by S. E. Weir
Hands raised in surrender. “So, what did I get wrong?”
“She learned her acrobatics from an old neighbor who was a retired Olympian.” Her shoulders relaxed more now that they had switched to a less personal topic.
“Gymnastics, and yes, I just found that out this morning. What else?” Intense eyes bored into her as her friend stepped closer.
Anna raised her eyebrows at the news and her resulting impatience. “All right. The other thing you got wrong was that she apologized to ADAM for snapping at him in the heat of the moment this morning.”
“Well, he had been a surprising voice in her head through her implant...” Her visitor’s lips pursed in thought before smiling. “Excellent.”
As her friend walked toward the door, Anna raised her voice. “One question. How did you know she would hesitate to say yes and need me to offer the six months?”
Her old friend winked as they opened the door and stepped through.
“Experience.”
Etheric Empire, Planet of the Baldere
Glaeken felt a presence that sent chills up his spine. He had never experienced such a sensation before and didn’t know what it meant. His considerable intellect rejected ignorance and regarded the situation while he continued to walk back to the commune through the darkness.
He had to share what he had just discovered while carrying out his duties with his brothers. The dishonor to their people was too great to ignore. Just a few more blocks and he could mentally connect with those of his siblings who lived with him in the commune.
His mental senses pinged. Another presence joined the first, then a third. The darkness couldn’t hide the tremor that froze him in place for a moment, his staff wobbling in his grasp. He wasn’t one to succumb to the pressure of fear, valuing critical thought more than emotional outburst, but something about these presences caused his long, lanky body to shiver. When a fourth presence joined the other three, he jolted out of his paralysis and continued walking at a faster pace.
Glaeken bypassed Baldere and other alien life forms as they crowded into and around bars, restaurants, and clubs. Rather than being centered around food or dancing, however, these establishments focused on the main thing the Baldere valued most—fighting. Glaeken would have found shelter with those raucous beings, but he didn’t think they would provide any protection for him. He was an alien to them, and he valued life and knowledge over fighting. The Baldere had no reason to help him. He would be better served by finding his brothers.
He sped down the street, turning corners when needed to try to lose his pursuers as well as reach his brothers faster. Though lights hung suspended from the buildings, they were not frequent enough to illuminate the whole street, only creating wide circles along his path. When he reached the end of the next patch of light, there was a noise behind him. He spun, and his cloak flared in the air.
Four Baldere stepped out of the darkness, the light glinting off the tops of their bald, ribbed heads. Their faces appeared fierce and determined, and their purple skin gleamed. The weapons in their hands showed him their actions were not for peace. His two hearts beat faster when he realized these were the four presences he had sensed.
Only now, with these four Baldere so close, did he realize that though their intellects were not high enough to reach his mental wavelength, his telepathy had been warning him of their intentions.
His death.
“Just come with us nice and quiet, hey?”
The Baldere took another step forward with his hand extended. Glaeken’s brow furrowed as he tried to deduce what the male reached for and came up with the intention to take his staff or to take him prisoner.
“I’ll pass, thank you,” he whispered before swallowing roughly.
“He’s a polite one, eh, Narvid? Not like that other one.” The Baldere to the far right spoke as he elbowed the male next to him.
He received a scathing look in return. “Get off me, Vodin.”
Glaeken’s eyes narrowed as the three fingers and the thumb of his left hand tightened on his staff. “That other one” Vodin mentioned must have been Dreuved, who had disappeared several days ago. His absence had caused Glaeken to be in his current situation since his task had been to search for his fellow Gleek’s whereabouts.
“You have dishonored us by his death.” Glaeken’s voice at full volume sounded raspy and harsh from disuse since he was accustomed to speaking mentally with his brothers.
The Baldere exchanged glances and shifted their feet, looking uneasy.
“Vrukk!” the last Baldere to speak muttered. “He sounds like the dead.”
Vodin and Narvid began to whisper to each other in uneasy tones, causing the Baldere in charge to hiss at them. “Quiet, you empty-headed snakes-for-brains! This is what the boss said needs to happen.”
First one, then the others nodded and looked more confident, which didn’t bode well for Glaeken. In one-on-one combat, Glaeken felt certain he could take them. Though his people did not study weaponry and combat with the zeal of the Baldere, they had developed a fighting style of their own that took advantage of their longer limbs and staff work. However, having dishonored his people once, he had no faith these Baldere would show any honor now.
Glaeken ran with all the swiftness available to him and reached the edge of his brothers’ mental range. He hoped the Baldere weren’t aware of the capabilities the Gleek possessed. They might not save him, but they would at least ensure his brothers were enlightened with the truth.
The Baldere ran swiftly behind him, the pieces of their body protection clinking against each other the only sounds in the night. Glaeken had just established his mental connection into the collective consciousness of his brothers when a hard impact to his back knocked him to his knees. He gave a cry of pain.
What’s going on?
Who did that?
Why are you in pain, brother?
His brothers’ voices clamored in his mind, trying to understand what had caused his mental cry to pierce their quiet murmurings. Even as he began flinging words into the mix to explain what happened, he felt pain and his blood seeping down his clothing onto the street.
