Chapter 5

Tarifa's Lieutenant Endith and the six remaining High Elf warriors with her lay on the forest floor, watching as the moon began to rise. They were on the edge of where the Book Cliffs met the timber of the Uinta Mountains. They had begun their journey three days before with thirteen in their party. At certain locations Endith had detailed an elfin warrior to remain behind, and return to report their progress. They had traveled quickly and quietly through the forests, looping far around where Marcus's forces had camped. They had begun leaving this morning, and now their advance base was deserted. Endith had led her remaining force towards the sacred ruins, and they were coming in from the west. Endith knew that in another three kilometers they would be among the ruins of the old Air Base as the Holy One referred to it.

The timber around them now was scattered and tall, with the exception of the large clearing directly to their front. Endith used the infra-red binoculars she carried as she scanned the clearing, her mind racing. The ground showed recent signs of a huge heat source, scorched leaves and blown twigs lying all over around them, yet she could find nothing that indicated what had caused the heat surge. She lowered the field glasses one last time and turned to the male elf that was lying next to her.

"I can detect nothing." She said softly.

"The heat pattern does not conform to anything we know the Alliance has. Their flying machines leave great swatches of burned ground all around them, but nothing this precise and targeted however." The male replied.

"You think it was a flying machine?" Endith asked. "How could it land here, among the tress?"

"The pattern of debris indicates that whatever craft landed here were very large and using powerful thrusters. To scatter the twigs and leaves like they are ... it..."

They both turned as the female elf settled to the ground next to Endith. "Senior Lieutenant we have discovered something you should see."

"What?"

"We were sweeping the clearing for mines as you ordered but..." The female paused in mid-sentence.

"Well ... but what?" Endith spoke becoming slightly exasperated. They had been moving for so long and even she was tired and worried about Tarifa.

"You should see this for yourself Senior Lieutenant."

Endith looked at the male elf who shrugged his shoulders, "Very well." Endith spoke getting to her feet.

The female elf led the two of them out of the treeline and almost halfway across the clearing where two more elves were kneeling. Endith stopped next to them, her blue eyes going wide as she saw the faint light coming from the two foot wide gap in the ground. It extended for nearly the entire length of the clearing and was a perfect straight line. She lowered her hand to the ground and brushed aside the first layer of dirt and leaves before her fingers brushed against something smooth and metallic.

"Metal." She whispered quietly.

"There is a flying ship below us." The female elf told her in a whisper. "And what appears to be some sort of hanger bay. We saw humans moving around this flying ship. Endith, it is unlike anything I have ever seen."

Endith moved closer to the edge and peered into the dimly lit bay, seeing only the huge shadow that the Raptor was casting. Her trained eyes deducted how far it was to the surface of the floor that she could see.

"It looks like twenty-five feet." She spoke quietly. She turned to the scout. "You saw humans?"

The elf scout nodded, "Two; a male and female. They seemed to be working on something near the back of the flying machine. They went inside the flying machine and have not come back out."

Endith looked at the cloudy sky overhead before answering. "The acid storm will be here in less than an hour. We will drop down and subdue these humans. This hanger will provide protection from the storm."

"You do not wish to kill the humans?" The scout asked.

Endith shook her head. "They may be able to provide us with information. I have not been able to pick up the Queen's locater beacon in nearly fifteen hours, and they might be able to tell us something."

"Endith are you sure the Queen was not taken by Marcus?" The male asked.

Endith looked at him and shook her head. "We would still detect her beacon." She replied. "It is inside her, implanted into the skin on her hip. It is completely undetectable. It is something only a few others and I know of. It would not just stop working. Something is blocking the signal. And this hanger would be the right thing to do it with."

"I will gather our force." The male elf spoke.

"Quickly, we must get under cover before the storm hits." Endith spoke. "It appears it will be a very large and deadly one."

Endith sat on her elfin ass looking up at the business end of the large automatic, blood trickling from the corner of her lip, her blue eyes very wide and filled with a mixture of fear and shock at the human female that held the weapon.

