CALLEY (RIBUS 7 Book 3) (8 page)

Dory’s smile lit the vicinity. “Oh, you are most graciously welcomed, my Lady, and the workers will all be just as honored as I.”

Chelan laughed. “Then this venture shall be enjoyed by all. How about you act as my tour guide, and you can also make the introductions.”

Dory looked like she was about to faint, but she remained upright. “I would be honored, my Lady. This way.” And off they went.

*****

Two hours later, Chelan returned to the Command Center.

Fremma rose to meet her. “You look radiant, my Lady.”

“I do?”

Fremma nodded. “I think you have found your first Imperial duty.”

“And that would be?”

“Overseeing the continuing restoration of the gardens. I am sure Dory would welcome the help. And with so many RIBUSes departing and returning, the influx of new plant life will surpass all that has arrived before, if you so decree it.”

Chelan was speechless for a moment, pondering the possibilities. She looked back at Fremma. “The people there—they were all amazing.”

Fremma smiled. “Of that I have no doubt. And to be allotted the honor of being in your presence would have rendered them all star-struck.”

Chelan felt herself pinking. It was going to take a long time for her to adapt to all the attention her mere presence elicited. For that matter, she wondered if she ever would.

Fremma stared at the inert woman for a moment. Then he spoke. “Shall we go?”

Chelan shook herself back to the present. “Yes,” she whispered. “RIBUS 7 is waiting, and I have just under a week to spend on her decks and in your company. I don’t want to waste another second.”

“I look forward to our time together, my Lady.” And he offered her his arm to escort her out.

Chelan stared at the screen, her melancholy deepening by the second. RIBUS 7’s time had come. In a few short hours, Fremma would take the battleship hurtling through space, back to the Balatesian system.

Chelan shook her head hard, trying to clear her senses. She squinted at the military information before her, forcing herself to study it. The Balatesian system was the planetary group Korba had dealt with so many years ago. It was en route from there that Tarn had chosen Calley, or Earth, on which to effect some repairs to a damaged fighter, and it was there and then that Chelan was rather abruptly introduced into the Empire.

She smiled. Ten long Earth years since her abduction. Ten years since she was last a meek woman of no significance. And now she stood alongside a Galactic Emperor, a concept still not fully comprehensible to her. Chelan stifled a giggle. It all seemed so absurd. Even now she felt as though she was living in a dream, or at times a nightmare, sure at any moment she would wake up in her own bed at home on her little blue planet.

Chelan sighed, knowing that was not to be. This was reality, no matter how unreal the scenario. But her thoughts were interrupted as the main doors parted. She spun around in the giant command chair to greet the shrouded figure that approached her.

“Good morning, my Lady,” came Fremma’s guarded salutation.

“Hi. You got up early this morning.”

Fremma smiled and sat beside her. “More last-minute preparations, I am afraid.” He leaned forward and gently kissed her lips. His voice became soft and low. “I am sorry I could not have been with you throughout the entire night on our last evening together.”

Chelan could feel the breath leave her lungs. “I am going to miss you so much, my gentle warrior.”

Fremma looked down, the intensity of his own emotions catching him off guard. Though he had tried for weeks to prepare for this moment, his control over his composure was waning quickly. “I will miss you too, Chelan. But our love will overcome all barriers erected by time and distance. And as I said, you will see. With all your duties, the time will go quickly.”

Chelan smiled weakly and reached for his chin, lifting his face so that she could read his beautiful azure eyes. “You lie, my sweet Fremma,” she whispered, “as well as you could possibly lie. Our time apart will be an eternity and you know it. It has only been a few short days since Korba’s departure and already I feel as though I have been robbed of him for a lifetime. My heart will feel your loss no less acutely, and time will creep by painfully slowly, each second cheating us of precious moments together.”

Fremma stood suddenly, grabbing her from her chair and clutching her to his chest. His eyes watered and he clenched his jaw. “I just hope that I can endure this, my Lady.”