Glaeken was dead.
The Gleek knew it even before the Baldere leader came up to him and pulled the weapon out of his back. Glaeken’s hand slipped off his staff as he swayed on his knees and fell forward, his face scraping the pavement.
Traekor, the leader of their commune, pushed forward in his thoughts. Brother Glaeken, your thoughts are not clear except for your pain. What has happened?
As one of the Baldere stood above him, lifted his weapon, and swiftly brought it down, Glaeken had little time for thought before the darkness.
We have been greatly dishonored. Dreuved and I have been killed and our bodies taken—
Chapter Two
QBBS Meredith Reynolds, Marine Training Facilities
Maxim threw off the hold Peter had on him and darted back, then dodged left as Todd came in swinging. The punch caught his side but didn’t slow him down as he twisted to meet Peter’s kick with a knee block.
Then both men came at him with blows and kicks and holds one after the other, so quickly that he reacted more than had a chance to attack. The two were lethal individually. Putting them together felt like a rising tide where he drowned inch by inch.
Finally he called a halt, reached for his water, and downed half the large bottle. As he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, Peter and Todd came up and clapped him on the shoulder. As tall as Maxim stood, he was eye to eye with the two men he had idolized for years.
Peter gave him a grin as he stepped back. “You have definitely grown into your big hands and feet!”
Maxim raised an eyebrow. “I would hope so since it’s been some years since I rattled around on feet too big for me.”
Todd elbowed his best friend with a smirk. “He just doesn’t want to get more sentimental. Tears would affect his manly image.”
Peter lunged and be
gan wrestling with the large man, finally pinning Todd down due to his larger bulk as a Wechselbalg—a shape changer those on Earth would have called a werewolf, even though the folktales had gotten things wrong. Peter grunted as he let go and pushed himself up. “Manly image, my ass.”
Maxim grinned at the familiar ritual. “I’m sure your ass is very manly.” He blanched as the others began hooting in laughter. “I mean, I’m sure the women find it so.”
Peter gasped for air and pounded Maxim’s back in appreciation, which felt more like punishment. “That was priceless. I think you need a woman of your own, my man.”
Todd grinned and continued the thought. “A woman definitely would keep your attention off Peter’s manly ass.”
Maxim shook his head with a grimace. “I hate you both.”
“Nah,” Peter declared as he reached for his towel to wipe the sweat off his chest. “You love us. We keep you on your toes.”
“Need a little help with finding one?” Todd inquired as he picked up his tablet.
“A woman?” Maxim asked in surprise before shaking his head. He reached for a towel of his own as he thought about it. “Finding a woman isn’t the problem. You shake a stick on this hunk of asteroid we call a station, and half a dozen women show up.”
“Well, if it’s a manly stick.” Peter grinned, then turned to throw his towel in the hamper at the side of the room.
“And it’s not like we are roughing it on the space station with how developed it’s become,” Todd added, his tone absent as he scrolled through his messages. “So, if finding a woman isn’t the problem, what is?”
“The problem is finding one that interests me and is interested in me for more than my...well, manliness. Outer self.” Maxim struggled to explain his half-formed thoughts as he wiped himself off before shrugging and throwing the towel in the bin. English still didn’t feel like his first language, even though he felt much more comfortable with it in the years since he had come to space from Russia. “Not like I have a lot of time in between assignments.”
Todd shot Maxim a piercing glance before exchanging looks with Peter that he couldn’t interpret. Todd handed Peter his tablet. Peter scanned it, then looked up with a grin.
“Not enough time to find a woman between assignments? Then I’ve got the perfect assignment for you. It requires you to remain on the base for the foreseeable future—at least several months. Bound to find a woman in that time if you tried.”
Maxim’s eyes darted between the two men as he subconsciously changed his stance to be ready for a fight. “What does this assignment entail?”
Peter scanned the tablet again, then handed it back to Todd. “Nothing strenuous. Just teaching a girl how to fight.”
Maxim was puzzled and scratched the back of his neck, where he felt a strange tingle. “Why does this person need a Guardian to teach her how to fight? Why not one of your Marines?”
Todd shrugged. “I could assign one, yeah, but she’s going to need special training that isn’t usually taught to the core Marines. You’ve taught girls how to fight before, so you have the patience, and you seem to be available.” Todd gestured at Peter, Maxim’s leader in more ways than one.
Maxim let out a breath that wasn’t quite a sigh, then nodded. “Is it all right if I assess her to make sure she’s trainable and we work well together first?”
Todd nodded soberly as he tapped the tablet before putting it away. “That sounds like a good idea, though I doubt you will have a problem there.”
Maxim’s interest piqued. “Oh? Who is this girl?”
The Were and the Guardian exchanged glances again before Todd answered, “The girl from this morning. Her name is Seraphina Waters.”
“The one who jumped over you like a grasshopper?” Maxim queried, a small grin on his face.
“The very one.” Todd had a faint smile, but his eyes were sending Maxim a message he wasn’t quite reading. “So, see how things work between you. I have a feeling she will learn quickly.”
