STORM SLAVE: THE STORM PLANET SERIES: VOLUME THREE Page 5

  Unlike most of the beings from this area of the universe that ended up in the military, he had not entered the armed forces as a last resort. Baloko hadn’t got caught committing any serious crime, nor he come from a poor family. He actually was looking for adventure, using his family’s money and position to bounce him through the basic training and past the tests to the low-grade officers schools.

  There, Baloko actually found a place he enjoyed, with a few friends he liked. It was there that he learned about real life or the lack of it. It was in his very first firefight that he met Bleak GemC’him.

  Bleak was just one step above Baloko. Their group was deployed onto an airless rock by an idiot officer who thought you could sneak up on an enemy on a flat plateau with no cover. Of course the officer didn’t go along for the shoot out.

  Baloko and Bleak ended up back-to-back, able to kill anything that moved until official retrieval was committed. The two males spent an unbelievable amount of time drinking any intoxicant they could find, until their military unit found them and pulled them back.

  Due to his Royal blood and unbelievable wealth, Bleak was offered Officer Status early and he always took Baloko with him as his Second. The two fighters built a special reputation within the fighting forces.

  When Bleak felt the pull to join his twin and become something no one understood, they asked Baloko Sachim to come to their planet to protect their people and be the Commander of the troops of GigasVnee.

  Baloko stood at the clear force field at the edge of his office, legs spread and fists on hips, as he frowned and rolled with another shudder from a hit up above on the mountain. He shook his head as he had thought this assignment would be boring, but he had accepted it for his friend Bleak.

  He had thought that it would be like retiring within the armed forces, the better of both worlds. Sure, there were the dirty politics and the need to constantly search out the spies and disrupters. He had full authority to train and introduce new ways of protecting the entire planet in all of the city caves.

  The planet was way behind, but Bleak and his twin Leant had unlimited funds and complete backing of the government. In the strange way of this planet, they were the government. Baloko walked into the greatest job a military officer could ask for. He had complete say in control of forming an elite group. He could eliminate whoever he felt was a threat and he could add and outfit his different crews in the latest. Some of the new outfits and weapons came from the labs right here on this amazing storm planet, due to the minds of the twins.

  Baloko set up leaders and groups that he sent out to the other city caves in order to train and bring each cave up to date in protection and support.

  There was more for him on a personal level. On this planet, when it came to your own life style, anything was permissible as long as it was consensual on both sides or however many. For Baloko, pain and pleasure was a part of sexual activity that he had picked up early from an uncle. Baloko had experimented with what some called Dom/sub all his life.

  He had been careful in his personal habits, since reporting for this position with his friend. First his friend had changed. Bleak and his twin had reformed together into something it was hard for any normal being to understand.

  Once they changed, they avoided contact with everyone, but Bleak did talk to Baloko as his single self a few times. It did seem to be the old buddy that had been Baloko’s Captain on the space jumper that had landed on that one forbidden planet when they needed water. A planet with water to spare, but had attacked viciously without trying to find out if a ship from outer space might need help.

  It was a forbidden planet where his Captain, in anger at the loss of some of his own men, had secured captives to sell for profit in a slave market. The Captain had thought the profit would pacify their superiors, to make up for the mistake of landing on a forbidden location.

  If one believed in Gods or Fate, then they would have to say the ship needing water and forcing this particular Captain to land on this unusual planet. There was the fact of finding one unusual captive that ended up joining the Twinned Dissnue.

  That the Captain had taken the slave home to his world, instead of selling her along with the others, was strange. After all GigasVnee did not have slaves. Added to the uncanny, was the fact that the slave was the catalyst that caused the two twins to join and form.

  Later, while serving on this world, Baloko was part in rescuing a large group of captives from some mercenaries who were going to do what he had done in another life. The marauders were taking the captives illegally to be sold.

  Baloko took it upon himself to see that those that wanted to return to their home worlds, got passage and those who wanted to remain on the storm planet, found good jobs.

  Everyone was happy except for Joo. Joo was a female that refused to believe that he was telling the truth when he offered her free passage off the planet. She was one hundred percent spitfire and he found himself needing a long cold shower after each confrontation with the small lovely fighting female.

  Joo had teased him to the point that he wanted to take her to his own bed. She had escaped several times, making her way topside to be a rare individual that could live among the large trees and severe storms. Rain and wind that tore across the top plateaus that were what crowned the rocks that pushed above the oceans.

  He had made his interest in her worse, when she described a ritual among her people. It was of a female being chased and tied to a tree before she would allow intercourse.

  Standing here now, with the solid ground shaking with the hits from the attackers far away, just the thoughts of her words had him hard. But as the floor rocked, he lost his need and another need took its place.

