Blue solace complete ser.., p.67
Blue Solace: Complete Series Boxset, page 67
Sebastian ignored their screams and crying and followed his Gramma up the stairs. It didn’t take long to find what Gramma wanted him to look for. He took a few minutes to pack up as many of his sisters’ things as he could. He knew they had only taken what wouldn’t be too suspicious. He zipped up the last bag, then turned and found Alois in the bedroom doorway.
His lip trembled for just a moment, and then he found himself wrapped in his mate’s arms. “Damn, beautiful,” Alois said, nuzzling his neck. They stood that way for a while, until Fire came in.
He was eating a sandwich. “Hey, Death says we should go soon. I’ll help you carry stuff.” He grabbed a couple of bags in his free hand.
“Where did you get the sandwich?” Alois frowned at the element, and Sebastian just grinned.
“In the kitchen,” Fire said and shrugged. He left, heading downstairs.
Alois just sighed and grabbed the rest of the bags. “Anything else here they’ll need?”
“Salla’s art pieces,” Gramma said, pointing at the closet. “If you can carry them. She really didn’t want to leave them behind.”
Sebastian opened the closet and pulled out the five canvases. One was huge, but the others were smaller. “We need to bring these for Salla.”
Somehow, they got everything to the shuttle. Alois pulled Sebastian against his side as Death drove them back to the ship. Fire sat in the front and gnawed on the chicken leg he’d pulled out of the fridge as they left the house.
“I sent your conversation to Ava,” Alois said. “She’s filling out a report already and will make sure the right people get it. There shouldn’t be any fallout since they confessed to what they were planning. Legally, they could sell the girls, but not you. That will be enough to get them in trouble.”
“Good,” Sebastian said, settling his head against Alois’s chest.
“I also sent it to Fasi, Renee, Ma, and Pops.” Alois kissed the top of his head. “They’re going to hug you so hard when we get back.”
Sebastian smiled. He didn’t mind that one bit. They drove the shuttle straight into the ship, and the ramp closed behind them. Alois helped him out of the shuttle, and he quickly found himself with an armful of Sai and Salla. His sisters were so different, he thought as he hugged them tightly. They were short, tiny little things, but damn, their arms were tight around him.
“Oh gods, they look just like you,” Alois said, laughing. “Look at those eyes and those ears!”
“They’re mini Sebastians,” Fire said, nodding. He stood, bouncing, and waited for his hugs. Sebastian felt the ship take off, but all the crew except for Linc were here, unloading supplies and visiting with the new stowaways.
Sebastian loosened his hold on his sisters and turned them toward Alois and Fire. He couldn’t make himself let them go. “This is my life-mate, Alois.” His mate smiled and waved. “This is my friend, Fire.” Fire jumped into the hug, and Sebastian laughed. “Also, over there in the corner is my friend, Death.”
“Those are weird names,” Sai said. Her brown hair was short and messy, and she was dressed in plain clothes. He hated to stereotype, but she looked just like Nina always had, like a science nerd.
“We’re kinda weird people,” Fire said and kissed the top of her head. His head turned sharply when a guinea pig in a large ball rolled into the cargo bay. “Fluffy, fluffy, fluffy.” He let them go and took off after the ball. The guinea pig saw him coming and turned around, rolling away.
“That was Marshmallow,” Salla said. She was dressed in brightly colored clothes, and her long brown hair was twisted into an intricate pile at the top of her head. Long earrings dangled from her ears, and bracelets of all kinds jangled from her wrists. “Jellybean is around here somewhere in her ball too. They love to play chase.”
“Our cat, Mocha, is sleeping on your mate’s pillow,” Sai said. She gave Alois an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, but she really liked it, so it belongs to her now.”
Alois rolled his eyes. “Sounds like the other women in our lives.”
“She tried to be friends with Linc’s cat, Nugget, but she hissed at Mocha and scared her,” Sai said.
“Hissy demon cat,” Morgan said, growling from across the room.
