come into range,” Estall said.
Tiet sat uneasily on the exam table in the med-lab. His arm was throbbing terribly now, but his conscience hurt more. He had wanted so badly to drive the blade through Kale and avenge his family, but it wasn’t what he had expected. Seeing his brother standing there in the cell just waiting to receive his fury had been very unsettling.
Tiet had expected a fight-he had wanted a fight. After attacking Kale mentally and seeing him writhe in pain-he had felt pity for him for a moment.
Wynn had stopped him from killing his own brother. At the time he would have struck his mentor for interfering, had he been able, but now he knew he would have regretted that as well. Wynn was no fool and he had no reason to protect Kale. There had to be a good reason for him to step between them to save his life.
The med-lab door opened, allowing Mirah K’ore to enter. “So, the King has returned.”
“Hello, Mirah.”
“That’s Dr. K’ore to you.” She grinned. “Father said you were going to accept the Council’s nomination to the throne…I haven’t seen you lately.”
“I’m sorry. I’ve had a lot on my mind.”
“I understand. But don’t think that gives you an excuse in the future.” She feigned a stern look then smiled. “Now let’s see that arm.”
Tiet raised the arm for her inspection. The sleeve was already cut away up to his shoulder. The med-tech had managed to get that far before the message had come through on Tiet’s com-link that Kale was a prisoner. His arm was severely bruised and swollen, but there was no bone penetration through the skin.
Mirah picked up a hand held scanner and passed it over his arm. “Well, it looks like a clean break, ulna and radius. I won’t ask how you managed this.”
“How long to put me back in action, Mirah?”
“About two hours of osteoblast therapy and another half hour to bring down the edema.”
“Let’s do it then.”
“Our ships are really taking a pounding up there commander,” said Lieutenant Davers. “They’re outnumbered two to one. They’ve been using the new dispersion cannons, but the Baruk shields are too strong.”
“What’s the current shield status for our ships?” Wynn asked.
“Ten ships below seventy percent shield power, eight below fifty percent power, two are under twenty percent power and three have already been destroyed.”
“What about the Esyia?”
“She’s approaching thirty percent power and still taking a pounding, sir.”
Wynn continued to sort through the incoming images on the war room displays. The armada was really getting beaten to death up there. They were tough ships, but the odds were against them. If they failed to stop the Baruk in space then the fight would hit the ground.
“Sir, another of our ships has been destroyed, the Kyrysk,” said Davers.
The other four soldiers manning the war room monitors paused briefly to look up at Wynn then continued with their work.
“What about the Baruk fleet?” Wynn asked. “What kind of damage are they taking?”
“They’re going blow for blow, but our ships are grossly outnumbered,” said Davers.
“By the time our ships do any significant damage, their shields will be down and it will be over very quickly. Have we notified Tiet yet?”
“He’s in the med-lab-the alarms don’t sound in there.”
“Put me through.”
“Online, sir.”
“Dr. K’ore. May I help you?”
“Mirah, Wynn Gareth here. I need to speak with Tiet immediately.”
“My patient is still receiving treatment under sedation,” Mirah said.
“I need you to wake him up. We’ve got a situation-he’s needed.”
“What he needs is to get this treatment completed without duress, Commander.”
“Doctor, our fleet is getting burned out of the sky. The Baruk will begin a ground assault as soon as they get the chance. Please, we need him on his feet now.”
“I’ll do the best I can, Mirah out.”
The communication link terminated at that point. “I’d better make sure of it,” Wynn said. “Davers, what’s the status of our troops?”
“All division commanders report ready and awaiting deployment instructions.”
“Tell them to hold positions. The King will instruct them personally,” Wynn said as he headed out the door.
Mirah returned to the control panel, monitoring Tiet’s treatment. He was coming out of his sedation as the procedure finished up. Everything was precisely computer controlled. She walked into the treatment room as he became conscious.
“How are you feeling?”
“A little groggy, but I feel all right. My arm feels a lot better-just a little sore now.”
“Well, that will pass soon enough. You’ve got plenty of pain meds onboard.”
“I appreciate the fix up.”
“You don’t have to be so formal.”
“I know. There’s just been so much happening recently, Mirah.”
“Well, the arm looks fine.”
“Thank you, Mirah,” he said. Tiet flexed the arm, trying out the repair. “You do wonderful work.”
“Tiet, I uh-” She started to speak as the door to the med-lab opened, letting Wynn inside.
“I see you’re on your feet again,” he said.
Mirah and Tiet dropped their gazes to the ground then looked at Wynn.
“Tiet, I’ve got to get you to the main deployment area. The Baruk are hammering our ships, and we’ll probably be looking at a ground assault somewhere very soon.”
“I’m ready, let’s go,” he said, as he gathered the upper body portion of his uniform from the counter nearby. They both headed out the main door as he called back.
“Thanks again, Mirah. We’ll talk soon,” he said. The door closed behind them.
“I hope so,” she whispered to the empty exam room.
Wynn and Tiet walked quickly to the nearest lift. “I want to apologize for the situation with Kale,” Wynn said.
“Don’t worry about it. You did what was right. It’s just that…he betrayed everything we knew, and yet he’s my brother.”
“I know.”
The lift opened, allowing them in. “Main deployment area,” Wynn said.
The computer complied with his request.
“You could have killed him and he wouldn’t have made any effort to stop you. I think he even longed for you to do it, to end his pain and guilt.”
“Why should I care about his pain? He betrayed us-all of us-including you, Wynn.”
“That’s right. And I am still asking you to consider the situation with your brother, despite that fact.”
Tiet glared at him then looked back at the city without saying anything.
“Have you considered that Kale didn’t need my help to save himself from your sword?”
“Do you think he’s that powerful?” Tiet asked.
“If I’m any judge about these things, I would say he’s very powerful.”
“I don’t want to hate him, Wynn. I just don’t know how to handle this right now…”
The lift slowed as they entered the deployment area and its control tower.
“Right now, we have a war to deal with,” Tiet said. “Everything else will have to wait.”
DEFENSE
