Warriors of Phaeton: Paine and Rowe

by Leora Gonzales

  “What is it?” Axis asked, not bothering to look back, even as he asked the question.

  “The marshal,” Rowe announced. “That’s our problem.”

  “The marshal is everyone’s problem on Euphoria,” Axis agreed with a swift nod. “That’s one of the reasons I’ve been staying in the central market area. It’s one of the few places that seem out of his reach. His men are just as corrupt as he is, although I have no proof of it.”

  “Have you spent your time here hiding from him and his crew?” Paine teased.

  “Absolutely not.” He turned back to scowl before dropping it to smile at Indigo. “We have not been introduced yet. I’m Axis, a better warrior than these two combined. Is there any way I can convince you to change your mind about these guys?”

  Indigo couldn’t help the snort of laughter that escaped her at his smooth segue from snapping at Paine to hitting on her. Right in front of her two husbands.

  “Sorry, Axis,” she said, placing a hand on Paine’s abdomen to mockingly hold him back from Axis at his flirtation. “I’m Indigo, and my hands are more than full handling these two. Plus, after what I just witnessed back in that alley, I don’t see how anything can top that.”

  “Wait, what alley?” he asked, confused, continuing to walk but falling back until he stood beside Paine. “I feel like there is quite a bit that has happened that I need to catch up on.”

  “This could all have been avoided if you had turned on your comm pod—” Paine stopped in his tracks and smacked his forehead. “I completely missed it earlier when you mentioned you had one with you this entire time.”

  “We can use that to get a message back to Kaine,” Rowe interrupted. “It wouldn’t hurt to also call for another squad as backup. Not that I don’t think we can handle the marshal and his men if need be…just that it might be safer for Indy.”

  “Good idea, and I concur.” Paine nodded.

  “What are you two babbling about?” Axis stepped in front of them before they could go another step farther and held out his arms. “Someone needs to explain things to me now. What happened in the alley? Does it have something to do with why Paine’s arm is bleeding? How did you know the marshal was a problem? Was he the one that attacked you? Why do you need my comm pod? Are your communicators not functional as well? Why can’t we go to your shuttle?”

  Indigo could only blink at the list of questions that Axis spit out, the scowl on his face deepening with every single one he ticked off.

  “There is so much we have to tell you,” Rowe said as he pinched the bridge of his nose. “We might as well walk while we do it.”

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  “Once it’s at full power, our bands and tablets should be working again,” Axis informed them as he clicked a few more buttons on the comm pod. “I still do not know how the marshal was able to disrupt the link—or how long it’s been out—but for now, we’ve worked out a way around it.”

  “Good.” Rowe pulled out the small handheld device he had stored in his tunic and began typing out a message for the council. “As soon as the link is established, I will send this to Kaine detailing what we’ve come across while here. Until he sends down a squad to secure our shuttle, I do not want to take the chance of approaching it.”

  “Are you thinking he may have set a trap?” Axis sat back on his haunches, the comm pod blinking in front of him as it began to power on.

  “Either a trap to disable our shuttle or his guards are there ensure we don’t take off. If it were just the three of us, it would be no problem. We have our bride to consider. I do not want to risk Indigo getting caught up in the middle of a fire fight, do you?”

  All of them including Indigo shook their heads.

  None of that sounded like a good idea to her. More specifically, the part where she got caught in the middle of a fire fight was a hard no. Simply replaying that idea in her head sent a shiver down her back. She knew her men were more than capable of handling themselves, but Rowe had a point. If they were fighting, it left her on the sidelines with no protection. There wasn’t really a way for her to help them fight either. She had no idea how to shoot a gun much less a blaster—not that they had one—and she was pretty sure she’d slice off a finger if she tried to handle one of Paine or Rowe’s knives. She could gouge, scratch, kick, hit, and pull hair with the best of them, but that was about it. She knew her limitations.

