by K. D. Jones
“Lieutenant, I believe that you were told to go wherever I go were you not?” Jaxon asked him with mischief shining in her eyes.
Realization dawns on SilAS’s face. “Yes Captain, wherever you go.” SilAS quickly dons on his flight suit. They head into the docking bay.
“Commander, we have a situation.” A Lieutenant informs Commander TylOR
“What is it Lieutenant?” TylOR glares at the nervous male.
“Sir, the female warrior and her guard have taken two warships and are headed directly to the center of the battle.”
“What?” For the first time Commander TylOR glanced around the room and found that the female warrior was indeed missing. “How long have they been gone?” He looked at the viewing screen again. There were 10 more Kiljorn warships heading out to battle.
“Oh Daddy, Mama likes!” Jaxon says over her Comm link.
“Level out Captain. We can’t hit the acceleration unless you are flying in a steady pattern.” SilAS tells her.
Jaxon straightens out her ship. “So, we can go faster than this?”
“Much faster.” He says.
“Captain Malone, Lieutenant SilAS, you are both ordered to return to transport immediately.” Commander TylOR’s deep authoritative voice comes across the Comm link.
Oh shit. “Hi Commander, how’s it going?” Jaxon asks him while making sure the coordinates are programmed into the navigational system.
“Did you not hear what I just said Captain? You were ordered to return to transport. Your commanding officer has spoken!” Commander TylOR’s voice grew even louder making, Jaxon and SilAS winced.
“No offense, but you are not my commanding officer. In fact, I currently do not have a commanding officer.” Jaxon switches her Comm link to connect to SilAS directly.
“Lieutenant, you were saying something about acceleration?”
SilAS is reeling from the way the female warrior just spoke to the Commander of the Kiljorn Nation. Oh Kitana. “Uh … yeah, the blue button will accelerate your speed each time you press it.”
“Like a turbo booster? Cool. How many times can I press it?” She asks eyeing the blue button.
“Five times, but I would advise you to press it no more than 3 times.”
“Why not more than 3?”
“More than 3 times may cause your ship to overshoot your destination. You could end up in a black hole.” SilAS explains.
“Oh. Well, we don’t want that.” Jaxon agrees.
“On my mark, hit the blue button one time. Ready and … GO!” SilAS calls out.
“Hell yes! That’s what I’m talking about.”
“Are all human females this uncontrollable?” Commander TylOR asks Prime Medic SydEL.
“From what I have seen, yes.” SydEL replied.
“Why do you put up with it? They have strange eyes, small fragile bodies, and they never do as they are ordered. Is it worth the headache?” Commander TylOR asks.
“I ask myself the same thing on a daily basis.”
One minute Jaxon was flying at the speed of sound. The next thing she knew, she was going faster than she had ever thought was possible. It was incredible. She kept her eyes on the viewing screen that showed her where she was. That was about all she could do. The acceleration restrained her movements.
“Five more minutes we should be there.” SilAS tells her.
Jaxon just hoped they were in time to help Kyd. He was going to be pissed.
“Okay Captain … It’s time to decrease acceleration. Push the yellow button on my mark. Ready and … GO.” SilAS calls out over the Comm link.
It felt like a roller coaster coming to a sudden halt. Thank God the ship had good straps to hold her in her seat.
“Captain, how are you doing?”
“Good. Where’s the battle?” Jaxon couldn’t detect any ships on her viewing screen. Are they too late?
“We’re approaching it fast. Stay with the coordinates. When we get there, I will take the lead. The Morins don’t follow any kind of rules of engagement. They will shoot you down first without a second thought.” SilAS relays to her.
“Got it.” Jaxon had butterflies in her belly. She was going into battle. She was excited and scared all at once.
“Incoming!’ One of the other lieutenants who had flown out with them called out.
Jaxon’s fighter pilot senses kicked in. She located the enemy ship approaching and fired without hesitation. She got him the first try.
“Good shot Captain!” SilAS yelled. And then it got busy. Five more Morin warships came at them.
