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    Hena Day Two: Hena, #2
    Hena Day Two: Hena, #2
    Hena Day Two: Hena, #2
    Ebook175 pages2 hours

    Hena Day Two: Hena, #2

    By Odette C. Bell

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    About this ebook

    The invasion continues, but so too does the resistance.

    Hena has saved Nick, but that's all she can do. For now. When the disparate group of alien survivors is thrust together, things change.
    For now, Hena's hands are tied, but soon, she will cut through those ropes, and she will rise.

    ….

    Hena follows a castaway superweapon and a hidden alien prince fighting to save Earth from an alien invasion. If you love your space operas with action, comradery, and a splash of romance, grab Hena Day Two today and soar free with an Odette C. Bell series.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherOdette C. Bell
    Release dateFeb 12, 2018
    ISBN9781386669333
    Hena Day Two: Hena, #2

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      Book preview

      Hena Day Two - Odette C. Bell

      1

      Hena

      This was not ideal. This was far from ideal.

      She’d intervened.

      But what choice had she had?

      We have to get back down there. You have to do something, the Rayar said for the thousandth time.

      The only reason he could still speak, despite how high up they were, was because she’d extended her light form to him.

      The other man with him – the Centauri – didn’t say a word. He didn’t have to, did he? Unlike the Rayar, he already knew exactly what was going on.

      Hena ignored the Rayar.

      For now.

      There would be a finite amount of time that she would be able to do that.

      The rules around the Rayars were clear. When you found a Rayar in trouble, it didn’t matter what your previous mission was, you had to protect them.

      And yet the rules around the Accords were clear, too.

      And both were equally as important.

      I said you have to get back down there, the Rayar demanded.

      Leave her, the Centauri said.

      No, it’s clear she can do something. So she has to do something. You know how many people are dying down there?

      Approximately 50 just died within the last minute, Hena replied.

      There was a still silence. One that was reflected through the Centauri, even though their race usually had a good hold on their emotions.

      The Rayar suddenly flared with anger. What kind of a monster are you that you can casually count up lives?

      The kind of monster who has had to deal with many lives and many deaths in her time. Now be quiet, Rayar.

      You’ve got no right to tell me what to do. Now, if you have no intention of saving those people, you put me down. You hear? he said, his voice arcing up louder and louder.

      Nick, calm yourself, the Centauri said. There’s nothing you can do to change the Peacekeeper’s mind.

      Peacekeeper? We’ve got those here too, you know. And down here, Nick ticked his head down, obviously indicating the planet below, Peacekeepers do one thing – they keep the peace.

      Despite herself, Hena twitched. It was a full-bodied move, and even if she tried to keep it from Nick, the Centauri picked it up.

      Calm yourself, Nick, the Centauri advised once more.

      Hena’s life would likely be over if she allowed a Rayar to come to harm. But the lives of her people would be over if she intervened in the war.

      I told you to put me down. Just drop me from here. I’ll survive, Nick spat.

      Incorrect. The only reason you are still breathing is because of my light form. Though Rayars only require infrequent respirations, the pressure up here would be enough to rupture you.

      Perhaps she should have phrased her words more eloquently, because they had a measurable effect on the Rayar.

      Though Hena had been gripping his hand ever since she’d flown up here, suddenly Nick’s fingers wrapped around her wrist.

      Perhaps he thought he was demonstrating strength. He would need a grip thousands upon thousands of times stronger to even dent her light form, let alone damage her flesh beneath.

      It had the desired effect, though, and it got her attention once more. Slowly she tilted her head down.

      She looked into the eyes of a Rayar.

      Technically, Rayars were born to rule the universe.

      They were one of the very first races.

      Apart from the Peacekeepers, that was. But the Universal Senate did not count the Peacekeepers as a distinct race. They were a nuisance – not a necessary part of universal tradition.

      The Rayars were technically one of the very first races to ever ascend to interstellar travel, bar some of the now extinct races like the Tau. and they’d made their mark on the universe. They’d seeded many planets, even brought civilization to whole galaxies.

      And that, according to tradition at least, meant they had the right to rule. It was in their blood. It was in the blood of the universe.

      And that blood was not something that she could ignore. For long, at least. She could only be thankful that this Rayar obviously had no idea what he was, and the ruler inside had only woken up once the invasion had begun.

      But that brought her attention once more to the blood that covered Nick’s shirt. The same blood that was crusted along the back of his head.

      Did the Cartaxians attempt to assassinate you, just as they attempted to assassinate me? she asked, derailing the conversation as she appreciated this fact was far more important.

      They tried to assassinate you? the Centauri asked, his usually steady voice shaking. Do they have a death wish?

      Their scanners picked me up as a sophisticated non-human bipedal. They had not bothered to scan further, she answered.

      What are you two talking about? Nick demanded.

      You know how many other of us survived? the Centauri asked. Around the world. How many other aliens—

      I have not kept track. However, there are others. But we must return to my original question. Did the Cartaxians attempt to assassinate you, Rayar?

      Nick kept thrashing around, but one thing he didn’t do was ever loosen his grip on the Centauri.

