Manha: Warriors Of Ition

by Starr, Maia

“It is with great honor that I present this promotion to Commander Ayre. He has been a most trusted soldier. He has gone through many missions and been successful. He is a true Ition soldier. I have great plans for him. I want you all to witness this. In the army of the Alva Clan, It is possible to rise in ranks. Each of you strive to do your best. We will take care of our own. Now I claim Commander Ayre is now General Manha Ayre!”

  There was a roar from the army gathered below the platform. It felt good to have my work honored and to be promoted. I gave a nod to Evex Ein. Then I quickly looked off to the side. She was there. She was there for me. Karina was standing there looking at me with a big smile on her face. She stood next to Imuna, her friend.

  I stepped away behind Evex Ein. He continued with his awesome speech, promising to defeat the Yinta Clan. It was a moving speech, and I was glad to be a part of it.

  After the ceremony of my promotion, I joined Karina on the side of the platform. I grabbed her hand and led her down the ramp to the back of the platform for a quick moment with her.

  “I am very proud of you, General,” she said.

  “Thank you. I have done it all just to impress you, even though you are extremely hard to impress. You are the most stubborn human female that I have ever met,” I said.

  “Oh, have you met many?”

  “No, I have not.” I laughed.

  “Then don’t argue with me; must you always argue,” she teased.

  I growled at her. I pulled her into my arms and kissed her. I felt like I had the world now. I kissed her hard and deep. She was everything to me. It made me so happy that I actually feared it. If she were to be taken from me, I didn't know what I would do. She had chosen to stay, she had done this of her own free will, and it made me extremely happy. But she could change her mind at any moment. I hoped that it wouldn't happen. I liked being in my new home with her. She had moved into my living quarters. We were truly partners now even though she had refused my proposal to be my wife. I knew that it was too fast for her, but I wanted to feel relieved about our situation. But she wasn't ready, and I had to respect that. It only made me want her more. She was a challenge unlike any other. We had managed to get a message to Earth that she was safe and had been abducted by the Yinta but saved by the Alva Clan. It was a rough messaging back and forth for her to convince her father she was safe, but it was necessary. We did not want to have open war with Earth.

  “So, General, what will be your plans as a general?”

  “I think I could think of something. I am thinking about bed orders for you tonight. And you must follow them because I am a general now. You do not want to be punished by a general.”

  She arched her brow at me. “You know, there was a time when I took on a general all by myself. I took his sword from him and used it against him. So you better be careful. I am strong, remember?”

  “Oh, I remember. And that story about General Mez will always make me laugh. But I have seen you in action, my warrior human; you saved my ass before. I do not forget that you are a complete badass, and that is why I love you.”

  She laughed. I kissed her again. I kissed her with longing and passion. I wanted her to be mine and to give me those vows of a ceremony, but I would have to wait. Just like everything along our adventure together, she was always conflicted. She was arguing in her mind, and I could tell. But for now, I would be satisfied with having her in my bed every night and being mine and mine alone. This beautiful red-haired human female was the grandest adventure and biggest mission I had ever set out on. I would never be the same.

  “Karina, I think that the new general is needed on the platform,” Imuna said as she came up to us.

  Karina moaned in disappointment. I laughed and quickly made my way to the platform.

  I looked at the vast army lined up in front of the platform. I grew anxious, filled with adrenaline. I didn't know what Evex had planned for striking against the Yinta Clan, but I knew that it would be big. I knew that it could launch an all-out war between the Yinta Clan and the Alva Clan. This meant that none of us would be safe. This meant that the galaxies would be turned into a war zone in every reach. No system would be safe. I looked at the red-haired human female, Karina, that held my heart. I knew that it was important to her that the Earth system be spared whatever lay ahead. But something told me that they were going to be in the very middle of the battle that was to come between us and the Yinta Clan. I did not want to disappoint her. I did not want to break her heart. But I knew that if the Earth system came under attack that she would blame me, and she would never speak to me again. I would not be able to handle that loss, but only time would be able to tell.

