Alien General's Beloved: SciFi Alien Romance (Brion Brides) (10 page)

He left the body on the bay deck.

"Corden," Lana's voice said. "He knows. He knows who you are."

That was unfortunate, but there was nothing to be done about it. It was only a matter of time before Worgen figured that out, after all.

The fighter took off right when Corden saw the huge warship take aim. With all the ships hurrying out of the way, it wasn't an impossible task for a good pilot to slip away under the cover of the
Raptor
. That also gave Corden the opportunity to see that Fraly had obeyed him and sent the escape pods away. No one remained aboard the
Raptor
.

He watched the ship being torn apart from afar, and considered his options. Lana had asked the fleet to help him, but he had no faith in them. Now that Worgen was aware of his true nature, there was only one thing he could do.

Before he could decide which way was best for him to sneak aboard the
Abysmal
, another ship jumped out of hyperspace. Corden needed only one look to see what it was. A growl escaped his lips.

He'd observed Worgen's actions for days from the
Raptor:
the general's trick with the escape pod that compassionate ships picked up, only to find the warship's gun turrets aimed at them when they arrived. He had no doubt that was how most of the fleet had been lured in.

And now Worgen had baited a real catch.

It was a gigantic, intergalactic colonization ship. The Galactic Union sent them out to settle newly found worlds. Corden's gaze traveled across the floating palace, resembling a garden more than a ship. Under its transparent exterior, he could see the plants meant to help fertilize the new planet's soil.

Other than the gardens, the gigantic carrier had
everything
. Medical facilities, supplies, technology, weapons, consoles packed with every piece of information the settlers could need.

He said weapons, but the truth was that the ship had none of her own. It sat there now, defenseless. A flotilla was scheduled to meet it once the carrier reached the edge of known space, but they were still in the Union's presumably safe territory. So much for that.

The fleet around the
Abysmal
was mostly made up of ships with crews. People who chose to venture into space, ready to face the dangers of it. But the new one... it had families, scientists, simple workers. And, Corden knew, the main reason Worgen had looked for it. Many, many women.

The
Flora
.
 

CHAPTER NINE

Lana

It hurt. It hurt more than Lana could have ever imagined.

They said captains had a special connection to their ships. She'd always thought it was more of a saying to romanticize the notion, but apparently not. Watching the
Raptor
blasted into pieces under her very eyes nearly ripped Lana's heart out. Of course the main source of her pain was her crew, but to her, they had been one.

Her ship, her crew, her life. All gone now.

And Corden... there was a pain that stabbed like actual steel when she thought of him. The man should have been nothing to her, but a sudden rush of anguish made Lana choke up. It didn't make any sense. The Brion binding, becoming his
gesha
, all of that had been nonsense that she would have put an end to, but a part of her missed him.

Not only Corden himself, but despite her better judgment, the chance to find out what their relationship would have been like. She had known him for mere hours, but his death made her feel like someone had turned off the lights in the entire world.

Maybe it is the actual darkness around me
, Lana thought bitterly.

All around her, the walls of the
Abysmal
seemed to press down on her.

No wonder all Worgen's warriors look like dead men walking. This place would drive anyone insane.

That was what was going on in her head. She wasn't naturally a despairing person, but she was realistic. As captain, Lana had always put on her best face to appease the crew, no matter how bad the situation really was. Only she wasn't a captain anymore, was she?

And then the
Flora
turned up.

She saw, and
felt
Worgen take notice of it too. Within one second, the disappointment and anger on the general's face turned to
hunger
. Lana felt disgusted, seeing how his cruel, black eyes narrowed on the helpless ship.

Oh hell no, you're not getting that one too.

There was no doubt in her heart that Worgen had baited the
Flora
like he'd done with her ship. The gigantic colonization ship was floating at an awkward distance from the Brion warship. Lana knew exactly what was taking place on the ship's bridge right then. The confusion, the fear, the urge to flee.

By now, the Brions would have already made their demands, ordering the
Flora
to pull into formation with the rest of the fleet. And not to, under any circumstances, try to signal the Union. Judging by the way the ship hadn't moved—relatively speaking—since its jump, Lana guessed there was an argument taking place.

She could imagine it all so very vividly. The captain trying to keep calm while the officers all shouted over each other, every one of them demanding a different action. To run, to obey, to send a call for help. Lana prayed that the captain had the good sense not to try to escape.

The broken fragments of the
Raptor
were still floating in the midst of the fleet, a clear sign for all to see as to what happened to those who tried to run. Of course, the
Raptor
had done no such thing, but Lana hoped the huge carrier would take the lesson to heart anyway.

Next to her, Worgen's black eyes were gleaming. With every second that Lana spent in his presence, he seemed to come more and more to life. He had appeared as a statue carved into stone, but was now breaking free, shaking off the restraints. No more talk, no more reason. The ones who didn't play his way didn't play at all.

And now the general had the ship he'd clearly been searching for.

We're all about to become worthless to him
, Lana thought, her mind desperately seeking a way out of this situation. She looked at the fleet still properly staying with the
Abysmal
.

If whatever he wants is aboard the
Flora
, everyone is going to die
.

That left Lana only one real choice. After having witnessed the death of her own vessel and all of her friends, not to mention Corden, she was not going to let it happen to anyone else. She had to get on the
Flora
. Of course, any place was better than the depressing warship, but that was not the point. She was needed there, to not let the carrier repeat the mistakes she made. And perhaps she needed the
Flora
too. Not to let grief and sorrow overwhelm her, she ached for a purpose.

If only she hadn't lost all the trust General Worgen had for her minutes ago.

"Let me go with you," she told him.