  The need for him to leave his post to go and bring her down and make sure she was safe, was pulling him apart. The only way he had to win her trust, some time ago, had been to allow her access to the topside.

  He had given her supplies and led her up to the wind and rain swept heavy forest on top of this rocky mountain. He often took supplies and left them for her to find, but she never retrieved them. He admired her need to prove she could live on this wild land.

  Now Baloko knew this wild land was being blown apart by energy blasts.

  ****

  Confusion had become a way of life for Joo. When the male who was head of the military of this planet let her go to the top of the plateau, she expected to only be there for a short time. She was sure he would send troops to capture her and bring her back. This had all been a trick.

  Her first thoughts were to find a place to hide and stay, as far as possible away from the upper exit. She just knew that soldiers would soon come hunting her. No one came and this confused her.

  Part of her training on her home world of wild animals and forests, had been to learn to live off the land. This wild storm planet had plenty to keep her alive and fresh water came in the rains that the weather poured down.

  It was difficult living, with the fear of being captured by the Commander’s troops. But the longer Joo hid in the forest and endured the strange strong storms, the more confused she became.

  She wondered what kind of game the male was playing. There had to be some type of trap that was just waiting for her to fall into, then he would be there.

  The small cave, hidden within the roots of a tree had turned out to be a perfect home for Joo. Every once in a while it provided her with food, as some small rodent tried to join her for warmth and to stay dry.

  At the first explosions, she assumed it was another storm. Okay, this was a little different, a lot stronger as the ground really shook. When something hit near her location, she realized she was in trouble.

  Would the Commander send in armed troops? The ground shook again and dirt shook down from the ceiling. Joo crawled to the opening, only to see items flowing past, faster than even the strong storms sent rain.

  This time she saw the bright flash of a power bomb from above. She felt the tree above her let go. The fact tha
t she was still inside the rock, kept her from being blasted across the plateau with all the debris.

  Joo didn’t feel any heat, so the bomb must have hit away from her location. This wasn’t the Commander after her. This was someone in outer space after the Commander and his Royal Party.

  It was obvious to Joo that her best choice was to return to the man she had been hiding from. She needed to try to get off this high place and find protection.

  Rain started moving over her area and that was good. It put out the fires and the cold water would give her areas that she could slide or push through.

  She felt the need to get to the one male who could protect her and save her. She felt warm inside, as she slid out of the opening into the cold rain, just thinking of his real name, Baloko.

  Never rising from her knees, sometimes even down on her belly, she moved in the direction of the rain, going toward the garden and tunnel opening to enter one of the passages into the cave city.

  Chapter Seven

  Before the war….

  He had been taught to hide in plain sight and felt this necessary with an actual assassin from the League on the storm planet. He was what was called a sleeper agent. Being the third son of the head of a military system, his life was ruled by the orders of those around him.

  Position and money didn’t mean that he and his brothers had an easy life. The belief that went with the military world that surrounded them, meant that they were raised in the harsh reality of fighting, death or destruction. It was the way of success and to show others their strength.

  Two thirds of their home world dressed in uniforms. Children were put in schools that taught not only the basics in science and discovery, but also in weapons and hand fighting. He excelled in some specifics. He used knives and dark hidden fighting better than his two older brothers or the five younger ones.

  When he came close, as a youth of only ten seasons, to almost killing his oldest brother, his father made a decision. Held between the two large guards who had saved his brother and brought him before his father, he refused to hide his eyes.

  So dear dad explained that he was going to be sold to a slaver. That slaver would make sure that he would eventually end up on a very special world. On that world he would have his choice of people to kill. Any of them would do. There was a pair of twins, the female they had made queen and their offspring who had just been born.

  Daddy told him to stay on the unusual planet. It would teach him discipline. Live and learn. Even though he was young, keep up his training as a killer, practicing all the ways to kill their enemies. There was turmoil and change coming. This planet was rich, and if he was half as smart as he thought he was, he could gain the position that he longed for. The idea is to wait until he was grown, a full male. Then he would not only kill the right person, but be in a position to help his family come in and take over this wealthy world.

  It went as his father had planned. He ended up on the storm planet with a lot of other rescued beings of all ages. He played the game, enjoying even as a half grown male, being able to fool the ones who questioned him.

  Because he had no memory, a trick he learned from his father, the good healers on this violent planet decided to school him and test him for positions that would suit him. It was when he was nearly an adult male that he was put into the military in the Royal Cave.

  His father had chosen well, when the leader of their system had sent him off to live among others. The twisted mind he inherited from his family was implanted with the need to succeed at whatever evil cost. The cost this time might mean waiting years for just the right time to find just the right person to eliminate.

  But the best was to make sure that the killing was done in such a way as to put him in a position of power. Plans and thoughts and decisions and watching, this is what it took to carry out a good sleeper project.