  Epilogue

  “It is true, father. I am pregnant with the child of this Ition general,” I said to my father, Councilor Bradley Nolin.

  “How could it be? You disgrace me, daughter,” he said walking back and forth in the councilor chambers in anger. Councilor Vilox was in his seat looking at Imuna and at me.

  “And I am also with Ition child,” Imuna said stepping forward.

  “Both of you? This is a disgrace! They are the enemy!” my father shouted, his face turning a bright red.

  “No, father, they are not. I used to think the same way. But these Ition can be gentle. I have fallen in love. That is why Imuna and I have come back to Earth, on our own terms. That is why we are here in front of the council to plead our intentions,” I said.

  “And what is that?” Vilox asked.

  “That our pregnancies and marriages to the Ition end this cold war. We have all suffered for too long under the ridiculous rules that humans cannot interact with Itions and that the Itions cannot interact with us. It has caused pain and suffering. Together, the humans and the Alva Clan of the Itions can defend against the true enemy: the Yinta clan,” I said.

  My father looked at General Ayre and Leader Ein, who stood behind us. “And this is your wish too?”

  “Yes, Councilor. It is my wish. As Leader of the Alva Clan and husband to a human female, I want peace between us. I will do whatever is necessary to defend Earth against the Yinta. We have a common enemy, and they want your blood.”

  My father looked at Vilox.

  “This could be a good thing. If it is true that the humans and the Itions can get along as one, then this cold war could end. Your daughter and Imuna have proven that they mean no harm if they could marry and fall in love with the Ition,” Vilox said.

  “And there are others. There are other human females that have taken Ition husbands in secret and knew they would be exiled from Earth for it. Let them love in freedom,” Imuna said.

  “Others?” the councilors said.

  “It is true, father. I have met them. They are happy. They have children of their own with Ition soldiers,” I said.

  The councilors were quiet. They were in shock. Then they gathered together and began to speak to each other in secret. I looked at Imuna. She grabbed my hand and held it. I turned over my shoulder and looked at my husband, Manha. He gave me a playful wink. I loved him so much.

  “This will be the biggest change in human history. It cannot happen overnight, but we the council are willing to look toward stopping this cold war and leaving in peace with the Alva Clan. If it is true what is said about the Yinta, then we will need their help,” Vilox said.

  “And you will accept us as we are,” I asked.

  My father looked at me. He came forward and hugged me. It shocked me.

  “Yes, daughter. Though this is new and strange to me, I am just happy that you are alive and safe. If this is what makes you happy, then your happiness is enough for me. You have always been strong and knowing your love for this Ition could stop this cold war of ours, well… that makes you more special than I ever thought possible.”

  “Thank you, father; that means a lot to me,” I said.

  “Let it be known that from this day forward, humans are allowed to interact with Ition of the Alva Clan without penalty. We will start with that law a
nd slowly remove the other restrictions to maintain some peace and order,” Vilox said.

  “Thank you, Councilor,” Imuna said.

  I turned to Manha and hugged him. “We did it, Manha. Did you ever think our love could stop the cold war?”

  “I knew our love could do many things. It is strong.”

  Then he kissed me.

  The End

  Weredragons Of Tivuso Complete Series (Sneak Peak)

  (An Alien Abduction Romance)

  By Maia Starr

  Chapter One

  King Karik Korinth

  “Where is Moxor?” I whispered to Azlo over radio communications on my armband.

  “Moxor is not in sight. I have lost sight of Moxor. Jex, do you have eyes on Moxor?” Azlo asked.

  “No. No eyes on Moxor,” Jex responded.

  “Shit, Moxor… Moxor, come in,” I said into the radio. There was no response.

  “I see him. I see him. He's going in through the back. He's going in alone,” Azlo said.

  “Dammit, Moxor. Stand down. We are going in as a team,” I said into the radio. But there was no response.

