6. Crux

six

The thrum of the shuttle's engines reverberates through the valley like a leviathan stirring. Ven'ari's vessel is a sleek, arrowhead craft of midnight black with Avenian Order markings emblazoned in white upon the nose. I hesitate for just a moment. Allowing him and his security team to breach this sanctuary feels like I'm willingly ushering in the monstrous slythara that will strike Annie's light down for good.

But I know that shutting them out entirely, provoking an armed siege, would only escalate the situation beyond repair. No, better to confront the commander's demands head-on. I'm gambling a great deal on being able to reason with Ven'ari, to make him see my point. It's a wager I must take, for Annie's sake...

Annie's delicate hand finds the small of my back, grounding me in the eye of this brewing storm. Even without glancing sidelong, I'm acutely aware of the tense set to her shoulders, the careful neutrality she's attempting to project. For all her diplomatic expertise, she can't disguise her apprehension from me.

No words pass between us as the obsidian craft completes its final descent, kicking up crimson dust devils in its wake. I angle my body slightly, ready to shield Annie from any threat at a moment's notice. Protecting her is paramount.

The ramp clanks to the earth, and four hulking knights fan out in a loose semicircle around Ven'ari's reptilian form, hands resting ominously on their sword pommels.

The suffocating silence stretches unbearably until, finally, Ven'ari breaks the standoff. One scaly fist clenches in a subtle gesture, and the phalanx of knights stands down, allowing him to approach alone. His steady gait eats up the distance until he stops within an arm's length.

Ven'ari's lip curls into a sneer as he takes a predatory step closer toward us. "Tell me," the elder knight rumbles at last, "is hiding out here truly the defiant stance you wish to take? Pathetic, even for you, Cruxian."

I remain motionless, refusing to be baited. Over Annie's shoulder, I can see the rest of the security detail has fanned out, no doubt to remind me of the threat they pose. The glint of readied plasma weapons means I must tread carefully.

"I'm not hiding, and this isn't defiance, Commander," I reply at length, my tone level despite the simmering undercurrent of barely restrained anger. "It is refusal to blindly follow orders and protocols that callously disregard sworn duties and Ambassador Agnew's lawful safety, which you seem intent on undermining."

Ven'ari's eyes blaze like twin rubies, his tail lashing once in irritation. "Mind your tone, Knight," he warns, leaning in until wisps of his fetid breath scald my face. "I am Hand of the Grandmaster himself. Our decisions heed greater strategic priorities than indulging a single human diplomat's safety."

His clawed hand moves dismissively as he looks past me toward Annie. There's clear disdain etched across his features, an unmistakable undercurrent of hostility.

"The Order's unity is paramount, especially with inter-planetary tensions running high. We cannot afford perceptions of... misplaced favoritism. It undermines our Order."

Ven'ari refocuses that smoldering glare back on me, his forked tongue flicking out to taste the charged air between us.

"So cease deluding yourself that this human's protection supersedes the interests of our entire legacy, Cruxian. She is an acceptable short-term risk to be managed. Nothing more."

I remain stonily impassive. He sneers and turns away in clear disgust at my willful insubordination. Ven'ari is a stickler for the rules, and anything less than complete obedience will not be tolerated.

I clench my jaw so tightly I fear my teeth might shatter. Ven'ari's blatant hostility toward Annie and her status as a human diplomat is utterly deplorable.

I shift my stance almost imperceptibly, unconsciously preparing for the threat of potential escalation. "With respect, sir, my place is safeguarding Ambassador Agnew from actual threats which have already been made against her."

Ven'ari's eyes narrow to smoldering crimson slits. "You've allowed familiarity to cloud your judgment and priorities," he counters. "Your attachment to this... human puts critical operations at risk."

A muscle ticks in his thick neck as his clawed hands drift toward the ornate sword hilt at his side. Beside him, the air grows heavier as his security team tenses, hands inching toward their own plasma blades.

I angle my body subtly, sliding one foot back into a defensive position as I evaluate potential escape routes. Annie remains at my back, a stalwart presence radiating trust and unwavering courage despite the rising tension.

