ROYAL LINE (War In The Void Book 3) Read online

  “Who’s we?” Jammin started toward Haddron. His movements were the start of something menacing.

  “All of us.” Haddron’s voice was firm. He opened the bridge door and stepped into the throughway.

  The footsteps behind him were fast, heavy and filled with purpose far beyond merely catching up. Haddron quickly stepped to the side, allowing Jammin to barrel past him. The larger Nordic stumbled to a stop.

  “You rush through like a lumbering oaf,” Haddron said.

  Jammin turned to face him. “You ally us with the very species we are trying to bring down?”

  “What would you have me do?” Haddron pointed back toward the bridge at the display screen, now filled with the face of a sneering Catter. “Our people are under attack. The humans—”

  Jammin pounded his fist on the wall. “We have the Slagschip! What do we need the humans for?”

  “I haven’t time to explain it to you.” Haddron turned to open a door in the wall.

  “What are you getting?” Jammin asked.

  Haddron pulled out a vest. The article of clothing had a flat box attached its upper right section. Two wired leads ran from the box down to the abdominal section of the vest. On the box was a dial and a dull yellow rectangle.

  “It’s for the Captain.” Haddron turned back to the bridge.

  “You’re giving him Gevecht Bepantsering?” Jammin hurried behind him. “Why?”

  “I have already told you, I haven’t time to—”

  “He is dying, isn’t he?” Naura asked.

  Haddron glanced up at her.

  “That is the only reason you are willing to give him such a thing,” she continued. “What about—”

  “Our people lay suffering under the oppressive thumb of the Ka’traxis Brood!” Haddron yelled, tired of being questioned by those he led. “You all have been free to do as you please while I have been rotting in a cell for years. I have waited that long for my revenge. Worked to exact the parts of it. If my last act of vengeance must wait while I work alongside my enemy to save our people, then I am overjoyed to put my revenge on hold.”

  Jammin cooled his own temper. His desire to lead did not override his desire for the security of their people. “You still move to save Irons’s life.”

  “I need him,” Haddron said. “Without him, his own people will not side with me.”

  “Haddron,” Naura started. “Irons nearly—”

  “You side with me and thus side with them,” Haddron said to his crew. “One of these options has you remaining on the Slagschip. The other does not. Decide upon my return.” He raised his teleporter and placed his thumb on the lens. “And, Jammin. Do not think of taking the Slagschip for yourself.”

  He pressed the lens and vanished.

  * * *

  “Knew we couldn’t trust him,” Syracuse struck the antique steering wheel with the side of his fist. “He’s been gone too long.”

  A familiar flash of white filled the room. It quickly disappeared, leaving Haddron standing in its place.

  “What’s with the vest?” Durham asked.

  “It is a Gevecht…” Sitasha caught herself. “It is battle armor.”

  “More importantly, it will save his life.” Haddron stepped toward Irons.

  Mona stepped between the two of them. “This isn’t going to hurt him, is it?”

  “Would it matter, at this point, Admiral? He is at death’s door. He passes without or he passes with this?” Haddron held up the vest.

  Mona looked down at Irons then at the rest of the crew. All were suspicious of Haddron’s motives but they were more eager to save Irons’s life. If this was the thing that would do it, it was worth the risk.

  The Admiral turned to Irons and placed a hand on his shoulder. He eased closer to her, imperceptible to everyone but her. “I’m going to pick you up, James. We’re going to save you.”

  She kneeled to lift one of his arms over her shoulder.

  Durham and Lindsay moved in to help but Syracuse cleared his throat, stopping them in their tracks. He knew this was not only something Mona would want to do on her own but it was something that Irons needed for her to do on her own.

  Admiral Mona Collins was not a weak woman. She did not get to her position by simply being able to speak the language of authority. Her days as an Earth Fleet soldier had her in combat situations that required her to carry fellow combatants, in both training and life or death situations. The only reason she struggled now with her ex-husband was due to the last few years acting as more of a political liaison between Earth Fleet, politicians and Wartech. The knowledge never left but she hadn’t been as driven about the training. She wasn’t used to exerting herself in such a way. Despite that, Mona raised Irons to his feet.