Jaxon and the other Kiljorn warriors got rid of the enemy ships quickly. They came upon the main battle. The two big transport ships faced each other. About a hundred warships were engaged in serious battle with one another.
“Where’s Commander KydEL?” She asks.
“Attention Commander KydEL. This is Lieutenant SilAS with Team 2 checking in.” Lieutenant SilAS opens communications.
“Lieutenant, why did you leave your post?” Kyd’s deep angry voice came across the Comm link making Jaxon shiver.
“He didn’t. His post came here.” Jaxon answered for him while she shot at an enemy ship.
“Jaxon! What in Kitana are you doing?” Kyd is so distracted that he doesn’t see the Morin ship approaching and locking onto him as a target. Not until the enemy ship suddenly blows up right in front of him.
“It appears that I’m saving your ass Commander.” Jaxon tells him.
“Damn female!” Kyd grumbles.
“Can’t talk now, there’s a battle going on. Watch your back.” Jaxon says as she shoots forward chasing another Morin ship.
Battling in space was similar to what you’ve seen in the movies, only 10 times more intense. Everything was much faster. You had to lock onto your target quickly or the enemy would be gone in the blink of an eye.
“Captain, to your right!” Kyd yells at her over the Comm link.
Jaxon performed evasive maneuvers and barely escaped being blown to smithereens. “Thanks Commander.” She didn’t know how long the fighting had gone on. Just when she thought that their efforts were in vain, the cavalry arrived.
“Lieutenant RowAN with Katieran teams 8 and 9 reporting in.”
And that wasn’t all. The Kiljorn transport was now there and damn if the big ship didn’t have weapons too.
“The Katieran transport ship from Earth needs assistance. They’ve been breached by the Morins. Team 2 board and help with the breach.” Kyd commands over the Comm link.
Jaxon is about to assist with the breach, when she notices a Morin ship approaching Kyd. “Commander, you have a tail at 2 o’clock!”
Kyd evaded the shot sent his way and proceeded to give chase. She followed too. They were moving further away from the battle and the transport ships. She had a sinking feeling. Her suspicions were confirmed when another Morin ship came out of nowhere. It was an ambush.
“Kyd, watch your backside!” Jaxon quickly fired a direct hit on the Morin ship but it had already locked onto Kyd and sent off a shot. It hit Kyd’s back left thruster. Jaxon’s heart dropped to her stomach.
“Kyd you are hit. You need to go back to the transport ship.”
“Not yet, this guy is heading towards one of the Lunas. I believe it may be a base for them. I need to find out.” Kyd replies.
Damn man! She had no choice. She tried to call in their location to SilAS but she could not connect with him via her Comm link. She sent out a distress call to the Kiljorn transport ship. There was no way she would leave Kyd, especially with his ship damaged. They circled the Luna that Kyd thought the Morin ship flew to but didn’t see anything.
“Kyd, it’s time to head back. There’s nothing …” Jaxon is interrupted when 2 Morin ships comes from the other side of the Luna and starts firing at the both of them.
“Get out of here Jaxon!”
“Not without you!”
“Damn Female!” He grumbled.
“Stubbo
rn, idiotic man!” Jaxon retorted.
Since Kyd’s ship was not fully functioning, Jaxon tried to get the Morin’s focus on her. They worked really well together as a team. She set up the first ship in target range and Kyd shot it down. The second ship was more difficult to set up than the first. The Morin realized that Kyd was the weak link since his ship was damaged and focused the attack on him.
“Kyd watch out!” Jaxon felt like she was going to throw up. The Morin hit Kyd’s other thruster. He was falling towards the Luna. Jaxon destroyed the Morin ship, and then went after Kyd.
“Can you eject?”
“Not at this speed. You need to connect our ships and try to land us.”
“Connect how?” She was glancing at her controls for some kind of grappling button.
“We have designed a way that two warships can connect and travel under the power of only one ship for situations like this. It’s the white button on your right. Fly directly over me and align our ships the best you can. Then, push the white button. The moment the connection is made, all piloting power will transfer to your ship and you will be able to fly and land us on the Luna below.” Kyd instructs her.