"My priorities are to safeguard those under my protection," I say carefully, projecting a mask of calm reason.

"We are all brothers united in sacred purpose, are we not? Surely even you can see the pragmatism in handling... perception issues before they undermine the Order at a critical juncture. That human's presence is becoming an unnecessary lightning rod that threatens to divide us."

The audacity of his manipulation washes over me with clarity. Ven'ari doesn't care if my instincts are correct. He wants obedience at all costs and he's willing to compromise our integrity to satiate his own ambitious agenda.

And in service of that agenda, he deems Annie as nothing more than an expendable obstacle to be removed without regard for her lawful diplomatic status. Just a "perception issue" to be neutralized.

In that moment, any doubt I harbored about the elder knight's compromised principles solidifies into grim certainty. He's turned against the very duties he swore an oath to uphold. Which means he views Annie's continued safety as an acceptable liability to be cast aside without compunction.

A low rumble builds in my throat as the truth settles like a leaden shroud across my shoulders.

"So you would abandon our lawful obligations to a ranking diplomat," I state, allowing challenge and accusation to sharpen my tone. "All to satiate your own unchecked vanity and ambition, Ven'ari?"

In a blur of reflexive motion, his laser pistol is in hand and leveled squarely at my chest. But the aggression rolls off me like water after many years of combat conditioning. I don't so much as blink, never breaking eye contact as his blazing glare bores into mine.

Ven'ari curls his lip in a bestial snarl. One scaled hand moves in a minute signal, and as one, his troops draw their swords with a hiss of ionized air.

"Last chance, Cruxian," he growls. "Recant your insubordination immediately. You will relinquish the ambassador to my authority and return to the citadel. Her protection is no longer your concern... or that of this Order."

The damning ultimatum hangs between us, utterly unacceptable. He's demanding I turn my back on the sworn lawful duty I've devoted my entire existence toward upholding. To abandon Annie to whatever corrupt machinations now grip the Order's leadership, simply to avoid further blemishing the institutionalized arrogance fueling this debacle.

Should I capitulate?Surrender my values and integrity to Ven'ari's egomaniacal delusions and live out my days as another muzzled attack hound, stripped of true honor?

Or I could refuse.Sever every ancestral tie anchoring me to our crumbling institution's rotted husk. Thrust Annie and me into the unknown with only our conviction to guide us through whatever fate has in store for us.

The only choice solidifies in my mind. Some fragment of deeply instilled duty still balks at such blasphemous defiance of our hallowed laws and honored codes. I'll be branded an apostate, at best, hunted to the edges of civilized space and put down like a rabid beast for this offense. Yet even that grave price pales compared to failing Annie.

The silence stretches between Ven'ari and I. He senses my choice, thumb inching toward the firing stud of his pistol. My own hand hovers over the ignition switch of my plasma blade in silent preparation.

Then I feel the familiar warmth of Annie press itself into the tense plane of my back. She is steadfast, undaunted, even in the face of this escalating brutality. I chance the most fleeting glance over my shoulder and our eyes meet... every lingering strand of doubt disintegrates into vapor under the blazing conviction shining back at me.

With a steadying breath, I straighten to my full, towering height and release my white-knuckle grip on the sword hilt. The motion seems to wrong-foot Ven'ari, whose own aim tightens incrementally closer with a subtle tilt of his head.

Before he can complete the attack signal, I raise both palms in placating gestures. "Peace, brothers. There is no need for bloodshed here today."

Keeping my body angled to shield Annie, I meet Ven'ari's blazing glare steadily. "Give me a chance to gather the ambassador's effects. Surely you can allow us that small dignity before we depart these sacred grounds."

I feel her tense behind me for a heartbeat before the rustle of movement signals her acceptance. The gravity of this irreversible decision weighs heavily on both of us—choosing to depart from years of loyalty and embrace a path guided solely by her unbreakable spirit.

Tense seconds stretch into an eternity as Ven'ari weighs my words, hatred and reluctant wisdom warring across his features. At last, he gives a curt nod and motions toward the dwelling.