  Looking around the small room that Axis had taken them to, she couldn’t see anything that could potentially be used as a weapon. It was as barebones as you could get and still be somewhat comfortable. There was a small shelf, the cot she was sitting on, and a little bathroom off to the side. Even thought it was small, it looked fairly efficient, similar to her old studio apartment.

  “This is where you’ve been staying?” she asked, sitting with her legs crossed on the cot. “It’s cozy.”

  “I know it doesn’t look like much, but it has everything I need,” Axis answered with a smile. “A bathroom, a bed, and a safe place to store my belongings. What is even better is that I’ve been staying here for free. I needed a place, and the vendor that handles the front of the stall needed someone to guard his products at night. The other merchants in this area have paid me in food and drink for the assistance that I’ve given them this past month.”

  “No wonder the council was unable to track you down. There was no need for you to spend your credits.”

  “I could have stayed here indefinitely if I didn’t have my duties to go back to,” Axis agreed with a nod before the room fell silent.

  “I am sorry we had to interrupt your leave,” Rowe said, breaking the uncomfortable quiet.

  “It wasn’t truly a vacation now was it?” he asked with a sad chuckle before giving them an apologetic look of his own. “I am sorry that this mission interrupted your trial period.”

  “Our honeymoon,” Indigo corrected.

  “What?” Axis asked with a frown.

  “This would technically be our honeymoon, since I’ve already decided I’m staying.” Indigo gasped, her eyes wide. “I think that was the first time I’ve said out loud that I’m staying. It felt kind of good.”

  Indigo couldn’t suppress the smile that took over her face, feeling an immense relief settle over her.

  “I’m staying,” she said again. This time the words flowed even easier from her mouth.

  “We know,” Rowe said with a nod.

  “It’s not like we would have let you leave anyways,” Paine teased, dodging the floppy pillow that Indigo sent sailing his way from her place on Axis’s cot. “What?! All I’m saying is the truth.”

  Axis gave her a look in the middle of fiddling with the comm pod, which they were all anxious to get running. “You will be more than busy with these two.”

  “I know.” The smile on her face beamed enough to light up the room as they chuckled at her response.

  The bands on her wrist buzzed. The vibrations echoed with the others’ bands as the comm pod restored their connections to Phaeton One.

  “I’m connected,” Axis said, checking his wrist.

  “Me too,” Rowe said.

  “Same here,” Paine added.

  When Indigo held her wrist up for the others to see, Axis frowned.

  “You are also connected, but why do you have two bands, and what does that blue light mean?” he asked, his brow furrowed as he studied the jewelry around her wrist.

  “I have their old ones. I never had a chance to get a new one in the medical center yet,” she hedged, not necessarily wanting to fill Axis in on how much of a bag of mixed nuts she was. “I’ve got no clue about the blue light. I thought it was just the other two that were supposed to be blinking. Guys?”

  “That was your band, Rowe.” Paine turned to his brother with a concerned look. “Do you remember what the blue indicator means? Was it one of your custom features?”

  Rowe nodded slowly, gazing off into the distance, obviously trying hard to remember which one it was.r />
  “Rowe?” Axis called his name as he remained silent for a few moments with a puzzled look on his face.

  “Sorry, I was trying to remember what program I had worked on last. I can’t be sure until we upload whatever information it wants to transmit. All of them were disabled the last time I checked…”

  “It did take a hit during our last fight with the Traccorians. Maybe the energy from the blast scrambled the programming or something. It could also be that the light means nothing. That it’s blinking just to blink. I have no idea what the blast could have done to the tech, since I only tested the programs I thought were functional.”

  “Well that doesn’t make me feel super great about having this on my wrist,” Indigo mumbled, her eyes on the band as if it were a snake about to strike. “You guys don’t have any type of self-destruct programs, do you?”

