by Petra Landon
Jolar seized upon the Alliance Commander’s inquiry. Un Kieto Maal was mulling over asking the Ur’quay ship to join the fight for TF124. Confident that the Hadari’Kor could defend the station, despite being outnumbered by the Ketaari ships, Jolar had another reason for his eagerness to see the Ur’quay in action.
“The Hadari’Kor will be discreet, Commander Kerovac” Jolar assured the Alliance Commander.
The Hadari’Kor understood only too well how much of their new mission to train the Budheya, with the ultimate goal of fomenting a well-organized and effective rebellion on Budheyasta, rode on keeping the pact a secret from the Imperial Forces. Long accustomed to keeping secrets and their various contracts with different employers compartmentalized, the Hadari’Kor would take it in stride if Jolar hinted to them that this knowledge too was related to their larger mission to coalesce the Budheya into a fighting force with the teeth to take on the Ketaari.
And Jolar wanted to witness the legendary Ur’quay in a skirmish, minor though it be. The Star Captain was already chomping at the bit to join the fight against the Ketaari, for reasons that Jolar understood but had no intention of divulging to Un Kieto Maal. Jolar had promised the Star Captain that the Juntafeyore would not undock from TF124, without taking aboard a certain Ambassador the Star Captain felt personally responsible for. It had been the Ur’quay engineers, remotely monitoring the modified Ur’quay cloak protecting TF124, who had first raised the alarm about the attack. There had been issues with the cloak, due to interference from the asteroid belt, and the Ur’quay engineers had been working to stabilize the cloak from their ship. The Star Captain’s urgent communique to the Juntafeyore had prompted Jolar to warn the station of the attack.
“The Hadari’Kor will believe that the Henia is a new technologically advanced ship the Alliance is keen to keep under wraps for now” Jolar added.
This time, Commander Kerovac did not hesitate. It was time to take more calculated risks, he knew. Especially given the real possibility that the Ketaari had unearthed either one or both new pacts the Alliance had secretly forged, with the Ur’quay and the Budheya. The unusual overture from the Ketaari Emperor, followed by an assault on TF124, seemed too much of a coincidence. If the Ketaari were suspicious, even a small sample of the havoc an Ur’quay starship could cause on the battlefield might not be a bad idea, Kerovac mused. The threat of a fleet of such ships might just buy the Alliance a little time to ferret out what the Ketaari knew or suspected of their new partners.
“Thank you, Commander Jolar. I will request the Star Captain to co-ordinate the defense of TF124 with the Juntafeyore.”
Jolar signed off, leaving the Alliance Commander mildly puzzled at the brief flash of triumph and satisfaction on the mercenary’s countenance at the news.
“The ships from Sethia Two are making good progress, Ray” Yan informed him. “They have crossed Alliance protected space and report no Ketaari ships on the route yet.”
“Good” the Commander remarked with satisfaction.
“I have the Henia on COM Two” offered Yan.
“Thank you, Yan.”
The Alliance Commander activated COM Two on his communication device and the Star Captain’s visage filled the screen.
“You would like the Ur’quay to defend the station?” inquired the Star Captain, without any ceremony.
“Yes, Star Captain. And if the chance arises, give the Ketaari something to ponder about” the Commander said baldly, not mincing his words. “I don’t know how the Ketaari located TF124, but I want them to think twice before they go searching for other Alliance stations unprotected by our border security net.”
“We will” the Star Captain was assured, confident, and as hard to read as ever. “My engineers believe that the discovery of the location might be an accident, an unintended consequence of the malfunctioning cloak. They are poring over the telemetry data from the cloak now. We should have more information for you in a few hours.”
“Thank you, Star Captain.”
As the Ur’quay Captain signed off, Commander Kerovac turned to his friend and ADC.
“The Ketaari Emperor proposes a face to face meeting with me, Yan” he stated. “His spokesman assured me that the Emperor believes that he and I together can bring the war to an end, without involving the Imperial Forces in the negotiations.”
