BRYCE (Galactic Defenders Book 1)

by Jessica E. Subject

  “Bryce,” she whispered. “There’s something I have to tell you. I’m a—”

  “Virgin?” He’d suspected as much. Hence the multitude of suitors vying for her affections. Yet, none of them stood a chance. She was his. “I’ll go slow, be gentle.” He wanted to make it the best experience of her life, wouldn’t dare hurt her.

  “No, I’m an Erebus.”

  The beautiful woman beneath him morphed into a grotesque creature with beady red eyes. Before Bryce could scramble away, it threw him across the room. He smacked into a metal bunk then slammed to the floor, crashing down on his shoulder. The Erebus jumped on him quicker than he’d ever seen one move. It wrapped its tentacle limbs around his wrists and ankles, pinning him to the floor. Black tar dripped from its mouth, and Bryce ducked out of the way to avoid contact with the lethal substance.

  With an ugly grin, the creature stared down at him. “Are you ready to die, Bryce?”

  “No.” He struggled under its grasp, kicking and punching to no avail. He did not want to die. He had a daughter, and Lalia. Not the young woman who’d transformed into the Erebus ready to kill him, but an older version, a woman who needed him as much as he needed her.

  Another glob of black goop trailed from the Erebus’s mouth. Bryce couldn’t escape it, couldn’t move at all, as if paralyzed.

  “I don’t want to die,” he whispered.

  “Colonel? Bryce?” a voice said. “We don’t want you to die, either. Come on back to us. Open your eyes.”

  Bryce gasped. The grip on his body relaxed, and the Erebus disappeared. Squinting and stretching the skin around his eyes, he slowly opened them, worried what he’d come face-to-face with.

  Instead of the nightmare of another Erebus, as he’d expected, he stared up at the same female Warwa doctor who had helped Lalia heal.

  “Hello.” He tried to sit up, but pain ripped across his chest.

  “No, no.” The doctor pushed on his shoulder. “You’re not ready to be moving around yet. But, there’s someone here to see you.”

  Bryce gripped the sheets beneath him. Was he stuck in another nightmare, about to see Lalia, only to have her turn into an Erebus again?

  Katrina peeked into the room. Not Lalia, but would his daughter turn into a monster, too?

  “Are you up for a visitor?”

  The hesitation in her voice did nothing to convince him she wasn’t another dream, but he had wanted a chance to talk to her. “Sure, come in.”

  “You look rough.”

  His daughter shuffled to the side of his bed wearing Hemera formal attire. Yes, the coronation had been earlier in the day. She must have come right from the event. And he’d missed it, stuck in a hospital bed instead of by his lover’s side to support her in one of the most important events of her life.

  “I didn’t think Defenders got hurt.”

  “I wish that was true.” Many of his friends and squad members had lost their lives by surprise Erebus attacks. But the recent loss of Defender lives had taken everyone by surprise. He had no idea how many Defenders sent to Niesgoo had returned alive, if any. No healing creams could hide their deaths.

  “Well, you don’t need to worry about getting hurt again. I came to tell you Kimba granted your retirement.” Katrina rested her hand on the edge of his bed as if unsure where else to put it. “You can go be with Mom. She needs you.”

  “Now, I know this isn’t real. Just another dream.” After the disaster on Niesgoo, the Alliance would need every Defender they had ready to ship out in an instant. There’s no way they would grant him retirement now. Not ever.

  Katrina wrinkled her forehead, and he expected her to morph any second.

  “No, it’s not a dream. Kimba sent the document to your com unit, if you want to check it.”

  Not possible. The only way she would grant him retirement now was if…. Fornax! “Katrina, please tell me you didn’t make an agreement with Kimba, with the Alliance.”

  “I did what I had to do.” She took a step back, seeming Galactic years older than when he’d first met her. “You may have just found out you have a daughter, but I’m an adult and I can make my own decisions. I want to do this.”

  “But your mother….” Lalia would blame him for losing her daughter. And if anything happened to her on a mission…. Gaspra, he could never forgive himself.

