Chapter 14
Commander Trent Qoln
When I heard Samantha's words of self-sacrifice, I knew that she was the one for me. I could not deny that I loved her any longer. No matter how angry I was about her secret pregnancy, at that moment, I was tested. Could I live without her? Could I live out my days knowing that she was in the brutal arms of Jenku Vade? No, I could not. Just the thought of it made me the angriest I had ever been. So I quickly reasoned with her, using Earth as an excuse. My words were true; she could not go to Waysaw and not be considered a spy by Earth. They would feel betrayed. But I spoke this reason to her first because I was afraid that telling her I simply did not want her to go would not be good enough reason for her. She would go anyway. If she was willing to sacrifice her own happiness to stop this battle, then me telling her that I simply did not want her to go because I wanted her for myself would not be good enough. So I was happy when she agreed to the reason involving Earth. It was only then that I told her the truth: I wanted her. She was mine.
Now she was safely inside the belly of the mountain with the leaders. I raced toward the front lines ready to take on the Waysaw maniac that was trying to come for her.
“Commander Trent Qoln; I'm coming in. Tell me what you know,” I said as I approached our battalion spread out over the outlands. We had the vantage point because we were already perched on the cliffs. Looking down over the Flatlands that led to the Waysaw City, you could see the Waysaw soldiers in battle speeders racing towards us.
“This battalion is led by Commander Jenku Vade. His ship is on the right about four lines in,” the soldier reported over the radio.
“Copy that. I am going to take out the commander. The rest of you hold the line. We can’t let them get to the village. Squads four, seven, and forty, I want you on the outside of the battle watching and chasing any stragglers that stray from formation to head to the village in lone battle style. You know the drill,” I said.
“Yes, Commander,” I heard in responses.
“Fire at will!” I shouted. We were the ones to fire first. We fired upon the Waysaw. They fired back. The battle had begun. I flew past flying laser blasts with my focus on Jenku Vade. No way in hell was he going to get away. As I flew toward him, his ship suddenly went high and shot over the battle. It was leaving the battle behind and heading for the mountains. I knew what he wanted. I knew that he was after Samantha. He was using this battle as a distraction and taking off to the mountains himself. He must have thought all our forces were out here, but they were not. We had many battalions at the village ready to greet him.
“Where do you think you are going? You are not getting anywhere near her,” I said as I turned my speeder and raced after his ship. When I was in range, I fired shots directly at the engine. I wanted to bring that ship down. The ship went into evasive maneuvering.
“I'm going to get you no matter what. He will not have her! She is mine,” I said as I maneuvered with the ship and continued to fire. Finally, I made a fatal blow to the ship. It went down, crashing into the outlands and skidding across the rocky terrain.
I circled over the ship, waiting for the soldiers to come out. But I could not wait any longer. I had to get rid of him once and for all. I landed the speeder right next to the ship.
“Jenku Vade!” I shouted as I got out of my speeder.
I shouted his name again. After a few seconds, he crawled out of the rubble. He stood and faced me.
“Commander Qoln, I thought you were dead,” he said.
“You wish,” I said.
“There is no need for this battle. I only come for the human female that you rebels have. She is my property. She carries my child,” he said.
“Yes, the human female that I have been bedding. I see why you want her back,” I said.
He growled. He did not like hearing this. It was precisely why I had said it.
“She is mine. You will never touch her again. Hand her over, and this battle will be over. You do not want more to die just for one human,” he said.
“No, only one more needs to die,” I said as I shot my blaster gun toward him. He ducked and jumped across, landing on the ground and rolling. He pulled his gun and shot at me, and I ducked out of the way. We shot at each other, and I used the speeder for cover, and he used the wreckage of the ship. He was a good shot, nearly hitting me. So was I. We were equal in our gun skills. We weren't going to get anywhere like this. I had to get closer.
As soon as he reached to recharge his gun, I charged at him. I jumped on him. We wrestled across the ground. I pulled my knife and held it above his neck, but he stopped me with his arm. I applied pressure as he pushed back. We rolled again across the ground wrestling, punching, and fighting.
“You will not have her. She is mine. I will make your child my own,” I said.
Jenku had a burst of rage. He pushed me off of him with a growl. He jumped on top of me and took my knife. He slashed at me, getting me in the arm, but it was just a slice, not too deep. I quickly grabbed the knife from him and shoved it into his side. He stopped fighting. He rolled onto his back.
“As I said, only one death needs to happen.” I pulled the knife from his side and then slit his throat. He died with a gurgle and a menacing growl. Finally, my enemy was dead. Finally, Samantha was safe.
I picked up the heavy Waysaw and pushed him into my speeder. It was grotesque, but it was the only way to stop this battle. I flew back to the middle of the battle and hovered low on the ground. I kicked him out of my speeder and flew away. It was obvious that the Waysaw were able to identify their commander. Within minutes, they retreated from the battle. We had victory. I had Samantha, and Earth still had its ambassador.