Sebastian wiped the tears from his eyes. He loved his mate and their friends. Their easy acceptance made everything so much easier. “It’s so good to see you two again. I’m sorry I didn’t call immediately; because of that, I almost let them sell you.”
“You didn’t let them do anything,” Sai said, frowning up at him. She framed his face with her small hands. “They hurt you, Sebby. We missed you so much, but we didn’t blame you for not reaching out once you were free. We know you love us.”
“They were the ones who didn’t deserve to see you,” Salla added. She wrapped her thin arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest. “What they planned is on them. You know we weren’t even surprised, right? Mr. Philbert thought we would argue when he told us, but we kind of knew they were up to something.”
“Oh,” Sai said and pushed him away. She ran to two people standing with Dru and Morgan. She pulled a young man back over to Sebastian. “This is my life-mate, Lorry.”
Sebastian raised a brow and looked at Gramma. The spirit stood talking to Death. She looked over at him and blinked innocently. Lorry wasn’t exactly delicate. The boy was only fifteen, Sebastian knew that from their research. However, he was huge. The Betonize boy was just under six feet tall and had long horns atop his head. His fangs glistened when he smiled. However, Sebastian noticed the boy’s clawed hand trembled in Sai’s, and a blush covered the young man’s cheeks.
“You’re too young to have a life-mate,” Alois said, scowling. His arms were crossed over his chest. Lorry’s trembling increased.
“Alois, give him a break,” Sebastian said and hugged the boy. “Sai and Lorry aren’t getting married tomorrow. They were just really lucky and met each other early.” Lorry gave him a grateful smile.
“You two better not have had sex yet,” Alois said. “That needs to wait until you’re both older. You know how to use protection, right?”
“Alois,” Sai wailed, blushing at his words.
Salla cackled beside her sister. “Oh gods, this is great.”
Alois turned to her. “Don’t think I don’t notice how short that skirt is, young lady.” Salla growled, but Alois’s eyes just narrowed.
Sai grinned and poked her sister. “This will be great, Salla. We’ll need to be there for poor little Nina when she gets older. Her favorite aunts can protect her from her overprotective papa.”
“If we make it that long,” Salla said, sighing. “My legs are sexy and need to be properly displayed. How will I survive without short skirts?”
“You’ll have to manage,” Alois said. “Don’t worry. We can find some Charybdis Station uniforms around here. They look great on everyone. Hazel? Do you have a spare uniform?”
Sebastian laughed as Hazel turned and ran. His sisters groaned but returned to his arms. This mission definitely had some perks.
Chapter 19
Silverlight System, Planet Vextonar
Alois leaned back on one of the couches in the commons with Valentine Philbert and his small, fuzzy dog, Midge. The small Old-Earth Maltese slept on her back, legs in the air while Mocha sat on his lap, purring. The fat, chocolate-colored cat followed Alois everywhere, and he didn’t know what Peri was going to think when he got home. He felt like he was cheating on his dog.
“I heard about this guy,” Val said. “Air.” The Betonize man was just like his son, large and gentle. Hack had already called him and talked him into working with Blue Sector’s engineers when they got back home.
“After the first planet was attacked, the Lord Admiral made sure the media was aware of what he looked like and what he could do,” Alois said.
“I didn’t believe it,” Val said. “Not until that one reporter caught some of it live.” The reporter hadn’t lived long, but the recording of his death had damn well convinced the galaxy that Air wasn’t some myth.
“What I don’t get is why he’s just hanging out on Vextonar,” Alois said, stroking Mocha’s back.
“Waiting on someone maybe,” Val said. “If he wanted to destroy the planet, it would be gone by now.”
“Yeah, but what is he waiting on?”
Val looked at him nervously. “You heard about Humans First, right?”
“Yeah. We’re tracking their movements,” Alois said.
“They’ve been really clear about wanting Air on their side. It doesn’t hurt that this monster looks human,” Val said.
“Your man there has a good point,” a voice said from behind him.
Alois yelled and jumped in his seat. Mocha wasn’t pleased. He turned around and glared at Beol. “Since when did you get here?”