  “She’ll learn to deal with it, the same as you will.” Katrina tapped his shoulder. “Consider it an early wedding present.”

  “Wedding? Who’s getting married?” Had he missed something after the disaster on Niesgoo?

  “You and my mom. They have marriage on Hemera, like on Earth.” When the doctor came over to check his readings, Katrina sat on the chair beside his bed. “I did my research. And I also learned the only way for you to truly retire is for your child to take your place. Since I’m not aware of any others, that leaves me to become a Defender.”

  “No.” He never wanted anyone to feel forced to become a Defender as he had.

  “Yes, it’s already done. Besides, who do you think helped save your ass on that wretched planet?”

  “Not you, no.” He shook his head. “I wanted to keep you away from this life.”

  “And I wanted to keep you alive. Now, get yourself healed, so we can get back to Hemera to celebrate your wedding.”

  Married. He was going to join the only woman he’d ever felt more than lust for in a committed relationship. But, would she want him? She was queen now, and he was only a Defender. “Are you sure?”

  “About all of it, yes.” Katrina slapped his mattress. “Now, hurry up. Mom’s been waiting for this longer than I’ve been alive.”

  Kimba slipped into the room but remained by the door, hands behind her back. “So, has your daughter told you the good news?”

  Bryce growled. The idea of his daughter being forced to kill another Erebus turned his gut. “There has to be another way, Kimba. You cannot force her to become what I am, to take my place.”

  “Dad, this is my decision.”

  Dad? She actually thought of him as her father instead of the guy who’d impregnated her mother? All the more reason to keep her from becoming a Defender. “Katrina, I can’t let you do this.”

  Kimba raised a hand. “As Princess Katrina Comosova is of legal age to enlist, I have no reason to deny her a space in training. But, she will not take your place. She will carve out her own path among the Defenders.”

  He glanced away. Regardless, he wasn’t happy about any of it.

  “Princess Katrina, may I have a word with your father?”

  His daughter bowed before ducking from the room.

  “How much time does she have?” He’d barely had a free moment with his daughter since learning she existed, and soon she would be far away from him again, protecting the universe from Erebus as he’d done for most of his life.

  “Enough time to see you get well and marry her mother.” Kimba stepped closer, her face becoming pale. “But, we can worry about that later. I came here to apologize to you regarding Niesgoo.”

  Bryce scrunched his face. He didn’t understand. “No one could have predicted what happened there.”

  “But, I did. The universe sent me a vision.”

  Clenching his jaw, Bryce waited for the leader of the Alliance to continue.

  “Right after I told you about your promotion and duties on Hemera, it came to me.” Kimba stared at the floor. “I saw the base camp burning, heard the screams of the Defenders inside.”

  Bryce swallowed and shook his head. He didn’t want to hear any more.

  “I believed that by sending you, I could prevent the disaster, change the fate of the Defenders and the planet.”

  Releasing a heavy breath, he stared at Kimba. She had so much power as the leader of several planets, and yet many things she had no power over at all. “You couldn’t have known this would happen. You tried to prevent it.”

  “Not hard enough, though. And I didn’t send a rescue shuttle. Katrina i
nsisted there were survivors when I believed you had all perished.” Kimba met his gaze for a moment. “For that I am truly sorry. Lima and Kilo squads made it back, though not without injury. And all of Echo except Rebreg. Everyone else there died in the explosion. Cosmos, I’m so sorry. I have tendered my resignation for the end of this Galactic year.”

  “No, you can’t.” She had been the leader for most of his years as a Defender, provided intel through many missions, helped control the Erebus population better than anyone before her.

  “Too many Defenders have died recently, every single one of their deaths on my hands. Plus, all the civilian lives, too.” She stared at her hands then flipped them over. “I will help your daughter get settled, but she will be in better hands with the new leader.”

  Kimba exited the room before he could respond, leaving him with a heavy heart.

