Page 49 of Swept By The Alien Pirate Prince

I swiveled in my chair to face him, exhaled a slow deep breath while kneading the back of my neck with my knuckles.

“It’s… going.”

“Uh-oh. That doesn’t sound good.” Nix plopped down next to me.

I leaned back in my seat, and it squeaked in protest. I rocked back and forth and crossed my arms over my chest, taking another deep breath.

“It’s not as bad as you think.”

“But it’s not great, either?” Nix raised questioning eyebrows.

I glanced over my shoulder to make sure no one was there to overhear our conversation.

“Don’t get me wrong. I really appreciate everything Carmela has done —stillcontinues to do for not only me, but for the rest of the crew, and the robots. I don’t think we’d be in as great a shape as we’re in if it weren’t for her. She has helped get us this far faster than we ever would have on our own, otherwise."

“Okay…” Nix knitted his eyebrows, narrowed his eyes, and gave me a look of caution. “What’s the problem, then?”

I rolled my eyes and released a huffing sound from the back of my throat. “There isn’t one. Not really.”

“I was just expecting there to be a ‘but’ after,” Nix said.

“Well…” I trailed off, trying to choose my next words carefully. “Carmela did a phenomenal job piecing the stealth unit back together. Far better thanIever could have done. I don’t think it’s her fault that it’s still a little spotty. I mean, she didn’t have much left to work with in the first place. It was like trying to piece together something that had been demolished.”

Nix’s eyebrows knitted. Concern sharpened in his almond eyes as if he were internally bracing himself to receive terrible news. “I know it must have been hard for her.”

“It was. I was there for a lot of it. There were times where she got so stressed out she had to leave the room and take breaks.”

“I don’t blame her.”

“She deserves a break. I told her I’d take over in the bridge for a little while if she wanted to go rest.”

“That was kind of you to offer.”

“I try my best. I have a lot to make up to her. I owe her a lot.” I scratched the side of my elbow.

Nix’s eyes narrowed as if he wanted to address something but wasn’t sure how to do it without sounding offensive. “Do you think there’s a chance that we won’t make it to Alesis?”

Nix asked the million dollar question. Our home world of Alesis was the next spot on our list. It was now or never.

The mechanoid army of the Belic Empire had taken over our home planet. It had been years since we’d been able to have the resources or the manpower to try and fight off the enemy and take back what was ours — what should have never been stripped of us in the first place.

Now that the time had come, I was nervous that we might not be able to pull it off. I wasn’t backing out now.

There was always an excuse not to do something. I was tired of flying through space like a rogue nomad, and I knew the other Alesians on our other ships and fleets felt the same way. Nix’s own family was on one of them. I knew he missed them and couldn’t wait to be reunited with his wife and children. I wanted to give him that peace, that joy, that restoring sense of accomplishment.

I had the confidence to back up my thoughts, but I wasn’t sure it was going to end up being enough in the end. I tried to remind myself that if I didn’t take productive decisions and actions in that direction, then I’d never get to take my home world back.

Everyone native to Alesis deserved to have their planet back, and it was all riding on the choices I made, and whether they were going to pan out in the end.

“I think we’ll make it,” I reassured my second in command. “Carmela delivered as promised on the stealth unit. It isn’t her fault that there wasn’t much left for her to work with.”

Nix nodded as if he couldn’t argue that fact. “That’s true. She seems really smart.”

“She’s the best,” I admitted. “It was a blessing in disguise that she was abducted by the Belic when she was.”

Just then, some of the controls started flashing red. Nix and I exchanged a cautious glance with each other.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

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