“Just now,” Beol replied and hopped over the couch. He wiggled down in the soft cushions. “Snuck my whole ship on board. You all really need to work on your tech.”
“Hay is working with our best engineers,” Alois said, growling when Beol propped his feet on Alois’s legs.
“Hay says this guy named Beck is pretty good.” Beol looked thoughtful. “Maybe I should steal him from Fasi.”
“Good luck with that,” Alois said, smiling. As if anyone could steal Beck. Over half the station would fight for him.
“Back to the topic,” Val said. “You think Humans First might be involved here?”
“I do,” Beol said. “Right now, Air is just floating there. He has a ship full of the last of the Concords and seems to be waiting. Considering we’re on Vextonar, it seems likely Humans First is who he’s waiting for.”
“Fuck,” Alois said.
“Yeah,” Val said. “That group does not need a weapon like Air.”
“Where the hell is Beol? I just walked into his damn ship in the cargo bay.” Dru yelped. “Damn it, Mustachio! Leave my hair alone.”
“Mustachio?” Beol shot him a questioning look.
“My mate’s bird. Don’t kill him.” Alois peeked over the couch. “Dru, he’s in here.”
“Beol! If you park your damn ship in my cargo bay, the least you can do is make it visible.”
“Where’s the fun in that?”
“So, anyway,” Alois said, not liking the way Dru’s eye was twitching. “Beol said Air is waiting for Humans First to show up. We should take care of things quickly, right?”
“Conference room,” Dru said “Now.” She turned on her heel and left the commons. “Fuck, Mustachio. Put Monty down!”
Alois, Beol, and Val entered the conference room. Sebastian waved at Alois from the table, and he kissed his mate before sitting beside him.
“Mustachio brought Monty to me a few minutes ago,” Sebastian said and passed the little newt to Alois.
Alois put him on the table, and the newt ran straight to Dru. She glared at them before putting the newt onto her shoulder. She turned her attention to the rest of the room. “Beol is here to update us.” She gestured to the assassin and he stood.
“My team and I have been tracking Air for a while. He finally came to a stop here on Vextonar, but he refuses to shift out of his elemental form. We believe he is waiting here to make contact with Humans First.”
“We need to move fast then,” Morgan said.
“Yes,” Beol said. “What’s the plan?”
“I can freeze his form and progress time to spark a change to his human form,” Death said. “However, he is damn strong and will attack immediately.”
“What can he do in a battle?” Beol propped his chin on his fist. “We’ve seen how he can ravage a planet, but what about an actual fight?”
“He can tear you to pieces,” Fire said. He jumped up and moved to sit with Sebastian. “That’s what he did to that poor boy on Dargner.”
“In the Crellic System? You mean Roger Belcort? He’s the dead body still lying in pieces on Dargner,” Beol said.
Fire nodded. “Air got mad because the Queen gave him an old body like me. She was saving the younger man for Death’s body.”
“Air threw a fit and tore Roger apart?” Dru looked green.
“Yeah,” Fire said. “There were lots of people to choose from because of Admiral Sharp, but she stuck Air and me into older people.” He patted his face. “I like my wrinkles. They make me wise.” He tried for a wise face but started giggling.
Alois shook his head and smiled at Fire. “So, he can tear people apart,” Alois said. “What can we do then?”
“Use my shields,” Beol said. “If we can get him in his human form, we can sneak and stick him with Wyatt’s poison. Then he explodes and we grab his artifact.”
“Simple enough,” Dru said.
“The problem is that he’s surrounded by Concords. He won’t leave the ship, and they’re packed on it,” Beol said. “They sold off all their prisoners to make more room for soldiers.”
“Two teams?” Morgan pulled up schematics for the Concord ship.
“How did you get those?” Beol leaned forward.
“Dottie got them for us,” Morgan said. The woman ran the spaceports on Vextonar, and Alois knew she had a soft spot for Charybdis Station. She had given them Leti and Draif. “One team goes straight to Air, and the other team works on clearing out the ship once the battle starts?”
“I thought you said Beol’s shields made you invisible?” Val said, brow furrowed.
“It’s more complicated than that, but yes, they do,” Beol said.
