Rescue Me, Love Me

The Iccythrians that welcomed them onto the House DKRT ship were stern-faced giants.

Xion and Katya exchanged a glance as they approached the unknown gendarmes.

Like most of Katya's people, they were dark honey and ebony-skinned Adonises, their dermis embedded with diamonds and gems.

Their guns were just as immense as their physiques, and they strode with an air of authority that was both intimidating and reassuring.

The DKRT unit leader stepped forward, his voice rumbling like thunder as he addressed them. ‘Welcome, friends of Khani Soren and the Khosana. My name is Zoran DKRT, and I'm Duke's second cousin.'

He glanced at Katya and acknowledged her in Ccyth fashion with a formal bow and a click of his booted heels.

She dropped a curtsy, surprising herself. Zoran's greeting was a kindness she didn't usually receive from her fellow Ccyth, given her family's notorious and lowly pleb status.

Her reception here was all due to Xion and the massive favours he was pulling on her behalf.

Overwhelmed, she shared a small smile with the Rider.

His severe expression dropped for a moment, and a glint of warmth sparked in his mocha-jade eyes, sending her heart into a spin.

He turned to march after Zoran down the dim-lit corridors of the freighter.

Katya kept up while marvelling at the advanced state-of-the-art weaponry on display along the ship's walls, which were lined with weapon racks, each more impressive than the last.

Although a Ccyth herself, her House had none of the bells and whistles of a menage aligned with the royal family.

It was like she was stepping into a different world. The ship was a marvel of technology, sleek and efficient, with a power that hummed beneath the surface.

She followed Xion down the corridor as Zoran led them to a generous conference room, the walls adorned with holographic displays of the freighter's systems and equipment.

‘Welcome, sit,' the DKRT Head of Security announced. ‘There's tea, kahawa, snacks. Let's talk tactics.'

He wasn't a man given to chatter, and Katya respected his blunt approach. They sat down, and the Ccyth soldier got down to business, analysing maps and data projections.

Xion began by outlining their objective: to infiltrate the fortified compound where Katya's children and loved ones were being held.

Zoran listened, grunting on occasion.

‘That sounds like a solid plan,' he said at last. ‘We have a crew of experienced fighters, and we can provide additional support. But we need to move with care. Contrary to what Duke told you, it won't be a simple waltz in and demand for what we want in the name of the Khosana DKRT. House ALMQ has become increasingly hostile in recent weeks due to the rapidly deteriorating political landscape in Iccythria. He's amassing an army, and I suspect they'll fight back. We can't afford to underestimate them.'

‘I'll go in first,' Xion murmured. ‘I can move at high speed due to my metanoids. I'll conduct a reccie and send whatever intel I find on their location. I'll then provide a distraction at the front of the complex while you retrieve the kids via the back. We'll need at least ten to fifteen of your guards to manage at minimum two children each.'

He turned to Katya. ‘You'll stay on board to welcome and keep them quiet. I don't want any screaming to alert anyone out of the ordinary.'

Katya nodded, her heart pounding in her chest. ‘I can do that,' she said, trying to sound confident despite her nerves.

She understood the risk but trusted the Rider's and Ccyth's proficiency.

Zoran jerked his chin. ‘Very well. It won't be easy, but I believe in our crew.'

He gestured to the display, and Xion and Katya stood up to look closer.

They examined the compound's layout, noting the defensive structures and identifying possible entry points.

Katya listened in, attempting not to give in to worry as their strategy unfolded.

Still, a frisson of fear hit her. This was going to be a dangerous operation, and she worried for the lives of her loved ones.

The ship lifted out of their hiding place in the valley and headed toward the secure complex due south of LeCythi.

Xion was calm, aided by Zoran's quiet confidence and the state-of-the-art vessel they were aboard.

It was nimble and equipped with advanced stealth technology, allowing them to navigate to the location with relative ease.

The hostages were being held in a secure house, a small underground facility at the foot of an active volcano that spewed ash and lava high into the sky.

‘Looks like House ALMQ has several of these safe houses dotted all over the planet,' Xion murmured to the Iccythrians.

‘It's some sort of divide and conquer strategy,' Zoran grunted. ‘It's also inhospitable, a deliberate decision to keep out any curious eyes and rescue attempts.'

‘Makes sense,' Xion added. ‘The King kept my kidnap location far from this one, most likely to reduce the chances of recovery of both parties. Either way, we still get to bust your loved ones out,' the Rider told Katya.

‘You don't know how much this means to me,' she said.

‘You can tell me in detail later,' he growled, still heart sore.

As they approached the compound, the infil team fell silent, their focus sharp and unwavering. Any small mistake could cost them dearly, and time was not on their side.

Xion flicked over the holo and the intel, narrowing in on the massive fortification before them. The complex was a sprawling labyrinth of metal and concrete, its towering walls adorned with advanced weaponry and defensive systems.

It'd be a challenge, but nothing he hadn't seen in his vast security, military and mercenary experience.

He jerked his chin to Zoran, who input a command into the console. The ship's stealth technology kicked in, cloaking them from detection.