  The Captain’s head still hung low. His breathing was shallow. And his heart beat was slow.

  “We must get the armor on him, quickly,” Sitasha said.

  Durham cocked his head, unconvinced that this vest could save anyone’s life. “Flimsy looking armor.”

  “Only in its current state,” Haddron said as he carefully worked to get Irons in the battle armor.

  Through the motions of dressing the Captain, both Mona and Haddron wound up switching places with each other while Irons remained between them.

  Haddron finished fastening the buckles, securing the vest to the near dead Captain. He placed one finger on the yellow rectangle and slid it from right to left. As his finger passed along, the yellow lit up until the entire rectangle glowed. Then Haddron stepped back.

  The rest of the crew waited and watched, each of them expecting Irons to take a deep breath and start barking orders. They got neither of those.

  “Is this another one of those times?” Durham asked.

  Suddenly, the vest went from a flimsy cloth to a rigid form. Irons’s body jerked and his muscles tensed. Mona let his arm fall and she, too, stepped back, unsure of what would happen next.

  “It’s working,” Haddron said.

  The next shock came when both Irons’s hands shot out toward Mona and Haddron, fingers clutching them by the throats.

  James Irons slowly raised his head and stared with empty, bloodshot eyes.

  Three

  A New Trial

  To Irons, the bridge of the USS Lucky Liberty appeared blood red. From the floor to the walls, consoles to the crew seats, everything was that color. Even the people aboard were crimson from head to toe. And silent. Irons heard only the sound of his heart threatening to burst from his chest. It was a thunderous and rapid sound that echoed in his ears.

  The Captain took in angry, vicious stares from the people in the room. Each of them looked like twisted, mutated amalgamations of Nordic and Ka’traxis Brood. All of them made threatening gestures and yelled at him in a language he couldn’t understand.

  He looked to his left and saw that he had one of them by the throat. A glance to the right showed the same thing. Suddenly two more of them grabbed his outstretched arms.

  Durham locked an arm around the Captain’s and tried to push Haddron away. Lindsay did the same for Mona on the other side. Neither soldier’s attempt was successful. James Irons’s grip was too strong. Whatever was going on with him, it had boosted his strength to unfamiliar territory.

  Lindsay strained to free the Admiral. “What’s happening to him?”

  “I’ve never seen the battle armor when first put on.” Sitasha pulled on Haddron’s shoulders, trying to assist Durham in freeing the Nordic. “I didn’t know it did this.”

  Haddron gargled for air as he, too, tried to pull away from Irons. Even with three of them fighting to free the Nordic, Irons’s grip remained superior.

  Syracuse bolted toward the struggle and looked Irons dead in the eye.

  The Captain’s eyelids narrowed over the pronounced bloodshot veins as the two men locked eyes with each other. Whatever was going on, Syracuse couldn’t see any real sign of his Captain and friend in Irons. Only rage. Anger wasn’t new for Irons. It w
as something his whole crew had seen before. But even those times when he’d lashed out in a fury, it was never anything this savage. The Captain always remained in some sort of control.

  The strange, grotesque mutant stared at Irons, its mouth forming words he couldn’t understand. Words that as far as he was concerned were only threats. But Irons knew that his entire form was open to attack as long as he held off his other enemies as he did. But if he released them it would only mean two more to join in the charge. His only recourse was to attack the Nordic Catter in front of him.

  Syracuse was not prepared for the headbutt that came his way but he was quick enough to avoid it. He moved his head to the side, instinctively bringing his arms up in case of another attempt.

  “Sir!” Lindsay yelled. “The Admiral’s about to pass out!”

  “Sorry about this, Albatross,” Syracuse said.

  Irons only roared at him.

  Syracuse reared his fist back and brought it arcing around to crash into Irons’s jaw. It was a blow that would have easily floored a lesser man. One that in days past might have even had Irons seeing stars. Under the present circumstances, though, it only served to further enrage the Captain.