“Why not try to figure a way to kill the Concords onboard first?” Val said. “It would take the surprise away from the attack on Air, but it would let everyone focus on him, right? Instead of splitting our attention?”
“Good idea,” Dru said. “What can we use to kill the Concords on the ship? Death needs to be a secret weapon, so harvesting their souls is out. That would tell Air exactly who was coming.”
Sebastian squeaked and covered his mouth with his hands. His eyes were wide and full of tears as he stared at the empty space next to Dru. “Beautiful? Are you seeing another spirit?”
“Yes, he is,” Death said, voice cracking. Tears filled the man’s eyes too. “Nina.”
“She’s my third spirit guide,” Sebastian said. “She says Dr. Morrick knows a compound to inject in their air supply. It will kill them instantly. Then we can filter the ship and go get Air.”
“Nina,” Death said. His eyes were still on the spot Alois assumed the spirit stood. “I’m so sorry I couldn’t save you.”
Fire jumped up and ran to hug Death. “Don’t cry, Death.”
“Nina is yelling at him,” Sebastian said, laughing wetly. “She’s telling him off for feeling guilty.”
“Good,” Dru said. “From what he told us, he tried his best.”
“Her plan is a good one,” Lerais said. “Hazel and I can sneak to the ship’s docking space and tamper with the air supply, then we lower their cargo bay door while the rest of you wait, ready to board.”
“Val and Linc remain on board to guard the ship and the kids,” Dru said, nodding. “You and Hazel get back to the ship as soon as you’re done too. I think this is as good as it’s going to get. Let’s pass Wyatt’s poison out to everyone. Anyone gets a chance to inject Air, take it.”
“I’ll get you all shields too,” Beol said. “I’ll meet you back here with my team. How long will it take to make the compound?”
“About thirty minutes,” Death said.
“Will the compound have any effect on Air,” Quinn asked.
“Probably not,” Death said. “This is a new concept though, so I really have no idea.”
“Alright,” Beol said. “I’ll be back in thirty minutes, and we’ll see what happens.” He left the room and the meeting ended.
Alois watched Sebastian and Death go to Nina’s spot. He felt strangely happy that Nina was the third spirit guide. Sebastian missed her so much, and she was so damn smart. He was also sad that she wasn’t at rest or peace or whatever came after death. Alois got up, ready to go check on the girls when he noticed Morgan. His friend stared down at the table, and his shoulders drooped.
“What’s wrong?” Alois kept his voice low.
“Remember the mission to find and kill Water?”
“I do,” Alois said. He was on Dru’s team for that mission, but he knew what Morgan had gone through.
“Imagine if we had Beol’s shields then,” Morgan said. He looked up, his eyes filled with pure agony. “Our friends would still be alive.”
Alois hugged Morgan, pressing the man’s face into his shoulder. “We didn’t have the shields then. We can’t play what if, Morgan. There are plenty of things we could do differently with what we’ve learned and what we can do now. We can’t change them though.”
“I just… I just don’t want to lose anyone again.”
“Me neither,” Alois said. “Our plan is pretty good though. It gives us a chance we didn’t have with Water.”
“We have Death now,” Morgan said, sitting up and wiping his eyes. “We have Sebastian and Fire too.” Alois’s mate moved across the room, coming to stand next to them.
“Don’t forget Mustachio,” Sebastian said softly and kissed Morgan’s cheek. “We can do this, Morgan. I know it.”
Chapter 20
Sebastian hugged Sai and Salla. He spoke softly. “If we don’t come back, Val and Linc will take you all to Charybdis Station. Stay with Nina, okay? Make sure she grows up happy.”
“We will, Sebby,” Salla said, voice thick with tears. “We’ll do right by her.”
“We won’t need to though,” Sai said. She shook him a bit. “You’ll all come back alright. We’ve only just found you again, Sebby. Plus, Mocha is in love with your mate, so you all really do need to come back.”
Sebastian laughed roughly. “We’ll come back for Mocha. I want you guys to meet Periwinkle and her puppies too.”
