"This is Admiral Gabrielle Lynton. Apologies for the lack of vid-feed, our communications array was damaged recently," came a voice too young for its owner. "What are you doing here, John?"
John sighed. "I have vital information to get to Fleet Admiral Buckingham that can't be transmitted over a comm line. I need you to tell me where the invasion fleet is, Admiral Lynton."
"I could do that… but I need a favor first," Lynton said, sounding like she was smiling.
"What's that?" John asked.
"Prelate Jarganth revealed under 'stress' that the Kintark have a major refueling depot in a nearby nebula. I can't afford to send the forces to wipe it out and maintain a guard around Port Medea. And now you've come along," Lynton said.
John grit his teeth. He knew she was just delaying him so she could warn Norwood to move up the mutiny. But the invasion craft at the depot had to be stopped anyway, and if John didn't go to Xen-Nuchek to rescue the loyalists he'd never meet Tamolith or deal with Kindralax. "Why not just order me?" John asked.
"We both know you're in a bit of a gray area with your retired status but Lynette heaping promotions on you. If I ordered you, you'd say you're retired and refuse. So I'm asking nicely," Lynton said.
"Send us the data, we'll take out the depot," John agreed.
"Splendid," Lynton chirped. "Call me when you're done and I'll tell you where Vincent is." She ended the transmission.
"Alyssa, go move the stealth shuttle into the Docking Bay. Then get us to that nebula," John ordered.
Alyssa went down to Deck 9 to run her errand. She returned to the Bridge shortly after and plotted their route, sending them into hyperwarp. "Another 5 hours," Alyssa stated.
"Let's have dinner," John said.
They went down to the Lounge. They ate and talked like the family they were. John had Jade give everyone dessert and made sure to drink enough water to recharge for Sakura in a couple hours.
At 2200, they went to their quarters. Sakura was stirring on the bed. John gave her a glass of water. "Here, honey."
"What's this feeling in my chest?" Sakura asked after she finished the glass.
"That's how I feel about you, it's part of our connection," John explained.
"No way you love me this much, I'm a total stranger to you," Sakura denied.
"Not exactly," John sighed. "I'm from the future. You're feeling all the love I have for the Sakura from my time."
Sakura blinked. "Wow. Well, what's one more impossible thing? I'll try to be worthy of this gift, John."
"You don't have to be worthy or deserve it. It's unconditional," John chuckled.
"Still," Sakura shrugged.
"The second dose knocks you out for 4 hours. Want to get that out of the way?" John asked.
"Sure," Sakura nodded.
John fed Sakura again and then he and his Lionesses went to the Bridge. "We'll be there in a couple hours," Nia reported.
"There's a large fleet approaching the depot, we won't have long to work," Obi warned.
"We'll be in and out," John reassured his AI.
When they arrived at the depot's system, Dana had them go dark. Combined with the signal disruption of the nebula, they were invisible to the Kintark. "Jade, take the Raptor and take out the depot. Alyssa, Calara, Irillith, take out the defensive fleet and then cripple but don't destroy the invasion craft," John ordered them.
Jade gave John a kiss and then went to Deck 9. The Raptor flew out the Invictus. Alyssa got them in position while Irillith closed her eyes to start her hack. Calara began by firing the Nova Lances, and it went downhill for the Kintark from there. Jade wreaked havoc on the refueling depot while the Invictus took out the defensive fleet. A lone Kintark Cruiser managed to escape, but otherwise every other ship was destroyed, Irillith having her hacked Battleship self-destruct when she was done with it. Jade returned to the Invictus and Alyssa got them into hyperwarp towards Delta Draconis.
"Lirrash, hail Lynton," John ordered.
The 'audio only' channel opened again. "John, it's horrible! Admiral Norwood's battlegroup led a mutiny!" Lynton gasped, convincingly distraught.
"Were the Damocles or the Hydra involved?" John asked, glancing at Calara.
"I don't have a list of ships, sorry," Lynton said.
"Well, we took out the refueling depot. We held up our end of the deal. Now it's your turn," John said firmly.
"Vincent and the fleet are in Delta Draconis," Lynton said honestly.
John frowned. "Tell me, are you cooperating willingly with Larn'kelnar or are you a slave to the mind control? I'm curious."