  Moxor did things like this. Even though I was the king and leader of the Veruka weredragons, Moxor always wanted to disobey me. He was a hardcore weredragon soldier. But his ruthless and careless ways often put us in trouble. There were times when we had very close calls because Moxor would run blazing into fights and not wait for a signal. Like the time we went up against the Jitron monster on the planet Guidia. That was a close one. Now, he was doing it again. It was not that he didn’t respect my authority as his king; it was that he was reckless and insane.

  “Azlo, follow Moxor in through the back. Jex and I are going in through the front,” I said.

  “Yes, my king,” Azlo responded.

  Everything had gone according to plan up until this point. Everything had been laid out carefully, but I should have known that Moxor would jump the gun on the situation. I knew I should expect it and work it into the plans from then on. But how was I to know that there would not be a next time?

  We were launching an attack on a large building on Earth. It was a very important building. It was a building that was key in helping to turn the battle in the favor of the humans. The humans didn’t even know that we were doing this. In fact, they didn’t even know that we existed. Why would they? They weren’t an interplanetary species. They were not as advanced in space travel as we were. But they did build great machines. They built them so great that eventually the machines took over the entire planet and the humans were nearly extinct. This building was part of the machines. It was home to a cyborg repair facility on the continent that used to be known as North America, before the machines took over and all hell broke loose. This facility was where broken machines were brought to be repaired, or inactive ones were housed.

  The building was guarded by the ruthless and machine-driven cyborgs known as the Clenok. I didn’t know if they gave this name to themselves, or if the humans had given it to them. I only knew that now, there were billions of them spread out on the Earth and they had one mission: kill humans.

  Cyborgs were the hardest enemy to fight. Anything with a real conscious could be manipulated or maybe even reasoned with. That was not the case with a machine.

  The machines did not feel. They did not have humanity or any empathy-driven conscious. They were pure machine. You could not reason with them. You could not negotiate with them. They were set to do their mission: take over the Earth and drive humans to extinction.

  This was where we came into the picture. We needed something from the humans, and we knew that by helping them we could show them that we meant them no harm. So we decided to take out this facility.

  We knew this facility was guarded by Clenok cyborgs, but there were more Clenok cyborgs that were out of operation than in operation because most of them were undergoing repair and were turned off. Therefore we only had to go up against the ones that were turned on to guard the facility, and if our previous scouting information was correct, it was very few Clenok cyborgs to deal with.

  Our plan was to infiltrate and double assault, a team going in the front and a team going in the back. We had one important goal: set explosives and get the hell out of there. It was going to be a team effort, until Moxor decided to go in on his own terms, like he always did. I was impressed with his bravery but pissed off at his stupidity.

  "Moxor, we are coming in!” I said over the radio.

  “He must have turned off his communications or he is not responding on purpose,” Azlo said.

  “Wouldn't be the first time,” Jex said.

  “Alright, move in. Maybe we can still catch them off guard if we stay quiet and…”

  Boom! Boom! “Shit! Shots fired! Repeat, shots have been fired from inside the Clenok facility!” Azlo shouted.

  “Dammit! Move in! Move in now!” I shouted, and Jex followed me as we kicked open the door to the facility. Immediately, shots were fired in our direction, and we took cover behind the massive concrete poles of the warehouse-like facility.

  “I'm in! I'm in through the back! I cannot find Moxor,” Azlo shouted over the radio as we fought a full-on gun battle between the silver, metal Clenok cyborgs and us, the Veruka weredragons from Tivosa.

  “Dammit!” I shouted.

  “We have to set the charges now. We won't be able to hold them as soon as more Clenok move in,” Jex said.

  “Azlo, find Moxor! Set the charges along the way even if you have to throw them like grenades. Just find him!” I shouted.

  “Yes, my king,” he responded.

  “Jex, you go around the right, and I will go around the left. Ready?” I said.

  “Ready,” he said.

