Jack's True Calling

Gee touched his arm. "We will take good care of them. They will be safe with us." Bal nodded with a neutral expression.

Jack rubbed his daughter's heads and they sprung up to his chest to hug him.

"Thank you, Papa!" they blurted in harmony. Then they dropped down and hugged their mom. "Thank you, Mama!"

"Be good, behave, and listen carefully to your teachers!" SennLann said with a smile and they nodded with wide grins.

With a final nod to the two agents, he and SennLann watched them head out of his office. Before the door could close there was a knock and another pair of agents entered quickly followed by Elissa.

"Queen Elissa! I wasn't expecting to see you this morning! This is a pleasant... no?" Jack stopped as he saw the stress on her face. One of the agents moved to the window while the other stepped back to the door and closed it. Before it shut Jack saw two other agents outside. The Queen needed a security escort on Altaria? His nerves jangled. "What's happened?"

"I called your condo this morning and heard you and SennLann had already left for the Embassy. I need to speak to you both." She gestured to the large display on the wall above the couch and he nodded. She pointed her comm at it and the screen came on with an image of a battle scarred Phem Kalos warrior. He was a big and nasty looking brute.

Elissa turned back to them. "Word has finally gotten out from Phem Kalos. This is Jaas Tenn Gunnk, Warrior Supreme of the eastern continent. He and his army have invaded the western continent and have defeated the western army. I should say they destroyed them. None have been allowed to live. It's barbaric how they slaughtered them!"

SennLann was looking up at the screen, trembling slightly. "FennLann?"

Elissa looked at her sadly. "The first to die at the claws of this warrior. I'm sorry to say we didn't see this coming. The eastern continent of Phem Kalos is off limits to travel for 'outsiders'. Its isolationist policies on top of the difficulty our envoys have visiting at all made it impossible for us to gauge the threat. It seems FennLann suffered from the same lack of information. Now he's dead, as is his army. No word on his family."

"The children are dead. All of the ruling party's children are dead. The male members of the cabinet will be dead. The women will be his breeding stock," SennLann muttered quietly as she continued to stare at the image on the screen.

"What?" Jack gasped.

SennLann looked to him. "The only thing females in the royal enclave are allowed to read is the history of Phem Kalos. If he came from the east, and he slaughtered his enemy's army so completely, then he's following the old ways. He will clear away the males and the children to eliminate an entire generation. Then he will breed a new generation with the females which he will make his new warriors. If he is following the old ways."

Jack was shaking with rage. Kill the children? Breed the females? He turned his eyes back to the screen.

"One thing we have learned since he took over is that he is putting the people of the capitol on a project to re-establish the Phem Kalos Empire.

Jack turned his eyes back to Elissa in confusion. "Travel between the planets is done by Gates. The Tik prevent the use of the Gates for invasions."

Elissa looked grim. "The Phem Kalos region of space is actually close to the Altarian and Wuu regions. If the Phem Kalos re-establish their space program, with the planet's resources behind him, Jaas could have his fleet in place in as little as five years."

Jack recalled his trip on the Allsa Komanae space ship and shuddered. Then his mind returned to the females Jaas was going to turn into his slaves. His rage quickly exploded.

"DAMMIT! We have to do something for those females!" he growled.

"No Jack, we can't interfere. This is a Phem Kalos internal affair. The Gate Network members have already put us on notice that we've been flagged as 'invaders' due to our rescue of you and the slaves on Allsa Komanae. If we act now, we risk severe embargos or even expulsion from the Network! If the Phem Kalos proceed with their preparations for war then we'll act in our defense. I have a call with Jaas tomorrow to see if he intends to send a delegate to the annual treaty signing. If you promise to behave yourself during this call, I'd like you to be there so I can gauge the accuracy of the rumor of his xenophobia."

Jack struggled to throttle his rage and took slow deep breaths. He knew it was his experiences at the hands of the Allsa Komanae that were driving his current emotional upheaval but knowledge of the cause wasn't the same thing as being able to manage his reactions. Finally, he was able to nod and look her in the eye. He saw her concern as she'd been with him during those terrible nights afterwards.

"Yes. Yes, I'll be there. Thank you," he managed.

She nodded and touched his arm. "Thank you." She turned to SennLann. "I'm sorry for your loss."

The Phem Kalos female shook her head and held the Queen's eyes. "I've lost nothing. He was dead to me the moment he abandoned me."