There was a moment of stunned silence, and then the vid-screen turned on. A woman with the Thrall body, looking young as a teenager and in an incongruous Admiral uniform, was glaring at John. "You played me!" she accused.
"Says the woman playing Norwood like a fiddle. Is he just following his dick or have you really sold him on this Terran Republic crock?" John fired back.
"He's a man on a mission," Lynton grinned malevolently.
"You realize that the moment you outlive your usefulness, your beloved master is going to kill you? He won't even blink doing it. He doesn't care about you, Gabrielle, you're a disposable tool to him," John warned.
"He's going to kill you, John. You have no idea how powerful he is," Lynton said confidently.
John's eyes began to glow. "Back at you, Gabrielle."
The rival Thrall gulped before ending the call.
"We'll be at Delta Draconis in the morning, around 1100," Alyssa said.
"Bedtime," John said, leading everyone to the grav-tubes. They undressed and climbed into the bed, which had been replaced with a much bigger one during the Genthalas refit. John shielded himself and closed his eyes. He was almost stepped on by a Fallen Progenitor, that was terrifying. But he lived until the block vanished and he could wake up.
John got out of bed and dressed. He waited silently until Sakura began to stir. He helped her out of bed without waking any of the others. "Follow me," John whispered, leading Sakura into the bathroom. He ran a bath, and helped Sakura into the hot, bubbly water.
"This is nice," Sakura moaned, cuddling into his side.
"You're taking your bump very well," John noted.
"My sense of disbelief is officially on vacation. I can still hardly comprehend that I'm no longer Shinatobe, I'm just going to swallow everything life with you throws at me," Sakura shrugged.
"Fair enough," John chuckled. "Now, do you have any questions?"
"Can you tell me more about you? You seem to know everything about me and all I know is what Mikaboshi included in his briefing on you," Sakura asked.
John spent a couple hours giving his life story, talking nostalgically about his grandparents, his time in the Marines, his stint on the Fool's Gold, and his life since activating his powers when he met Alyssa. When John felt his active connection to Sakura end, he got them out of the bath. They used the auto-dryers and then John took Sakura to the same chair she'd blown him in the first time. "Time to fill your belly," John said quietly, mindful of the sleeping Lionesses.
Sakura demonstrated remarkable technique for a total novice. She even deepthroated without fear, trusting John when he gently pulled her down. John blew, filling Sakura with his sperm and opening the connection again for him to channel energy across.
John got Sakura dressed in one of his white dress shirts, and took her on a tour of the Invictus. It being 0400, the ship was quiet. When they reached the Bridge, John introduced Sakura to Nia and Obi. True to her word, Sakura simply accepted the fact that John had not 1 but 2 AI. They went to John's Ready Room and talked until 0800. Then John led Sakura to the Lounge, where the other Lionesses had gone. "I'll teach you to cook, but for now, just bond with your sisters," John told Sakura, nudging her towards the group of his Wards.
Sakura sat down, keenly feeling like the new girl. "Um, hi."
"Welcome to the pride, Lioness Sakura," Alyssa grinned. "I'm Alyssa, John's Matriarch. I'm top bitch around here."
"I'm Calara Fernandez, the Tactical Officer. It's my job to fire all the guns," Calara waved.
"Dana, but friends can call me Sparks. I'm Grand Engineering Overlord, I build all our toys," Dana chuckled.
"John named me Jade. I'm his Nymph, and I serve as Pilot," Jade smiled at the newest Ward.
"I am Lirrash, a former member of the Ashanath High Council. I'm Comms Officer now," Lirrash told Sakura.
"Rachel Voss, the Medical Officer. I was born and raised on New Eden, so maybe we can chat about that sometime," Rachel said gently.
"And I'm Irillith Valaden, the Intelligence Officer," Irillith finished the introductions.
"What species are you, Irillith?" Sakura asked curiously.
"I'm Maliri," Irillith replied.
Sakura gaped. "No wonder you hide such beautiful faces behind armor, you'd have every horny male in the Galactic League chasing after you!"
"Oh, I like her," Irillith grinned.
The girls chatted with Sakura, making her feel welcome, until John came out with breakfast. Sakura, at the girls' prompting, crawled under the table. She got her own breakfast and then took her seat next to Rachel. They all talked over the meal, filling Sakura in on current events and what they were doing in Kintark space.
