Euthara (40 page)

Oddly enough Deatra had been there too, though Jon wasn't allowed near her. That irked Jon more than the guards knew, and the King had done it on purpose. Every time the King looked in Jon's direction he scowled at Jon. Jon had thought seriously about taking an armed guard over and wrestling Deatra back but he didn't want to make a large scene. He would bide his time and strike when he knew the time was right.

Later, after the ceremony, Jon noticed Opellissa talking with Deatra quietly. Opellissa's guards had replaced Jon's Royal guards and she had two in tow herself. Something his personal guards didn't like and rejected off hand. The captain of his royal guards finally conceded to Opellissa's demands, but not completely. His guards now guarded him at a distance, the first line of defense for him now, with his female guards now being his inner defense. Opellissa had no objection to that as more protection was always a good thing. So, things went well even with the tension, and Jon was happy for all the honors bestowed on Kelly on Bill's behalf.

The last order of business was the announcement that the Earth's Revenge was going to be refitted and put back into the fleet. Some of the work could already be seen. Mike and Brad had already been hard at work and had the plans drawn up. She was going to be refitted to hold two more squads of fighters and a stronger defense.

Dalliana, the Earth's Revenge's AI, had been retrieved and was remarkably undamaged for what had happened. When she was told of Bill's death something unexpected happened, she began to cry as she fell into a heap on the floor. Mike was at a loss, what he saw wasn't possible in her code base. Mike started pouring over her base code to look for the answer but nothing caught him out of the ordinary. It took a Psychological Councilor two weeks to get Dalliana back on her feet and back to operational status.

Dalliana was currently installed and helping guide the repair crews working on her hull and super structure. There was no main power and she was using power from the station to keep herself running. Then there were snags that the various crews had to stop and fix so that Dalliana could access certain systems. Some of those systems had to have special power lines run for the time being. One of the first systems they got running was her spider-bot Bays, this helped the repair crews, as Dalliana could then concentrate on returning her important systems herself.

When Jon asked, Brad had told him that the Earth's Revenge would be operational in under a month. Jon was astounded by the news, and Brad quickly let him know it was because everything else had stopped, and the various races now living on the station had banded together to repair her in Bill's honor. She was and will be the largest ship of the fleet, for now anyway, and the ADF needed her, so all the stops were pulled out. Ghost Station had already been sending replacement fighters and crew for the ship and the newly reformed Eutharan companies were making contributions to the cause.

Those corporations had been doing very well as they shipped their wares to the planets that had managed to dodge the Crystari bullet for now. Most of those planets had increased their ship production at the behest of Jon as he made contact with them. Some of them had even started shipping non-essential people to Euthara and Ghost Station. All in all, things were looking good as long as he could get Euthara under control and figure out what was really happening here.

Jon had been down at the impact crater when Deatra’s rescue happened. Mark and Brad’s teams had managed to gain access to the interior of the structure and to the core computer even though there was not much left. What they gained access to was something the Jon hadn’t imagined in a thousand years.

They had managed to rebuild most of the data banks and reconstruct what was going on at this station. The information made Jon pale then turned his stomach as he fought to understand why someone would do something like this to their own people. This information was the nail in the coffin so to speak and Jon immediately had it transmitted to a special archive on
Atlantis
that only he and Atlantis herself had access too. He ordered the structure sealed off and under full guard until this thing was resolved.

Atlantis would spend the next two days going over the data separating the important from the not so important. Time was on the King’s side and now Jon knew how much that was a true factor. His time to act was quickly approaching, and the battle that was ahead was not only for his people and the Crown but for every life on Euthara and even the planet itself.

Jon looked up as the door to the master bedroom opened and Deatra stepped out and smiled at him. Jon's heart fluttered and out of the corner of his eye he saw Opellissa give him a grin. Jon sat back as he watched her move, he was only saddened because he wasn’t there when she was freed.

Deatra's return had been a surprise to him, and he was still foggy on how it had happened. From what he gathered, her shuttle had a guidance failure of some sort, and it had to land at the port in Euroth, his city.