  We began firing at the Clenok cyborgs as we went around in different directions. I was laying down explosive charges, dropping them and rolling them underneath factory tables and machinery as I went. The Clenok cyborgs were hard to fight. You hit them once, and they did not go down because they were made of metal. You had to hit them several times, hoping to burn out their circuitry. It took a lot of firepower and accuracy to make that happen.

  “Moxor is down! I found Moxor; he is down!” Azlo shouted.

  “Motherfucker! Get him out of there! Forget about the charges and take flight. Fly him out of there. If you come toward me, I can give you cover,” I said into the radio communications. I was pissed. Moxor had done this to himself.

  “Yes, my king!” Azlo shouted.

  “I'm done setting charges!” Jex said.

  “Good. Get out of here. Help Azlo,” I said.

  “No, I won't leave you, my king,” was his response.

  “Dammit, Jex, get out of here; that is in order. Do not disobey your king!”

  I heard Jex grunt and growl over the radio. He did not agree with my orders. Just then, I saw Azlo flying overhead with Moxor in his arms. I began to shoot all the Clenok cyborgs that noticed them in order to protect him from their gunfire.

  “I got that one,” Jex said suddenly at my side.

  “Dammit, didn't I tell you to get out of here?” I shouted at him.

  “I didn't hear that order,” he said as he grabbed my arm and began to pull me backward. Together, we fought our way back toward the front door.

  “I am clear of the facility!” Azlo said.

  I looked at Jex. Together, we ran towards the front door and took flight, spreading our emerald-green wings and flying in the facility. We made it out the front door and into the open night sky where we flew straight up. That was the plan. Fly up and as high as you could. The cyborgs had a limited range, and they did not fly.

  “Detonating!” I shouted as I hit the detonation button on my armband. In a split-second, the entire facility blew up. Bam! Boom! Bam! Explosion after explosion went off. We cheered in victory.

  The heat and fire enveloped us, but it did not matter. We were dragons. We were made from the fire. It did not hurt us. We watched as the facility succumb
ed to the explosions. It crumbled in on itself. I hoped the fire was hot enough to melt those cyborgs. I smiled. Mission accomplished.

  “Go! Go! To the rendezvous point,” I said into the radio.

  We flew away from the mushroom cloud of smoke and flame toward a mountaintop high in the mountains with a thick forest that provided us with cover. It was where we had landed our army a week before. Earth was new to us. We knew it was under attack by the Clenok cyborgs for almost a decade. It had nearly decimated the entire population of humans. But it wasn't our fight. But there was a reason that brought us here, and I was now going to be faced with that reason more than I could ever know.

  “Set him down on the leaves,” I said to Azlo as he held Moxor. He sat him down on the leaves. I hovered over him.

  “Dammit. Why can you never listen to orders?” I said looking at his injury on the side of his torso. We had a good armor; it was part of being a weredragon. But sometimes a gun laser blast could get through if it hit us in the right soft spot. This was what happened to Moxor.

  “I am sorry, my king. But we both know that my time was up anyway. The blackness had come upon me. I would rather give my life in battle than to succumb to this strange plague that is new to us. I did not want to die a weak Veruka in bed. Now I have an honorable death. Now I died defending my king and helping the Earth humans. I am at peace,” he said in a whisper as the life was leaving him.

  His words were honorable. They were the true words of a Veruka weredragon. They made me proud. He was a good soldier, and I understood what he meant. We gathered around him until his last breath. I had never been prouder or more saddened by the death of a soldier. We had all grown up together, Moxor, Jex, Azlo, and Razook. We were tight even though I was king. We had trained together since we were young. Losing Moxor was like losing a brother. I could see the pain and anguish on each other’s faces as he left us. But we knew that he was right. None of us wanted to give into this strange illness that had sprung itself onto us on our planet. It was unexplainable. But we were too honorable to die in bed, a sick weredragon. We were born to fight, protect, and defend. We knew that if we were in Moxor’s place, we would have done the same thing.