Karun: A Sci-Fi Alien Dragon Romance (Aliens of Dragselis Book 2) Page 3

  “Not entirely, but I think I got the bulk of it. One thing I don't get—how are you tied up in all of this, Jen?”

  Blushing a little beneath the red splotches already dotting her upper cheeks and eyelids, Jennifer answered, “Well, I found Prince Zaruv and his brothers along the eastern line of my property while I was out collecting Varda roots for the clinic a month ago, and they've been staying out on the compound ever since while they search for their spacecraft.”

  She asked in a voice she surely thought was low enough not to be heard by us, “Do they all do the dragon thing?”

  Rolling my eyes, I cut in, “Scared?”

  “No.” She blushed, looking embarrassed to have been overheard. “I'm just wondering why you didn't come to the militia. We could have aided them in the search.”

  Jennifer jumped back in. “Come on, Andie, you know as well as I do that most residents of the Outpost would not adjust easily or happily to the idea of man-dragon aliens living among them. Half the people here are in hiding from their own demons. No way would that go over well if they heard their newest neighbors were being hunted by actual demons.”

  “Okay, yeah, good point,” Andie conceded, half smiling.

  “You should have seen Courtney Camps when she saw Karun here at the clinic with me the other day. You know how she is.” Jennifer gave her a knowing, amused look. “She did her whackadoo thing, and I'm pretty sure she's been hiding out in her basement with her 'invisible suit' on at all times.”

  Jennifer's neighbor had not handled the presence of a man with green skin particularly well. Whereas most residents hadn't seemed to mind my un-earthly coloring, Courtney had a complete meltdown and barely came out of her house since we’d met. Of course, very few of Jennifer's closest friends knew our true identities or that we could shift into dragons.

  “Well, that explains why I haven't seen her around Picard's Post lately,” Andie said, referencing the local market inside a hollowed out starship where residents relied heavily on a bartering system for most of their necessities.

  She continued, “I'm sure she'll be back to annoying everyone again soon, unfortunately. When Orud moved here with his family, she was only down in the bunker two months tops. Guess we should enjoy the break!”

  Finally turning back to Zaruv and me, Jennifer began, “So, about Pavar—he has penetrating abdominal trauma, including a number of perforated organs. He's in a lot of pain but resting now. You guys would probably be better than me at projecting this.” She looked somewhat unsure. “Based on how I've seen you guys heal so far, with a wound this deep, I'm guessing four to five days, at best, before he is back to his old fighting shape.”

  Zaruv said, “As smart as you are beautiful. That sounds like an accurate prediction to me as well.” Jennifer's blush returned as Zaruv reached out for her hand, and I could see Andie's eyebrows raise in interest. “I am unfamiliar with how humans heal. How long will you bear the marks of those monsters?”

  “Believe it or not, I'll heal almost as quickly as Pavar. The petechiae should be pretty much gone in three to four days, but the bruising will be well over a week,” she said as she absentmindedly touched her neck.

  “I would kill them a thousand times over if I could,” Zaruv growled as he pulled her into a consuming kiss. It was a strange moment—seeing my brother so protective and flagrantly affectionate. Strange but gratifying.

  Clearing my throat, I decided it was time to interrupt.

  “Zaruv, we need to discuss our next steps. We have been compromised, and we no longer have the luxury of taking our time or blending in. Someone other than Andromeda will have heard or seen what happened tonight, and our enemies know where we are.”

  Straightening but keeping his good arm wrapped protectively around Jennifer, Zaruv furrowed his brow. “Where is Ragal?”

  “He shifted and is securing the perimeter. I don't expect the Infernian scum to return tonight, but we aren't in a position to be taking things for granted anymore.”

  Zaruv looked down at Jennifer, “No, we can't afford to take anything for granted.”

  “What will you do?” Andie asked, stepping back into the conversation.

  “We need to find our ship, but with Infernians on the loose, it's no longer safe for anyone. They didn't just show up tonight. They'll have watched us and chosen tonight when we were separated and away from the protections and fortifications we've made to the compound to strike at the weakest target.”

