A Forgotten Kitten (Sea-anan Saga Book 2) (16 page)

The Seacats successfully contacted Space Control, the headquarters to the Space Guardians, and notified them of the situation with the Acondas. In response, Space Control notified their nearest agent and instructed him to aid Sev in his pursuit. However, the Space Guardian said he could not make it until the following morning.

Extremely distressed, Sev went off alone. He spent the entire evening sitting in the throne room. In his hand, he held one of the blouses he had gotten for Areo. He tried to recall their relationship on Oceana, but his cursed mind drew a blank. He felt similarly empty when he considered a future without her. He buried his nose in the material, deeply inhaling Areo’s scent while he prayed.

The Guardian’s ship had barely touched ground, and Sev was ready to board. Seconds before liftoff, there came a signal over the radio.

The Space Guardian reached to the right of the control panel and flipped a switch. “Guardian Sleth speaking.” The thin headphones around his head translated his words. He reached for a second button and pressed it. “Go ahead, Jugar. You are on the main speakers.”

“Sev, our security cameras have picked up two alien vessels heading this way. E.T.A five minutes.”

“Five minutes?” interrupted Sleth. “Jugar, are you sure? How is that possible if your cameras have only detected them seconds ago?”

“These ships are traveling at an enormous velocity. Also, they bear a similar insignia to one of our ships in the docking bay.”

Sev leaned forward in his seat and asked, “Jugar, is it one of Areo’s ships?”

“It’s a possibility.”

“Then we’ll wait for them to arrive.”

“What? Sev, we are a day behind the slave traders,” said Sleth.

“Trust me. These Seacats have extremely fast ships. We can use that speed to our advantage.”

“Seacats? What are you talking about?” asked Miko, who sat beside Sev.

“I was going to tell you cats at a more appropriate time, but I guess this is as good as it will get.” Sev took a deep breath. “Areo is a half-blood Oceanan.”

By the time the five men had exited Sleth’s ship, the new ships were arriving. The men were transfixed by the two alien black vessels that touched down. They were awed by its sleek design and maneuverability. On one ship, a sparkling golden light outlined a door seconds before a wide plank extended outward. Two tall, hooded beings dressed in long black robes exited the dark, shiny vessel.

The Seacats at the bottom of the castle’s stairs scanned the aliens’ attire as they approached. There was a small medallion on the left side of their robes. It was an altered replica of their insignia, identical to the one on the ship. The cloaked strangers stopped before the group. Sev noticed they were just shy of his height.

The slightly shorter of the two asked, “Which one of you is the leader here?”

“I am.” Sev stepped forward. Their low hoods kept him from seeing their faces. “I’m Sev, Lord of Oceanica.” He hoped his name and title would elicit recognition from these strange, mysterious
visitors, similar to Areo’s response when she had heard his name. When it did not, it made him suspicious. “Who are you? What is your mission here?”

“We are in search of one of our own. Perhaps you have seen her, since her signal has led us here.”

“What is her name?”

“Her name is Areo McCall.”

Sev closely regarded the new arrivals.

“Have you come across her?”

“That depends,” Sev said, irritated by their guarded and occult behavior.

“Depends on what?” asked the taller one, who sounded a bit annoyed.

Sev’s lips thinned. “On who in the blazes is asking!”

“Is this where you reside?” inquired the shorter man, completely disregarding Sev’s question. His hooded face lifted toward the castle.

“It is,” replied Miko from beside Sev. “Why do you wish to know?”

The second hooded man glanced up at the castle. Sev realized they were getting nowhere. He was about to admit to finding Areo when the strangers gasped. Sev switched his attention to the castle and spotted Jugar carefully making his way down the long flight of stairs. He stopped at the foot of the stairs beside Angel.

“Jugar?” called the taller man.

Sev watched how Jugar thoughtfully considered the cloaked men.

“Do I know you, stranger?” he replied.

The hooded men took a few steps backward. They faced each other without saying a word. They remained in that position for at least a minute. Sev and the others watched the peculiar exchange, wondering what was happening. The dark figures walked over to Jugar, and the Oceanans prepared for the worst, placing their hands on their weapons. However, the strangers only removed their hoods. Sev’s eyes doubled in size, as did Jugar’s, but for different reasons.

“Jugar, it’s me. Arnold. Arnold McCall.”

“Arnold?” Jugar scanned the man’s strong features. Tears sprang to his eyes. “Arnold!” He embraced the man.

“I thought you were dead,” croaked Arnold.

“I’m too ornery for that. Dear Onssa, Arnold, I’m overjoyed to see you again. How you have grown.” Jugar smiled, staring into a pair of gray eyes that sparkled. “You are the splitting image of your sire, right down to the length of your hair.”

His sire!
Sev regarded Arnold more closely.
I knew it.

Arnold beamed. “Thanks. So I’ve been told.”

“And this is?” inquired Jugar, pointing to Arnold’s companion.

Arnold chuckled. “This is my little brother Mike. You do remember him, don’t you?”

“Mike?” Jugar looked him over. “Great Onssa, you have grown so much.” He embraced him. “Areo told me that all of you survived, but she failed to mention how greatly you have all changed.”

Mike and Arnold grew serious at the mention of their cousin’s name.

“Where is she, Jugar?” Mike wanted to know.

“Before I tell you that…” Jugar gestured to his left. “I want the two of you to meet Oren’s son, Sev, the new Lord of the Seacats.”

“Yes, we heard,” replied Mike, unimpressed. “Where is Areo?”

“Show respect to your leader, cat,” Jugar scolded him.

