by Saxon Andrew
“Have you told Sam…I mean the Duke?”
“No, he needs his sleep.”
Tgon looked at Gregory and said, “I don’t know what kind of relationship you have with Sam, but what do you think he’ll say if he finds out his citizens were kept waiting?”
Gregory thought a moment and said, “Perhaps I should tell him.”
“Perhaps you should!” Tgon linked with Sam and said, “Sam, you better get up here.”
Tgon heard Sam yawn in his mind and say, “Why?”
“There are millions of people outside the castle just standing there in silence.”
“How did they find out?”
“Don’t ask me. I’m just visiting.”
Dort chimed in, “Gon, are you kidding?”
“Dort, they shocked the groad out of me when I went up to take a look at the city.”
Sam thought, “You both need to get dressed in your Realm Uniforms. I’ll meet you in the dining room when you’re ready.”
Five minutes later Dort and Tgon stood in the Dining Room and Sam walked in wearing the Royal Colors. “Sam, what are you wearing?”
“Dort, this is my formal attire for official occasions.”
“How did those people know you were here?”
Gregory shook his head and said, “The defense fleet launched all their ships last night. That was all some of the newscasters needed to speculate on the Duke’s presence.”
Gon stared at Gregory, “You mean they don’t know for certain he’s here?”
“They don’t.”
“Why are they silent?”
Gregory looked at Gon like he was missing the obvious, “They do not want to disturb his sleep. They know he left to train to defend them and they respect his need to get a good night’s sleep.”
Dort stared at Gregory, “How long would they have waited?”
“Until an official report is issued from the castle that the Duke is not present, they would wait. However, the castle will never issue a report that is untrue. When no report was forthcoming this morning, they knew the Duke was in residence. This will be the first time the new Duke might view the people.”
Sam saw his two brothers look at him and he shrugged, “I only attained the title after Jon became King. Trust me on this one; it’s good to have the freedom of those around you not knowing who you are.”
“That’s why you used the name Sam Mica.”
“Only Royals in the succession may have the name Anglo as their second name. I was forced to use my initials and third name. Most citizens of the Realm don’t know about it. They only know Duke Scott Anglo Mica Robbins.”
Tgon said, “My second name is Gee.”
Dort was startled and said, “My second name is Gee.”
The three looked at each other. Sam said, “I didn’t know that.”
Dort said, “Neither did we, Sam. I’m the first for six generations to have that name.”
“We’ll have to think about this later. Are you ready to go greet the people of Ross?”
Gon sighed, “I’ll never know how you could ever get used to this.”
Sam smiled, “You don’t, Gon.” Sam took his two friends by the arm and stepped through the portal. He pulled them with him and stood at the edge of the wall. The giant mass instantly went crazy with their cheers that immediately spread to the entire crowd surrounding the castle on all sides. Sam raised his arm and waved. The cheers swelled to an even louder volume. He walked around the wall on the tallest spire in Castle Gardner and waved to everyone that had come to welcome him home. The cheers reverberated and those still in the city that didn’t know, discovered that the Duke was home. They knew it was too late to get there, so they rushed to the nearest monitor and watched their newest Duke greet the citizens of Ross. Dort looked at Gon and said, “I know what we’re fighting for.”
Gon smiled, “He’s like his ancestor.” Dort frowned, “He doesn’t possess self-importance. He’s all he should be.”
Dort looked out at the cheering multitudes, “And more.”
• • •
Jixie wondered why these creatures wanted to stress the bodies of their trainees so savagely. It didn’t make much sense. She could not use her talents because she had to play by their rules. However, she came to understand as her body grew in strength. She didn’t need sleep so she spent the night taking the food she ate and sending it to the areas of her body that were in the most pain. She was usually pain free by morning. She found out quick that she would cause problems if she didn’t moan with the others each day. The first day she jumped out of bed and Carella said, “How are you able to do that? I can barely move.”
