Training the Warrior (15 page)

After stalking over to the wall
communication panel near the front door, he pressed in the code for Jarrok’s
room and slammed his fist against the call button. He waited. When there was no
immediate response, he repeated the procedure. Nothing.

Taelor pressed the code sequence once
again. This time he flipped the intercom hail.

“Get your carcass dressed, Jarrok! We leave
in thirty minutes.” He also knew his partner very well.

“What crawled up your—”

Taelor flipped the intercom button again,
cutting Jarrok off mid-insult. It wasn’t long before the intercom came on once
more. He ignored his partner’s complaints about being disturbed. The shower was
turned on, and so was the little female. She’d taken his suggestion to get
started quite literally. Taelor was highly pleased. She’d saved him the time.

* * * *

They had no trouble finding pad A. And
despite Jarrok’s grumbling the whole time, their jog through the spaceport was
invigorating. They took a few minutes to gather their gear from port storage
before sprinting to the shuttle pads. The exercise also helped them arrive on
time. Taelor immediately identified the right shuttle. The group of soldiers
gathered near its open door was a dead giveaway. They all acted extremely
relieved when they saw him and Jarrok arrive. It made his skin crawl. Something
was very odd. Tauran soldiers didn’t usually act that way when they saw warriors.
These didn’t even curse.

He signed a warning to his partner.
Caution.

Jarrok shot him a curious look, but blinked
once in understanding.

“Send them in and seal the hatch!” The clipped
order came from a male inside the shuttle.

Taelor guessed Commander Gristol had been
informed of their arrival. He sounded extremely exasperated. Apparently, they
were about to find out why. One of the soldiers stepped aside so they could
pass through the doorway. It slammed shut behind them. He and Jarrok dropped
their gear onto the floor right in front of the door.

The commander was holed up in a small
office near the back of the shuttle, studying a wall display. He was tall for a
Tauran. About six-foot-two and middle aged, Taelor estimated. The man was
definitely unhappy about something. He scented of anger.

“Should we be pissed too?” Jarrok kept his
voice well below a whisper.

“After you find out what’s happened, I hope
you will be,” the commander answered, startling Jarrok.

Taelor just snarled, biting back a curse.
Gristol was an enhanced Tauran, a male with one or more hyper senses. In this
case, it was hearing. He wondered if the commander could also smell their
surprise. Instinctively, Taelor clenched his fists, straining against the thick
leather wrapped around his forearms. At his side, Jarrok appeared just as
tense.

“Tell us,” Taelor ordered.

He didn’t care if the commander was his
superior or not. It was of no importance. Warriors chose their missions. They
didn’t take orders like soldiers or spacers. Their primary duties were to
defend the empire, protect the citizens, and above all else, be loyal to their clan.
Warriors were an asset to the military. They weren’t subservient to it. It was
crystal clear to Taelor that Gristol, for whatever reason, needed their help
with this operation.

The commander scowled, giving Taelor an
irritated look for his insolence before he explained. “One of our star cruisers
was attacked as they left orbit from Turret IV.”

“Here? Right under our very noses?” Jarrok
sounded incredulous.

Taelor felt the same. How could any of
their enemies be so bold as to attack a Tauran vessel within the Turret system
while a squadron of battle cruisers orbited Turret V?

“Do you know who did this and why?” The
muscles in Taelor’s jaw flexed, a sure sign of his growing fury.

“Krellian pirates,” Gristol said. “But why
they would target one of our ships engaged in a diplomatic mission doesn’t make
any sense.”

“And our response?” Jarrok snarled the
question.

Gristol raised one hand in appeal. “Commander
Kellan dispatched two battle cruisers as soon as he received the distress call.
The Krellian ships have been destroyed. Kellan believes the Krell are trying to
prevent the empire from taking control of this system.”

As Taelor opened his mouth to speak,
Gristol shook his head, and said, “Before you ask, no. We weren’t able to take
any prisoners for questioning. The Krellian captains wouldn’t surrender.”

