“We’ll see you later,” Ricki said softly. “I don’t think Jane is ready for a front row seat for what is about to happen.”
Jane looked inquisitively between Ricki and Jo before nodding and following Ricki as she headed back to their living space. She looked up at Ricki who just shook her head and mouthed ‘watch what happens’ with a grin.
“See you later, Ricki – Jane,” the large blond male called out.
“I hope so,” Ricki called back with another shake of her head. “If you live through this one,” she added under her breath as she headed back across the long storage bay to warn her dad that Tony was up to mischief again.
“So,” Tony said turning his attention back to Jo who was gazing at him with a very suspicious look on her face. “Are you tired of He-man yet?”
“Tony, I …” Jo started to say until she looked into his eyes again. They were a dark, sad brown that pulled at her heart. “Tony, don’t,” Jo said, groaning softly.
He stepped a little closer to her causing her to bite her lip in indecision. She didn’t want to hurt his feelings but then again, she didn’t want to give him a false hope. Jo froze as he reached out and gently touched the long braid on her shoulder. He ran his fingers down it before he tugged on the end just enough to force her to jerk forward in surprise.
“You can’t blame a guy for trying,” Tony murmured as he slid his other hand along her waist. “Just one kiss. That is all I ask… just one.”
Jo shook her head and placed her hands on his chest. “You know I don’t feel that way about you. I thought you understood that,” Jo murmured in concern. “I love Manota.”
Tony leaned a little closer to her. “I know,” he whispered, before a wicked gleam entered his eyes. “Think of this as a little science experiment.”
Jo’s head jerked up as she suddenly realized he wasn’t really sad about her loving someone else. “What are you doing? Tony, this has to be one of your worst ideas to date,” Jo muttered just before he sealed his lips over hers in a short fierce kiss.
He pulled back slowly and chuckled. “Stan is trying out a new program that taps into your alien friend’s video feed. He wanted to see if it worked. I told him I would help him out,” he said with a shrug. “If it means stealing a kiss from you, how could I say no?”
Jo put her hands on his shoulders and groaned. “You listened to Stan? Have you ever thought there was a reason so many people were looking for him? He doesn’t always have the greatest ideas. He was the one that posted that live video on the Internet of those six whaling ships killing dolphins and sharks and tossing them overboard causing a riot before he posted the billionaire from Germany hunting at the wildlife refuge in Africa which went viral, remember?”
“Yeah well, Stan is taking bets to see how fast your guy can move. As it is, it has been almost a minute and a half and…,” Tony broke off as a loud roar echoed in the storage bay. “Not bad,” he grinned. “Time to go!”
Jo turned, her eyes locking with Manota’s dark, deadly gaze as he stood just inside the doors leading into the storage bay. She grimaced as his eyes moved to Tony who was grinning like a jackass as he walked backwards. She rolled her eyes when Tony gave the red-flag salute guaranteed to end his life.
Turning back, she stepped in between them and raised her hands up. “Manota, I can explain.”
“He is a dead human,” Manota growled out, pulling his sword.
“You can’t use a sword on him,” Jo said walking toward him. “It was just a joke. He didn’t mean anything when he kissed me.”
Manota’s head swiveled from where he was watching Tony’s retreating back. “Kiss?! He put his lips on you again?”
Jo winced. “You didn’t see that part of the video I’m guessing,” she grimaced, placing her hands on his chest in an attempt to calm him.
“HUMAN!” Manota roared in a blinding rage of jealousy.
Jo gasped as she was lifted up and placed to the side. Manota retracted his laser sword and handed it to her. She looked at his face and grimaced again at the dark intent on it.
“I will not use the sword,” Manota snarled. “I’m going to wrap my hands around his scrawny neck before I rip him apart.”
Jo opened her mouth but Manota was already picking up speed as he stalked toward Tony who glanced over his shoulder before deciding it was time to run like hell. She shook her head when she saw Tony toss some of Marcus’ vanishing powder over his shoulder. From the bright flash and thick smoke, he must have used twice the amount he was supposed to. It was enough to cause Manota to pause as the thick smoke blinded him for a moment, giving Tony a slightly larger head start. Jo watched as Tony disappeared through the maze of campers anchored to the storage bay floor.
