Although hearing he’d have to be replaced was like a blow to the gut, Reede had to admit the decision was a necessary move. And he appreciated Aydarr’s effort to be reassuring about his place in the future. “Thank you, my friend. I wish I had a beverage so we could make a toast to the future.”
Aydarr put out his hand, talons deployed, palm up. Reede laid his on top and after a moment’s hesitation Fallyn rested her slim human hand on theirs. “To the future,” the Alpha said, closing his huge hand over both of theirs. “And now, good night.”
They broke apart and traveled their separate ways.
“What are you thinking?” Reede asked his mate as they climbed toward their cave.
“I’m proud of you. I’m thrilled we won’t be parted after all—it’ll be amazing having you with me in the Sectors. I’m a bit terrified by what lies ahead of us. Before I was just going to get the envoy there in one piece, introduce them to whoever was in charge of this issue on the Sectors and step away to take care of my own priorities, getting back to you. Let him or her deal with all their challenges as best they could, basically. So much for my overly optimistic plan.” Fallyn laughed. “And I’m trying to come to grips with the idea my mate is the chosen champion of a goddess. It’s like living in an old time myth or fairy tale.”
“I’m still the same person I was before,” he said, realizing this aspect might be at the root of the palpable reserve he sensed in her mood. “The Great Mother specifically charged me to take on this task because of who I am.” He caught her in his arms. “And I’m your claimed mate. She blessed our mating and you’re more important to me than anyone or anything else. My charter as her messenger and Aydarr’s envoy is a task to be accomplished, not a levy on our relationship.”
“Your assignment will help make this planet safe for us and our children, if we have any, as well as everyone else. I understand the significance. I’m proud you were chosen.” She balanced on tiptoes to kiss him. “We’ll get through this together.”
“I wonder if part of why she chose me is the fact we did claim each other. After all, she’s the one who allowed us to meet in the first place. Which was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
“And me.”
Ten days later, Reede sat strapped into his chair on the Nicolle’s flight deck, waiting while Walt and Fallyn got the ship ready for takeoff, with the help of MARL15. He had to resist the urge to deploy his fangs and talons because he found it so frustrating not to be able to help or to have a role. He had no duties as such aboard the Nicolle, other than to help with general maintenance tasks if requested and the inaction chafed at him. His mate and Walt were matter of fact as they progressed through their preflight checklist, as if they flew Chimmer ships routinely.
Fallyn had been through an intensive training course taught by Walt and Elianna, the engineer in charge of the ship project, once the team had relocated to the island. Reede himself had been set to learning as much as possible about the ship and its systems in the short time frame. Not an engineer by nature, Reede endured the training, absorbed what he might need to know and hoped Walt and Fallyn would handle any systems crises. He could lead warfighters, handle weapons of war, drive vehicles over any terrain on the planet and pilot a flyer but his talents lay more in tactics and strategy than technology.
Closing his eyes, Reede called up his favorite memory of downtime on the island, when he and Fallyn had stolen away to a private beach Elianna’s mate Kierce told him about. The hours spent together there were a precious balm to him at this moment of anxiety, where there was no action for him to take to work off stress.
He still had trouble believing he was the Badari envoy and the goddess’s messenger. As Aydarr had hoped, once he demonstrated the power the Great Mother had given him, hard feelings from Jamokan subsided and Reede had been able to part on good terms from Aydarr and Mateer and the few other people at sanctuary valley who were in the know about the desperate trip to the Sectors.
It was harder than he’d expected, saying goodbye to his closest friends and leaving the pack. He was going completely out of reach of their telepathic link, which had happened before on other missions but he’d known the separation was temporary. This trip had the potential to last a long time. Walt and Fallyn estimated even in hyperdrive the voyage to the Sectors would take weeks and then there’d be all the political issues for him to work through, establishing the alliance on the terms Aydarr wanted. He speculated about who was going to take over his position as the second enforcer. He’d made recommendations to Aydarr but of course the final choice was up to the Alpha.
