The Ilia's Lovers - Chapter Thirty-Seven

Elaine was safe. Dahnus trusted Pyri and her pack to deliver Elaine safely home. Dahnus was breathing a little easier, but not by much.

Hadith. He would kill everyone involved in kidnapping Hadith, starting with the Surilan who tricked him into going outside in the first place. Being a mercenary, licenced or unlicenced, wouldn’t protect him.

The planet was called A’baya, but it wasn’t really a name, it was a designation. The planet was designated restricted because sentient life was developing there. The Kuyon would protect the world until the sentient species made the first steps out into the grander galaxy. There was a series of buoys around the planet monitoring it and warning off anyone who came nearby. If someone landed, the buoys would send a signal to the fleet who would intervene. Something had gone very wrong as the Devori were actually on the planet with his heart, with no signal ever sent.

Governor Aquel stood around the console bank at the back of the room with several of his men as they worked, trying to access the buoys with the help of the Kuyon military fleet. Dahnus and his people were ready to go, but they also needed the information from those buoys. They needed to know if the buoys would inform the Devori of their arrival. They needed to know if he could sneak more people onto the planet.

Ardirion was watching the whole thing with interest, or he seemed to be. When Dahnus actually looked at him he seemed to be daydreaming. His people stood around him working on tablets until finally, Ardirion moved, and they broke, one of his people, the female who had called his entourage to him earlier, handed him a tablet. Without looking at it, Ardirion walked over to Dahnus.

“May my people and I accompany you to retrieve your… lover?”

Exactly how many people had guessed Hadith was Dahnus’s mate?

“Please. I could do with all the help I can get.”

Thanesh and his people were providing back up should they need it. Danari was with them to coordinate but Dahnus believed he and his people could deal with the Devori. However, having cybernetically enhanced warriors with him could only help, and Dahnus knew Ardirion, and his people were all trained as warriors. It would be particularly helpful when at least one of the mercenaries was also enhanced.

There was another reason Dahnus wanted Ardirion with them, two reasons. The first, Dahnus was always looking to build more alliances and while the Surilans had little to offer, their cybernetic technology was second to none. Secondly, Dahnus had never had the opportunity to spend time with the Prince Eternal, and he was intrigued by him.

“We’re ready to go as soon as they get me this information,” Dahnus said staring at Governor Aquel.

The governor must of heard the conversation because he broke away from the group at the console and offered Dahnus a tablet as he arrived.

“We have a corps of officers waiting for you at the port with your transport. They will act in the official capacity to arrest all the conspirators once you have control of the situation. We are close to answers with the buoys. As soon as we know what’s happening, we will update you.” the governor said.

“Thank you, Governor Aquel.”

“Please, let us know when you have Lord Efari back and please, accept my apology that this was able to happen on Ket’Kitara. We will be reviewing all security systems to ensure nothing like this ever happens again.

Dahnus said all the right things as diplomacy demanded, but inside he couldn’t help but blame this whole damn planet for failing to protect his heart. Though in truth, the one he blamed the most was himself. How had he allowed this to happen?

*****

A few hours after Dahnus’s ship set off. He had to leave his fleet behind, as per the Devori instructions. The Tessans, led by Thanesh, would be waiting a short jump away ready to intervene should it become necessary. Thanesh was livid. He took the disappearance of Hadith as a personal affront and it had taken a full-blown argument and a heartfelt plea to hold him off so that Dahnus could go down to the planet where the Devori demanded the exchange take place, and deal with this threat personally. The Devori had no idea what they had done. What he would do to them when he got his hands on them.

They were barely in faster-than-light when a call came through from Talis.

Dahnus stared at the Adosian on the screen feeling betrayed.

“I left her in your care.”

Talis acknowledged the accusation with a nod. “I understand that. I am sorry, Dahnus. But Elaine is not your property. She is entitled to do as she pleases. I may…” Talis let out a long sigh. “… I may agree with you. The need to protect my Pyri is… intense. However, as my mate has pointed out, I could not keep her, without holding her against her will.”

It was a damned good argument. An argument every instinct in Dahnus body was dismissing because Elaine had gone to the exchange alone.

Well not alone, but she didn’t have him, their full compliment of guards and half the Tessan fleet like Dahnus had.

“They are no more than a few hours ahead of you. If you push your engines, you may reach the planet soon enough to stop her.”

Soon enough to stop her.

The words rung in Dahnus’s ears long after the call had ended. Long after he’d walked out the length of the ship, towards Medbay and finally found himself sitting on a floor with only a single cryotube for company.

The Kuyon mate bond was a funny thing in that it considered the mates of their mates to be a part of their family. It was a little like the Amaran mate bond and because of that Kuyon had been a staple in the Amaran palace for generations. Dahnus had siblings who were half Kuyon. The male lying in this tube would one day consider him to be a part of his bond and there was a very good chance they would become lovers because of that. But right now, all Dahnus wanted was someone he could talk to. Someone who would understand what he was feeling right now.

