Theron Destiny (Brides of Theron) (23 page)

“You got to tell him Avery.” Gracie chimed in.

“I will as soon as we are through the worm holes. He cannot leave the command center and I want to tell him in person.”

“Well, I must say that I am extremely happy for you. I would hope that you will honor me with the pleasure of delivering the baby when the time comes. From what I understand about earth females, your gestation period is 40 weeks, about 9 months.  Am I correct?”

“That’s right. Why? How long is the gestation period for your women?” Avery asked.

“Our women carry our young for roughly seven and half months. But this is the first time that we have ever cross bred with anyone of your race. My guess would be that you could carry the baby from anywhere between your gestation period and ours. Your body will know when the baby is ready to be born. This is such wonderful news. Now I must get back to the clinic. You two go on in and start talking about babies. Goodbye, my heart” He kissed Gracie on the lips and headed out the door.

Gracie once again plopped down onto the sofa, “You are having a baby!” She laughed to herself but it wasn’t long before Avery joined in.

“I am going to have a baby by a man from outer space! Things like this just keep amazing me. I think it is time for some food. We need to celebrate!”

Gracie was the first off the sofa, “The little mamma can sit right there while I fix us something to eat. Mamma needs to get her rest you know!” She said through a wink at Avery as she made her way to the kitchen. “I have gotten to be a wiz in the kitchen since I’ve been on this ship. There’s not much to do when Zane is in the clinic. What would you like?”

Avery leaned back on the sofa pillows and rubbed her stomach. “Anything! Everything! I am starved!” She laughed.

“Everything it is!” Gracie laughed back as she danced around the kitchen and began telling Avery all her and Zane’s adventures over the last few weeks.

Chapter 21

“Fire the main engines, Ceran.” Zeb gave the command to start the ship back on its journey home. “Shields up and engage the cloaking device.”

The command center had become a bustle of activity in the last twenty minutes. All crew members were at their stations and waiting for any orders that would come forth from the commander. Most of the warriors on board the ship were torn between having to head back home or with wanting to stay near the only planet that so far they encountered could offer them suitable mates. What it came down to was that their home planet of Theron had called for help and they could not refuse. They would not let their home planet suffer another attack from the Drylons.

Zeb stood in the middle of the command center with arms folded over his chest. His eyes were concentrating on the window that encompassed the entire wall of the command center.

“Bring the ship around Ceran and slowly increase our speed. Brylon, how are the engines?” The Commander questioned his engineer.

Brylon gave him thumbs up, “She’s purring like a rewa.”

“Alright then, bring her around and head on course 2-2-4. We will approach the entrance to the worm hole in five minutes.”

Brylon had walked over to stand next to his long-time friend and shipmate. “Why do you appear to be so tense? We have gone over the route several times and the ship checks out okay.”

Zeb, still standing with arms folded, looked at the other man out the corner of his eye and shook his head, “I don’t know what’s wrong. I have a feeling that we didn’t check something or that something is going to go wrong. It’s a feeling I have not experienced since the beginning of the wars.”

“Everything will be fine. You are probably just nervous to be returning to Theron after so long of an absence.”

“You are probably right my friend.” Zeb looked over to Ceran, “Is she ready to go through the worm hole?”

Ceran checked his screen before replying, “Yes Sir. Everything is normal. We can proceed at your command.”

Zeb drew a deep breath, “Proceed.”

Lars was pacing back and forth in his quarters. It had been hours since he last had contact with Hano. He needed to know what the hell was going on. The emperor was expecting him to contact him with the latest news on when the ship was leaving. He had tried contacting Hano several times but he never got a reply. “The bastard had better not screw this up.” This was just great, he was reduced to talking to himself.

The door to his quarters slid open and in walked Hano.

“Where the hell have you been?” Lars’ anger at his partner in crime was starting to boil over. “Why haven’t you answered any of my communications? I have too much to lose if you screw this up!”