Sev saw both sets of gray eyes ignite with hatred.

“We have no king, godfather. We never did. You know that,” said Arnold in a frigid tone.

“Arnold—” began Jugar, but Sev cut him off.

“Later, Jugar. Right now we have to rescue the females.”

“What is he talking about?” Mike asked his godfather. It was obvious he was ignoring Sev and the other felines.

“Areo and many of the women of Oceanica—that’s this planet’s name—have been kidnapped by the Acondas,” explained Sev, electing not to pay attention to how the men slighted him. “We were about to give chase when you arrived.”

Arnold questioned Jugar. “Did he say Aconda?”

“I’m afraid so.”

“Blast it!” Arnold depressed his medallion. “Billy.”

“Ranger Superior Bill here.”

“Just a second, Billy.” Arnold looked at his godfather. “When did the Aconda ship leave?”

“A day ago.”

“What!” exclaimed Mike. “And you’re leaving now?”

“We had no ship to pursue them with until today,” replied Jugar.

Mike glanced away, growling.

“Do you know where they were headed?” asked Arnold.

“Sadly, no.”

“Of course not.” Mike passed a hand over his features, obviously frustrated.

Guardian Sleth decided to speak up after seeing that Jugar actually knew these two men. “It has been reported that the Acondas make their sales on a small planet by the name of Cerko. It is basically an ungoverned planet used by aliens to sell and buy merchandise.”

Sev watched Arnold and Mike consider the Guardian’s appearance. Sleth was from a race called Raven. He wore his shoulder-length hair in a neat pony-tale. His skin appeared bloodless and translucent. Sev saw how he stared back at the new arrivals with his solid black eyes, revealing nothing within. Even though he was dressed all in white, Sleth still looked eerie and dangerous.

Arnold and Mike tapped the small translators hooked on their ears.

“And you are?” asked Arnold.

“Space Guardian Sleth at your service.” Sleth bowed slowly and dramatically.

“From Space Control?” asked Mike.

Sev answered before the flamboyant Guardian did. There was no time for more elaborate gestures. “That’s correct. Have you heard of them?”

Mike and Arnold stonily regarded him without answering.

Arnold addressed the Guardian. “What is your ship’s maximum speed?”

Irritated, Sev scratched his head.

“One of the fastest around,” Sleth proudly announced. “Warp speed ten. It was creat—”

“Warp ten you say?” interrupted Mike, again unimpressed.

Sleth’s bluish lips curved in a smile. “That is correct.”

Arnold spoke into his medallion. “Ahem, Billy, are you still there?”

“Yes, Commander.”

“I want you to locate the merchant trade planet called Cerko. Notify the other White Star. We’ll be pursuing and arresting several Acondas on our next flight out. We’ll also be rescuing some women who have been taken against their will, Areo included. Have the med labs prepare for their arrival. In addition, contact Sea Base Five and tell them of our situation here. We will unfortunately be delayed a day or two. Did you get all that?”

“Affirmative, Commander.”

“Good. Arnold out.” He pressed his badge.

Sleth spoke. “Why, may I ask, are we leaving in your ship, when Space Control has the fastest ships in this part of the galaxy?”

“Perhaps in your part of the galaxy, but not in ours,” Mike tossed over his shoulder as he headed back to his White Star.

His brother explained for him. “If our cousin is in danger, we need to take the fastest vessel at our disposal. At this moment, that’s our White Star. So whoever is coming with us, we need to depart
now
.”

Sev was relieved that the newcomers were not going to prevent his group from joining them. Only Sleth looked displeased. They followed Areo’s relatives onto the White Star. Sev’s group appreciated the impressive interior architecture and spaciousness of the ship. No one spoke until they reached the White Star’s bridge.

“Just how fast can this
White Star
of yours travel?” Sleth asked. “My ship would be able to arrive at Cerko in four days on maximum warp speed.” He turned to Sev. “Perhaps we should take my vessel instead.”

Sev pinched the arch of his nose and inhaled. He tried desperately not to lose the little patience he had left.

Arnold listened to the pretentious Guardian. He took his seat at the captain’s chair and decided to comment. “That’s several days too late. And that figure assumes you don’t run into any delays on the way.”

“Do you think you can do better with this funny-looking black spaceship of yours?” Sleth retorted.

Arnold gave a lopsided grin. “Can I ask you a question?” Sleth did not respond, which Arnold interpreted as a
yes.
“Have you ever heard of Sea Base Five or of the Aligned Worlds?”

“Should I have?”

The crew chuckled. Sev assumed it was because they felt he should have.

Sleth stood taller. His black eyes grew cold. “Did I say something funny?”

“Forgive them,” replied Arnold. “It’s just that everyone here has heard of the Space Guardians. And they cannot believe that a Space Guardian has never heard of the Sea Rangers.”

“Sea Rangers?”

Sev stared at Sleth as Sleth took a better look at everyone on the bridge. He was interested to see if the Guardian had ever heard of the Sea Rangers, and if so, what his opinion was of them.

“Are you trying to tell me that you hooded characters are the mythical Sea Rangers? Ha! Give me a break. Do I look like a fool

to you?”

Everyone on the bridge fought the urge to comment.

“Mythical?” inquired Sev.

“Everyone knows the Sea Rangers are only a myth,” Sleth said. “A myth created to inspire young space cadets into doing their best when given their first assignment.”

Sev was surprised to hear this. He noticed that the Sea Rangers were as well.

“Really?” said Arnold. “I must say, we are extremely humbled by that. However, we are not a myth. We are here. And we are real.”