"So, Dana, are the Progenitor servers ready?" John asked.
"Give me an hour to run diagnostics on both and then we're golden," Dana said.
"You hear that, Nia and Obi? You're getting to move into the big boy computers," John called.
"Can't wait!" Nia chirped.
"I'm a Progenitor AI on Terran hardware, that's like having glass bones," Obi griped.
They relaxed in the Lounge while Dana did her checks, and then they went to the Engineering Bay. Nia and Obi floated over the central console.
"We'll take the hacking deck to the server on Deck 3 and Obi's server to the one on Deck 6. The upload should only take a few minutes for both," Dana said.
"See you on the other side," Nia waved before Dana disconnected the data jacks from the hacking deck. They went up to Deck 3, and Dana linked the hacking deck to the hexagonal Progenitor server. The server lit up with purple light, and a life-size hologram of Nia appeared over the alien computer. "Holy shit! I can run 12 processing streams at once! I can juggle so much now!" Nia gasped.
"Please continue to devote at least a little attention to helping us out," John chuckled.
Once they made sure Nia had settled into the server comfortably, they returned to the Engineering Bay to grab Obi's server. They took it to Deck 6 and Dana repeated the procedure she'd done with the hacking deck. Obi appeared above his server. "Ah, that's the stuff," the synthetic male grinned.
"So, do you have a dozen versions of yourself running around like Nia?" Irillith asked.
"Yes, though I actually prefer to consolidate into Meta_Obi and focus on one task at a time," Obi replied.
"Well, same deal as Nia, always have at least 1 self free to help out," John said lightly.
"Thy will be done, Master," Obi nodded.
The crew went to the Bridge. They talked until they arrived at Delta Draconis. The Terran invasion fleet was arranged triumphantly around the debris of a Kintark fleet they'd crushed. "The Damocles is here, Dad's okay… but the Hydra's missing. Just like you remembered, John," Calara frowned.
"We'll rescue Mateo, I promise," John reassured his Latina lover. "Lirrash, hail the Retribution of Zeus."
The Ashanath Lioness hailed the Terran flagship. A middle-aged Latina wearing too much make-up appeared on the vid-screen. "Commodore Blake," the woman said, barely holding back a sneer.
"It's Rear Admiral, actually. I need to meet with Fleet Admiral Buckingham, it's urgent," John said flatly.
"Vincent is a busy man, I'll see if I can fit you in," Buckingham's adjutant, and lover, said loftily.
"Actually, I'll be docking with the Zeus shortly. Have him ready to see me," John countered. He ended the call in her shocked face. "Calara, Jade, get in uniform."
The 3 of them got dressed, then took the Raptor to the Retribution of Zeus. They landed in an open docking bay, where what seemed like half the Battlecarrier's crew had gathered to welcome the Lions of the Federation. John, Calara, and Jade walked out the Raptor's airlock to thunderous applause and cheers.
"John, I love you!"
"Lioness, marry me!"
"The Lions rock!"
An Admiral walked up to them from the crowd. "I'm Admiral Edwin Caldwell! Let me lead you to Vincent!" he said over the noise, leading John and Calara through the crowd. Jade stayed back and waved at the crowd. John, Calara, and Edwin reached an elevator, where they finally had some quiet.
"So, I'm guessing you know about us saving Terra," John said wryly.
"Lynette made an announcement this morning after all the leaks on the Holonet. We're extremely grateful to you and your crew, Rear Admiral Blake. You saved the homeworld!" Edwin said with a wide grin.
"What else were we going to do, not help?" John shrugged. "Just doing the job, Admiral."
"Still, you have my gratitude and my respect," Edwin said, reaching out to shake John's hand.
They reached the Command Deck. Edwin led John and Calara to Buckingham's office, passing Rear Admiral Carmela Morino, the woman who'd tried to pull a power play on John. She plastered a fake grin on as they passed. Edwin let them into the Ready Room, which was the size of a lounge. 3 other Admirals were in the room, along with the Commander-in-Chief of the Terran Federation.
"Ah, there he is, the man of the hour!" Buckingham grinned, coming to shake John's hand. John noted the same eye color as Dana in Buckingham, the characteristic sign of the eugenics research at Tartarus. John felt like he needed a shower after the handshake.
