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  Dot pounded her forehead on the table while the others laughed.

  “Isn’t it time for you to head out and save people?” She looked up and gave them all narrow-eyed gazes.

  They grinned and took care of the dishes while she contemplated how to bury herself under the floor tiles.

  She paused and she heard someone in her mind. It wasn’t a scream, it was a shout, and she knew that voice. It was hers.

  She would keep this one thing to herself until they were back. She didn’t want them distracted from their assignment at the Yainin glacier.

  When they were all in their battle suits, she saw them to the door and stroked Loxin’s feathers quickly before they loaded into the ship.

  Once they were up and away, she went looking for the armoury that she had seen on day one. If she was going to be telling someone to get the hell away from the base, she was going to need something to back it up.

  They might not need weapons on a mission but that didn’t mean that the base was undefended. Weapons training had been her best course.

  The news reports showed the Guardians doing their thing, but there was an issue. Two of the children had suffered severe hypothermic shock before they could be dug out of the collapse. They had escaped from their group and no one had noticed. Jekross had found them when he had sensed the teacher’s need.

  The Guardians were staying to talk to local schools and wait until the children were out of danger.

  She had dutifully recorded the event the moment that they had been past the point of no return. No one had contacted her yet.

  She slept fitfully, and when her alarm went off, she got her messages. Jekross’s face on the com was unhappy. “You should have mentioned this. We could have left one of us with you.”

  “You were all needed. You had worked out your plans, and they were dependant on you all being there. I don’t even know why I am going to be shouting at someone, but I am not screaming…well, not in pain.”

  “You are defenseless.”

  She stiffened. “I am not. I have weapons proficiency and the willingness to defend the base. Trust me. I will be fine.”

  That was her first call. Her second was from Yacaro. A woman with white hair called her and smiled. “So, you are the other Terran I painted. Well, Oracle, I am calling with a warning. The Yinshin have decided that they want a being who can see the future. They tried here and Charm kicked their asses, but now, they are on their way to you.”

  “Rhoda, right? I am Dot.” She smiled at the woman’s familiar facial structure. No weird bones, no plates, just nice and human.

  “Hello, Dot. Do you hear me? There is an attack squad on their way, and by the time I was notified of it, they were in orbit. They are minutes away.”

  Dot nodded. “I know. I have heard my own voice and heard weapons fire immediately afterward. The Yinshin, they are a weird sickly yellow, right?”

  Rhoda blinked. “Right. You heard it?”

  “I hear the future, one day in advance. I am ready. Thanks for giving me what I was missing though. I would hate to shoot down a supply ship.” She grinned.

  Rhoda chuckled. “Your supplies are picked up by the Guardians from a dispensing depot under high security. No one goes to a base on Nixos but the Guardians.”

  “Thank you for that, Rhoda. I look forward to speaking again.”

  “Me, too, Dot. Welcome to the Nyal Imperium.”

  Dot laughed and closed the com. She headed to the door, picked up the weapons that she had selected and she went outside to wait on the stone surface. Her uniform fluttered in the breeze, and she had her hair up in a charming Gibson-girl style, not that anyone could see it. The breastplate was snug and her hood was up. She had bent the dress code a little by wearing a thin bodysuit under the dress, but she felt very comfortable otherwise.

  She looked skyward and saw the bright speck coming toward her. Her day of prep had let her find the broadcast com on her uniform. When it was easy enough to see the foreign shuttle, she broadcast, “Approaching vessel, please divert course or you will be shot down.”

  There was no reply, and she waited until the ship was larger, she said it again. “Approaching vessel, divert course or you will be shot down.”

  “We have come for the Oracle. Stand aside or bring her out.”

  She smiled. That was enough for her. Dot picked out the first rocket launcher and she aimed it at the ship, squeezing the trigger as she exhaled.

  When the first one was away, she loaded the second and fired immediately. Sure enough, a countermeasure was deployed to stop the first rocket, but the second cruised through to the hull.

  The shuttle wobbled, but it was still coming toward the island that protected the base. She grabbed the EMP generator and struck the ship once more. It struck the rocky hills in the centre of the island.

  Preparing for her own mission had been an education. She had learned about the island, the substructure and where folk could hide. It almost made her feel like a real Guardian.

