Dancing in the Darkness Read online

  "She can reach Omegas on a different level than just a mate to rut into," Charlie murmured as it hit her.

  "And humans as well," Dorlon whispered.

  Slightly rattled by the truth about humans, Charlie leaned against the sofa and absorbed the significant change in Kander's rulership. After a long silence, she focused on Dorlon again. "How many Omegas are in the army now?"

  "About twenty percent are Omegas."

  Charlie touched her brow before sweeping loose blond hair behind her ear. "That's amazing," she muttered. She remained awed by Kal, but then the dull ache returned in her chest as she realized that Kal's sacrifice was so great. Charlie doubted she could ever sacrifice her identity for the good of her people. After a sigh, she curiously eyed Dorlon and asked, "What was her name before she became Kal?" She knew that Dorlon held the answer and would guard the secret until the end of Kal's time.

  "Her old name is gone, even from me."

  "Until her death."

  Dorlon dipped her head in agreement and murmured, "Upon her death, she will whisper her old name again." She reached for Charlie's knee, squeezing it in comfort.

  Charlie's distress was soothed away by Dorlon, and she sadly smiled at an Omega's natural ability to ease someone. From both knowledge and experience, she knew her friend was giving off a comforting scent that settled Charlie. As a human, Charlie couldn't directly smell a Kalmar's unique scent that made them an Omega or Alpha, but she was still affected by them. Most likely an Omega's reassuring scent was useful in an army full of aggressive Alphas.

  "It's good to see you again, Dorlon." Charlie rested her hand over Dorlon's own, holding it tightly.

  "You too." Dorlon ended their contact and said, "Tah for taking the job."

  Charlie nodded once, but mentioning the job made her think more on it. "Do you know much about this Omega?"

  "I have never met her," Dorlon replied.

  Humming low, Charlie considered the kidnapped Omega that had everyone on edge, especially at the initial meeting in the throne room. She was about to ask more when the office door swung open and signaled the High Commander's hasty return.

  Dorlon was on her feet instantly, concern written over her features. "What has happened, Kal?"

  Charlie stood up next to her friend and frowned at Kal's dark eyes and curled lip.

  "The kidnappers will be here in an hour."

  "Shit," Charlie hissed and hurried around the sofa. "They weren't due until—"

  "I know," Kal cut off.

  Dorlon joined the pair. "Is there anything I can do, Kal?"

  After a low growl, Kal focused on Dorlon and said, "I need you to gather soldier uniforms that will fit two of the mercenaries, gather weapons too."

  "They said no soldiers," Charlie reminded.

  "Fuck the terms," Kal snarled. "They'll accept it if they want the first run of darakar."

  Despite the situation, Charlie grinned and silently praised an Alpha's aggressive nature, not just when she was in bed. "All right. I'll get my team ready." She turned to Dorlon. "You'll bring the stuff to us?" After Dorlon's nod, she suggested hastily, "Probably uniforms that would fit one Alpha and one Omega." She looked to Kal next. "Should we meet you on the ground floor?"

  "Ja. I will prepare the darakar for transport."

  Not waiting further, Charlie hurried out of the room on a mission, her gait getting wider ever step. She glanced over her shoulder at Andren and ordered, "Faster." She ignored Andren's dirty look and hit the button on the elevator. She was primed to save an Omega and collect the stills for the job.

  * * *

  "Yeah, we're ready to go," Charlie reported, her two crewmembers beside her along with their guards and Dorlon.

  After preparing the darakar, Kal had, at some point, returned to her quarters or sent someone there. She was now wearing a long, black coat that brushed the floor behind her. Its collar covered her neck and revealed the red leather on the inside, signaling her position as the High Commander. On her left side was a sheathed blade, the ornate white handle was that of a wolf head; it caught Charlie's eye earlier.

  Kal nodded at the mercenaries, then turned to Dorlon, lips slightly parted.

  "I will accompany you," Dorlon stated with a firm finality.

  Charlie raised an eyebrow and watched the silent battle of wills between former student and teacher, wondering who would win. She bit her bottom lip when Kal grumbled but moved her head in agreement.

