Summary:
Ranji Kandikan is an officer in the Air Service in the Empire of Chimorro. The enemies of Chimorro are Atlantis and the Aesir-Vedan Alliance. Atlantis is aided by the alien race known as the Greys. The Greys have recently begun targeting Imperial transports using an EMP weapon that disables avionics systems, often causing the aircraft to crash. Aesir-Veda is aided by a humanoid reptilian race referred to as draconians. The draconians are more actively present, using their shield and camouflage technology to impersonate, spy, commit sabotage, or assassinate anyone deemed a threat to draconian plans.
In the Empire of Chimorro, society is strictly divided into castes, with Priests and Warriors forming the first and second tier of nobility. Lower castes can temporarily become warriors while in the military, and for exceptional service, they have a chance to become an officer, and thus become a permanent member of the Warrior Caste. Other nations in the world also have strong class divisions, such as the Kingdom of Veda of the Aesir-Vedan Alliance.
Women have a decidedly lower status in the world, but it is more pronounced within the Empire, where nearly half of all women are illiterate. Most women depend upon the men in their family to protect them, or in the case of Women Warriors, to defend themselves. Women Warriors can have sex, but must be circumspect about it, and they cannot become pregnant. For enlisted, it means dishonorable discharge. For officers, as part of the hereditary Warrior Caste, pregnancy for active service personnel is considered sacrilege and punished by execution. Rape, however, is not considered a crime, except where it impugns the honor of the male family head. In the military, women of lower rank must submit to sexual demands. Around the world, however, there is a growing sentiment that women should have a say over their own bodies, and some nations press toward equality.
Ranji, working with Melannee Siroptic as Commander Orchid, has helped foil the Drug Plot, where anti-women warrior conspirators replaced birth control medication for women in the military with fertility drugs. Some women have died, but the Drug Plot itself was smashed, and in addition, the rampant graft and fraud at High Guard War base has been uncovered and ruthlessly prosecuted by Imperial Security under Commander Orchid's direction. High Guard is an important Imperial forward base keeping watch for Atlantean incursions, and it is hoped the purge will restore the base's morale and military viability.
For his efforts, Ranji has been promoted to Senior Lieutenant and given his own command. Protection Orders make the rounds in various units, forbidding forced sex among officers, enlisted, and civilian dependents, and with Commander Orchid's blessing, several units adopt the order. Orchid, with Ranji's help, also smash a draconian-run child trafficking ring.
Meanwhile, attempts have been made on the lives of Ranji; his lover, Janetta Tlacoltli, interceptor pilot; and upon her all-female flight crew, Second Sergeant Zinja, mechanic; Sergeant Cholan, avionics and electronics specialist, and Corporal Ixma, general labor and Zinja's daughter. To protect her crew from unwanted sexual molestation, Janetta has begun sharing Ranji with her crew, and insisting they wear his officer's neckerchief with his grade pins, marking them as his women.
Though badly injured, Janetta not only survives the attempt on her life, she also managed to make possible the capture of draconian camouflage and shield technology, and as a result is promoted to Captain. Melannee's actions as Orchid, including killing Maretta, however, have aroused the ire of Supay, Minister of Imperial Security.
Janetta, Cholan, and Zinja continue healing in the Naval hospital, guarded by Ranji's new aide, Corporal Sowitwee, and some off-duty marines hired by Ranji.
Several immediate matters remain unresolved. The more than two thousand refugees who survived being massacred the day before are still waiting to evacuate the base. Ranji's second in command, Lieutenant Doyya Lovyanchiti, is helping Melannee escape to the nearby city of Capisco, in the Seven Nations, and has yet to return. Ranji has weeks of training away from High Guard War base fast approaching, and that will leave the newly promoted Doyya in charge of the new unit without Ranji's support. The news Ranji received of the Vedan plot to kill Ranji's father, an important research scientist for the Empire. Making sure that Janetta and the others stay safe while Ranji is gone, including the two young orphan girls he has recently adopted, Sisi and Mina.
Ranji hopes that his time away means Janetta and her crew will be safe. Janetta fears that Ranji will be in danger without her help.
Thanks to my reader, gyfurune. When I originally posted this, I sent a query and didn't hear back, so I posted without benefit of a reader. Gyfurune has since given this a read through and caught several errors. I appreciate his efforts! Again, any errors that slip through are my entirely fault.
For those following this series, I'm delighted to have you along for the tale.
* * * * *
I was now a father. I had promised two small children that I would love and protect them, take care of them and raise them. My initial reaction, I realized, was based on Zinja herself. Her strong desire to keep Sisi safe had made it easy. I trusted Zinja's judgment, and thus my own decision to support her desire to protect a small, frightened child. I had meant all the things I'd said to Zinja only the night before, when she'd come seeking solace from me. I hadn't planned this, but it had felt right at the time and I was okay with all that it meant now. Letting Ixma adopt Mina, too, had also felt right. And like that, mother and daughter were tied to me with their own bonds, separate from what Janetta and I had.
