Dekkir (Galaxy Alien Warriors #1)(33)
A storm was coming. But on Lyra, we had much experience in weathering storms. The humans, on the other hand, had no idea what they were in for now that they had threatened both my father and my mate. I will take revenge . . . for all of us.
CHAPTER 13 / GRACE
Grace! Wake up, young one. There’s trouble.
My eyes flew open, and for a moment, I stared in confusion at the friendly darkness of the bedroom I shared with my mate. I could hear Dekkir breathing softly beside me, soundly asleep. His mind projected contentment, sexual satisfaction, and the vague confusion of his dreams. The voice in my head had not come from him. I squinted, trying to focus. It was still difficult for me to project telepathically, and my lips moved as I sub-vocalized my answer. Doctor, is that you?
It is. I could sense the urgency in his mental contact, real fear behind it. Not fear for himself. Fear for us. Fear for me. We have a serious problem, and the sooner you and the others can ready yourselves, the better.
I felt my muscles tense as I focused on that mental voice. The man on the other end of the contact was supposed to be on the moon base where the humans were located. All except for me, anyway. But for all intents and purposes, including bonding myself to the future leader of this planet, I had completely gone native. Tell me what’s happening.
Our dear friend, Lieutenant Damon Norcross, stormed out of an argument with the commander perhaps half an hour ago. Ever since then, he’s been gathering his troops. He’s taking a contingent of one hundred men down to Lyra by dropship. He intends to attack Highfort within two hours.
Adrenaline surged through me like icy water in my veins. I don’t understand. The commander is just letting him do this?
The commander is emotionally compromised and has been compensating with an awful lot of alcohol. The doctor’s mental voice went very grave. Norcross has been able to do a great deal under his nose because of this. He is responsible for the drone attack on your caravan. He is very likely responsible for the assassination attempt on High Chieftain Dorin. I don’t know if he’s under orders from the higher-ups in Earth Command, but either way, he is bringing trouble to Lyra.
That absolute son of a bitch. I slipped quickly out of bed, rearranging the fur blankets so the chill of the room would not reach my mate’s back. Do you have any idea what his aim is?
If his mind were not unreadable, I would know for certain. However, it stands to reason that he intends to kill the high chieftain, the chieftain’s successor Dekkir, and yourself. Killing all three targets and destroying the capital would go a very long way toward crippling Lyran society. We already know Earth Command wants to take over the planet. If they level Highfort, they may just manage it.
Not a chance. Dekkir and I won’t allow it. I scowled as I pulled on the pale-brown leather trousers and tunic my mate had sourced for me.
Well, that’s an excellent attitude, but it won’t change the fact that a small army will be headed your direction very quickly. I would suggest waking up your mate and getting to work on warning the others. His mental contact had a touch of bitter humor. I will arrange to follow the dropships. I have ideas on how I can toss an auto-spanner into their plans. But meanwhile, you need to deal with all of those human soldiers headed your way.
Any chance of you being able to slow them down? I stomped into my boots, making a little bit of noise. Dekkir started to wake up, rolling over and letting out a soft grunt.
I will do my best, but I cannot make any guarantees. It’s simply too uncertain, and unfortunately, I have to reach my stash of equipment planet-side before I can do them any real damage.
I felt his regret and another slight surge of fear. Okay, then. I’ll do my best. I’ll let them know the warning came from you. I suppose I need to remember to call you by your Lyran name when I’m talking about you to them.
Yes, well, to be completely honest about it, my dear, Tabirus is the name I was born with. Dr. Stirling is the alias.
I gasped so loudly that Dekkir opened an eye. What? How is that possible? You don’t look anything like the rest of the Lyrans.
I couldn’t believe it. Dr. Stirling had been my mentor and friend for two years. He directed the science division at the base. Next to Lyran men like Dekkir, he looked completely human. Blond, yes, tall, yes, well built, and, thanks to his symbiont inoculation, telepathic. But Lyran? How was that even possible? He was at least a foot shorter than any Lyran male I had ever seen.
No, I do not. There’s a very good reason for that, and I will explain once you and the others have prepared. A pause. I felt a trickle of guilt from him. For the record, I apologize for deceiving you. But someone had to watch out for what went on at the Earth base.
I sighed. Dekkir blinked and sat up; I went to him and slipped my arms around him, laying my head against his massive chest for comfort. He held me, radiating curiosity and mild alarm. Tabirus it is, then. I would be angrier with you if your infiltration did not just give us the warning that may save our butts.
His amusement brushed against my mind. Fair enough.
Dekkir stroked a big hand down my back. I shivered. “What is it, my love?” he rumbled gently.
“It’s Tabirus. He just sent a warning.” I relayed the information the telepath had sent me and watched his golden eyes widen and then narrow in anger. “Looks like it’s time to put your war chief hat on.”
He stood, towering over me, his arm still around me protectively. I could feel the heat radiating off his bare skin, warming my back soothingly. His muscles were taut, though, with readiness for battle. “Indeed, it is,” he growled softly.