The Tigrens' Glory (Soul-Linked Saga) (Volume 9)

by Laura Jo Phillips

  “It worked,” Faith announced her eyes trained on something no one else could see. “It’s through the jump point and it’s heading straight for the largest Xanti ship.”

  Xi-Kung was exhausted from worry and tension. His ship had been attacked twice more as they worked their way to the one Door that would take them back to their home galaxy. He’d been forced to run both times, barely escaping the second time. Careful evaluation of the recordings of all three attacks had revealed that both Queen Narliq-Li and Queen Zarnia-Te’s ships had worked together in each attack.

  He hated having to run, but his first and most important duty was to warn his queen, Xaqana-Ti, of the other queens’ betrayal. His ship crippled and vulnerable, they’d finally reached the Door to safety, and it was their turn to jump. He sat on the bridge waiting impatiently for the various protocols to be completed before, at long last, they entered the Door and jumped.

  The first thing he saw through the view screens when they arrived on the other side was an enormous explosion.

  “Send the message packet to our Queen immediately,” he ordered the communications officer.

  “Yes, Commander,” the male replied even as he obeyed the order. “It will take several hours to reach Xantara at local speed.”

  “Understood,” Xi-Kung said. He took a moment to study the two dozen or so ships waiting to use the Door on this side. “Captain, identify which of those ships belong to our Queen.”

  “There are three,” the Captain replied, having already performed that task the moment they concluded their jump.

  “Do we know who fired…no…it doesn’t matter,” Xi-Kung said. “Fire on the other ships immediately.”

  “With pleasure, Commander,” the Captain said enthusiastically. Xi-Kung turned to the comm officer. “Order our brother ships to fire on all ships not belonging to Xaqana-Ti.”

  “Yes, Commander,” the comm officer replied, the fingers of his makina already flying over the control board.

  Faith gasped, her eyes wide. “Oh crappola!” she exclaimed breathlessly. Her eyes widened further and she took an involuntary step backward, then another, stumbling against Tristan’s console, her mouth opened in shock.

  “Faith?” Tristan asked, waiting until she turned toward him. “What’s happening?”

  “Um...well...I’m not sure exactly,” she said. She glanced back out the viewport. “There are fifteen Xanti ships left. No, make that eleven.” She winced. “Ten.”

  “Ten?” Garen asked, trying not to bark.

  Faith nodded slowly, a wide grin spreading across her pale face, her hazel eyes sparkling. “The missile hit one ship and blew it up. Then another ship that had just come through the Door started firing on the other ships…they’re all bunched up close to each other waiting to go through that Door, so it was like shooting fish in a barrel. Then the other ships started firing back.” She looked through the viewport again. “Um…well, there’s only four left now.” A pause. “Okay, make that three.”

  Suddenly the room was filled with cheers and shouts of relief. Faith was pulled up close to Tristan’s chest and hugged so tightly her ribs creaked. The celebration didn’t last long though. There were still three Xanti ships out there.

  Faith quickly made adjustments to the number and placement of the remaining ships, surprised when they grouped themselves together again. “They must all be on the same side,” she said.

  “Probably,” Tristan agreed. “They’re apparently unaware of our jump point, and that’s all that matters.”

  “Let’s send more missiles through,” Garen said. “If we can destroy all three before we jump, so much the better.”

  “I think we can control two at a time,” Faron said. “Launch them a few seconds apart.”

  “Send one for us to start with,” Maxim said. “Then two, if necessary.”

  “Let us know when you’re ready,” Tristan said.

  Faith barely listened as she kept her eyes trained on the Xanti ships. They’d moved a little apart from each other, but they were still very close. As she watched, two missiles popped through to the other side of the jump point, then immediately curved toward the Xanti. Three seconds later a third missile followed, then two more.

  “Enough,” Faith called before Tristan released any more. The first three had wiped out the entire group, making the last two unnecessary.

  “There are no more Xanti ships on the far side of the jump point,” Faith said. “At least, none that I can see,” she amended.