Elaine was on her way to males who wanted to enslave her and do as awful things to her as Castus had done. Only instead of one, there were three of them, and Castus’s sister, who had married into the family currently holding Hadith hostage.

Dahnus sighed a scrubbed his face with his hands.

The door swished as it opened and Ardirion walked in on his cybernetic legs.

The Prince Eternal’s story was a sad one. Ardirion was the heir to the Surilan almost three hundred years ago. Space travel had just been achieved when a few families rebelled against the throne. There was a battle in the palace and its grounds known as the Battle of Misian. The rebels made it into the inner sanctum when some of the guards betrayed the family. They killed Ardirion’s parents. The intent of some of the families was to seat Ardirion on the throne as a puppet king. But one of them betrayed the others and poisoned the young man. Guards loyal to the throne captured the rebels and Ardirion was rushed to doctors, but the poisoning burned parts of his body like acid, leaving him severely disfigured. Ardirion’s doctors removed those parts of him and replaced them with cybernetics. They’d also extended his life. Ardirion should have been dead a long time ago, but determination kept him going. Dahnus had no idea how he’d managed to live through those times, and keep his sanity.

Ardirion said nothing as he sat on the floor beside Dahnus, his movements impossibly graceful. They sat there for a few minutes in silence, their heads resting on the wall beside them.

“I’ve hacked into the planet we’re travelling too,” Ardirion said.

“Hacked into the planet?” Dahnus asked.

Ardirion nodded. “There is a species on the planet that are sentient. The Kuyon placed a security system around it to ensure they weren’t taken by slavers. They are very early in their journey. Arboreal. Tree dwellers,” Ardirion clarified.

Dahnus knew what arboreal meant.

“The system’s been taken over by the Devori. It seems they’ve been trying for a while to disengage the security.”

“They want the race as slaves. They’ve marked a species in Kuyon space for slavery!”

Dahnus was angry on behalf of the Kuyon.

“It would seem so,” Ardirion said and sighed. “I’d hoped the thirst for slaves would end, but it only seems to become stronger.”

“My family have been fighting it for generations. It used to be better than this, but the Bentari have turned it into such an efficient business, people barely notice it’s there anymore and it’s grown while eyes have been elsewhere.”

“I will not have my people become the next slave race,” Ardirion said with such force, that for a moment Dahnus wondered if he was trying to impress his will on the known galaxy.

“I will not see it happen to Earth,” Dahnus replied. “Or your people. If I can help, I will.”

“I was hoping you’d say something like this. I would like to enter some kind of trade agreement with your world.”

Dahnus nodded.

“You should talk to Thanesh as well. He has amot and I’m sure you could look at the new armour the Kerisian scientist is making for them. I think your cybernetic technology would be beneficial to their suit and both you and the Tessans would benefit from such armour.

Ardirion turned to him with a speculative look on his face.

“I do believe that idea has merit,” he said.

“I try,” Dahnus said. His dry comment was met with a grin on the flesh and amot lips of the Prince Eternal.

“That is one of your lover’s mates?” he asked, looking at the cryotube.

“Paydin Kelder. He was forced to kill his prebond to defend himself. We found a new potential prebond. How did you know that?” Dahnus asked.

“Word got out. She found him in the aftermath of my meeting her. I was interested. She seems a kind, gentle person. I want to ensure she and your… lover, are returned to you.”

Dahnus shook his head with a wry smile.

“You’re not being subtle,” he said.

Ardirion smiled. “It’s none of my business. But I can’t help where my tongue naturally wants to go.”

“You make it your business every time you speak.”

“It’s none of my business. That doesn’t mean I’m not curious.”

Ardirion was eyeing the cryotube.

“There are ways to wake him up,” he said.

“It would damage him. He’ll awake naturally in the presence of his compatible mates, if his body accepts them.”

“He is a Kuyon warrior. He would be a great help in this endeavour.” Ardirion stood, walking over to the tube and obscuring it.

“We already have a lot of help. Let Paydin sleep. Let him wake when his world looks brighter, or not at all.”

Ardirion’s words repeated.

“You hacked the system?”

“Indeed,” Ardirion said with his back still to Dahnus. “It wasn’t very hard. While the Kuyon system was quite resilient, the gods only know how the Devori hacked it in the first place, their own patches were… inadequate.” Ardirion’s voice dripped with scorn and when he said Devori, Dahnus could hear the disgust and practically see Ardirion’s lip curl. “The result is they will not be notified when we arrive. We’ll be able to take them utterly by surprise.”

“Thank you, Ardirion. You are handy to have around in a crisis.”

“Indeed,” Ardirion said. Dahnus could hear him smiling.

Dahnus sighed and stood. “We should get going. We’ll arrive soon.”

Dahnus led the way out of the room, Ardirion follow slowly behind him.