by Renee Bond
“We’re not leaving without our woman. End of discussion.”
“Is she really worth it?” asked Commander Dilon. “Is one woman worth the risk of re-igniting the war between our clans for?”
“You’re goddamn right she is.”
“Hm. She must be something between the sheets.”
Travan’s frown deepened into a scowl.
“If she’s been harmed-”
“If she’s here at all,” cut in Dilon, “it will be in direct violation of our protocols. If you think you can make demands of us just because you’ve got a few ships, you’re sorely mistaken.”
Just then, our ship’s display began flashing an alert.
Our scanners had hit the jackpot.
“We’ve picked up our woman’s bio-sign!” I reported, utterly relieved to have at least located our woman. “99.7% match. It’s her! She’s definitely here!” It felt like I was able to take shallow breaths again, after having held my breath ever since we found out she was missing.
“Can you pinpoint her location?” asked Travan.
“That’s going to be difficult,” I said, hurriedly entering a series of commands into the console. “The type of metal used to construct their base-”
Almost immediately, our scanners pinpointed her location.
“Nevermind,” I said. “She’s… she’s outside the base! She’s moving… shit, she’s in a vehicle!”
To be more precise, she was in a very heavily armored combat ground vehicle. The main display picked it out and gave us a magnified view of something between a heavy tank and a mobile weapons platform. I was familiar with the model - it had a shield strong enough to withstand anything we were able to throw against it.
The base was prefabricated, not really a true fortification, built to protect against the weather and little else. This vehicle was top of the line, built to protect against anything up to and including orbital bombardment.
“You’re not going to like this,” I said over my shoulder.
“You’re right,” Travan said.
Our entire squadron couldn’t have taken out that vehicle. And even if we could have… that would only have resulted in the death of our woman anyways.
“You boys going to take the hint and fuck off?” asked Commander Dilon. “Cause we’d be more than happy to make you. Look, I’m not unsympathetic here. I saw that message you broadcasted. But we simply can’t allow you to threaten us and get away with it. Even if I had your woman, I wouldn’t hand her over now. Not now that you’ve directly threatened us. Think about the message that would send to my men - Hell, to the whole galaxy!”
Travan was silent for a moment.
Gotta be honest. I didn’t see a way we could win. We just didn’t have the leverage to force the Everlasting military to do anything - and the more we tried, the more they would see it as a point of pride to not cooperate with us.
“Open a wide-frequency channel,” Travan ordered. “Make sure I can reach as many people as possible.”
I followed my squad leader’s order.
Chapter 40
Rachel
When I woke up, I knew I wasn’t dead because my fucking head was absolutely killing me. So much I almost wished I was.
It was the vibrations. The floor was shaking… and there was a constant humming.
Where the fuck was I?
Wherever it was, it was small. Cramped. Dark.
I stretched my legs out. My muscles protested. My knees popped.
And my feet came to rest against metal.
In total darkness, I stretched my arms upwards.
They too hit metal. But this metal, less than a foot above my head, gave way.
I pushed harder.
Light all but assaulted me, blinding me temporarily.
But when it faded, I could see that I’d been stuffed into a small cubby-like space.
It took long, painful minutes for me to push the lid aside and lift myself out of it.
The new space I was in was filled with crates and assorted gear, all held in place with thick black webbing. It was quite similar to the cargo hold of our ship, only smaller.
I looked about, reasonably sure I needed to find a way to escape.
Nothing presented itself.
Nothing... except the room’s single door.
I hobbled over to it. Wherever I was, whatever vehicle I was in, it was moving. Not fast, but in seemingly random, unfamiliar patterns. I lost my footing more than once but managed to keep from crashing to the deck.
I reached the door. Found that there was an intercom next to it. There were words on a few of the buttons. None of which were in English.
I started pressing them at random.
“Hey!” I cried, hoping there was a microphone to pick up the sound of my voice. “Let me out of here!”
Nothing happened. Right away. But after a few moments of the best kind of button-pushing - totally random - the intercom began emitting noises.
The sounds of voices.
“Position us directly in front of the gate,” a voice said. “Our top priority is survival, should the shooting start. Prepare to fire once we get in position to make a clean getaway.”
I’d recognize that voice anywhere.
It was The Bastard!
“Yes sir!” said two unfamiliar voices in rough unison.
It seemed I really was in some sort of vehicle. From the rumbling sounds it made as it maneuvered, I’d say it was a pretty big one. For a few moments, I cast about the cargo hold, trying to find some way to escape.
There wasn’t one.
The voices from the cockpit sounded again.
“Sir, we’re picking up a broadcast from the lead Triumphant ship. It’s an open broadcast - all frequencies. Should I patch it through?”
There was a pause.
“Yes.” The Bastard sounded skeptical. Cautious.
Less than a moment later, I heard the sound of a voice that filled me with hope.
Travan’s voice!
“-message for all local Everlasting forces. Seems what we’ve got here is a standoff. Nobody really wants to start shooting - but we’re not going home without our woman.”