"You have five minutes," Ven'ari growls, lip curling in contempt. "Knight Kal'athar will accompany you to ensure no... incidents."

One of the towering warriors steps forward, hand resting meaningfully on the pommel of his sword hilt. His gaze finds mine, conveying a silent threat that requires no translation.

I give the barest perceptible nod of acknowledgment. "Of course. We'll make our preparations swiftly."

Pivoting on my heel, I lead Annie back toward the dwelling entrance, with Kal'athar falling into step just behind us. The instant the rocky alcove shields us from Ven'ari's view, every nerve ending blazes into hyperawareness.

My hand darts out in a slythara-strike, seizing Kal'athar's wrist and wrenching his arm up in a brutally efficient restraint hold. The knight's eyes widen in shock, jaws parting to bark a warning.

I don't give him the chance.

Shifting my weight with blinding speed, I clamp my free hand over Kal'athar's mouth and drive my knee up into his midsection. He grunts, doubling over as the wind is crushed from his lungs. A few deft strikes to key nerve clusters, and he crumples to the ground in a semiconscious heap.

"Crux, what—" Annie starts, alarmed.

"Go," I cut her off, already moving for the supply cache. "Grab anything essential. We only have moments."

She doesn't argue as she runs into her room, hands flying over the storage receptacles, grabbing clothes and datapads. I throw on an unassuming shirt and make a few taps on my wrist interface and it shimmers, reforming into a lightweight but highly reinforced tactical bodysuit.

I quickly add skinweave armor, refitting the sleek ebony plates with machine efficiency. Kal'athar groans from the floor nearby as I strap on my weapons harness and blaster holsters.

A flicker of movement from the mouth of the alcove—Ven'ari is growing impatient. No time for subtlety or misdirection any longer.

"Now, Annie!" I bark, throwing her a reinforced go-bag and slinging a supply pack over one shoulder. "Out the rear exit before—"

The echoing stamp of armored boots cuts me off as Ven'ari and two more knights round the corner, weapons raised. The elder knight's eyes blaze murderously as they find Kal'athar's prone form.

"Traitor!" he bellows, leveling his blaster squarely at my chest. "I'll see you flayed alive for this insurrection!"

Time fractures in that endless heartbeat. Annie's blazing eyes find mine and I give the barest perceptible shake of my head. She needs to run, now, while I buy her the opening.

Reacting on pure combat reflex, I hurl myself sideways in a shoulder roll as Ven'ari's blaster bolt shrieks past in a blaze of ionized air. Even as I come up in a crouch, I'm snapping off two return shots that drop his security escorts with surgical precision.

"Annie, go!" I bark, backpedaling toward the rear alcove. "Down the kitchen passage to the sub-hanger—I'll be right behind you!"

She doesn't hesitate, sprinting for the entrance as I lay down a blistering hail of covering fire. Ven'ari's enraged roars shake the very ground, blaster bolts crackling all around me in a savage burst.

I pivot and rush after Annie, sealing a blast door behind us to temporarily block the elder knight's pursuit. Then I'm taking the carved steps two at a time, descending deeper into the underground hangar carved from the cliff stone.

As I follow Annie, I dare to hope Ven'ari underestimates how far I'm willing to go to keep my starlight burning.

His first mistake of many this day.

The stale, musty air presses in as we plunge into the inky shadows. But finally we reach the bottom.

Up ahead waits my gunship—a relic from the blackest days of the Knighthood's time in the Orion wars. A predator of the void, sleek and angular and utterly deadly. Its armor is streaked with the corrosion of ages, but those curves still radiate menacing, raw magnificence. This is no mere pilot's craft, but an apex weapon feared across the stars.

"Crux," Annie breathes, unbridled awe sharpening the edges of that single syllable. "What... is it?"

"Our deliverance. Now get aboard!" I yell, diverting to seal the armored bulkheads against Ven'ari's imminent breach.

The booming rhythm of turbolaser impacts punching through the rock ceiling spurs me on. I input the final lockdown sequence just as the armored bay door shrieks open, revealing my gunship's systems primed for launch.