Chelan squeezed him as hard as she could, wishing that her body would meld to his in an inseparable bond. “I will be watching you daily, my Lord. You stay well and come home to me.”

Fremma stroked her silky hair and slender back. “You know I will, Chelan.”

They remained together for a long time, until finally Fremma drew her back. “I have to get you down to the Palace. I am needed on the Bridge during our departure.”

Chelan took several shaky breaths and squared her shoulders. “I know. And I suppose I should tend to my Palace like a good little Empress. After all, it will take me nearly a year just to explore all its confines.”

Fremma felt a telltale thud in his chest. “Please do not feel that it is your prison, Chelan. It is your home now. And it can give so much back to you. Its design and the people who serve it are all of Korba’s choosing. It and they are there for you and your happiness.”

Chelan sighed. “I know, dear Fremma, I know.”

Fremma finally managed an inadequate smile. “You will be fine. You have to be, or there is no point in me returning.”

Chelan’s eyes twinkled briefly, but then her heart faltered as her precious Warlord began to back away from her.

“I must leave, my Lady,” he whispered sadly. “I must go to the Bridge.”

Chelan nodded, but she could not speak.

“My personal fighter awaits you,” he informed her quietly.

“I know,” she whispered. “I just need a few more minutes here alone.”

Fremma nodded. “My Lady,” he acknowledged, but as he turned to leave, his attention was caught by a frantic voice from the Command Center intercom.

“My Lord! An urgent message from the Flight Commander. Commander Zane has just made a request to dock at the private hangar.”

Fremma and Chelan’s eyes met. Fremma’s brow furrowed. “Permission granted.”

Chelan wrung her hands together. “What is happening?”

“I have no idea, but I guess we will find out soon enough.”

Both turned toward the main doors just as they parted and Zane burst through. The Warlord wrenched off his flight gear and then nodded to Chelan and Fremma. “I am sorry for the intrusion. I was in the main Command Center in the Palace when a message came through for me from Korba. He assumed Chelan was on the planet. I am here to collect my Lady.”

Chelan’s breath caught. “Collect me for what?”

Zane glanced at Fremma. “Commander, it seems that Korba has located an unexpected colony of ROPE subversives on a nearby planet, Lethos II. He is worried about Chelan’s presence on Iceanea. He did not go into detail about the specific threat, but for safety’s sake, he wants me to take her to Keros until the situation is resolved.”

Chelan looked up at Fremma in disbelief. “I don’t understand. Where in the galaxy would I be safer than on Iceanea itself?”

Fremma glanced at her. “Many of our outlying planets are just as secure and as heavily guarded as Iceanea. But we are one step behind our enemy if they are within striking distance of your known location. I suspect Korba is being cautious, as I doubt that the true extent of this colony and the authenticity of the threat have been fully ascertained. But until they are, it is wise to move you surreptitiously.”

Zane nodded in agreement. “I am due to ship out with RIBUS 5 shortly, and Keros is on the way to my mission, hence the selection. Only a very few of the elite on Iceanea will be made privy to your relocation. Keros, at present, is secured by two other RIBUSes. It is the perfect location until all settles.”

Chelan crumpled into the center chair, shock slowing settling over her. Then she looked up at the two men. “Korba—is he in trouble?”

Zane gave her a small smile. “No, my Lady. There was no indication of anything he could not handle. The situation was just a little unexpected.”

Fremma looked down at her. “If everything is going to remain completely undercover, I have to get to the Bridge to tend to this ship’s final departure arrangements and keep everything on schedule. I shall have to leave you in Zane’s capable hands, my Lady.”

“Yes, of course,” she whispered.

Fremma turned to Zane. “Take good care of our precious cargo, my good man.”

“You know I will,” Zane replied as the two men locked arms.

Fremma glanced one last time at the stunned woman and then left the Command Center.

