“We can’t produce enough in the quantities needed to power the base.”
“How about the sun?”
Apolo shook his head. “It’s too aggressive a form of energy. It would melt our power cells. We are looking for other options throughout this and nearby solar systems but haven’t found anything viable. The only good news is that the Draeken run off the same energy source and likely discovered the same problem when they came here.”
Sienna brought a hand over her mouth. “You don’t mean … you’re stranded here?”
Apolo said nothing. Just continued to stare at the blank screen.
“Earth is our home now.” Legian spoke quietly, his voice barely a whisper.
“Can’t Krysea send more ships with large power cells?”
Legian shook his head. “The cells are too large to transport. They can’t send enough to bring us all back, and any ship sent here would be stranded as well.”
“But Krysea and Apolo — ”
“Do what we must to ensure our people survive,” Apolo cut in.
“I’m so sorry.” Sienna’s voice cracked as her heart broke for him. Apolo and she may not have seen eye to eye all the time, but no
tahren
should be separated. To be separated like that was an unending torture. A death sentence.
Apolo cracked his neck and walked around the table. “Take a seat until the rest of the trinity and Jax arrive.”
She glanced up at Legian, who nodded to her.
Legian held her against his warm chest. “Apolo, we would like to debrief you about what happened at Mayhem.”
Apolo’s glare stopped Sienna from speaking. She had never seen him like that before, like he was on the precipice, ready to fall into an unstoppable rage.
“Excellent progress with the humans. But the debrief can wait until they arrive,” he finally replied before starting to pace.
Sienna broke contact from Legian and went for the nearest chair. Legian sat down next to her, and together they endured the ominous silence in the room. It took five interminable minutes before the others began to arrive, and during that time she watched the racecar in red transition back into the leader she’d come to respect.
First to the room was Bente, who gave her a “you’re so screwed” smirk. In her best interest, she decided to not flip him the bird. This time.
Right behind him came Jax.
And finally Nalea entered, arriving a few minutes late. Ever since the base attack, she seemed distracted, unfocused. Something was up, but her best friend’s style was to keep things bottled up, festering until they exploded like a Molotov cocktail. Sienna made a mental note to schedule some quality girl time with her. Legian had told her once about the last time Nalea had lost it. It wasn’t pretty. Evidently, people died when Nalea blew.
Sienna didn’t know exactly what happened last time. Legian said it had something to do with Nalea’s family. Nalea never spoke of her family. In fact, no one knew anything about her childhood. That was, until a guy showed up who swore he’d worked under the same Draeken house as Nalea, and that he knew her secret. No one had thought anything of it until the next day when Nalea and the guy went missing along with a ship. She showed back up a week later. Alone, nearly starved, and without a ship. She had claimed they went on a recon flight, and they were shot down. But no one knew the truth. Other than the fact that no recon flight had been scheduled. Legian suspected it was intentional that she came back alone, but he would never dare confront her on it.
Nalea nodded to Sienna on her way around the table to her chair.
Apolo started before everyone sat down. “The Mayhem mission dealt a small blow to the Draeken. More important is the progress Sienna, Legian, and Jax made with the humans.”
Someone kicked her under the table. She grabbed her shin and looked up to see Nalea mouth the words “good job.”
Apolo continued. “From what I’ve heard, we can thank Jax for the human assistance at the club. Without them, we very likely would have suffered losses. As it stands, we were very fortunate to incur no casualties, with only one of us met with minor wounds.”
An eruption of applause and shoulder slapping took over the room.
“Also, I learned that it was Legian’s
tahren
, Sienna, who brokered an arrangement with Major Sommers.” Apolo spoke directly to her. “While this is good, it is not yet a formal alliance. But it did re-open the door for discussions. A door I was afraid had been closed.
“I have spoken with General Jerrick and have arranged for an official alliance meeting that will include the general, political leaders, and, he assured me, leaders of Great Britain as well. The meeting should be at a location that has connections to both our people. Therefore, I have chosen Sienna’s cabin.”
Sienna jerked upright. “My cabin? Are you sure?”