“If your mate kills Tony, he’ll be taking care of the damn elephants,” Walter growled out as he came to a breathless stop next to Jo. “I’ll be damn if I’m going to shovel their poop piles.”
Jo fought hard to stop the giggle that threatened her but she couldn’t. Giggling out loud, she turned and stared down at Walter who was watching as Tony rolled out from under Katarina’s camper. It was too low to the ground for Manota to get under. He raced around so fast, Tony let out a loud curse before he ran as fast as he could and disappeared into the Big Top.
“Do you think we should go help him?” Jo asked nervously, folding her arms across her chest and tilting her head in question.
“Naw,” Walter said. “I called the clowns and Marvin and Martin in to help save Tony’s bony ass if he needed it. I have Stan filming the damn thing to see if it will be good enough for a performance,” he added gruffly over his shoulder.
Jo’s mouth dropped open as Walter’s statement sank in. She watched as Walter walked hurriedly toward the Big Top. She quickly followed, stepping inside as Walter held the flap open for her. She looked down at the small ringmaster who was grinning like a Cheshire cat. The knowing look in his eyes proved what she was afraid to think. The sneaky little devil was looking for a new act and auditioning her mate for the part!
“Walter, you are a very devious man,” Jo giggled. “You know he will never become an act in the show, I hope?”
“You never know,” Walter said confidently as he watched Manota try to catch Tony as a couple of the clowns stuffed the elephant trainer into a barrel and started to roll him as fast as they could between them. “He is fast, agile, strong…” He was saying distractedly.
“Deadly… in charge of a planet… a member of the royal family,” Jo continued as she watched Manota jerk back as several more clowns started jumping rope in front him. She breathed a sigh of relief when he made it through the rope without getting tangled up in it. “Has Tony ever been fired out of the cannon before?” She asked curiously as her eyes moved to follow Tony who had climbed up a tall ladder.
Marvin and Martin were stuffing Tony down the huge, multicolor star covered cannon the clowns used. She figured the answer was ‘no’ when Marvin motioned for Tony to wiggle back up so he could jam the helmet on his head before Martin pushed him back down again. Both Mimes scrambled down the ladder and hurried to the other end to aim it just as Manota reached them. Marvin stepped in front of Manota, holding out his hands before taking both of Manota’s hands in his. Jo giggled again as Marvin pulled Manota’s fingers out and stuck them in his ears before doing the same with his own. A moment later, a huge boom sounded. It echoed through the storage bay, drawing members of the circus into the tent to see what was going on. Even from this distance, Jo could see Manota’s eyes widen as Tony flew through the air to land in a huge net half a tent away.
“I think it is time to call a halt to the chase,” Jo said before she grunted as she was thrown forward as the warship rocked.
Manota turned sharply, bracing himself even as Marvin reached for him in surprise. He shook the Mime off, growling into his comlink. The look on his face was nothing like what it had been when he was looking to kill Tony. This one sent a shiver down everyone’s spine. His face now
reflected the look of a cold-blooded, ruthless killing machine.
Jo started to rise again but was thrown sideways when the warship rocked again. She gasped as she was suddenly lifted up. Gripping Manota’s huge forearms, she looked up at him in fright.
“What’s going on?” She asked.
“We are under attack,” Manota growled out as he held her around her waist even as he held his hand out to Walter. “There has also been an explosion in engineering.”
“What can we do to help?” Walter asked as he nodded his thanks for the steadying hand.
Manota reluctantly released Jo. “I need you to get all your people in here. We will seal off the storage bay and I will assign a group of warriors to protect you. I need you to protect my mate, Walter.” Manota instructed quietly. “I have to go to the bridge. Kev is working on engineering.”
“Who would attack a Kassisan warship?” Jo asked stunned.
Manota looked at her grimly before he pressed a hard kiss to her lips. “Pirates,” he replied before turning and leaving.
Chapter 17
Jo glanced down at the laser sword she still clutched in her right hand as if in a daze. She looked at Walter, Nema, Ricki and all of her other friends. Marvin, Martin, Tony, and the rest of the circus crew quickly gathered around to see what was going on. She frowned when she didn’t see her parents mixed in with the rest of the crew.