Hano knew better than to push his luck where Lars was concerned. He calmly replied, “There was no way for me to reply to you since I was in the command center. I told you earlier that I would come back as soon as I was able too. Now, if you will calm down I will tell you what I know.”

Lars just stared at the smaller man with anger written all over his face. His silence was the answer Hano was waiting for.

“I am sure you felt the vibrations of the ship’s engines starting?”

Lars gave a nod of his head in reply.

“I left the command center as soon as the Commander gave the order to move the ship. We should be now approaching the worm hole and will be entering it shortly. So if you need to contact Gatton you had better make it quick. You will lose the ability for communications for a short while inside the hole.”

As Hano had been talking, Lars had pulled his out his secure link to the emperor. When he heard the emperor’s voice on the other end, he proceeded to tell him what Hano had just relayed to him.  “We are about to enter the worm hole that leads to the Fio star system. Are you in position?”

Hano couldn’t hear what the reply had been but he could tell by the smile spreading across Lars’ scarred face that everything was going according to plan. Soon they would be off the ship and headed for their rendezvous with the Drylons. Hopefully, once Lars had the Earth female, he would leave Hano alone. He was starting to regret falling into step with Lars. He just hoped that Lars didn’t end up getting them both killed.

“Hano? Hano?” Lars’ voice broke through Hano’s thoughts. “Gods man. Wake up! Make your way down to the shuttle docking bay and get the ship ready. As soon as the ship emerges from the worm hole, the commander will get his big surprise. I will meet you there as soon as I have the female. Make sure you are prepared to leave immediately. The ship will be in complete chaos so we should be able to get away undetected.”

“I will be waiting.” Hano turned and left Lars alone once again. The door slid shut and Lars let out the breath he seemed to have been holding since he had first contacted the emperor with his plan.

“The time has finally come, my little Earth bitch. You will receive the same treatment that I received when we first met. I have waited long enough to get my revenge and now you will pay the price.” He gave a deep laugh as he glanced at himself in the silver mirror that adorned the wall. He lifted the patch that now covered the area where his eye had once been. The hole was empty and the scar still appeared red and angry.

“Oh yes. The time has finally arrived. I am coming for you.”

“How’s the ship, Brylon? Do we have any problems?” Zeb still had that odd feeling that something was wrong. He thought to himself that maybe he should call Avery and make sure that she was ok. He didn’t like leaving her for this long of a period but he didn’t have a choice in the matter. As soon as the ship came through the first worm hole he would call their quarters and check on her.

“Did you hear me Zeb?” Brylon was looking curiously at the commander.

“Sorry, what did you say?”

“I said everything looks good. We should be coming to the end of the hole in roughly ten minutes. You need some sleep.” Brylon laughed.

“I will be fine. I have gone much longer without sleep. I am just perplexed that I just can’t shake this eerie feeling.”

“You need to relax man. Everything is going as planned. We will be back to Theron in no time. I can’t wait to be able to show my mate our world.”

The window in the command center was revealing the worm hole as they traveled through it. Dim lights swirled past as they shot further through the hole. Occasionally a streak of red would go by. It really was an amazing concept, these worm holes. No one really understood how the holes were able to transport ships such far distances in a short period of time. Since the Therons had been using the holes, they had come across numerous different civilizations and races. While most were friendly and willing to trade, some races did exist with only a desire to cause harm and destruction where ever they went.

“Commander, we are approaching the end of the worm hole. Should I slow our speed down?” Ceran was still at the controls of the ship.

“Slow us down to half speed. I don’t want to come out of the hole at full speed and risk crashing into another ship.”

“Yes Sir!” Ceran slowed the ship’s speed and focused on the view through the window. He could see the end of the hole very clearly now, but something wasn’t quite right.

“Commander, I need you to come take a look at this.” Ceran voice now held a tone of apprehension and caused Zeb to immediately move in his direction.

Zeb looked towards the window where Ceran was staring. He couldn’t make out what the image was. There was no question that it was definitely right outside the exit of the hole.

