“We have a lot to talk about. Let’s leave it until later.”
When dinner ended, Krys took Tarn by the arm and led him toward the hangar deck.
“What’s up, My Lady?” he asked.
“Admiral Jons needs a lift back to the surface. We’re taking him in Rappor. You do know how to land this thing, don’t you?”
“Yes, My Lady,” he said stiffly.
A Great Cat met them at the foot of the ramp when they landed. Jons bid them farewell, and Krys took Tarn’s arm and followed the cat. When they arrived at Ellie’s quarters, the Great Cat remained outside the door when she closed it. Tarn was clearly confused, and his uneasiness was clear to Krys.
She was not confused, and she was not uneasy – she was focused. “We have the place to ourselves, tonight and all day tomorrow.”
“My Lady?”
She turned to stare at him, then pulled him to herself. “My Lady, huh?”
“You’re a Knight of the Realm now, Krys, and you really are My Lady.”
“Wrong, Tarn. I’m not My Lady, I’m your lady, for as long as you’ll have me. That hasn’t changed.”
“Oh, but it has.”
She leaned back from him, a mischievous smile on her face. “Do you want it to change?”
“Of course not. You know me better than that.”
“I do. Between us, there is only us, Tarn. I may be a Knight, but I will never command your love. Can you accept me on those terms?”
“I love you, Krys. I’ll accept you on any terms you offer.”
“You’re my knight. You know that, don’t you?”
“I’m beginning to know it.”
“We have tonight and all day tomorrow. It’s the first time we’ve ever had privacy. Will you stay with me?”
“I will. Rank or no, you are my lady.”
“And you’re my man. Mother arranged all this, you know.”
He panicked. “The Queen?” He looked around the quarters. “This is her place?”
“It is, and she’s happy to share it with us, but only so long as you don’t claim all my love. For the moment you have, but in the long run, I think you’re going to have to accept her as part of me.”
“You ask too much.”
“I do, and I will. You’re man enough. Come to me, Tarn.”
Ellie spent two days touring the squadron, then she joined Buskin in his office aboard the cruiser. “You need to meet with Chandrajuski. I expect him back any day. Can you wait?”
He rubbed the back of his neck as he considered. “I’d like to wait, but if he hasn’t entered the system, he’s weeks away. If you know what direction he’s coming from, I might be able to meet him out there when he drops from hyper.”
“Have you spoken with Admiral Jeffers about what’s going on here?”
“I have not, Your Majesty. There hasn’t been a spare moment yet.”
“Serge Parsons and his outlaws have developed some refinements for their ships. We’ve begun a program to refit my ships with these improved systems. When Chandrajuski drops from hyper, he’ll be here in a few hours.”
Buskin stared at her, his mind calculating. There wasn’t much to calculate. “They can jump within a system?”
“Almost into atmosphere, and they have beacons that can be modified at will, or simply turned off without all the difficulties Rappor had to go through. We’re surveying Rappor right now to see if we can give Krys the upgrades. Longer range and more powerful weapons are also part of the package.”
“I’d better talk with him. I want them for my ships, as well.”
“You’ll get them, but it’s going to be a while. Modifying the ships is a slow process, and the ships here will be the first to receive them.”
“There are a lot of ships here. Must I wait?”
“These ships have a special purpose. They will fight the Chessori.” His eyebrows rose. “Did you know your First Knight is from an emerging world?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Did you know that he’s immune to the scree?”
“What’s the scree?”
“The mind weapon of the Chessori. And he’s not the only one. We believe everyone from his world is immune. We’ve brought a number of warriors from his planet, and they’re learning to fly our ships as we speak.”
Buskin leaned back in his chair, thinking deeply this time. When he looked up at her, she waited expectantly. “So that’s what’s going on. We noticed their strange behavior as we were inbound. Training, huh? Can they learn? It’s asking a lot from an emerging world.”
“Your First Knight had about two months of training before bringing me some 800 light years without an AI. We took out a number of Chessori in the process. Not only can they learn, they learn quickly.”
Buskin slapped a fist into an open hand. “They’re immune, they can fight, and they can fly. Can they lead?”
“I didn’t name him First Knight for nothing, Admiral They came with no experience of space travel, but most of them were officers or senior enlisted in their military. They’re all leaders.”
“Did he bring admirals?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Because I’ve been training Great Cats to fly my ships. Until now, they’ve been the only ones who could function against the Chessori. They’re good, but they’re not leaders. I need leaders who won’t be disabled by the Chessori. I only need one or two if they’re good.”
“All the more reason to speak with Chandrajuski. Would you like to meet the leader of these men from Earth?”
“Earth?” he said, scratching his chin. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard of it.”
“You haven’t. It’s the name they call their world. We only have a numerical designation for it. Why don’t we go find him.”
His eyebrows dropped in a question. “Just call for him, Your Majesty.”
“No. He’s extremely busy. We’ll go to him.”
Just before boarding the shuttle, Ralph, her Protector, brought her a message. “Sir Mike and Otis have dropped from hyper, Your Majesty.”
Surprise turned to excitement for Ellie, and a smile lit her face. “Thank you, Ralph. I’ll clear my schedule.”
She and Buskin found Trexler aboard a cruiser orbiting Parsons’ World. He and two other admirals from Earth were in the midst of a simulated battle of fleet proportions and were not to be disturbed. Ellie could have insisted, but she did not. Training took first priority.
Buskin looked thoughtful and turned to the ship’s captain. “I’d like to observe. Can I go in without disturbing them?”
“Yes, sir. You can.” He turned to Ellie. “Your Majesty?” he asked her with a questioning look.
“I have other plans. We’ll set something up for the day after tomorrow,” she said to Buskin.
“Very well, Your Majesty.”
She left, and Buskin went to the operations center, entering quietly. There he found a Schect and three men in strange uniforms, all of them lounging with helmets on, all within the net. He donned a helmet himself and went