The general didn't even grace her with a look, never mind an answer. Lana pressed on, focusing on her new task. If she couldn't save her own ship, by God she'd do anything in her power to help the fleet and the
Flora
. Outside, the carrier remained motionless. That was a bad sign.

"I made a mistake," she said, searching for words that wouldn't be outright lies, like Corden had warned her. "I shouldn't have betrayed you, like you said. I know better now. Let me help you and I'll prove that I won't make the same mistake again."

"Very eager," Worgen said, still not taking his eyes off the
Flora
. "I don't believe you. I see no reason why you would want to help me."

Truth
, Lana told herself.
Twisted truth, but still.

"I don't," she admitted, finally dragging Worgen's attention back to her. "You killed my crew. You will kill again. But if I can spare someone by doing what I promised you before, I will. After all, I know now what will happen if I don't listen."

Lana held her breath as Worgen considered her words. That alone told her that he
did
need her. The general probably had his channels and his ways of finding out about the events that took place in the galaxy, but they weren't infallible. At some point, he needed someone like Lana to explain, fill in the details, and provide background.

"Your second mistake will be more harshly punished than the first," he growled at last.

Lana almost winced. As a high-ranking officer, it was natural that she spoke Brionese, even if it was technically impossible for any non-Brion to fully master it. Their complicated language was always changing, every word gaining and losing meaning according to how it was said. Lana was sure she missed more than half of it, but the
harshly
most definitely meant
your death
now.

She considered that. A whole ship full of innocent people—that was already on her conscience. Now she risked even more. But somebody had to stop this lunatic, and now that Corden was gone, Lana had to come up with a new plan. Win the general's trust first, then look for a weakness and strike.

"I understand," she said, knowing that it was a devil's bargain and would more than likely cost her life.

Outside, the
Flora
had still not moved. It looked like the carrier was not going to be drawn in as easily as it should have been. To Lana, it was a clear sign that somebody aboard had lost their mind.

Guessing where a refusal like that lead, she quickly said: "Let me talk to them."

Worgen didn't respond immediately, his dark eyes back on the
Flora
. Annoyance had replaced the earlier hunger, but it was not gone.

Think, what might convince a maniac like that?

"I don't know what you want with them," Lana began, hoping she wasn't bringing about more death. "But people are easier to question when they're alive."

There, the same crooked smile again. So she was amusing him. That was good. Tyrants and madmen always liked their fools and if that was the part Lana had to play, she was fine with that. If it helped her cause, she was willing to put up with a lot.

Worgen nodded toward the comm console. Gratefully, Lana dashed to it, watching the standoff outside. It was the most ridiculous one she'd ever seen, an ant stubbornly refusing to get out of the way of a boot. The amount of lives at stake was less funny.

"To the
Flora
, come in," she said. "This is Lana Cormac, captain of the... formerly the captain of the
Raptor
."

The seconds of silence that followed were one of the scariest in Lana's life. She didn't know that much about Brions or their personalities, but she knew psychopaths and Worgen definitely ticked all the boxes. Guys like that weren't known for their patience and forgiveness. The
Flora
was edging very close to being destroyed, useful or not. Lana didn't understand how the carrier's captain didn't see that.

A male voice answered, most certainly a human male.

"This is the
Flora
," the man said. "Where are you, Captain Cormac? What the fuck is going on here?"

Oh good God
, Lana groaned in her mind.
A warship the size of a fucking moon is telling you to surrender, what do you
think
is going on? This man is a moron. How did he get put in charge?

"I'm aboard the
Abysmal
;" she responded, trying to be calm. "But that is not important. I think you see the situation fairly well yourself. I will come aboard and explain everything, but right now, just do what the Brions say."

"You're on that monstrosity?" the man asked. "Why?"

Lana's heart was once more racing so hard she could barely breathe, only this time it was from sheer agitation. The guy she was talking to was an idiot, a certifiable one. Captains of ships like the
Flora
had only one command when it came to unknown enemies. Try to be diplomatic and don't push your luck. If they demand something, give it to them and fly away alive. The Union would replace everything. Threatening the crew was another matter entirely. In that case, the orders were even easier.

Surrender. Do whatever it takes to protect the passengers.

"Am I speaking to the captain of the
Flora
?" Lana asked. "It doesn't matter where I am or why. All that is important right now is that we are in a bad situation that will get
considerably worse
if you don't listen to me."

"Yeah, I'm the captain," the voice said, but Lana had serious doubts about that.

Something very weird was going on aboard the
Flora
. At first she'd thought the captain of the carrier had severely misjudged the situation, but now it was clear to her that she wasn't talking to the real commander. No man in charge of a ship like that could have afforded being so stupid.

Caught between two madmen
, Lana thought with morbid amusement.
Only that one of them has an army and the other is too dumb to understand that means he's already lost.

Picking her words very carefully, she said: "All right,
Captain
. If you want to know what's going on and if you want to keep living, do as they say. I will explain everything when I get there."

She held her breath while on the other end, the supposed captain was hopefully looking for his eyes, brain, and good sense.

"Why would I trust you?" the voice finally asked, hesitant.

Because I'm trying to save your life, you fool, since you're clearly too dumb to live yourself.

Lana suppressed a painful, hopeless sigh. With every ounce of patience left in her body, she replied coldly: "Trust? I expect you to read the name of the Brion ship and consider that for a moment."

The captain's answer was lost in a sudden surge of voices, all speaking over each other. It seemed to Lana that some were calling to her, but she couldn't make out a single one. One thing was absolutely clear, however. She had to get to the
Flora
in a hurry and salvage what she could from the mess.