“What is that?” The Commander squinted to adjust his vision to make out what the object was but it was no use.

“I don’t know sir. Could it be a moon or something? These worm holes aren’t always stable and do move off their course.”

“Slow the ship down to quarter speed. I want us to have enough time to be able to move around it.” Zeb was sweating now and that eerie feeling he had was now located in the pit of his stomach.

“Commander what should I do?”

Zeb ignored Ceran as the ship moved closer to the still object. It wasn’t until the ship was almost out of the worm hole and into the Fio star system that it finally hit Zeb like a ton of rocks. That was not a moon or other space junk, it was a Drylon ship!

Zeb was the first one to make the connection, “Shit! That’s a Drylon ship and their guns are aimed directly at us! Engines to full speed! Now!  Get those shields to 100% Brylon and stay on top of them.” Zeb was now frantic with the scene that was slowly unfolding before him. As soon as he had gotten the words out of his mouth, the Drylon ship fired at them. The red pulsar beams shot all around the ship, hitting the shield in several places. The ship shook with the force of the impacts.

“Prepare the guns to return fire!” Zeb was issuing orders faster than those around him could fulfill them. The ship shuddered as another shot was felt hitting the ship.

“Shields are at maximum and the damage is minimal. They are preparing to fire again, commander!” Ceran was trying his best to keep calm but he knew he was losing that battle.

“Brace for impact!”

Chapter 22

The violent rocking of the ship was felt by everyone on board. Avery and Gracie were sitting on the sofa chatting about the baby, when they had felt the first force of impact. Knox climbed up onto Avery’s lap as fast as he could in a frightened state. The lights in the room dimmed twice but returned to normal after a few seconds. Gracie swung her legs to the floor and went to stand up when the next bout of violent quaking hit the ship, knocking her back down on the sofa.

“What in the hell was that?” Gracie and Avery looked at each with fear in their eyes.

The lights in the room went out completely when another round of blasts hit the ship. The women watched as objects were falling from the shelves in the living room and in the kitchen, some of them breaking on the hard floor. The dimmer lights around the walls of the room were flickering on and off, as if trying in vain to add some light to the room.

“I don’t know…” Avery cut of mid-sentence when the main door to her and Zeb’s quarters slid open. She could see a silhouette of a body but couldn’t make out who it was.

“Who’s there?” Gracie was the first to speak to the shadow. It gave no reply to her question as it started to move forward into the room and closer to the two women.

As both women slowly took a step backwards, Avery asked, “Zeb is that you? Answer me, damn it!” The prickles of fear were now crawling up her arms as the figure came closer and closer. This wasn’t Zeb.

“No, it isn’t your precious Commander.  That thief!” The figure was now standing directly in front of the two women. Avery knew that voice.  It was the voice of the man who had lost his chances of buying her at the auction when Zeb had stepped in. If one would have been able to see her face, they would have seen the color drain right out of it. She knew who this was and what his intentions were.

“Leave me alone Lars! You have no right to be here!”

“Don’t talk to me about right and wrong! I have every right to come claim what was stolen from me.” Lars’ reached out in the darkness and gripped Avery’s arm with brute force. His grip was like a boa constrictor, getting tighter and tighter as she struggled to pull free.

“I never belonged to you!” Avery shouted.

“You are coming with me.” Lars had hold of her so tightly there was no way that she could free herself.

Avery called desperately, “Gracie, help me!”

Gracie tried to position herself between the two struggling forms but it was of no use. Lars was so much bigger than both of them put together.

“You son of a bitch, Let her go!” Gracie screamed at Lars while she desperately clawed at his face, body, and anything within reach.

“Touch me again bitch, and I will kill you!” Using his free hand, Lars shoved Gracie away from him with all his might. She fell to the floor with a thud. Lars was now starting to make his way towards the open door. Gracie scrambled to get to her feet before he could exit the room and enter the hall.