  “No…at least not on that band,” Rowe answered, slightly alleviating her immediate fears. “I’m just saying that over the years I wore that band, I created a few different programs. None of them could physically hurt you, but it’s possible it could be doing a number of things right now without us even knowing. It could be recording our voices. It could simply be tracking your steps.” Rowe shrugged. “It could also be flashing just to flash. Whatever it’s doing, we’ll find out later. Right now, our first mission is to apprise Kaine of the situation and request backup.

  “Agreed,” the others said in unison, while Indigo tried to ignore the light.

  “We’ve received a communication from Kaine,” Rowe announced, his focus on the small electronic tablet in his hand.

  “What, brother?” Paine asked when Rowe continued to simply frown at the screen in front of him.

  “We’ve been ordered to bring the marshal in. Alive.”

  Indigo nodded until she noticed the faces around her. “What? That’s not a good thing?”

  “Not necessarily.”

  “I don’t like it.” Rowe walked over and sat next to her on the cot. “The order to apprehend the marshal means this is going to take longer than we hoped. Instead of going in and confronting him with a fire fight for his men’s assault on us, we will now need to ensure his safety so he can face the council for judgment. I doubt he will come peacefully, which makes this new order that much harder to follow.”

  “The marshal and his men will fight with everything they have available to them,” Axis interrupted grimly. “There is no way that he or his men will lay down their arms and return to Phaeton One with the two of you. He would be facing a death sentence, or at the very least a term on the prison sector. No, the only way I can see him cooperating is as a prisoner.”

  “When will the support squadron arrive?” Paine questioned, rubbing his chin.

  “There will not be one. Kaine has relayed that, if necessary, we can call on the shuttle in orbit for assistance, but it is not advised. He does not want them leaving their post unless absolutely necessary. A Traccorian shuttle was tracked not far from the Sector, and they are in position to intervene if needed. Anyone else will take too long to arrive. We are on our own for this mission.”

  Paine kicked the hard dirt-packed floor, scraping up a chunk of red dirt that crusted the surface of Euphoria.

  “I don’t like it,” he said. He shook his head and began pacing. “It is too dangerous for our bride. I mean…we three can more than handle him and his men, but it leaves her safety too compromised. Those men in the alley only had knives, but what if the men in the compound use blasters? Her cloak has no shielding. Besides, we haven’t even equipped ourselves to take any hits.”

  “Give me a little time, and I will find the weapons we need,” Axis said, stepping forward. “Or, better yet, Indigo can stay here. Safe and sound while we go and deal with the marshal.”

  As panic jolted through Indigo at the thought of separating from her men, she noticed they were already shaking their heads at Axis’s suggestion.

  “She is safer within sight than out of it.” Putting the tablet away, Rowe reached out to take her hand. “I worry we are adding to your night terrors, yet we have no way to shield you from it. Just know you are safe with us. Always.”

  Squeezing his hand, she took a moment to marvel at the difference in size between his and hers while she thought of how to respond.

  “Well…you’re not wrong about some of the things I’ve seen.” Indigo snorted. “I can’t believe you guys played this off as a nice and easy shopping trip. Now, we’re in the middle of planning an attack I’m somehow supposed stay out of the way for.”

  “We—”

  “Shhh.” She covered his lips with a finger to stop him from apologizing. “I know you guys will keep me safe. I’ll follow every order you give, the moment it comes out of your mouths. I haven’t come this far to let that gross purple guy win, right?” Cupping his cheek, she tugged him forward. “Now give me a kiss and figure out our frakin’ escape so we can celebrate.”

  “I want one like her,” Axis said with an expression of wonder as he stared at her.

  “She is perfect, isn’t she?” Paine said before punching him hard on the arm. “All right, then. Keep your eyes to yourself.”

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Axis stood over her, creating a Phaeton-sized barrier between her and something that boomed nearby. The percussion made her ears ring.

  “I’ve got her!” he yelled.

  They’d just entered the courtyard when all hell broke loose. Before she had time to blink, Axis was in front of her, herding her until she was back against a stone wall with him in front of her.

  “What the hell?!” Indigo winced as the words echoed in her ears.

