Fenturi Fate (Spacestalker Saga Book 1)

by Bevan Greer

  -17-

  The Year 4043, FenBy

  “Are you sure about this?” Ren asked and ran a hand over Dare’s large belly. Their babe was due any day now, and he couldn’t help his nervous excitement at thoughts of his child coming into the world.

  “I’m positive.” Dare leaned forward to kiss her mate on the lips.

  Ren still couldn’t believe she was his, now and forever. She only grew more beautiful every time he looked at her. He nearly tripped when Mra suddenly appeared and twined around his legs, begging attention.

  “Nice for you to finally show yourself,” he muttered even as he stroked the soft brown fur. It had taken a while, but Mra had finally succumbed to the attentions of Thela’s guidecat. Ren expected Mra would soon have a litter of her own, as soon as she saw to Dare’s and his young one.

  “I just want to make sure you’re doing it because you want to, and not because I want you to,” Ren said again.

  “Really, Ren. I love you, but you have to know I would never give up the SpaceStalker unless I was completely sure it was the right thing to do. Besides, Jace needs it now.”

  Ren was amazed at how things had turned out on this newly named planet. It hadn’t been easy, and lives had been lost in the war with the Ragil Horde, despite the Thrax doing its job.

  The Horde had shuttled hundreds of their dark kind to Bylar and managed enough carnage to rock the world for a long time to come. Exhausted by their trial in space, Dare and Ren had done their best to fire at the Horde from the sky while their Fenturi and Bylaran brethren fought the vile creatures on the ground.

  Black and scaly with long teeth and a thirst for blood, the Ragil Horde had fought to their last dying breath. They had used blades as weapons, made from an alien yet powerful source. Lasers bounced off their armor. Only blades thrust in the right angle and hand-to-hand fighting had overcome them.

  Fenturi and Bylaran alike had fallen. Much to the sadness of them all, Rorn and Herm had given their lives, as had Nedham. For months, Nesham had been inconsolable.

  Surprisingly, Jace had helped him to accept, if not overcome, his grief. And soon Nesham would be only one of several new crewmates on the SpaceStalker.

  Nesham, Castor, Mikhel and Koneru had decided to join Jace and the SpaceStalker on its next mission, whatever that might be. With Castor on board, Ren figured the Legion might take a little time off from going after the SpaceStalker. If anyone could keep Dare’s Second in line, it was Castor.

  Mikhel, having been assured of the Fenturi’s fate under his sister’s and the king’s leadership, had finally given in to his desire to live for himself. He longed to see the wonders of space.

  Koneru had left his position as the king’s guard in the capable hands of Roc. The two had become fast friends, and since Roc had shackled Shea to his side and in a few months would look forward to the birth of his first child, he needed an appropriate line of work.

  “Uh oh, Ren?” Dare clutched at her belly.

  Panic ran through him faster than the Thrax could move through space, and he shouted at Mra to get help as he led Dare to the cottage they shared just outside of the village.

  The palace still held too many unhappy memories for Ren, and he’d never felt right there. But in the Fentra forest with Dare, he felt at home. Other Fenturi had slowly moved near them, some even moving into the village after making deep friendships as a result of the Horde battle.

  Ren held Dare’s hand as his mind raced.

  “Zebram did a good thing renaming the planet, don’t you think?” he chattered inanely. If any of his warriors could see him now, they’d never believe it.

  With Rorn’s death, a large void had been created. Zebram had solved that neatly by introducing his brother—Garen—as the new Master of the Legionnaires. The move had been both intelligent and from the heart. In so doing, Zebram had sealed his brother into the Vinopol history he had not previously been a part of.

  “FenBy is not a bad name.” Dare gave a weak smile before another pain hit her. “But Fentra would have been better,” she gasped.

  Mra soon returned with Myla in tow. They surprised Ren when they removed Dare from the cottage to a pallet laid out carefully, deeper into the woods. But as the bright blue light of the Mari moon shone upon the four of them, Ren understood.

  He waited the next few hours on edge, pushed out of the small clearing by Mra.

  You’re annoying me as well. Go be a human male somewhere else. She’d frowned at him.

  “Did she have it yet?” Jace asked from the shadows, his hands at his sides while Ren reached for the blade always on his body.

  Seeing Jace, Ren relaxed.

  “Yeah, we’re getting tired of waiting.” Castor joined Jace by the tree.

  Amazingly, Jace and Castor had become fast friends. Before he knew it, Ren found himself tied to the large blond man not only through Dare, but through Castor as well.

