Prime Selection (10 page)

“Weapons shut down. Notify the
Galanti.
They’re currently in a holding orbit outside the range of the cannon. Bram and I will meet you at the escape tunnel he told us about.”

A second or two passed before A’tem responded. “The
Galanti
is notified. I took the liberty of advising Commander Ard of the situation. He’s sending a three-man team to the other end of the escape tunnel we’re taking. He feared there might be enemy soldiers hiding in the caves. I’ll see you soon.”

“Good luck, A’tem. Watch your ass. Out.”

“Same to you. Out.”

Nadia switched her headset to monitor only. Any slight noise might apprise the enemy of their position once they were out of the security of the weapons center.

The path between their current position and the escape tunnel could possibly be filled with mercenaries hunting the saboteurs who’d plunged the facility into relative darkness, lit only by the low-level emergency lights.

Laser pistol in hand and set on kill levels, she put on her night-vision goggles and followed Bram down the corridor as he hugged the shadows along the edges of the corridor.

On the Galanti on approach to Tarn

Huw sat in his chair on the Command Deck and fumed. He’d pushed his engines into the danger zone and beyond to get them to Tarn as quickly as possible. But just as they were about an hour away, Wulf had slowed the ship to sub-light speed to make a cautious approach to the planet.

Yes, the planet had ship killers. Yes, Nadia had warned them about a trap … but she—and the others—were down there with who knew how many enemy.

He looked up and found Mel standing by his chair. “Are you okay, Huw?” She stroked his arm. “You’re whiter than Earth’s ice caps. And your eyes have gone dark amber. I feel the emotions pouring out of you. Is it Nadia? Is she safe?”

“I can’t contact Nadia, Mel.”
Liar.
“Sometimes she connects with me. And the last telepathic thoughts I had were the ones about the ship killers. What has Ard said? Has he heard from Nadia’s team?”

When the communications with the planet had been restored, Wulf had demanded a situation report. Ard gave a brief one on injuries, the safety measures taken to protect the Gold crew members in the caves, and, finally, relayed that Nadia planned to take Crewman Tilga and shut down the weapon systems.

Huw had wanted to rage and scream at the idiocy of the woman.
Ansu bhau.
She could’ve sent any of the men to do the job and stayed safely behind in the caves. She was an officer, not battle fodder.

Somehow, he’d managed to control his emotions and kept his mouth shut. He had already called enough attention to the unusual psychic connection between him and Nadia.

“Captains!” the soldier monitoring communications shouted. “Commander A’tem has sent a message. Commander Nadia and Crewman Tilga have shut down the weapons systems. We can move in.”

The Command Deck erupted with shouts and battle cries. Something in Huw’s gut eased—but not entirely.

“Where is Commander Nadia’s team now?” Huw asked the communications officer.

“They are moving toward the escape tunnels into the mountains. Commander Ard has sent a team to meet them on the other end and aid them in getting back to their secured area.”

Huw nodded his acknowledgment. He’d war-gamed many a time on Tarn as had all of Gold’s Prime crew members. Tilga was following an infiltrate-sabotage-get-out scenario that all Elite-trained soldiers practiced many times. Huw would owe Tilga a drink or two for taking care of Nadia—and the other team member, of course.

Mel tugged on Huw’s sleeve. She glared at him and Wulf who’d come to join them.

“What escape tunnels? They weren’t marked on the facility plans Nadia and I reviewed for the joint maneuvers. You Prime are still holding out on the Alliance, aren’t you?”

His sister-kin was pissed.

Wulf pulled his
gemate
away from Huw and up against his side. He brushed a kiss over her hair.

Huw envied his brother such closeness. He thought of Nadia and wondered how soft her hair would feel against his lips—and then felt searing guilt. Until he’d proven there were no women who could be his destined mate among any Lost Ones they might find, he was not free to think of Nadia as anything other than a colleague.

“You
are
Prime,
lubha
. The information on these things is on a need-to-know basis.”

Wulf scolded Mel gently. “And now, you, Nadia, and A’tem know. The tunnels are extra lines of defense Prime have against internal and external enemies.”

