Page 25 of Aura Awakened
“Destroying the nebula seems extreme. It’s not like the nebula did anything wrong, and there could be life forms living in and around it.”
Cynara nods. “Not to mention, we might be able to use its resources for ourselves. We’ve never studied a Wraith Nebula before. Who knows what we might be able to do with it? But until we have access to it, it’s irrelevant.” She transfers the information from my comm unit. “I’ll send this up the chain.” She turns back to Aura. “I really am sorry you can’t go home at this time. I hope you enjoy Acacia. If not, tell Fillian and we’ll make arrangements to settle you somewhere else. The Coalition will always do its best to aid those who have been harmed by the Malifects.”
Even as I translate, I stand; she’s clearly dismissing us. Extending a hand to Aura, I help her up.
“Thank you for your assistance. It was nice to meet you,” Aura says.
“Sure, same.”
I start for the door, Aura’s hand in mine, but Cynara stops me.
“There’s one more thing, Fill. Now that you’ve found your star-mate, you have a new set of obligations. Particularly considering that she’s new to our society. Fortunately, you’ll have plenty of time to help her acclimate. As of now, you are officially off duty and grounded here on Acacia. Take the time to show Aura around.”
“You’re grounding me? What the fuck?”
She nails me with a sharp gaze. “Are you questioning me?”
“I sure as shit am. I’m one of your best men. You need me out there!”
“Do I? Really? Based on your recent behavior, I think the answer to that is no. Your recklessness has caused more problems than it’s solved lately.”
“Come on, Nara. I know it was an unauthorized mission, but surely the ends justify the means, yeah?”
“It’s not just that. This information is critical, I’m not denying it. But you broke protocol and left your partner alone out there. You know better than that. If it were up to me, I’d ground you for sure. But as it happens, this decision didn’t come from me. It came from HQ.”
Well, hell. That’s bad. I do not need the highest levels of Coalition command pissed at me.
“Come on, can’t you put in a good word for me?”
“Maybe, but I’m not going to. Let me repeat myself: you ditched your partner and went after a Grim-class shipon your own.” She jabs the air for emphasis. “That is not what we have been trained to do. Now go home. I need to get back to work.”
I frown, a little niggle of guilt worming through my gut. Nara may be stone cold, but I can tell something is bothering her. “Before you boot me off base completely, tell me why my mission was changed. Why I got recalled. Because Ramp was supposed to meet me in the asteroid field, but he never showed. Did he get reassigned? What’s going on? What did I miss?”
She leans forward, elbows braced on the table. “That’s the problem, Fill. That’s why you’re currently grounded and about to get the hell off my base.”
“Spell it out for me, Cynara.”
She steeples her fingers. “Thanks to your harebrained antics, no one has seen Rampion for two days. The Coalition considers him officially missing.”
“What?” Next to me, Aura gasps as the words make their way to her.
“You heard me. Now we have to divert people and resources to figuring out what happened and tracking him down. Get outta here.” Nara pulls out her pocket computer and gets to work, her way of making sure I know I’ve been dismissed.
I leave the debriefing room in a daze, barely aware of Aura at my side. I have fucked up on such a colossal scale, I can’t begin to fathom it. I put Aura in danger. I screwed up my unit. I pissed off my commander.
And that’s not even the worst of it.
It’s my fault that Ramp is missing, and they won’t let me help find him. I thought my life had taken a turn for the better: I completed my mission, found my woman, got to come back home and show off my planet. I should be happier than a Caimanite in a river right now.
But even with Aura at my side, finally showing more of an interest in Acacia than Earth, things are so very far from okay. They won’t be right until Ramp is back in the fold.
Which begs the question: Where the hell could he be?
Epilogue
AURA
Fillian is silent on the transport to his home. At first I let him stew, mostly because I forgot what I could do with the bond. Remembering, I tentatively reach out with my mind, touching on his emotions.