Page 31 of Her Wolves

As soon as she confessed that, I studied Kris carefully.His own version of Tara’s look had come over him.Somewhere in his mind, Kris was in bed with her right now.We all were, but on Kris it showed the most.

I said to Kris, “We all wanted Tara.And we’ve all been with her.But right from the day you got here, everyone knew there was something special about you.Those instincts of yours that made you go after that spy while everyone else followed orders—you were the one who had him in your sights right when he showed up, and it was you that caught him.And then you were the one who was ready to lay down his own life for Tara when that thing got into her room.Any one of us would have done it, but something drew you and her together.I knew all along that you were someone to watch.That’s why I wanted you assigned to us as her third Guard—so I could keep an eye on you,watch this bond that you have with her that’s not like anything she has with anyone else, even Lon and me.The three of us have an order, a protocol, for being with her, and we’re on our honor to follow it.I may be the first to have her…,” and I swallowed my pride when I admitted it, “but you’re her best.”

Tara touched me on my arm and said to me sincerely, “I said you’re all my best and I meant it.”

Running my fingers along the softness of her cheek, I replied, “I know you mean it, Tara.But what the three of us have with you…it’s strongest with him.That’s why it has to be you and him.”I faced Kris and said, “Sub-Lieutenant Tynan, you have your orders.”

Kris looked almost mesmerized at Tara.“Sir, yes, Sir.”

Our decision was made.All that was left was to seal it.I gently pulled Tara to me and took her mouth in a long, warm kiss, telling her with the press of our lips how important she was to me, that she was the sweetest duty I’d ever been given.

After our kiss, Lon took her by the hand and folded her up into his arms for a kiss of his own; a kiss that made her swoon back, feeling the fullness of his desire, his caring, his affection.At the end of that kiss, she straightened up and lingered in Lon’s embrace.

Finally, Tara went to Kris.Their arms encircled each other and their mouths met in the deepest kiss of all.Tara moved a thigh up along his leg and Kris held it while kissing her, keeping one hand at the small of her back.Their lips stayed together for a minute longer than her kisses with Lon and me, which was only right.While I was the leader, the two of them were the most important unit in this passionate pack that we had become.Tara and Kris truly were the nexus of it all.

When Tara and Kris finally parted, I said to them and Lon, “We’d better get back in there and tell them what we’ve decided.We’ve got a world to save.”

CHAPTER 19

Kris

We had a great view of the world being torn apart.

There was an old saying from Earth: “They also serve who only stand and wait.”Tara and I were now waiting our turn to serve, and we’d gone to the place where we could feel at least some connection to what was happening up above and outside.It was a monitor room in another area of the underground complex, with people sitting at control panels talking to each other and sending messages to other places.Two walls were taken up with large screens showing different views of what was happening in Leto, what was going on in other settlements on Lycia, and the action taking place in orbit and in space around the planet.All of it showed battle and upheaval.

In the city above us, it was like the horror that happened at the reception for new Guard personnel, where I had caught that Soorn spy, only dozens of times worse.Trees had been turned into walking creatures uprooted themselves and were shambling around, attacking Colonial and Guard troops on the ground.The human and lycanthrope forces struck back, using energy weapons to slice and hack limbs off the walking trees and set the huge plant creatures afire.Flames and smoke were everywhere; some monitors showed cityscapes with towering plumes of black smoke rising up near and far.We saw dinosaur-like creatures as big as houses, with bodies as tough as assault vehicles, stomping around, tearing into buildings; and more troops taking them on.Our forces shot at them with high-powered energy guns that had only a limited effect; they managed to wound some of the reptile things, which thenslashed their tails and scattered their attackers, sending some troops running and others flying.

I could only guess how our people and the Colonial personnel reacted to the reinforcements that showed up.The Caloxi had hidden, sensor-screened bases inside of mountains and caverns in the area of Leto and in places scattered across Lycia.Those bases were like the one where Tara, my comrades, and I had been, with hibernating Caloxi waiting for the signal to wake up.They had been working without anyone knowing about it, preparing for just what was happening at this moment.Now they’d emerged in their bowl-shaped flyers with their energy-beam tentacles and had swooped into battle.Where our people in other levitating, ground-skimming, and hovering craft engaged in hit-and-run tactics with the monsters, they had the surprise of the Caloxi coming out of nowhere to help.I pictured myself as one of our people outside, having to deal first with mutated things rampaging everywhere, and then with aliens that no one had ever seen before suddenly appearing and being on our side.Alpha Commander Brunson and other higher-ups had given them the word that help was incoming and that they shouldn’t attack the aliens, but it had to be confusing as hell.