Yan’s eyebrows shot up in response. This was very unusual. The Ketaari Emperor represented the ambitions of the Empire and was highly respected by his subjects. While a cadre of high-born advisors surrounded the aging Emperor, a majority of the advisors were reputed to be high-ranking officers from the Imperial Forces.
“It’s a trap, Ray” the ADC said bluntly.
“Perhaps” the Commander murmured thoughtfully. “But they must know that I’m not that easy to capture, Yan. Moreover, strong hints were dropped that the location and the decision of how many and which respective entourages to allow to the meeting would be left up to me.”
“You’re thinking of meeting the Emperor, Ray?” Yan looked a tad confused.
“His envoy” the Commander looked briefly amused. “The Emperor, I believe, is much more fearful of being captured than I am, Yan.”
“More likely, the Ketaari refuse to subject their Emperor to a conversation with you, lest you realize that he’s senile and merely a puppet of the Imperial Forces” Yan quipped.
They had long suspected that the Ketaari Emperor had succumbed to old age, leaving all major decision-making in the hands of select advisors. Yan knew that the Alliance Commander believed that any victory over the Ketaari Empire would have to be a decisive and military one. Negotiating with the Ketaari would get them nowhere since they suspected that the reins of the Empire were now firmly in the hands of the Ketaari Military.
“You’re right, of course, Yan. Which makes me suspect that something else is afoot.”
Yan pursed his lips. “You think this attack on TF124 has something to do with the overture from the Emperor?”
“It is too much of a coincidence, Yan. And I don’t like such coincidences.” The Alliance Commander paused. “On the other hand, the Star Captain believes that it might be as simple as a malfunctioning cloak.”
“We have been getting fairly regular reports of magnetic storms and colliding asteroids causing malfunctions of the cloak, Ray” the ADC acknowledged. “That is why I requested the Star Captain’s engineers’ assistance in diagnosing the issue.”
The Alliance Commander pondered the matter silently while Yan shot his friend a troubled glance. Yan and Alina, the two people closest to the Alliance Commander, were immensely proud of Ray’s accomplishments even as they worried about his welfare and the toll the Program, his many sacrifices and the burden of carrying Quadrant Five’s collective hopes took on Rayeou Kerovac.
Far away from such considerations about the future of Quadrant Five and oblivious to the hard-fought battle underway to defend TF124 and allow its personnel to evacuate safely, Saakshi watched Zoran frolic in the lake, her eyes taking in the ease with which her mercenary took to the water. Eventually, Zoran treaded water a few feet away from her. Saakshi watched as the tattoos on his chest gleamed with the water streaming off it. A memory of him over her with eyes of molten fire while a rivulet of moisture shimmered and danced its way down his muscled body flashed through her suddenly, catching her unawares. She dragged her eyes away from his chest.
“How did you find this place?” she stammered, hoping that the dim light hid her flushed face from him.
“We’ve been exploring the surrounding planetoids for a hiding place, in case we ever require one in a hurry. This moon was written off because of its inhospitable environment, although the fact that the frequent electrical storms tend to screw up most sensors does provide a decided advantage in shaking any potential pursuers off. Jolar and I like to climb rocks as a hobby and have been exploring the caverns on the moon in our spare time.”
“I hadn’t expected my tseriya to dump me for an ale
house” he teased her, as she remained silent. “It left me with too much spare time on my hands.”
Zoran waited for her answering smile, in response to his quip.
“On one of our rare trips here without any electrical storms to blind our equipment, the sensors indicated a large body of water in one of the caves. We followed the readings to discover a lake very like this one. Then we kept searching until I found what I was looking for – a lake shallow enough to wade in and deep enough inside the rock face to be free of the poisonous pollen. I wanted you to experience this - I knew you’d love it.”
“I do” she gazed around her in wonder. “It’s so beautiful and tranquil, a stark contrast to the wild beauty right outside the cave on the moon’s surface.”