  Irons’s head rolled with the hit then slowly turned back toward the Commander.

  “Commander”?” Hannah beseeched.

  “That’s as good as I got.”

  Big Lou moved in to assist Lindsay. He grabbed Irons’s hand and pulled at his fingers, loosening them just enough to allow a slightly better oxygen flow for Mona.

  The Admiral’s eyelids fluttered and her eyes rolled back down from inside her head. Lindsay got a good look at the fear and pain the Admiral was in. Not just pain from Irons’s grip but something deeper. It had never occurred to her that the Captain would ever hurt her in such a way. Soldier or not, Lindsay knew this was going to be a hard thing for Irons to come back from.

  Lou’s assistance helped keep Mona conscious but little else. Even with all of his strength, it wasn’t enough to fully unclench Irons’s fingers.

  Syracuse tried one more haymaker from the other side. The effect was the same.

  A bright flash lit up the room.

  Durham glanced in its direction and Jammin standing near the bridge door. “This day is just getting better.”

  Jammin surveyed the scene. So many just to halt one human. He shook his head, realizing what Haddron had not. Now all he really had to do was sit back and watch as Irons took care of his rival for him. After that it would be an easy matter to teleport back to the Slagschip and simply take over. But victory over Haddron was his. Not a human’s.

  He jogged to the back of Irons and put one arm around his neck while reaching down to the front of the vest. One finger slid down the yellow rectangle till only a small part of it was lit.

  Irons instantly unclenched his grip.

  Mona and Haddron both stumbled backwards and were caught by those who tried to free them.

  Irons dropped straight to his knees. His breathing was heavy, like he’d just run a marathon. “What..?” He struggled to get the words out. “What happened?”

  “Boss?” Durham bent down. “Is that you?”

  “What’s that mean?” Irons swallowed. He looked up at Durham. His eyes were back to normal. All sign of the blood red was gone. “Durham?”

  “You had us all scared, there. And not like before.”

  “What happened?”

  “Something to do with that thing.” Syracuse pointed at the vest on Irons.

  Irons glanced down at the vest, trying to make sense of the lost time and what it was he was wearing. “The Admiral,” he muttered. “Mona!” His head snapped up to Mona Collins.

  The Admiral averted her gaze from his stare, like a whipped dog. Her hands clutched her own throat.

  “Mona?” he asked with a feeling of guilt he didn’t fully understand.

  Lindsay turned to Irons and shook her head, concerned. She didn’t understand what just happened either but she knew it wasn’t totally his fault. Private Brooks led the still shaking Admiral to her own seat on the bridge.

  “She’ll come around.” Syracuse crouched beside the Captain. “We’ll figure out what just happened then it’ll all smooth over.”

  “Hill, I remember…something. I did something bad, didn’t I?”

  “No time for guilt, Captain. We got worlds to save.” Syracuse offered a hand to Irons and helped him to his feet. He turned to face Jammin. “You calmed him down, so you tell us what happened.”

  Jammin sneered. “That’s easy. Haddron doesn’t know how to use the Gevecht Bepantsering.”

  “You accuse me of ignorance?” Haddron rubbed at his throat.

  Jammin chuckled. “Which one of us actually used one of those during the war?”

  “My skills on the field of—”

  “Battle were second to none,” Jammin scoffed. “Still touting that old line.”

  “Is somebody gonna explain what just happened here?” Durham asked.

  Jammin’s cocky attitude was dense, like a thick fog. Everyone on the bridge could feel it. With the exception of Syracuse, none of the Earth Fleet soldiers had faced Jammin yet. His self perspective was either that of a very skilled individual or it was all bravado. All any of them had to go on was Sitasha’s earlier profile of the large Nordic. If his only real concern was to take leadership from Haddron, then it was highly possible this was just his way of one-upping him.