  “Order the Eyrie through,” Tristan told Gray, who acknowledged the order before transmitting it to Captain Rolin.

  The atmosphere in the Pinnacle was much more relaxed than it had been a few minutes earlier, but they weren’t done yet. They still needed to get to the other side of the jump point, then cover it while the rest of the task force joined them.

  They watched as the Eyrie moved into the jump point, then engaged its jump drive. Moments later Faith confirmed the Eyrie’s arrival visually, seconds before the Eyrie’s confirmation transmission was received. A few minutes later the Eyrie gave the Ugaztun the all clear to jump.

  As soon as the Ugaztun finished its jump Faith visually scanned for enemy ships before turning her attention to the Door. “I don’t see any other Xanti made Doors around here,” she said after she finished marking it. “The number of ships that were waiting to use it makes me wonder if it’s the only one in the area.”

  “We’ll leave a cruiser here to keep an eye on it,” Tristan said. “They won’t need to see the ship to know when something’s coming through.”

  “Anyone want some good news?” Jon asked. Every face in the Pinnacle turned toward him. “We’re less than half a day’s travel from Xantara.”

  “You’re right, Admiral,” Garen said with a grin. “That is good news. And, considering the depth of the Xanti’s paranoia, it explains why there’s only one Door in this area.”

  Faith started to turn toward Jon with a smile when she caught something from the corner of her eye and turned back. “A Xanti ship just came through the Door,” she said tightly, reaching up to mark the ship’s location.

  “I can see it,” Gray said in surprise.

  “We’ll take it,” Olaf Gryphon said. Everyone watched as the Xanti ship turned toward them, then stuttered off course as its hull peeled open, exposing the interior to the unforgiving vacuum of space.

  “Two more coming in,” Faith said, marking the location of two Xanti ships speeding toward them from the opposite direction.

  “We can see those too,” Jon said in confusion. “Do you think they aren’t using Blind Sight because they’re so close to home?”

  “It’s possible, but knowing what we do about the Xanti, I doubt it,” Garen said as he sent balls of fire into the Xanti missiles streaking toward them, causing them to explode long before they reached their target.

  The Xanti ships stopped when their missiles were destroyed. For a long moment they remained motionless. By the time they turned around it was already too late. Within seconds of each other both ships went up in white flashes of incandescent fire, courtesy of the Katres and the Dracons.

  “Either Blind Sight has ceased to function, or they’re so startled to see us they forgot to engage it,” Faron said. “Somehow, I doubt it’s the latter.”

  “So do I,” Garen agreed. “I don’t want to take any chances though.”

  “Don’t worry, Highness,” Faith said. “I’ll keep my eyes open.” Garen smiled his thanks, then turned back to the viewport.

  “The Vyand is through the jump point,” Jon announced. Moments later the Katres’ ship moved into position covering the front of the Ugaztun. Several minutes after that, the Ala Lahoi took up her position on the port side of the Ugaztun, while the Eyrie covered the starboard side. With the Ugaztun fully covered, the tension level in the Pinnacle eased significantly. There were still a lot of ships that needed to come through the jump point, but each one would add to those guarding the Ugaztun, and
the women aboard her.

  “Three more Xanti ships are approaching,” Faith announced, marking them as she spoke.

  “Wait just a few moments before attacking them,” Jon called, his hands racing across the control board in front of him. “I want to try something.”

  Everyone waited tensely as the Xanti ships grew larger through the viewport. “I just hit them with a sensor pulse, and confirmed that their Blind Sight systems are activated. And, look at them—they aren’t making any evasive maneuvers.” he said. “They think it’s working, but it’s not.”

  “All the better for us,” Faron said. “We’ll take the one on the left.”

  “We’ll take the middle one,” Olaf said, while Maxim Katre claimed the last one. Moments later there was nothing but a swath of debris where the Xanti ships had been.

  “How are you feeling, Saige?” Lariah asked. The Lobos had used the most magic so far. Magic that was channeled through Saige.

