by Vi Voxley
The dropships that were going to take him and Havoc to their flagships were waiting, the engines purring softly. Dana and Sean had come to send them off.
The boy had tears in his eyes, moving them all.
"You will come back, right?" he asked, his voice shaking from the crying. "You will teach me to fight, right?"
"Yes," Chase promised. "We will come back. We wouldn't leave you and your mother alone in this universe."
He was looking at Dana as he said that, searching her eyes for any reaction that might have said how she felt about that.
The only thing he could see was love. Not the all-powerful, world-conquering love that was the Gargon bonds, yet. A softer, kinder one, hinting that the other was not far off. She was hiding her fear better, but it was clear to see nonetheless to those who knew what to look for.
Sean seemed to want to say more, falling short every time he tried. In the end, he ran up to him and Havoc and hugged them.
"Run along now, Sean," Dana said when the boy pulled away. "I need to talk to them alone for a minute."
When her son was gone, if rather reluctantly, Dana wore her feelings on her face more openly. She hesitated before speaking, some kind of fight still going on inside her. In the end, taking a deep breath, she looked at them with those amazingly beautiful big eyes of hers and spoke.
"I... I wish we had a little more time before you had to go. I wish a few things had gone differently, too. I can't say I overreacted, that would be unfair in hindsight, but – I really do want you to come back. I want to see what this could be."
"Does this mean that you're staying?" Havoc asked.
Chase had never wanted to shoot him that badly, yet he resisted. It was important he didn't let Dana know how tightly she held their hearts and lives in her small little hands.
And then she said something that made everything infinitely better, forever.
"Yes. I think we are," Dana replied quietly, a smile on her face.
Havoc pulled her in for a kiss first, claiming her lips in a passionate display of love that Chase knew at least they felt. Judging by the way Dana replied before turning to him, she wasn't that far from it either.
Kissing her deeply, loving the feel of her soft lips against his, Chase thought that the bond between the three of them was like a war itself. An uphill battle against the cruel tides of fate that had thrown the three of them together, with endless obstacles in their way.
At first, they'd all fought alone. Now Chase felt like they were a single unit, ready to face down the challenges life had for them.
When they had to break for air, Dana's eyes were shining and Chase knew the smile on her lips would keep his heart warm throughout the cold, bleak war to come.
"Come back," were Dana's last words to them before the dropships took them away.
We will, Chase thought. For you. Forever.
17
Dana
A few weeks later...
She was alone.
The realization hit as soon as the dropships of her fated had disappeared from sight. The longing was so vivid and so immediate that it really surprised Dana.
She'd expected to be afraid for her warlords – after all, despite what they portrayed to the world, they weren't gods. Anyone could be vulnerable in a straight-out war with a vicious opponent and Dana knew enough about galactic warfare to understand there were no guarantees.
The villa was suddenly emptier, too. The fact that Chase and Havoc had taken most of their warriors with them wasn't that big of a change for her. The Gargon warriors had kept to themselves anyway, leaving their commanders with their fated after they gathered to discuss tactics and initial reports with them each morning.
The support staff was still at the villa and Havoc had left half a garrison of his best warriors to run the place in his absence.
Dana had protested that it was a little excessive. In turn, Havoc had reminded her that they had other duties besides guarding her, like preparing Octava for an attack in case the League broke through the lines after all.
She had spent the rest of the day with her son, trying to play with him on the arena, testing her new sword. It only made things worse.
Havoc's sword was a beautiful, terrific gift that Dana treasured from the bottom of her heart. It showed the warlords were truly trying to win her over.
She was starting to believe the stories that brought so many women to Octava. Not just that, she was starting to believe they might have been for her all along and she never listened. The problem was that now that she was falling for her fateds, hard and fast, Dana would have loved to have them actually there with her.
And not, well, in mortal danger.
As the days passed and became weeks, everything reminded Dana of them, the sword the most of course, a true gift and proof of their feelings for her.
She put it away, resolved to let Havoc's captain teach her some other day.
No moping, she decided. I should busy myself instead. I haven't been to the ship in a while now.
That was both good and reasonable. If she kept her mind off her fated, the time would pass more quickly. And she could try and ease some of the guilt over the fact she hadn't taken care of the Sanguine as well as she should have.
"Sean!" she called for her son. "Come on! We're going to see our friends!"
The boy came, running, and they set off to find someone insane enough to let them leave the safety of Havoc's villa. Now that Dana had been introduced to the place properly, she understood why even Chase had been okay with the chosen refuge for her.
The entire structure was reinforced and protected with a power shield, inactive for the time being. The lower floors were below ground, strong enough to withstand everything but the actual breaking of the planet's core. She and Sean had rooms prepared there in case a message came, saying the League had broken through.
The man in question turned out to be Captain Berollen, the same guy who was supposed to teach her how to handle a sword. He was even less impressed with her idea than Dana had thought.
"You are the fated of my commander," the captain protested. "Why leave the villa? I'm under instructions to keep you safe."