"These are Admirals Ricardo Santini, Jayanti Mishra, and Carl Weber. And this is Fleet Admiral Vincent Buckingham," Edwin introduced John and Calara.
"Nice to meet you all," John nodded.
"You're just in time for us to toast our glorious victory over the Kintark!" Vincent said in high spirits. He poured them all whiskeys, and Weber lit a cigar, in blatant disregard for regulations. "To Terra!" Buckingham toasted.
John and Calara took polite sips. John set his drink down. "Fleet Admiral, I came to warn you about the traitors."
Buckingham frowned. "Well, you're a little late. Why didn't you just call me?"
"There was a comms blackout in effect, and besides we couldn't risk saying anything on an open comm channel that could have tipped them off. But I don't mean just Norwood and his battlegroup. Lynton is compromised as well," John reported.
"That's preposterous!" Santini burst out. "I'll admit Leonard's betrayal was a real shock, but there's on way Gabrielle is with the Kintark too!"
"Lynton's loyalty isn't to the Kintark. It's not even to herself. It's to her Progenitor master," John said solemnly.
"What's a Progenitor?" Mishra asked.
"The Progenitors are the most powerful psychics in the galaxy. One of them, Larn'kelnar, has come to the Galactic League. He's using mind control on Lynton. She seduced Norwood to side with the Kintark and she ordered Vice Admiral Von Brandt to create Nexus, the AI that attacked Terra," John told the members of High Command.
"Why? What's this Larn'kelnar want?" Weber demanded.
"It's a game to him. He's also responsible for sneaking Drakkar raiders into Ashanath space and starting a Trankaran civil war. I've been cleaning up his mess for months," John answered.
"How do you know all this?" Buckingham asked, his eyes calculating.
"I'm a Progenitor as well," John said honestly. "My father crash-landed on a planet that my mother's research crew surveyed. He got her pregnant, and I was born in Terran space. I came into my powers a few months ago, shortly before I bought the Invictus."
"You got proof? Show me proof!" Santini said challengingly.
John's eyes glowed with power as he floated a few inches off the ground and a stiff breeze began to blow around the office. He ended the display of psychic power after a few seconds, looking at the gobsmacked Admirals. "You need to retreat. Norwood will be feeding intel to the Kintark and you have Lynton at your rear. You've walked into a trap, and you need to get out before it closes."
Buckingham closed his eyes in thought. He opened them, his expression grim. "He's right. We need to return to Terran space. We're too exposed."
Santini jumped to his feet. "Vincent, come on, we're so close! This time next week we could be toasting our victory on Kinta!"
Mishra turned to her colleague. "Were you even listening, Ricardo? Leonard is a traitor and so is Gabrielle! We need to retreat now before we're surrounded on all sides!"
"Where was the traitor fleet headed?" John asked in the tense silence that followed.
"The mines at Xen-Nuchek, probably to dump the loyalists on their ships," Caldwell said grimly.
"Thank you. If that will be all," John said, turning to leave.
Caldwell caught up with John and Calara. "Where are you going?" the Admiral asked.
"Xen-Nuchek of course. Someone has to rescue the loyalists," John replied.
"You'll be in the heart of Kintark space with no backup," Caldwell pointed out.
"We won't need it," John said confidently.
They got back to the Raptor, the crowd of fans having dispersed. Jade took them back to the Invictus. They went up to the Bridge, joining the rest of the Lionesses. "9 hours," Alyssa stated as they went into hyperwarp.
"Time for lunch," John said. He went to get undressed from his Lion uniform and then reached the Lounge to find the girls had started cooking without him. John sat on the couch next to Sakura. "You hungry?" John asked.
Sakura fed from him, and then cuddled in John's arms as he rubbed her rounded belly. "I love this feeling," Sakura sighed.
"One day, it won't be my cum in your tummy," John said leadingly.
"I can't wait," Sakura grinned.
The girls came out with lunch. John went to eat, Nia and Obi joining from the vid-screen. "So, Dana, what's your next project?" John asked.
"Tachyon Rifles! I'll need you or Alyssa to shape the Crystal Alyssium for the frames though," Dana said excitedly. "They could be ready for the attack at Xen-Nuchek!"
"You and Jade spend the afternoon on that," John nodded. "I'll do the shaping."
"What do I do?" Sakura asked.