Endith and her warriors had dropped soundlessly to the floor of the hanger below them, the twenty-five foot drop only a fraction of what she and her elfin soldiers were capable of. The dimly lit hanger bay was silent as she motioned two of her soldiers into the rear of the strange looking flying machine to subdue the two humans that were working as if they had heard and seen nothing.

That had been far from the case.

Her two warriors had taken four steps up the ramp of the Raptor when black clad apparitions appeared all around them, moving with a speed none of them had been prepared for, or had ever seen. Endith heard grunts of pain, saw two of her soldiers leave their feet, heard weapons hitting the metal floor and as she moved to react, a hand appeared from the side as if by magic. The open palm strike to her jaw sent her spinning, stars flashing before her eyes. When she didn't fall, a follow up blow to her midsection doubled her over in pain as all the air in her lungs left her. She went to her knees, gasping for breath and stars still dancing in her head. As her fingers closed around the pistol grip of the small sub machine gun that dangled from a strap on her shoulder she froze as she felt the cold steel of a large pistol pressed to the back of her head.

"That would not be wise." The female voice spoke calmly.

Endith lifted her head slowly to look into the calm serene eyes of the human female, who was crouched in front of her, the K12 never wavering from its point of aim between her eyes. Endith saw the human male, directly behind the female, another larger rifle also holding steady on her chest, a red laser cutting through the darkness of the hanger bay and centered above her heart.

Endith looked around slowly, seeing all of her warriors covered by either the black clad apparitions or unconscious upon the cold steel of the floor. Two of her fastest warriors were in the clutches of two of the strange soldiers, gleaming steel blades from knives pressed tightly to their throats.

Endith turned and her eyes went a little wider when she saw the tall heavily muscled human walking towards her. She blinked several times before realizing that this intimating man was not entirely human as his aura told her. He squatted in front of her, his dark eyes apprising her carefully.

"It's not entirely appropriate to attempt to kill someone when you first meet them." Martin told her.

"Let's just whack them and call it a day Skipper!" Dan's voice echoed in the bay.

Endith's eyes darted to where Danny was kneeling on the back of one of her male elfin warriors, the large sub machine gun pressed to the back of his head, his face twisted in a grimace of pain. Slightly behind him, a dark skinned female held Endith's fastest scout by her throat, the blade of the knife against her tanned skin. She had kicked the scout in the leg, dropping her to one knee and effectively ending their battle in four seconds.

"I agree!" Trina spoke from the other side of the Raptor's landing gear, her HK74 jammed into the back of the head of the male elf beneath her boot. "I don't much like being a target!"

Endith's eyes went slowly back to Martin, who had never taken his eyes from her. "Who ... who are you?" She finally was able to croak out the words.

"The better question here is who are you?" Martin spoke.

"Endith," The female voice echoed loudly across the bay.

Endith's eyes darted behind Martin and she saw Tarifa run into the bay, only to have the red haired female stop her with an outstretched arm, her other hand filled with another of the automatic pistols.

"My Queen, you're alive!" Endith gasped the relief in her voice very evident.

"Endith what are you doing here?" Tarifa asked, not willing to push past Anja's outstretched arm for fear of what Martin's men would do.

"We ... we followed you my Queen." Endith spoke slowly. "There is an acid storm coming outside, and when we discovered this underground hanger we came to investigate. We lost your signal fifteen hours ago my lady! I thought these ... I thought these humans might know something."

"Martin she is my Senior Lieutenant!" Tarifa exclaimed. "She only thought to protect me!"

Martin turned back to look at Tarifa, his eyes studying her face. He motioned with his head to Anja, and she dropped her arm from Tarifa's waist so that she could come forward. Tarifa walked directly up to him as he rose to his full height. She looked at him almost shyly.