  "The trucks are waiting for us." Kal started the march, out of the Great Tower at a fast pace, clearly ready to face the kidnappers.

  On the street, several trucks waited for the large group made up of Alphas, Omegas, and mercenaries. Everyone followed the High Commander's orders, taking seats in the truck beds and listening to directions about the plans. Charlie was halfway into a truck with her crew when a strong hand pulled her back down to the ground.

  "You're riding with me," Kal ordered her.

  Charlie caught Starr's displeasure, but she flashed a smile and promised, "See you there." She followed Kal to the first truck in the lineup, loading into it. She discovered that Dorlon was seated on the bench to the left so she sat down next to her, expecting Kal to sit on the opposite bench. However, Kal wedged into the remaining space on the bench, which put Charlie between the Kalmar she once had a crush on and the Kalmar who'd fucked her only hours ago. A soft blush heated her cheeks, and she cursed herself.

  Dorlon patted the cab's truck and signaled the drive to go. "You don't look so ridiculously human." She indicated the new attire.

  Charlie glared at Dorlon, then pulled on the neckline of the black shirt under the dark jacket. "It's a little tight."

  "You should consider losing some weight then."

  Charlie playfully growled and smacked Dorlon on the side. "I exercise plenty. It's easy to get fat in outer space." Yet she pulled on the pants at her thighs, trying to loosen them. "I don't know how you wear these so damn tight." Kal's low grunt made Charlie's eyes instantly lower to Kal's crotch where there was an apparent bulge, and she flushed brightly.

  Dorlon leaned in closer and whispered, "Eyes on the prize?"

  Charlie snarled and withheld her natural desire to smack Dorlon. Normally she had a great poker face, but their past history together made her slightly more transparent. "Shut up," she snapped low. She sighed on hearing Dorlon's chuckle, and she wondered what was going through Kal's mind. Risking things, she looked over at Kal, who had a neutral expression.

  "The meeting point is about twenty ticks from Tarrak," Kal told the pair.

  "What is the plan, Kal?" Dorlon was serious again but at ease too. Charlie had noticed a different comfort level between them due to their long relationship.

  Kal leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees so she had a view of both Charlie and Dorlon. "We will unload the darakar, then you will take command of the soldiers. They must be at least one march away from the meeting point. The mercenaries and I will handle the kidnappers when they arrive."

  Charlie clenched her jaw after being referred to as simply a mercenary again but restrained her annoyance, for now.

  "It'll only be three of you," Dorlon argued. "Is that enough?"

  Kal revealed a wolfish smile.

  Dorlon sighed loudly enough for all of them to hear her. "Don't take unnecessary risks, Kal."

  With wide eyes, Charlie sat silent but listening to them and definitely caught in the middle.

  "Ja, Commander Dorlon."

  "Do these humans know Kalmarese?" Charlie inquired.

  "Ja," Kal replied, "At least one human named Anderson."

  "He's who you've been dealing with?"

  Kal nodded at Charlie's question.

  Frowning at the news, Charlie considered whether the human, Anderson, had a bionic port to his brain, like Raakor. There were few beings in outer space that spoke Kalmarese simply because the Kalmar never left the planet. However, in the past, there had been traders and linguists who had researched the langu
age and taken it off-world.

  Dorlon gazed out at the beautiful landscape. "We're close."

  Charlie fished out the techbit from its tight confines in the canvas jacket. She tapped and swiped a few times until she had their location on the map. They were relatively near the shuttle, which Raakor would need to take to the Pacifica as soon as they took control of the kidnappers' spacecraft.

  After two more ticks, the convoy slowed near an old, forgotten stone windmill beside a field. The seven vehicles were parked in different spots, and all at once, the soldiers hastened to unload the darakar from the one truck. It took two soldiers at a time to lift one wood crate that was filled with ingots of darakar.

  Dorlon hopped out of the truck from the side, not wasting any time.

  Kal was nearly as fast but faltered when Charlie stepped in her way.

  Baring her teeth, Charlie said, "Look, I get you don't have a real name anymore, but I do." She poked Kal in the chest and ordered, "Try using it for once." She sidestepped Kal before she could get slaughtered for her attitude, not that she truly cared to wait for it. Once out of the truck, she went directly to her team.