  “Scatter bomb,” he grunted. “Breathe through your mouth.”

  Indigo covered her face with her hands. “Why?”

  The question came out mumbled as she squinted against a thick yellow smoke that drifted in their direction.

  “Just do it,” he coughed. “I won’t react to the gas, but you definitely will.”

  “What?!” she screeched before she snapped her mouth closed and tucked her face into the neck of the cape. Covering a majority of her face with her hands and arms, Indigo tried to calm her breathing where she was gasping against the fur lining of the cloak.

  Still coughing, her bodyguard swung out every now and then to slice at one of the marshal’s men that ventured too close for his liking. Through the cloud of smoke, she could see Paine and Rowe steadily making their way towards the marshal where he stood behind all of his men like a coward. He stayed safely behind the men defending him, skulking back and forth worriedly while holding a small mask to his face.

  What a pussy.

  Indigo blinked as her eyes teared up from something, everything, in the air but kept them open so she could see what was happening. At first, she’d thought that things were going to be a lot easier than the guys had let on. Approaching from the rear, they’d snuck into the compound without a fuss at all.

  Everything had changed the moment they’d been detected.

  The marshal had screamed and pointed, ignoring the orders Paine and Rowe shouted at him. Then, without warning, he’d flung something into the center of the square. It had all happened so fast that she had no idea what had happened before Axis was moving. He’d hustled her to safety before he posted in front of her like a barrier.

  She was never more grateful for a barrier in her life, considering what she saw happening on the other side.

  Men—aliens—whatever the hell they were—had scattered the moment their leader had pitched the silver ball into the middle of them. The result was chaos. The noise and smoke had completely disoriented her, and she hadn’t even been that close to where it detonated. The aliens in the center of it all still stumbled around, half fighting as they tried to reorient themselves.

  As a result, she’d watched as a bunch of weird-looking aliens coughed and stumbled into each other. Some gripped their heads, some rubbed their eyes, and all of them gasped for fresh air in va
in inside the gas-filled courtyard. The few coherent enough to fight were absolutely useless against her husbands. Paine swept through the guards with a roar, cutting down any making the faintest attempt to attack. Rowe did the same. Unlike the marshal’s men, they weren’t coughing.

  She wasn’t sure what was in the yellow smoke, but it made Axis hack in front of her. Occasionally, one of the purple aliens would attempt to sneak forward to strike and would soon fall to Axis’s smooth slashes.

  “Stop!”

  Axis jolted in front of her at Paine’s warrior’s yell. He held the marshal in the air by his collar.

  “Tell your men it’s over,” he ordered, giving the marshal a shake. “Now! Before I become angrier.”

  Indigo almost chuckled at the annoyance in Paine’s voice. With his chest heaving and the small marshal dangling from one of his fists, her man was a sight to see.

  Following his orders, the marshal surrendered with a weak gurgle. Around them, the guards who still fought gave up the pretense and dropped their arms.

  “Finally,” Axis rasped. “Find out if he planted traps at the shuttle. We need to get your wife back to One as quickly as possible.”

  “What? Why?” she asked, tapping on Axis’s shoulder where he remained standing guard in front of her.

  “Here, drink this.” Rowe hurried to their side and handed her a bottle of water, already opened and ready for her to drink. Pushing it to her mouth, he eyed her closely. “How do you feel?”

  “You’re freaking me out,” she gasped after chugging more than half the bottle. Not that she had a choice. Rowe had held it tipped back once she’d started to drink and she had no choice but to swallow or drown. Whatever chemical that had been drifting in the air after that bomb had gone off had left an awful chemical taste in her mouth. “What’s going on?”

  “The gas from the scatter bomb is a strong hallucinogen,” Rowe explained, nodding to one of the guards lying on the ground laughing hysterically. “We’ve been inoculated against its effects. That’s why it’s called a scatter bomb. It scatters the senses and confuses its target. The Phaetons permitted their use to break up riots before we learned some of the effects are permanent.”