From The Ashes- Part 12: Greeks Bearing Gifts
#7 of From the Ashes
Huh, Yiffstar sure has changed, to say the least. Well, I can't say I wasn't suprised when I realized people still read my stuff. It's been four years since my computer and my internet ate themselves, rendering it impossible to continue to update the story, and by the time I got all of my gadgetry fixed, it had been so long that I figured everyone forgot about it. I had assumed no one still read it until I logged into to my old email to check on something and lo and behold, found a few recent tells asking about the story. I quess the site change sorta sparked new interest. Either way, with the recent influx of people telling me to get on with the story, I found the old spark and cranked out a couple more pages. Behold, Part 12 of my From The Ashes. For those few of you following the story: enjoy. More to follow.
Fom the Ashes, Part 12: Greeks Bearing Gifts
Jared watched in silence as Veronica clicked off the message sphere. "There's nothing else for it. We have to go get him." Veronica and Fuse nodded in agreement. Zach seemed uneasy. "What? Walk right into a trap? Are you kidding me? That's not exactly something we should rush headlong into it. I'm all for aiding a friend in need
but what good is it if all we accomplish is dying right alongside him?" Fuse put a paw on his shoulder as she gave a reassuring squeeze to his muscle. It instantly had a calming effect on Zach. Jared watched as the fear and anxiety left his new friend's eyes, seemingly vanished instantly at Fuse's touch, and be replaced with a calm resolve. Such was the power of a Bond, and Jared knew the feeling well.
Jared never understood the Bond fully, only reaped it's benefits. Veronica had tried explaining it in depth, as she did with most things, but as before, Jared never really understood the science of it all and chalked it up to "magic." The manipulation and control of Aether, the Bonding, everything the Confederation of Planets used on a
daily basis to the point of taking it for granted, Jared had only a passing understanding of. Well, Jared thought, I guess electronics on Earth would take some getting used to if they came to live on Earth. Either way, Jared was just happy for it.
A Bond was more than a mental link, it was a physical one. More than a simple Marriage, much more than a mere title to signify their connection, a Confederation member was bred to be Bonded to a specific person. A Confederate would only become pregnant by the person they are Bonded to. If they aren't Bonded first, sex will initiate the Bond, and sex was the most common way to become Bonded. Bonds are eternal unless it's broken by one of the members, and Bonds allow initmacy on a whole new level. To the humans this new intimacy borders on light telepathy. A reassuring touch can ease even the most penetrating of fears. A passionate kiss can wash away weariness and uncertainty. A passionate shower can make one forget any troubles of the outside world and make them happy to just be there in the moment. It allows for moments of complete bliss in the tender throes of love. Veronica had told him that the only way she had gotten through her ordeal on Remose with her mind intact was that she could feel him out there, safe and sound, as she intended. It was a happy thought, and the Swarm could not take that away from her. Jared had felt a little guilty that he wasn't as sensitive to the Bond, and Veronica had only reassured him that he would in time, easing his mind as she always did.
Jared snapped back to alertness as Veronica waved her tail in front of his face. "Jared!"He looked around at the three faces staring at him. "What?" Fuse gave him a disapproving glance as she said "I'm done with the scanners. It took a minute for the scanners to trace out the Planet, but it's not too far from your Solar System....well, in the universal sense, anyway, and it seems to be nothing but rock."
Jared kept to himself a morbid thought. Remose was supposed to be barren, too. And he knew all too well what was the outcome of that. Still, they weren't about to leave Auldron to his fate. On top of the fact that he was their friend, he knew too much to let fall into their hands. He was the head researcher on the weapons department
with vital knowledge on the improved firearms the Confederates now had access to. Jared could tell these same thoughts were crossing Veronica's mind as well, judging from the uncertain look on her face. He clasped her hand, an act that reassured them both.
They drove to a deserted stretch of back road while Veronica opened up a Hopper Gate to the planet Trakas. The blue electric vortex opened up and Zach backed up a few steps involuntarily. "Are you guys sure about this?" Veronica smiled while Fuse gave a reassuring squeeze on her mate's shoulder. "Don't worry," she said, "We're professionals." This seemed to steel his resolve as all four companions stepped through the portal.