Apolo smiled. He had
that
look again. The one he always had before he dropped a bomb.
“Oh, what?” she asked, the word barely a whisper.
“Since you became Legian’s
tahren
, you have been thrown through a quantum hole. Most would have been broken. Many would not have survived. Yet, your performance at both defending the base during the attack and on the Mayhem mission has earned the respect of the Sephians based here on this planet, of me, and most importantly, of my
tahren
, Krysea. You and I often have different views, and it is those differences that I have come to value the most. Earth is our new home. It is time we acclimate to our new world and hopefully, new people.”
Apolo watched each member of his trinity in turn. “I will always do what is best for my people. And, it is in their best interest that I made my decision. From this point forward, the Sephians on this world will be led jointly by both Sienna and me. If she accepts, I pledge my support to Sienna as the joint leader of the Sephians on Earth.”
Sienna’s jaw dropped. Hubbeda, hubbeda, hubbeda. She came shakily to her feet and faced Apolo. “Co-leader?” Her adrenaline pumped through her veins, more than during any mission, more than the attack.
“Sephians are a matriarchal society. It is time to bring a female to helm on this world. It brings strength to our troops. In addition, I believe bringing a human into our ranks reinforces us and shows our commitment to integration. And I have every confidence that your
tahren
will serve as a suitable consort and first of your own trinity.”
Legian rose, and then took a knee before her. Taking her trembling fingers in his, he laid a kiss on her hand. “I will serve you with honor, my
tahren
.”
“I-I don’t know what to say.” And she didn’t. Of all the words out of Apolo’s mouth, that was not what she expected.
“Do you accept this responsibility?” Apolo asked.
She looked around the room. Every eye was on her. She had always been a loner. An introvert. This kind of responsibility should belong to someone who was bred for it, not some country girl who played Xbox and read romance novels. But she also didn’t believe in coincidences. Legian crashing in her back yard was the first step leading to where she now stood today. Somehow she already knew that even if she failed, this was something she was meant to do.
She squeezed Legian’s hand before looking back to Apolo. “I graciously accept this honor.”
Apolo walked over and held out his arm, and they sealed the pact Sephian style, clasping each other’s forearms.
“According to Sephian traditions, we must each have our trinity, a body of three minds to guide and discuss all topics of importance.” Apolo turned to Bente, then Nalea. “You each must choose to either stay on my trinity or begin a new trinity with Sienna. The choice is yours.”
Bente didn’t even pause. He came to his feet and grasped Apolo’s arm. “I’m still with you.” He gave her a slight tilt of the head, and then sat back down.
That didn’t surprise her in the least. Bente had been with Apolo since the beginning. So had Legian. She knew it would’ve crushed Apolo to lose his two closest friends in a matter of seconds. Relieved that Ben chose right, she turned her attention onto Nalea who sat there for a moment.
“Nalea, your choice?” Apolo asked.
After what seemed like an eternity, she stood and clasped Apolo’s arm. “I have been honored serving on your trinity, Apolo. And I will always value your leadership and friendship.” Then she stepped back and walked over to Sienna, taking hold of her arm. “I believe I can bring more value by sitting on the trinity of the newest leader of our people. Sienna, if you will have me, I would be honored to serve on your trinity.”
Sienna pulled her closest friend into a big hug. “Of course I’ll have you, Lea. And I look forward to your guidance, friendship, and honest thoughts.”
Apolo nodded. “Very well. With Legian and Nalea, you then have one more to make your trinity complete. And I will replenish mine with two.”
“I know who I’d like my third to be, if that’s okay to do right now.”
“Of course.”
Sienna looked at Jax. “Lieutenant Jerrick. Will you join my trinity? With your CO’s approval, of course. Your position and knowledge of the military will be invaluable as we build alliances.”
Jax narrowed his eyes at her before coming to his feet and giving her a full military salute. “It may take some time while to run it up the chain, but I would like to accept this duty with honor.”
“Good. Thank you.” She turned to Apolo. “My trinity is complete.”