  I looked back at Jennifer. “Sorry, but you are human.”

  “Hey, wait a minute . . .” Andie began.

  “No, he's right. I don't like to think of myself as weak, but I'm no Dragselian . . . though, I wouldn't repeat all of that to Pavar.” She smiled at me.

  “Smart human,” I returned, smiling despite the circumstances. I looked back at Andie. She seemed somewhat less amused.

  “Hey, you know, despite what you may believe about us, I assure you that not all humans drop so easily.” She looked back at Jennifer somewhat sheepishly. “Sorry, girl, but you did almost get strangled.”

  “It's fine. I'm okay with not being battle hardened if it means going through that on the regular.”

  Moving closer to me, Andie refocused with more fervor. “We lowly humans have been on Vaxivia and holding our own for the last 200 years. If there is a threat to Vaxivia, I'll be the first one to go headfirst into that fight,” she said, all the while getting closer.

  “Then you take foolish risks,” I replied calmly, despite the thrum of my blood in my ears.

  “Or maybe I just know what I'm capable of,” she said as the space between us grew narrower.

  “And what might that be?” I asked, my eyes dropping to her lips.

  “Ahem.” Ragal had returned, an intrigued expression on his face.

  “Ragal, this is Gunnery Sergeant Andromeda Titania of the Vaxivian Militia,” Zaruv helpfully supplied as I stepped back to safety and regained control of myself.

  Ragal bowed politely. “A pleasure.”

  “Same, but just call me Andie.”

  “So, we were ah . . .” Zaruv said, “discussing our next steps.”

  “As I was saying, if there is trouble brewing, we're more than capable of holding our own. If these Infernians are hiding somewhere in or around the community and willing to attack, especially in the open like tonight, this is our problem too. I'd like to talk to my Commanding Officer, Master Sergeant Lee Johnson. He's a good man. Jennifer can vouch for that.”

  “Yes, I have met him,” Zaruv added.

  “You have?” Ragal and I both asked, surprised.

  “Indeed. I was ah . . . assisting Jennifer in the clinic after closing, and he had stopped in to speak with her about some business.” There was surely more to that story, but Zaruv forged on. “He seems a trustworthy man and would be a good ally.”

  “Great, so it's settled! I'll speak with him at first sunrise,” said Andie, looking pleased with herself.

  “Batr, can this be the best course of action? The more who know of us, the more we endanger, and besides, I am not convinced his help is needed,” I added, not looking in her direction but feeling the heat of Andromeda's ire ignite anew.

  Dismissively, Zaruv cut in. “If it would ease your mind, accompany Sergeant Titania. I would go myself, but I am not fit for such a meeting in this condition. Now, we all need to rest.”

  “There is a large bench in the exam room with Pavar for whoever wants it. I'm going to take the couch in my office, and then there are, of course, the chairs out here,” Jennifer offered.

  Ragal spoke first as he left the room. “I'll keep watch over Pavar.”

  Without another word, Jennifer and Zaruv strode purposefully down the hall. As a Dragselian, my sense of hearing was better than a human's, and unfortunately, it allowed me to hear a few choice whispered promises regarding pain relief that the good nurse planned to provide.

  I looked back at Andromeda, not quite prepared to be suddenly alone with her. She r
ecovered quicker from the quick change of events.

  “Don't look so scared, dragon boy. I'm just a human, remember?” With that, she plopped into a chair and covered herself with a rough, weathered coat, promptly falling asleep.

  Going to a chair along the opposite wall, I wondered at the night's events. I had started the night searching and finding nothing, but now, standing there, I couldn't but feel I had found something. Whether this would prove good or not, I couldn't bring myself to examine.

  Chapter 4

  Andie

  I woke up in the green waiting room chairs of Jennifer's clinic with one hell of a kink in my neck. Across the room, Karun, broody Dragon Prince, was sleeping soundly. The first sun was just starting to breach the western horizon. Going to the windows, I peeked out at the street.

  “Ragal will have removed the bodies.” His voice was sleepy, and I felt more than heard the scratchy rumbling of it. I turned back, and he was staring at me, unblinking.

