Three Square Meals Ch. 108

Rachel shot John a worried frown. "What if the hive ships have been transferring captured civilians to the drone carriers?"

Calara paused for a moment to consider it. "I don't think that's likely, but it would be wise to make sure. I'll perform an active scan before we start destroying any of the drone carriers."

"In which case, we should probably creep up on them," Tashana suggested, gesturing towards the cluster of sensor contacts on the map. "The extra few seconds before they detect the sensor pulse could save you from a lot of incoming fire."

"Sounds sensible," the Latina agreed. "We've also got a Brimorian Shield Generator, a Solid-Phase Shield Matrix and a deca-shaped Crystal Alyssium hull, so even if they open up on us at point blank range, we can take a massive amount of punishment."

Alyssa caught John's eye and asked quietly, "Who do you want to take with you down to Carolus III?"

He looked around at the eager expectant faces, before his gaze settled on Dana. "This is going to get really ugly. I'd like you to stay out of the ground battle on this one."

"Hey! You fixed my target fixation thing," she protested, looking disappointed. "There's no reason to keep me out of combat now!"

John reached over to clasp her hand and squeezed it reassuringly. "It's not that, Sparks. I know how upset you were after the Battle of Terra; I just don't want to put you under any more stress until you've had a proper chance to recover."

Dana's voice trembled with emotion as she pleaded, "Please don't make me stay up here! I want to help save those people... I need to feel like I've done some real good!"

John studied her with concern, then turned to share a troubled look with Alyssa.

"Put her in a fireteam with me," Rachel quickly volunteered. "You know I'll keep her out of trouble."

For once Dana didn't have a sassy remark, holding her breath as she waited anxiously for John's verdict.

*You've got an active connection with Dana. If she starts buckling under the pressure, you can intervene and protect her mind,* Alyssa gently reminded him. *This might actually be good for her... a bit of cathartic asskicking against the Kirrix certainly wouldn't hurt. They're evil fuckers... there's no moral ambiguity here.*

John stared into those sky-blue eyes and said quietly, "Alright, you're in." Dana bounced up and down with glee, but he quickly raised a hand to calm her down. "But you know the kind of horrific things you're going to see with captured colonists. If I think it's getting too much for you, I want Rachel to pull you out... and I expect no arguments, okay?"

"I promise!" the redhead readily agreed.

He nodded, sharing a smile with her before looking at Irillith. "You can't hack Kirrix ships, right?"

"Afraid not," the Maliri hacker replied, with a rueful frown. "If I get any spare time, I'll make another attempt. After my success with the Vulkat archive, using psychic powers might give me a way in."

"Sounds good, but until you know for sure, I want you using a Reaper Cannon in another fireteam," he said firmly.

She grinned at him, her violet eyes sparkling with excitement. "Sounds like my kind of fun..."

John nodded then turned to her twin. "You've already proven just how lethal you can be. You're in charge of your team, Irillith will act as your backup."

Tashana laughed at her sister's indignant expression. "You heard our wise Progenitor Lord. I'm the boss!"

Irillith's angular eyes narrowed dangerously. "Of course, Revered Leader," she said with an obsequious bow, much to Tashana's delight.

Alyssa flexed her fingers in anticipation, a wicked smile on her face. "I guess that means I'm team three and you're number four."

John nodded, glancing at the Asian girl sitting opposite. "Sakura will be in the Valkyrie, but I think that goes without saying..."

"But you did anyway," Sakura said with a playful smile. Her smile faded and her expression turned sombre as she bowed her head to him respectfully. "I haven't forgotten my promise... I swear I won't go off-mission again."

He met her contrite gaze and shook his head. "I don't want to stifle your initiative in combat; sometimes opportunities or hidden dangers will present themselves and I want you to be able to react. Just warn Alyssa so she can keep me fully informed."

"I will," she said earnestly.

"I assume I'm manning the Invictus' guns?" Calara asked with a wry smile.

John raised an eyebrow, smiling back at her. "I thought that might be wise... unless you're desperate to volunteer for boarding actions?"

The Latina shuddered and quickly shook her head. "No, I think I'll leave the hard work to you guys. I'll take it easy up here and hang out with a few dozen drone carriers."

He chuckled at her genuine relief, not envying her job in the slightest. "Which just leaves our lovely, Nymph pilot," he said, turning to smile at Jade. "I'd like you to fly the Invictus."

Instead of eagerly agreeing, Jade paused and studied him carefully. "Are you sure?"

Shocked by her questioning his order, he asked, "Do you have a better idea?"

"I thought you might want me to assist on the ground as a fifth assault team," she replied, watching for his reaction.

"You want to fight on your own?!" he balked, eyes widening.

Alyssa placed a soothing hand on John's shoulder. "Jade assaulted Tartarus alone. The only reason she got hurt was because she deliberately shielded her sisters from Gauss Cannon broadsides. She's powerful, John... you made her that way for a reason."

Faye cleared her throat. "I'm happy to fly the Invictus for you. Jade's a much better pilot than me, but with all our new defensive upgrades, dodging all that incoming fire isn't quite so important."

Calara nodded her agreement. "It's our most efficient use of assets. Faye has proven herself more than capable of piloting the Invictus; she'll be fine for a relatively small skirmish."

John locked eyes with Jade and saw the calm resolve in her emerald gaze. "Alright, Jade is team five."

She smiled at him, pleased with the trust he was placing in her. "Thank you."

*Just don't get yourself killed,* he thought to her, making no attempt to hide his concern.