  “I’m getting tired,” Saige admitted.

  “Do you need to go lay down?” Faron asked, immediately worried.

  “In a little while,” Saige said, smiling up at her Rami. “Give me another half hour, then I’ll take a break.”

  “Take as much time as you need, Saige,” Garen said. “You’ve earned it. Besides, the rest of us would like to squish a few more bugs anyway.”

  “Squish?” Maxim asked, frowning at the unfamiliar word.

  “One of Lariah’s technical terms,” Val said. “It’s much like squash, except that squishing is performed with a horizontal motion, whereas squashing is done with a vertical motion.”

  The male Lobos, Katres, Gryphons and Falcorans all stared at Val for a moment before shrugging or nodding solemnly. Made sense to them.

  Summer stared at Lariah with wide eyes, biting her bottom lip hard in an effort to contain her reaction. Lariah winked back, then turned to stare out the view port, letting her hair fall forward to cover her face as she fought to hide a sudden case of nervous hiccups. Saige covered her mouth with both hands and coughed until she nearly choked, earning her several concerned pats on the back from Faron and Dav. Aisling took a deep breath, then held it until her face turned a bright shade of magenta before blowing it out, bending over and wrapping her arms around her middle, tears streaming down her face. Faith snorted, then clapped a hand to her mouth and swallowed hard.

  Aisling broke first. It was Faith’s snort that did it. After that, she just couldn’t hold it in any longer. Her mouth opened and bright peals of laughter filled the room. Saige was next, with Summer and Lariah right behind her. Faith was last, but that was only because it took her a moment to catch a breath of air.

  The men stared at the women in blank surprise, then exchanged confused and concerned looks with each other. Val arched a brow at Garen and Trey, then looked significantly at Lariah. Garen bit back a grin as understanding blossomed. He leaned over and whispered something in Lariah’s ear that had her turning redder than Aisling, though she didn’t lose her smile. If anything, it got wider.

  Chapter Twenty Three

  Glory looked around the dream valley, wondering where the Tigren were. There was something very important that she was supposed to do, but she couldn’t remember what it was. She turned around, searching as she called out to them, but there was no sign of them, and no answer. Finally she sat down on the cool grass, placed her hands on her knees, closed her eyes, and relaxed her body.

  It took a lot longer than expected, but eventually she was able to sense a faint trail that she was certain belonged to Kyerion. She stood up and followed it. She tried to go fast, but her dream body continued to drift along rather slowly, refusing her efforts to speed up.

  After a while she looked down, shocked to see how transparent she was. Below her, she saw the room filled with hibernation tanks and remembered. She gasped and turned toward the area where the Tigrens’ tanks had been, wondering how she could have forgotten. She’d released them though, right? She thought so, but maybe not. Everything seemed so vague and distant.

  Movement caught her eye and she turned toward it. It was Kyerion! And just behind him was Kirk, and yes, there was Cade! They were far below her, but she’d recognize them anywhere, from any angle. There were many people with them. Some humanoid, some not. They were moving from tank to tank, opening them as quickly as they could. Behind them, others helped the newly released prisoners as they coughed up the breathing fluid before taking air into their lungs for the first time in untold millennia. There were no white sections left, and only a few blue ones, but there were at least a hundred people down there, and the number grew with every tank they opened. They needed medical assistance, food and water. But how could she get help to them? Where were they?

  Ah, she thought, understanding at last. That’s why she was there. She needed to find out where this place was, and let the Jasani know so the people below could be rescued. She turned slowly, looking for an exit, then shook her head at herself. She didn’t need a door. She had no physical body. She looked up to the high ceiling and rose upward. Just before she passed through the metal ceiling she closed her eyes. She felt a little silly about it, but the thought of passing through solid objects made her queasy. After a few moments she dared to peek through one eyelid. Relieved that she wasn’t inside anything solid, she opened both eyes and gazed around herself, trying to understand what she was seeing.