  “You look a little nervous. You okay?” Jace tried to sound solicitous, but Castor didn’t even try to hide his grin.

  “Just wait until you have one of your own.” Ren continued to pace.

  Suddenly Jace cocked his head, at the same time Ren felt a new presence in the world. “He’s here,” Jace said and they moved toward the woods.

  Ren found Myla handing his newborn son over to his mate. Dare smiled tenderly down at the dark-haired infant.

  Ren felt his vision blur as he kneeled down next to his wife and child. “I love you,” he said and took his son into his arms. “My two treasures.”

  “So beautiful, like his father.” Dare looked exhausted but beautiful and held tight to his arm as he cradled his babe.

  “Congratulations, Darel and Garen N’alen,” Jace said softly. As was the custom of the Mari, which Myla had told them, Ren had assumed Dare’s surname. He liked it much better than Vinopol anyway, a name Thela and his brother now shared.

  “Thank you, Jace.” Dare held out her hand for her best friend. He joined them and laid a finger on the child’s forehead.

  He closed his eyes, and when they opened, shining like a rainbow, he grinned.

  “He’s a little fighter, just like the both of you.”

  You’re going to have to tell Castor that you’re a Psi, you know, Dare said mentally, including Ren in the conversation.

  I will, just not yet. I have things to do before my destiny draws me near. I only hope things will turn out half as well for me as they did for you two.

  Then Jace bent and kissed Dare on the forehead. He patted Ren on the shoulder.

  Ren nodded. Go and best of luck. Know that if you need us, we will come. We’ll be here…

  Dare had explained Jace’s unique gifts to him a few months back, and he was astonished at yet another gift the System had to offer. A real, true Psi had been walking under his nose for over a year and he’d not known it. Ren wondered what other myths and rumored in the System would prove true.

  Castor clapped him on the back. “Congratulations, Ren. Dare. He’s beautiful.”

  “With any luck he’ll have her temperament and looks.”

  “No joke,” Castor teased.

  Ren glanced over his shoulder in the direction Jace had gone. “Don’t let him think he’s the boss all the time.”

  “I didn’t do that with you, so why would I do that with him?” Castor asked gruffly. He grinned down at the small child in Ren’s arms. “I hope to see you three again before he gets any sisters and brothers.”

  Dare took the baby back in her arms and motioned for Ren to go. The SpaceStalker had delayed only to wait for the birth of Dare’s child. According to Jace, they could wait no longer.

  Ren promised to return momentarily and moved to the side with Castor.

  “This trip is shrouded in mystery, and I have a feeling it’s going to be dangerous.” Castor’s feelings usually came true. “But I still find myself too excited to leave off. If something should happen to me, give this to my folks, eh?”

  Ren pocketed the note
Castor handed him. “I will. How’s Nesh doing?” He hadn’t seen the male in a few days.

  “Nesham’s still down but is getting better. Jace is really good with him, and Mikhel’s presence helps. That Fenturi rebel may be a hell of a warrior, but he’s a novice in the sky.” Castor shook his head. “I’ll look out for Nesh. You look out for that wife and son. So you going to call him Castor like we agreed?” Castor laughed.

  Ren punched him in the arm and chuckled. “Dare and I were preparing for a girl, but now I guess ‘Mari’ is out. I’ll let you know when you vid screen me in a few days, okay?”

  “I will. I’ll miss you, Ren.”

  They hugged, and Ren felt an odd pang of sadness. He’d miss the brawny warrior, a man he’d counted as a brother for many years. “You take care. Send word as soon as you need help. I mean it.”

  “Sure thing…Mom.”

  They ribbed each other before Castor left.

  Ren returned to the woods to his wife and child lying dreamily under the moon. Mra purred and left the couple when he arrived. Always watching out for the Mari, he thought. Their own semi-invisible guardian.

  “Thela and Zebram just stopped by,” Dare said with a tired smile. “I told Zebram to come back tomorrow to visit his nephew. I don’t think Thela will be joining him, though. Myla told me she’ll be too busy giving birth to twin girls.”

  Ren laughed in surprised and kissed his mate. “I love you so much.”

  “And I love you. Now what are we going to name this boy?”

  Ren smiled. “Anything as long as it’s not Mari. He’ll never be able to go anywhere without someone picking a fight with him.”

  Dare laughed and watched with her husband as the light of the moon blanketed them in peace, and the song of the Thrax lingered in their minds in welcome and joy.

