Worlds Apart (Warriors of Risnar)

by Tracy St. John

  “I don’t need it. I’m perfectly content that you achieved sensual pleasure.” As if to underscore his statement, he picked up her panties from the ground, shook them out briskly, and slid them over her feet and ankles.

  Anneliese shoved at his hands, trying to stop him from dressing her. “Hold on, Nex. You’re aroused.”

  “Of course I am. You are exciting to me.”

  “But you don’t want to...you don’t want me all the way?”

  He paused in his efforts to pull her underwear up and looked her in the eye. “I would hope that it’s obvious how much I want you. I’m aching for you. Literally, aching. That’s never happened to me before, wanting someone so much that it hurts.” He blew out a breath as some of his composure disappeared. “Though I’m not quite convinced you should be fighting with us, I wish the elders council would say yes to you staying. It would make it easier to get to full lovemaking. Otherwise, I can perhaps visit you on Earth to continue the rituals?”

  Anneliese struggled with confusion. Was Nex’s translator not operating correctly? Not deciphering between their languages as it should? How could Nex say he wanted her but stop?

  Perhaps he needed outright permission. Or maybe in this crazy alien culture, once the women got their cookie, sex was done. “Look, Nex, I wouldn’t mind if we did everything now. The whole lovemaking thing, boy parts inserted in girl parts and all that fun stuff. I’m pretty sure I’d make it to my happy place again with you, because I’ve got a can-do pussy. I’m not a one-and-done girl with the right man. Believe me, you are the right man.”

  Nex beamed, his teeth flashing bright in Cadi-light. “That is good. You are pleased with me, and that means we can continue later.”

  He was still putting her off! “But we may not have later. I swear, you are driving me out of my—”

  A hooting sound, like the universe’s most behemoth owl calling in the night, burst through the air. In an instant, Nex was on his feet. So was Anneliese, hauling her panties all the way up as she went. A sudden surge of adrenaline kept her from worrying that the rest of her was naked and in plain view.

  Fortunately, nobody was in the vicinity to gape at a nude Earth woman. She grabbed her tank top and pulled it on, ignoring her bra. “What is it? What’s the alarm?” She knew a warning signal when she heard it.

  “It’s a call to gather and ready to fight. The drones are attacking somewhere. Stay here!” Nex dashed off, racing across the glowing garden.

  “Stay here, my ass!” Anneliese hauled on her jeans and shoved her feet in her shoes. Disregarding the rest, she tore off after Nex.

  Chapter Eight

  Nex was already out of sight by the time Anneliese had on enough clothes to follow him. As she headed in the direction he’d run, she realized she would find where the excitement was easily enough. All she had to do was follow the crowds of Risnarish men racing in one direction, yelling to each other as they went.

  As she went, she passed an unattended dartwing. On impulse, she diverted her course toward it. Once she was at the small craft, she found it, too, had a compartment near the floor. Inside were two of the plasma shooters that worked so well against the drones. She grabbed them and ran in the same direction as the men. Several dartwings were in the air, flashing through the blue-tinged sky. Anneliese wished she could pilot the things. Her knee jolted painfully with every step.

  The men galloped out of sight within a minute, but the sound of drone scatter-shot guided her. Less than another minute had passed before she saw sprays of light flattening against the air like large raindrops splattering against a windshield.

  “The barrier.” Nex had told her there was a protective force field surrounding the perimeter of Cas. It somehow kept the drones from firing at the people within it. Judging from the majority of the shots streaking from the barrier, she intuited that Cas itself was not under attack.

  Even with the protective field, Anneliese couldn’t disobey the instinct that forced her to hunch low as she hurried toward where the firefight lit the night. Many of the Risnarish were outside the boundary, sending blinding white pulses from their shooters at the huge number of drones threatening them. Then more powerful reports shook the night, explosive sounds that made her wince.

  Anneliese gaped when she reached the barrier. There had to be at least a hundred of the Monsudan drones out there, judging from the flares of their scatter-shot weapons. Where had they all come from?

