a breath, and beside her Sten cursed.
“It will be filled with Gek’Dragar soldiers,” Carys said.
“It doesn’t matter how many there are,” Ashtin snapped. “We will take them down.”
“It would be best to take this ship out before it lands on Oron,” Kennedy said.
Carys nodded. “Agreed. Do we know its current location?”
“No,” Ashtin said. “It’s cloaked. We have ships scanning the area, so they can’t hide for long.”
Sten crossed his arms, staring hard at the map on the light table. She wanted to reach out and touch him.
Then Kaden spoke. “I talked with some of the other knighthunters. Everyone has been reaching out to their networks.”
Knighthunters were the Oronis’ best spies. She was well aware they had vast networks of contacts across the quadrant and beyond.
“There are whispers that the entire Gek’Dragar leadership is aboard. They want to destroy Oron, and be here to watch it and claim victory. Cement their own greatness.” Kaden’s lip curled in disgust.
Carys clutched her hands together. “The entire group of eight?” They knew that there were eight Gek’Dragar leaders who sat on the Council. They were the strongest and meanest of all. The stories her knighthunters had gathered said the council were selected by fights to the death.
She straightened. “They think we’re weak because we live in peace and harmony. Because we value art, and learning, and beauty. Because we value duty and honor. Because we care for our sick and weak.” She whirled, making eye contact with all her people. “We will show them just how strong we are.”
Kaden nodded. Nea smiled. The others all met her gaze, steady and composed.
“What makes us strong are our values, our friendships, our family.” She looked at Sten. “And our love for one another.”
Suddenly, an alarm started blaring, and the lights changed, washing the room in a deep red glow.
“The ship’s been sighted.” Ashtin leaned forward, swiping the light table screen. “Gul. It’s approaching Oron in minutes.”
Everyone scrambled. Davion made contact with the Eon ships in orbit. Ashtin barked orders to his Knightforce ships. Kennedy tapped on the table, and a projection speared into the air.
Carys saw the huge silver orb of one of Oron’s moons.
And the outline of a large Urata warship.
“We need the BlackBlade to intercept,” Ashtin said sharply.
On the screen, the lead Oronis warship swung into view. It was made of pure black metal, and covered in spikes. The forked bow of the ship had a blue ball of energy crackling in the center of it.
Usually, Ashtin would be on the bridge. She could tell from the look on her knightmaster’s face that he wished he was there now.
“Stop that ship,” he ordered. Then he slammed his hand on the light table. “I should be there.”
Kaden stepped up beside Ashtin and gripped his arm. “Come on, then. You’ll be better use up there.” There was a flash of red light and the men teleported out.
For a second, Carys marveled at Kaden’s unique ability. It was very rare among the Oronis.
Kennedy tapped on the table. “Pulling up feed from the BlackBlade.” Another screen appeared on the table, showing the bridge of the Oronis warship. Kennedy made a sound. “Scans show that the Urata ship is heavily armed.”
Suddenly, there was a burst of light, and a sleek Eon warship appeared, coming out of star speed. The front was rounded, but the back tapered in to where the engines sat. It looked like a predator, ready to attack.
“BlackBlade, this is the Rengard,” a deep voice said across the comm line. “Thought you might like a little help.”
“That’s War Commander Malax Dann-Jad,” Davion said, a smile crossing his face.
Carys watched the BlackBlade and the Rengard move into formation together. They converged on the Gek’Dragar’s Urata ship.
“Urata vessel, I am Knightmaster Ashtin Caydor of Oron. Shut off your engines and stand down. This is your only warning. We will open fire.”
For a beat, nothing happened.
“The Urata ship is spooling up its weapons!” Kennedy cried.
Then laser fire lit up the screen.
Carys gripped the side of the light table, leaning forward. She heard Ashtin barking orders to his crew. The Urata ship kept firing.
And the BlackBlade and the Rengard returned it.
She reached out and grabbed Sten’s hand. His fingers closed over hers.
Come on. She watched the Urata ship take a direct hit from the BlackBlade. Surrender, you gul-vexed bottom feeders.
The Rengard’s missiles hit the Urata vessel. It started to list.
“They’ve lost power,” Kennedy said.
Cheers broke out around the room.
Then Carys saw the boxy nose of the vessel tilt toward Oron. Her chest hitched. It had been caught by the planet’s gravity.
“Gul,” Sten said.
The ship, and the Gek’Dragar inside it, were crashing toward Oron.
Sten strodedown the castle corridor. He was in full armor, his thoughts focused.
A unit of knights marched with him.
“The Gek’Dragar ship crashed outside Aravena on the Lantonas plains,” he said. Thankfully, it was mostly farmland out there, and no one had been hurt when the vessel had impacted.
He was sure that the gul-vexed Gek’Dragar had been aiming for Aravena.
He stepped outside of the castle and into the morning sunlight. Several rugged vehicles sat waiting for them. They were made of silver-gray metal, with six large wheels. Carys stood in her armor, standing beside Ashtin, Kennedy, Kaden, and Nea.
When she saw him, she nodded. “Let’s roll out.”
“Everyone to your vehicles,” Sten barked.
Knights burst into action. He ducked into the lead vehicle and sat beside Carys. A second later, the vehicle rolled out.
“The plan is to surround the crash site,” he said.
They were all hoping that the Gek’Dragar had died in the crash. And that the knights could locate and contain the Blue Death weapon.
“If there are survivors,” Carys said. “They will try to unleash the Blue Death.”