  It was very dark, the only light coming from two moons that seemed far too close. She looked down at the enormous black structure that held the hibernation tanks. It was too large for her to see beyond it, so she rose higher, and then higher again. Finally, in the distance, she saw the edge of the building so she drifted toward it. She was confused to see that there was nothing beyond the building but pitted rock that curved out of sight much too sharply, as though it were an impossibly tiny planet. She looked up, but the feeling that everything was too close persisted.

  She studied her surroundings, carefully noting the moons, a distant sun, the pattern of stars and planets from her position, in particular one that was quite large and dark red. When she was satisfied that she’d seen all there was to see, she closed her eyes and focused on leaving the Dream Walk.

  One moment Saige Lobo was dreaming that she was running through the rolling hills of Dracons’ Ranch in her loboenca alter-form, her Rami surrounding her. The next moment she was surprised to find herself in a familiar fog filled space. “Riata?” she called as she turned in a slow circle. She frowned. When she went in search of Riata she sometimes had to wait a few moments for the Spirit Guide to appear. But when Riata pulled her in she was always nearby.

  “Saige?”

  Saige spun around in shock. “Glory!” she gasped. The other woman appeared strangely faded and gray, almost as though she were a part of the fog that surrounded them.

  “Where are we?” Glory asked.

  “In my mind,” Saige replied. “Or my dream. I’m not really sure. This is where I meet my Spirit Guide.”

  “Why can’t I wake up?” Glory asked.

  “You’re in a healing tank,” Saige said. “You sustained a serious injury while trying to free the Tigren and have been unconscious ever since. We don’t even know for certain if you succeeded.”

  “I did succeed,” Glory said. “And I know where they are. I tried to wake up, but I couldn’t, so I’ve been trying to find one of you dreaming so I could try to speak with you.”

  “It’s the middle of the day right now, so no one is sleeping except for the ginormous pregnant woman,” Saige said.

  “Lucky me,” Glory smiled faintly. “How much time has passed?”

  “I’m not sure exactly since I don’t know how long I’ve been sleeping,” Saige said. “About one full day. A little less, maybe.”

  “That’s good,” Glory said. “I’m afraid my strength is about gone.”

  Saige had no doubt of that since Glory was fading with nearly every word she spoke. “Tell me what you know, and I’ll pass the i
nformation along.”

  “They’re on an asteroid, I think,” Glory said. “That’s what it felt like to me. It’s too small to be a planet, and there’s no atmosphere outside of the structure they’re in. They’re releasing as many of the other prisoners as they can, but the systems are failing fast.”

  “Can you tell me more about where they are?” Saige asked.

  Glory’s forehead creased with obvious effort. Suddenly, they were surrounded by an image of two moons, a dark planet, and a pattern of stars above her overlaying the gray fog. Below her sat an enormous black structure.

  “I’ve got it,” Saige said, worried when Glory’s hands flew up to her head. “You need to return to your body now, Glory. Don’t try to Dream Walk any more.”

  “Save them, Saige,” Glory said, openly pleading. “Please.”

  “We will do everything we can,” Saige said. “I promise.”

  Glory’s expression returned to the calm that Saige had come to expect from her, but her eyes spoke eloquently of her true emotions. Then she faded away completely, melting into the gray fog.

  Saige closed her eyes and willed herself to wake up. Moments later she sat up in bed and swung her legs over the edge.

  “Saige?” Faron asked from the table in the corner. “Is something wrong?”

  “I just spoke with Glory,” she said.

  “What do you mean?” Faron asked.

  “She came to me in my dream,” Saige replied. “She successfully freed the Tigren, who are releasing as many of the other prisoners as they can before the remaining tanks fail. They’re on an asteroid, or maybe it’s a small moon. I’ve no idea how she did it, but she showed me images of the surrounding stars and moons.” Dav hurried to help Saige climb off the bed. As soon as her feet hit the floor she hurried to the closet, reached in, grabbed a pair of loose lounging pants and yanked them on.