Three Square Meals Ch. 106

"It's an ancient Progenitor battle hymn!" he blurted out, as the knowledge seemed to unlock in his mind. "How on Terra could you have learned that?!"

She shrugged, then gave him a tentative smile. "I suspect it wasn't on Terra..."

John blinked at her, then nodded. "Yeah, I think you might be right."

As neither of them had any immediate answers, Jade relaxed on the bed again and cuddled Lynette, continuing her song where she'd left off. John watched her for a few minutes, realising that despite learning more about the Nymph, it was clear she still had a host of new secrets to uncover.

He left the Observatory and walked out onto the bridge, looking around for the dusky-hued reporter. Jehanna was sitting on one of the padded sun loungers away from the beach and it was obvious she'd been waiting for him. She beamed a bright smile his way, then waved him over and patted the seat beside her. John strode across the bridge, gratefully accepting a fresh drink from Faye as he walked across the golden sand. He sipped his drink then put it down on the table as he sat next to Jehanna.

"So I guess this is goodbye," she said softly, tucking her legs under her and turning to face him.

He could see the sadness in her soulful brown eyes and took her hand in his, squeezing it gently. "It'll only be for a few weeks... the time will fly by," he said, with a sympathetic smile. "You love your job, remember? This way you get to experience the best of both worlds."

"It doesn't feel like that right now," she replied, with a look of heartfelt longing.

"Have you changed your mind?" he asked, wishing he had telepathy, so he could hear her thoughts.

She hesitated then shook her head and leaned into him. "Will you just hold me for a while? I want to remember your arms around me..."

John eased back on the sofa, making room for Jehanna to lie down next to him and rest her head on his chest. He encircled her in his arms and closed his eyes, listening to the steady rhythm of her breathing as she started to get drowsy. John could feel himself drifting off too, the soft warmth of a beautiful girl asleep in his arms lulling him into a peaceful slumber.

***

"John... it's time..."

He opened his eyes and found a fully-dressed Alyssa squatting down beside him. The Lagoon was deserted now, the party over and the empty glasses cleared away. She laid out some clothes and shoes on the side table, then glanced at the tousled mop of jet-black hair resting on his chest. A moment later, Jehanna began to stir, nudged awake by the blonde's telepathic caress.

"Are all the repairs done?" John asked, stretching his stiff muscles before pulling on the change of clothes.

"We're all set," Alyssa replied, stepping back so the couple could stand. She handed a dress and a pair of shoes to Jehanna and added, "The corridors of Olympus shipyard are probably a bit chilly to be wandering around dressed like that..."

Jehanna gave her a grateful smile then glanced down at her damp bikini. She winked at John and stripped off, slipping the dress over her wonderfully naked body. The maroon mid-length dress fit her like a second skin and she marvelled at the comfortable fit. "Is this one of yours?" she asked the blonde as she stepped into the shoes.

Alyssa nodded then glanced up the ramp at the suitcase by the door. "A parting gift. I know you didn't have any clothes with you... after being kidnapped and everything."

"Much appreciated," Jehanna said, before suddenly flinging herself into Alyssa's arms. "I'm really going to miss you..."

"Shh," Alyssa murmured, stroking her back. "You'll be so busy working on all your stories for Avery, three weeks will be over in a flash. Before you know it, you'll have the twins sucking on your tits as John breaks in your ass... If you ask nicely, I'll lick your clit as well and really blow your mind."

Jehanna blushed furiously. "You're such a vixen... I think you take sadistic delight in embarrassing me."

Alyssa gave her a wicked smile. "No, not at all. Just giving you something fun to picture while you're thinking about John at night..."

John laughed and gave the blonde a playful smack on her rump. "Alright, enough tormenting our guest, naughty girl."

Jehanna shared a smile with Alyssa, then stepped closer to John and whispered in his ear, "I don't mind. I want to earn my Lioness ring next time I see you..."

His hands were immediately drawn to her ass and he filled his hands with her firmness, giving her a gentle squeeze as he imagined it. "I'll see if we can get back early," he said with a grin.

Jehanna and Alyssa laughed, then accompanied him up the ramp. He collected Jehanna's case for her and they walked along the corridor to the grav-tube. As they descended, he could feel Jehanna's grip on his hand tightening as if she didn't want to let him go.

*This is hitting her much harder,* John said, darting a quick worried glance at Alyssa. *I thought after last time she'd be okay about being on her own... but now I don't know.*

*She's very much in love with you,* Alyssa replied, giving him a gentle smile. *There's nothing sinister about this; she's just a smitten young woman who wishes she didn't have to be apart from her man.*

He relaxed, nodding his understanding. When they reached Deck Nine, all the girls were waiting in the corridor, including Lynette, who was wearing her Fleet Admiral's uniform once more. John couldn't help smiling at the sight of the gorgeous young woman, who looked barely out of her teens, garbed in the highest-ranking uniform in the Terran Federation.