“And we’ll stop them,” he said resolutely.
She touched his hand. “We will.”
They left the city, moving from the wide roads to the Lantonas plains. It was mostly flat, lush farmland. In areas, crops of yellow and purple flowers grew.
Sten peered through the front screen of the vehicle. Ahead, he saw the twisted wreckage of the Urata ship, smoke rising into the blue sky.
His gut hardened. He saw movement. Gek’Dragar troops were amassing outside the ship.
He activated his comm line. “Ashtin, we’re going in hot.”
“Good.” The other knight’s voice came over the line. “Let’s do this.”
Ashtin sounded ready for a fight.
Sten turned to Carys. Her gaze was narrowed on the crashed ship. He knew she would fight. She was the knightqueen. However much he wished he could lock her away and keep her safe, she would never allow that.
“I’ll stay at your side,” he said.
She nodded. “I know you will. Let’s defend our planet, Thorsten. And destroy the Gek’Dragar leadership once and for all. Their reign of terror is over.”
The Oronis vehicles drew closer to the crashed ship.
They pulled up, all the knights exiting and moving into their combat groups. There were several Terrans and Eon warriors to bolster their ranks.
Ahead, several Gek’Dragar soldiers started marching to meet them. They held heavy blasters in their hands.
Sten walked down the line issuing orders. He saw his own group of knightguards and nodded at them. They all nodded back, ready to fight.
“Today, we protect our freedom,” Sten said. “Today, we prove our honor. Today, we defend all the innocent people of this planet. We do this with our allies at our sides.” He nodded at the Eon, then at the Terrans. “We fight to stop the tyranny of the Gek’Dragar. For honor and duty!”
“For honor and duty!” the Oronis knights bellowed back at him.
He turned, moving back to where Carys was watching him with a small smile. Then she turned to the Gek’Dragar.
“Look,” she said.
He saw they were going through the var. Even from a distance, he saw their gray-skinned bodies morphing and bulging.
He ground his teeth together. “Charge.”
The Oronis knights started running, their black cloaks whipping out behind them as they picked up speed. He saw blue energy balls being created all across the field. Several of the knights leaped into the air, swords forming in their hands.
Sten had never been prouder to be an Oronis knight.
He ran. Beside him, Carys pumped her slim arms, her glowing blue sword in her hand.
The front knights reached the enemy, and the Gek’Dragar shouted.
The fight had begun.
A Gek’Dragar soldier appeared in front of Sten, thick tail whipping behind him. Sten slashed and sliced with his sword. He ducked the Gek’Dragar’s axe, and thrust his sword through his opponent’s middle. He kept going, staying close to Carys as she engaged the enemy.
All around him, knights threw energy balls. Swords whirled and slashed. He spotted Nea, who held a wicked bow in her hands, firing off glowing energy bolts in quick succession. He saw one bolt hit a Gek’Dragar in the eye, sending the alien flying backward.
A Gek’Dragar charged at Sten, holding a combat sword. Sten batted it aside, then launched his own strikes: slash, slice, left, right.
The soldier fell and Sten stepped over him.
Off to the left was a blink of red light. Kaden teleported in right behind another Gek’Dragar, and ran the soldier through with his curved, red sword.
Ashtin leaped into the air, whirling, two balls of energy sparking on each of his hands. He threw them and they smashed into a group of enemy soldiers.
Nearby Kennedy crouched, holding her blaster up, aiming as she fired on the enemy. Sten heard a roar, and turned. Davion, dressed in the signature black-scale armor of the Eon warriors, held a huge sword that also glowed blue. He charged into combat, swinging his weapon with power and skill. Nearby, Eve—wearing matching armor to her mate—swung two smaller swords, no less deadly.
Sten focused on fighting, and assessing any opponent who got too close to Carys.
They battled closer to the wreckage of the ship. More and more Gek’Dragar fell.
Finally, cheers went up.
The lead knights had reached the ship.
Carys stalked through her knights. Sten stayed one step behind her. Some knighthunters had several Gek’Dragar down on their knees, under guard.
“Where is the weapon?” she demanded.
Ashtin and several other knights moved onto the ship. “We’ll search it and look for any remaining Gek’Dragar.”
One of the Gek’Dragar prisoners looked up, his teeth covered in blood. “You won’t find the weapon.” He let out a phlegmy laugh.
Sten stalked over and pressed the tip of his sword to the alien’s throat. “Your leaders are dead. Your battle is over. You’ve lost.”
“It will be over when the Oronis dissolve to dust.” The Gek’Dragar laughed again. “Our best have taken the Blue Death to your precious capital. We were just the distraction.”
Sten rammed the sword forward. The soldier choked, blood streaming down his chest. He sagged forward.
“Knightqueen.” Ashtin ran out of the ship, his face in harsh lines “There are signs that a four-man team left the ship.”
Sten cursed.
Carys stepped forward. “I will stop them. Sten, Ashtin, Kaden, and Nea, with me. We need to track them and move fast.” She turned and looked at Kennedy, Davion, and Eve. “Can I leave you here to coordinate with the knights and secure the starship crash site?”
“Of course,” Kennedy said. She looked at Ashtin. “Be careful.”
The knightmaster strode to her and gave her a quick, hard kiss.
Carys looked toward the edge of the plains. She studied the ground ahead. It was rockier, covered in trees. It would make it easier for the Gek’Dragar to evade them.
You can’t hide for long.
Carys’ hand tightened on her sword. “Let’s move.”