The infil team synced their wrist comms, as the plan relied on precision and timing.

Xion turned to Katya and tagged a slight tremble of her lips.

With a soft curse, he strode to her, lifted a gloved hand and touched a forefinger to her lip. ‘It shall be well,' he murmured into her earpiece.

She nodded, gazing up at his reflective HUD mask, and then, on a whim, she pressed a kiss on his upper chest.

Giving him a tremulous smile, she stepped back.

Not seeing the emotion that charged through his face under his helmet.

The Rider gave her a chin lift and turned, heading for the airlock.

On Zoran's count, he launched himself into the sky, employing the Sable suit's power pack to hurtle towards the target.

Onboard the bridge of House DKRT's lead ship, Katya's heart raced, eyes on Xion as onscreen, his shadowy form moved through the compound.

He'd made a solid landing without encountering any resistance.

He was now serving as the vanguard, rapidly navigating the compound's defences to gather intel.

Meanwhile, the House DKRT forces, a crew of twenty, flitted out of the airlocks one by one into the soot-infested sky.

Infiltrating the complex from above, they landed one by one on the surface, just inside the facility's perimeter.

Katya's eyes, however, were focused on Xion's signal.

He was a blur of motion, avoiding detection and cameras.

‘I've found them,' Xion's voice crackled through his comm. ‘They're in a holding cell in the basement. Thirteen children, including a young three-year-old and two carers. Per our count of fifteen.'

Katya let out a long sigh of relief, her hammering heart calming. He'd located her family. Now, they just needed to get out.

‘Katya, you OK?' Xion rasped into her private HUD signal.

She jolted. ‘Naam, sante. You're doing great, kodan; keep going.'

‘You stay strong now,' he rasped, ‘khaliya,' he added, warming her soul with the endearment.

He clicked over to the wide band. ‘The hostages are asleep, but I'm going to throw in a knockout grenade so that they don't wake when we expatriate them. But first, the guards. The back door is covered. I'm firing stun beams to knock them out. Zoran, please also set your weapons to the same; we don't need to start a war here. Are you primed to move in?'

There was a brief pause as Zoran consulted with his crew. ‘We're good to go. You down the sentinels on watch; we're prepared to come in for the hostages and take them to the extraction point as soon as you ping us.'

Xion was crouched in a corridor close to the holding cell.

His meta vision allowed him to see through the defensive wall barrier, where the captives lay on the floor, asleep on a row of thin mattresses. His heart ached for them, for all the pain they had been put through.

He extracted a small device from his hip and pushed it along the floor.

Its metanoids deactivated the shield and rolled to the centre of the lockup.

It released its vapour with a hiss, and he observed as, one by one, the group inside slumped into even deeper sleep.

Now for the ALMQ gendarmes.

Oblivious to the action behind them, the pair tasked to watch over the holding cell were glued to a holo screen, watching a sports game.

With a smirk, Xion pulled out his stun laser, ready to take the duo down.

That was when a mighty kick hit him in the back.

An imperial ALMQ guard had sneaked up on him.

Xion stumbled, stopped himself and pivoted on his feet.

His eyes landed on a colossal giant of an Iccythrian sentinel, face in a snarl, eyes wild, almost feral in his energy.

‘Who the fokk are you?' he sneered and rushed for Xion.

By then, both guards on duty had whirled around in their chairs and were leaping up to join the fray.

Switching to high-velocity mode, Xion turned and painted them with laser fire.

They fell as he charged, turning his weapon on his now lone assaulter as the man swung a forceful right hook.

Xion met him with his dominant fist, but his punch was faster and landed hard on the man's face.

However, the ALMQ gendarme took the blow while wrenching Xion's laser from him, flinging it out of reach.

He spat out blood before grabbing Xion and throwing him to the ground with such force that a cloud of dust rose around them.

Xion rolled away, gasping for breath as he narrowly avoided getting crushed by the ALMQ guard's heavy boots.

In the nick of time, he spotted the DKRT infil crew running past the incapacitated guards and into the cell where the hostages were being held.

Using his accelerated speed, Xion leapt to his feet and lunged towards the ALMQ guard so quick he was a blur.

He swung a left punch at his opponent's stomach, followed by a solid right jab that ripped open the guard's ear, causing blood to splatter everywhere.

Confused by how fast this fight was taking place, the sentinel charged again, landing two blows to Xion's head. But the Rider dodged with speedy artfulness.

The royal guard tried to push forward and overpower Xion with sheer strength, but The Rider rapidly shifted tactics.

He missed a right punch but used its momentum to grab onto the guard's jugular and throat with one arm while securing his wrist with the other hand. He threw himself backwards to break the man's neck, but the gendarme countered by flinging down and to the side, breaking free from Xion's hold.

As they rolled on the ground, each trying to gain the upper hand, Xion's assailant lunged forward with a strong kick aimed at Xion's head.

Xion managed to roll out of the way and then launched at the guard's remaining standing leg, taking him down.