  That part didn’t matter, especially not when she saw the group of female Risnarish, including Salno, running through the grasses and copses of trees. Men ran with them, surrounding and protecting them as they traded fire with the drones. The women appeared intense but calm, and Anneliese marveled at their lack of overt terror. The drones were closing in, careless of the Risnarish fire that was taking far too few of them down, except when the massive booms shook the air. When that happened, a dozen or more drones fell at once. Unfortunately, there were plenty more coming to replace them.

  The council elder named Timnor ran at Salno’s side near the back of the group. His aged face was fierce as any warrior’s as he fired his pulse shooter at the drones threatening the women. No terror marred the striped visage, even as three drones fired on him at close range.

  Anneliese cried out as he went down. With the fighting so heavy, no one else noticed they had a man hurt and helpless. The booming weapons had fallen silent as the Risnarish neared the village, but the fighting to get the women behind the barriers was still a desperate one.

  Without hesitation, she raced through the invisible barrier that didn’t exist for her then shot at the drones marching up to Timnor, their pistol-like weapons raised to finish him.

  A shooter was no familiar rifle or handgun, but Anneliese used it with deadly accuracy anyway. The drones fell, smoking within seconds of her blasting them. The acrid scent of fire and rancid oil eddied to her on the breeze, the aroma of mechanical death. There were many, many more drones rushing forward, however, forcing her to fight her way to Timnor’s side. The elder’s eyes were closed, and Anneliese hoped it was because he was unconscious and not dead.

  Having felt Nex’s weight, she was sure Timnor’s bulkier build was more than she could carry, especially with her knee throbbing. She concentrated on protecting the downed man as another knot of Risnarish raced toward her, men protecting the backs of the scientists fleeing the hive. The booms had resumed firing and when Anneliese saw the barrels of the massive guns, she had to force herself not to gape. The boomers were damned near as big around as rail cannons, though not nearly as long. They didn’t flash fire when they went off, but the air rippled like water around them.

  There was no time to lust for the amazing firepower. Drones continued to encroach on her position. She was horribly aware that she had no protective armor as scatter-shot started whistling past her. She returned fire, adjusting her shooter for the widest spread possible.

  “Anneliese!”

  Nex’s shout was the sweetest thing she’d ever heard. The sight of him bounding toward her, wide-eyed Jape at his side, was better.

  “Get the elder! He’s too heavy for me to carry.” She squeezed off more white-streaked shots at the horde of drones whose numbers never dwindled.

  Jape’s heavy voice thundered in her ear. “Carry him, Nex. We will give cover until we are behind the barrier.”

  Anneliese enjoyed a moment of gratification that the head enforcer hadn’t appointed himself as her protector. Grim purpose replaced her satisfaction as she got to work holding the drones off while Nex hefted Timnor over his shoulder. The small group headed to Cas, firing constantly at the drones who kept coming and coming and coming. Jape grunted in pain as a few distantly fired shots glanced off his torso, but he did not fall. His armored skin did its job against the projectiles.

  Somehow they made it to the barrier and got through without Jape losing more than a couple
of drops of blood. Amazingly, Anneliese had not been touched at all. She didn’t relax, not even behind the force field that was impenetrable to drones and their weapons. Instead she searched the blue-tinged darkness, trying to detect if another wave of Risnarish was heading in for safety.

  A man yelled something to Jape. He wasn’t close enough for her translator to decipher, but she got the gist when Jape told her, “Stay behind the boundary, Earthling! Everyone is safe behind the barrier now.”

  Anneliese watched the drones retreat from Cas’s border. A flash of hatred tempted her to chase after them, to take down as many as she could. She ignored the urge and turned to Jape and Nex instead. The two men knelt by Timnor, whom Nex had laid on the ground. The elder was still and bleeding.

  “Is he alive?” she asked.

