Syfi Warriors Read online

  “You better.” Emma’s bottom lip trembled as she pulled away.

  James nodded at her. “I promise.” He wiped a stray tear from the girl’s cheek before turning on his heel and marching to where Nova stood at the door. “Let’s go.”

  Nova followed him out and got into the thing he’d called a truck. The small vehicle was loud and slow. No wonder it would take them an hour to get to their destination. This thing was archaic. She half expected it to fall apart during their travels.

  James put on a restraint and put the car in gear. The truck jostled them as they made their way down the gravel and back to the smooth blacktop.

  “I thought we’d head to a few more neighbors’ houses before going to the school.”

  “Sure,” Nova said, her eyes going to the sky. Nothing was out there, thank goodness.

  “I don’t make promises I can’t keep, so it’s important I make it back to Emma tomorrow.”

  Nova turned to him. “You must love your daughter very much. She’s lucky to have you.”

  James smiled. It was the first time he’d done it. The action softened his features and if possible, made him more handsome. “I love her very much, but she’s not my daughter. She’s my niece.”

  Nova frowned. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize.”

  James shrugged. “There’s nothing to be sorry for…unless you’re my sister. She, uh, dumped Emma on my parents when Emma was one. They did their best to take care of her, but my father has been battling cancer for a few years now and my mom has the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s. Emma was too much for them and so was the farm. They moved into an assisted living home in Atlanta. It’s unfortunate that they were just here on a vacation to check in on us. If the invasion had been a day or two sooner, they’d be safe and here with Emma and I. I could look out for them too. Emma’s terrified for them. We are the only family she really has. I was able to get an honorable discharge from the Marines, moved home, took over the farm and have been raising Emma ever since. That was three years ago.”

  “And where is your sister?” she asked curious. How could a woman just give up her child? It happened even on Delphi. Her parents for example had all but disowned her. How could a parent do that? She didn’t understand. If she ever had children she would love them unconditionally no matter the life they chose.

  “New York, I think. She’s never settled down even though she’s a few years older than me. At thirty-nine I doubt she ever will. At least she has the good sense to leave Emma with me. I can’t imagine how bad off she’d be if Amy was dragging her around, and her father has been out of the picture since before Emma was even born.” James drummed his fingers on the steering wheel. “You, uh, got family?”

  “Two brothers and my parents. They all live on Delphi,” Nova said. She looked out the window, taking in the lush greenery as they passed it by. It was remarkable here. The greens and blues were a deep contrast to the reds of her world. It was a shame the Imanji were destroying this world. The inhabitants and the plant life were amazing.

  “They must be proud of you. It takes a lot of courage to travel the galaxy and save people from doomed worlds.”

  Nova snorted and shook her head. “My parents nearly disowned me when I joined Captain Cree’s brigade.”

  “Really? Why?” James glanced over at her before focusing on the road again.

  She ran a hand through her hair and sighed. “My parents are both politicians. They’ve always been against my people’s explorations. My brothers have dutifully followed in their footsteps.” Her brothers would never stand up for themselves. She knew for a fact her eldest brother wanted to be a doctor, but ever the dutiful son, he had forgone medical school and taken an internship with their father.

  “So, what made you change your mind and be the rebel?” James asked.

  Nova leaned back in her seat and stuck her arm out the window, letting the warm breeze glide over her skin. “I was an aide for my father when Captain Cree made his first speech to the council. His family was part of a diplomatic mission to explore the world. They’re the ones that discovered the Imanji. They were the first species that my people found with technology close to ours. Only problem was their planet was dying, or so we were led to believe. It was all a ploy. They must have seen our gullibility from a mile away. We fell right into their trap, and they stole information, tech, star charts from us. Then they turned on us. Captain Cree’s parents were killed on the Imanji planet. He was very passionate about righting our wrongs and stopping the Imanji before they harmed anymore worlds.”

  “Sounds like an honorable guy,” James said.

  “He is. His words convinced enough council members to grant him The Retribution and begin his crusade.”

  “They obviously influenced you too,” James said.

  Nova smiled. Zephyr Cree had inspired her. He’d changed her life and given her purpose. “He was right, though. Burying our head in the dirt isn’t going to fix the problem. The Imanji wouldn’t leave us alone forever. They were already blocking our ability to mine ore to build more space ships. It’s only a matter of time before they figure out how to break down our shields and attack our planet. We needed to take the fight to them.” Nova wiggled her fingers in the breeze.

  James bumped a stick by the steering column and a rhythmic clicking filled the cabin and shut off again when they turned. “Putting a Band-Aid on a problem never fixes it.”

  She frowned, replaying his words and then nodded, understanding what he meant. “No. It only delays the inevitable.”

  “You said they stole star charts. Have your people been here before then?” James asked.

  “Many, many years ago,” she said, leaning forward as he slowed the vehicle. “Our ancestors were explorers. They traveled many galaxies, but never found any worlds with life that were as advanced as our own. My people stopped exploring for a long time, dismantled the ships and lived on Delphi until a few decades ago.”

  “You know, there is mythology about phoenixes here on Earth.”