Lynette saw his flicker of amusement when he glanced at her uniform and she cracked a grin herself. "Yes, I had a look in the mirror when I was getting ready. I'm painfully aware that I look like a model in a parody shoot."

Dana tapped her finger against her chin as she gave Lynette the once over. "I reckon we've made a mistake with the holo-projectors. You look adorable in that outfit... If you drop the disguise, everyone in High Command will be so distracted thinking about fucking you, you'll be able to get them to do whatever you like!"

Lynette nodded as she pretended to seriously consider the idea. "As tempting a prospect as unchallenged authority might be, I think I'll stick with the disguise for now."

Rachel touched the Fleet Admiral's arm, drawing her attention. "I've uploaded your new DNA profile to our data network."

"And I've already replaced your old records," Irillith said with a note of satisfaction. She raised an eyebrow as she continued, "Just to let you know, T-Fed data security is a joke. If you're interested, I could easily hack the private servers of every Admiral in High Command... They might not have done anything truly heinous, but I'll be astonished if they don't have some dirt they're trying to hide."

Lynette looked conflicted for a moment, then made eye contact with the Maliri hacker. "Can I get back to you on that?"

Irillith inclined her head politely, a knowing smile on her face. "Of course, sister."

The Fleet Admiral froze for a moment, then fiercely hugged Irillith. That was the cue for the other girls to hug her goodbye, everyone saying farewell to Jehanna too. Irillith and Tashana embraced Jehanna together, each giving her an affectionate kiss before leaning in to whisper in her ears. Whatever they said had her blushing, but there was no mistaking the smile of anticipation that spread across her beautiful face.

Lynette held up her hand when Calara and Rachel moved to hug her. "Just a second."

She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out two small cases, handing one to each girl. Calara recognised what it was immediately and her hands trembled as she reverently opened the case, inhaling sharply when she saw the gold insignia of an eagle nestled in the black velvet.

"Please accept your new ranks with my warmest congratulations, Captain Fernandez and Captain Voss," Lynette said, the familiar phrases rolling off her tongue. She suddenly paused and reached out to hold both their hands. "Listen... I'd promote you two to Admiral if I could. I know how much you've already done for the Terran Federation, and I have no doubt, will continue to do for us. But despite the fact you've saved Terra... twice... the reality is you're 18 and 19. Calara's already the youngest person to ever make Commander rank, let alone Captain!"

"I'm the same rank as my dad!" Calara managed to choke out, tears in her eyes.

Rachel smiled at her then patted Lynette's hand. "This is an honour, Fleet Admiral. We're both extremely grateful."

They each gave her a warm hug before Lynette reluctantly stepped away. She joined John and Jehanna in the airlock where both women looked at him with conflicted expressions on their beautiful faces. It was obvious that neither really wanted to leave and he was touched that they already thought of themselves as part of his family.

John reached up to cup each of their faces in his hands, gently brushing his finger against their cheeks. "You're connected to me now," he said quietly. "You both mean as much to me as the girls on my crew. You're my secret Lionesses, but we're only keeping you secret for your own protection, not because you aren't as special as the others."

They fell into his arms, hugging him tight, both equally lost for words.

He smiled as he stroked their backs. "Lynette, now you're bonded to Alyssa, I want you to keep her fully informed. Anything you're worried about, let her know... we might be able to help in some way."

"I will, I promise," she said, nodding her agreement.

He lifted Jehanna's chin and looked into her brown eyes. "Lynette's going to need your help... she's going to be under a lot of stress, so I want you to support her the best you can."

"I'll be there for her," the dusky girl said, giving him a brave smile.

He lowered his hand to brush his fingers against her toned stomach. "Have a think about what you want for the future, but don't let yourself get upset over it. Remember, I just want you to be happy; you can choose whatever life you want to lead... and that's a good thing."

Jehanna's smile turned brighter and she gave him a passionate kiss. "I love you."

"And I love you too," he said, his answering smile just as happy. He let out a contented sigh, then glanced behind him at Dana.

The redhead stepped forward with a backpack in her hands. "Before you two head off, I made you a little going away present." Unzipping the bag, she opened it and pulled out a couple of belts, each with a fist-sized pouch strapped to the side. "Personal shields... just tap the buckle to activate them. They're not as strong as those in our Paragon suits, but you could stand in front of a Gatling Laser for ten seconds and be okay. Oh, and you'll be completely invulnerable to conventional bullets..."

Lynette's eyes widened in astonishment, handling the device as if it were made of fragile glass. "Are you giving me the schematics to these as well?!"