He nodded. “You have chosen a good trinity. I believe your counsel will guide you well.” His voice held a hint of respect. “Now, let’s make the announcement and break out the drinks.”
It was the first time she’d seen Apolo act in any way but official. She didn’t mind the new him.
She looked back at her
tahren
who watched her with a look of pure, raw love. She strode over to him and pulled him into a ravenous kiss. Everything that happened wasn’t about her. Sienna may now lead half of the Sephian people, but it was about them and what they could accomplish together.
One thing was for sure.
She would see it through to the end. No matter what.
Sienna had never been more stressed in her life. More than the first time she discovered aliens weren’t some made up sci-fi creature from Mars. More than when she left the life she knew behind and went traipsing off into the unknown with one of those aliens. More than when the base was attacked, and she’d nearly been killed. More than any of that.
She now knew what Atlas must have felt like to bear the weight of the world on his shoulders. Of course, her responsibility didn’t come near that. She had one hundred forty three Sephians counting on her, many of whose trust she hadn’t truly earned yet. Her group was a drop in the ocean really, when looking at a world of seven billion. All the same, it twisted her stomach into knots just thinking about it.
She slouched in the backseat of the SUV, wishing she could fade into the black leather so she wouldn’t have to go back to her cabin. They were already driving down narrow, rough side roads. It wouldn’t be much longer now.
The truth was she’d never had to be responsible for anyone else but her before. Even with Bobby. He had been away on duty too often and at home too little. It left her to remain carefree and — she hated to admit it — selfish. But suddenly, for the first time in her life, her decisions impacted other lives. Hell, she didn’t even own a dog, afraid of being a lousy pet parent. How was she going to lead a fractured band of homeless aliens? Sienna rubbed her temples, trying to prevent the impending headache of doom climbing the back of her neck. Her greatest fear wasn’t looking bad in front of others. That she could live with. Her greatest fear also wasn’t Apolo realizing he made a mistake in his decision. Or of those closest to her seeing that she couldn’t hack it. Those who had seen and done shit she’d only imagined. Those who would see through her in a heartbeat if she faltered. They would see that she had been faking it all along, that she didn’t have the guts to make the tough calls. No, her greatest fear was that her decisions would lead to death. That was something she wasn’t sure she could handle.
“Is everything okay?”
She put on a fake smile and snuggled against Legian’s chest. “First day on the job jitters, that’s all.”
He kissed the top of her head. “You’ll do fine. Apolo will be there. You won’t be alone. You will never be alone.”
“And don’t forget you have your kick-ass trinity,” Nalea added from the seat next to her. Sienna laid her hand on her friend’s knee; her smile was warm but didn’t quite reach her dark wraparound protective sunglasses.
“Yeah,” Sienna mumbled, staring out the window at the passing trees. It was true. She knew she wasn’t alone. With them, she would never feel alone. But she was still leaning on her crutch for support. Except now she replaced her cane for a tripod. While she appreciated the support, she wondered how she’d ever be seen as a leader if she couldn’t stand on her own.
Legian ran his hands up and down her arms, the friction building a soothing warmth that rubbed out the stress. Closing her eyes, she basked in his touch, and the world slipped away like a leaf flowing downstream.
After who knew how long, she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and looked around. “How much farther?”
“Just a few more minutes,” Jax replied from behind the wheel of the SUV.
Sienna leaned forward and squeezed his shoulder. “Thanks for driving, Jax.”
“No problem. I’m a piss-poor backseat driver. I’ll take driving any day over riding shotgun.”
“What do we need to do before your father arrives?” Risa asked Jax from the front passenger seat.
“We’ll need to set up a perimeter in case the news leaked to the Draeken.”
“It’s awful knowing there’s a spy sneaking around base,” Risa chimed in with a visible shiver. Jax reached over and held his girlfriend’s hand.
No one spoke. There was nothing to say. They all felt the same. Angry. Frustrated. Powerless.
It was Jax who broke the silence. “Ace was going to check out the place a couple of days ago, so we should be all set. The cabin and surrounding woods will be secure.”