Maxim nodded, then straightened and gathered his things. “I’ll do my best.”
“Yup, see how things work.” Peter grinned as he gathered his own stuff. “You can always just shake your manly stick at her.”
Sniggering laughter followed him from the room as Maxim yelled back, “I really hate you both.”
He shook his head as he asked Meredith to find the young woman for him. Peter was right; he did love them, even though they could be royal pains in the ass.
QBBS Meredith Reynolds, Secluded Hallways
Phina took the roundabout way home, still weighing everything that had happened. Since Anna Elizabeth had offered the invitation to her, she could be sure ADAM knew about it already. The AI had been silent in the meeting with Anna Elizabeth after everything had come to light. Phina kind of missed hearing ADAM’s voice in her head. Given that the first time he spoke to her she had hit her head on a sharp corner of an air vent, that was saying something.
She had been angry about his intrusion and interference at the time, but ADAM had worn her down until she had grown concerned about him and crossed that boundary into friend territory. Since Alina was currently the only name on Phina’s friend roster, that thought scared her a little. Still, though he wouldn’t be a conventional friend, she thought it might be worth giving him a chance.
“Excuse me.”
Phina broke off her thoughts as she noticed a tall, broad sandy-haired man walking next to her. She stopped suddenly and turned to face him, and he did the same. Alina would ogle the handsome man, but Phina felt highly suspicious after everything that happened over the last twenty-four hours.
“What do you want?”
His brown eyes looked startled at her tone, then amused. Phina sighed and tried again more politely.
“Is there something I can help you with?”
A fist flew toward her face.
Rather than the gymnastics moves she had used this morning with Todd, this time, Phina merely dodged to the side. Her adrenaline ramped up quickly as she avoided another punch to her stomach by flinging herself back.
Who was this man, and why would he attack her?
Tall, Blond, and Overly Muscled hardly looked like he was exerting himself; he was almost lazy in his movements. After avoiding a leg sweep, Phina decided she needed more distance, so she quickly did a back handspring sequence that took her down the hall. After straightening, she winced to see the tall man staring after her with a slight smile on his face. Well, winced for more reasons than one. She would be sore in the morning after all the sudden movements without stretching first, and her stomach and arms still twinged from Todd’s punches.
Phina blinked as he rapidly approached and stopped right in front of her, her breath catching at how quickly he had moved. Could this man be one of the vampires she had heard so much about? Aside from rumors about Bethany Anne, Phina hadn’t yet been able to find any details on those elusive people; she had only found brief mentions of them in the files. Her efforts had been blocked—now that she thought about it, she realized ADAM had done the blocking—so her scraps of information about them came from rumors.
She watched him step closer until he stood within her personal space. She tilted her head and tried to figure him out. He had attacked her but then acted like he wasn’t even trying. He possessed better than normal human looks, more on the rugged side than beautiful. He stared at her as if he expected the force of his gaze would cause her to look away. Ah.
“Wechselbalg?” Phina used the official name of the wolf shifters who were often soldiers called Guardians.
Surprised, the crazy man nodded and relaxed.
“What was the point of that?”
He frowned as if something was off. Perhaps he had thought she would be a pushover? If so, he was in for a surprise. “I thought I would find you and assess where your skills are.”
Phina raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms as she stood back a step to get more space. “I’m still not understandin
g who you are or why you would attack me.”
Maxim seemed puzzled. “You don’t know?” He cursed, then shook his head. “I’m Maxim. I’ve been assigned to train you. Are you sure you haven’t gotten some sort of communication about it?”
Phina narrowed her eyes at the man Alina had always idolized, but this seemed too weird a story to make up. Holding up a finger, she went to pull her small tablet out of her pocket and realized she still wore the same stretchy, body-conforming workout clothes she had dressed in that morning. While they were comfortable, the small pocket that had held her now-confiscated key card had not been large enough to hold her tablet, so that item currently rested on Alina’s bed, along with the clothes she had worn that morning.
She let out a sigh. “I don’t have my tablet on me. Would I be able to use yours?”
The corner of his mouth curled up before he nodded and pulled his tablet out. As he did so, she strove not to grumble at the man. He had scared her half to death when she thought he would hurt her, and now he was being all helpful. Phina didn’t like it but knew she could do little to him that would make any difference. Weres were hard to permanently injure, let alone kill, and more so if they could change into that powerful third form, the Pricolici. The way Phina’s luck had gone today, she wouldn’t make any bets against him having that scary alter ego.
Phina’s fingers flew over the tablet, checking her inbox first and finding nothing. She decided to be thorough and do a search in the servers for all mail containing her name that had been sent today. There were several that piqued her curiosity, but she only opened the message from Anna Elizabeth to Todd Jenkins and Peter Silvers, asking if there was someone they could assign to train her for several months on a semi-permanent assignment. They must have assigned Maxim the job.
Phina wanted to protest on principle or walk away from the man and ignore the directive. However, she recognized this had more to do with her mindset and her stubbornness rising than his actions. She’d just had too many changes and revelations happening in one day. She needed to clear her thoughts somehow before she bit off someone’s head.