They basked quietly in the solitude and beauty to drink in the dark splendor of the lake.
“Would you like to go deeper into the water?” he inquired, watching her play with the water as it lapped gently over her.
“I don’t know how to swim” she said haltingly.
“If you trust me, I can take you in” he offered, holding out his hand to her. Like so many times before, when he had gently coaxed her into trusting him.
Saakshi glanced at the water in the distance, the light from the plasma torches dancing off it but not powerful enough to penetrate its mysterious depths. Yes, she did trust Zoran to keep her safe. And in all the other ways there were! She pushed herself off the floor to wade to him where he waited in waist deep water. He reached for her, clasping her with one arm to tuck her by his side before wading out deeper into the water. Saakshi held on to the arm clasping her to him, tentatively attempting to kick through the water.
“Ummff” Zoran huffed from somewhere above her. “Careful there, tseriya. You might not want to kick my male bits so enthusiastically. I’m rather fond of them.”
“Sorry” she flushed, going red.
“No harm done. Just relax your body and enjoy the water. I’ve got you.”
And Saakshi relaxed, just like that. A wave of love and affection for him spiked through her. She thanked the Pura again for sending Zoran back to her.
“You swim so gracefully” she remarked, her voice colored by admiration. He did everything so gracefully, but she didn’t tell him that.
“We learn to swim very young on both Hadari and Kor. Our two planets are mainly water. Most of the world is tropical and almost marshy” he explained, floating lazily on his back and taking her with him, his voice reverberating off the surrounding rock walls.
“No one on Budheyasta knows how to swim. Water is a very precious commodity on my world. Water we drink is processed from our oceans. I don’t think we have any bodies of water like this” she gestured at the water enveloping them.
“Your home world is very beautiful, Saakshi” he turned to her. “One day, I plan to go back with you to explore it. But before we do that, I hope to take you to mine.”
Saakshi stared up into the cave as they floated silently, the moment pregnant with unsaid words but no less intense because of it. She understood what the implied words meant – Zoran was offering her a glimpse of a future together. Perhaps, a future in a less complicated time.
“I would like that very much” she replied softly, tipping her head gently towards his gracefully floating body.
“I’m glad, tseriya” he responded softly before falling silent.
They floated in companionable silence once more, in an underground lake deep inside a rocky cave in a planetoid far away from either of their home worlds. Two strangers that fate had thrown together in unlikely and difficult circumstances. Two strangers drawn to each other irresistibly despite the obstacles of contrasting pasts, a dire present and an uncertain future. Two strangers who had fought for each other and to change the world they lived in for a chance at a future together.
A half hour later, Saakshi was back on the banks of the lake to watch Zoran frolic in it once again.
“Would you like to learn to swim?” he asked her, amused by the avid gaze that watched him so intently in the water.
“Yes” she admitted with alacrity. “I was afraid I might be too old to learn.”
“Naah, you’re never too old to learn to swim. I’ll teach you if you like” he offered.
Saakshi nodded eagerly.
“Perhaps I can learn to swim by the time I visit your home world” she said, her voice hopeful.
“Perhaps” he agreed softly.
He swam towards the shore, wading out of the water to where she sat watching him. Saakshi watched her large warrior arise unhurriedly from the tranquil lake, the water spearing off his hard body causing his myriad colorful tattoos to gleam brightly on his gray skin in the light reflected off the plasma torches. He shook his head gracefully, sending an arc of water off his dark hair. The scattered droplets hung over him like a short-lived halo around his large muscled frame. Saakshi stared at him, frozen in place and unable to take her eyes off him. In that moment suspended in time, to the young Budheya girl gazing up in awe at her warrior, it felt as if the Pura herself had sent him for her - her own personal guardian angel charging in when she’d needed him the most.
“Like what you see?” inquired the husky voice she remembered so well from before.
Saakshi flushed, looking away from those molten dark eyes.
He came down gracefully on one knee beside her, gloriously unselfconscious in his nakedness.