"Please ... they are my soldiers." She spoke, reaching out almost tentatively to place her hand on his chest. Tarifa could feel his heart beating against her hand, even through the body armor he wore. This did not go unnoticed by the others in Martin's team or Endith, yet their faces remained locked in stern snarls. "Please." Tarifa spoke softly.

Martin nodded slowly. "Let them go." He ordered. "Ben ... is the overhead fixed yet?"

Ben looked at him from where he stood. "We finished it right before our guests showed up!"

Tarifa's eyes had never left Martin's face. "If it is an acid storm you must close the overhead doors to keep your ship from being damaged. They last for several hours and the acid they expel is very corrosive to metal."

"Ben!" Martin called.

Ben was already moving. "Closing them now Marty."

Martin turned from Tarifa's gorgeous sapphire eyes. "Anja, get your bag and make sure our new friends are patched up."

Anja had holstered her K12 and she nodded, "On it."

Danny helped the male elf to his feet, the male Elf's face a mixture of utter relief and confusion now that Danny's two hundred and fifty plus pounds of muscle was off his back.

"This acid storm; how long will it last?" Martin asked.

Tarifa looked at Endith. "Endith, how large was it?"

"One of the biggest I've seen this year my lady?" She answered, getting slowly to her feet. "This one is larger than the storm last month."

Tarifa turned back to Martin. "Normally they last for only a few hours, but the large ones, as this seems to be, could last up to ten hours. The storm we had last month lasted for twelve hours, so potentially this one could last even longer."

Martin nodded slowly before turning to head for the command center, Tarifa's hand falling away from his chest. Endith stepped up to her quietly.

"My ... my Queen, what ... what is going on?" She asked. "Who ... who are these people? Their auras are not completely human, and they move with speed and reflexes that surpass even the Elfin Weapon Masters."

Tarifa looked at her and smiled as she embraced her Senior Lieutenant and her friend. "It is a long story Endith. The Holy One Endith; did you get him to the rendezvous coordinates?"

Endith nodded. "Yes my Queen. He is safe."

Tarifa nodded. "Good." She took Endith's arm. "I have much to tell you my friend."

Tarifa sat with Endith in the hanger bay as they shared one of the rations that Julie had provided to them. They had been speaking for close to six hours now, Tarifa filling her most trusted aide and friend in on everything that had happen since they had parted.

" ... Council must hear of this Tarifa!" Endith spoke. "You must return and tell them."

Tarifa shook her head quickly. "No!" She said. "I have already accepted this Admiral Wallace's invitation. I will not back out of that now."

"Tarifa the Council will think you have been captured or killed. They will begin the process to select a new Queen within a week's time." Endith told her. "You must know that it will give them no greater joy then to have someone they can control as Queen. You must return!"

"Endith ... Martin ... these people can help us in ways we can not begin to imagine." Tarifa told her. "This is an opportunity I can not allow to slip by."

Endith looked at her without speaking, her eyes lingering on Tarifa. "You ... you are taken by him?" She exclaimed.

Tarifa's eyes widened. "What? What do you mean? No I'm not."

"I have served you for nearly forty years Tarifa, and never once have I seen you gaze upon a man as you looked at him earlier." Endith spoke.

Tarifa looked away from her friend quickly. "He is ... he is intriguing Endith" She said softly. "There is ... there is something wild about him that draws me like no other."

"What did he do? Did he force himself on you my Queen?" Endith asked beginning to get to her feet.

"NO!" Tarifa exclaimed. She looked at Endith, grabbing her arm before she got too far. "No! Endith ... he saved my life!"

Endith nodded. "As you have already told me, I know. And according to our laws you must submit to him as a reward, which I know you will not do because you think the law is just as ridiculous as I do. Now what else happened Tarifa?"

"He ... Endith ... he kissed me." Tarifa said looking at her.

Endith's eyes went wide at this knowledge. "He kissed you?" She gasped. "You mean with ... with his lips?"

Tarifa looked at her sternly. "Do you know of any other way?" She asked

"He kissed you with his lips!" Endith exclaimed.