“Why don’t I just fly us back to the transport ship?” Jaxon asks as she tries to maneuver her ship above Kyd’s. It is more difficult than she anticipated. He is unable to keep his ship steady because of the damage done to both his thrusters.
“We’d never make it. Either we would run out of fuel before we got there or we would be sitting ducks for any Morin ship that comes after us. You won’t be able to fight them with me attached.” He checks her position on his viewing screen.
“Lower down just a little … bit … more. NOW! Push the white button!”
Jaxon pushes the button. She is slightly jarred as the two ships connect. “Okay, we’re connected.” She can definitely tell a difference in the way the ship flies now that it had extra weight to it.
“Fly us down to the Luna. Try to find a good location we can take cover in. Fly past that area and pick a landing spot.” Kyd directs her.
Jaxon did as he told her. She entered the atmosphere of the Luna. She checked her ship’s computer to make sure that the air was breathable. It was. She checked for life forms. She noted there were life forms indicated for the northeast side of the Luna. Probably the Morin base like Kyd thought. She flew towards the opposite end. The Luna had some mountain ranges. There should be caves that they could hide out in and defend themselves. She flew past the mountains and searched for a flat area to land.
“There Jaxon, to your left.” Kyd told her.
“Got it!” Jaxon directed the ships to the flat spot in an open field to land.
It was bumpy. A lot more bumpy than a normal landing would have been. She was worried about Kyd since he was taking the brunt of the rough landing.
“How are you doing Commander?”
“Just land already.”
“Keep your britches on.” Jaxon replies causing a growling response from Kyd.
Finally, they were on the ground. Jaxon quickly unstrapped from her seat and hit the open hatch button on her control panel. She climbed out the ship and jumped down, since her ship was perched on top of Kyd’s. Once on the ground Jaxon walked around the ships looking at the damage that had been done to Kyd’s ship. If the Morin had been any closer, Kyd’s ship could have blown up altogether. That thought upset her.
“What were you thinking?” Kyd yelled at her as he pushes his door open manually since there wasn’t much power left in his ship.
Kyd walked around the ships observing the damage done. He, also, kept his eyes on the surrounding area. This place was not safe. It was out in the open and would give them no cover if they were attacked. He stomped back over to a red faced Jaxon.
“You left the safety of the Kiljorn transport ship, flew a warship you have no training for, and put yourself in the center of a battle. You could have been killed!” He couldn’t control his temper any longer.
Jaxon glared at him and lashed out. “What the hell were you thinking? Following after an enemy ship solo? You could have been killed!”
They stood there face to face. The adrenaline was pumping rapidly through both of them. They were both breathing heavy. Kyd grabbed hold of the back of Jaxon’s head and pulled her to him. His lips were not gentle, they were demanding. He pushed his tongue past her lips. He lapped at her roughly, sucking on her tongue. They both moaned. Jaxon wrapped her arms around his neck and rubbed her aching body against his.
What was he thinking? Kyd pushed her away from him. He shook his head to try to clear his mind of the mating impulse surging through him. He couldn’t do this right now. It wasn’t a safe location.
“We need to get going.” He orders.
Jaxon stood there feeling shaky. How could he just stop like that? Her whole body was on fire for him. He wouldn’t look at her as he started heading for the mountain ranges.
“Are we going to talk about what just happened?”
“No.”
Chapter 12
“Slow the fuck down!” Jaxon is furious. How dare he give her one of the best orgasms she ever had and then he acts like nothing happened? To top it off, he is walking too damn fast. How can he expect her to keep up with his freakishly long legs?
Kyd doesn’t turn her way. He keeps walking. “We can’t stop now. We need to reach cover as soon as possible.”
“I don’t see why we can’t stop for just a few minutes.” She grumbles.
He stopped abruptly making Jaxon stumble into his back. He turned to face her. It was the first time that he had the nerve to look at her since he lost control back at the ships. Never had a female affected him so strongly. The thought that he could have lost her in battle tore at him from the inside out.