“I do, too. Like what I see, that is” he said scratchily, his voice like sandpaper.
He used a large finger to gently nudge her chin until she met his eyes.
“You have me at your feet, tseriya. I hope you will show mercy.”
Lost momentarily in the burning eyes and mesmerized by the husky voice, Saakshi realized dazedly that he seemed to be kneeling before her. She scrambled up with a muffled sob to throw her arms around him, smothering his face and neck with little kisses.
“Tseriya” he asked, a hint of uncertainty in his voice. “Why are you crying?”
“I’m just so happy that you came back” she sobbed into his neck.
“Of course, I came back” he reiterated in some confusion, trying to dislodge her from his neck to meet her eyes. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“I thought you were off doing more important stuff now that I was safe with the Alliance” Saakshi hiccupped into his neck, resisting all his attempts to get her to meet his eyes.
“Tseriya” he cajoled. “I could never stay away from you.”
He cupped the back of her head with one hand.
“Tseriya” he said urgently. “Haven’t I proved already that I cannot stay away from you? That is what I cannot forgive myself for.”
It was the note of despair in his voice that finally got through to Saakshi. She loosened her clasp around his neck to lean back and scan his expression. A callused finger brushed away her tears carefully as they spilled over from her eyes but Saakshi barely noticed the tender gesture.
“Forgive yourself? What do you mean …” she trailed off uncertainly.
He said nothing, but what she saw in the dark eyes had Saakshi straightening her spine.
“You helped a stranger who came to you for assistance. You could have chosen to walk away. Without you, the Unta-Golar …” she stopped mid-sentence, her words cut off by the large finger Zoran laid gently across her lips.
The expression on his handsome face shuttered right before her eyes.
“I’m no hero, Saakshi” he said steadily. “I shamed myself – I took advantage of a young and desperate girl.”
It was Saakshi’s turn to lay a gentle finger on his lips to prevent him from further self-reproach.
“No” she shook her head forcefully. “Nothing happened between us that I did not want. Believe that if you believe nothing else, Zoran Hadari-Begur-Kor.”
She withdrew her finger from his lips. He remained silent but did soften enough to allow her to see the regret and despair in him.
“You came for me ev
ery single time” she reiterated a tad desperately. “When no else did.”
Zoran shook his head, clasping her hand to plant a soft kiss in her palm.
“Yes” he acknowledged. “But I also took advantage of you.”
Saakshi shook her head vehemently, desperate to make him believe that she had never felt coerced into an intimate relationship with him.
“You … you loved me like no one else had, Zoran” she whispered, shyness and embarrassment forgotten. “I was drawn to you, even before I went to you. I just … I was too inexperienced to know it.”
His expression twisted subtly at her soft admission. “I was not.”
“I was so furious that day when you came to me with your proposition. Angry at the universe, angry at your circumstances, angry that you had been left with no choice but to approach a stranger with your proposition. So furious that I didn’t trust myself to not frighten you with my fury, even as I did my best to scare into withdrawing your proposition.”
“So, I removed myself from your presence and asked Jolar to escort you back to your dormitory. You know the rest. I’d always intended to help you. All it needed was a few minutes of my time to let the Unta-Golar know what I would do to him unless he stayed away from you.”
He stopped and shook his head, as if to laugh at his circumstances. Despite his fury at her proposition and what it implied of how she saw him, he had succumbed, taking from her exactly what she had offered in exchange for his protection.
“But I was late coming to your assistance the next day, and you got hurt. I took you back to my ship for some privacy to tend to you and to apologize for my tardiness. The plan was to set you at ease. Assure you that I’d take care of Ghesh and anyone else – you needn’t worry about anything. A very worthy intention, I told myself. It was my chance – the one I had been waiting for. I wanted to woo you, let you get to know me, show you what I felt for you and … and then ask you to be mine.”
The stark dark eyes met Saakshi who watched him breathlessly, unable to look away from the words pouring out of him.