Chapter 30
CHAPTER 30
D’Var
M y veins are thrumming with bloodlust. Yalix is dead, but I am still hyper vigilant as I hurry towards O’Rec. I have no idea what to expect and my mind is racing. As I near his location I smell the foul stench of Sternotheri. And blood. Lots and lots of blood.
When I enter the room, it is pure chaos. Dead bodies everywhere and in the middle of the room lies O’Rec. I drop Yalix's head to rush over. I call out to him, but he does not respond. A quick check ensures me he is alive but wounded. There’s a knife embedded in his shoulder and one in his thigh. Sternotheri blades. I curse, because how is this possible?
I rip a cushion off one of the couches and tear it apart to have something to bind his wounds. As I pull out the first knife, O’Rec winces.
“Was that really necessary?” I let out a slow breath. Thank the stars he is alright .
“There is another one. Hold tight.’ ” I pull out the other knife. A hiss escapes O’Rec. I bind the wounds; I clasp his shoulder helping him get up.
O’Rec squints his eyes and looks at me. “You look like you have bathed in the blood of your enemies.”
I shrug. “Things got a little messier than I wanted them to be.”
O’Rec snorts. It is clear he does not believe me, and he is right. I grin. He knows me so well.
“We have to get to the prisoners, put them in pods and get off this fucking moon,” he says.
“And then we blow it all to hell,” I add.
He solemnly nods and I grab Yalix’s head. We walk towards the lowest level. O’Rec suggest I let him do the talking, since I am the one holding someone's head, I agree.
What we discover in the cells is a mess. We end up saving 8 of the 10 slaves held there, those who could not be saved were more dead than alive.
As O’Rec is sending off the last pod, his wrist comp starts to beep, making him utter a string of curses. “We have to hurry; company is coming our way.”
I nod and we hurry towards the exit, O’Rec leans heavily on me, but at least he is able to get around. Just before we exit the dome, O’Rec halts to hack into one of the outpost computers.
“I have set it to self-destruct in 8 minutes. We can easily make that before we run into any trouble...”
I shake my head. Fucking O’Rec and his computer ways. “I would much rather prefer to blow it up myself.”
He shrugs. “This is faster.”
“You are hurt,” I point out, but O’Rec just shrugs again.
“I will manage,” he says. I grumble something and we run towards our ship.
We reach the cruiser without any obstacles and O’Rec gets to work on getting us into the air immediately. I rummage through the cargo bay before I find a box that fits Yalix’s head. With smug self-satisfaction I close the box and take it with me to the front.
“You are not keeping that fuckers head here,” O’Rec says without stopping what he is doing. A sheen of sweat is forming on his brow. If we were not in such a hurry to get out of here, I would have to worry about him.
“We are leaving on the count of five and that head should be in the cargo bay, where we will not be disturbed by that rotting scent.”
I shrug before I throw the box back into the cargo bay then take my seat next to O’Rec. He pulls up his nose. “You smell.”
I shrug again and strap myself in. We leave the moment my seat belts fastened, O’Rec speeds us away from the moon.
“Care to tell me why you are in such a hurry? And how you got wounded?”
O’Rec sighs. “I will tell you later, when we are farther from here.”
I nod and close my eyes. “Are we waiting for the explosion before we depart?”
“Yes, we are. I want to be sure there is no trace of us left. It will be in about…” He pauses and I open one eye to look at him. He is looking at his wrist comp. “Twenty seconds.”
He has my full attention now, and we both wait it out in silence, anxiously looking at the moon. I silently count to twenty; indeed, there is a flash - a boom and a whole lot of activity.
It is enough for O’rec because he hums, and we fly off as fast as we can.
Just like on our way out, we are flying through space at hyper-speed. I turn my chair towards him. He pushes some buttons and sighs.
“Ananta was there.”
“The High Commander’s daughter?” I say, shocked that such a highly ranked Sternotheri would be in bed with a lowlife like Yalix.
O’Rec nods. “Yes, she was there with a human slave. I believe she keeps her as a pet or a servant. I am not sure; I only caught a brief glimpse of her.”
“Still that was enough to lower your guard and let Ananta wound you.”
O’Rec bows his head. Is it shame? It looks like it… but also... dread?
“O’Rec...” I begin. “Is she…” O’Rec’s head shoots up to me and I see the despair in his eyes when he nods.