“The good news is that our ships have distress signals which the Katierans and Kiljorns will use to find us. The bad news is our ships have distress signals which will aid the Morins in finding us before the ‘cavalry’ does. We need to seek shelter so that we can hold the enemy off until help arrives. Do you understand now?” He returns to walking towards the mountains.
It took them about 2 ½ hours to reach the mountain range. At the base was a small stream surrounded by shrubs and trees. They took a break inside the enclosure of the trees.
Jaxon plops down on the bank of the stream. “Oh man, I’m so thirsty.”
Kyd squatted near the stream and scooped up a hand full of blue-green water. He sniffed it and then drank it.
“What are you doing? That water could be dangerous.” Jaxon scrambles to her feet and rushes over to Kyd’s side.
Kyd tries to hide his smile. It pleases him greatly that she cares for his welfare. “It smells fresh and all the plants surrounding are healthy.” He scoops another handful of water for Jaxon to drink.
She hesitated for a moment, no matter how angry Kyd was at her, he would never endanger her with bad water. She knew it in her gut and her gut was never wrong. She leaned down and sipped the water from his hands.
Kyd growls his response at the touch of her lips on his hands. This is what mates do for one another. They care for each other’s needs, including feeding them by hand. “You can rest a bit while I circle around the base to find a cave we can hide in.”
She looks into his dark almost black eyes with the shining gold centers. “Thanks. I think there is an opening a few feet up the mountain wall. We’ll have to scale it, but it will give us better coverage.”
He nods. “Stay here. Be safe.”
“You stay safe too.” She says making him smile warmly at her. The man can melt butter with that smile. She tries to lighten the mood. “If you’re not back in 10 minutes I’m hunting your ass down.”
He chuckled but kept going. Damn female turned him inside out.
While she waited for Kyd to come back, Jaxon scoped out the area around the stream. There was a spot where the stream disappeared under some rocks. The embankment was muddy there. She found some kind of
berries that appeared edible. She picked some and put them aside for Kyd to check out.
Where was he? Jaxon tried sitting down only to get back up and pace up the stream again. It seemed that she had been waiting for hours. She reached up to touch her hair in its usual braid. She knew she looked horrible. Yes, they were in danger, no food in sight, and she was worried about her hair. She stood stock still when she heard footsteps.
She was relieved when Kyd came through the clearing. Thank God he was okay. “What took you so long?” She demanded.
“Missed you too Jaxon.” He replied sarcastically. He went to the stream’s edge to drink some water.
“Did you find the opening I saw?”
“Yes. How good are you at climbing?” He asks gazing up and down at her.
Jaxon shivers from his perusal of her body. “I’m an excellent climber. Rock climbing is one of my favorite past times back on Earth.”
“Good.” He noticed the berries that Jaxon gathered. “Have you tried some of these yet?”
“I was waiting for you to check them first.”
“They are edible. You will like them. They taste sweet.”
She reached out to grab some berries, but Kyd stopped her. He lifted some of the berries up to her mouth. Jaxon ate the berries from his hand and couldn’t stop herself from licking his palm and fingers. His eyes widened with the simple contact. She suddenly wanted to drive this man crazy, as crazy as he drove her. She took his thumb into her mouth and sucked hard.
Kyd responded instantly. He growled, jerked his thumb from her mouth and attacked her lips with his own. He could taste the sweetness of the berries. His tongue surged into her mouth just the way he wanted his shaft to surge into her warmth. Jaxon groaned in response. All of a sudden, he pulled away from her.
“What …?” Jaxon asked slightly disoriented. This was the second time since they landed on the Luna that he left her hanging.
Kyd turned around. He placed himself between her and the trees. “I heard a noise.” He whispered. He motioned for her to remain quiet.
She tried to slow down her rapid breathing. Jaxon observed the surrounding trees. Her gut told her something was out there, but she couldn’t see or hear anything. She wished she had the keen senses of the Katierans. She also wished she had a gun. A furry creature about the size of a pig ran out of the trees. It caught sight of them, stopped, growled, then turned and ran back into the trees.