"Yes," Dana said firmly. "Safe, not in prison. What you say is true, I am Havoc's fated. I am also the ambassador of the Sanguine and no amount of war will release me from that responsibility. I want to go there.
"You are welcome to join me if you feel I'm not safe, although you know as well as I do that the entire Gargon armada stands between us and the League right now."
"I can't make you stay, can I?" the captain asked sourly.
"Not if you don't want me to call Havoc, no," Dana replied, beaming, a grin on her lips.
That did the trick. Half an hour later, a surprisingly comfortable civilian ship landed in the villa's gigantic yard and took them away. Captain Berollen accompanied them with ten of his men, a total overkill for sure. Dana wasn't going to argue, though. It was enough of a victory that she’d managed to get out of the villa to begin with, she wasn’t going to question it further.
She needed someone to talk to, someone who wasn't a Gargon. Havoc and Chase were great and she missed them more than she'd thought possible. Dana wondered what had happened to her friends. She hoped Isabel had gotten over her bitter disappointment and was ready to give their friendship another go.
She could use some company.
The Sanguine was abnormally silent when they arrived. Dana had been the leader of the mission for five years now and she'd never heard the long corridors be so quiet. She could have heard a feather drop, but the truth of the matter quickly revealed itself to her.
With Captain Berollen in tow, Dana and Sean went to the bar first. It was a natural first instinct to Dana, expecting the passengers to search the company of others and maybe drink a little before the end times arrived.
She was wrong. The bar was empty except for Mack, who was sleeping behind the counter. The man awoke at Dana's insistent poking and
smiled widely, pointedly ignoring her entourage.
"Ambassador," he said cheerfully. "Good to have you back. And Sean, too."
"Thank you," Dana said, looking around at the empty hall. "Not back, though. Visiting. This lovely gentleman here wouldn't let me stay if the world around us was on fire. Where is everybody?"
Mack chuckled a little, a hint of regret in his eyes.
"Yeah, I heard," he said. "Not only one Gargon fated, but two. And not just any two either. Havoc and Chase. Gods, Dana, you landed some serious guys."
"Tell me about it," Dana sighed, avoiding Captain Berollen's eyes. "Now. Everyone. Where?"
"They should be here soon. The Gargons offered to give them all self-defense lessons. They take place in the grand atrium on B-floor. I'd expect to see some sweaty, happy women soon."
"Huh," Dana said, very pleasantly surprised by that. "Mighty nice of them."
She'd been worried about the Sanguine. Not only for the ship's safety, but the general morale of the crew as well. As much as she tried to tell Sean otherwise, the League could not be underestimated. They were coming for Octava and whatever quarrels they had with the Gargons, the Sanguine was caught right in the middle.
It was very good to hear that the women hadn't taken the news as badly as they might have. Instead, they were proactive and Dana couldn't have been prouder.
Still, there was something laying heavily on her mind.
"Have you seen Isabel lately?" she asked. "I don't like the way we left things. And Rebecca?"
"Both fine, both alive," Mack said. "Can I offer you something to drink while we wait, Ambassador? And your guards?"
Judging by the look on Captain Berollen's face, Gargon warriors didn't drink on duty, especially when they were protecting their commander's fated.
Dana shook her head.
"Nothing, thanks," she said. "You can pour me and Sean some juice. I'm not really up for anything with more punch, I've been feeling a little sick lately."
If this turns out to be something stupid like I miss Havoc and Chase too much, I'm going to roll my eyes so hard.
"You should see the healers," Mack offered, pouring apple juice for her. "So how long are you going to be–"
He didn't get to finish that sentence before Dana's cry split the air. She clutched her stomach, collapsing on the ground, with every soul in the bar hall rushing to her. Sean was shaking, his blue eyes wide in horror. Captain Berollen had drawn his sword, his red eyes burning in his head as he kept Mack at aim, a deep frown on his face.
Dana pushed them all away. She needed air. It felt like her insides were being torn apart. The stomach pain that had bothered her for a few days was back with a vengeance, it seemed.
Gasping for air, she tried to find Sean with her gaze.
"It's okay," she panted. "I'm okay, Sean. I just ate something bad."
"You're bleeding," Captain Berollen cut in sharply, turning to Mack. "You. Healers?"
"I'll show you," Mack said at once. "This way."
Captain Berollen picked her up like she weighed nothing. Dana fell into the warmth of his huge body, her head resting against the warrior's shoulder guard. The pain was so intense she felt like she was going to pass out.
As they rushed through the door, the first women returned from their practice, tired but happy-looking as advertised. The smiles fell from their faces as soon as they saw her.
"Ambassador!" several called. "Dana!"
She saw Rebecca in the crowd, motioning for her to approach. The girl rushed to her side, concern written all over her beautiful face.
"What happened?" she demanded.
Dana wished she knew. Her guess of it being food poisoning didn't sound right, she'd only said that to calm Sean. After all, she'd been coming to Octava for years, there had never been any problems with their food.