Opellissa and her people had been there to greet them and to escort Deatra to a ‘safe’ place. Her guards put up a small fight in the form of an argument and Opellissa calmly explained the repairs might take the better part of the day. Deatra's guard told Opellissa they would have her secured here in the shuttle while the repairs were done.

Opellissa was having none of it as she explained that she couldn't guarantee their safety and it would be better if they moved to the
Atlantis
. They ended up placing a call to the King who said he was sending a second shuttle to retrieve them.

When the captain of Deatra's guard told Opellissa she shrugged as she told him it was unlikely. Two minutes later sirens came to life in the city as fighters from the
Atlantis
sped off into the distance.

Opellissa answered her com link a few seconds later, “Opellissa, go command.”

“We have a shuttle requesting access to the city. They say you authorized them for landing,” Carla said.

“No, I gave no such authorization,” Opellissa said. “We have a person of importance here and their shuttle will take an hour or two to repair. The Captain of the guard for them stubbornly refuses to move to the safety of
Atlantis
. He called in the request for additional transportation.”

“I can assume he can hear this,” Carla said.

“He can now,” Opellissa said as she flipped on the external speaker.

“Good,” Carla said. “Captain, I'm Captain Taldage of the starship
Atlantis
. This city is a no fly zone, you're lucky to even be allowed to land here. Pack your people up and move them to the
Atlantis
while the repairs are completed on your shuttle. I'll then have the shuttle brought to my ship and you can leave from there.”

“My thanks Captain,” the Eutharan Captain said. “But, we'll stay where we are while the repairs are completed, or you can escort us to the shuttle outside the city and return the shuttle at your convenience.”

Carla's voice sighed through the com as she spoke, “Are all Eutharan military people so thick headed? I do not have the people to escort you out of the city. On top of that there are a lot of people who aren't very happy with the Eutharan military and the current rulers that live in this city. Currently, you're in a secure area very close to the
Atlantis
, I can guarantee your safety from where you are, I can't if you decide to try to leave the city.”

Deatra was standing in the middle of her guards a small grin across her face. She finally spoke up, “Captain, I think my father would be very unhappy if something happened to me because you decided to butt heads with the ADF. I think it was rather nice they allowed us to land to effect repairs to our ship.”

The Captain looked back at Deatra as he spoke, “Yeah, a little convenient don't you think? We just had to take the scenic route back to the Capital and now we're here where your bond mate is. Someone who has demanded you back in the past, and I've had orders not to let near you.”

“I assure you that Commander Hunter knows nothing of her presence here,” Opellissa said. “He has nothing to do with this or any knowledge of it.”

“I've been suppressing the connection,” Deatra said. “Trust me, I don't want to cause my mate any more pain than he feels already.”

“Whether or not he is your bond mate is still up to the King and his councilors to decide,” the Captain said. He looked at Opellissa and narrowed his eyes. “I know who you are and do not think you hold any sway with my duties. You’ve been removed from the royal line and as such have no authority here on Euthara.”

Opellissa gave the Captain a grin that made a shiver run through his body. “Then you also know the order I used to serve,” Opellissa said.

“I do,” the Captain said.

“Then you know not to fuck with me,” Opellissa said. “And Captain, right now you’re fucking with me. I’m ordering you to proceed to the
Atlantis
where the Princess will be safe and I can protect you and your men. You’re in Euroth and I do have command here as Jonathan Hunter’s bond mate.”

The Captain laughed as Opellissa finished her statement. “Two bond mates,” the Captain said. “He must truly be an amazing man. You and I know that there has only been one person to ever have two bond mates. No one else in our history has ever had more than one.”

“Four,” Opellissa said.

The Captain blinked as he stopped laughing. His men started to murmur among themselves. “Four?” the Captain said. Deatra frowned as she looked at Opellissa who glanced at her out of the corner of her eye as if to say ‘I’ll explain later’. “You’re kidding.”

“No, he has four bond mates,” Opellissa said. “He wields fire and ice, light and dark as prophecy said he would.”