“Ready?” Fallyn swiveled in her seat to smile at him.
He nodded. “The sooner we go, the sooner we can return with reinforcements.”
She blew him a kiss, Walt made a face and the ship lifted off the island where she’d been concealed ever since Darik and his mate hijacked her. Reede kept his eyes on the vidscreens and monitored his breathing. The ship had an unpleasant reek of Chimmer under the odors generated by the various systems and the tang of the hydroponics Elianna had installed, cramming the growing beds awkwardly into a space on a lower deck. Reede thought grimly he might be spending a lot of time in the hydroponic area, trying to breathe unpolluted air.
“I’m the first Badari to leave the planet voluntarily,” he said, as the Nicolle left the atmosphere in a smooth, rapid ascent and Walt immediately conducted the first evasive maneuver, seeking the safety of the dark side of one of the moons.
Raising her eyebrows, Fallyn asked, “How does it feel?”
He took his time answering his mate’s question, sorting through his mixed emotions, wanting to be honest. “Like everything else on this journey—strange. We were always in cryosleep when we were taken on training exercises and deployments.” Now he stared at the vids showing the black of space and the tiny points of light representing faraway stars.
The pilots conferred with MARL15, who was linked to the astronav unit MARL primary had created months ago to assist in this trip, when the pack and their allies were first hoping against hope they could figure out the route to the Sectors. Once Fallyn arrived, and MARL got actual astronav data, the task was simplified.
“All right,” she said. “We’re on our way out of the solar system and then we’ll hit the hyperdrive. From there it should be smooth sailing till we reach the Sectors and then your job begins, Envoy.”
“No Chimmer or Shemdylann presence in the system,” Walt said, eyeing the scanners. “We lucked out. Even if the Khagrish are monitoring from ground stations, all the techs on duty will see is a Chimmer ship and with the state of affairs between them and their customer currently, the authorities probably won’t ask any questions later.”
“So you’re saying this is the easy part after all,” Reede grinned. “And the diplomatic part I have to handle will be the true challenge.”
“I hate to break it to you, but yeah.” Walt flashed him a smile. “I think you can handle it. Better you than me.”
“Leaving the system.” Eyebrow raised in inquiry, Fallyn addressed Reede. “Say, what’s the name of your sun anyway? I just realized I never heard anyone mention it and I should enter the departure into the log correctly.” She made a face. “Sectors regulations, even on a hijacked ship.”
“The sun has no name. The planet has no name. Or at least it didn’t until last week when Aydarr gave it a name.” It had been a profound moment for all the Badari in the room when the Alpha announced his choice.
“And that would be?”
“Ushandirr. Freedom in the Badari tongue. You’ll have to spell it phonetically in Basic as we have no written language. Aydarr said it would be hard-won, fiercely protected and worth any sacrifice.”
“I like it. The man certainly has a way with words. All right, entering the log the time we’re leaving the Ushandirr system, outbound from the fourth planet.” Fallyn’s made the data entry with a flourish.
As the exterior optical effects of entering hyp
erspace displayed on the vids, Reede swallowed hard. He would bring freedom to his people and their allies, in the form of Sectors reinforcements and Mellurean intervention, or die trying.
As if reading his mind, Fallyn left her chair and came to slide into his lap. “You’ll succeed—I know it here, in my heart. We’ll be back and we’ll be in time, your goddess willing.”
As he held her close, breathing in her scent and taking relief from her presence, which calmed his racing pulse, Reede sent the Great Mother a prayer of thanks for his beloved mate. Now that he was on his way and the harsh reality of what he was attempting to do sank in, starting with the voyage on this dismal ship, he wasn’t sure how he’d have fared without Fallyn at his side. There was no way even clever Elianna could have constructed a cryo unit for him to sleep away the trip and living on this alien vessel, in an environment hostile to his kind, who craved nature and wide open space, not to mention contact with his pack brothers, would have taken quite a toll.