Elissa nodded and with a final look at Jack she shut down the large screen and left his office. Jack sat on the front edge of his desk as he went back to brooding about the enslaved females on Phem Kalos.

SennLann moved forward and leaned in against his chest, nuzzling his neck. He wrapped his arms around her.

"If I could get them all out, you know I would," Jack sighed to her.

"I know. You are a good man, but the Queen is right. It is too dangerous for the Altarians to interfere. Too much is at stake for them," SennLann sighed in return. They rested like that for a bit until his desk comm beeped.

"And life moves on," he said with a sad smile.

SennLann kissed him and made her way to the door. "See you tonight."

He nodded and went to answer the comm.

Life moves on.

Chapter 6

Jaas waited impatiently for the technician to cue up the video in the royal offices. Skarl had found the records of FennLann's communications during his time in power and went back a little earlier than that looking for the last references of SennLann Du Kess. They hadn't found any sign of her anywhere in the capitol. Nor was her body buried in the royal cemetery.

"You may leave us," Skarl said to the young male who quickly left the room.

Jaas watched him go with a snarl of distaste on his face.

"The sub-warrior caste has its uses, Jaas," Skarl said evenly as he examined the controls. He could handle it from here.

The leader looked at his second in command and snorted. "Yes, but only when they know their place."

Skarl looked at Jaas. "Oh, he was terrified. You smelled his fear too."

That brought a smile to Jass' face but they had much to do. "Show me."

"The first reference I found was actually footage of SennLann Du Kess off planet!"

"WHAT?!?" Jaas roared in shock.

Skarl glanced at him and nodded. "Two advisors to, then Prince Regent FennLann, FennHark De Kurk, Councillor of Long Sight and FennDurr De Dent, Councillor of the Fist smuggled the Princess off the planet. Their intention was to sacrifice her on Altaria during the treaty signing and start an incident that would lead to war. The plan was poorly conceived and its implementation was even worse and led to this." He started the playback.

They saw the Prince Regent confronting the two large but older warriors. Behind him was SennLann and Jaas' eyes widened as he took in her unique ebony coloring and beauty. He wanted her! She was clinging to an odd creature with horns.

FennDurr attacked the Prince and FennHark went for the Princess but the horned one grappled with him instead. They watched in shock as it killed Fennhark with its horns and then knocked FennDurr over the balcony railing.

Both Jaas and Skarl cried out in disgust when the Princess proceeded to mate with the creature with the horns. Skarl slapped the button to stop the playback.

"What corrupting powers does that beast have to twist the Princess' mind like that?" Jaas growled as he looked a little ill.

Skarl shook his head as he growled to himself about having more images in his head he would never be free from. He found the second clip and looked to Jaas. "The second video is of a call between FennLann, the Queen of Altaria, and the horned alien. According to the title of the video... he's a diplomat on Altaria."

"He is not Altarian," Jaas asserted.

"True. We will need more information on him," Skarl agreed and started the clip.

Jaas cried out in outrage when he heard FennLann had shunned her. For such a lovely creature to be sentenced to death was yet another crime planted at the feet of the former king. His death was too quick- Jaas jolted in surprise when SennLann walked into the picture carrying two bundled infants! She was alive!

"Twins!" Skarl gasped.

They gasped once more when this 'Jack' named SennLann and the children as his.

"No! NO! He cannot have the female and the twins are a blasphemy. Even though they're merely female they were born off planet. They must be eliminated." Jaas growled. He looked to Skarl. "Get me more information on this 'Jack' creature. I need to know everything about it. Where it lives. Who protects it. Where it goes."

Skarl nodded. "I will get our spies on it."

The comm on the desk beeped and they looked at each other. Skarl pressed the button.

"There is a call from Queen Elissa of Altaria waiting. Should I put it through?" said the nervous voice of the male who'd fled the room earlier.

The two warriors looked at each other. "Yes," Jaas said as he held the eyes of his second in command.

The large screen changed to a scene of the Altarian Queen standing next to the horned creature. Jaas and Skarl were both frozen for a moment as it felt like perhaps they were being spied on too.

"Am I addressing Jaas Tenn Gunnk, Warrior Supreme of the Eastern Continent?" the Queen asked politely.