  “Right.” I dazzled him with my wit.

  “Do you wish me to escort you to your housing unit before our meeting with your superior?” As appealing as a soak in my refresher pod sounded, I knew this wasn't the time for vanity or relaxation.

  “No, I'll just use the washroom and clean up quickly. We need to catch Sergeant Johnson before he leaves for morning rounds of the sector.” Despite the recent downturn in crime in the sector, the militia trained everyday and the Sergeant maintained the higher standards of readiness and preparation we had developed over the last few years.

  “Agreed. Let us be swift about this.” He grimaced.

  Walking back into the depths of the clinic, I felt his silver gaze on me and my body responded. If my hips swayed a little more than usual, that was no fault of mine.

  After smoothing my hair back into a neat braid and using the clinic's bacterium ionizer on my very lovely morning breath, I poked my head into Jennifer's office to let her know we were heading out. Prince Zaruv was sleeping heavily on the couch and looking a little worse for the wear, so she motioned to meet me in the hall.

  “You guys heading over to Lee's?” She yawned. Didn't she know that was contagious?

  “Yep, dragon-boy seems thrilled about it too.”

  “Dragon-boy, huh?” She grinned.

  “Sorry, no disrespect.” I eyed her bunk buddy. “You guys do any sleeping back here?” I returned, earning a brief smile from Jen.

  “It's complicated.”

  “Ah, gotcha. Well, for what it's worth, I think you'd make beautiful little baby dragons,” I quipped. “Sorry, I'm an ass. Do you need anything before we head out?”

  She pinched the bridge of her nose against an apparent headache. “I sent EE messages to my patients who were supposed to come in today. None of them were urgent, so the only person coming by will be Mikey.”

  Mike Jones was a cute ten-year-old sprout who ran odd jobs around town to help out his family. His dad had been a member of my unit until he was killed in a pulsor fight with weapons smugglers. Like so many residents in and around the Outpost, the Jones family had seen their share of tragedy. All the more reason to get this Infernian mess under control.

  “I've got some stuff I can put together in the kitchenette, so we'll all sit tight until you and Karun get back from seeing Lee.”

  “Okay, we'll head over to the Hub. EE me if there is a sign of trouble again,” I added, referencing the electroencephalum chips that were the primary form of communication on Vaxivia.

  EE chips only worked over relatively short distances, but they allowed us to condense a thought sequence into audiovisual clips that could be transferred from one chip wearer to another, so long as they were within the proscribed range. They were great except that you couldn't block another chipholder, and bad pickup lines and creeps who wanted to show off their 'hardware' or 'dick-clips' were an irritating nuisance.

  We silently headed down the still cold road together, carefully scanning our surroundings. It had been at least six hours, and I wasn't sure how long alien demons took to regroup, but I didn't want to be caught off guard with just us two, especially since I hadn't charged my pulsor since the evening before.

  I led Karun to my fugecraft, and after a quick DNA scan, the machine rumbled to life.

  “Militia Hub is in the northwest quadrant,” I said as I hopped on. “On foot, it'll take us half the day or more. I suppose you could fly yourself, dragon boy, but as we approach the Hub, it'll trigger the defense systems.”

  I glanced at him teasingly. His expression was determined and difficult to read. In the light of first dawn, his hair almost glowed against his mossy green skin, setting off the liquid silver of his eyes.

  He stepped forward, and my heart rate jumped a little as he climbed on the seat, his thighs straddling my hips from behind and his hands on the grips of the console in front of me. Either Dragselians ran warmer than humans or my body was a little too aware of his, because the heat where our bodies met felt like it was going to melt my clothes right off.

  His voice rolled warmly across my skin. “I prefer Karun.”

  Not trusting myself to respond evenly, I hit the accelerator and took off toward the second dawn.

  Half an hour later, we were nearing airspace over the Hub. I EEed passcode HAL-97 to the security blocker and we entered. We approached the small grey building, and a militia member opened a window for visual inspection. EE was disengaged while in the fortified magnetic fields of the Hub.