  “Probably my ancestors,” she said with a smile. There were archives on the humans in Delphi’s database. She’d spent a little bit of time reading them because she had found the humans fascinating and because this was her first mission off ship. It had been hundreds of years since phoenixes visited Earth. At the time the humans had considered them gods because of their abilities. Part of the reason they left the planet was because they did not wish to be viewed in such a way.

  James chuckled drawing her from her thoughts.

  “What?” she asked.

  “Nothing. It’s just funny that my people have wondered if we were alone in the universe for…for a really long time and aliens visited us centuries ago,” he said as he pulled the truck to a stop.

  Nova turned her attention to the house before them. It was quiet and there was no movement that she could tell.

  “Why don’t you stay in the car? I don’t want to frighten them,” James said. He turned to her with his brows lifted.

  She inclined her head and leaned back in the seat.

  James got out and hurried to the door. His boots thudded against the wooden deck as he walked across it. He lifted his hand but then dropped it back to his side, kicking the door in with his foot.

  Nova slid forward, opening her door. She slipped out and made her way across the grass. The Imanji might not be here, but she feared what was inside the house, or more so what wasn’t.

  The wood boards creaked under her weight as she made her way across them. She stopped at the door. James crouched on the floor, his feet inches from a pile of ashes.

  She took a step back unsure if she should leave him or not. The boards creaked beneath her feet and James whirled around, drawing a weapon from the back of his pants. She held her hands up. “I’m sorry.”

  He gulped and lowered his gun. His other hand went to his face and then ran through his hair.

  “How many people are they going to kill?” James asked with a growl.


  Nova looked at the floor. “Everyone.”

  His eyes flashed up to meet hers. “What?”

  “It’s how they feed, James. They kill people or take them prisoner on one of their ships to feed on later.”

  James ground his teeth together. “We have to keep moving.” He stood up and walked past her, nearly clipping her shoulder as he brushed past her.

  Nova followed after him, hoping they’d have better luck at the next house.

  It wasn’t her fault the last five houses had been empty save for the ashes of its previous inhabitants. James gripped the steering wheel tighter in his hands. The Imanji had gone from house to house, skipping over the Nielson’s, or maybe missing them because of their cellar, who knew. How many people had died already: hundreds, thousands, or more likely millions?

  He huffed and banged his palm on the wheel. There had to be something more they could do. They hadn’t come across any other of the yellow aliens yet. Maybe the string of dead bodies would end, and they could find some hope.

  James turned toward the high school. It was nearly six. People would be gathering there by now. Surely the sheriff had spoken to the town before hitting the rural areas. His foot pushed down on the accelerator, pushing the truck close to 100. There wasn’t anyone else on the road, or anyone to give him a speeding ticket. Even if there were any police officers on duty, his speeding was the least of their problems.

  Nova shifted on her seat and continued to gaze out the window. She hadn’t said a word in a while. What did she think of all this? Did it disgust her as much as it did him?

  She turned and met his eyes. James looked away and flexed his hands on the wheel.

  “I am truly sorry, James,” she said.

  “It’s not your fault. You didn’t kill them.” He couldn’t even be mad at her people if he thought about it. Humans were explorers too, granted they’d only traveled as far as the moon, but if they had the technology, they’d have gone much further. This problem could have been their doing with the right technology.

  “Have you ever stopped them before?” James asked.

  “We kept them out of Delphi, but we’ve never saved another world. That’s why we are evacuating,” Nova said quietly.

  “My people don’t just give up. I’m sure if we are working with your captain, there’s a plan to save Earth.” At least he hoped there was. Going off to some strange alien planet belonged in the movies, not real life. Earth was home and he couldn’t just leave it behind. Sure he’d been all over the world with the Marines but leaving the planet and uprooting was something else entirely. Would Emma manage the transition? What about his sick, elderly parents?

  “Your people do seem quite capable. For your sake I hope there is something more we can do,” Nova said.

  “How many species have you encountered?” James asked.

  “I do not know how many worlds we have been to, only the ones I have been. This is my first trip planet side. The other two times I merely helped with the accommodations of the evacuated people.”

  “So, you’re new to all this? I guess I thought you’d been doing this longer based on what you said.” She seemed like a seasoned fighter. He wouldn’t have guessed this was her first mission, then again, he’d seen men who had been in the military for years go weak in the knees at the first sign of trouble. Some people had grit, others didn’t.

  “I had to go through the academy at home before I could officially join the crew of The Retribution.”

  That made sense. Of course a species with that kind of technology and advancements would have formal training.

  “Not to mention, the obstacles my parents threw at me,” Nova continued.

  “Obstacles?”

  She sighed and slouched in the seat. “Yeah. They tried to thwart my every move.”

  “Why? They were that adamant about you joining?” James asked. He couldn’t imagine having to go against his parents like that. His parents had always supported his career choice. Sure his mom worried, but she never tried to stop him.

  “Yeah. I come from a rich family on my planet. They provide a lot of independent funding for the academy and various other organizations. They threatened to pull funding if I was allowed to graduate,” Nova said. She reached up and tugged on a strand of her blonde hair twirling it around her finger.