“Where are my mom and dad?” She asked, looking wildly around the group. “Where are my parents?”
“I saw them leave earlier,” Katarina said quietly. “They said something about going to the training room to work with some of the warriors.”
Jo looked down as Walter reached up and gripped her hand. “When one of our family is in need, all will answer the call,” he said quietly before turning to look at the crew. “You heard me! Get your asses in gear. We are under attack. Let’s show these bastards they better not mess with us.”
A loud roar echoed as each member of the circus yelled out in support. Soon, they were scattering to gather their tools of the trade. Sunny came up to Jo and smiled as she handed her the staff that she excelled at using.
“It’s the double bladed one you use,” Sunny said with a nervous smile. “I’m going to work with Marcus. Stan is going to feed us updates from the ship’s communications. He is also going to see if he can hack into the pirate ships and shut them down.”
“I need to find my parents,” Jo whispered looking at Walter yelling out orders. “I need to make sure they are safe.”
“Go, but take Katarina with you,” Sunny said. “She’ll bring some company to help watch your back.”
Jo looked at the tall Siberian who grinned at her. “Sasha will be happy to have something to play with,” Katarina said in a husky, accented voice. “She has been getting restless lately.”
Jo smiled weakly at Katarina. Sasha was a four year old white tiger that Katarina had saved from a bankrupt zoo when she was a cub. Katarina had two tigers, four young lions and an ocelot that everyone knew she considered to be her children.
“Just make sure she doesn’t sink her claws into me. I’d like to keep my skin intact,” Jo responded.
Katarina threw her head back and laughed. “I have control over my babies,” she said with a wink. “When I want to.”
“Let’s go then,” Jo said briskly. “There are only fifty warriors on this warship. I don’t know how many pirates there are.”
“Stan said there are three ships with approximately two hundred men on board from what he was able to get from the conversations flowing back and forth between K’tar and Manota,” Jade said breathlessly as she joined them. She reached over and pulled the laser sword from Jo’s right hand. “Sweet!” She said with a low whistle as she pressed the button. “Walter told me that I’m with you guys.”
“Stay behind Sasha,” Katarina said as she opened the door to her camper. “Mushie - Nugget, come little ones.”
Jade pressed her back to the camper as a large male tiger weighing in at over four hundred pounds jumped down from the doorway. It was followed by a small, sleek spotted cat. The last one to come out was a white tiger that stretched in the doorway before slowly jumping down to the floor. Her soft, padded paws barely making a sound as she landed.
“Nice house pets,” Jade said with a touch of awe and a lot of fear. “I hope to hell they are house broken.”
Katarina smiled devilishly. “Sometimes,” she said with a grin before she turned and made a sharp command in Russian.
“What did you tell them?” Jade asked, holding the retracted laser sword in front of her.
Katarina turned to glance at Jade before she replied. “Dinnertime,” she said before she took off after her three pets and Jo.
Jade stared after the dark haired Russian beauty before she let an unamused laugh escape. “Dinnertime,” she muttered before she followed her and Jo. “Cute. Real cute.”
*.*.*
“Give me a report,” Manota called out as he came onto the bridge.
“The engines are offline,” K’tar gritted out as he worked at the controls. “Kev said it was sabotage. A small explosive was placed in the coolant equipment panel. It destroyed the panel, knocking the engines offline as the system reads it as a coolant leak. Kev is working with Banner to bypass the panel. There are three pirate ships moving in. Shields are holding but won’t stop them from boarding. I’m detecting at least ten troop transports heading our way.”
“Are the defense systems activated?” Manota said watching as additional shuttles departed from two of the huge ships.
K’tar shook his head. “Offline as well. Whoever sabotaged engineering has been a busy traitor,” he bit out. “I’m running a background search on every member of the crew. Do you think it is possible it could have been one of the members of the circus?”
Manota started to shake his head before he remembered that the two Mimes had been in engineering earlier. He remembered thinking there was something strange about the two of them back on Earth. It was hard to believe they could have caused this type of destruction without being seen but he couldn’t rule it out.
“It’s possible,” Manota replied grimly. “Continue your search of the crew. Sound the alert, level five.”