  “Sergeant Andromeda Titania, level three, requesting permission for entry,” I said a little formally, mostly for the benefit of the man behind me.

  “Hey! How's it?” Petty Officer Kang said, opening the passage. “You're not on the schedule today, Andie.”

  “I know, but we need to see Johnson,” I said, following his eyes to Karun. “There was an attack last night in town. It's urgent.”

  Kang stepped aside, granting us entry then quickly patting down Karun, who didn't seem to love the process.

  Inside the Hub, we took an elevator down fifteen levels to the fortified underground levels housing the training facilities, munitions armory, and mess hall. Walking past offices, mostly empty at this hour, we reached a steel door that secured the leadership offices.

  Kang spoke into a small microphone then breathed into the bio resonance scanner, and we passed through into an antechamber with Kang staying behind.

  PFC Zach Hardin approached us, a big hulk of a guy I'd known forever. “Andromeda the lovely. What's up, hon?” he winked at me. He was an easygoing guy for whom flirting was like breathing.

  He lifted his brows suggestively. “And who is the boy toy?”

  Karun stiffened and I quickly cut in, “He's the victim of a coordinated attack last night outside the Free Clinic. I need to see Johnson ASAP. TriScurra was involved.”

  “Well shit. I'll be right back—wait here,” he said as he hurried down the hall to another chamber.

  I looked back at Karun. “We're a little casual here, sorry. Being out here, we don't interact with dignitaries much, but this is our home and we do what needs to be done to keep it safe.”

  “An honorable sentiment,” he said, and then gestured to where Zach had gone. “You are very familiar with him?” he asked, shifting uneasily.

  “Zach?” I laughed at the suggestive implication. “Yeah, we're like family. We're not exactly on Enceladus here. Everyone knows everyone. Most folks keep to themselves to some extent, given how many of them have skeletons in their closet. Still, Vaxivia can be a rough place if you don't have friends. It pays to know your neighbors here.”

  Zach called to us from down the hall, “Johnson's ready for you!”

  We walked into Master Sergeant Lee Johnson's office and Zach closed the door. Johnson was a big, somewhat brutal looking man with dark hair and darker features.

  “Master Sergeant, thanks for seeing us. Allow me to introduce Dragselian Prince Karun,” I said as Karun bowed deeply.

  “Dragselian?” Johnson a
sked, looking more than a little surprised. “I'm very familiar with your culture, but I don't understand. What are you doing here, on Vaxivia? And what does this have to do with the TriScurra attack last night?”

  “Actually, it was more of an Infernian attack. The TriScurra were there as hired henchmen,” Karun supplied.

  Johnson's face hardened and intensified. “Infernians? Start from the beginning and tell me everything.”

  Fifteen minutes later, Johnson and Hardin were up to speed.

  Johnson had settled into a high-backed swivel chair behind his steel desk. “Hardin, send out an EE to everyone in the valley. We have three Infernian demons. Folks need to be advised that they can change form and blend in, they are armed, and they are highly dangerous. No one is to engage. They are to EE the Hub immediately. Additionally, call in all reserves ASAP. This is Code One. I want patrols covering the sector day and night.”

  Zach hurried out of the room, and Johnson stood, pacing. “I know from personal history how dangerous Infernians can be, and I'm not foolish enough to think you or I can handle this threat alone. What is your plan and how can we help?”

  “I appreciate your willingness to assist us, as will my brothers, Master Sergeant.” Karun's bearing was impossibly regal. He stood so correctly and so impossibly collected.

  “When we crashed, my brothers and I were separated from our space vessel. Our primary objective right now is to find it. On board, we have weapons technology that would make putting down these Infernians far easier.

  “However, two of my brothers are injured. If I were in their position, this is would be the time to strike again, hard. Thanks to the swift actions of Sergeant Titania,” he said, his eyes lingering on me a moment longer than I expected, “we were victorious last night, but just barely.”

  Johnson turned to me and brusquely nodded. “Good work, Andie. Orion would be proud.” The mention of my brother hit me like a hard punch in the gut. Swallowing, I just nodded and turned away.