  “Thanks to you,” Nex said, motioning to a couple of men who ran over with cases. He and Jape moved away as they opened their gear and began tending the fallen man. Anneliese was glad medics were already on the scene and ready to work.

  “What happened?” she asked.

  Jape answered. “The drones must have been spying on us all along. A maintenance crew had switched off the containment around the hive to fix a power drain. The little monsters swarmed the hive at the exact right moment.”

  “They took it?” Nex fairly yelled in his despair.

  Jape grimaced. “Fortunately, everyone evacuated just in time, though the guard detail had its hands full shepherding the women here.”

  “The Monsuda have control over the portal again?” Anneliese stared at the men in horror. The abductions would begin once more.

  Nex gazed at her, his expression unreadable. “I guess this means you’ll get your wish to remain here for a while longer. We can’t send you home until we win that hive back.”

  * * *

  Less than five minutes after arriving, the attending medics loaded Elder Timnor on a hovering vehicle. The long, hexagon-shaped craft bore the stricken man to the temple, where doctors waited to treat his injuries. Anneliese echoed Nex’s and Jape’s sighs of relief when Timnor blinked at the emergency crew and answered questions before he left.

  “Lacerations, blood loss, and some shot imbedded in non-vital areas of his body,” was Nex’s take on the man’s injuries. “He should be fine, though he’ll be off his feet for a couple of days. The damage did not look life threatening to me.”

  “He owes you gratitude for that, Anneliese. Had you not fought as you did, we would have lost one of our elders.” Jape did the hand-to-chest salute, bowing slightly. “From my spirit to yours, my deepest gratitude.”

  She smiled, embarrassed at the feeling in his voice. “Elder Timnor was protecting the women himself. We soldiers look out for each other. I did what any of you would have.”

  Nex shook his head, his concern showing. “Unlike you, we possess natural armor. Elder Timnor owed his life to his ability to harden his skin, as well as your bravery. The shots he took would have killed you, Anneliese.”

  Jape’s expression turned grave. “Nex has a valid point. It is the biggest reason to not allow you to engage in war with the enemy.”

  Nex asked, “Has the council reached that decision?”

  “They have not told me. They had requested my opinion when the attack on the hive interrupted us.” The golden-skinned man gave Anneliese a steady look. “You have great skill and courage. However, I cannot in good conscience recommend you join in our fight against the Monsuda.”

  Anneliese scowled at Nex for pointing out her biggest weakness. He did it because he worried for her safety, but it still irritated her. She was a big girl, one who had fought plenty of battles.

  She pointedly gave Jape her full attention. “On Earth, we have body armor we put on, a kind of clothing. The protective coverings keep us safe against attacks. Obviously you guys don’t need anything of that nature, but maybe you could manufacture something comparable for me?”

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Nex open his mouth. Certain he was about to protest, she rushed on, getting her say in. “I’m stuck here anyway. Am I supposed to just sit back and let your people fight and potentially die on my behalf?”

  “It isn’t only for you that we are fighting,” Jape reminded her.

  “But my people are a part of the equation. Put yourself in my place, Jape. Would you not want to do your part to secure your village? Your planet? Would you let anyone tell you that you have to sit behind a barrier while others fight your war?”

  He considered her, and she met his gaze without faltering. She didn’t dare look away for an instant, afraid Jape might think she wavered. She also didn’t want to look at Nex, with his unwelcome opposition. Besides, she had the fear he might be disappointed in her insistence she not play the femme fatale, letting the big, strong menfolk protect her. She was secure in her strength, but she didn’t want to face any regrets he might have where she was concerned.

  After a few seconds, Jape relented. “What makes up this removable armor that Earthlings wear?”

  Anneliese described the tough woven or laminated fibers that formed the protective body gear she’d worn in dangerous regions during her deployments. “Just the vest was enough to shield my vital organs. Along with a helmet for my head,” she told him. “The helmet I used to ride in the dartwing felt pretty tough. I bet it could take a few of those longer-range scatter-shots.”