Aydarr and the Great Mother were right, he realized. This journey did require someone with the inner strength of an Alpha or an enforcer. No disrespect to the senior soldiers or the others but all his years of functioning as an enforcer and working so closely with the Alpha were good training for what faced him now.
Walt swiveled his chair. “All right, lovebirds. I have the con, it doesn’t take all three of us and MARL15 to fly the ship. If you want to take your display of newlywed bliss to your cabin, I have no objection. Just remember you’re on duty in six hours, Lt. Damara.”
She gave him a snappy salute and unwound herself from her embrace of Reede. Standing on the deck, she said, “Yes, sir. Thank you very much, sir.”
“Aw stow it, Fallyn.” Walt grinned. “You know I was kidding with the military talk. We’re way beyond the formal rigamarole out here. But you are on duty to relieve me in six hours. Now scoot and have fun, kiddies.”
“After all, we were up most of the night,” she said as she tugged at Reede’s hand and led him out of the ship’s bridge. “Loading cargo and doing the final systems checks with Elianna.” Fallyn was eager to get Reede alone in their quarters as the majority of the time on the island had been devoted to mountains of work, stowing supplies and gear, and learning the ship. The few stolen hours at the beach had been incredible but too brief.
Fortunately Walt had received the training to fly Chimmer vessels earlier in his military career in the Sectors and she had supreme confidence in his ability to get them where they needed to be, with her as backup.
The original purpose of the space Elianna had converted into a cabin for them was unknown but it was the best she could do once she found out a mated pair was making the trip. There was a bed big enough for a Badari and not much else. Fallyn and her mate squeezed into the room and the portal closed. She thought Reede looked a little stressed and his eyes held a faint luminescence. “Are you doing okay?”
He sat on the edge of the bed and pulled her between his knees. Resting his head against her, he said, “I couldn’t do this without you.”
“Ship getting on your nerves already?”
He nodded and looked so miserable she immediately wanted to comfort him and do it in a way that would please them both.
“I think I can help—I’m chief morale officer on the Nicolle after all.” Laughing, she tugged at his shirt and got it off over his head. She ran her hands over his broad shoulders and traced the well-defined muscles of his chest, enjoying the feel of his body. Her mate was a gorgeous hunk of lethal warrior. “You’ll probably be in a much better mood after you’ve had a nap and the activities I’ve got in mind for stress relief.”
Reede rose to his feet, towering over her as she knelt on the bed. With a smile and a wink he tilted her chin up delicately with one talon so he could see her face. “You do know I’d have to kill Walt, commander or not, if he sought any help with his morale.”
“No problem, I’m concerned with the morale of one Badari only,” she said, shaking one finger at him. “Now about those spaceboots and the pants—”
He toed off his footwear and undid the fastening of his utilities, allowing his massive, ridged cock to spring free. Fallyn licked her lips and reached out to stroke his manhood root to tip. Holding him in a firm grip, she tugged him closer and licked the plum shaped head before taking him as deep into her throat as she could manage. She loved the power she had over him and the way he reacted to her overtures. Turned out the fascinating ridges on his shaft not only brought her extra pleasure but were erogenous zones for him as well. Fallyn plied her tongue skillfully to torment him with sensation.
Bracing himself, Reede tried not to thrust too deep, which she appreciated. He stroked his fingers through her hair and murmured her name, then finally pulled her off. “I want to be inside you when I come,” he said in a guttural voice.
Together they removed her clothing in a rush and fell onto the bed, kissing with passion, tongues twining. Fallyn never could get enough of the unique spice that was Reede to her and he seemed equally determined to taste every inch of her. He worked his way down her body, savoring her, caressing and kissing and touching.
Fallyn lay back as he used his tongue to tease her clit, while he stroked and massaged her with his fingers as well. She grabbed at his shoulders, making hardly any impression on his immense muscles but he paused to look at her. “This time in bed right now is supposed to be for you,” she said.