The redhead shook her head and gave the Fleet Admiral a rueful smile. "Afraid not. This is top-of-the-range shit... we can't hand this out yet." She shrugged as she continued, "They wouldn't do you any good anyway. It's powered by a miniaturised version of a Progenitor core and you don't have the necessary elements to build one."

Reaching into the backpack again, Dana pulled out an elegant pistol which she turned slowly, letting them have a good look. "Laser pistol... packs about the same punch as a Gatling Laser and can fire non-stop for days. It's got a biometrics reader built into the grip keyed to your DNA; there's one pistol for each of you but you can use either one."

Jehanna and Lynette gave her a grateful hug, thanking Dana profusely. When they separated, Dana handed over the backpack to Jehanna, who slung it over her shoulder.

John stood by the airlock controls and smiled at Lynette. "Disguise time, Fleet Admiral Devereux."

She stood crisply at attention and gave him a respectful salute, "Right away, Lion of the Federation."

He returned the salute but was surprised by the deferential tone she'd adopted with him. When their eyes met, she gave him a quick nod, confirming he'd heard her correctly. Lynette activated her holo-disguise by double-clicking the device in her pocket and her exquisitely beautiful face was obscured from view.

John hit the button to open the airlock door and the two women waved goodbye as they stepped outside. He watched them walk across the docking bay where they were met by an honour guard of marines, who were waiting outside the reinforced double-doors. Jehanna turned to wave one final time and he returned it before they disappeared from view.

"Time for bed, handsome," Alyssa said, linking her arm through his. "I've laid in our flightpath and Faye's going to fly us out of the system."

He nodded and closed the airlock, following the girls as they headed towards the grav-tube.

Tashana was waiting for him and she hooked her arm around his as they walked down the corridor. "I'm really going to miss them both," she said, with a wistful sigh.

Irillith glanced over her shoulder and nodded. "Lynette's just so earnest, she really grew on me over the last couple of days. As for Jehanna, I've got quite the soft spot for her..."

"The feeling's definitely mutual," he said with a smile, enjoying seeing an indigo bloom in the Maliri girl's cheeks.

Calara laughed as they rose up in the grav-tube. "Look at us, we're behaving like we're never going to see them again."

Faye nodded, a brilliant smile on her face. "We should be celebrating!"

"Celebrating?" John asked with a frown.

"Yep! We actually managed to have a party without anyone getting blown up, shot, stabbed, or killed!"

They all laughed at that and John scooped Faye up in his arms so he could give her a kiss. Their eyes met and he gave her an appreciative smile, knowing she'd been worried about their sombre mood. He set her down on her feet when they entered the bedroom, the girls shedding their clothes as they got ready for bed.

"Who're are my bedmates tonight?" John asked, glancing at Alyssa.

She grinned at him and replied, "Normal rules would be Calara and Sakura, but pick whoever you like."

"Actually, that sounds perfect," he said, smiling at the brown-eyed girls. "That'll make up for-"

"Holy shit!" Faye squeaked, her uncharacteristic burst of high-pitched profanity stunning them all.

John looked at her in alarm. "What's the matter, Faye? Are Jehanna and Lynette okay?"

She nodded exuberantly. "They're fine!"

"So what's the problem then?"

"I've been looking through the Vulkat tech archives!" she gasped, luminous eyes shining bright.

"But we've only just started on the translation," Irillith interrupted, her finely-sculpted eyebrows narrowing in confusion. "It'll take Tashana and me some time to get a feel for the Vulkat language."

"I know!" Faye exclaimed, bouncing up and down in her impatience. "I was looking at the pictures!"

She blinked and several holo-screens sprang into view, a disturbingly familiar sight displayed prominently in the centre. The black vessel was severely damaged, showing hundreds of pockmarked impact craters over its sinister hull. Despite the incredible amount of damage it had sustained, the ship was still more-or-less intact... and there was no mistaking the shape. In fact it was the exact same design as the titanium-plated imitation they had just left behind on Olympus... a Thrall vessel... a Tormentor Class destroyer.

But this was the genuine article.

Dana glanced at the other images surrounding the vessel, then suddenly clutched at her head. "Oh fuck!"

John gaped at the four pictures. "What are they?!"

Each image had been taken inside the distinctive interior of the Dream of Salvation, the Vulkat Command Ship. Huge ship components had been salvaged from the remains of the wrecked destroyer, the glistening black objects positioned on the deck, surrounded by Vulkat scientists.

Dana groaned, her eyes flicking from side-to-side as if staring at something only she could see. "Null-Inertia Gyroscope... Zero-Point Regulator... Solid-Phase Shield Matrix... and... a Tachyon Lance!"