by Maia Starr
The crowd gathered clapped in applause. Leader Rangellis put his arms in the air in victory. For him, it was a victory. It would be for me too if I did not have the empathy I felt for Miranda. I was torn between the success of the Zenkian plot and the feelings of my human female lover. It was a tight spot to be in.
“Let it be known that we foiled the humans; we even made the one they sent to us as a leader into one of our own. Converted her. We have won this trickery of the humans, whatever they were really planning to do with this ridiculous talk of peace. Do not trust them. We will prevail. We will conquer!” Leader Rangellis said.
The crowd saluted him before everyone disbursed. Miranda was shaking as I walked her back toward my speeder.
“Take me to the sandy beach with the ocean. I need some air,” she could barely get the words out she was so distraught.
“Of course,” I said. “We will go there now.”
Chapter 16
Miranda
My entire body was shaking as Evlon drove his speeder to the sandy white beach. He opened the door, and I got out and inhaled the sea salt air. I had just watched my crew be murdered in front of me. I had watched them put their lifeless bodies in a ship with Brad to return to Earth. When he got to Earth, he would tell them that I was a huge traitor and that this was entirely my fault. It was a lot to take in, and I thought that I was going to faint as I walked across the sand.
“Why did he do that? I don't understand why Leader Rangellis is so ruthless. He is evil! I could never do something like that. How could he?” I rambled on and on. I was in shock and not sure if I was making sense. I was just saying things out loud to myself. I felt strong arms wrap around me. I looked up into the red face of a Zenkian. It was the father of my child, Evlon. He was my alien enemy, and I should hate him. But I could not. He was the only thing I had at the moment.
“Shhh...I know it was a horrible thing. I apologize for the ruthless behaviors that we have as Zenkians. But we are Zenkians, and that is what we do. We are not like the humans. We are different. But I am sorry that you had to see that. I did not know that was going to happen. I did not know that was why Leader Rangellis wanted you to be there. He made an example out of you. I am not happy about it, but he is my leader there is nothing I can do. But I am here for you, Miranda. We will get through this together. You have a right to grieve your friends as long as you need to. I am here at your side, always,” he said gently.
I rested my cheek against his strong chest. I could feel the stiff material of his black uniform against my skin. I cried. All I could do was cry for the loss of my friends. It was as much my fault as it was Leader Rangellis’ and I was having a hard time admitting it to myself.
“Nothing will ever be the same again. I will be known on Earth as a hypocrite and a traitor. I have betrayed my own race and my own planet,” I said.
“No, you did not. This is not your fault. Besides, you will never return to Earth, and you will never have to face that scorn. I know it will be hard, but you will see that this will be a different life for you. We will start a new life, you, me, and our child,” Evlon said as he put his hand on my belly.
I became calm. At that momen,t I remembered that I had something more to go on for. I couldn't give up. I couldn't let this struggle take me down. This child was going to need me, both of us. Evlon was right: I was about to start a new chapter on an alien planet, and I couldn't be a fragile human trying to get through it. I stopped crying and stood up straight.
“You are right. I need to be stronger.”
“Now you are speaking like a Zenkian. Be strong, my human,” he said.
He kissed me. As he kissed me, I could hear a sound. It reminded me of the whirling sound of the wind from the sandstorm. I pulled away from him looking confused.
“What is that sound?”
Evlon was smiling, but as soon as he focused on the sound his face dropped. “Missile fire!” he shouted. “Run, Miranda! It’s the rebels!”
I ran hard and fast as he ran at my side toward the speeder. There was no cover to be had on the flat sandy beach.
Boom! I felt my body flying through the air. Everything went black, and I felt a mild sting. It was the last thing that I remembered.
When I woke up, I had no idea what happened. I was lying on a table in the examination room. The very same room where I had discovered that I was pregnant. I allowed my eyes to focus, not sure about what had happened.
“Evlon?”
“She is awake! I am here, Miranda,” Evlon came to my side. He had a large bandage across his forehead. There was black smudge all over his red skin.
“What happened? Are you alright?” I said trying to sit up.
“No, do not get up. Lay back down,” said put table.
I felt pain in my body as soon as I moved. I groaned from the pain.
“Can we give her something for the pain?” Evlon asked the soldier at his side.
“We can give her some Taq,” he said.
“Yes, but only a little; I do not want her to pass out,” Evlon said.
“No, I do not want it. It cannot be good for the baby. It is a drug,” I said.
Evlon looked at the soldier, and the soldier looked at him. For the first time since I met him, I saw tears form in Evlon’s eyes. I felt extremely sick to my stomach as I saw his face change to complete sadness. I did not want to know what he was that about, but I already knew. I could feel it.