“Okay, fine.” Mel huffed. “But once we’re down there. I want to see them so I can compare them to the tunnel systems I’ve seen in other ancient Prime ruins.”

Mel rubbed her cheek against his brother’s chest. Huw sensed Wulf’s love reaching for Mel; it surrounded her and calmed her ruffled feathers.

“I will give you a personal tour, Melina mine—once I am assured we are in complete control of the facility.” Wulf turned his gaze away from Mel and looked Huw in the eyes.

“I assume you’ll want to be on one of the teams that go to the surface.”

“Yes.” Huw’s tone was abrupt. He didn’t appreciate the knowing look his brother gave him in return. His big brother paid far too much heed to the fact he and Nadia had some telepathic ability with each other. “I will contact Nowicki and coordinate the away teams from both ships. Security teams first, followed by medical and other support teams, correct?”

“Exactly. I’ll let Iolyn know he has command of the squadron while we are on the planet. He can deal with anyone attempting to leave Tarn.” Wulf walked toward his command chair, taking Mel with him.

As Huw rose from his seat, a feeling of fear and rage swamped him. His body reacted immediately. He reached for a weapon that wasn’t there and looked around the Command Deck searching for someone to fight. Then he realized—they weren’t his emotions, but were Nadia’s.

“Wulf!” His brother turned, a question in his eyes. “We need to hurry. Nadia and her team are in danger.”

Wulf barked out an order to the communications officer. “Call down to Ard and see what in the hell is going on! Huw, get those security teams down there … now.”

Nadia and Bram had managed to avoid several men running toward the weapons command center. So far the path to the escape tunnel had been too easy. But they had yet to get to their destination. So she wouldn’t count her chickens, as her farmer grandmother had always said, just yet.

She’d thought too soon. Anger. Fear. Pain. The strong emotions rode the air currents of the subterranean corridor. She upped her shields against the emotions coming from the direction of their ultimate destination.

Nadia pulled on Bram’s belt, staying his movement. He turned and mouthed, “What is wrong?”

She signaled four men ahead and mouthed, “A’tem. Danger.”

Bram’s ramping up to battle readiness was evident in his aura—and oddly enough seemed to supplement her fight readiness. And then it hit her—Huw! She’d drawn on him without realizing it, using him to help her utilize the Prime battle rage Bram emitted.

Nadia moved to the corner and peeked around it. Her control over her emotions at the sight was tested. Bram touched her arm, holding her back. He whispered over her ear, “Steady. Plan.”

She nodded and Bram let go of her.

A’tem was bleeding and down on the ground. His eyes were closed and his skin, pale, its normal blue now bluish white. For a split second, she’d thought him dead, but a frisson of his emotions brushed up against her. He was alive and pissed. He was waiting—he knew they would come and he played opossum until they did.

She turned to look at Bram and mouthed, “Not dead.”

Bram’s fiery gaze lightened. He pointed at her open jacket and the expanse of skin it revealed, a question in his eyes. Bram had learned quickly her female attributes were a boon in distracting the enemy.

Nadia thought for a second and shook her head. There were only three of the enemy, and A’tem was on the ground out of the line of fire. It would be quicker to take the bastards out all at once with a wide blast from the laser rifles. She slipped her rifle off her shoulder and set it for a wide blast.

Bram must’ve agreed with her strategy, because he mimicked her motions.

She hand-signaled one, two, and on three both of them surged around the corner with lasers blasting. The three mercenaries had no time to react—just die. This time she gave no additional thought to the dead men she stepped over. They’d hurt her friend.

Nadia went to help A’tem as Bram fired insurance kill shots into the heads of the three. “A’tem? How badly are you hurt?”

The Volusian allowed her to help him stand. He stumbled slightly before gaining control of his stance. He heaved a sigh and eyed the most serious wound on his upper left chest. He applied pressure to the wound with his hand. “I’m fine, Nadia. I’m thankful the enemy didn’t have a rudimentary understanding of Volusian anatomy—or I would be dead.”