“Pleasing you is pleasing to me.” With a wicked gleam in his eye, he lowered his head and resumed his self-appointed task of arousing her to a shattering climax.
As she reclined, waves of sensation running through her body from the excellent orgasm he’d touched off, Reede came over her, careful to keep most of his weight off her body. His heavy shaft nudged at her slick entrance and slipped inside. “More,” she said, hooking her feet behind his legs. “Deeper, harder, you won’t hurt me, I promise.”
Reede kissed her and then with one powerful move he was sheathed deep in her body, the ridges of his manhood driving her higher and higher, since she was already sensitive from the first climax. Fallyn worked her muscles, increasing the pressure on his shaft and drawing him even further. Reede was pumping in and out now with fierce concentration and she loved the way his eyes glowed and the expression on his face, knowing she was his total focus.
Suddenly he found an especially sensitive spot where her nerve endings sparked as he rubbed across them. Fallyn gasped and arched against him, trying desperately to hold him tight. “I can’t wait any longer—you make me feel too good.”
“Let go then,” he grunted and she felt his hot seed jetting against the walls of her most private place. “We’ll fly together.”
Fallyn threw her head back and screamed her pleasure as the sensations became overwhelming. She wasn’t entirely sure she remained conscious after the intense peak of the climax but she knew she was safely held in Reede’s arms. When she finally relaxed and lay rather limply on the mattress, he kissed her lips and then adjusted them both so her head was pillowed on his shoulder. “I can get through the voyage this way,” he said with satisfaction. “Much better than cryo sleep.”
“I should hope so!” Fallyn laughed and poked him in the ribs. “As payback for the dubious compliment, I’m going to be on top and in charge next time.”
“Oh, a dominance challenge,” he said, obviously intrigued. His cock pulsed and lengthened as she glanced at it.
“I’ll set the rules,” she said. “But I need to rest a bit. I love what we do together but I’m exhausted.”
He stroked her hair away from her face. “Of course.” Reede left the bed and walked to the oddly equipped bathroom at the far end of their space. Chimmer weren’t human but fortunately Elianna and her team had been able to adapt the facilities somewhat. He returned to Fallyn with a damp washcloth and a soft towel, and bathed her gently.
She appreciated his care for her and shifted drowsily onto the pillows when he finished. Rousing a little a
s he removed a small sack from the pack containing his clothes, she watched him sit on the end of the bed. “What do you have there?”
“It was a gift from Camron. He said I wasn’t to open it until we were in hyperspace. He gave it to me right before we left sanctuary valley.” Reede weighed the closed bag in his hand and frowned. “We Badari have no tradition of giving gifts so I was surprised.”
Fallyn draped herself around him, chin on his shoulder. “Well, open it! I’m dying of curiosity here.”
Reede loosened the ties and upended the bag, one hand poised to catch whatever was inside. A two inch wide braided black leather bracelet fell into his palm. A small rectangle of beaten silver was fastened into the wide strand with handmade loops. As he rotated the bracelet this way and that Fallyn’s attention was caught by markings on the silver.
“I thought your people didn’t have a written language?”
“We don’t. These are Badari trail signs.”
“There was a note,” she said, leaving the bed to retrieve the small slip of paper. It was folded and she didn’t feel she should take the liberty of reading it so she handed it to her mate.
He scanned it quickly and smiled. “He says I’m the Badari Wanderer now, he knows I’ll do my best for our people and this” —Reede lifted the bracelet—“Is to guide me safely home to the pack.”
“Wanderer?”
“For centuries there was a legend among our people of one man who escaped the Khagrish labs and spent the rest of his life wandering the planet. Generations of us took hope from the idea escape was possible, although no one could say whether he’d actually existed or if the tale was a wistful invention. Camron and his mate followed Badari tracking signs to escape a Khagrish hunt and actually found a place that had belonged to the Wanderer, proving he really existed.” Reede stared at the bracelet.
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