Jixie saw everyone staring at her and she quickly fell to her knees and gave a small squeal, “Uh, I won’t try that again.”
Carella laughed and said, “Serves you right for moving that fast.”
Another trainee said, “I’m surprised you could.”
Jixie looked to see who said that and saw the woman that she had followed into the library. She had not noticed her earlier. Her group of trainees were brought in after Jixie’s unit had finished orientation. Jixie’s group had gone first and she was not in the same place as the woman during the first day. Jixie walked slowly up the barracks and said, “Do I know you?”
Jennifer looked at Jixie and shook her head, “I don’t think so. I don’t even know my own name after what they put us through yesterday.”
“You just looked familiar; my name is Jixie.”
“Hi, I’m Jennifer.”
Jixie felt relief. Humans were not able to sense the essence of others. “I’ll see you.”
“Bye, be careful.”
“Oh I will.”
Jixie looked at all the females in her memory that were called knock outs and Jennifer certainly qualified. She needed to stay near her, so males would give Jennifer all their attention.
Jennifer watched the blonde walk away and thought, “Boy, I’ll have to stay away from her or no one will be interested in me.”
Jixie heard the thought and paused. “That woman doesn’t know how beautiful she is. I wonder why?” She decided she needed to find out. There was something to be learned and she wanted to know. She ran out with the other trainees and assembled in formation. Jixie chose a place directly beside Jennifer. The Trainer told them that whatever position they were currently in would be their place in the formation for the rest of training. Jixie smiled. She was in the front rank. She should be able to observe the others without any problems.
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING LOOKING AROUND! DROP AND GIVE ME TWENTY.”
Jixie dropped and stared her pushups. Perhaps she wasn’t going to be as free to look around as she thought. Jennifer kept her eyes to the front and thought, “She talks too much; that’s going to get her in trouble. I need to tell her.”
Jixie thought, “You already have.”
• • •
The final day of training eventually arrived and the women faced their own obstacle course. Jixie sat beside Jennifer at the starting line staring at the beast ahead and heard her say, “I’m going to fail this.”
“Why do you say that?’
“I’m not able to clear the bog; I always hit it and sink chest deep. It takes me too long to get out. I’ll never finish the course in time.”
Jixie knew Jennifer had problems with the bog. She always came in each day muddy from her chest to her feet. The Sargent was giving his instructions and Jixie said, “Sir, what are the rules?”
The Sargent sneered, “There are no rules, private. Make it in time or go home.”
Jixie looked at Jennifer and said, “Here’s what we’ll do. You jump right in front of me and when I clear the bog, I’ll pull you out. Can you run with that much mud?”
“That’s all I’ve done here, Jixie.”
“Just remember; if you hit the bog, look up and give me your hand.”
“Jixie, you can’t risk not making it.”
“Jennifer, you’re not s
low. If you can make it out of the bog fast enough, you can do it. Now shut up and do it.”
Jennifer looked at Jixie, took a deep breath, and nodded. The bell sounded and the mass of trainees sprinted down the obstacle course. Jixie stayed behind Jennifer to make sure she didn’t stumble at any of the first obstacles. She shouldn’t have worried. Jennifer was coordinated and the first part of the course went by without problems. Jixie kept a running time in her head and knew it would be fine if nothing happened to slow them down. One of the trainees cut Jennifer off and slowed her down as she sprinted toward the bog. She made a great jump, but landed two feet from the front edge of the bog and knew there was no way for Jixie to reach her. Jixie cleared the bog, ran back and fell to the ground. She extended her chest over the edge of the bog and was able to grab Jennifer’s hand. She dug in her boots and crawled back at an amazing speed. She got her chest back over the edge of the bog, stood, and snatched Jennifer out. She held on to Jennifer’s hand and sprinted for the finish line, pulling her at a pace Jennifer could not match alone. They crossed the white line just as the bell sounded.
Jennifer looked at Jixie and said, “How did you do that?”