“Yes, the human female is my mate. My mate is enslaved by the Sternotheri.”
I curse. “We will get her back for you, my friend. Do we need to turn around?” Even as I utter the words a sharp pain stabs through me. The bond is not liking that idea.
O’Rec sighs, shaking his head. “No, we have to get you to your mate and I need to make a plan. I have no idea where Ananta took her, and the blast will have destroyed all traces of them.”
I reach over and grab his arm. “We will get her, O’Rec. We will.”
“Thank you, my friend.” He gives my dirty arm a pointed look.
“You smell,” he says. “You should wash up, this vessel is way too beautiful for you to destroy like this,” he continues.
“You are injured,” I volley at him and then we both spot a stupid grin .
“Hand me the med-kit before you wash up.” O’Rec tells me, so I get up and get moving.
The remainder of our journey is uneventful. O’Rec is silent, stewing in the injustice of finding his mate, only to lose her to our nemesis. I hate that for my friend, but honestly my current state is not much better.
The initial battle rush has worn off, all I can think about is my Zarra. I know she must be hurting, and the closer we get to the Ring, the more my bond is making itself known. It still feels dimmed. If I am honest, I am afraid I have pushed it away too much.
However, that is not something I can change or do something about right now. So, I wait. Counting the days it will take me to have my mate in my arms again. The discarded head off her tormentor totally forgotten.
O’Rec is sleeping when we get near the nebula. It still remains one of the most astonishing sights I have seen in all my travels. I pause my work to look at it. Really look at it.
That’s when it hits me. All the emotions, all the pain, all the heartbreak slam into me. Being this close to the spark there is literally nothing that holds me back from the bond anymore - it all hits me at once. I barely manage to send a distressed call out to O’Rec, before I slump and crash in agony.
The pain burns through me, churning up my insides, making me delusional. I am vaguely aware of O’Rec rushing in to see me curled up on the ground next to my chair. He runs out and comes back with something, most likely his medical kit. I am slipping in and out of consciousness by now having no clue what he is doing exactly. I feel his hands on me, and I grab hold of his. There is only one thing that can help me, I manage to croak out her name, before my world fades, “L’Ren!”
When I wake up, I am lying in the small bed, moaning and writing in the sheets. I hear voices in the distance. O’Rec I think.
“Do not stress yourself, my friend,” he tells me through the bond. “You got hit with days of pain and agony all in one moment.”
“Is this. Is this how it felt like for her?” My stomach turns and twists at the thought. Is this what I did to my mate? There is no answer and I test to see how far we are from home.
“T’Rak?” I try, a shadow appears in the doorway of the small bedroom.
“I am here,” he says. He looks at me, then dismisses my shaking form. “You will be fine. She came out fine, so you should too.”
Inside my mind I am screaming. How could I? How could I do this to her? How did I not know it was this bad? My thoughts are scrambling. Where is she? I need to go to her. I need to see her now! I try to get up, but apparently my legs cannot hold my body anymore and I fall to the ground, where I promptly throw up.
T’Rak takes pity on me, lifting me back towards the bed.
“L’Ren is sleeping, I will bring her to you when she wakes up. Try not to kill yourself in the meantime,” he says before he leaves.
I must have fallen asleep, because I startle awake to the best scent in the world, L’Ren.
“L’Ren?” I croak, slowly turning and trying to open my eyes. I feel small hands taking my bigger one. Stroking my fingers.
“O D’Var,” she says and sighs. “What did you do to yourself? ”
I feel something wet landing on my arm, it is then I realize it is her tears.
“L’Ren,” I say again. My voice is hoarse, as I push myself to sit up. I lose my balance and fall back, cracking my head against the wall.
“Don’t try to get up, D’Var,” L’Ren says. “I don’t want you to hurt more than you already do.”
“I am sorry,” I whisper, and she sniffs. I will myself to open my eyes and I am shocked by her appearance. There, on the side of my bed is my mate, my Zarra, but she is not the same person I left behind. Her eyes are sunken, they look hollow. Her skin is pale. She looks thin. Too thin. Has she not been taking care of herself?
I push myself up again, this time succeeding in the task. L’Ren immediately pushes some pillows behind my back, I lean into them. Then I gently pull L’Ren into my arms again.
Home. I am home.