Nadia was thankful also. The stab wound looked deep and was bleeding sluggishly, but was nowhere near A’tem’s heart. The Volusian heart’s major chamber was centrally located behind a solid carapace of bone. The enemy had aimed for a Terran heart location. All the Volusians had in that position was muscle, bone, and fat. The wound would hurt like a bitch, but it wasn’t life-threatening.

Bram joined them with the enemies’ weapons in his arms. He looked A’tem up and down and smiled in grim satisfaction. “Well met, warrior. Are we ready to move? I will dump these weapons in the escape tunnel.”

“How far are we from the entrance?” Nadia followed Bram as he took the lead. She stayed by A’tem in case he needed her assistance. But he moved just fine.

A’tem answered before Bram could. “Not far. I was at the door when the enemy attacked me. They attempted to drag me away, and I resisted. I knew you’d be coming along the corridor soon and figured I had a better chance of escaping if they didn’t attempt to take me to their leaders.”

“Did they call in your capture?” Nadia looked over her shoulder and found only empty corridor.

“Yes.” A’tem chuckled and shook his head. “But Bram’s trick with the door codes had locked up the closest backup which was why they started to drag me away. The enemy is now very shorthanded from what I overheard.”

“That’s good.” Nadia would make sure the Alliance Command knew Bram deserved a commendation for his efforts. A’tem would get a medal also for being injured while engaging the enemy.

As a team-building exercise, this had been trial by fire. So far, Gold’s crew members had proven they were the best of the best. She was proud to call these men her peers.

“We are here, Commander.” Bram indicated the door that looked like every other door but was gray.

Nadia frowned. “Aren’t gray doors waste disposal access doors?” She was sure that was what she’d learned while poring over building plans with Mel. But she now knew not everything about this facility was reflected on the plans, so the gray doors might’ve been a red herring also.

“Yes.” Bram smirked. “No one likes to deal with what is behind them. This one leads into the caves and not the waste recycling system.” He turned to the door and accessed the control pad and monitor hidden in the wall.

Bram’s snarl of rage set the hairs on Nadia’s body on end. A’tem stiffened at her side and emitted an answering low-level growl.

“What is it, Bram?” she asked. “What do you see?” But she knew. She could feel and almost see the rage. Red. Heat. Pain. Fear. Battle rage.

“The enemy had a unit,” a unit meaning nine soldiers, “guarding the exit into the cave. Our people are under fire.”

“Get us in there, Bram.” Nadia signaled Aeron. “Aeron, the team you sent us is under attack. We’re engaging the enemy.”

Aeron’s voice came back instantly. “Will send additional help.”

When the door opened, the sounds of laser fire, yells, and screams blasted Nadia’s ears. Yelling a Hunnic war cry handed down through the ages, she leapt into the fray. A berserker’s rage swept through her, supplemented by the
batel rabia
from Bram and, through their link, from Huw. She fought her way into the mass of large male bodies fighting hand to hand and with knives.

With a Prime battle cry, Bram leapt into the battle. A’tem followed with a Volusian battle cry, his wound obviously not a problem.

For a fraction of a second, even though Nadia knew the two men were on her side, their cries and those of the three Prime Aeron had sent struck fear in her heart. Shaking it off, she let instincts as old as the galaxy and her training take over—and she fought, knowing in the back of her mind that Huw was connected and doing what he could to keep her alive by sharing his strength and knowledge.
God, what is this connection we
have?

With Nadia and her team attacking the enemy from the facility side, the all-Prime team of three Aeron had sent surged forward from the cover they’d sought when first engaging the enemy. Fast and furious moments of fighting tipped the former standoff in favor of the Gold soldiers.

With four of the enemy on the ground, dead or dying, Nadia’s crew surrounded the four still standing, who threw down their weapons in surrender. None of the eight were Prime, but were a mix of Terran, Antareans, and some who looked to be from the Umbraxi system. The Antareans were the most dangerous and she didn’t have a damn dart gun. She kept her battle blade in her hand, just in case.

“Bram, shut the door behind us,” Nadia ordered. He hurried to do so while she and A’tem kept the four remaining enemy under guard. The men Aeron had sent collected weapons.