Valkyrie Hunter
Chapter 31

I approached the lines of Militia and Marines with some trepidation. The differences between the two parties couldn’t be more glaring. The Marines were clad in the grey and green patched combat armour that encased them from head to toe. In contrast the Militia were lighter armoured in security armour consisting of a cuirass, arm and leg panels and rounded helmets with a flexible plate at the rear. To my eyes it looked inadequate for the task to come or in an actual fight. The only thing they had in common were the deadly coil assault guns they carried. I felt a little under powered with the Seven Double ‘M’ strapped to my hip. I wasn’t even in any sort of armour. All I had was the coat Thirika had given me, scant protection from bullets. The Marines were a mix of races I saw humans, Valkyrie and T’Arni but at least all were female. Korja’s Militia were all Valkyrie with the exception of the diminutive Lori amongst them. What worried me was what seemed to be a tense standoff between the two groups. Had I known this earlier I wouldn’t have sent Lori in. I had hoped she would be a calming influence. I hated to admit I’d made a mistake.

“Lower your weapons!” I ordered as I closed in on the two groups. The Militia lowered theirs. “I said everyone!” I said to the Marines putting as much authority as I could into my order. When the Marines did I exhaled the breath I’d been holding. “Thank you,” I said glad that things hadn’t degenerated into bloodshed.

One of the Marines stepped forward a T’Arni by her size. She had a lieutenant’s bar on the chest of her combat armour. “LT the captain wants to talk to you.”

I was surprised that she was addressing me as LT. The voice seemed familiar to me in some way. I just couldn’t place it at the moment.

“Your captain?” I said to the T’Arni trying hard to place a face to the voice. Difficult when she was wearing a helmet.

At that moment a T’Arni woman in a blue dress uniform stepped out of one of the shuttles. My heart lurched on seeing her. Her strawberry blonde hair a dead give away to the identity of the T’Arni. Relief surged through me of all the people to see she was one I trusted the most.

“Xenai,” I whispered and straightened.

Xenai walked across to me a smile playing on her face. I found myself smiling in response.

The T’Arni Lieutenant chuckled. “You recognised the captain but you’ve forgotten about me?”

Suddenly it clicked. “Lieutenant Thorda!” I exclaimed. She ran the third watch on the Valorous Star. We’d spoken often she hadn’t had been as tight assed as Lieutenant Gant, Xenai’s XO. I decided in the confusion to introduce Korja’s Militia hoping it would break the tension between both groups. “This is Corporal Yasma.” I added the rest of the Militia finally introducing Lori.

In the time it had taken me to do the introductions Xenai had walked close to me.

She halted and I snapped a salute. “Ma’am?”

“Lieutenant Hunter,” Xenai said formally. “Could I speak to you somewhere private?”

I looked at her worried. “Of course captain,” I responded just as formally. I must be I a lot of trouble if she was speaking to me like that.

We walked away until we were out of earshot. I turned to her to see her regarding me carefully. I did wonder if she was reading my mind like she had done before.

“Captain Xenai?”

“Oh Gwen how many times have I asked you to call me Xenai there’s no need to be that formal now?”

“Sorry I’ve been through hell the last couple of months,” I admitted relieved to have someone that actually understood what I was saying.

“I know,” she said gently. “I’ve read all Commander Hrutdottir’s reports over and over again.”

I had to ask. “Is my team with you?” I hoped I still had a team. I hadn’t exactly covered myself with glory walking out on them like I did. At the time my only thought was to get Monica and Alicia to safety and try and pick up Vanessa’s trail. I think if I hadn’t have been so stupid I might not have got myself kidnapped. I made myself a target I should have known better, I should have been prepared.

“Unfortunately not. They’re still on Commander Hrutdottir’s ship. We didn’t have time to pick them up.”

That satisfied me for the moment. “I’m certainly glad to see you.”

“As I am to see you alive and well.”

I had to ask my mind on the destruction of the Interceptors earlier. “Did you shoot down those interceptors?”

“I had no choice when I saw they were about to attack the civilians, we picked that much from their comms chatter.”

That satisfied me but I found myself apologising for the confrontation with her people. “I’m sorry that you had to find me in all this mess.”

“I’m sure it is.” Xenai sounded distracted that had me worried. “Gwen I need to ask you a question?”

“Ok?” I didn’t like her sudden change it made me uncomfortable. I had yet to apologise for the way her Marines had been confronted by Korja’s Militia. Had I known it was her I could have avoided a lot of this.

“Don’t get offended but I can’t read your mind. I can’t even touch your surface thoughts.”

“Damn it, it’s the Keepers they did this to protect me and I suppose them. Mouse warned me this would happen.” I regarded Xenai carefully. I trusted her enough to trust her with my life. “I don’t know how much Runa put in her reports?”

“Tell me what you can.”

I felt better for that. I took a deep breath and started talking. I spoke about the events after leaving Saros. Telling her of my awareness of how close the Keepers were to me. Then about the Guardian’s intervention and how I ended up in the medbay. I told her about the plot to kill Runa and blame it on me.

Xenai’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll be having words with Commander Hrutdottir, she had no right to keep this from me.”

“Well it doesn’t get any better.” I spoke of Melanos and the troubles I had there. And with my confrontation with the Guardians, their planting a device in me to make me a weapon against the Keepers. “Digger removed it. I was going insane.” I didn’t want to say that but I had to be honest with Xenai. Then I moved on to Davenport the crash and the events afterwards.

Xenai looked grim. “Oh Gwen I so sorry this happened to you. If had a way to make things better I would.”

“Well I haven’t got to the worst yet.” I told her of my kidnapping and what the Keepers had done to me. I wasn’t sure if she understood. I certainly didn’t and I was there in a way. I went to explain Ella’s rescue and how we had to flee Miranda’s home. Lastly I spoke about the events in the Hall and how someone was out to get me. I had to admit it did sound a bit paranoid.

“Its more than I could have got out of any report?” Xenai said. “I feel angry with what you’ve been put through. I, we should have got here sooner.”

Which brought me to the fact that she was here with the blockade and all. “Why are you here?”

“To find you of course.”

There had to be more. “And the Elders let you just waltz in here?”

“Mother,” was Xenai’s simple reply.

Not the Valkyrie Mother of All but Xenai’s mother Admiral Komana bane of the Imperial fleet. “Your mother actually got the Elders to see sense?”

“Not as such,” Xenai admitted. “She just told them she’d bring her entire fleet and take this planet apart piece by piece.”

“For what?”

“Your kidnapping,”

I stared hard a Xenai. “Come again?”

“She stated that it was a unprecedented example. Her exact words were ‘I don’t think you want to bar me. No one gets away with taking a TCA officer or anyone else from the TCA without incurring my wrath. No body wants to see me when I get angry. When I do things get broken fleets, planets, people!’”

“So they let you in because of that?” There had to be more the Elders were stubborn, unbending and inflexible.

“With proviso’s of course. Which is why I here?”

“So the Elders let come and get me?” I doubted that it was going to be that easy.

“Not as such. I’m here to help.”

There went any chance of me getting off this planet anytime soon. “In what way?”

“Run protection,” Xenai held up her hand to stop me. “Don’t object it’s part of the agreement.”

I sighed it was a mess. I looked and saw the refugees passing along the road heading to the camp the Svertingdottir Clan had set up thirty kilometres away.

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