  Jammin walked around Irons, not even bothering to look him in the eye. He remained focused on the vest. “Nordiska Gevecht Bepantsering,” he said in the language of Erra. “Nordic Battle Armor. Similar to the Slagschip in giving its operator— in this case, you—” He motioned to Irons. “—Improved strength and endurance.”

  “How does it work?” Hannah asked. She was intrigued by the technology but weary of the Nordic explaining it.

  Jammin thought for a moment. Having a captive audience of humans made him feel superior. That Haddron couldn’t explain the effects of the vest on Irons made him feel even more-so. “It works much like your own adrenaline, amplifying the wearer. Of course it was never designed for use with human physiology.”

  “You people keep giving me stuff that’ll kill me, we’re gonna have problems,” Irons said.

  “It may be too late for that,” Sitasha said.

  “Why do you say that?” Mona asked, finally getting closer to the others but still keeping Lindsay between herself and Irons.

  The Captain turned to her and could see the fear still in her eyes. Whatever he’d done, it frightened her enough to keep her distance from him.

  “Let me,” Jammin said. “This is my favorite part.”

  “This is no game, Jammin,” Haddron scolded.

  “Elit might think otherwise.” Jammin smiled. “Where was I?” He relished the moment. It was uncharacteristic of him but he could not help himself. “That was it. You see this yellow light?” He pointed at the rectangle on the vest. “It’s a regulator. The battle armor has bonded to you, releasing the correct amount of chemicals into your bloodstream. It will keep you alive far better than those nano machines. Really, Sitasha?” he chided her. “Nanites? What was he going to do in twenty-four hours?”

  “But the Gevecht—”

  Jammin waved a finger in her face, silencing her.

  “Erra is under attack!” Haddron shouted. “We do not have time for your toying. I gave him the armor to save his life. That is done, now we must—”

  “But you didn’t tell him how it could kill him when he takes it off,” Jammin said.

  Irons snapped his head toward Haddron “How’s that?”

  Haddron’s jaw tightened but he gave no answer.

  “So after we helped you, you were just gonna write him off?” Syracuse asked.

  Lou dashed for Haddron and pulled the Nordic’s arm behind his back then put him in a choke hold.

  Haddron sighed and shook his head. “Would someone order this—“

  Irons
walked to the headlocked Nordic. “At ease, Lieutenant. Wouldn’t do any good anyway.”

  Lou released Haddron who massaged at his sore shoulder.

  “What’s he talking about?” Irons asked.

  “I was aware of the possibility that removing the armor after it had been on could have fatal consequences,” Haddron said.

  “You didn’t think to run that by me before you put it on?”

  “You were nearly gone, James,” Mona said. “Regardless of Haddron’s later plan of action, the fact is he saved your life.”

  Irons turned to her and took one step toward her and Lindsay but the Admiral shrank back behind the Private.

  “What I want to know,” Mona went on. “Is why you tried to kill us both after that thing was activated.”

  Irons turned back to Haddron, angry that the vest’s removal could kill him. Angry that Haddron might have planned it that way. But even more angry that Admiral Mona Collins wouldn’t look him in the eye and for whatever reason was terrified of him. “Same for me. All I remember is seeing red and everybody in here looking like they wanted my blood.”

  Jammin cleared his throat. “That’s simple. The regulator was turned up too high on too weak and primitive a circulation system.”

  “What, cuz he was almost dead?” Durham asked.

  “No. Because he’s human. The battle armor isn’t designed for humans. There’s your side effect.”

  “Will it happen again?” Syracuse asked.

  Jammin shrugged. “Don’t know. But I do know what side of it I want to be on if it does happen again.” He approached Haddron.

  “Does this mean you join us in defense of Erra?” Haddron asked.

  “Until our home is safe, yes. After that?”

  “It is enough for now.”

  “I’m glad you two are kissin’ and makin’ up,” Irons said. “But right now, I wanna know how we’re gonna get this thing off me when this is all over.”

  “Apologies, Captain,” Hannah said. She watched a static-read-out on the display. “I think we’ve got more pressing concerns.”