Chapter 4

Chapter

Four

Vyk

I hovered at the edge of the meeting around the table, my arms crossed tightly as I listened to their voices blend into a buzz of strategy and concern. Fiona's words sliced through the hum, sharp and clear, displaying intelligence and shrewdness. My previous declarations about human females had been brash and arrogant, but now they tasted like ash in my mouth, especially since Fiona was proving them to be so wrong.

As much as I wished to focus on the meeting and the mission being planned, I could not snatch my mind from what I’d overheard. I could not force Fiona’s words from my brain. Despite my thick skin, honed from battles and barbed commands, her opinion mattered. It mattered more than it should .

"Sending scouts into Kronock territory is risky.” Lieutenant Volten tapped his finger against a data pad.

Kann’s eyes flickered with the kind of excitement that only imminent danger could spark in an Inferno Force warrior and Blade. "Highly risky.”

"Is there really any other choice?" Ariana's voice cracked. "Sasha is out there."

Volten put a hand on her back. “It’s a risk many Drexians would gladly accept.”

I cleared my throat, standing taller, every inch the commander I was expected to be. "Inferno Force warriors would think nothing of the risk. They're adept at reconnaissance and survival in hostile conditions.”

Fiona barely glanced at me, her gaze skimming away so quickly it might have been my imagination that it lingered at all. Though the others nodded in agreement, it was her silent dismissal that chafed.

“The commander is right.” Kann folded his arms over his chest. “This is a task for Inferno Force.”

I inclined my head to the Blade instructor in recognition that we still shared a bond by having served in the elite fighting unit. “I will reach out to my contacts.”

There was more talk of what would happen after Inferno Force carried out the reconnaissance, but then the gathering was dispersed and followed by the scrape of chairs and shuffling of boots.

I waited until almost everyone had drifted away before approaching Fiona. “A moment of your time? ”

Her body tensed, but she nodded curtly. Ariana hesitated, protective concern etched across her features.

“Your friend will be fine,” I said, the lie sitting heavy on my tongue because the truth was, I wasn't sure if I was fine around her.

"It's not her I'm worried about," Ariana muttered, before casting us a final glance and joining Volten at the end of the row of high bookshelves.

"Commander?" Fiona's voice sliced through the silence and sent an unbidden shiver down my spine. She stood there, arms uncrossed and braced on her hips, the very image of a force not to be reckoned with—a force I admired. “Why the need for a private talk? I said everything I needed to say to you earlier.”

I locked eyes with her in the dim, golden light. I could almost see the memories playing behind her eyes—the trials, the chaos I had been part of, all the reasons she had to distrust me. What I wanted was for her to see past the battle-hardened exterior, to give me a chance I wasn't sure how to request. “We must work together. On this team. As members of the academy staff.”

Her stance softening ever so slightly, as she tilted her head as if testing the concept. Then she nodded once, sharply. “Agreed.”

I nodded back, the warrior in me recognizing the tentative ceasefire. I locked my gaze with hers, hoping she’d understand the unspoken need to be given another chance.

Her scowl deepened. “You might have agreed to clear out the last creatures from the dungeons, but it doesn't erase your past words…or actions. I know how you feel about humans, Commander. ”

"Perhaps that was true once." My denial came swiftly. "I'm not the same person who stood against the integration of our kind with humans. The past term, the trials, this mission…they have changed me."

Her eyes narrowed slightly, searching mine as if they could unveil a lie hidden beneath the words. "Prove it.”

"Tell me how." The words were out before I could fully grasp the gravity of what I was offering.

Fiona took a measured breath, as if considering the weight of her next words. "I heard you'll be at the staff card game.”

“I will be.”

She tilted her head, appraising me with a mix of curiosity and defiance. "So play against me," she suggested, a daring edge clinging to her voice. "When I beat you, you’ll acknowledge that I'm just as smart as any Drexian."

The gauntlet thrown down, I couldn't suppress the smirk that tugged at the corner of my mouth. "I accept your challenge," I said without hesitation. Cards had been a pastime aboard every Inferno Force ship—a way to keep a warrior's mind sharp and battle-ready. Not only that, I had honed my skills in many alien outposts and cantinas during missions.

"Let's make it interesting, then," I proposed, already savoring the anticipation of the challenge. "We play Drexian cards. We are at the Drexian Academy, after all."

For a moment, she hesitated. Uncertainty flickered in her eyes before resolve swiftly replaced it, her gaze igniting with the kind of fire that could only come from someone who refused to back down. That fierce spirit drew me to her like a carvoth to a flame .

“Deal, Commander, but you’d better bring your A-game. And lots of credits—you're going to need them."

The thought of losing to her was an itch at the back of my mind, but it wasn't the credits that concerned me. Could I admit that a human female had what it took to beat me?

She squared her shoulders, preparing to depart. "And Vyk, don't think you can play the good guy by letting me win." Her eyes narrowed with suspicion, as if she could already see me contemplating a strategic loss to win her favor.

"Trust me, I wouldn't dream of it," I replied, but she was already turning away.

“Good," she called over her shoulder. “Where would be the fun in that?”

I didn’t even try to pull my gaze from her shapely ass, thinking of things that would be much more fun than cards. But none of that was within the realm of possibility when the female despised me so completely.

“But not for long.” I murmured into the quiet. My pulse quickened with the thrill of the upcoming challenge. The game was a chance to show the female captain that I was more than a hardened Drexian who cared only for battle and blood. But, as I’d promised, I had no intention of letting her win. There was more at stake than mere credits or pride. And I knew what I wanted to claim when I won.