Space Invaders (9 page)

“How did you survive?” Even a half-Thresl would have problems.

The soldier shivered. “I had conditioning. I’m hoping to rematch.”

In some cases, if they were rematched quickly, a soldier could stay in his human form for a few months. If they didn’t find a Thresl for him soon, he would go into a cryogenic chamber until they found a match. Last Vohne remembered, there were still dozens of Thresls frozen on the planet.

“Good luck,” Vohne said even as he shivered over the fate of the man before him.

“Thank you, Your Highness. I have orders to bring the imposter to the ship. Would you mind accompanying me?”

As politely as the soldier had worded the question, Vohne still knew he wouldn’t leave without him.

“Of course,” Vohne complied. He didn’t want to make it difficult for the men. They weren’t the ones in charge of the orders to shoot Vohne from the sky. However, if anything hurt Kres, or if he died before he made it to the planet, all bets were off.

The soldiers formed an honour guard around Vohne, now acting as his protection instead of his captors.

“Don’t forget to bring the captain aboard,” Vohne reminded. He didn’t know if the shuttle was still space-worthy and he didn’t want the captain to be forgotten in their rush to take Vohne aboard the larger vessel.

“Of course, Your Highness,” another guard replied.

Vohne yearned to immediately seek out Kres, but he still didn’t know if it was safe.

Through several winding hallways he marched alongside the soldiers until finally he was brought to a large, luxurious chamber covered in thick carpet, with a strong handsome man sitting behind a desk.

Looking straight into those familiar gold eyes, Vohne gave a wide smile. “Greetings, brother.”

Bleine, Vohne’s younger brother, stood up, walked over to Vohne, then with brutal strength, punched him in the face.

Vohne’s head snapped back, his hand coming up to cup his injured cheek. “What the hell did you do that for?”

“For waiting so fucking long to come back! I had to go through an entire war without you. Where the hell have you been?”

Vohne looked into his brother’s eyes and knew the past hundred years had been hard on him. Without tragedy, a Thresl could live for centuries, even though only kings went through reincarnation.

“I don’t know! Why did you shoot at me?”

“Because Jallryne said a false king would be coming.”

“Who’s Jallryne?” Vohne asked. The name didn’t sound familiar.

“My human. She’s a seer.” His brother paled at the realisation—he had been manipulated.

“What happened to Klia?” Vohne had liked his brother’s last partner. She’d been a tiny caramel-haired woman with an easy laugh.

“She died in the purging. Jallryne was my second attempt. We bonded, but now I’m wondering if I chose incorrectly.” A frown marred Bleine’s smooth face.

“You think she likes being queen too much?” Vohne asked. Jallryne wouldn’t be the first person to go mad with power.

“Maybe. There have been whispered rumours, but I thought it was just court jealousy. The castle is a different place without you, brother. I never took the official title of king. It didn’t feel right since I wasn’t a true one.” Bleine gripped Vohne’s shoulder, shaking him slightly. “I always knew you would return, even as others doubted.”

Fear churned Vohne’s stomach. He didn’t want there to be a civil war over his return. “How will my reception be?”

“It had better be welcoming.” Bleine’s cold tone indicated nothing less would be acceptable to him. “However, it is a tumultuous time. A struggle for power is underway. There are others who would love to wrest the throne from me and call themselves king. Your long absence has brought out many contenders who would never dare to challenge the throne if you were there.”

“We’ll put them back in their place and discover who’s been working against us,” Vohne declared.

In his heart, he knew his brother was beside him.

“Where’s your mate?” Bleine looked behind him.

“You tried to blow up my shuttle. Where do you think he is?” Vohne growled. He still hadn’t forgiven his brother for that.

“Y-you sent him down below without protection?” Bleine’s panicked expression sent a shard of fear through Vohne.

“Since when does a mate need protection from my people?” he asked.

“Since there are those who would love to capture him and use him against the newly awakened king,” Bleine countered.

“Anyone who touches him will die by my hand,” Vohne snarled. The idea of someone hurting Kres made him want to turn feral.

Bleine shook his head. “That still won’t bring him back, and sadly, there are many who will die for their cause. Besides, even if they don’t kill him, they might hold him for ransom or just hold him over your head.”

Vohne let out a short laugh as he remembered how his mate had handled the last battle. There had been no shortage of people willing to tell Vohne of Kres’ ruthlessness. “Holding my mate will be more trouble than they might expect.”

Bleine frowned. “In the past, he’s always been a dreamer.”

“Not his time.” Vohne smiled. “This time he’s a warrior.”

Bleine’s expression was one of utter horror. “Then the prophecy is true.”

“What are you talking about?” His brother had always been the bookish one, while Vohne was the fighter.

“All the time you were gone, I searched the vault for reasons you weren’t brought back. I couldn’t understand why you hadn’t resurfaced yet. One of the oldest manuscripts I could find said that even for the king there is a final reincarnation. It will occur when your people need you the most.”

“They needed me during The Great Purge,” Vohne growled. “I let them down by not returning. Something must’ve prevented me from coming back.”

That was the only thing Vohne could think of. An outside force had stopped him from returning and finding his mate in order to prevent the purge.

Bleine nodded. “Which makes me worry about what’s coming now. It said that in the final reincarnation the king’s mate will be a warrior. I shared this with Jallryne. If she is the deceiver like we believe, she’ll be on the lookout for your mate. If he dies, this time he won’t come back.”

Fear rushed through Vohne. “We need to make sure that doesn’t happen. Get this ship landed. I have to find my mate!”