  -Excerpt-

  From the upcoming Reclaiming Mystique

  The Nearworld System

  “We aren’t going to make it if we don’t get out of here,” Nesham said quietly, seemingly unconcerned that despite his piloting skills, the ship was about to be blasted into the far reaches of space.

  Castor swore and checked the ship functions again. “I told you those Meklens would be nothing but trouble.”

  Jace A’rel, captain of the SpaceStalker, opened his mouth to respond to his second in command. Instead, he barely managed to avoid falling into the control panel as another laser blast hit the side of his ship.

  With his options severely limited, he did what he had to do. “Damn them. Nesham, head to Dark World.”

  “You’re kidding, right?” Koneru asked. Normally the good-natured Rovi remained unruffled, catching him off-guard an almost impossible feat. If not for the severity of their situation, Jace would have laughed.

  “No, I’m not kidding,” Jace said grimly. “Nesham, hurry it up. We can’t take much more abuse from these idiot rebels.” Had the Meklens just one person with half a brain on board the vessels chasing them, Jace could have used his secret psi abilities to avoid this battle. But the Meklens were known more for their violence and strong-armed tactics than for their intelligence.

  “What did you say to them on Pith to set them against us, anyway?” Castor grimaced and rubbed his head where it had banged against the wall. “I thought your work on the planet had been to gather information.”

  “It was until you showed up and ruined things,” Jace growled.

  “Oh. Right.”

  Angered more at himself than his Second, Jace tried to contain his rage by speaking in calm, precise words. “For the past ten years I’ve been a successful space pirate. You joined the crew last year, and ever since, your reputation as a System lawman precedes you.”

  “I, ah, think I’ll go join Mikhel in the back.” Castor hurried from the control room. Smart man.

  Jace watched as Koneru fired the ship’s small store of weaponry back at the Meklen warships. The SpaceStalker had been built for stealth and speed, not for battle. If only the Meklens hadn’t taken them by surprise, blasting the hyperdrive beyond simple repair…

  Jace supposed he shouldn’t have faulted Castor too badly. How could any of them have known that the Meklen rebellion, thought to have been nearly extinguished by the System Legionnaires, still had a hardy crew of hangers-on just waiting for a chance to get even?

  Jace had met with the Meklens on Pith to gather information about the Cazeth, mythical, dark beings said to wreak destruction on all they touched. What no one knew was that the Cazeth were far more than a myth. They were the source of a personal vendetta begun more than a decade ago.

  He’d been so excited at finally getting a break and learning about the Cazeth that he hadn’t thought to mask Castor’s familiar face on the offchance he might be recognized. Unfortunately, Castor’s fierce reputation as an elite Legionnaire Stalker had aggravated the Meklens into this hunt to the death.

  Dark World was the closest planet to them, and the only one that might deter the Meklens from following. It didn’t matter that once a ship landed on Dark World, it was rarely heard from again, or that all manner of things—demons, devils and the like—purportedly occupied the planet. It was either take their chances on Dark World or face imminent death under Meklen fire.

  Jace had come too far now to succumb to death’s unforgiving state.

  They approached Dark World, an aptly named Nearworld planet. The Legion System was comprised of five large Motherworlds and twelve known smaller Nearworlds. Jace and his crew tended to gravitate toward the Nearworlds, where the law normally turned a blind eye.

  “The Meklens have eased off,” Nesham reported.

  “Great.” Dark World had a reputation for death and destruction unequalled in the System. Jace had personally met a survivor of the planet, but the man hadn’t been too sane. At all.

  He shrugged and prayed for the best as the ship shuddered down into a large gray field.

  As they landed, Castor and Mikhel joined them in the control room, all five of the SpaceStalker crew studying the harsh landscape. Dozens of empty ships littered the planet’s surface. From what little they could see, there was no vegetation on the planet save several small clusterings of spindly, orange-leaved trees. The dirt beneath the ship appeared gray, the sky beyond pitch black.

  Mikhel stared in wonder. He was the newest member to space travel, a full-blooded Fenturi from the planet FenBy, and he’d only been in space for as long as he’d been a member of Jace’s crew. In that short time, Mikhel’s horizons had been broadened beyond anything he might have imagined.

  Hels, Dark World surpassed even his imagination, and Jace had been a space traveler for decades.

  “It teams with life,” Mikhel said. His blue eyes glowed, his Fenturi senses picking up more than most could see. “But that life is tainted.” He shuddered as he stared at the closest grouping of orange-leaved trees. “I do not think we should venture outside this ship.”