Hearing that, I realized that I loved him. Loved all my men. They hadn’t abandoned me - I didn’t know exactly what was happening, but it sounded as though they were ready to go to war for me! I couldn’t remember being more touched.
“Thing is,” Travan continued, “this isn’t between Triumphant and Everlasting. This is between me and my men, and just one scumbag Everlasting officer - the piece of shit who tricked and kidnapped our mate. So to avoid the shooting none of us really want, I say we settle this one on one. A duel - between me and the impotent loser who thought he could take what’s rightfully ours. The rest of us can just sit back and watch. I’ve been told that what this asshole did was against Everlasting regs anyways. Do you all really want to put your lives on the line to defend a cocksucker that doesn’t even respect the rest of you enough to follow your own rules? Who would put the rest of you in the line of fire for his own selfish reasons? If that sick piece of-”
There was a cry of rage, and Travan’s voice cut off. Apparently, The Bastard had heard enough.
“I gotta ask… is that really true?” asked one of the non-bastard voices. “Did you really steal some woman?”
“Shut the fuck up!” screamed The Bastard. “And get me on my own wide-frequency channel!”
“Yes sir.”
The response was notably more muted than it had been previously.
After a momentary pause, The Bastard started speaking again.
“This is Lieutenant Doyle of the Everlasting military!” he snarled, “responding to the outrageous and superious allegations being made against me by this rogue Triumphant coward!”
Chapter 41
Travan
“First of all,” said the bastard, “as to that clearly fabricated message you broadcasted a while back. That was a cowardly and underh
anded lie! I made no such message - and I’m offended that you think any of us would be stupid enough to fall for such a lame trick!”
Hearing the Everlasting Lieutenant deny his own message pissed me off.
Hearing him blame it on me made my fucking blood boil.
I realized I was gripping the sides of the captain’s chair so hard my hands were white. Briefly, I imagined doing the same to Doyle’s scrawny neck.
“Second of all,” the bastard continued, “is that I did indeed take in a Triumphant woman - after she petitioned me for sanctuary! She came to our base begging us to save her from her Triumphant tormentors, who were whipping her with such regularity and ferocity that her whole body was covered in bruises and welts!”
I swear I almost attacked our ship’s display after hearing that.
“See for yourselves what those monsters did to their own woman!” Doyle said.
The display switched from his face to a still image. It was our woman, from behind. Naked. The image was a close-up, but I’d recognize her jet-black hair and supple, curving spine anywhere. Her back was covered in angry red welts. Blood seeped from more than one.
My whole world turned red. It was more than clear to me that it was Doyle who’d put those marks on our woman.
But nobody who wasn’t in my squad would know for sure who was to blame. And the fact that Doyle was accusing us of it first meant that people would probably be inclined to believe him instead of us.
Doyle’s face returned to the display.
“I admit that I circumvented Everlasting regulations. But it was only to keep further harm from coming to an innocent woman, whose only crime was being captured by a squad of Triumphant barbarians!”
I’d had had more than enough.
“Daxen,” I said, as calmly as I could, “add me to that son of a bitch’s broadcast.”
“Yes sir.”
After a moment, my own image appeared beside that of Doyle. Everybody tuned in to the broadcast would now see both of us.
“You and I both know who really did that to our woman,” I growled. “In fact, so does she. Add her to this broadcast so she can tell everyone who the real monster is.”
“She refuses to speak to you!” spat Doyle. “And I can’t say I really blame her!”
“She refuses?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. “Or you won't let her?”
“The former!” insisted Doyle.
“Well, since you’re such an upstanding savior and all,” I countered, “then you shouldn’t have any objection to my challenging you to a duel. We can do it here, at the Everlasting base. Name your weapons, and I’ll land this ship right now.”
Doyle opened his mouth - but no sound came out.
Satisfying.
“I will do no such thing!” he finally managed, his voice nearly cracking. “This is an official installation of the Everlasting military, and we won't stoop-”
“I think a duel is a fine idea,” said a third voice.
A third image joined mine and Doyle’s on the broadcast.
Commander Dilon’s.
“These punks think they can come in here and push us around. I’d love to show them just how fucking wrong they are.” The Everlasting Commander smirked. “But, we’re negotiating an alliance after all. So a battle is out of the question. But a duel? Just the two of you? And over a woman who’s clearly been beaten half to death by one of you? I think it’s a perfectly satisfactory way to settle this once and for all. Whoever wins will walk away from this with their honor intact, a great story… and this woman you two are fighting over.”
The more the Commander spoke, the wider Doyle’s eyes got.
Oh-so-satisfying.
“Y-yes sir! I see your point completely, and I would be more than happy to take care of this renegade. I
would have accepted myself, had I thought that you would have permitted-”
“I’m sure you would have,” Dilon said wryly. I was starting to get the impression that he didn’t care too much for Lieutenant Doyle.
“Name. Your. Weapons.”