"You are addressing Jaas Tenn Gunnk, Warrior Supreme of Phem Kalos. Queen Elissa?" Jaas corrected and she nodded regally.

"Allow me to introduce my Ambassador, Jack Danner." The horned one nodded but his eyes never left Jass'.

The warrior felt the hairs on the back of his neck begin to bristle. The Ambassador's mane stretched down to his ass! And his horns... looked... different from the video they'd watched. He struggled to keep his revulsion from his face. "My second in command Skarl Vonn Augg." He saw Skarl nod to the screen.

"You are the new ruler of Phem Kalos?" Queen Elissa asked politely.

"I am."

"One imagines you have much to do during this transition. I called as it is customary at this time of year for the two leaders of our people to confer on the preparations for the annual treaty signing ceremony-"

"Before any discussion of said activity can begin, it has just come to my attention that your... Ambassador employed some form of trickery to obtain the Princess SennLann Du Kess. Our citizen must be returned to us. Now."

The Ambassador's neutral expression was quickly replaced by anger. He finally spoke and his voice was deep and rough with suppressed rage. "Either you're delusional or worse, a revisionist. SennLann was smuggled off Phem Kalos and brought to Altaria by FennHark De Kurk and FennDurr De Dent, two extremists trying to use her as a pawn to start a war. FennLann used an ancient Phem Kalos ceremony to bind SennLann to me to protect her from them. When FennLann became King and SennLann was no longer convenient, he used another of your delightful traditions to abandon his pregnant cousin, fully expecting her to die from the abandonment!"

"Jack, enough," Elissa said, placing a hand on his arm. Jaas' revulsion could no longer be hidden and a snarl appeared on his lips. Elissa looked to him with a calm expression. "The Phem Kalos Ceremony of Transference was witnessed and recorded. SennLann has been given Altarian citizenship by royal decree. Her twin daughters are citizens of Altaria by birth."

A shiver ran down Jaas' back making his fur stand on end at the mention of the twins.

"Indeed enough! I've heard all I can stomach. If you don't deliver the exiled Phem Kalos females, relations between our worlds will be entering a very dark period," Jaas snarled.

"If you're determined to ignore the truth and follow your lies instead, if your path depends on the death of children, then you have no honor and cannot bear the title of Warrior!" Jack snarled in return.

With a roar, Jaas slammed his fist on the comm, smashing it and severing the connection. He stood shivering and panting in rage and revulsion as Skarl stood silently at his side, doing his best to hide his shaking.

Jaas stared at the blank screen incredulously. How... how could that freak accuse him... him of having no honor!

"Get me information. I want SennLann alive. I want the twins exterminated," Jaas growled quietly and Skarl nodded with a wince. Jaas missed that and the troubled look in his commander's eyes.

"Jack Danner. I want to kill him personally," he hissed to himself.

He looked at the mess on his desk. "And get me a new comm."

-=-

Elissa blinked at the blank screen and looked at Jack incredulously.

"How was that helpful?" she cried. "You're supposed to be an Ambassador!"

Jack held her eye and took slow even breaths. When he calmed, he spoke.

"Ambassadors maintain peace when possible. When it isn't, they gather information about the enemy to make an assessment of their weakness so they can pass this vital information to their leader. Juice has no intention of maintaining the peace. He's a war leader. He wants stuff and kills to get it. He is very easy to enrage and acts impulsively. I saw his xenophobia as clearly as you did. That said, it's highly likely he's deadly in a fight as he has no regard for life. He will not back down. Unless something is done, you will have war with Phem Kalos. The second in command had a look of intelligence about him. He definitely flinched when I mentioned the children. He might be persuaded to turn on his leader but it depends how much of his leader's craziness he's swallowed."

"Did... did you call Jaas 'Juice'?"

"I did."

Elissa stared at him in confusion. "Why?"

"He's overly aggressive. He's prone to violence. He's obsessed with strength over everything else. On Earth there are people who take drugs to enhance their ability to grow muscle tissue to get stronger. We call this 'juicing' and the side effects of doing it match his behavior. You can't reason with a juicer. Their rage is too close to the surface."

Elissa looked at Jack and wished she could deny his assessment but she was afraid he was right. It was going to be her task to convince the Gate Network council that the actions they would need to take were purely defensive and they were already working under a cloud of suspicion. But she had to put that aside for now as she had to reach out to the Wuu and let them know how poorly the call went. The Wuu were also within striking range of the Phem Kalos.