“Yes sir,” K’tar said turning and pressing the alert to warn the crew they were about to be boarded by hostile forces. “What of our passengers?” He asked gruffly, thinking of the tiny human female named Sunny.
“Post two warriors to the entrance and seal the level,” Manota instructed.
Frustration and rage curled his stomach as he thought of what would happen to the females aboard if the pirates were successful in taking over the warship. He could not spare any more warriors. They were outnumbered and whoever had sabotaged engineering and their defense systems was still on the loose. He knew K’tar would only send in warriors that he felt confident would protect their human passengers.
“I want those bastards dead,” Manota said. “K’tar, you have the bridge. Keep it secure at all cost.”
“Yes sir,” K’tar said, standing and moving to the commander’s chair.
Manota nodded and took all but one other warrior with him. He opened a side panel next to the door. Inside the panel were close-range laser pistols and small laser swords. These were designed for fighting in the narrow corridors and smaller spaces. He handed several out before taking two of the laser pistols and two small laser swords. With a nod to K’tar, Manota stepped off the bridge. He gave the command to seal the doors once the last warrior had passed through. No one but him, Kev or K’tar could now access the bridge short of a large explosive charge. He knew K’tar would give the self-destruct sequence before he let the Seeker be taken.
“No prisoners,” Manota told the young warriors. “Protection of the humans is a priority.”
“Yes sir,” Jai said quietly, thinking of the beautiful olive skinned female named Mattie. “No one will harm them.”
“The first breach has oc
curred on Level 18,” K’tar’s voice came out over his comlink. “Sensors are picking up thirty heat signatures. Additional breaches are imminent on Levels 4 and 6.”
Manota cursed. The storage bays were on Level 4. The bridge was on Level 20. He would have to fight his way down to Jo.
“Get the defense system up, Kev,” Manota barked out. “We have company and I don’t want any more of those bastards on my ship!”
“Working on it,” Kev replied grimly. “I think we found our traitor, or what’s left of him. Banner should have the coolant panel by-passed in twenty minutes or less. The weapons will be back online in five minutes.”
“K’tar, did you get that?” Manota asked.
Manota opened an emergency hatch at the end of the corridor and slid down to the lower level. The lifts deactivated when the alarms sounded. He ignored the flashing red lights as he pressed his hand to the panel to open the hatch to the lower level. Jai and two other warriors followed close behind him.
Manota stepped out into the corridor. He nodded to the three men. He motioned for Jai to come with him while the other two secured the level they were on. Striding down the corridor to the next emergency hatch, he opened it and slid down. He nodded to Jai as he palmed the sensor. The door opened silently. He nodded grimly at Jai before he slipped through the opening. Jai sealed the panel behind him. They would move in a two man formation. Both men could hear the sound of fighting further down the corridor. Taking off at a run, both rounded the corner to find five Kassisan warriors battling with ten of the pirates.
Manota snarled when he saw they were a mixture of Tearnats, Drakas and Killians. He saw one of his men stumble as he took a laser sword across his upper thigh. The man fell sideways but continued to try to fight. Manota let out a roar and burst forth firing his laser pistol at the head of the Draka who had struck the warrior. Even as the Draka fell another took his place. His men were forced back, the injured warrior overwhelmed as a Tearnat cut a slice across his throat.
Rage poured through Manota as he fought. He pressed against the large Tearnat, ignoring the pirate’s snarling. He pressed his laser pistol against the thick thigh and fired three rapid shots. Bellows of rage filled the corridor over the loud shouts of the other warriors. As the large reptilian fell back, Manota swung the laser sword in his other hand savagely across the male’s throat. The creature’s head snapped back as the cut almost severed it from the light green shoulders. Manota heard Kev’s voice as he told K’tar the weapons were back online and to blow the hell out of the pirate ships. The warship rocked violently as the Seeker fired on the ship closest to it. Shockwaves buffeted the warship but the shields held. The pirates must have realized they had lost their advantage as they froze for a split second. Manota reached out, bracing his arm as another shockwave jolted the Seeker. A dark menacing smile curled his lips as he stared back into the suddenly panic- stricken looks of those who realized they were the ones now trapped.