* * * *

It took several deep breaths and many images about the revenge he was going to take on his mate before Kres pulled it together. Picking himself up off the floor, he assessed the pod. With no idea of what situation he might land in, he popped open the provision chamber and scanned the contents.

“Great!”

Finally, something was going his way. The chamber was fully stocked.

The usual amenities lay inside. Food, jugs of water, snack bars, and tucked in the back, a military style survival dagger. Kres snatched up the dagger, tucked it in his boot, and filled his pockets with bars before cracking open a bottle of water. He needed to stay hydrated in case there wasn’t a lot of water where he landed. Damn, he wished he’d asked Vohne more about his home planet instead of concentrating on getting into his pants.

He paced the pod, occasionally glancing at the monitor to judge when he would land. If Vohne survived, he would go to the palace. Kres couldn’t even think of the possibility of his lover’s death. If Vohne were dead, he’d know.

A computerised voice came over the intercom. “Impact in five minutes.”

Kres sat back down and fastened the seat buckle tight.

“You’re keeping secrets from me, man-cat,” Kres mused. Thinking over the hints and bits the Thresl had dropped, he worried about what the shifter hadn’t shared.

“Impact in three minutes.”

Sighing, Kres leaned his head back and closed his eyes. What the hell had happened to his life? A few days ago, he’d been more than happy to be a common soldier. Now he was a Thresl-mate to a king—a king who may or may not be alive.

“You have to be alive,” he whispered. Luckily he didn’t get much time to fixate on his lover’s plight—not while hurtling towards a planet in a small capsule.

“Impact in one minute.”

The pod slammed into the ground, bounced, and slammed into the ground again before rolling. When the pod finally stopped, Kres’ insides were churning and his jaws ached from clenching his teeth.

He let out a breath of relief when the pod landed right side up.

After a few coping breaths to settle his nerves, Kres unbuckled the safety harness with shaky fingers. He grabbed another bottle of water before he walked to the pod door. Programmed to release its occupants after landing, the door popped open at his approach.

“Sure, now you open,” he grumbled, glaring at the silver orb. He wished it had opened back on the ship where he could’ve grabbed Vohne to go with him. He was going to punch his mate in the face the next time he saw him. Vohne damn well better be safe and sound for Kres’ abuse.

Peeking out of the pod, Kres saw nothing but grass, trees and a stone path. A long burn pattern scarred the earth from his landing.

“Looks like I’m walking,” he muttered.

He’d only taken a few steps towards the path when the sound of electronic thrumming filled the air. A whoosh of air accompanied the landing of a luxury air ship. It was a private ship, only sixty feet long, emblazoned with a crest on the side.

Vohne.

Kres’ heartbeat doubled in speed. Surely this would be the type of ship a king took.

Relief lightened his heart. He waited patiently for the ship to finish landing and the door to open. A pang of disappointment stabbed through his chest when a woman descended from the transportation, followed by a cadre of official looking guards.

The woman approached him with a wide smile. “I was told you were on your way, King-Mate. I’m Jallryne. Welcome home.”

Kres watched her approach, saw her enchanting smile and knew.

This is the enemy.

It was the expression in her eyes. As a soldier he’d learnt to identify hidden motives and unfriendly opponents. She almost vibrated with rage. The closer she came with the armed men at her back the tighter his nerves became. He resisted the urge to go for his knife. Instead, he stayed as still as he could, calling upon hidden resources of control.

“I heard from my mate. The king is well and on his way to the castle. I’m to bring you to him.”

Hearing that news from anyone else, Kres would have jumped up and down with joy, but he didn’t want to get into that ship with her. He knew with a soldier’s instinct, if he boarded that ship, he wouldn’t come out.

His gaze slid over her shoulder at the men standing at attention behind her.

The soldier on her left looked him in the eyes. “
Run,”
the man mouthed.

Kres’ nerves snapped. Turning on his heel, he fled.

A scream of rage followed his disappearance. He headed towards the trees. He needed cover and needed it right then. A few stray blasts landed too close, scarring the ground beside him. From their proximity he knew it was from the soldier who had told him to flee.

Anyone who could shoot could have easily hit him at such close range. Not all the soldiers were on her side. Unfortunately, it only took one good shot to kill a man who had nothing but a knife to defend himself.

Long forgotten survivalist training rushed back into his mind as his feet found the quiet earth. He instinctively missed the crunchy leaves and rustling undergrowth as he ran. If the deceitful bitch wasn’t lying, Vohne lived.

If Vohne lived, he would find Kres. Kres just had to survive long enough for the reunion.

“You shouldn’t be alive. She promised me you couldn’t return!” the woman screamed behind him.

A thick tree with low branches caught his eye. With a desperate leap, Kres grabbed the lowest branch, tucking his body close to the trunk. With slow, careful movements, he pulled himself to the branch above, his muscles screaming from the strain. Long, draping vines covered the space between branches, protecting him from spying eyes.

Kres was reluctant to attack any of the soldiers. He didn’t know which ones shared the warning soldier’s views and which ones wanted to see his blood sprayed across the ground.

The woman was easy.

She wanted him dead.

If she came close enough, he would slit her throat with no remorse.

From his informal count of men rustling through the underbrush, there were ten of them along with the woman. He longed for his stun gun with a passion.

“Come out, King-Mate. Once you’re gone, there will be no more problems. Once you’re gone, there will be no more king. He’ll never be able to survive your death this time.”

Shit, she was going to hurt Vohne. Kres hoped if he didn’t survive this, Vohne would be all right. The man-cat had said they needed more time together to be completely bonded. Kres hoped that would increase Vohne’s chances of living if the psycho bitch killed Kres.

Kres’ mind went completely blank as his nerves vanished and a warrior’s calm took over.