  "You have your techbit, right?" Charlie asked Raakor first thing.

  "Yes." Raakor pulled the equipment from his pocket and confirmed that it was operating correctly, tapping on the screen.

  "I'll call after we deal with these kidnappers," Charlie explained. "You should ride with Commander Dorlon. Hopefully, they'll bring you back quickly enough."

  Raakor nodded then looked up from the techbit. "The shuttle is about ten clicks from here."

  For one tick, Charlie had to convert the math in her head, still using old Earth measurements at times. A click was relatively close to an Earth half-mile. "Good."

  Starr had her arms folded against her chest and was listening to the pair. "Is that the same Dorlon who recommended us for the job?"

  "You got it, Sherlock." Charlie glanced over in Dorlon's direction before she saw Starr's bewildered look and knew why. "Sherlock Holmes was a famous detective back on Earth a long time ago."

  Starr rolled her eyes at Charlie's human history and refocused their conversation. "How are we handling the kidnappers when they land here?"

  "I'm not exactly sure what the High C has in mind," Charlie confessed. "But I'm sure she has a plan since she's an overbearing Alpha."

  Starr grunted.

  "What's a High C?" Raakor asked with a furrow creasing his brow.

  Starr glared at Raakor and said, "Don't encourage—"

  "Who doesn't know what Hi-C is?" Charlie dramatically argued with the pair. "It was the best damn sugary juice on Earth."

  Starr moaned low and rubbed her brow before she looked over at Raakor. "Happy now?"

  Puckering his dark lips, Raakor finally said, "Human history does leave a lot to be desired."

  Starr grinned at Raakor and chuckled happily.

  Charlie leaned into Starr. "Remember you're half human."

  "But only half, unlike you," Starr fired back.

  Seeing the High Commander coming toward them, Charlie bit her tongue but silently promised to get even with Starr.

  "We are ready, and they should be here any moment." Kal was holding a tablet at her side that chirped at her.

  Charlie retrieved her techbit and distantly listened to Kal talking to somebody over the tablet. Connecting to Pacifica's systems, she was able to perform scans within a few leagues into outer space. "Raakor, you turned on the cloaking, right?"

  "Ja."

  "Ja, Kal," an Alpha reported from the tablet. "They radioed in that they're fifteen minutes out."

  "Keep me informed of their whereabouts," Kal replied, then switched off the tablet's screen after the Alpha confirmed the order.

  "They're not far," Charlie agreed and held up the techbit's screen to Kal. "That blue circle is the Pacifica, and the red dot that's moving is the kidnappers' ship." She put away the techbit and said, "We should get ready. Raakor?" She looked to him, silently willing him to go.

  Raakor nodded, took a step but paused, and said, "Be careful." He hurried off without another word.

  Charlie and Starr returned to the center, next to the crates of darakar that waited for the kidnappers. For a brief moment, Charlie envisioned all the crates in the cargo hold of the Pacifica for them to burn at their leisure or sell. Her mouth practically watered at the mental picture, but then Starr's low growl broke it.

  Starr continued pulling on the black shirt under her jacket, then hesitated when Charlie smirked at her. "It's fucking tight."

  Chuckling to herself, Charlie watched as the solar-powered vehicles started zipping out of the field, leaving them alone.

  Kal joined them but was clearly preoccupied, eyes scanning the blue sky. "They just entered the atmosphere."

  Starr questioningly stared at Charlie, who simply shrugged in response.

  "Kal, Kal this is Blade Perras."

  Lifting the tablet, Kal tapped the screen once and ordered, "This is Kal. Go ahead, Perras."

  "Radar is picking up the ship's entry into Kander's airspace. It's approximately fifty-seven marches from your location."

  "Report back when it's ten marches."

  "Ja, Kal."

  Lowering the tablet, Kal continued staring upwards, as if reading the skies.

  Charlie wondered if somehow Kal could sense the ship's movement through the planet's atmosphere, relying on Kalatas's spirit. "So, exactly, what is the plan when they land here?"

  "I will handle them," Kal replied coolly and never broke her concentration on the sky.