The vortex opened up into a vast rocky landscape full of barren spires of black rock jutting high into the sky. Fuse and Veronica immediately started sweeping the area with their scanners, reacting fast to point their weapons at even the slightest noise. The windless landscape was desolate, not even birds broke the dead silence of the lifeless planet. A hissing voice rose up from somewhere in the midst of the spires, the constant echo off of the earthy protrusions making it impossible to determine where the voice was comming from. "Hoppersssssss."
The group reacted fast, Jared being a little more experienced drew his modified Glock and turned on the laser sight, sweeping the area for what was mostly his own comfort, as Veronica and Fuse's senses were far more keen on picking up disturbances. Zach, on the other hand, palmed a pocket kife as he, too, tried to idenify where the sound was coming from with even less success. He wasn't sure that a pocket knife would do anything against their adversaries, but it was better than doing nothing and made him feel less helpless. "Where's that coming from?" he asked. Fuse's reply was an uncertain "I have no idea."
"You ssssssee we cannot allow oursssselves to be ssssseen. We do not trusssst your ssssshoot firssst and asssssk later tacticssss, Hopperssss." The group sat there and listened to the voices of the Shadowjumper cockroaches. "Why do they hiss when they speak? Are we fighting snakes?" Fuse shook her head no. "Cockroaches." "I didn't think cockroaches would hiss when they spoke. They didn't in Men in Black." "Different species I guess." Jared whispered back, trying to explain, "Ever seen Fear Factor? They're always making people eat those hissing cockroaches from Madagascar." Zach shrugged, "Makes sense, I suppose...." Veronica spoke up, addressing the Swarm agents. "Shooting first has allowed us to survive longer this time around, Swarm scum. What do you want from us?"
"A moment of your time." Answered back the roaches. "You are lucky we haven't jussssst killed your fffffriend. Our brother desssservesssss retribution, you know. You are lucky we are quite....fffffforgiving!" A hideous cackle resounded throughout the spires. Veronica spoke again, stern and a little angry. "We didn't come here to play games! Give us back our friend!" Veronica's echo died down, before the silence befell the area again, but was quickly broken once more. "Yesssss. Your fffffffriend. Ffffirst, you will hear usssss out. You sssssee. You will be of ussssse to ussss." Fuse seemed to grow angry at that comment as she immediately said, "We will never help filth like you!"
The roaches voice seemed to grow more amused as it answered back, "You have no choicccce, Hoppersssss. Our King hassss grown too big ffffffor his carapaccccce. We no longer want him in power. We will tip the ssssscalessssss of thissss war in the fffffavor of the Confffffederatessssss. We only exxxpect amnesssssty for our troublesssss." Fuse growled. "No deal! You're trying to trap us in a desperate attempt to redeem your slimy carapace because you failed to kill us on Remose. This isn't my first rodeo, as the Earthlings say. Sorry, return to your King and accept your failure with honor! Now give us our friend before we blast every rock appart until we find your stinking corpse and then rip out every one of your arms and legs!" Zach gave a worried glance over his shoulder at his mate. Luckily, she was too busy seething at the voices to notice.
A hideous laughter, more a hacking cough than a laugh, erupted from the surrounding environment. "Hah hah hah hah! Why do you tttttthink tttthat we are doing thissss? The King has ordered ussss exxxecuted. Our loyaltiessss don't cover deathhhh, I'm affffraid." Fuse muttered under her breath, "Just like a Swarm. Save your own hide and damn everyone else." Veronica maintained a stern calmness as she continued to listen to the roaches' commentary, "We are criminalsssss. Branded kill on sssssight in Ssssswarm territory. With the Ssssswarm continuing on unchhhhecked, we will be caught and exxxxecuted eventually. We plan on tipping thissss war in your ffffavor." Veronica raised her eyebrow. She cooly asked, "And how do you plan on doing that? How can two exiled Shadowjumpers change the course of a war that was lost last time it was fought? Sounds like Swarm trickery. We don't trust you. You may be skilled fighters, but even if the Confederation didn't kill you on sight, the addition of two more soldiers to the ranks of the small fighting force the Confederation employs would not make a difference. We will not help you, and we do not trust you."