“Evlon? What happened? The baby?”
“We lost it. I am so sorry, Miranda. I failed to protect you and our child.”
“What? No!”
“Yes. I am sorry. We were caught in a blast. It threw you several yards and the force of the blast and the impact of the fall…you are no longer pregnant.”
“No! No!” I shouted over and over until I could not speak anymore. Evlon threw his arms around me and cried with me. We lay there a pile of mourning parents that never even had a chance with their child. I could not handle it anymore. I had been through too much. The emotional pain was so great that I passed out.
Chapter 17
Evlon
The surprise attack by the rebel scum had taken a lot from me. I thought they had taken Miranda from me. When I found out that the baby did not survive the blast, I was devastated. But then she had not woken up from the injury. I thought that I had lost her as well. I could not handle the loss of both of them. I needed her to survive.
So when she finally woke up, I was relieved. But having to tell her that the child was no longer with us was extremely painful. She had been through so much in one day. She had watched her crew be murdered, and her career on Earth sabotaged. Now she had gone through an attack blast and lost a child. It was too much for anyone to take in.
A week passed, and she was in extreme grief in my dwellings. She would not leave the bed. Fortunately, her injuries from the blast were not serious except for losing the child. But she recovered from the injuries of the blast quickly. I was grateful for it. But she had changed. She no longer had the fire inside of her. It was hard to see her in such a fragile state.
I sat on the balcony overlooking the city. I had a drink in my hand contemplating how the rebel attack was able to catch us off-guard, even though I had scouts on the lookout.
“Tell me more about these rebels,” I heard her say. I turned around surprised to see her walking out onto the balcony. She had not left the bed for a full week. This was a good sign. She wore a Zenkian green dress. Her space suit had been destroyed in the blast and probably helped her not get burned. But now she was a Zenkian, and she would dress like one.
“Miranda! Please, come sit with me.” I was excited to see her moving about.
“No, I have done enough sitting. I have rested long enough. Tell me about the rebels,” she said with a serious tone.
“I don't think that is a good idea. Let's not think about the rebels right now. Let's only think about getting you back to normal,” I said.
“No, there is
no normal for me anymore. I want to know everything that there is to them and what you are doing to defeat them,” she said. I realized where she was going with this.
“You want revenge?”
“Yes, don't you?”
“Yes, I am always ready to take down the rebels.”
“Good, then we shall do it together. We will kill them all if we have to. They took our child from us, and we will take from them. For as long as it takes and wherever it takes us. We will conquer; we will prevail,” she echoed the words of our leader. It was damn sexy to me to see the fire back in her.
“What do you want to know?”
“Everything. Why are they known as the rebels? I don't understand.”
“It is a very long history. First of all, the rebels have blue skin, not red like ours. That alone caused a division amongst the Zenkians long ago. Then there are the differences in the way we live. The rebels do not have war games like we do. They are more docile, even though they are strong. They do fight, but they don't make sport of it the way we do. They want us to live in peace, that is not what we want. Our leaders want them to bow to us and obey. The blue bebels want their own government; we want them to be ruled under our own under one planetary government. It is better for the planet that way, but they are too stupid to see that. There is a long history, but that is the basic principles of the conflict between us. We want to own them; they do not want to be owned.”
“I understand. It is the same with the humans on Earth and the Zenkians.”
“Precisely, only on the same planet.”
“I want to speak to Leader Rangellis. Is it possible to have a meeting with him?”
“He usually does not meet with human slaves,” I said.
“I understand that. But given the circumstances of how I came here, I think that he will see me. Will you put in the request?”
“Yes, of course. I will do anything for you.”
“Good; now I need to get out of this dwelling. Can we go somewhere? Anywhere. I need a good stiff drink and to forget my troubles,” she said. I pulled her into my arms and groaned. I was glad to see the life come back to her. She had a renewed purpose, and although that purpose was dark and vengeful, I did not care. If she needed to live and thrive off revenge against the rebels, then so be it. That wouldn't be any different than every single Zenkian in our city.
“I know just the place,” I said to her.
Twenty minutes later, we were walking into the bustling tavern. I showed my claim on Miranda by holding her hand, making sure that everyone saw. By now everyone knew who she was anyway because of what happened with the humans. They knew she belonged to me.
We sat down at a long table with Tormunt. “Evlon! And his human! Welcome; join me,” Tormunt said.
“Tormunt! Good to see you.” I said.
“Inta for my friends!” he shouted to a female Zenkian bar wench. She nodded.
“What is Inta?” Miranda asked.
“A strong drink,” I said.
“Oh, yes. Perfect. I will have two,” she said.
