Page 17 of Scars & Starlight (Of Blood and Conquest #1)

KAIREN

E lmsleigh’s base of operations is significantly more utilitarian than Besson’s modern luxury. Apparently, Besson and Elmsleigh set up communication buoys in the ocean between their two landmasses, and the latter was waiting for us with open arms.

“Do you know what the situation is like in Europe, then?” Tara asks her as we prepare the nanites for the leader.

Margaret gives my match an evaluating look. “I’m occasionally forced to talk with the old farts who are pretending to be in control of the continent,” she says and extends her arm to me when prompted.

We had Kiko give her the condensed version of the Ghorvek’s history and our mission. While the AU was speaking, Elmsleigh’s blue eyes were narrowed and calculating. Orien can’t come here soon enough.

“And what do the old farts say?” My princess’s voice is rough, either from the impatience she’s feeling now or the emotions that ravaged her while we were still on the Talon.

Margaret can’t completely hide the wariness she feels from the nanite’s progression up her arm and to her head. “Germany is mostly gone,” she breathes after a shudder. “I reckon the urban clusters were too tempting for these alien bastards. What they didn’t take care of, the infected did.”

Tara chews on her bottom lip for a moment. “What about the southeast?”

Sympathy bleeds into Elmsleigh’s eyes. “Croatia, is it?” she asks, her voice not unkind.

“Slovenia, actually,” my match replies, her shoulders up and back like she’s bracing herself. “I’m wondering about the capital and the Alpine border with Austria.”

“Can’t tell you much more than your handsome alien friends have, I’m afraid. I understand you, though,” she adds, placing a hand on Tara’s shoulder. “My parents retired to the Croatian coast before the invasion, and I haven’t been able to locate them yet.”

Giving them a moment of privacy in their shared pain, I observe the armed humans guarding the entrances.

Elmsleigh didn’t lead us far into the tunnels underneath the palace above, and our intelligence hasn’t confirmed the exact size and layout of this base.

But it appears that her soldiers are sufficient and well-armed… by human standards, at least.

“How many able-bodied humans are under your command, Margaret Elmsleigh?” I ask as the silence drags on. I’m eager to complete our tasks so that I may devote more attention to conquering my match’s heart.

The human faces me and waves her hand dismissively.

“Maggie, please. There are two thousand men and women ready to fight here, in London. Twice as many on the island, and three times as many if you count the surrounding islands.” When she leans back, the backrest squeaks under the added weight.

“It proved impossible to house and feed more than a couple of hundred at a time, so they rotate in and out of various strategic locations.” She finishes speaking and blinks her large blue eyes at me. “Bloody hell, I understood you! ”

I smirk at the way her enthusiasm momentarily breaks the icy barrier that seems to keep her emotions in check.

“That is out of this world,” she murmurs, then grins to herself. “Pun very much not intended.”

Kiko chirps three times, alerting me at the same time as my nanites. Orien has landed. A moment later, Elmsleigh’s people stir, and I see one pressing on his ear.

“What is it?” Margaret asks him, her tone now no-nonsense.

The soldier doesn’t hesitate to respond. “Another alien ship has landed, ma’am. It looks to be identical to the one they arrived in.”

“That will be one of my officers, Orien,” I explain once she faces me. “I summoned him as we landed. He will coordinate Avaren efforts against the Ghorvek in this area.”

Maggie purses her lips. “So, he will work for me.”

I barely hold back a snort. This will be amusing.

“He will work… with you,” I say neutrally. It’s more likely he’ll make her feel like she’s calling the shots while he pulls the strings.

The ground trembles, and we stand up simultaneously, the humans with varying degrees of alarm on their faces.

“What’s going on?” Tara whispers, like she’s afraid of being overheard by whatever made the ground shake.

At the same time, my nanites feed me information from the Talon’s sensors.

GHORVEK THREAT DETECTED.

“Fuck,” I hiss angrily. I did not want Tara to be caught underground with limited egress during an attack.

“Fuck, what, Prince?” Elmsleigh demands. My princess gives me a look like she agrees with the human’s sentiment.

“We’re being besieged,” I growl in response.

With half a thought, my exoskeleton covers me from chin to toes.

I look at Tara in her thin clothing. “We’re equipping you with ports and defensive nanites as soon as we return to the Talon,” I vow, hoping I won’t regret not doing it sooner.

I unbuckle the neural interference gun, check the settings, and hand it to her.

“Aim and press this button. Avoid friendly fire.”

Tara gulps and nods, aiming the gun low as she waits for us to move or something to come at us.

Threat level?

SINGLE GORVEK DESTROYER DEPLOYING INFANTRY. ESTIMATED NUMBER OF GROUND FOES: 12.

A dozen Ghorvek. Impossible for two Avaren to neutralize without human casualties.