"Trussssst issssss not required. You will work toward our goalsssss offfff your own accord oncccccce we reveal to you thhhhhe inffffformation we posssssessss." Veronica scoffed, "And what information would that be?" "The location offfff the Lossssst Planetsssss."
Veronica and Fuse froze. Neither Zach nor Jared understood the meaning behind this, but they knew the Swarm soldiers had just said something important. "The Lost Planets..." Veronica whispered. "What would you want in return for such a thing?" The hideous laughter returned. "We want nothhhhhing exxxcept amnesssssty in the eyes offff your councccccil. You will not hear fffffrom usssss again until the war isssss ended. That isssss all you need to know. We jusssst hope thhhhat your Conffffederation can manage to win thissss war withhhhh.....thhhhheir help."
The group fell silent for a moment, the air hanging heavy, the silence almost suffocating until Veronica spoke up once more. "I cannot promise you amnesty with the Council. I can promise our full support if you are telling the truth."
****
'Can we trust them, Brother?' Akras, who had done the talking, hive-minded his sibling. 'What choice do we have? Hide from the Swarm for the rest of our days? Never leaving the shadows until old age slows us to the point where we're captured and executed in the slowest manner possible? I'd rather give these hairs the coordinates, and hope that they can manage with the help of the Lost Planets, to bring that pompous wormfood excuse for a king down.' The brothers continued to hive-mind back and forth. 'I'm not happy about it either, brother, but as it stands, we are stripped of rank and possession. We served the Swarm faithfully for all these years, but when the life of one of the elite is forfeit to a whim, then the old ideals are dead. The best we can hope for survival, so even if we don't get amnesty, then at least let our opponents kill one another and then the survivor will be that much easier to deal with! Use simple logic, Brother, always choose the lesser of two evils.' After a moment more of deliveration, they reached a conclusion.
The shadows of the spire nearest to the Hopper group began to stir as Auldron materialized, flanked by the cockroach brothers. "Guys!" Auldron started to move towards his friends but the brothers each stopped him short by grabbing the turtle's shoulders. The Hoppers reacted swiftly, each training their weapon on the brothers, except for one of the Earthlings, who only seemed to brandish a small handblade. "Lower your weaponssssss, Hoppersssss." Rael said sternly, his insectoid claw holding Auldron close to himself and his brother. Akras and Rael knew that the hairs wouldn't shoot and risk killing their friend, so Auldron served to sheild them. "Lower them!" Rael repeated when none of the hairs seemed to comply. Reluctantly, the blue-gray haired feline lowered her weapons, she was followed by the canine and the earthlings. Akras leaned in to Auldron's ear and seemingly whispered something as the rest of the group looked on. The twins released Auldron in unison.
****
Veronica and Fuse reacted fast, pushing Auldron behind them and then bringing their guns around to point threateningly at the Shadowjumping Swarm, but by the time they manage to bring up their weapons, there was no trace of the Shadowjumpers. Zach gave a confused look. "But what about the coordinates?" Auldron spoke up. "They gave them to me. Now let's get off this depressing system. I think I've filled my quota of fun for this trip." Auldron's lighthearted sarcasm eased the tension in the air a bit, and the group seemed to relax as Fuse opened another portal back to Trillious Prime.
The four friends walked thorugh the portal and ended up on the Jump Floor of the Capitol Building. There was a big hustle and bustle as another, new human came back through the gate. Jared coudln't help but crack a smile as he watched Zach swarmed by the curious people of the Confederation. Auldron excused himself before the crowd got too big. Not being rude, but the sight of an Earthling wasn't as much of a novelty for Auldron as it was for the rest of them. The excitement wears off once you live on a planet full of them. Jared guessed the same went for most things like that. He was used to the sight of a planetfull of anthromorphic animals, while one being on Earth would cause a big fuss. He affectionately watched as Zach was smelled, touched, and generally fawned over. Fuse looked none too happy, Jared could almost see the daggers she was staring into any even remotely attractive female that went to familiarize herself with the new Earthling in town. Jared just hoped that Zach wouldn't bring any of that wrath down upon himself.
