Vall's Will
Authors: Linda Mooney
Tags: #romance, #science fiction, #aliens, #space ships, #sensuous
Table of Contents
Chapter Twenty-Four - Decision
Chapter Twenty-Seven - Reunited
Chapter Twenty-Eight - Snatched
Chapter Twenty-Nine- Resplendent
Chapter Thirty-One - Diversion
Vall’s Will
An Erotic Sci-fi Romance
By
Linda Mooney
VALL’S
WILL
Copyright
© 2013 by
Linda Mooney
ISBN 978-0-9859300-6-6
Warning: The unauthorized reproduction or distribution
of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including
infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is
punishable by up to 5 (five) years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.
Names, characters and incidents depicted in this book are
products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance
to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is
entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author or the publisher.
No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,
recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without
permission in writing from the author.
Editor: Diana Castilleja
Cover Art: Linda Mooney
Chapter One
The Ben Objure
Captain Willis
Tayte stood on the bridge of her ship and watched the ongoing chase through the
view screen. The ugly, insectoid vessel in front of them continued to bob and
weave as it tried to evade their smaller ship, which relentlessly dogged it.
“Distance,”
she commanded.
Before
navigation could respond, a bright green beam shot out from the belly of the
vessel. The plasma ray struck their force field, but was dispersed in a glowing
sheet of color. Will glanced down at the navigation board a few feet away. They
were down to less than sixty percent power on the shields, but that should be
enough to hold them until they caught up with the ship.
“Distance!”
she repeated.
“Sixteen
hundred kilometers, Captain!” Her navigator grinned and added, “And
closing fast!”
“Stay on
her, Magnus. She’s going to be prize booty for us when we haul her back to Segu
Minor Four.”
“Aye,
Captain.”
“Major
booty prize,” Plymon added with a wink. “I’ve never seen an Objurian
ship that large.”
Will glanced
over to see her Sub-captain nearly drooling. She knew the man thirsted for the
hunt, and a prize like the one they were pursuing was worth the dangers of any
retaliation the other ship tried to use against them.
“Magnus, do
you have the smallest doubt this could be a queen ship?”
“None,
Captain. She’s among the rarest of the rare.”
“Captain?”
Will glanced
over where Plymon was running the scanners.
“We show
eighteen life forms on board,” Plymon informed her. “The majority
appear within sentient range.”
Sentient range.
That meant the ship was carrying prisoners. Or slaves.
“How many
of them Objurian?”
“Six.”
“That means
there’s twelve possible captives. Can you tell if any of them are
humanoid?”
“Only one,
so far.”
Twelve possible
captives. That word alone made her smile. It was one thing to take over an
Objurian spaceship. It was double luck if the ship was carrying valuable cargo.
Having the ship house a rare queen Objurian was nearly unheard of. But to find
one with a load of methenite
and
slaves was like having credits in the
pocket and the universe at your beck and call, both at the same time. Add in
the fact that one passenger was humanoid, and the Regents would probably pin a
medal on her.
Of course, some
of those supposed captives could be members of the crew, but it was highly
unlikely, considering the Objurian penchant for warm flesh.
The ship in
front of them lashed out again, this time with a disruptor beam.
“That’s the
last of the lot for them,” Magnus announced. “Their weapons tanks are
empty.”
“All right.
Let’s land on that thing and claim ownership.”
Plymon punched
the boarding button. Immediately, the lights in the bridge, as well as all over
the
Trinity of Hope
, dimmed for the flashing red alarms that signaled
they were about to take the ship. The accompanying claxon squawked like an
angry horned eris bird. Will drew a finger across her throat, and Plymon turned
the sound down on the bridge.
The Objurian
ship continued in its effort to shake them, without luck. The Ben Objure had
spent all of their energies discharging their weapons. With their engines
depleted, they were starting to coast to a stop. Will watched with nervous
anticipation as Magnus steered them over the top of the ship, looking for a
large enough place to land.
“There.”
Stepping off the command platform, she moved toward the view screen and pointed
to an area off to the lower right. “Quadrant four. That looks
possible.”
“I was
thinking the same thing.”
The swift
Regency craft flew low over the site before swinging around and approaching it
on the second pass. Compared to the huge alien ship, theirs was barely a tenth
of its size. But in space, size never determined which race or species was
superior. In the end, it always came down to ability, determination,
intelligence, and firepower. Already they could tell the enemy ship was
sputtering. The Objurian crew was feverishly squeezing every last ounce of
juice out of the dying engines. Will shook her head. The vessel probably ate massive
amounts of matter to keep itself going. She vaguely wondered how often the crew
was forced to stop and refuel the behemoth. She glanced over at the
communications officer. “Granth, send them our terms.”
“Done,
Captain.”
“Any
response?”
“Not even a
‘fekk you’.”
“How
inhospitable. Very well. Let’s set her down.”
Four landing
spikes emerged from the underside of the
Trinity
. As the vessel touched
down on the hull, they dug deep into the skin, embedding themselves far enough
into the ship’s outer layer to prevent themselves from being dislodged.
Automatically, everyone fastened themselves in their safety harnesses. Will was
in her command chair and strapped in before the navigator called out,
“Gear secured.”
The words were
barely out of his mouth when the Objurian ship let out a high-pitched screech
that filled the bridge. Will clenched her teeth against the squeal until Granth
dropped the volume. At the same time, they were violently thrown from side to
side as the craft tried to shake them off. Although the head brace protected
her from the worst of it, Will wished for the umpteenth time that someone would
invent a more stabilizing device. She would have a top-level migraine before
this was over.
Unable to evict
the
Trinity
using their first method, the enemy ship started whirling.