"Thank you for your assessment Jack. I need to speak with the Wuu leader now. Could you wait outside?" she asked gently

Jack nodded and made his way out into the outer office closing the door behind him.

He dropped himself into a chair and went back over his actions in that call to see if he'd blown it. He knew his rage over what this monster did was going to taint his work as an Ambassador but the moment they'd locked eyes he knew beyond a shadow of doubt that there would be no negotiating with him. No way to convince him to stick to the path of civilized behavior. He had that fervor about him that said he was on the path to glory and would let nothing stand in his way.

He felt the eyes of Elissa's assistant on him and looked up to see her nervous gaze. He realized he was snarling and baring his teeth. He immediately composed his face. "Sorry about that," he mumbled.

He was worried about Elissa and the task she had ahead of her. Her people were pacifists. They were up against a predator of the worst kind. She also had the trouble with the Gate Network officials being on her case. Aggressive military activity was a quick way to discover yourself cut off from the rest of the Network. Nobody wanted that.

The phone on her desk chirped and the assistant listened to it for a second before looking to him. "Ambassador Danner. Queen Elissa would like you to join her again."

He raised his eyebrows in surprise as that must have been a short call with the Wuu! He stood and let himself into her office again and saw she was standing before the display. Typical for the race, the Wuu was standing much too close to the camera and its image filled the big screen. They enjoyed representing themselves as larger than life.

Elissa gestured for him to stand next to her so he did.

"Greetings, Jack Danner," a mechanical translator's voice said.

"Greetings, Wuu Leader," Jack returned. The Wuu weren't really fans of fancy titles.

"Queen Elissa has explained that the Phem Kalos appear to be gearing for war. Or at least they have a leader who intends to. I would hear your impression of this being," it asked.

"He calls himself Warrior Supreme. He's defeated the only force on his planet capable of fighting back and I understand he slaughtered all of the warriors. He has no more opponents. What do warriors do when they've pacified their home?" Jack asked.

The Wuu purred. "They visit their neighbors." Jack nodded. "Queen Elissa, you will have difficulty making any military preparations, even to protect yourself. I would speak for you at the Gate Network council meeting."

Queen Elissa nodded to the Wuu with a smile. "Every bit of help will be appreciated."

The Wuu paused for a moment then addressed Jack. "I received word that you defeated a nine metre Dynast Class Skrahak, singlehandedly. What weapon did you use to do this?"

Jack smiled making sure he displayed a lot of teeth. He reached up and pulled the bone caps off. "The weapons I used were destroyed in the hunt. The following day my horns fractured along stress lines and my body shed them. I'm told my new ones are far stronger and more resilient than the originals." He tipped his head forward to display the black horns, the deadly tips plain to see.

The Wuu made an odd surprised sound followed by loud purring. "I would very much like to hunt with you one day!" Jack nodded to the leader with a toothy grin causing it to purr again.

"Queen Elissa, the Wuu pledge to assist the Altarians in any way we can should the Phem Kalos decide to take military action," the leader said and Elissa graciously bowed.

The Leader turned to Jack once again. "I did some research and saw the footage of you defeating two of Phem Kalos' fiercest warriors at a Treaty Signing ceremony. I find this irony to be... delicious." Jack just nodded with a smile which got more purrs. "While peace is always preferred, we will be ready if that isn't possible. Our fleet of ships stands ready." With that, it signed off.

Elissa looked at Jack with a worried expression. "My allies live up to their reputation of having a blood thirsty nature."

Jack held the Queen's eye. "Humanity's veneer of civility is paper thin as well. But there are times when that isn't a negative." He saw she was unhappy with the decisions she was going to have to make. Maybe he had something more positive for her. She needed to have a little happiness in her day.

"Have you seen my report on the Harruushans?" he asked

She smiled and nodded. "Yes, they sound lovely."

"I think it would be an excellent idea to send a delegation of Altarians to their planet to meet with the people and see just how compatible they are," he suggested.

"Would you join them?" Elissa asked.

Jack paused to examine her expression but she was just showing simple curiosity. Of course, she was adept at hiding her true intent. "No... I don't think so. It should be people who'd be living in close proximity to them. Just people meeting and getting to know people. We're talking about having the Harruushans living on an Altarian world. That's something to get used to. Or not. Chemistry is a tricky thing."