"I'm in—let's go!" Annie's voice rings out over the escalating thunder.

I don't need telling twice. Leaping up the boarding ramp, I plunge into the pilot's cradle and wrench the engines to emergency burn even before the hatch seals behind me. The gunship lurches upward with a deafening roar, clawing for altitude as debris rains down.

Through the canopy, I catch a final glimpse of Ven'ari staring up with undisguised hatred as we streak into the twilight sky. A withering barrage of turbolaser fire lances after us but comes up short as my countermeasures erupt in spectacular flashes.

"Cutting it close, weren't you?" Annie's voice is impossibly calm as the crash couch restraints hiss tightly around her.

I bare my teeth in a savage grin. "You knew I'd have us dancing on the razor's edge, starlight."

For a moment, the chaos and adrenaline of our desperate escape falls away. Annie's eyes find mine, shining with a mixture of resolution and sympathy. Her hand comes up to tenderly cup my cheek.

"I know what a sacrifice this is for you, Crux. Turning your back on everything you've ever known, your brothers, your entire way of life..." She shakes her head slowly. "I can't begin to comprehend how difficult this choice must be."

Leaning in, she presses her brow to mine, the gesture achingly intimate. "But I want you to know that I see you, my knight. I see the immense burden you're shouldering for me, for us. Whatever comes next, we're in it together."

Her fingers trace the line of my jaw with a featherlight caress. "Thank you... for choosing me. For choosing this path, no matter where it may lead. I only hope I can be worthy of such selfless devotion."

Then she pulls back, that familiar spark rekindling in her gaze as she offers me a soft, determined smile. "Now, no more stalling, yeah? Our destiny awaits!"

I gaze at her in awe, my throat tightening with the depths of emotion surging through me. This remarkable woman—brilliant, compassionate, fierce—has chosen to inexorably bind her fate to mine without hesitation.

I pull Annie into a searing kiss, trying to convey every ounce of my devotion and profound gratitude. She returns it with equal fervor, her fingers threading through my hair as our mingled breaths quicken.

When we finally part, I rest my brow against hers, savoring this perfect moment before the coming storms.

"My destiny began the moment you blazed into my life, Annie," I murmur reverently. "I will never cease following your path, no matter where it leads us next."

Then, with a feral grin, I punch the final initiation command, and we rocket forward in a maelstrom of thunderous energy. I angle the battered freighter's nose toward the atmosphere. Somewhere back on the planetary surface, Ven'ari's pursuit teams will be moving in, intent on dragging us back into the Order's smothering darkness.

But for now, there's no more orders to follow, no more rigid doctrines shackling us. It's just me, Annie, and the endless night that stretches ahead, awaiting our light. In the lurch and rattle of our breakneck ascent, Annie's hand finds mine across the dimly lit banks of instrumentation separating us, and our fingers entwine desperately. When I risk a look over at her silhouette thrown in sharp relief, she musters up a tremulous but reassuring smile. Then her chin dips in a subtle nod.

The activation of the engines created twin streaks that split through the darkness, turning it into swirling ribbons of starlight blurred by speed. With a last thunderous roar of the engines, we depart Avenia's swirling emerald and russet form. We watch as it shrinks away behind us, supplanted by the infinite sea of possibility awaiting our heading.

For a long, steadying moment, I simply allow my ship to drift in space. But the solitude doesn't last for long. My comm pings with an urgent, encrypted transmission, coded scrambler tags showing it's a level-one alert at Annie's personal estate on Venturis.

Unease coils in my gut as I engage the decryption protocols. Annie tenses beside me, sensing the gravity of the situation. The holo-display flickers to life, revealing her stately manor house in disarray—furniture overturned, windows shattered.

Security drones lie sparking and disabled as a towering lone Huxarian figure stalks into view, dragging two captives behind him. With a lurch of horror, I recognize Annie's children—Alice and Max—bound and beaten.

"No!" Annie cries out, fingers clenching around mine painfully. "Alice! Max!"