Amid their struggle, Xion slugged a fast left and right hook that ruptured his opponent's cheek and mashed his lips.

Despite being bloodied and bruised, the burly sentry continued to fight back, wheezing for air. But Xion was relentless, striking him in the face with a left hook and following it up with several hits to the body.

The guard's jaw hung open, his face covered in cuts and bruises as he staggered towards Xion.

With precision and calculation, Xion landed a kapo round kick on his chin before delivering two more bone-crushing blows that sent him crashing to the ground, knocked out.

Xion bent over at the waist, panting, gasping to catch his breath.

That's when a pair of arms went around him, encircling him.

Katya.

He almost fell into her, winded from using his meta speed at high charge in such a short amount of time. ‘Damn woman, I'm getting too used to you rescuing me,' he joked. ‘You could spin your skillset into Search Rescue and leave your thieving days behind.'

‘Fokk off, Sable,' Katya jested through her helmet, keeping her hand enclosing his midsection as they walked back to the waiting vessel. ‘Admit ‘tis your fantasy to be rescued by a woman.'

‘One woman in fokkin' particular,' he growled. ‘The kids?'

‘They're all onboard the DKRT ship and knocked out in the mess,' she whispered. ‘They all look so small and thinner than I last saw them.'

Her voice almost broke at the last words.

She turned into him, pressing her head into his nape. ‘Xion, I can't imagine what would have happened if -'

‘Nada, stop imagining; focus only on the present. It's the only way we'll get through this.'

He squeezed her waist in reassurance, their eyes meeting through their plex helmets.

It'd been a gruelling few days, and he tagged the pain and exhaustion in her gaze.

It was the same washing over him.

He also caught on to her fierce, unwavering resolve and dedicated her commitment to the children, itching to ask her about their story and significance to her.

But first, they needed to deliver said innocent lives to safety.

‘Let's get them out. We're almost there.'

She nodded, her grip on him tightening.

They supported each other back to the DKRT vessel. Stepping over the senseless, broken bodies of ALMQ soldiers that lay scattered around them, a gruesome testament to the violence they had just wrought.

But their focus was on getting away, not what they had left in their wake.

Tracking fast into the rescue ship, they headed straight to the mess, where Zoran stood guard over the youngsters and their two carers.

All thirteen children were still out cold, and the DKRT sentinels placed blankets over them to keep them warm.

Katya moved in to check on her beloveds, making sure they were all stable and unharmed.

She shifted from one to the other, tears falling as she smoothed hairlines, stroked temples and pressed kisses on each of their cheeks.

Xion observed, hands crossed over a heart pounding against his ribs with an emotion he couldn't quite discern.

It was clear that she adored her charges; it changed her. Her face was softer than he'd ever seen, and her eyes shone with the love only a mother could emit.

When she rose finally from the ground, letting one slumbering child's hand go, he tracked to her.

She turned, sensing his approach.

‘Meet my kids, Xion,' she whispered.

‘It's my pleasure,' he rasped back.

Eyes shining, she pointed each tousle-haired child out. ‘That's Kira, Kali, Kade, Kane, Kian, Kaan, Kadi, Koda, Kylo, Kobe, Kastian, Kash and the baby's Kaaia.'

The bachelor in him panicked; the lover in him melted. ‘Pleased to see them, can't wait to get acquainted when they're awake.'

‘They're a riot, so be careful what you wish for,' Katya said with a half laugh.

She gestured to the older woman who resembled her in beauty and grace.

She was propped on a crash couch, exhaustion lining her kind features. She gave them a small wave as she accepted water and a pack of rations. ‘That's my mother, Kiko. She took care of them all this time. I'll never be able to repay her.'

‘She sounds like an angel,' the Rider rasped.

He crossed to the sleepy woman. ‘Welcome on board, Khosa D'Hanna,' using the older woman's formal title. ‘Is there more we can do to make you comfortable?'

Her eyes lit over him. ‘You're a good one,' she whispered. ‘Your soul shines with pure light,' she added to his surprise.

‘Sante,' he murmured, nonplussed.

‘I need nothing now that my beautiful girl and I are reunited,' Kiko reiterated. ‘Thanks to you.'

He bent over, lifted her hand and kissed the back of her palm.

She gave him another soft smile before turning into the back of the crash couch, exhaustion taking her over.

She was soon snoring, senseless to all the activity around her.

Xion turned to see Katya seated on the floor on a mattress, stroking the dark curly hair, skin, and cheeks of the youngest charge in her arms.

He strolled to the mess's doorway, where he lingered, leaning on the jamb, eyes locked on her, his chest churning with feeling.

Katya caught sight of him and stood, tucking the girl under covers.

She moved to his side at the threshold.

His eyes met his, her face etched with gratitude.

‘Happy?'

She nodded.

‘If you're happy, I am too,' he rasped.

Her hand brushed against his, a mother's thankful touch.

He reached for her hair, smoothing it over her nape and neck, then tagged her to his flank. They remained in silence, shoulder to shoulder, as an uncanny sense of peace washed over him.