So the situation had been handled, it
seemed. Taelor and Jarrok exchanged wary looks before leveling accusing glares
at the commander. Taelor spoke first.

“And we are here because?” He didn’t like
the shrewd smile spreading across Gristol’s face.

“One of the diplomats on the star cruiser,
Regent
,
has requested escort to Fortress. Dhara Laeness demands a pair of warriors
accompany her. She asked for you specifically.” Speechless, Taelor’s mouth
gaped open. “Your sister has summoned you, Dharjen Taelor.” Gristol had the
nerve to chuckle at Taelor’s misfortune.

Beside him, Jarrok nervously cleared his
throat. This couldn’t be happening. Taelor just wanted to wake up somewhere in
the middle of a bloody battle. A mortal wound might be helpful too. He hadn’t
seen Laeness since right before he’d left Fortress as a fully-trained young warrior.
She’d been a child at the time.

He had kept up with his family through his
mother’s messages over the years. Her position as supreme chancellor hadn’t
stopped her from contacting him. Chandra was no different than any other mother
when it came to hovering over her children, especially him. He was her only
son, her warrior son. No matter how much he tried to avoid the notoriety of his
blood, it eventually found him. She’d found him. And now his sister summoned
him?

What nerve, he thought. Laeness hadn’t sent
one single comforting word to him when his mate, Norlana, had died. She hadn’t
contacted him after the claiming either. His other sister, the youngest, had
accompanied their mother to Fortress to meet his mate. Thinking back on their
visit, he had to admit, in all fairness, Laeness had been the smart one at the
time. Galina had been just twelve years old past birth when his mother had rushed
to Fortress to meet his claimed female. After meeting Norlana, Chandra hadn’t
been impressed. As if he’d a choice in the matter. Taelor shoved his memories
and the bitterness associated with them aside. Now wasn’t the time to drown in
his misery.

Taelor focused on the problem at hand. “Why
does she need an escort to Fortress?”

“The star cruiser is damaged. It won’t be
repaired in time to meet her deadline. She won’t say why her need is so urgent,
so don’t ask. All command knows is she must arrive there within the next three
to five days. So we’re sending you two along with one of our fastest battle cruisers
to collect her and her entourage and take them to Fortress.” As Taelor growled
and shook his head, Gristol said, “You can’t ignore a royal summons, Taelor.”

“I know that.” He snarled. He certainly didn’t
have to be happy about it.

Jarrok mumbled, “We’ve avoided Fortress for
a year. I guess our time is over.”

His partner hinted about ending their
pairing. It was mandatory now that they were both unmated. They’d separate and
take new partners on Fortress where the numbers of mated warriors were greater.
Neither he nor Jarrok wanted to end their partnership. They fought well
together and had expanded their private sign language to a point where they
could communicate almost entirely without spoken words. Now they’d have to
start the whole process over again. They blamed each other for their failure.

Taelor insisted it was time for Jarrok to
claim a mate while Jarrok thought Taelor should take one for the team. It was a
good-natured point of contention for them since the whole process of claiming a
mate was entirely out of their control. It was biological and happened without
warning anytime or anywhere. When the right female came along nothing could
stop a warrior from claiming what his inner beast insisted on taking.
Unfortunately for him and Jarrok, the right female hadn’t presented herself for
claiming.

Once the shuttle’s engines roared to life,
he turned and stormed out of the commander’s office with Jarrok. They collected
their gear and found seats near the front of the ship before settling down for
the short trip to Turret IV. His sister better have a good reason for issuing a
royal summons. Any warrior could have escorted her. Why did it have to be him?
He could have avoided Fortress for several more years if she hadn’t interfered
in his life.