  ***

  Eight galactic days after receiving his retirement, Bryce boarded a shuttle with his daughter bound for Hemera. Enough time to heal but not to accept Katrina as a Defender or Kimba’s resignation. He kept hoping to find a way around Katrina’s succession, but his daughter refused to change her mind. She wanted to be a Defender.

  He’d insisted his daughter inform her mother she was with him on the carrier, though neither of them told Lalia about his retirement or plans for a wedding. Thankfully, the council approved his intentions to marry the new queen and agreed to help plan a ceremony.

  As soon as he stepped through the security door of the dome, he spotted Lalia racing toward him. She held up her skirt with both hands while her tied up hair fell looser the closer she got. He’d never been happier to see her. But, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t calm the ylafats having a party in his stomach.

  A few feet away, she launched toward him. He caught her in his arms and held her close. Never again did he have to leave her.

  “I thought I’d lost you forever.” With the hitch in her voice, she tightened her grip around him. “No one would tell me what was going on. And then Katrina disappeared….”

  “Shh.” He stroked the hair from her face. “We’re here now. No need for my beautiful queen to worry.”

  Katrina sidled up beside them, her ceremonial dress having been cleaned for the occasion while on the carrier.

  Lalia released him to hug their daughter. “Don’t you ever do that to me again. Just because you’re eighteen now doesn’t mean you don’t have to tell me where you’re going. Understand?”

  Katrina nodded. “Um, about that—”

  “Later.” Bryce squeezed her shoulder. He wanted to share his news first. And, at the end of the day, he and Lalia, together, as a married couple, would deal with their daughter leaving for Defender training.

  As the love of his life stared at him, he took her hand in his. “I have been granted retirement.” The words didn’t bring the sense of relief he’d hoped for. Not with his daughter now bearing his burden. No matter how hard he’d tried to convince her otherwise, she refused to change her mind, yearned to prove herself. Though, she’d already done so for him, saving her mother twice and then him and many other Defenders with no hesitation.

  Lalia squeezed his fingers and turned to their daughter. “But you.... And she....”

  “Yes.” He hoped Lalia still trusted him, wanted to be with him after the sacrifice Katrina had given to make it happen.

  “Mom, don’t you dare say anything yet.” Katrina gave her mother a quick hug, taking away some of the horror from Lalia’s wide eyes. “Bryce isn’t finished.”

  In the tradition of Earth, according to their daughter, he bent down on one knee, ready to begin a new stage in his life, if the woman he loved didn’t hate him for Katrina’s decision. “Lalia, I fell in love with you many years ago. And even though fate tore us apart, my feelings for you never wavered. Instead, they’ve grown stronger. I would be honored if you would be my life partner, let me be husband to the Queen of Hemera.”

  “Yes.” No hesitation in her answer, even as tears trickled along the edge of Lalia’s nose, down to her quivering lips.

  Rising to his feet, he cupped the back of her head and wiped her tears with his thumbs. “Are you sure?”

  She bobbed her head up and down then kissed him, her lips sending a rush of desire straight to his groin. When she pulled away, his mind spun and he struggled to catch his breath. “I dreamed about marrying you for so long. But, on Earth, I slowly gave up on that. I can’t believe it’s actually going to happen. We’ll have to decide when.”

  “How about right now?” They could get the ceremony over with, and he could take her to her quarters, and make love to her from sunset to sunrise.

  “Now?” A look of horror flashed across her face. “But I…I’m not ready, and we need to talk about Katrina.”

  Gwenodyn tugged on Lalia’s skirt, the tibbar sitting on her shoulder. “I’m ready, Princess. I mean, Queen.”

  “Me, too, Mom.” Katrina folded her hands in front of her and rocked onto the tips of her toes. “In fact, everyone and everything has already been planned. You just need to change.”

  “I have your dress!” Frotathia rushed toward her with a flowing gown.

  “Okay.” Lalia placed a hand on her chest. “I can’t believe you all planned this. Wow. Give me five minutes?”