“You’re not kidding,” the Captain said as he let out a sigh. “You really think this man is who he pretends to be?”

“He pretends to be no one,” Opellissa said. “If he had his way he wouldn’t be here right now. My father made that impossible and so now he is here to set our world right. You and your men had better choose which side you want to be on, and soon.”

The Captain’s eyes narrowed as he spoke, “I knew this was a trap to remove the Princess from her rightful place beside our King.” The murmuring stopped behind the Captain as Mark and thirty mixed marines stepped around a corner and approached their small gathering. The Eutharan guards tightened up their ranks as they engulfed Deatra and readied their weapons.

Mark stopped next to Opellissa and his men fell out in a loose formation behind him. He snapped a salute to the Eutharan Captain which wasn’t returned.

“Good timing,” Opellissa said under her breath.

“I try,” Mark said under his breath. Then he brought his attention back to the Captain as he spoke up. “Sir, if you would follow me we’ve been ordered to escort you to the
Atlantis
for your safety.”

“You are?” the Captain said.

“My apologies,” Mark said. “I’m Captain Anders, Garrison Commander for Euroth and
Atlantis
.”

“You can escort us to the gates and to the shuttle waiting on the other side but we’re not going to that ship,” the Captain said.

“If that is Lady Opellissa’s desire, as she is the command presence here,” Mark said. “I was just sent in for back up by our ship’s captain.”

“Mr. Hunter,” the Captain said.

“No, he is unaware of your presence here, as he's not in the city currently,” Mark said. “It was Captain Taldage that gave me my orders. She explained to me that Lady Opellissa was talking to a rather thick headed Captain and might need support, her words, not mine.”

“We’re not getting on that ship,” the Captain said.

“Excuse me Sir,” Mark said. “But you have no choice.”

“Oh?” the Captain said.

“Not really,” Mark said. “You can either go along quietly for your own safety, or you throw a fit and I’ll drag you there myself kicking and screaming. Then when your shuttle is repaired, you can cry all the way back to the Crown City.”

“So now it’s down to threats?” the Captain said.

“Sorry, Sir,” Mark said. “You misunderstand, I’m not threatening you, I’m telling you that is how it’s going to be. The choice is yours.”

“Do you really want to start a fight here?” the Captain said.

“Not really, do you?” Mark said. He raised his hand and another thirty heavily armored Marines came out of the shadows. “You can either do your duty, and protect the Princess, or you and your men can die right here and the Princess can stay. I’ll send the Vids to the King so he knows what really happened.”

“You don’t give a man a choice do you?” the Captain said.

“Where it concerns the safety of that woman right there or any of the Commander’s bond mates, no, I don’t,” Mark said.

“I could simply shoot her and this would all be over,” the Captain said. “Your Commander would be dead through the bond and I would be dead by your hand. I might even be considered a hero as things would then return to normal on Euthara.”

Opellissa and Deatra both gasped.

Mark’s eyes narrowed as he took in the Eutharan in front of him. Mark had little doubt that the Captain had been told by the King to kill Deatra as a last resort. It would actually solve a lot of problems for the King and his Royals. The King couldn’t just outright kill her and in a situation like this it would be said she was caught in the cross fire. He had to make a choice here and it needed to be the right one. Let them go or deal with the problem right here and right now. The only problem with the here and now was where Deatra was. He might not be able to get to her in time.

Mark glanced at the Eutharan guards behind the Captain and saw the surprise in the eyes of all of them but one. He was the one that knew of this situation and wasn’t surprised by what the Captain said.

‘God?’ Mark said through his nanites.

‘God’s here boss,’ a deep voice said in Mark’s head.

‘You see the man sitting just right of the Princess?’ Mark said.

‘Yep,’ the voice replied.

Mark saw a dot settle on the man’s helmet, it rotated colors as it went through the spectrum of light. You had to be wearing a special helmet or pair of glasses tuned into the weapon to see it. Something God transmitted to Mark’s nanites which set the frequency on his sunglasses.