  She slipped the straps of the other guns over her shoulders and went striding into the forest, looking for her prey.

  Dot had a few minutes. They had to blow the doors to get out of the ship. She ran through the forest and took up a strategic position with the stun rifle. It was time to party.

  * * * *

  Jekross got them to the base as quickly as possible, but there were no life signs within the base itself.

  “Where is she, Jek?” Loxin was beyond agitated, he was cold.

  “She’s on the ridge. There are twenty life signs in her immediate vicinity.”

  Loxin went to the hatch and gave a short nod. In a moment, he had opened it and he was flying with a deadly purpose. Jek took the ship to the base, and together, the rest of the group ran to help.

  * * * *

  Dot saw the Guardian ship coming in, but she didn’t have time to get back to the base before Loxin was hauling her into his arms. It felt so good, she shivered, but the weapon straps she was still wearing got in the way.

  Behind her, she heard a groan. She whipped out of Loxin’s embrace and fired the stunner at the Yinshin trying to get up.

  “Why didn’t you return to the base?” It was a snarl.

  She could see that he was tense. “Because I didn’t know what to do with them and I can’t lift them. I tried. All I could do was clump them together and keep zapping them whenever one of them woke up.”

  His helmet blocked her view, but she thought he was working his jaw.

  The shrubs seemed to explode as the rest of the team arrived. They looked around, shrugged and started to clean up her mess with force bracelets provided by their suits.

  “Seriously, your suits generate handcuffs?”

  He loomed over her. “Would you like to find out?”

  Dot turned and poked him in the centre of his breastplate. “One day, perhaps, but I have had a very trying day and I just want to curl up on the couch in your arms. Is that so much to ask?”

  He must have seen the wisdom of her request, because they were on their way to the base in seconds. She had her evening planned and her casserole would be ready whenever someone was brave enough to try it.

  Loxin got her out of her uniform in seconds, but his took considerably longer. The reveal was quite worth the effort and they both crammed into the shower to remove the sweat of their exertions and the fear that both had felt. It wasn’t the only thing that they did together that afternoon, but it set a pattern.

  * * * *

  Jekross looked at the meal left in the heater and he sniffed carefully. It looked like a battlefield but was actually quite tasty. If Dot got more practice with the spice rack, it might be edged into wonderful.

  Ralos sauntered over, “It smells pretty good. Should we wait for them?”

  Jekross set the deep dish on the table and Keyesh sniffed at it carefully before reaching for the scoop.

  “No. We are not waiting
for them. After they mate, they will sleep in each other’s arms. They both had a scare today. They need it.” He sat and filled his plate and then his glass.

  “They certainly do.” Ralos raised his glass. “To our fearless leader getting laid.”

  They toasted to his sentiment.

  Jekross wondered if Oracle would ever figure out that she was in charge. They had required a leader who was different in every way, and oddly enough, she was precisely what they needed, and they were the same for her. He might tell her that she was in charge, but only if she needed to hear it.

  Author’s Note

  This story could have gone on and on. I had forgotten what fun the Imperium was. I need to get back there soon. But a deadline called so you can enjoy what there is of it and imagine the rest.

  Dot and Loxin will appear in a future book…when I need them to.

  Thanks for reading,

  Viola Grace

  http://www.violagrace.com

  [email protected]

  About the Author

  Viola Grace was born in Manitoba, Canada where she still resides today. She really likes it there. She has no pets and can barely keep sea monkeys alive for a reasonable amount of time. Her line of day job tends to be analytical which leaves her mind hopping to weave stories. No co-worker is safe from her character analysis. In keeping with busy hands are happy hands, her hobbies have included cross-stitch, needlepoint, quilting, costuming, cake decorating, baking, cooking, metal work, beading, sculpting, painting, doll making, henna tattoos, chain mail, and a few others that have been forgotten. It is quite often that these hobbies make their way into her tales.

  Viola’s fetishes include boots and corsetry, and her greatest weakness is her uncontrollable blush. Her writing actively pursues the Happily Ever After that so rarely occurs in nature. It is an admirable thing and something that we should all strive for. To find one that we truly like, as well as love.