I had to physically restrain myself from bursting out into a grin as I spoke. This was finally starting to go our way!
“No weapons,” said Doyle. “Unarmed combat!”
I nearly cheered.
Doyle may be a ruthless, petty piece of shit. But his peak athletic years were clearly behind him. I was taller. Heavier. Younger. Oh, and I’d won numerous commendations and awards for my hand-to-hand skills. Shit, I’d probably killed more men with my bare hands in the heat of combat than that creep Doyle had with weapons.
“I can’t wait,” I said, fighting to keep my expression neutral. I was so close to winning our woman back I could almost taste it. The last thing I wanted to do was tip my hand now.
Daxen cut off the broadcast.
“Daxen,” I said, finally permitting myself a broad grin, “set the ship down in front of the Everlasting base.”
“Nothing would please me more,” he said. “Except maybe watching you fucking kill this asshole.”
Chapter 42
Rachel
Something wasn’t right.
At first, I’d been ecstatic to hear that The Bastard was going to fight Travan. I’d seen them both. I wouldn’t have bet on this Doyle with million-to-one odds.
Then again, Doyle had seen Travan up close too. Back in the Cafe. It was possible that Doyle was so drunk then that he simply didn’t remember what an imposing figure my Travan cut.
Possible… but unlikely.
Furthermore, Doyle had to know that he looked visibly out of shape. He was almost as tall as Travan, but with a noticeable paunch, a visible gut, and more grey hair than brown.
Would a man like that think he could take on a man like Travan?
No. Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
“He’s going to fucking kill you!” I screamed. Hoping that The Bastard could hear me through the sealed cargo hold.
There was no reply.
Then the door to the cargo hold hissed open. The Bastard stood directly in front of me.
I managed to duck his first blow. Then he caught my hair and yanked my head back. I yelped as he shoved me up against the metal frame of the short hallway between the cargo hold and the cockpit.
“Such a smart mouth!” he exclaimed. “But still so very fucking stupid.”
“Oh shit, she’s here!” exclaimed a voice coming from the cockpit.
I forced a smile.
“I didn’t ask for sanctuary!” I said as loudly as I could. “This bastard tricked-”
Before I could continue, I was flipped around.
Then Doyle’s fist crashed into my gut, driving the wind from my body.
“Pay no attention to her!” said Doyle. “One of you keep a watch on her. Make sure she doesn’t try to escape. In fact, one of you give her your jacket and trousers.”
Confused silence answered Doyle’s command.
“Why should we-”
“Just do it! Follow my orders exactly, and I promise that you two can be the first ones to fuck her when this is all over! I’ll even give you a permanent discount.”
That, it seemed, was a good enough offer to secure their loyalty. Both men grinned widely. One of them began taking off his jacket.
“I hate to say it,” the other one said, “but she may have a point. About you getting killed, that is. I’ve seen this Travan guy out on patrol. He’s a fucking animal.”
“Oh, not to worry,” said Doyle smugly. He reached into the breast pocket of his jacket and brought forth a small vial of some mysterious clear liquid. He cracked the seal of the vial, poured the liquid out onto his black gloves, and proceeded to rub it into the material. “This Travan might be good with his hands,” said Doyle with a grin, “but I’ll be fighting with more than just my hands. This, boys, is a potent nerve agent. It’s not deadly, but it will impair vision, motor function, breathing, even brain activity. All I need to do is touch him, and he’ll
be helpless within sixty seconds.”
Bastard.
“You cheating piece of shit!” I gasped, still doubled over on the metal floor, my eyes watering from the pain of the punch to my stomach.
No wonder Doyle had agreed not to use any weapons! Even if Travan was an excellent fighter, all Doyle had to do was touch him, and he’d lose the fight. Hell, he’d be completely helpless before a vindictive, sadistic asshole! I didn’t know which was worse: the thought of having to stay with Doyle, or the thought of Travan getting beaten to death from beneath the haze of a poisoned stupor.
One of Doyle’s men - grinning ear to ear as his hungry eyes traveled up and down my naked body - tossed his brown camo jacked down onto me.
“Put it on,” he said. “Or you’ll hurt until you do.”
I tried to fight back the tears.
I failed.
But through those tears, I glared up at The Bastard. His back was turned to me, as he was in the middle of giving yet more instructions to his men.
“You’re not getting away with this,” I whispered. “I swear it.”
Chapter 43
Travan
There was plenty of room for the fight. The Everlasting base was surrounded by a wide patch of hard-packed dirt, used for training, basic squad drills, small vehicle maneuvering, and to make it harder for any resistance elements to attack. We set our ship down right in the middle of the field.
Doyle’s ultra heavy tank rolled up next to our ship.
By the time I disembarked, the area had been ringed by Everlasting soldiers. Hundreds of them. They’d brought up their own vehicles - everything from transporters to cargo haulers to assault craft - in a rough circle around our ship and the heavy tank. Not because they were guarding against any funny business.
They all just wanted to watch.