Up in the sky were streaks of light from attacks back and forth, and the flashes and thunder of explosions.We saw the shapes of Colonial and Guard ships and Soorn vessels darting through the air, pivoting and swerving, lashing out at each other with lances of gleaming power.In some places we saw dark and flaming shapes falling to the ground, which we knew were the parts of destroyed craft and, if we could see a finer magnification, the bodies of doomed pilots and gunners who’d lost their lives in aerial combat.It was a heart-sinking sight.Tara and I instinctively held hands, unable to do anything else but watch.

And we saw still more.Out in space, our ships and the vessels of the Soorns were engaged in the same kind of battle that was going on above rooftops and in the sky.In orbit, our defenses arrayed themselves across the face of Lycia, and the view looking in at the beautiful planet was lit up with fiery bursts from clashing ships, some of them exploding in the blackness of surrounding space or against the blue-and-white-swirled disk of the planet itself.And from far out beyond the orbit of Lycia, other shapes appeared, with cruel flashes around them that must have been enemy fire hitting against force fields.These newcomers were Caloxi ships that had been lying in wait in surrounding systems, probably on planets where there was no breathable atmosphere, and their crews remained aboard hidden ships or in hidden bases.How long had they been out there, waiting for just this moment to come warping into our system for this battle against the beings who once drove the Caloxi from their adopted home?

It occurred to me that planets like Lycia—and Earth, where our people came from—were precious things, scattered through star systems across limited space.Sometimes things like this happened, with more than one species laying claim on the same planet and fighting over who got to possess it.In our history there had been disputes with one species or another over this planet or that one, and some combination of combat and diplomacy had smoothed them out.But this situation was unique, with three different species fighting over one planet.Tara said she hoped there would be a planet worth living on when it was all over, though exactly who would be left to live on it was in question.We kept hold of each other’s hand and kept watching.Soon enough it would be our turn to act.

We spoke in lowered voices amid the chatter from the monitoring personnel.I looked grimly at everythinghappening out there and said in a tone to match my expression, “I should be out there.”

“You’re needed here,” Tara said softly, squeezing my hand.“This is where we both need to be.”

“I know that,” I said.“But I wasn’t trained to stand and wait.I was trained to be out there, standing with the rest of the Guard, being in the fight, not just watching it.I’m not good at just watching.”

She hooked her arm with mine and said, “I know what you’re good at.Everything you’re good at.”

Since we’d been in this room, I’d divided my attention between Tara and what was on the monitors, and I’d frankly focused more on those screens.But right now all I wanted to see was her.I wanted to see something beautiful that wasn’t being attacked and torn apart.Facing her, I took the meaning of what she had just said.It was out of place now.It was no time for either of us to be thinking about what she meant.But on some level I needed to hear it, because it was a reminder of what we were really fighting for.

“I just hope Nick and Lon are all right, out there in all of that,” I said.

Tara’s little smile also seemed out of place.“Those two?Nothing’s happening to them; I know it.With those two out there in all that fighting, the ones to worry about are the Soorns.”

“But Nick was just recovering from being hurt.It’s like they patched him up and just sent him back out into it.”

“It’s his duty,” Tara said.“He wouldn’t have it any other way.If Nick had stayed in that infirmary, he’d be howling to get out and be in action.”

With a bitter little chuckle, I turned back to the screens and said, “Yeah.So would I.So would I…”

Then a voice came over the internal comm system, which made me look up and snap to attention.

“Now hear this.This is Alpha Commander Brunson.The empathic bridge has been completed.It is now linked in with all external comm systems across the planet and across Lycian space.It will be piggybacked on all civilian, Colonial defense, and Canis Guard frequencies.There is no time to test the system.The bridge must be activated now.And it is our fervent hope that it will meet with success.Sub-Lieutenant Tynan and Princess Tara Landon, report to the underground hangar immediately.Repeat, Sub-Lieutenant Tynan and Princess Tara Landon, report to the underground hangar immediately.All other personnel return to your duties.That is all.”

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