  Then the war came.

  ****

  Dee stared out the end open wall of his office. It was protected by a heavy force field that was invisible and he relaxed for a moment, looking at the storm moving over the dark waters of the wide ocean far below.

  He heard a soft knock on the door. The letters painted on the metal closure read Advisor Dee Con DeArmond. Who would believe that the boy who had been born in a cave on the other side of the storm world would end up Advisor to the Royal family?

  It was too long ago and too many memories blurred by all the experiences. He just knew that when he came as a full male to help guide two strange twins, he felt a need to do the best of his ability. That ability included loving the two young twins.

  A deep sigh escaped his lips as he needed to return to work. “Come.”

  His assistant entered with a pile of view discs. “Sorry, sir. There are so many items that require your attention. I tried to take care of whatever I could. I also had help from some of your special troops.”

  Dee had gotten used to having a female assistant. Loralei, the slave bond of the twins, had assured him that this assistant would be the best. She was the as good as advertised, without a doubt. She kept out the complainers and those looking for favors. She had a knack of knowing what he wanted to sign and what she could have others handle.

  Still, there was so much work to handle, so many things to be responsible for, so many lives to protect. He worked until mid day on the items his assistant provided. At last, it was time to eat with the Lady Loralei and work on something different.

  He got up and went over to a couple of soft chairs that sat around a small table in front of the force field. By the time he had the table cleared, his assistant brought in his guest.

  It had been a long time that he smiled, yet his face lit up at the approach of the Slave/Queen.

  With lack of dignity, she approached and leaned down to plant a kiss on his forehead before she sat in the second chair. They waited for a worker to bring in lunch. When they were alone they could talk.

  “Have your husbands talked to you recently, Loralei?” Dee spoke around some fruit.

  “They speak of war, Dee. Yet all of the Ambassadors from all the systems are still here. There is a lot of negotiating going on to increase the quantity of Threads that we export.”

  Dee nodded. “I don’t think we should flood the market. If some of the systems are stocking up, it worries me with the threat of war.”

  Loralei looked out at the water, trying to find anything to bring some relaxation to her mind. In another life she had been a cop back on Earth. It was simple with rules that could be enforced. Here the rules were still being created.

  “Dee, do you think these people are lying to us? They are meeting with us, acting friendly. Would they go to war with their own officials here on our own ground?”

  Dee put his food down and rubbed the back of his neck. Gads, he needed a good massage.

  “There are greedy beings who are willing to risk or even sacrifice their own people to gain the ends they seek. After all, if there is a war, think of all the lives that will be lost.”

  This Earth woman who was now ruling this storm planet, did think of all the lives that would be lost. She thought of this world as her home and these people as hers. The pain she felt in the middle of her chest, at the thought of males and females and even young being killed. It was all something her husbands still hadn’t given her enough strength to deal with as she ruled the wealth of this world.

  She sat, watching the dark waves and sending off prayers to the two males who were out there beyond the stars.

  Dee interrupted her thoughts. “Have my boys contacted you recently?”

  She knew he meant the twins, Bleak and Leant. He had been the one who had raised them and still felt like a parent. Could she share with him that she had sex with them just a short while ago? No, to have two ghost enter her dream and to feel hands move over her body, to feel lips pull on her breast. She felt fingers dip into her core until an orgasm came with such a wrench she lost all sight and feel with her room and the bed.

 
“I have enough contact to know they are alive. I don’t know where they are or when they will return. I think they are in a different plain of existence. I believe that it will take them time to understand themselves before they return.”

  It was time to get back to work, so the Slave/Queen gave a hug to her Advisor and left. For Dee it was only a moment to think of his two boys.

  It started out simple. He had proven his worth and worked his way up in the Royal Military. Somewhere in there, as he was working in exercises, he found he had two little shadows.

  Parents, who were too busy running a world to spend any time with these twins. Young twin boys that were too important that other children weren’t allowed to approach or play together. There were the tutors who wouldn’t correct them out of fear of their position as the Royal Heirs.

  For him, it didn’t matter who you were, if you did exercises, you did them right. He corrected the boys who were shocked and ran away the first time he yelled at them. But they soon returned to stick at his heels and take all his corrections with shoulders back and chins high.

  There was never a time he could tell when his position turned and he was in charge of the two boys. His rank was high and the boys grew, but they still took whatever he said with acceptance.

  Through him, they learned to get better tutors and got an education that was equal to the position that they would one day hold. As they reached adulthood, they still depended on him for advice, often waking him in his bed to ask strange personal questions.

  Dee didn’t mind that one twin bent toward science and the other preferred military action. What he did do, was object when pressure was put on the Commerce Board to separate the two. One was kept fairly close, in charge of a science project on a large commercial satellite in a nearby system.