Tarifa grabbed her hands. "Endith please! Be quiet!"

Endith looked around quickly, embarrassed that she had spoken so loudly. She turned back to her Queen and friend. "He kissed you?"

Tarifa nodded. "I ... I have never been kissed before Endith." She said softly. "It was ... it was divine. It was almost too much. I could not stop the sensations that ripped through me. I became so wet he had to have smelled my excitement if his senses are as acute as the others tell me."

"What happen?"

Tarifa looked at her. "I ... I don't know. He just stopped and rushed away."

"He ... he just stopped?" Endith asked amazed. "Tarifa ... no human is able to resist female elves."

"He is not entirely human." Tarifa told her. "He has incredible control over his emotions. I could feel the animal within him bursting to get out, to take me right here on the floor of this hanger bay. And I wanted him too. Oh ... did I want him too Endith. The ... I feel pulled to him sexually like no one before in my life. I've never felt this way for any man."

"You hardly know him Tarifa!" Endith spoke.

Tarifa nodded slowly. "I know, and that is the only thing holding me back." She replied honestly. "It is the only thing keeping me from throwing myself into his arms and submitting to him in any way he desires. I can't explain it Endith."

"Tarifa ... the Holy One said ... he said you would meet the one you were meant for." Endith spoke.

Tarifa looked at her and shook her head. "This is not him." She answered softly. "I feel drawn to him sexually yes, but he is very different Endith, and that is why I must go." She said. "I must go to discover who and what these people are and to see if Martin ... if Martin is the one the Holy One said." Tarifa looked at her. "You must return and tell the Council what is happening."

Endith's eyes went wide. "I will do no such thing!" She exclaimed. "I am not going to leave your side. What would I tell the Council? That you are trying to discover if these non-humans are going to be allies? They would laugh me out of the chambers. I can send Domac. He can be trusted completely, and we need only tell him what the Council needs to know. Is there some way we could contact him if the Council proceeds without consulting you?"

Tarifa looked at her. "I will ask Martin." She spoke softly. "With their technology, I'm sure they have a transmitter that can reach the moon."

"Is it wise to trust this man Tarifa?" Endith asked. "This could all be an elaborate plot to capture you. To enslave you and parade you before our people in chains like some harem girl."

Tarifa looked at her for a long moment. Those very thoughts had gone through her mind quite a bit, right up until the time Martin had kissed her. That one breath stealing kiss had changed her outlook considerably. "I ... I can trust him Endith. It's ... it's almost as if I can feel him inside me. He would never harm me, and I sense he would never allow harm to come to me. It is very strange Endith, as if..."

Tarifa's words were drowned out by an alarm that began ringing in the hanger bay. She and Tarifa came to their feet quickly, ready for action.

"We must go this way, quickly!" Tarifa spoke taking Endith's hand.

Tarifa led Endith into the Command Center where they found Julie in the chair working the controls, while Martin and the others were gathered around.

" ... three hundred meters and closing," Julie announced.

Martin picked up Tarifa's peach scent as she entered the Command Center and he turned to look at her. "I thought this was an acid rain storm." He spoke.

"It is." Tarifa replied.

"Does anything normally move in large numbers during these storms?" Martin asked.

"Only..." Tarifa's eyes widened. "By the Gods no, it must be Nomads!"

Martin's eyes narrowed. "Why do I get the feeling that I'm not going to like what you are about to tell me."

"Acid Nomads," Tarifa explained to him. "They are beasts that the Alliance discarded as failed experiments. Their genetic structure allows them to resist the rain. They are the only beings that can traverse these storms without having their flesh stripped from their bones."

"And why exactly did the Alliance attempt to create them?" Anja asked.

Tarifa met her eyes. "At one point last century, my people discovered a secret way into a lush valley in The Wastes."

"What a minute, The Wastes?" Julie asked. "What the hell is that?"