Vireon, bless us with strength .

Margaret snaps orders at her men as I use the nanites to connect me directly to Orien’s – an intimacy reserved for lovers and a necessary method of communication for spies.

Report, Orien.

I seem to have brought extras to brunch, Commander, he replies.

I grimace at the joke. Next time, I wish you wouldn’t.

Understood. How about we tell them to leave?

Don’t get killed before I reach you, I snarl at him in my head.

I face Elmsleigh and point at the entrances. “How many access points to this area from the outside?”

She crosses her arms. “Technically, you can find your way here no matter where you enter from.” Wonderful . “However, the nearest surface access point is in the direction you entered from. If they pick anything else, they’ll have to fight their way through my men and drone turrets.”

Automated defense systems. Good.

“Kiko,” I hail the AU. “Head down the opposite corridor and hail me the instant you detect a threat.” The mech confirms with three quick beeps, then whirs away with alacrity. “Stay here, stay safe,” I tell Tara, scanning her once from head to toe like I’m memorizing her status to compare to later.

“Kai,” she calls out when I’m about to leave. Before I know it, her hands are on my face, and she’s pulling me down for a quick, rough kiss. “Be safe,” she volleys .

“Yes, Your Highness,” I whisper, then extricate myself with heavy hearts.

I’m on my way , I tell Orien, and sprint down the corridor we took not long ago, albeit that was at a much slower pace.

I’m somewhat occupied right now. Feel free to cut in at any time.

I push myself even faster, until in two blinks of an eye, I’m standing next to Orien, who’s moving like a blade of grass in the water, bending and weaving between punches from three large Ghorvek.

Immediately, I hover and position myself behind the largest one, seizing the opportunity of not yet being noticed, and take it out with the pulse emitters in the palms of my armor.

One down, a destroyer’s worth to go.

“Nice of you to join us, Commander,” Orien mocks right before he swings his plasma blade up in an arc that cuts one of the remaining two opponents in half.

“It seems you have everything under control,” I reply as we flank the last attacker and I command my nanites to form two plasma blades of my own. Orien kicks the Ghorvek in the side of the knee, barely unbalancing it. I dodge its answering punch.

“I was making sure you don’t feel left out,” my officer says with a giant grin.

I shake my head before we both swing at the same time, our blades singing in the air. The invader’s head topples to the ground and rolls away to land by the one whose head I scrambled. Fitting .

“Where is our princess?” Orien asks, rolling his head to release tension in his neck. “Are the females safe?”

I lift an eyebrow at the question. “How about the males?”

“Eh.” He shrugs. “Competition.”

Eager to return to Tara, I ignore his cheekiness. “The Talon’s sensors reported nine more foes. Where are they?”

The male points his weapon at the main entrance to the building above Elmsleigh’s bunkers. I tilt my head, motioning for him to follow me. “Let’s hunt them down.”

We go from room to room, slaying our foes as we encounter them, making a mess of the already-trashed building. When we hear human gunfire coming from below, we share a concerned look.

“Tara,” I hiss, then turn around to head to the tunnels entrance I’m familiar with, trusting Orien to follow. According to Kiko, the side of the corridor I told him to monitor is clear, so the Ghorvek must have entered the same way we did.

It’s not long until the noise of human weapons becomes deafening, and we pin the remaining Ghorvek between us and Elmsleigh’s soldiers.

Tara stands behind them, the neural interference gun I gave her aimed at the enemies, but she wisely doesn’t fire without having a clear shot.

At the setting I left it at, it would cook any living creature’s nervous system.

Elmsleigh stands a few paces back, a gun held in her hands but pointed down.

When a hulking Ghorvek sweeps aside two human males and charges toward the females, I move faster than I ever have.

One moment I’m behind the lines, the next, I’m facing the brute, my match behind me.

With the burst of anger fueling me, I take care of the monster in an instant, rip off its arm, and throw it at the other one.

That Ghorvek rears back, straight onto Orien’s weapon.

In the sudden silence, I turn to Tara and check her for injuries, even though the enemy would have had no time to touch her.

For a moment, though, it wasn’t Tara standing there, but my father, the King, caught unawares and taken down.

I will not allow that to happen to anyone I love again.

Not that I could possibly love Tara already… could I?

“Earth to Kairen,” she murmurs, gazing up at me with a bemused expression. She’s so beautiful. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

I recall my exoskeleton and touch her cheek, unable to resist the call of her soft skin any longer. “I thought I told you to call me Kai,” I admonish quietly.

Orien sidles up to us and scans Elmsleigh from head to toe. I see a dangerous interest burning in his orange eyes.

“Well,” he purrs. “You must be Maggie.”

“Well,” Margaret echoes. “I don’t recall telling you that you may call me that.”