Still, they weren't ruthless, at least not regularly.
It was different with the Hoolas. Kerven gave no quarter and received none in return. The enemies were using the same techniques as before, throwing themselves on him to make the spear get stuck.
Every few moments, one of them attempted to do the same with Paula. Kerven would have to reach out his strong arm and catch the bastards out of the air, breaking their skulls on the wall in the next second.
He didn't have a moment to spare to see what Paula thought of that. The captain was willing to pay any price for saving her life. Nothing else mattered but her.
The air was growing thinner as anticipated. He could hear her pant and at some point, her gun stopped firing. Gritting his teeth, Kerven pushed on. The tunnel had become so unbearable it was even affecting him, his vision beginning to spin.
The spear in his hand was so bloody he could barely see the blade. He hadn't stopped moving for a second after the tunnel collapsed. There was no time, and there was even less of it than air. The Hoolas attacked and fell and others kept coming.
He broke them in every way he knew how. Most died through his sword as he struck out with arches so wide it took out several enemies. The strength of such blows was so powerful the Hoolas couldn't catch it on their swords.
Instead, the spear would slice through bone and metal alike. When the last Hoola fell, Kerven's own breath was coming in short, painful bursts. He put the blade of the spear through the enemy's face, watching the big eyes go wide in surprise before the light went out in them.
He forced his breathing to relax to spare oxygen, quickly looking around the battlefield – now a mountain of bodies forming a wall around him – to see if any of them were playing dead. His spear cut the throats of a few he didn't explicitly remember killing.
Then he returned to Paula, pulling her into his arms. The darkness enveloped them as his valor squares started casting shadows on the walls. He was searching for her pulse. For long, heart-stopping moments, Kerven couldn't find it.
When he caught the faintest thud, he could finally allow himself another breath. "Hold on," he whispered to her. "I will not let you die here. I will not let anything bad happen to you ever again."
Picking her and the seed up, the captain carried her away, to that end of the tunnel that was supposed to lead to their forces instead of the burning grove. The walls of the cave were hot from the heat blazing outside.
Presuming it was the most likely digging spot for his warriors, Kerven set to work, ignoring the fact his body was protesting the lack of air more and more loudly.
He dug until his fingers were bloody and his great spear blunted. His vision was fading and the poison in his veins was finally working, his defenses weakened. The wounds he'd received defending his gesha were suddenly noticeable.
Kerven did not stop until he could smell fresh air – fresher, at least – and heard familiar voices. He charged the wall ahead of him, throwing his bulky body against it until it broke and air rushed in.
Lifting Paula into his arms again, along with the seed, Kerven headed for the Terran doctors, struggling through the tight-fitting hole he had created. He barely registered apologies about the tunnel collapsing at the worst possible moment, not caring in the slightest whose fault that was.
* * *
He didn't say a word for hours, staying by Paula's side as the Terrans worked in the newly reinforced camp far away from the grove.
"Captain," one of the doctors finally said. "She's going to be fine. She's out of the woods now."
"Good," Kerven replied, looking at his gesha who was lying on the bed, still very pale. "You did well."
"If you would like to rest, we will inform you at once when she wakes."
"No," the captain replied, not moving an inch. "I'm staying with her. I'm never going to leave her again."
He meant it.#p#分页标题#e#
Epilogue
Paula
She opened her eyes, only to be nearly blinded by the light.
"Could someone turn the sun off, please?" she grumbled.
A familiar voice answered her, laughing with a deep, sexy bass. Despite the pain, Paula's eyes snapped open, looking for Kerven somewhere in the midst of shadowy figures.
She saw him. He was blurry, which was probably not his fault, but he was definitely there. Standing right next to the bed she was stretched out on, he was there!
"You're alive," she breathed, smiling so wide it hurt. "Am I alive?"
She moved a little, testing out that theory. It hurt to speak and it was more than a little painful to breathe, which was definitely not a good thing with her species.
Okay. So far... Health – dubitable. Deduction – not great. Overall feeling – in love.
That last realization was impossible to fight. Just looking at Kerven brought forth such a volley of emotions she could barely control them. It felt like she wanted to laugh and cry at the same time.
More than anything, though, she wanted to be with him. No matter where, no matter anything.
Just with him, always.
"You will be alright," Kerven said, a true, genuine smile on his lips. "In time, your breathing will get back to normal, with no permanent damage. And it might please you to know we won, of course. The Eden seeds are safe, on their way to the Kappa section under the protection of my general.
“I'm told your last haul especially pleased the scientists working on the cure. They said it was a perfect specimen. You've saved countless lives."
Nearly losing mine. And his.
"That's good," Paula said. "I don't regret anything. Except for that last seed. It nearly killed us, you and me both. I should have taken someone with me, it was so stupid to go alone... Or I shouldn’t have gone at all."
"Stop," Kerven cut in, raising a hand to silence her. "I have known you for only a short while and even I can say with absolute certainty you would have gone anyway. It was a very ‘you’ thing to do. I like it."
She didn’t let that nice warmth she felt from hearing him say that settle too deep within her. Not yet.
"I need to tell you something," Paula said then, an irrational fear beating in her heart, that she might not ever get another chance to tell him. "I am yours. I will go with you if you want me to, although you might have to technically kidnap me. The union might come after me as well. It's a world of trouble... I don't care. I love you."
There was a glint of emotion in Kerven's eyes. For a moment, the captain looked like he had something to say himself and then it was gone. With the warmest, most loving smile she'd ever seen on him, he bent down to lay a soft kiss on her lips.
"I love you too," he said quietly, kissing her again before pulling away. "Rest now, my gesha. Get better. I will come see you soon and everything will be alright then. I promise."
With that mysterious message, he was gone.
Paula didn't see her gerion for three days after that. It made her laugh to think they'd been apart just as long as they'd known each other, and that the former felt like hell. Life worked in wonderful ways, even if they were mostly crazy.
A dropship came to pick her up from Jumel. As she watched the planet grow smaller in the view screen, she felt a tinge of nostalgia. It was true then – people could miss almost anything if they were exposed to it long enough.
The Firebird welcomed them and she rushed right out of the ship into Kerven's arms. The captain kissed her, not letting her go until her lips were swollen and red and hungry for more.
"Come, my love," he told her quietly. "I have something for you."
She didn’t argue with him. For at least a little while, he’d earned her compliance.
That surprise turned out to be a trip to his quarters. Paula looked around, remembering how it had been before. It felt good to be back. Bittersweet, too. She swore never to let her pride get between them again.
"Are we leaving?" she asked, turning to Kerven.
With a playful smile, the captain nodded.
"We are," he said. "Do you like our rooms here? We might have to spend a lot of time on this ship."
It's not the worst place in the galaxy. I don't think anything could be that when you’re with me, she thought.#p#分页标题#e#
"I do," she admitted. "I'll get used to the life of a fugitive. No big deal."
"You are not a fugitive," Kerven said. "I talked to my general. We will be going to the Benevolent, for now. We won't be staying for long, though.
“General Braen has spoken to the union on our behalf. They weren't happy about losing you, but they came around when they heard what he proposed."
Wait, what? They let me free of the contract?
"What did he propose?" she asked carefully.
"The general reminded the union that you are a hero of sorts right now. For his part, the council owes him a considerable debt too. I won't go into detail now, but he can throw his weight around and the union won't say no to him.
"You will be who you are and so will I. We will go where we're needed, where we choose. The general might recall us from time to time, to take part in some bigger assault or more important mission.
“For the most part, we will fly as his ambassadors. He thinks we're a great team. I break people who need to be broken and you fix those who deserve to be fixed."