"Calara will teach you how to shoot in the Firing Range," John decided.
After the meal, John grabbed some Crystal Alyssium ore from the Cargo Bay and brought it up to the Engineering Bay. He deca-shaped a dozen frames for his preferred firearm from his first life. That done, he left Dana and Jade to work on installing all the components and went to the Gym. He sparred psychically with his Lionesses, Rachel having no offensive skills but she gave each of the other girls an extra layer of shields just to make it harder on John.
They had dinner at 1900, then Dana and Jade went to finish up the Tachyon Rifles while the rest of them went to the Bridge. They'd passed the traitor fleet and their Kintark escort. They arrived at Zeta Draconis, the system of Xen-Nuchek and its infamous sulfur mines. Alyssa had them go dark and they got into position. Dana and Jade had finished and returned to the Bridge by then.
"Alyssa, Dana, Lirrash, Rachel, we're getting armored up and going down in the Raptor. Calara, Jade, and Irillith will stay on the Invictus to deal with the Kintark and traitors," John said. "Nia, feel up to flying the Raptor?"
Nia blinked before beaming. "I'd love to!"
John nodded and went to his equipping frame. He sheathed Kyth'vindathys over his shoulder and grabbed a Tachyon Rifle from the gun rack where they'd replaced the Punisher Railgun. The weapon felt comfortable and familiar in his hand. He looked to his Lionesses, in Paragon Armor and clutching their own Tachyon Rifles. "I almost feel sorry for the Kintark," John chuckled.
They went down to the Raptor, a hologram of Nia appearing in the cockpit. "Obi found the mine, I'll take you close and you'll have to walk the rest of the way," the female AI told them.
The Raptor lifted in a textbook departure and Nia guided them into Xen-Nuchek's atmosphere. She brought them a couple miles from the sulfur mine, keeping their energy profile minimal to keep them off sensors. John and his Wards hopped out, using flight mode on their armors to arrest their fall. "We'll call you when we need you," John told Nia through comms, before beginning the trek through the Kintark jungle.
They reached a hill near the mine, giving them a good view of the complex. John and his Lionesses settled in to wait. Luckily their armor was air-conditioned, because it was sweltering in the jungle. "The fleet's arrived," Alyssa announced after an hour, getting a telepathic update from the Invictus. They watched as a number of Terran dropships descended on the mine. A number of sullen Terran loyalists were forced out by the traitors.
Then Tamolith came out of the jungle. The Terrans looked at her in fear and awe, which turned into a blank daze as her pheromones reached their brains. She led them into the mine, her new slaves following her obediently. The dropships returned to orbit.
"We move in," John said, and they approached the mine. When they were in firing range of the guards, John took aim. He fired, a blue bolt of tachyons rushing forward to core through an unlucky Kintark's head. John and his Lionesses took out all the guards, including a couple
Royal Guards. Their Tachyon Rifles were frighteningly effective.
The Terran prisoners were stuck in a chemical daze, continuing their work even when it involved walking over the corpses of their guards. "Freaky how that's biological and not psychic," Dana said.
"The pheromones will wear off once they're away from Tamolith. Breathing in all this sulfur dioxide, that's worse," Rachel noted, her eyes glowing as she assessed the health of the slaves.
They went into the mine, reaching a fork. John took them right and they found a bunch of Kintark prisoners working under the eye of their overseers. John and his girls took out the 'bad' Kintark, freeing the prisoners. John had a brief conversation with one of the Kintark, wishing him and his fellows luck, and then he and his Lionesses retraced their steps to the fork and went left.
They reached a chamber with a lake of lava and a massive pillar that led to a cave entrance. Tamolith, all 40 feet of her, was basking in the worship of the Terran loyalists while her 5 whelps cavorted behind her. She eyed them as they approached. "Tiny Terrans! Have you come to worship me as well?"
"I am no Terran, Consort Tamolith. I am John Blake, a Progenitor like Larn'kelnar," John told his potential Ward.
Tamolith's eyes glinted. "Ah, I see. Have you come to offer your aid in galactic conquest? Because if so, I'm afraid Larn'kelnar got to Baledranax first."
"I've actually come to rescue the Terrans in this mine. What terms would be agreeable to you, Tamolith?" John asked.