* * * *

Twelve standard hours later, the battle cruiser,
Avenger
, swooped nimbly into orbit around Turret IV and pulled alongside
the damaged star cruiser,
Regent
. Bristling with military weaponry, the
Avenger
dwarfed the smaller cruiser in size and presence. On board
Avenger
,
Taelor jerked awake to a blaring signal from the bridge. The buzzing noise
grated on his already irritated nerves. He rolled over and slapped at the
com-unit, which was inserted into a platform beside the bed. Across the room,
Jarrok fell off his own bed, hitting the metal deck with a loud
thud
and
an accompanying curse.

“Gacking alarm,” Taelor muttered.

Jarrok simply growled. His partner never
woke happily.

Captain Galen’s voice spoke from the
speaker. “Our passengers have arrived. Your presence is required in the brig.
I’ll meet you at the lift on deck three.”

“Acknowledged,” Taelor said, sneering at
the small com-unit.

“The brig?” Jarrok growled while he
squinted to protect his eyes from the lights, which were automatically
brightening now that they were awake.

Taelor shrugged. “Get ready. We’ll
investigate.” Maybe his sister was under arrest.

They fought each other, pushing and shoving,
to see who got to enter the small bathroom first. Jarrok lost. Eventually they
were both dressed in clean loincloths. After pulling on boots and strapping on
arm restraints before grabbing a few daggers along with their swords, he and
Jarrok stormed out of their stateroom. Unlike soldiers or non-ranking spacers,
they didn’t have to stay in crowded barracks. Warriors were treated a little
better on the battle cruisers.

The captain waited for them once they arrived
at the lift station. The three of them entered the roomy cubicle and it dropped
several decks before slowly coming to a halt. The trip was sudden and swift.
Taelor swore he had to swallow his heart before trying to speak.

“Why are we going to the brig?”

The captain shook his head. “Dhara Laeness
requested to be taken there immediately on her arrival. That’s all I know.”

Taelor grunted, unsatisfied with the
explanation. What was his sister up to now?

The lift door slid open and they exited
into a long, wide passageway. Several Tauran males and a few females were
gathered near the end of the corridor. The group parted, making way for them.
The door to the brig remained shut.

The captain pressed a code into the control
panel and the thick metal door slid aside. Laeness blocked the entrance. She
glanced at the captain, then at Jarrok before staring at Taelor. Her expression
was full of desperation, and he scented her fear.

 “Just you three may enter,” she insisted.

Taelor wondered how the captain felt about
losing control of his brig. He also worried about Jarrok’s presence. Unmated warriors
weren’t allowed around females mated to Tauran males. His sister broke many
rules at the moment. That fact added to her present behavior left Taelor
feeling even more concerned about her. The only time she’d ever looked so
distressed was when she’d watched him leave Fortress. She’d been a young girl,
only fifteen. It was the last time he’d seen her until now. His sister had
matured into a beautiful, very regal Tauran female.

Taelor led the way into the room, forcing
her to back away. The massive door slammed closed behind them with a metallic
clang
of finality.

“Why are you here?” Taelor swept his gaze
around the interior of the control room while he waited for her to explain.

“I need your help.”

“I think we’ve figured that out,” he told
her. “Why are we in the brig, Laeness?” He couldn’t keep a rumble of
exasperation out of his voice.

His sister shivered. Taelor scented her
rising fear. Instinct took over. He and Jarrok both growled simultaneously. The
sound seemed to jar her into responding.

“It’s my son, Taelor. He’s in trouble. I
didn’t have any choice. I had to get some help for him. He needs warriors, and
you were close… Please,” she begged.

The defining clue came in the form of a
howl, painful and urgent. Taelor’s blood ran cold. The tormented wail broke the
silence once more. It originated from a cell at the back of one branch of cell
blocks. He and Jarrok dashed down the corridor, following the sound. Laeness
followed them. They skidded to a halt in front of the last chamber. What he
found inside was too unthinkable for him to fathom. Unable to control his
reaction, he backed away, roaring in outrage. Jarrok joined him.