Free Black Legion: 04 - Last Stand by Michael G. Thomas Page B

heard was the warning siren.
    “This is a problem,” said Roxana.
    The sound finally stopped, and the assembled officers waited and listened. Dukas Xenias, the commander of the Arcadian contingent lifted his arms to get their attention. A hologram showing a massive formation of warships appeared above him. Chirisophus looked at the imagery alongside him and shook his head angrily at the sight.
    “We have been discovered. Zacynthian ships have just jumped into this sector,” explained Xenias.
    The fighting between the Terrans was immediately forgotten, and all eyes were on him. Three other senior commanders closed in on him to speak, but he ignored them and pointed at the formation of newly arrived ships.
    “They will be in range in less than an hour. We should get to our ships and prepare to continue our withdrawal.”
    “Or to fight,” Chirisophus added in a calm, yet grim tone.
    The Dukas wasn’t in charge, but not one of the Terrans argued with him. In time of crisis, they could all be counted upon to fight. Few in the Legion would baulk at the idea of exacting revenge upon the enemy they had fought just days before. No matter what decision was made, they could do nothing while aboard this ship. Only a handful of the officers remained as the rest broke ranks and rushed from the hall. The passageways leading to the hangars were minutes away, and every one of them wanted to be aboard their own ships if there was to be a battle. Being trapped on another commander’s ship was the last place any of them wanted to be.
    “Zacynthians. What do they want now?” he said quietly, not to be heard by the others. Chirisophus, Xenias, and a small group of Komes waited as well as Xenophon and his comrades while the others marched out. It took less than a minute before they found themselves alone.
    “Zacynthian ships? What do they want with us?” asked Chirisophus suspiciously.
    Xenias sighed as he considered the news.
    “They must be the forces of...”
    He stopped upon spotting the beautiful and slender figure of Lady Artemas of Caria at the opposite end of the hall. She moved silently through the great hall, flanked by two spatharii warriors, to her close friends Xenophon, Glaucon, and Roxana. Her face was clearly of Medes ancestry with her tight jawbones and pale white skin. Around her body was a closely fitted dark brown corset inlaid with scale plate that glimmered in a dull russet tint. Her shoulders and neck were protected by Terran armour of some ancient design and decorated with Medes and Terran imagery. Her long black pants were padded by bronzed plates and of a similar fashion to her shoulder protection. At her feet were tall leather boots that continued up her legs to her knees. Even Xenophon was taken aback at the sight of her.
    Interesting hair colour , he said to himself, his eyes moving up from her feet to her head.
    The others may not have noticed, but Xenophon instantly recognised she had changed her hair to a bizarre shade of crimson and purple that seemed to shimmer between the colours. Her hair was long and ran down over her shoulders.
    “Of whom?” Lady Artemas asked.
    They looked at her; surprised she even knew what they were talking about. Without even looking at the imagery, she turned her attention to Xenias.
    “These ships are the mercenary vessels of Dukas Phalinus, the Zacynthian commander.”
    Chirisophus spat on the ground at the mention of the turncoat’s name.
    “That bastard should have burned at Cunaxa!”
    Artemas shrugged.
    “Perhaps, in any case, he fights for the God King Artaxerxes, and a substantial reward has been placed for the destruction of this very fleet. I suspect he is here to claim the bounty.”
    Dukas Xenias scowled at the news and especially the name of the renegade Dukas.
    “I thought we’d already dealt with him at Cunaxa. Why is he still here?”
    Chirisophus shook his head.
    “No, Dukas, he was still in space when the Strategos was forced to break off from