      Which was good. Because Hena would not carry him. It wasn’t because she had no intention of saving him – it was because she had no right to.

      The Rayar was her sole concern, and the sole concern she could legally have under the Accords.

      Answer the question, Nick, the Centauri said, his voice calm. But more than that, calming. It was obvious the Centauri had already established a connection with the Rayar. Which was thankful. It was probably the only reason the Rayar was still alive.

      Yeah, they tried to assassinate me. I was at Heathrow. Some guy lured me into some plant room and smashed my head against the concrete. I… I think I died.

      Hena focused her senses, concentrating on the growing biological processes happening within Nick’s body. You did die.

      Nick stiffened, his muscles practically twanging as his blood flow suddenly increased. Then how the hell am I back?

      Your human body was designed with insurance. One the Cartaxians obviously did not pick up on.

      What does that mean? Nick demanded.

      That either the Cartaxians did not know who you were, or they did not know the insurance placed within a Rayar, she commented.

      I think it’s the latter, the Centauri replied. If they’d known he was a Rayar, they would have focused harder on the airport. By the sounds of it, they only sent one guy. He wasn’t even in full armor. That’s right, isn’t it, Nick?

      Do you think I care? The only thing I care about is getting back down there and saving lives, Nick spat, his passion steadily growing.

      For a flickering second it almost reminded Hena of her own. Albeit a far hotter version of her passion. For, over the years, the Peacekeepers’ sense of injustice had been whittled away. It had been buried deep, deep down. For there are only so many worlds you can watch crumbling, only so many civilizations you can face turning to dust until one death becomes excruciatingly similar to another.

      One injustice turns into another injustice. And the cycle of war continues.

      But that still did not stop her from seeing the similarity between the passion in Nick’s words and the passion that should still be in her own.

      Just answer the question, Nick. She can help us. Or at least she can help you, the Centauri explained.

      This got Nick’s attention. He swiveled his head down to the Centauri. What the hell does that mean, Amal? He snapped his head back up to Hena. You’re going to drop him, aren’t you? The only reason he’s with us is that I’ve got my hand on him.

      Hena stared back at him impassively. She nodded. Correct.

      You goddamn monster. Put us both down. If you have no intention of helping us – put us down.

      She’s not going to do that, Nick. You’re a Rayar. She’s obliged to save you. Just as I am.

      You think I need to be saved by a monster? All I need to do is get back down there and do what I can, Nick kept repeating that, over and over again, but if you think that meant his passion started to dwindle, you’d be wrong. Somehow, every single time he repeated that phrase, it grew stronger and stronger.

      But the strength of one’s words and the strength of one’s actual capacity are two different things.

      Nick could believe all he wished that he could make a difference down there.

      But he wouldn’t be able to.

      Stop calling her a monster, Amal corrected.

      Why the hell not? I was always taught that if you could act, you acted. And she can clearly do something. If she’s not, that makes her a negligent goddamn monster. You think I care about my life? You think—

      Others care about your life, Amal answered quietly. If you do not understand your worth, that is ultimately irrelevant. Both of us are bound to protect you.

      Nick became quiet. For all of about half a second. Then she could feel that tide of passion rising in him once more, almost like lava getting ready to spew from a volcano.

      But this time he didn’t swear at her. He simply locked his fiery gaze on her, almost as if he were attempting to bore through her light form with nothing more than his eyes.

      For… just a second, she saw something staring back. And again she recognized something in him she should still recognize within herself.

      Then she pulled herself together. We cannot stay here. We need to get to a ship. We need to get you off world.

      There is no damn way I’m gonna leave Planet Earth. This is my home, Nick said, his voice rattling down, punching low, despite the fact that up here, technically the air was too thin for anything to reverberate.

      You will have to. I’m obliged to get you to safety, Hena stated flatly.

      And I am obliged to do everything I can for these people, Nick said. For the first time, he didn’t sound like a petulant, passionate, desperate human. On the words these people, his voice extended, and so too did his power. Authority seemed to rise in his chest just like a hand reaching for the sky.

      Amal noticed it too. Even though she was not technically connected to him, her senses were always locked on him, and she could appreciate that the emotion-sensing Centauri vibrated with recognition.

      It took Nick a moment, then he shook his head. Humans. My people, he corrected, voice shaking, making it obvious he had no idea why he’d said what he’d just said.

      But he had.

      His Rayar side was shining through.

      It’s critical that we get you somewhere safe. I need a ship. I will transport now to find one. Hena began to extend her senses.

      What do you mean transport?

      If you… Hena began, but she stopped herself in time. She’d been about to say that if Nick wanted Amal to come along, then he’d have to keep a firm hand on him.

      Don’t lose hold of my hand, Amal said after a long pause.

      Why? What’s going to—

      Hena pressed a hand to the side, allowing her light form to build across her palm, to pick up over the fingers, and to flicker along her flesh. Just at the same time, she saw jets scramble overhead.

      She fancied two picked her, Nick, and Amal up as they swerved close by.

      If they thought they could close the distance and get a closer look, they were wrong. For a second later, she opened a hole in

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