  “You’d be right,” Jape said. He tapped on the device that reminded Anneliese of an extremely thin tablet, apparently taking her descriptions down. “Perhaps the weaver and armaments guilds would have a few ideas on body-shielding gear. I need to report this attack to the council, but I will consult with the guild masters after that.”

  “Thank you, Jape. I appreciate anything you can do to keep me in this.”

  He nodded to her and then Nex before walking off. Wondering how Nex was going to react, Anneliese at last faced him. Salno stood at his side.

  When the hell had the scientist snuck up? Anneliese was in no hurry to talk to Ms. Serenity, who had kept running when Timnor went down. She felt satisfied that Nex didn’t act enthralled to have his boss sticking around either. His tone was tight as he asked, “Is there something you need from me, Salno?”

  Salno’s head was cocked to the side as she eyed Anneliese. “No, I require nothing, thank you. I am merely curious about our guest.”

  Anneliese frowned to be referred to in the third person. “What is there about me to be curious about? Other than I’m from Earth.”

  “It’s much more than that. I have never met a woman warrior before. Not only do you enjoy arguments, Anneliese, but you relish physical fighting as well.” Salno’s face was as tranquil as ever, but her eyes were avid.

  Anneliese was taken aback. “I wouldn’t say I relish any of it. Fights have to be fought. So I fight.”

  “Even when there are many others already able to do so? Jape made it plain your assistance is not required.”

  Anneliese narrowed her gaze at the Risnarish woman. “I have skills. I also have cause, since the Monsuda want to colonize Earth.”

  “That is true. What else do you do? Or is fighting your only means of expression?”

  Anneliese bristled. Perhaps Salno was insinuating that battle was all she was capable of. That maybe she was nothing more than a violent, bloodthirsty brute without conscience.

  Nex attempted to draw the woman away. “It’s late, Salno. Anneliese is probably tired.”

  “She does not appear tired. She looks quite alert. It’s not so very late on her section of Earth.” Salno gazed even more intently at Anneliese.

  Anneliese was indeed wide awake and far from winding down. Her blood was up after the battle with the drones. Still, the last thing she wanted to do was indulge Salno’s curiosity. Didn’t the woman know how to take a hint? Nex had all but told her to bug off.

  She trie
d a hint of her own. “It doesn’t look as if I’m going anywhere in the near future. Maybe you and I can discuss these things later. Besides, you must be upset after nearly being captured by the enemy.”

  “It was a disconcerting situation. However, the All-Spirit has designs I cannot guess at, and I trust in that. Whether or not I am captured or killed has little bearing on the overall plan.” Salno smiled, unconcerned.

  Anneliese stared at her. “Seriously? Your heart isn’t racing? You’re not evaluating your actions and what might have happened if it had all gone badly?”

  “It did not go badly, except for Timnor being harmed. He will recover, however.”

  “He could have been killed. You could have found yourself put on a Monsudan lab table.” Anneliese knew which was the worse of the two evils. Given the choice, death seemed pretty damned awesome.

  “Why should I concern myself over what has not happened? These issues are not worth consideration.”

  Anneliese looked at Nex, dumbfounded by Salno’s disregard for how things could have ended up. He shrugged at her as if to say, see what I have to put up with?

  “That’s not how an Earthling’s mind works. I guess we aren’t as evolved as you Risnarish,” she snapped. When Salno opened her mouth to speak again, Anneliese cut her off. “We’ll talk later, okay? Right now, I have some questions for Nex about the previous time I was here. It’s a conversation I’d like to have privately.”

  With that, she smiled her best—if quite insincere—smile at Salno, grabbed Nex’s wrist and pulled him away. With her back turned to the woman, she whispered to Nex, “Keep walking, or I swear I’ll never speak to you again.”

  He chuckled and pulled loose of her grip so that he could hold her hand. “Too much tranquil acceptance from the Risnarish female, my fiery Earthling?”

  “How do you stand it?”