  Muttering under her breath, Charlie folded her arms and decided to do just that since Kal was being bullish again. As they stood there, she now realized that Kal had no weapon other than the sword. It sparked concern in her chest, and she opened her mouth only to be cut off by the sound of the tablet.

  "Kal, Kal this is Blade Perras again. The ship is ten marches out and just beginning to slow."

  Kal tapped the screen and replied, "Report if they go off course."

  "Ja, Kal."

  Lowering the tablet to her side, Kal watched the skies and remained silent for a while, then whispered, "They're here."

  Scanning the blue sky, Charlie saw nothing, especially a large space ship. She raised an eyebrow at Kal's back, then shrugged at Starr's questioning look.

  "Kal, Kal this is Blade Perras. You should have a visual on the ship any tick," the Alpha reported from the tablet.

  Tapping the screen, Kal replied, "I have a visual." After she finished the transmission, the ship appeared in the sky, directly ahead of them, and a distant hum was growing stronger as the vessel approached them. Kal looked directly at Charlie and ordered, "Stay relatively close but behind me." Without waiting for confirmation, she went to the crates and folded up the tablet until it neatly fit in her jacket pocket.

  Charlie and Starr followed behind but stayed a few paces behind the High Commander. Like Starr, Charlie retrieved the laser rifle from her back and held it in front of her. But then her damn shirt started irritating her again so she yanked on the collar. She caught Starr's smirk and she hissed, "What?"

  Starr bared her teeth in a wicked grin but lost it when the overhead noise drew her attention.

  Charlie pushed away a few wild strands of her hair from her face when the ship's thrusters kicked up everything. She curiously watched how the ship inched lower and lower, next to the windmill, which suddenly seemed minute in size.

  "It's a cargo transporter," Starr said loudly over the wind.

  "They came prepared," Charlie agreed. "It actually looks Hurr built." If it was made by a Hurr manufacturing company then Raakor would be able to hack the security in his sleep.

  "We might be in luck for once."

  Charlie hoped they were because they deserved it. But then the transporter ship's left wing tipped the windmill and knocked a few stones out of it. "What an idiot," she hollered over the thruster's roar. Her personal judgment on the pilot's
skills was further solidified when the thrusters were shut off too early and the ship dropped to the ground with a boom.

  Starr huffed and muttered, "Human pilots just can't use the damn auto."

  Rolling her eyes, Charlie decided to ignore the remark and remained focused on the task at hand. Her grip flexed against the trigger guard, ready to cut a kidnapper in half.

  The ship's stern was facing them, and its large cargo bi-doors split open to reveal three figures at the mouth. Two people marched down the ramp, guns at the ready and scanning for trouble while the third person in the middle strolled down. They approached and trained their weapons on Kal first.

  "I said no soldiers," the middle human sharply reminded. His Kalmarese was slightly choppy and slow but easily understandable for all of them. When he turned his head, the bionic port on his neck, next to his jaw, confirmed Charlie's earlier suspicions that he had tech integrated into his brain. Most likely the other humans had the same and had downloaded Kalmarese.

  "You are Anderson," Kal stated.

  Anderson, the middle human, narrowed his eyes, then declared, "I want them to toss their weapons or"—he signaled the person to his left—"Jett will end your reign."

  On hearing the threat, Charlie immediately aimed the rifle toward the kidnappers and nearly put a hole in them until Kal looked at her.

  "Lower your weapons," Kal ordered. But when Charlie hesitated, she growled, "Now."

  Grinding her teeth, Charlie loosened her grip and remembered to play along a little. "Ja, Kal." She glanced at Starr, who was doing the same thing, but her attention returned to the kidnappers in front of Kal.

  "Maya, keep an eye on those thickheaded Kalmar and make sure there're no heroics," Anderson ordered in Kalamarese and waited until Maya was closer to Charlie and Starr with a rifle trained on them. He then suddenly smiled at Kal. "And you are the High Commander of Kander." He held out his hands and taunted, "Such a lovely planet, and might I add, one that's full of resources."

  Kal remained silent and hands loosely at her side. However, Charlie sensed the dark presence in Kal building up as Anderson mocked both Kal and her planet.

  "Including darakar," Anderson stated, with excitement. "Lots of darakar."