Empire's Son: An Epic Science Fiction Novel Series

Markus was finally glad to be out of the Commander's office. He knew Command would not take news of the double bond well, especially after his dismissal from the College, but he hadn't expected to be quite that bad. He had a pretty good notion that he'd have to suffer the Director's and the Commander's ill temper for a long time to come. Normally, Markus wouldn't care, but that had been before his and Adar's life had been forever bound, which Shiperii had been adamant about driving home to Markus during the rest of their discussion.

The Director's words echoed in Markus's mind: "You have a track record for taking dangerous risks, Nador. Those kinds of choices can get someone killed in no time, and now your fate is irreversibly connected to the Heirs. What if one wrong move from you leads to his death?"

Markus shook his head, trying to dispel the Director's words, but they had stuck in his head like a bad smell he couldn't get rid of. He might not personally like the Director or the hard time he was being given to save Adar's life, but it bothered him that Shiperii had a point.

He was no longer alone. Markus's choices now carried a significant weight, unlike ever before. Adar's survival hinged on Markus staying alive, meaning he couldn't simply sacrifice himself heroically to protect Adar. The gravity of the situation made Markus's stomach churn with anxiety. Maybe the Director had a right to be upset.

As he strode down the corridor, his boots echoed on the marble floor. Markus pushed away the discussion and his anxiety. He'd deal with that later. Right now, he had to get back to Adar. He had gotten no alarm from the bond. In fact, when Markus focused on their new connection, he could tell all was well with his friend. Markus had been in the Commander's office for a long time though, and he was eager to check on Adar in person.

Markus followed the bond to the main conference room, nodded to Jamiss on guard outside, palmed the door open, and stepped through. He wasn't the least bit surprised to find his father still talking to Adar. Both his father and friend turned their heads to Markus as he came in. Adar's lips parted in a smile, and his father gave him a stern look. He went to stand by his friend.

"You going to yell at me, too?" Markus growled at his father.

"I think Director Shiperii made his points better than I could, so I won't further strain our relationship with my unwelcomed opinion. I assume there is a plan in place?" His father asked.

Markus was a little surprised his father had passed the opportunity to harass Markus about his decisions. It wasn't something the old man often did. "Yes, I'm to put together a permanent imperial guard comprising Pledges or retired Protectors for Adar as soon as possible."

"Aren't Pledges waiting for their own charges?" Adar asked.

"Yes, but there are many who never get chosen and have to rotate to permanent assignments at the College. The Protectorate keeps more Pledges than is typically needed, so many never get a chance at a charge. This will be a welcomed opportunity."

"Why do I have the feeling this sort of thing isn't done often?" Adar said.

Markus grunted and was glad his friend was asking all the right questions. "It doesn't. Most of the time, one Protector is all that's required per high born. The bonded Protector can then assemble guards as needed for property security, traveling, or public appearances, but most of those guard cohorts are recruited from retirees of the Legion, Vanguard, or even specially trained civilians.

"The Protectorate does not have enough graduates to fill every noble house with dozens of guards. Though the College can provide bonded Protectors with extra help of Pledges for special circumstances or large events when requested. Many Pledge special assignments happen this way. As far as I'm aware, this will be the first permanent guard made entirely of personnel from the College."

"Yeah, but we had a problem with that, remember?" Adar reminded him.

Markus nodded. "Oh, I haven't forgotten, and neither has Shiperii, but he feels strongly about making sure you and I have the best at our disposal."

"He's worried about your safety, too," Adar noted.

Markus frowned. He was hoping Adar wouldn't have got that part of it, but he supposed he wasn't surprised that he had. "Shiperii is concerned that my life is tied to yours, yes. I believe he thinks if he surrounds you with enough high-quality guards that I won't put myself in nearly as much physical jeopardy." Markus shrugged. "I suppose he has a valid point, but I am rather hard to kill, so I'm not as concerned about that."

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"What of finding Pledges that can be trusted?" Rainus asked.

"For now, we will continue to use Nathias's people, if that is alright with you, pavi. It will allow me to work on vetting Pledges and retired Protectors and assemble a team that can be trusted."

"I don't have a problem with that, but I need to run it by Nathias. Part of his unit sustained some losses today," his father said.

"What about asking Gayle?" Adar asked.

Markus paused at that. In everything that had happened, he hadn't thought about how she would react to all this. He cringed when he thought of it. "I'm not sure she will want anything to do with me again after she hears we are bonded, but I will ask."