When that didn’t work, it tried to reach back with its extendable clawed arms
to pluck the Regency vessel off its back, but Magnus had set them down well out
of range. Will watched as the pitted metal arms futilely snapped meters away.
“Captain,
she’s sending out a distress call.”
“Block
it.”
“Way ahead
of you.” Granth grinned at her, and she smiled back. Thank the heavens for
such a well-trained crew. After only nineteen months, they worked so smoothly
together, they could already anticipate most of her commands, as well as each
other’s moves.
The arms finally
withdrew. The Objurian craft ceased its gyration. Will took a deep breath of
relief. The enemy had accepted its fate, which meant Stage One was over. Now
came Stage Two. The dangerous part.
“Plymon,
ready to assist me with boarding the ship?”
“I’ll meet
you at the docking station,” the man told her, and left the bridge.
Will laid her
hand on the screen on the command chair arm. “Withdraw cage. Calling
security. Peersoff!”
“Peersoff
here, Captain.”
She stood as the
last of the straps that had kept her secured withdrew back into the chair.
“Meet me in docking. Bring two men with you.”
“On my
way,” the man crisply replied. He didn’t need to ask why. Everyone already
knew what their strategy protocol was when overtaking an enemy ship.
“It’s all
yours, Magnus,” she instructed as she headed for the internal lift. His
reply was faint when she stepped into the lift’s void and placed her hand on
the sensor panel.
“Accepted,
Captain.”
“Docking.”
The lift shot her through the ship’s many levels. Although she knew she was
traveling at a high rate of speed, it felt more like she was being buffeted by
a thousand air nozzles, all blowing on her at every angle. The pale blue glow
from the lift’s inner panel was her lone light source, and she watched the
display tick off the levels until she reached the docking area. When the
darkness in front of her dissolved, she stepped out into the large chamber
where the four members of her team were already waiting at the far end. Plymon
spoke up as she approached.
“The tube
has punched through.”
“Good. Any
sign of resistance?”
Peersoff glanced
up from a monitor. “None so far, but you know that doesn’t mean anything
when it comes to the Ben Objure.”
“Fekking
scavengers.”
Will turned
around at the soft curse. It had come from Beese, one of Peersoff’s men.
“Don’t begrudge them their way of life. It’s because they’re scavengers
that we’re allowed to make a tidy profit.”
Beese grunted,
but with a smile.
“Is it true
there’s a humanoid on board?” Gorin asked. He was the second man from
security.
Plymon nodded.
“Regardless of the fact, don’t automatically assume that the humanoid is a
friendly. I’ve seen Ars Van Turins as crew members on Objurian ships.”
“That’s
correct,” Will added. “There’s also twelve other undetermined species
on board. Your orders are to treat everything as an enemy until proven
differently. Where are we landing?”
“A small
storage bay, near the bridge.”
“Mmm.
Sounds like a good surprise tactic. Are we all prepared?” Seeing everyone
nod, she smiled. “Set external shields to stun, not kill. I want
prisoners, not bodies. Peersoff, watch our backs.”
She pulled her
personal aura around her. The thin, misty-white shelter surrounded her like an
outer shell. Reaching up to her collarbone, she punched the middle of three
nodules, and the protective case took on a bluish glow. Without looking to see
if the others had also encased themselves, she entered the tunnel opening.
The
interconnecting tube had embedded itself into the Objurian ship’s outer hull,
then drilled a hole into the vessel, adjusting for gravity and atmosphere. The
tunnel was larger than the ship’s inner-connecting transport tube in order to
accommodate them while they were enclosed within their protective gear. Will
could feel the pull of gravity from the
Trinity
lessen as she gently
dropped inside the alien ship
.
As soon as her feet connected to the
strange floor, she stepped away from the exit to make room for the next man.
Everyone was on board within seconds.
Light.
Her
aura brightened at her mental command. Around her, the others’ suits helped to
make it easier to see inside the murky ship. Plymon moved to stand beside her.
“Did
someone ever figure out why it’s always so fekking dark inside these haulers?
Do the bugs have an aversion to light?”
“When you
find out, let the rest of us know, all right?” Her senses told her which
direction they needed to take. She tilted her head toward the exit. “We go
silent from here.”
They moved swiftly
and quietly, their plasma shields natural extensions of their bodies and
virtually weightless. Will often thought of hers as more like being surrounded
by a protective cushion of air. Air that could either stun or kill, as well as
protect.
An Objurian
stood guard in the main corridor, outside the bay. The creature was so large,
it blocked all the light coming from their shields. It never saw Beese raise
his arm and shove his fist in its direction. When a thin sliver of plasma shot
from his hand, the alien shuddered upon contact. Its multitude of thin legs
collapsed beneath it, and the Objurian slumped onto the floor before it could
send out a warning.
Will continued
toward the bridge. The others kept in a tight rank behind her.
Huge panels
opened up to the control center. Immediately, they met with four Objurians
clustered in the middle of the bridge. Will recognized the strategy as a cold
shudder went through her. She had heard of a bug ball, but this was her first
time to encounter one. Somewhere within that seething mass was their leader.
Their queen.
Translate.
“Admit
defeat, and you will not be killed.” She tried to keep her voice firm, and
hoped the others wouldn’t hear her rising fear. Their combined auras barely
managed to dispel the darkness within the room.
The huddled
aliens quivered slightly, a tightly packed conglomeration that moved as one,
but none of the creatures responded. Will tried again. “Your ship is now
the property of the Coalition of Regents of the Surro-Gambit galaxy. You are
now our prisoners.”
There was a
faint noise that vaguely sounded like a no. Will felt her stomach cave in as
her instincts screamed a warning inside her head.
“
Join
hands!”
In the
split-second that followed, the ball of aliens exploded outward.