*You've got big plans for me, Master,* she reminded him with a teasing smile. *I wouldn't dream of letting you down.*

John took a deep breath, then rose from the bed. "Okay, let's get geared up. I'm going to take a quick shower, then I'll see you down in the Armoury."

The rest of the girls were already wearing jumpsuits in preparation for equipping their body armour, so they took the express grav-tubes down to the Combat Bridge.

As John walked into the bathroom, he said to Edraele, *I'll probably need to use quite a bit of psychic energy grounding those hive ships, but I don't want you to over-exert yourself, okay? As soon as you get low on power, let me know and I'll ask Alyssa to take over.*

*Such unseemly concern for your Matriarch's wellbeing, my Lord,* Edraele replied with a teasing lilt to her voice. *I'm sure the other Progenitor would be appalled...*

*Well, I did go to all that effort making you into my perfect Maliri Queen,* he bantered back as he entered the shower. *I suppose I'm just a soft touch, but the thought of accidentally burning you out really isn't all that appealing. Perhaps it has something to do with the rather impudent way you made me fall in love with you?*

Edraele was quiet for a moment. *I love you too, John. Please be careful today.*

*I will, honey,* he replied, wishing she was with him.

He was distracted by his telepathic conversation by Calara and Alyssa who ran their hands over his shoulders as they joined John in the shower.

"We thought you might like some company," Alyssa said kissing him on the cheek.

Calara gave him a coy smile. "And I desperately needed to get cleaned up after you two put me through my paces."

John got some soap and began to lather up the Latina's back. "I want you to take care up here. It's just going to be you and Faye manning the Invictus... don't even think about letting the Kirrix get close enough for boarding actions."

"I know what I'm doing," Calara said confidently. "Don't forget I'll have Sakura here with me in the Valkyrie. Our main concern is going to be keeping the drone carriers and their drone swarms away from the rest of you."

"The T-Fed fleet will arrive in about an hour," John said, rinsing her off. "They'll be able to handle any stragglers if you can't wipe out the entire Kirrix force, so don't take any risks."

She turned and hugged her lovers. "You two will be down on the ground with all those horrible monsters; I want you to promise you'll be careful!"

"We will," they said at the same time, returning her hug.

Quickly finishing their shower, they dried off then headed into the walk-in-wardrobe to get dressed. Calara and Alyssa wore matching jumpsuits, the snug fit of the outfits emphasising their curves. John paused as he dressed and watched them from behind, marvelling at the comprehensive job the Change had done on the girls. Aside from hair colour, they looked identical from the rear, toned limbs and delectable figures an exact match.

Alyssa turned and gave him a flirtatious wink. "Apparently there's always time for a good ogle; it's not like we're in a hurry or anything."

He tried not to blush at being caught out and ushered her out into the bedroom.

Helene was waiting for him on the bed, the Nymphs curiously absent. She noticed his questioning glance and said, "I asked them to meet me in the Lagoon. I wanted to say goodbye to you first."

"Try not to worry," he said, gathering her in his arms. "We've fought the Kirrix before on a couple of occasions... this should be much easier than our last battle with them."

She nibbled her lip as if she wanted to say something, then stood on tiptoe to give him a kiss. "I know lots of peoples' lives are at stake. When they don't need you any more, I'll be here waiting for you."

"See you soon, honey," he said with an encouraging smile, before letting her go and turning away.

He stepped into the express grav-tubes, dropping down several decks in a rush to the Armoury. The rest of the girls were already in their Paragon suits, with Dana, Rachel, Irillith, and Alyssa performing weapon checks on their Reaper cannons, while Tashana twirled her Reaper pistols and slotted them into the holsters at her waist. Calara was now armoured too and striding down the ramp to the Combat Bridge, while Sakura rushed to the mech bay to power up the Valkyrie.

Jade was the obvious exception, still wearing her short dress as she leaned against the wall. She saw John's worried frown as he stepped into his armour-equipping frame and walked over to join him. "Anything I wear will just get shredded when I shift," she explained with a patient smile. "And when I'm in dragon form, you've made my skin tough enough to withstand Reaper Cannon fire. There's not much point in wearing a Paragon suit over that, even if you could make one that fit."

The robotic arms lowered John's Lion helmet into place, as the rest of his suit was locked around his body with a rippling series of clicks. He smiled at the Nymph as he walked over to the weapon racks. "Don't mind me, it just seems fundamentally wrong to go into combat unarmed and wearing a summer dress..."

Jade twirled, the hem flaring out and revealing a tantalising glimpse of her toned thighs. "Even if it is a cute one?"

"I guess that makes a difference," he replied, trying not to laugh.

He reached for a Quantum rifle, but then Jade was there, her green hand on his. Turning to look at her in confusion, he asked, "What's the matter?"

*A thrall's weapon, Master,* Jade replied, her voice soft but ringing with purpose. *You've grown beyond that.*

John froze and stared at her in silence. When she released his hand, he wavered for a moment, then wrapped a gauntleted fist around the hilt of his Crystal Alyssium sword. He savoured that comforting weight in his hand, hefting the weapon and feeling its capacity for destruction. Closing his eyes, he held the sword in both hands and slowly poured psychic energy into the glimmering white blade. When he reopened his eyes again, glowing blue glyphs were etched along the length of the sword. They were ancient Progenitor battle runes... throbbing with barely controlled power.

He met Jade's questioning gaze and nodded, noticing the smile of satisfaction that crept onto her face. Sheathing the weapon across his back, he was suddenly aware of eyes on him and turned around to see that all the girls were staring at him now.

"We've got a world to save," he said quietly.

John watched as their expressions slowly changed, the curiosity replaced with a hunger for battle.