Tormunt laughed a hearty laugh. “I like this one. She is just like you,” he said.
“She might be better than me,” I told him.
The drinks were placed in front of us, and we picked them up and clashed are cups together in cheers. Then we drank. She wrinkled her nose. We laughed at her. Then a Zenkian female sat on Tormunt’s lap, taking his attention off of us.
“What do you think? Is this what you had in mind?” I asked Miranda.
“Yes, it is perfect. I just want to get drunk and not think about anything,” she took another swig.
“Before you get drunk, I want to tell you something and I want you to remember it.”
“I am listening,” she said.
“I am completely in love with you, Miranda. You are mine; you are my slave. But in reality, I am your slave. I will do anything for you. I want you to know this. It is you and I together in this; I belong to you,” I declared.
“You love me?” she asked surprised.
“Yes, I love you.”
“Even though I do not carry our child anymore?” she asked with her eyes watering.
“Yes, of course. I loved you before I found out you were with child. And do not worry about that. In time, we can have children. For now, it is just us, and I could not be happier that you are with me,” I said.
She threw her arms around me. “I was worried you hated me for losing our child.”
“I was worried you hated me for not protecting you. I failed you,” I said.
“No. I was there. I remember. There was no way you could have prevented what happened.”
“I love you,” I said.
“And I love you, Evlon,” she said. Then she kissed me.
“Shall we drink to it?” I said.
“Absolutely,” she said. “Do I have your permission to get drunk now, master?”
“Yes, you do,” I laughed.
We drank to our love. Then we stayed in the tavern for hours, and it was just the distraction that she needed. We had a great time together, and she was charming and funny when she was drunk.
I had to carry her over my shoulder when we returned home. She slept for the first time since the rebel attack. The next day I put in the request for her meeting with Leader Rangellis. I did not know what she was up to.
Chapter 18
Miranda
I knew what I had to do. Evlon probably wasn't going to like it. But I didn't care. I wanted my revenge. I wanted it so badly that I could taste it. The rebel scum had taken my child from me. I wanted to take everything from them because of it. I did not know how I could do that. I was a fragile human on an alien planet with absolutely no power. I sat in bed for a week mourning the death of my unborn child and the loss of my team. But then it hit me; I had a plan. I knew that I had to at least try. So, I asked Evlon to request a meeting with Leader Rangellis. A few days later, it was granted. Now I stood in front of him in his chambers.
“We were all sorry to hear of your loss. The rebel attack was a terrible one. We all suffered from it,” Leader Rangellis said.
“Thank you, Leader Rangellis,” I said. “Evlon and I will be getting pregnant again as soon as I am able,” I immediately said in case he was thinking about taking me away from Evlon now that I was not pregnant with his child.
“That is good news. What did you want to speak with me about? I hope you are not going to persuade me to try to speak of peace again. We have put that behind us, haven't we?” He looked at me with anger on his face.
“I have not come to speak about humans at all. Yes, I have put that behind me. I have come to offer my assistance to you and to the government.”
He looked at me confused. “I don't understand your meaning, Miranda.”
“You know that I held a prominent position on Earth. You know that requires some form of intelligence. You were able to trick me. You captured me and my team. I bow to your intelligence. You are clearly a worthy leader,” I said stroking his ego before my request. He smiled in response.
“Go on,” he said.
“I want to use my intelligence against the rebels. I want to join the fight. I want to be active. Clearly, I do not hold a candle to your soldiers. I am not a battlefield fighter, but I am a fighter of intelligence. I want to help. I want to take down the rebel scum that took my child from me. Use my intelligence, Leader Rangellis. I promise to do all that I can to defeat the rebels. I want to help you bring them to their knees. I do not know of what assistance I can be yet, but once I know how the Waysaw handles the rebels, I can offer my expertise. I know I can help if you will just give me a chance.”
“You want to help us bring down the rebels?” he arched a brow at me.
“Yes, exactly. How many human intelligence officers do you have working with your government?”
“None, for obvious reasons. We cannot have information leaking back to the humans on Earth,” he said.
“I under
stand that. All of my work can be monitored if you wish. I have no interest in Earth anymore. Anvin is my home. I belong here. I am owned by the Zenkian soldier Evlon. I want to be part of the fight. I want to help defend my new home. I want to defeat the enemy that took my child from me. I will not stop until they are all eliminated.
He smiled. He seemed pleased with my request. Then he said, “It looks like I did a very efficient job in converting you into one of us. I will consider this if you will consider my proposal,” he said.
“What is that?”
“I will allow you to be in the government structure system and help us to defeat the rebels in exchange for your information of all things humans. And by that, I mean everything you know of the military defenses against us and of your own department. Real information that we can use,” he said.