“Lots of practice. We made it.” Jixie hugged Jennifer, mud and all, as the trainer came over and said, “That was remarkable, private. How did you do that?”
Jennifer said, “I’ve had practice swimming in the bog for four weeks, Sir.”
Jixie smiled, batted her eyes, and said, “She made it happen, Sir.”
The trainer looked at them, shook his head, and smiled, “Well, you make it to armor training. Good luck, Warriors.”
Jennifer grabbed her face, screamed, and jumped up and down. Jixie mimicked her and they danced in circles. “We’re going to armor school; we’re going to armor school.” The other six women who qualified joined them in the celebration.
Later that evening Jennifer came to Jixie’s bunk and said, “Thank you, Jixie. I wouldn’t have made it without you.”
Jixie smiled, “I owe you, too Jenifer.”
Jennifer’s brow furrowed, “How?”
“You helped me find my way here.”
Jennifer stared at her and smiled, “We’re a good team.”
“Yes we are.” Jennifer turned and went back to her bunk. Jixie felt something inside that was different but familiar. She thought all night and finally found that the feeling was close to what she felt for her family. Was this what love is? It certainly felt odd…but good. She found that she was now going to keep an eye out for Jennifer. They were going places that were dangerous. She started processing information and abruptly stopped. She knew what it was. She felt a bond to the pretty dark haired woman. These humans really weren’t so different. Her species’ bonds weren’t done by sending harmonic vibrations but the process used by humans had the same end result. She smiled and decided that Jennifer would make a good playmate. She just had to get her ready.
• • •
The huge, dark green, fleet commander stared at the wall showing the Bristone Fleet that was completing liberation operations at a planet that had recently been invaded by the Swarm. Most of the troop carriers were gone and only twenty thousand warriors were still on the planet. Five thousand warships were getting ready to teleport back to the Realm. The Swarm had been stopped, but there was a heavy price paid by the inhabitants. A third of them died in the initial invasion and many were still in shock from the deadly stings of the Swarm Warriors.
“Are you planning to do anything here?”
The Grogat fleet commander looked over at his weapons controller and then looked back at the screen, ignoring his question. The Controller wanted to kill the Commander but knew he stood no chance against the massive leader. He bit his tongue and stayed silent. Six hundred Realm Warships jumped out and the Commander leaned forward and looked closely at the remaining ships on the display and smiled. None of them were the advanced ships that fought like demons. “Activate the suppression field.”
The Weapons Controller smiled, “At last, an attack to test the new weapons.”
The ten thousand Grogat ships accelerated toward the distant planet. They remained behind their invisibility screens and were not found by normal scans.
• • •
“Sir, the Defiant has reported problems teleporting out.” The Communications Officer looked at her board and said, “Now I have four other ships reporting their teleport systems are not working.”
Commodore Kel looked over at his Drive Officer, “Check it!”
“It’s not functioning, Sir.”
Kel hit the fleet frequency, “Battle stations; All ships to Battle stations. Move out and assume a defensive position. There is a teleportation suppression field around us and we’ll have to use standard thrusters.” Kel turned to Communications, “Get a message out to fleet.”
• • •
The Grogat Admiral tilted his head left then back; no one could accuse the White Ships of being stupid. He looked over his shoulder, “Change to attack profile.”
The Weapons controller sent the message out to the Grogat ships charging in on the planet. They switched to standard force fields from the energy guzzling camouflage screens. He heard the Fleet Commander order, “Hold formation and charge all weapons.”
The Grogat Fleet charged the new beam that was located on the bow of their ships. The entire front third of the Grogat ships suddenly looked like they were on fire.
• • •
“Sir, we have ten thousand Grogat Ships moving in on the planet. They appear to be a ship type that is not in our database.”