"I don't know," she whispered. "Rebecca, take care of Sean. Calm him down. Don't let him near the med bay until–"
The girl nodded, understanding at once. Dana watched her slip away, going for her son, who was desperately trying to follow her through the sudden mass of bodies. Dana thought she glimpsed Isabel somewhere in their midst.
"Come, Seanie," she heard Rebecca call softly. "Your mommy isn't feeling very well, but they're going to fix her up in no time. Come with me, I'll show you something great..."
The sounds faded away and so did the world. Dana's last conscious thought before the fluorescent lights of the med bay started shining somewhere in front of her like a beacon was that she was bleeding. Reaching out her hand between her legs where the pain was most intense, it came back covered in blood.
18
Havoc
Ten days later…
Chase came to see him aboard his flagship, Redblade.
That didn't surprise Havoc. Lately, the other warlord had been less evasive than before. It wasn't by their own choice, yet it couldn't be denied. Life and fate had tied them together with bonds that couldn't be broken and they were making the best of it.
Dana was the most important one, of course, but not the only one. There was also the weight of the Gargon army on their backs, not to mention the Alliance. All those things dragged them closer whether they liked it or not.
Mostly they did not. All throughout their long and complicated friendship, Havoc had thought of Chase as an equal more than anything. The only man on Octava who was on the same level that he was. That had been fine with him, creating a comfortable and mutually beneficial rivalry. Now they were forced to be more, united in their love for Dana and joined in their concern for her.
"Any news?" Chase asked, stepping into his private armory without a greeting or request, very alike him.
"Geria was lost this morning," Havoc said idly, working on his armor as he liked to do in quiet moments when he wasn't needed on the bridge.
It felt good to know all his weapons and equipment were ready when the time finally came to face the twins and send them back to whichever hole they'd crawled out of.
"I see," Chase said seriously. "Pity. The flagship had a great part to play in the reinforcing of the left wing. It needs to be dealt with now."
"Already done," Havoc replied. "I pulled two ships from the Gamma escort."
"Which two?" Chase asked at once. "You can't break up the strike unit like that."
"I broke nothing. Romata and Ilessa."
He saw Chase consider that. It was one of the main reasons why they got along as well as they did. As they were both warlords, it was utterly natural that they disagreed all the time. Their skills, their tactics, weren’t exactly alike.
The reason why Gargons were such a feared military power in the galaxy was because they didn't have a single fighting creed. Every warlord shaped his warriors after his own style and it worked, always being unpredictable to the enemies.
Unlike many others, Chase wasn't nearly as irrational as he sometimes looked. For example right then, he was weighing the possible outcomes in his head, trying to figure out if Havoc had made the situation better or worse.
Chase didn't need to disagree with him, he simply sometimes did. And they were both the better for it.
"Fine," Chase said at last. "I see what you meant. Captain Ores will be a fine addition to the left wing. I still think we should keep the strike unit intact."
"I have no intention of breaking it down further. The loss of the flagship was regrettable. It won't happen again. Now, what about the Alliance?"
Chase hid his annoyance well. Havoc had to stifle a chuckle, knowing they were united in one more thing and that was thinking that the rest of the Alliance was more trouble than help.
It was nice of them to want to pitch in to their own defense, but honestly, the Gargons would have preferred to fight the war their own way. Now they had the added task of keeping an eye out for their allies.
It had been agreed between Chase and him that as far as the grand battle plan was concerned, they wouldn't risk it. If the Alliance needed reinforcements, they wo
uld give them only as long as it didn't jeopardize the battle that really mattered.
As harsh of a truth as that was, it was still the truth.
"Any news from Octava?" Chase asked then.
Havoc stopped. The communication with their home planet had been difficult lately. The League knew they needed to keep in touch with Octava, which was why a large part of their effort was aimed towards scrambling the hololinks, every possible communication channel between the armada and the home world. The galaxy itself was already treacherous enough as it was without asteroid belts and anomalies getting in the way of establishing a secure link.
They hadn't been able to get through to Octava in a while.
Havoc knew they were both thinking the same thing. They needed news of Dana, her well-being always present at the back of their minds. It was for her that they were fighting the war, really. For the future of all who wanted to live in peace with their fated, really.
Yet for Chase and him, the cause finally had a face and a name.
"I'm sure she's fine," Havoc replied.
He wondered if it was meant to reassure Chase or himself.
That night, Havoc was awoken by his personal comm link beeping insistently.
It was Chase, who had decided to stay aboard the Redblade until things had settled. They needed to be aware of all developments and it was better to discuss tactics if they were in the same room and didn't have to rely on the perilous communications.
The twins weren't far, they both knew that. Havoc knew the desire to finally face them in a real battle was burning as hotly in Chase's heart as it did in his.
He answered the link, fully prepared to hear Chase say the twins had arrived. His sword was right at his bedside, the armor looking like it was new and yearning to have the blood of his enemies splattered across it.
"It's Dana," Chase's voice said. "Holocall. The lounge above your armory."
Havoc was moving before the other warlord finished his short message. He only threw on his long coat before heading to the lounge. There were a few places aboard his ship where the link could be established more securely and that happened to be one of them.