  Those minutes passed super slow, giving the ylafats time to turn their party into an all-out brawl. Would Lalia change her mind after having time to think about Katrina committing her life to the Alliance for his freedom? Or would she come to the realization she didn’t truly want him the way he longed for her? Fornax, he’d never experienced such a lack of confidence when it came to hunting Erebus. Lalia made him forget all his training, and deny his own heritage. He wasn’t supposed to care for another. Yet, he couldn’t help himself around her.

  Archer, the Nevad from his first squad, appeared at his side and slapped him on the back. “So, you’re finally going to marry her?”

  Bryce squeezed the shoulder of his friend, thankful his shuttle had arrived in time. “Yes, if she still wants to marry me.”

  “Why wouldn’t she?” Archer’s gills flared open as he took in a deep breath of Hemera air. “You two were madly in love, and I hear you have a child together. Congrats, by the way.”

  “Thanks.” Bryce ran a finger underneath his collar, sure it became tighter as he waited. “But, I promised Lalia I’d never let Katrina become a Defender, and I failed. She leaves for training tomorrow.”

  “Hey, you can try and protect your children all you want, but eventually you have to let them go. I know you didn’t get to see her grow up, but it’s the way of life. Trust me. I’m going through this with my kids right now.” Archer nodded down the aisle. “Besides, from the smile on her face, I don’t think you have anything to worry about.”

  The ylafats in his stomach stopped. In fact, he was sure his heart stopped for a brief moment, too, as he took in the sight of the most gorgeous woman in the entire universe. While the off-white dress covered more skin than usual Hemera ceremonial wear, the bodice was sheer, with sequins covering her breasts. Even with all the work someone had put into making the dress, he could think of nothing but what it would look like at her feet, before he made sweet love to his new wife.

  Swallowing his ill-timed lust, Bryce shook away the thought. He had a wedding to get through first. Being from Kalara, he knew nothing of weddings, but Katrina shared with council what happened during the ceremony on Earth to come up with an appropriate service combining the rituals of both Earth and Hemera.

  Fracknathan, the officiate for the wedding, joined him and Archer. As Gwenodyn walked toward them, she threw flower petals from a container onto the ground. Katrina followed with a strange melody she’d called music playing from her wrist com.

  At last, Lalia made her way to him, his heart pounding harder with every step she took. He couldn’t take his eyes off her. When she reached him, he took her hands in his, ready to dedicate his life to her. Finally, the imp
ossible dream was becoming reality.

  “Do you, Bryce of Kalara take Lalia Comosova to be your universally recognized partner?”

  “I do.” Forever, until the end of time.

  “And do you, Queen Lalia Comosova of Hemera take Bryce to be your universally recognized partner?”

  This was it. Was Archer correct in his assurance Bryce had nothing to worry about? Or would Lalia break his heart, crush him for letting their daughter take his place?

  “I do.” She squeezed his hand as she said the words. And though her smile could light up the planet, a tear trickled down her cheek.

  A happy tear, he hoped. But she’d said yes. She wanted to be his wife, his partner for the rest of their lives.

  “Wonderful.” Fracknathan held out his com tablet. “Press your thumbs onto the appropriate square.” They complied, followed by Archer and Katrina, their witnesses. The co-leader of the council clasped his hands together. “Now, under universal law maintained by the Galactic Alliance, I am pleased to announce you are officially married.”

  Without waiting for the prompt Katrina had told him about, Bryce kissed his wife, held her tight against him. She hesitated, likely because everyone watched, but only for a moment. Even with the cheering around them, Bryce became lost in the soft sweep of her tongue, her quiet moans. He finally had Lalia, all he’d ever wanted. And he would never be apart from her again.

  Sneak peek at JAGER

  Galactic Defenders Book Two

  Prologue

  “Are you sure this is what you want?”

  Katrina tossed the duffle bag of her few belongings to the young Defender on the waiting shuttle. “Yes, Mom. We’ve been through this a million times. I want to be a Defender.”

  “But you can wait a couple of years.” Her mother, the queen of Hemera, paced between her and the ten-passenger Alliance ship ready to take Katrina to Kalara where she would train to fight the Erebus. “Get used to living away from Earth, here, where you know people.”