Alice seems to cry out out as the Huxarian brute forces them to their knees.

The Huxarian sneers, his jagged maw splitting open as he activates a comm link. On his armored chest plate, the fanged sigil of Kavil's regime is clearly visible.

"Ambassador Agnew. Your foolish human ideals have crippled our people long enough. While you enjoy comforts with the STI elite, many struggle to find their next meal." He gestures contemptuously at Alice and Max. "Your children's lives will be the price for your arrogance."

Annie's face drains of color as the implications become clear. The Huxarian's talons flex against Max's throat as his bestial features contort in pleasure at Annie's silence.

"You have twelve standard hours to resign your position and publicly denounce the Stellar Togetherness Initiative. Refuse, and your wretched offspring will be made an example of. One that even humanity cannot ignore."

The link severs with an ominous crackle, leaving us shaken. Annie's jaw is set in a rigid line, but her hands tremble almost imperceptibly.

"Kavil's emblem," she mutters, fury and dismay warring across her features. "These are Radicals from his hardline loyalists, lashing out over the reforms I've set in motion."

I curse under my breath as the gravity settles over us both. "Zealots hellbent on preserving their leader's oppressive hold over Huxaria at any cost... even using your children as leverage."

Annie's gaze is blazing with that familiar ferocious determination I saw when she refused to abandon Orion Station, no matter the risk. But now the stakes are raised exponentially higher.

This time, her children's lives are the stakes on the razor's edge she walks.

"We have to go back," Annie states immediately, as if that is the only course of action available.

"Annie, I know you want to protect your children, but this is a trap. You must see that."

"I don't care. I will die before letting that sick bastard harm my kids."

"Annie, I can protect you, but not if we descend into a trap led by Kavil's Radicals! We can notify—"

"Crux, you swore to protect me no matter what. And I'm going to get my kids, so unless you seek to forsake your sacred vows, you must accompany me and keep me safe. And I know I'd feel a hell of a lot better with you at my side."

A flicker of trepidation stirs within me. Her estate will be swarming with Radicals by now. But one look into those blazing blue eyes extinguishes any thought of refusal. She's entrusting me with her deepest light in this darkest moment.

But the brutal truth slices through the moment. She's right—no matter the odds, no matter the risks, I'll follow her lead without question or faltering, just like she said. My role is not to advise or debate, but to safeguard her path at any cost, including forfeiting my very existence if needed.

How could I have ever fooled myself into believing otherwise? This is the path of the truest Avenian Knights, one of absolute loyalty and single-minded focus. Questioning only leads to hesitation, and hesitation robbed me of Ambassador Moskal's life all those years ago on Vulpexa. I will not allow history to repeat itself, not while even a single spark of Annie's radiant inner fire remains to shield.

"Your will is my oath," I murmur, pulling her into a fierce embrace. "No matter the intervening fires, I will cut a path straight to your children's sides. This I vow on every spark remaining in my soul, Annie."

She nods against my chest, hands fisting in the fabric of my tunic. "Thank you, Crux, thank you from the bottom of my heart."

Grimly, I break the embrace and set a course to punch straight through the Silent Nebula—the most direct route to Venturis.

Then I turn to Annie, allowing the cold clarity of the twilight rapture to settle over me like a mantle of gundrian metal.

"Strap in, Annie. We'll arrive within six standard hours." My jaw clenches as I rev the engines to maximum burn.

I glance over at her, seeing that familiar resolve hardening her features despite the circumstances. Her fingers fly over her datapad, no doubt making moves to assist her family.

"They've underestimated how far I'm willing to go for my children," she murmurs, more to herself than me.

With a subtle nod, I engage the hyperdrive sequence. The stars blur into streaks of luminescence as we hit catastrophic velocities, the gunship's frame groaning in protest.

Venturis looms ahead—currently a sanctuary for the Radicals, but soon to become their judgment's altar. Ahead lies the crucible where this hateful crusade will face its ultimate reckoning.

Because nothing will keep Annie from her children's sides ever again. Not even the universe itself.