No news dampened his spirit, not even when they received a call from Verien.
So far, Audrey Price had been a mostly silent help from far on the distant Verien, the cold mining planet with the most promising lifestone stock so far. News of the reinforced glove had already reached her although the device itself hadn't and the governor had been nothing less than overjoyed.
As such, it came as a surprise to both Braen and Naima when she called them at a time when the course didn't need adjusting yet. Meaning it couldn't have been good news. Now armed with the information Alona had given, Braen had only planned on checking on the Fearless once more to spare Naima and Audrey. That time was not yet near.
They accepted Audrey's call with reluctant interest, with Naima standing next to Braen on the bridge of the Benevolent.
The holoprojector showed her standing somewhere dark in her frozen station, wrapped in a long white cloak, the silvery-blonde hair that had been billowing over her shoulders before now cut short. On the background, the general saw Tieran, keeping solemn guard over his bride.
The envy that bit at his heart was unwelcome, but there was nothing to be done about it. Seeing the way Audrey kept close to Tieran was more than a little painful to see, because it was a living image of what he wished for himself and Naima.
Only a matter of time, he reminded himself.
There were certainly signs of improvement, and more continued to come every day.
"General," the governor said as soon as the holoimage cleared. "Naima. First of all, let me offer my congratulations, as well as regret that this happens to us at such a dark time."
"Thank you, Miss Price," Braen replied, just when Naima asked: "Us?"
Through obvious tiredness, Audrey smiled to them, nodding, lifting a hand to cover her belly.
"Yes. I am expecting a child as well. I wish with all my heart I could carry my baby, knowing it will have nothing to fear in this lifetime, but that is not the galaxy we live in."
Her words made the paladin tense up and Braen felt a momentary kinship with Tieran. They were both warriors, bent to protect their mates as well as their children. It was hard seeing them suffer needlessly.#p#分页标题#e#
It only made the general more anxious to actually kill the Fearless. The task was daunting, but he had no doubt he would succeed. Brions had never allowed matters like the tedious notion of impossibility get in their way, especially where their fated were concerned. He would save his gesha. That was the Brion way.
Naima's eyes had lit up at that piece of news.
She got up from her seat, hesitating for a second before blurting out what had clearly been on her mind: "Are you not afraid? Does the Fearless know?"
The dark look on Audrey's face said it all. Naima's shoulders slumped as Braen growled instinctively. Every inch of him ached to bring his gesha into his arms and offer her support, yet he didn't want to pressure her into anything.
After their kiss on Laveden, and the events with Alona, it was obvious to him Naima was starting to love him – truly and honestly, of her own volition – and there was nothing strong enough for the general to compromise that.
"It knows," Audrey said sadly. "It knows about you too. Do not take the glove off, not for any reason but setting the course as soon as possible."
"I've been thinking," Naima went on, casting an inconsolable look at Braen. "Will our babies have the connection to the lifestone as well? We know so little of the mineral, yet it's possible, isn't it?"
"Do you think so?" Audrey asked, a horrified look on her face. "It doesn't carry through our touch."
"It doesn't," Naima admitted, "but they're our blood and flesh. The gloves will protect them, but if... if something should go wrong and the Fearless escapes us, they will always have a shadow looking over their shoulder."
"No," two deep voices rang out at the same time.
Both Naima and Audrey looked behind them in surprise and with a very Terran hint of doubt.
The holoprojector went quiet for a moment as Audrey muted the transmission and they could see her talking to the paladin. Braen watched as Tieran gathered the woman into his arms, holding her there, no doubt saying the same as he was about to.
"I will not fail," he promised Naima. "We have a way to fight it now, kill it. The lifestone has been brought to the galactic attention, it can't go free. If it should escape us on Darius, I will pursue for as long as it's necessary.
“While I still draw breath, it has to know I'm coming for it. Don't let this take away your hope. I would never let anything happen to you or our baby."
