Star Kissed

Chapter Twenty One

Chapter Twenty One

Five minutes passed before the Kini responded.

“Akkadi, my friend!” a voice boomed.

He exchanged a look with the navigator at the overly familiar address. A form appeared on the hologram device, that of one of the grizzled, small men with a full beard and a grin. The barbaric Kini had responded, and Akkadi assessed how to handle the situation.

“Greetings, Mackle,” Akkadi replied. “It is not appropriate to attack a ship in our solar system.”

“They put up no fight,” Mackle replied with a shrug. “You Naki are no sport.”

“We prefer a different form of diplomacy,” Akkadi reminded him.

“It is not diplomacy to back down when challenged. It is cowardice. You, Akkadi, did not back down then and you do not now. I am proud to know the one Naki who isn’t a coward.”

“Much appreciated, Mackle, but I must insist you cease attacking that ship.”

“You want the craft we possess?” A shrewd gleam appeared in Mackle’s eyes.

“Not the ship,” Akkadi said calmly. “I want what’s on board.”

“Energy? Shards?”

“A person.”

Mackle considered. “Come over. We’ll talk.”

“Very well.” Akkadi agreed. He closed the channel before Mackle could say anything else, aware he needed to pretend to keep the upper hand.

“You’re going, my prince?” The navigator appeared taken aback.

“Dock with them.”

Akkadi stood and armed himself. He had never been on a diplomatic mission that required proving his resolve with such a primitive form of combat, but he suspected he’d have to again.

If that’s what it took to free Mandy, he’d fight every Kini in the galaxy. He waited impatiently for the ships to dock and the sounds of the seals hissing to reach him.

“Tell my sister not to attack,” he said, starting towards the bridge between ships. “If the Kini fire on you, fire back.”

“Yes, my prince,” his navigator said in hushed tone.

Akkadi waited for the doors to open and crossed the bridge into the Kini ship. Mackle and a few others awaited him.

“We came to see you,” Mackle told him.

Akkadi bowed his head. “May I ask why?”

“About our agreement. The energy cells.”

“Our agreement.” Akkadi considered, not expecting this was why the Kini came to the solar system. “You turned me down.”

“I said we’d think about it.” Mackle waved for him to follow him into the ship.

Akkadi had to duck once they were out of the cargo bay. The ship’s ceiling was no more than six feet tall.

“Tell me, what do you wish from the ship we captured?” Mackle was upbeat.

Akkadi glanced around. The ship’s interior was as rough as the people manning it. He wasn’t certain how it stayed together; the floors and walls uneven in a sign of subpar metal work and the air chilled, the way it was in cargo ships not intended for carrying people. The gravity controls weren’t set correctly, and he pushed himself off the ceiling more than once to keep his feet on the ground.