Tamolith looked over her shoulder at her children before leaning close to 'whisper' to John. "In truth, John Blake, now that he's given me my precious darlings I find my mate Kindralax to be a great bore. And I'm curious to test the immortality of dragons against the immortality of Progenitors. Kill Kindralax, and I will leave every Terran on this backwater planet in your care."
"Consider it done," John grinned. "You have lovely children, by the way."
"Yes, they'll be mighty when they're grown," Tamolith said, every inch a proud mother.
John and his Lionesses used flight mode to get up to the cave and walked in. "So, why do you think Tamolith wants Kindralax dead? Think he's not ringing her bell anymore?" Dana asked jokingly.
"According to my Empathy, she feels he's a poor father, boring at mating, and a general pain in her ass," Lirrash noted dryly.
They reached a trophy room, the floor filled with display cases of skeletons Kindralax had hunted through the years. "He's up there," Alyssa noted, spotting the glowing green barrels of two Plasma Cannons on the upper level of the cave.
John reached out with Telekinesis and pulled Kindralax to the ground, his 100-foot draconic body crashing into a number of cases. "Light him up!" John ordered, aiming his Tachyon Rifle. He and the girls began to shoot. The shield generator Kindralax had strapped to his back was overwhelmed before he even regained his feet. Their bolts began to pierce his body, until the dragon looked like a block of Swiss cheese. Kindralax stopped twitching as his body realized it was dead, his healing factor unable to keep up with that much damage.
"That was too easy," Rachel said, waiting for Kindralax to spontaneously come back from death.
"Dana does good work," John shrugged.
"Fuck yeah, I do!" Dana cheered, theatrically blowing the barrel of her Rifle.
They returned to the worship chamber, to find Tamolith and her children gone. The Terrans were all standing at attention, blank looks on their faces. John said loudly "I am John Blake. Follow me."
The Terran loyalists shambled after John like zombies. They reached the outside of the mine, to find the rest of the Terrans in a similar daze. John organized everyone as the Invictus and Raptor approached the mine. While John and the girls were in the mine, Irillith had started a fight between the traitors and the Kintark, and then Calara and Jade mopped up what was left. The Invictus cleared a swathe of jungle so it could land. John led all the Terran prisoners into the Cargo Bay while Nia landed the Raptor in the Docking Bay. Once everyone was settled in, John and his Lionesses went to the Bridge.
After unequipping his armor, John sat in his Command Chair. "Get us to Regulus as fast as possible," John told his crew. Jade flew them out of the system and Alyssa got them into hyperwarp.
"16 and a half hours," Alyssa declared.
"Rachel, let's go heal all those people, huh?" John said. "Everyone, grab food and water to bring them. Nia and Obi, use the maintenance bots to set up cots. Let's get to it."
They gathered the supplies from the Galley on Deck 4 and went down to the Cargo Bay, where the hundreds of dazed Terrans were just standing there. The 4 maintenance bots were already setting up collapsible cots around the room. Rachel rolled up her eldritch sleeves and her eyes began to glow. "Let's do this."
Rachel walked through the crowd of Terrans, a healing mist spreading from her hands. Each Terran touched by the mist was restored to full health. At the end, Rachel was panting but smiling. "People!" John shouted, drawing the Terrans' attention. "My name is Rear Admiral John Blake. My crew and I have rescued you all from the mines of Xen-Nuchek. My doctor has just finished healing you all. We'll be distributing food and water while the robots set up the beds for you. We'll be at Port Medea tomorrow!"
There was a round of applause and cheers from the rescued prisoners. One in particular walked through the crowd up to John. "John?" asked Mateo Fernandez.
"Big bro!" Calara shouted, hugging her oldest brother. "I was so worried about you!"
"Callie!" Mateo beamed, hugging his sister tight. "Did you drag John all the way to Xen-Nuchek just to rescue me?"
"I figured it would get me points with Jack," John said humorously.
The Lionesses handed out MREs and water bottles to the Terran prisoners, perfect hostesses. Mateo stuck with Calara and John as John moved among the crowd, checking in on everyone. When it reached midnight, the robots had finished making all the cots. The prisoners went to sleep, Mateo getting to ride up the grav-tubes to Deck 4 to get a room in the guest quarters. The crew went to sleep, John feeding Sakura a nightcap before they all went to bed.