Zane sat down across from her. “I apologize for the sudden change in plans, not to mention your impromptu uprooting. But all will be well, my Lady. Your relocation is but a very temporary situation. As soon as the threat is eliminated, you will be returned to the Palace, safe and sound.”

Chelan looked at the Commander. “I am not worried about myself, Zane. I know this has been carefully thought out. It is his Lordship I fear for.”

Zane leaned forward. “All is well, I assure you. He is the best, he has a formidable ship and crew, and he is no fool. If he suspected he needed help, he would ask. He will do everything in his power to make sure he returns to you.”

Chelan finally managed a tiny smile. “I know you speak the truth.” She took a deep breath and tried to center herself. “When does RIBUS 5 depart?”

“Soon, my Lady: only a few hours after Fremma leaves orbit.”

Chelan nodded. “May I take a few moments here alone before I accompany you?”

Zane stood. “Of course, my Lady. I will wait in the private hangar for you.”

“Thank you,” she whispered, and she watched as Zane left.

Chelan let her head drop back as she stared up at the high ceiling, her thoughts tumbling. Time ticked by, and then her head shot up, her eyes wide. She stood and frantically began to pace. Then, holding her breath, she hit a switch on the main control panel.

“Yes, Sire,” came the acknowledgment.

“Yanis?” asked Chelan.

“Yes, my Lady,” came the surprised reply.

“Yanis, tell Zane to wait a moment more.”

“Yes, my Lady, but RIBUS 7 leaves momentarily. I cannot—”

“I know,” she said. “I will be quick.” Chelan licked her dry lips, her excitement consuming her almost as much as her fear. She hit the next switch.

“Bridge.”

“Tarn, send Fremma to the main Command Center immediately.”

There was silence, but Chelan did not wait for the confused Commander’s reply. She flipped the switch off.

She began to pace again, her knuckles white from her hands clenching. In no time the main doors opened and Fremma burst in. “What’s wrong?” he shouted with concern. Chelan ran to him, her smile and her enthusiasm confounding him further.

“Fremma, I think there is an alternative to Keros.”

Fremma’s mouth opened but Chelan interrupted. “What would even be safer than a well-fortified outpost?”

Fremma squinted at her. “What are you suggesting?” he asked warily.

“Keros is well protected, but if my absence is detected on Iceanea by the enemy, where will they look?”

Fremma nodded. “Your point is well taken, but we have many outposts. It would take ages for them to locate you. It is that extra time that will afford Korba the opportunity he needs to eradicate the threat.”

“What if it is not enough time?”

“Then the enemy will be met by some formidable resistance.”

Chelan nodded. “No doubt. But what if I was relocated far away, somewhere totally undefended, somewhere completely unexpected?”

Fremma became very still.

Chelan stepped up to him. “Take me with you.”

“I can’t, my—”

“No! Listen. Hear me out.”

Fremma shook his head once. “I dare not take you anywhere…”

“I could order you to take me,” she informed him.

Fremma became stock-still. “Oh, my Lady. I don’t know what you are thinking, but Korba would—”

“No, no, just listen. The Balatesian system, it is on the periphery of the Empire, right?”

Fremma nodded his wide-eyed acknowledgment.

“How long to get there?”

“With the new drive system, just shy of six Earth months.”

Chelan grabbed his arms hard, her excitement barely confinable. “And how long to take care of the problems there?”

Fremma hesitated. “Six to eight Earth months at the most. There are more planets—”

Chelan interrupted him. “And then home, right?”

“Probably, but I cannot risk taking you into battle, my Lady. This is a completely different problem from the one Korba dealt with so long ago. It is almost as volatile as his present mission. That is why RIBUS 7 is being dispatched. And besides, he would kill me for taking you. He would—”

Chelan pressed her finger to his lips. “No, wait. You will not be taking me to the Balatesian system, Fremma.”

Fremma was temporarily transfixed. “Where would I be taking you?”