  “Can they do that?” That type of politics wouldn’t be allowed on Earth at least not so openly. Who knew what was allowed on her home world?

  “They can and they did.”

  “But you made it through?” James asked the obvious. She was here so something had changed.

  Nova nodded. “I did most of my training on The Salvation under Captain Maddox Livstik. Our parents knew each other, and had deferred opinions on Delphi’s ventures into the universe. Maddox and I had met on several occasions before my tenure on his ship. He recognized my name and sought me out. We became friends. When he found out what my parents were doing, he spoke with the university. I don’t know what he said, but it worked. I heard rumors that he donated double what my parents did. I graduated and went on my way to The Retribution.”

  “It sounds like Captain Livstik had a thing for you,” James said unable to stop the slight growl that came out even though he meant to tease. Was he jealous? Nova was pretty – beautiful. She was smart, caring, capable, and intelligent, all things he wanted in a woman.

  Nova barked out a laugh. “Maddox? No. We are strictly friends. That man is all business. He takes his job, the law, and our planet’s security very seriously. Maddox was only doing what he thought was right.”

  “Seems like a lot of trouble to go through,” James persisted. Crap, he really was jealous. This was what happened when you spent too much time with farm animals and twelve-year-old girls and not enough time with people your own age.

  “You don’t know Maddox Livstik.”

  “Well, I can’t wait to meet him,” James said under his breath.

  “Only Delphi military is allowed aboard The Salvation. It stays in Delphi’s orbit constantly. Maddox hasn’t left his post in…I’m not sure he’s left the ship since he took over actually.” Nova frowned like she was thinking.

  “He’s not here?” James asked. Good the alien who may or may not like her was billions of light years away. He shouldn’t care, but he did.

  Nova shook her head. “No. Only Captain Cree’s ship The Retribution travels the universe. It’s the only one we have that does.”

  He let out a breath and said a silent thank you even though he wasn’t sure why he was so thankful. Nova was a beautiful woman. She might already have a significant other. Not to mention, she was an alien, physically they might not be compatible.

  His eyes wandered over her frame that was still clad in the tight, black jumpsuit. If looks were anything to go by, her anatomy was very similar to a human female.

  Nova pointed. “Look, there are lots of transport vehicles ahead.”

  Her voice jarred him from his thoughts. “Huh?” he followed her finger to where she pointed. The high school was straight ahead and the parking lot was full of cars.

  Chapter 6

  James pulled the truck to a stop in front of the farmhouse. Nova jerked, her eyes popping open as she sat up. She drew in a breath and looked around before settling back into her seat.

  She’d fallen asleep a few moments ago. He’d planned on letting her sleep, but it seemed she was a light sleeper.

  “We are back at your house already?” she asked, lifting her brow.

  He turned his attention to the farmhouse. This might be one of the last times he laid eyes on it. Once they’d gotten to the high school, they’d gone over the evacuation plan. He and several others had broken into small groups, hitting several stores in town to gather enough supplies and weapons for the town until the rescue shuttle arrived. Everyone else had been sent home, hopefully to avoid drawing attention to themselves. They were to meet back at the lot by six to prepare for the short drive to the mines.

>   He turned back to her to answer her question. “We have almost five hours until we have to be back at the school parking lot. I wanted to grab a few things for Emma and I.” His eyes skimmed over her jumpsuit. “Amy might have some clothes in her room that would fit you.”

  Nova shook her head. “Thanks, but no. My jumpsuit is designed to handle the shift from phoenix to this form. I fear your clothes would burn up and leave me naked.”

  James gulped at the thought. That didn’t sound so bad actually. He blinked when he realized he was staring at her and got out of the truck. He needed to change the subject. “I’ve been meaning to ask, are you feeling better?”

  “Much. Thank you.”

  He started up the steps with Nova on his heels. “I’m glad.”

  “Me too. Ice is deadly to us. If it had hit vital organs, I’d be dead.”

  “Thankfully it didn’t.” He led the way through the house and up the stairs. He stopped in front of Emma’s room. “There is a bag hanging on the inside of her door. Do you mind grabbing her some clothes from the dresser? Just a couple pairs.”

  Nova nodded and slipped inside. James went to his room and grabbed a duffle from the closet. He chucked a few outfits inside and then went to his closet and drew out his hunting knives. They weren’t as effective as the guns, and he didn’t know if they’d even work against the Imanji, but they were weapons, and it couldn’t hurt anything to bring them with him.

  There was a knock on the door. It creaked open slightly as Nova peeked her head in. “Did you want me to get anything else?”

  James tried to think if there was anything Emma absolutely needed. He didn’t think so, but there was something important down the hall. “There’s an office two doors down from here. On the desk there is a picture album and a large black rectangle that’s plugged into a computer.” He frowned. Would she even know what he was talking about? “Can you grab those?”

  Nova disappeared again. Her footfalls creaked against the old floorboards.

  He turned back to his knives, setting them on top of his clothes. Then went back to the closet to get more ammo. He ensured his gun was loaded and then put the rest of the boxes in his bag too.