"That doesn't determine anything – gods, I'm such a wet blanket, aren't I?"
Naima burst out laughing, chortling to herself. Braen was shocked to see tears beading in the corners of her eyes. Seeing the look on his face, she shook her head, smiling.
"It's okay, I'm fine. I'm fine. These are just pregnancy hormones or me conjuring them up to justify myself. I'm simply so done with always questioning your oaths and promises and attempts to make me feel better.
“I mean... for fuck's sake, what am I trying to do here? My life completely went to shit when I touched the stone and apparently the only sane thing to do is to make you admit we're screwed."
She took a deep breath while Braen made sure the holocall was still muted, letting Naima speak her mind. The rest of the bridge was very busy with finding things to do as to not eavesdrop, aided by the distracting sounds Braen’s valor squares were pulsing.
"I don't even know what I want at this point. I know I want you, or us, to kill the Fearless and rid us all of the evil but fate keeps throwing these obstacles in our way and every time that happens, I start doubting again.
“I mean, it's you. I've seen you fight, I've roamed around in this ship. I believe you will do it, but for some reason I haven't been able to bring myself to admit that because that means... I don't know.
“That everything else you're saying is true as well. That it's all really happening, that you can kill the Fearless just because you want to."
He hadn't said a word while she talked, only listening with his heart beating so loudly it threatened to deafen him. With every breath, Naima had edged closer to him until she was standing near enough to touch. Slowly, agonizingly slowly, she pressed herself against the chest plate of his armor and wrapping her arms around him.
Braen pulled her tighter into his embrace, his hands buried into her long red hair, breathing in the soft, fresh scent of her hair. He wanted to tell Naima everything she was doing to him, but even the complicated, morphing Brionese wasn't good enough for that task.#p#分页标题#e#
No language in the galaxy could have put into words what it felt like, to hold her in his arms and feel her lean into the touch.
The bond was crackling, burning between them. For a moment there, the general was beginning to doubt whether they'd affirmed it or not. Usually when the fated couple laid together for the first time, it signaled the bond was complete, but in their case... the enormity of the moment now was so unexpected and so powerful that he almost forgot how to breathe.
It was impossible with his armor in the way, but Braen imagined he could feel Naima's heartbeat, in tune with his own.
She was his and his alone. The certainty of that hit the general like a shockwave. Out of the blue, in the middle of a meeting wasn't how it went with Brions, but he couldn't deny it and didn't care one bit about propriety. Something in Naima had given in to him. And he could feel it.
It was blinding in its sheer intensity, like every second he'd spent alive was only to bring him to that room, into that moment with his gesha. Life itself lost the meaning it had always had for Braen. Compared to what he was experiencing, existence so far had been nothing but floating through time only to be stopped so abruptly his heart nearly stopped with it.
He was complete, made whole at last by his fated, his true heart.
After what seemed like an eternity of bliss, Naima pulled back, looking a little embarrassed.
"I think Audrey is waiting," she whispered. "We should tell her about the spear."
She was indeed waiting. Braen hadn't noticed. It was impossible to see anything in the world other than his gesha.
We will have time together, my little Terran… later.
He swore they would continue completing their bond, but right now they both needed to hear the news about the enemy. There would be no happiness for them with the Fearless still alive. Especially after Naima had mentioned the possibility that their baby would have the same connection as she did.
They stepped away from each other with clear dismay on both parts. Audrey Price was observing them with a quiet, knowing smile. As soon as they turned the sound on again, however, she turned serious again.
"It's good to see you support each other," she said. "Hopefully, it will help you deal with the Fearless better, because I don't have good news."
"There is no such thing when it comes to war," Braen cut in, his deep voice immediately commanding the attention of everyone around him, including the staff who maintained the call and the rest of the bridge. "News can be positive or negative depending on their implications, however all news is good. Any information is good, since it helps us get closer to destroying the enemy."