Father.
That new role settling and taking root as I drove us across the base in the darkness, away from the Naval hospital and to our home. Ixma sat beside me, and my new girls, Sisi and Mina, were asleep in their safety seats behind us.
"What are you thinking about?" Ixma asked quietly.
"You, Zinja, and those little girls."
"They are your daughters, Ranji," she reminded me. "You have children now."
"I know! That's what I'm thinking about. Everything is changed between us now. You and I are parents, Ixma."
She reached over and touched my shoulder. "All I have to go on is how my mother raised me. You are a good man, Ranji Kandikan. You will be a good father."
"One doesn't equate the other, but surely I hope so," I replied.
"We will both make mistakes, but as long as we remember to say I love you to each other and to our children, we will be all right. And I do love you, Ranji. With all my heart."
"Zinja is Sisi's mother, now," I reminded her.
"I know that. And my mother will have final say over Sisi. But she will also be working during the day, and I will be taking care of both your children. Sisi may be my sister now, but I will raise and love and protect her as I will do for Mina."
Was this the same woman I'd met less than a year ago? Who was once so timid and unsure of herself? Then I remembered last night, and what she'd told me in the car with her mother listening, and her later coming to me in the shower. And only this morning, posing for the revealing picture, so that I'd have a keepsake of her.
To remember what was waiting for my return
, she'd said. Then today, when her mother was shot, she killed the man who did it.
"I cannot believe how much you've changed, Ixma. Even in the past few days!"
"I'm still terrified that I will make a mistake, but my captain's words last night helped me today. I am a Warrior. When Mama got shot, I couldn't stand there. I had to do something."
"You certainly did something! I'm just curious as to what sparked it."
She laughed quietly. "You did."
"What do you mean?"
"Mama, Cholan, and I love our captain. We know she has no money, but even before we heard about the bravery of her father, we knew she protected us from being molested as best she could, and most of the time that meant her bending over a desk. Sometimes, she'd come back bruised and hurting. Those were the worst. She'd wake up in the night afterwards, crying, and Mama would hold her until the terror went away. Yet every morning, without fail, she met the world, brave and fearless. Everything she endured was to keep us safe and to be the best pilot in the Empire.
"Then you arrived. When you became a part of our captain's life, we worried for her. But we soon saw how you treated her, and we were happy for our officer. You are good for her, Ranji. And we really enjoyed watching the sex!"
"Oh, really?" I pulled over to the side of the road. This was my first real, intimate conversation with Ixma, and I wanted to give her my attention.
Ixma giggled. "Yes, Ranji. Women pay attention to how men treat other women. We could tell she liked what you did to her. Mama helped me to see that. How our captain would give quick glances at the door when you were expected to come to the hangar. And if you were late, how she would start to fidget, anxious for your arrival."
Anxious I could believe. Eager for the visit, but also afraid of her growing feelings for me. I unbuckled my safety belt and turned in my seat to face Ixma.
Ixma did the same as she continued. "Mama talked to me. She made me understand that our captain wasn't having sex because she had to, but because she wanted to, or rather, that she wanted you. And Mama was right. I could see it in our captain's face. How she looked at you, and how she touched you. The noises she made weren't from pain but from pleasure! Before you, Ranji, my experiences with men were never good. Most times it was over quick, but .. not always. I ..." Her breath caught.
"Ixma, it's okay. You don't have to talk about it."
She put her hand to her mouth a moment, taking a long, steadying breath. "I want to, Lieutenant. I .. I need to."
"Ever since we left the hospital, you've been calling me Ranji. Now I'm Lieutenant?"
"I'm afraid," she whispered, not meeting my eyes in the dim light. "Sometimes I forget that you are not just my man, but you are an officer, a nobleman, and that you are due the respect of your rank. I worry I'm talking too much. Boring you with my chatter. Overstepping myself. Afraid of saying too much and turning you against me."
"You have it right, Ixma. Underneath it all, I'm just a man. But you aren't talking too much," I assured her. "Please, continue! I want to know you, Ixma. You are more than just a pretty girl to me. You are mother to my child."
"You--you think I'm pretty?" In the faint lights from the dashboard, I could see she was astonished.
"I do."
And her tears began. "I love you so much, and there's so much I want to say to you, and .. and I'm afraid I'll do something to make it all go away. Both of you are so strong willed that I'm afraid you and our captain will fall apart again. And I couldn't stand that. I feel so alive when I'm in your arms. I couldn't bear it if you stopped loving me." She sniffed, wiping at her eyes and nose, trying to master her feelings.
"Would you like me to hold you?" I offered.
"Yes! But I .. I can't. I need to tell you what's in my heart." More quietly -- to herself, I think -- she whispered. "I am a warrior, and I'm still standing."
I waited while she took control. I was immensely proud of her desire to be strong on her own.
She took a ragged breath, then wiped her eyes and her nose before speaking again. "I know, if not for my captain, I could never have a man like you."