"Maybe if we told her the truth?" Adar suggested.

"Shiperii made it very clear we were to keep the double bond a secret. The more people who know about it, the greater chance it has of getting out, and then that will give us a whole other set of problems to worry about. But you're right, Gayle might be more receptive to an apology if she knew it was an extreme circumstance that caused us to bond. I don't know. I'll have to see how it goes." Though Markus wasn't sure that even knowing the truth would cool her temper.

"Well, I like her and I would like her to be a part of the team if she's willing. I vote you tell her, or I can do it if you think it will be better coming from me."

Markus gave Adar a lopsided grin.

Adar smiled back. "What?"

"And going against the Director's wishes doesn't even faze you, does it?"

"He's not my Director, but if you don't want to get in trouble…" Adar trailed off.

Markus snorted. "I was born in trouble."

Pavi pressed his lips together and shook his head.

Markus threw his father a look. "You disagree, old man?"

"Not at all, but your mother might have told a different story about that."

Markus was quiet for a moment, not sure how to respond to that. Eleven years, and it was still difficult to talk about her. He felt a sudden surge of warmth fill him. He blinked and looked at his friend. Adar gave him a reassuring smile. Emotion caught in his throat, unsure what to say or even what to do.

Adar seemed to sense Markus's discomfort and smoothly changed the subject. "So, how much longer is this storm going to last?"

"Well, according to–"

A steady beeping came from Rainus's unity ring. He glanced down to the display screen to see who was calling, and he frowned. The King touched the top of the display to accept the call. Before him, a transparent view screen materialized with the scowling face of Admiral Vang.

"King Rainus, I'm glad to finally reach you. Have you and Prince Adar left Sora X?"

Pavi shook his head gravely. "There was a sandstorm that delayed our departure. I have been told that the storm is passing and it should be safe to pilot a shuttle into orbit within half an hour."

"It would be better for you to leave now," the Admiral said in a terse voice.

"Oh? Is there a problem?"

Vang gave a clipped summary that had Markus's eyebrows to his hairline by the time it was done. He could feel rising tension coming from Adar and was surprised to see his friend step forward, so he was looking over Rainus's shoulder at the holographic view screen, which also put him into the recording field of pavi's unity ring.

"How did they get past the border?" Adar asked.

Obviously, he knew something of these aliens that Vang had encountered. The Admiral frowned, but Markus wasn't sure if it was because Adar had stepped into the conversation, or at the question.

"We don't know exactly, but I would imagine they either got the beacon network code from the skeleton crew we left on the Xlero, or from the Xlero's computer system. Though the latter would mean the enemy had to crack the codes, or rip them out of a crew member's mind."

There was a hesitant silence as everyone digested that information for a moment. It was didn't last long, and the Admiral spoke again.

"I think it's worth risking the remnants of the storm to leave the planet now. Also, until we have resolved this problem, I think it would be best to take Prince Adar to Vega Prime instead of Dyniss. I have already notified the fleet there. They are apprised of the situation and are waiting for the Heir."

Pavi nodded. "Yes, I suppose you are right. We will leave immediately, Admiral, and what of Sora X?"

"I have notified the Orbital Station of the impending hostilities and that I am en route with a small fleet. We should be able to take care of this in short order," the Admiral said.

Markus felt a surge of suspicion coming from Adar. "How? You said that they are cloaked and the battle cruiser's weapons seemed impervious to these aliens."

The Admiral's frown deepened, and his eyes hardened. "With all due respect, Highness. I think you should stop wasting time and leave that planet. I am told that they have already breached the Sora System boundary."

"He asked a valid question, Admiral," Pavi said with a tone that was more command than a statement.

Admiral Vang's jaw clenched visibly before he responded. "We have... acquired some new information about them based on a careful analysis by our scientists of their attacks. It should allow us to engage the enemy more effectively than before. I'm not at liberty to discuss the details on an unsecured channel."

Adar opened his mouth to press further, but Rainus held up a hand. "Very well, Admiral. We'll depart immediately. Keep me informed of any developments."

"Of course, Your Majesty. Safe travels." The holographic screen blinked out.

Rainus turned to the others. "You heard the man. Let's move."

Markus couldn't argue with that. He didn't like the idea of this unknown and seemingly invincible enemy being anywhere near Adar. He wanted to be far away from here before they showed up. Markus stepped forward to lead the way to the landing zone.