Kel looked at his display and saw the brightly glowing bows of the incoming ships and knew they were here to trial that new ship. If that beam could penetrate their force fields, it was suicide to meet twice their number head on. Kel hit his board, “All ships will scatter and attack any target of opportunity. On my Command, scatter in pattern Delta, Bravo. Now!”
The four thousand Bristone Ships accelerated away from the planet and to the sides of the incoming ships.
The Grogat Commander sat forward and watched the White Ships suddenly scatter to the sides of his fleet. “You know what to do. Designate your pair’s target and implement the attack.”
The Bristone Main Battleship Zord Claws saw two of the Grogat ships turn and move toward them. Captain Grant ordered, “Move to 230 degrees and fire as we pass.”
The mile long battleship turned broadside to the incoming Grogat and fired its nine main beams. Seven of them hit the closest Grogat ship and Grant saw the force field around it dim. “Hit that ship again!”
The Grogat ship was hit by a full spread of nine main beams and a spread of heavy missiles. It shrugged off the beams but six of the twenty missiles made it through. The Grogat ship exploded, but not before its partner fired on Zord Claws with the new beam and blew the ship in half. Grant hit the button over his head and sixty stealth probes went out of the ship at the bow and tail. The Grogat fired again and the Zord Claws exploded into a massive cloud of debris.
Kel saw his ships were no match for the Grogat Fleet’s new beam. To stay was certain death. Half of his fleet was destroyed and the others were being ganged up on by four of the new Grogat Ships. He pressed the general frequency and said, “Retreat, all ships find an escape route and retreat.” Kel didn’t have the opportunity to say anything else. The Defiant exploded as ten Grogat beams hit her.
• • •
“We have a major White Ship Fleet coming in system.”
The Grogat commander looked at the display and said, “How many ships?”
“Fifty thousand.”
The Commander watched the surviving White Ships moving away from the planet and knew that if he attempted to chase them down with his fleet, there was a good chance his ships could not reform in time to escape the massive numbers moving in. But he still had eight hours before that fleet arrived.
“Scan the planet for their warriors.”
“I have them on th
e plot.”
“Move the fleet in and hit them.”
“We’ll cause massive destruction to the surface.”
The Fleet Commander turned to his Weapons Officer and shot him in the head with a needle blaster. He looked at the Sensor Controller, “You are now promoted to Weapons Control. Do I have to tell you not to state the obvious?”
The Sensor Controller shook his head. The new Weapons Controller began targeting the ships beams on the planet and called for a cleanup crew to remove the dead body.
• • •
Captain Tgan saw the Grogat move toward the planet as he rushed away from the planet and begin moving into firing positions. He punched his communicator, “All Bristone Forces on the planet. The enemy fleet is taking firing positions and will be hitting your positions momentarily. Get moving and don’t stop.”
• • •
Lt. Col. Bel hit his main frequency, “Whatever system they’re using on the fleet to prevent teleportation does not affect us on the planet. Start teleporting and don’t stay together.” The twenty thousand Life Warriors started teleporting.
• • •
“Commander, the forces on the ground are not affected by the teleport suppression field and are teleporting randomly around the planet.”
The Commander was told the planet’s atmosphere would probably prevent the field from affecting the surface. He hit his communicator and said, “Whoever is able to kill one of the white colored warriors on the planet will be rewarded. Just send the recording to me after we complete this mission.”
The Commander turned back to his display and watched his eight thousand surviving ships rain down destruction on the planet below. He smiled and saw the enemy fleet was still six hours out.
• • •
Col. Bel screamed over his com, “Don’t go near any city or settlements. They’re after us.” He teleported away just as a massive beam hit the ground he was on a half second earlier.
The Fleet Commander said, “How many have we hit?”
“Six.”
He turned around and looked at the Weapons Controller, “Six?”
“They have teleported out into the oceans to an incredible depth and teleport away when the beam hits the surface. It takes a second to see one of them on a scanner and then fire. They are moving every half second. Our system is just not fast enough to hit them.” The Weapons Controller expected to be shot.