As Jared watched on, a pair of nimble hands found themselves working at his shoulders. The massage was welcome as the voice of his mate whispered into his ear. "Jealous that you aren't the new kid on the block anymore?" Jared turned back around. He gazed into her slit-pupiled eyes. "I've never been one for the center of the stage. Let the limelight go to those who truly enjoy it. Personally, I'd rather spend the time alone with the person I love." Veronica hugged him from behind as both watched the large crowd around Zach. She gave a light pur, "Oh really? And who would that be?" Jared spun around in her grasp and returned her embrace. He smiled as he placed his forehead against hers. "Oh, just someone I've got my sights on." He looked deep into her eyes as they drew closer and exchanged a deep kiss.
The couple burst through the door to their room. Veronica managed to push the door closed with her long tail as the pair moved into the bedroom and Veronica fell back onto the bed, Jared laying on top of her as his hands roamed the familiar crevices of Veronica's body. She sat up, pushing Jared off of her for a breif moment as she worked the hoppersuit off of her lithe feline body. Jared helped remove the garment, tenderly stripping it off as he exposed his lover's naked fur. As she lay there without a stitch of clothing, not an unfamiliar sight to Jared, but he could never grow tired of seeing it. Jared leaned forward again, exploring the body of his now laid-bare kitten, touching the familiar places as the lover's passion entwined their tongues. They kissed deeply as Veronica's hands did some exploring of their own. She worked Jared's shirt over his head as her claws raked along his flesh, lighter than drawing a feather across his skin, but the sharpness of her claws tantalized his muscles, sending tingles down his spine. She helped Jared take off his pants and boxer shorts. They embraced once more as they fell back into the bed. Veronica looked at Jared slyly, whispering into his ear, "Take me."
Jared needed no further invitation, as he positioned his hips and gave a thrust. Veronica seemed to offer no resistance, Jared's member sliding in as if the two had been made for each other. Electricity shot through Veronica's spine. There was never any pain, only the pleasure of their love. Veronica gave a gasp of pleasure as Jared started thrusting. Slowly at first, savoring every jolt of pleasure, tasting every second of their throes. He thrust again, hilting himself as Veronica gave another moan, "Mmmmn," She twitched slightly as her muscles involuntarily tightened from the pleasure. Jared gasped as he felt new warmth and pressure tantalize him from deep within his kitten. The increased pleasure only seemed to spur Jared on as he thrusted faster.
Veronica wimpered from below Jared. She was his, and he was hers. She wrapped her legs around him, pushing him deeper within her. "Ahhhah!" She cried out as Jared's tip pleasured her from deep inside. They had been lovers for a long time, and Jared knew how to please his mate. The soft cry only seemed to encourage Jared even more as he picked up speed. Veronica started to moan louder, and Jared leaned in to kiss his mate deeply. Their tongues entwined as Veronica moaned around him. The broke the kiss, Veronica looked at Jared, "I love you." Jared smiled back, "I love you, too." The tender attentions of his mate's nethers around his member were too much, they enveloped him and drew him to brink. "I love you." Jared repeated as he came, shooting deep into his lover. The flow of the warm, thick liquid was too much as Jared's orgasm pushed her own over the edge and she gave out a small scream as she joined Jared in that moment of ecstasy. "Aaaaahhhaaa!" Veronica cried out as Jared finished spurting deep inside her.
Spent, Jared collapsed on top of his mate, who unwrapped her legs from around him. They stayed inside of each other, just enjoying the full embrace. Veronica's hands roamed Jared's back. "I love you, too." Veronica cooed as the two drifted off into a blissful sleep, still locked together in their passion.