"It is an area that was made up of the states of Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas, Missouri and the lower half of Colorado before the Great Fire." Tarifa told them. "Due to the many nuclear weapons and power plants in those six states, when the Great Fire began, it literally saturated this entire area with poisonous radiation. My people found a very fertile valley within The Wastes, but the only way they knew to reach it was to cross The Wastes, and it is filled with Acid Storms that make the one above us pale in comparison. They attempted to create a monster that could survive the storms. They created the Acid Nomads."

"Why did the Alliance discard them?" Dan asked.

"We left this valley after a decade." Tarifa told them.

"Why?"

"The scientists among our people determined that the valley would surrender to the influence of The Wastes in a matter of months." Tarifa explained. "Six months after we departed, the storms began, and in a matter of weeks, the entire valley was gone."

"And these Nomad characters can travel around in this stuff?" Martin asked.

"They are impervious to the rain and the storms." Endith spoke now. "They are horribly deformed and some have said they are cannibals, and they eat the flesh of the dead."

"Gee ... they sound like pleasant enough folk." Pablo spoke from the chair he occupied.

"They're moving into the vacant buildings on the southwest end of the base Skipper." Julie told them. "I have limited camera feeds from that section because it was mostly base housing and training rooms; nothing sensitive at all."

"How far does that put them from us?" Martin asked.

"There's an emergency escape tunnel a hundred and twenty meters from where they are setting up." Julie replied. "According to the databanks, it's listed as a five ton statue of a horse that sits in a covered courtyard. It puts them three klicks from the main tunnel, but it's a direct line shot."

"Have you or Tina been able to analyze this acid rain?" Martin asked turning to Ben where he stood next to Tina.

"It's composed mainly of sulfuric acid vapor." Tina answered quickly. "The Raptor's armor plating may or may not be able to withstand the vapor long enough for us to make the upper atmosphere, but unless we are in a pickle, I wouldn't want to try."

"And if we try and the vapor melts the armor?" Master Chief Brown asked.

Tina shrugged. "That depends on how high the storm is. If we are above ten thousand feet, we'll decompress and freeze to death. If we're below ten thousand feet we'll basically come apart at the seams and burn in."

"That's comforting." Danny spoke from where he sat on the edge of the table munching on the power bar.

"What are our odds?" Martin asked.

Tina looked at Ben and then shrugged. "My best guess is thirty/seventy." She answered. "It depends on how concentrated the vapor is."

"Jules ... how many are you picking up?" Martin asked.

"I don't know if it's accurate Skipper, but sensors say at least a hundred, possibly more." Julie replied.

Martin nodded, his mind going over options in his head. "That gives them the advantage. Ok ... everyone stay sharp. I want someone on the grid all the time monitoring the sensors. If they so much as get close to the tunnel entrance I want to know about it." He turned to where Trina and Cody were sitting. "Trina, you and Cody get down to that intersection and booby trap the shit out of it with whatever we have."

The young female and male nodded, picked up their weapons and headed out. Martin looked at the others. "Pablo, take one of the weapons I reworked for the Elf soldiers and do the same for the others. If push comes to shove I want them to be able to knock the bastards down, not piss them off with the weapons they have."

Pablo nodded and got to his feet heading for the armory.

"And if they get in boss?" Tony asked. "Then what do we do?"

"Then we load everyone into the Raptor and start praying." Martin answered with a grin.

HIGH CAPITAL

NORTH OF DENVER

Dysea looked at the Alliance officer as he entered her receiving chamber with the pompous strut of a human. He ignored her guards, his eyes wandering lustfully over her body without regard for her position. He stopped much closer to her throne than any elf would have dared, perhaps to show Dysea that he was above fearing her position or status.

"Your guard told me you wanted to see me." He said casually, brushing the sleeve of his uniform.

"I need you to deliver a message." Dysea spoke.

"And what would that be?"

"I am postponing the signing of our treaty for a period of three weeks." Dysea told him, seeing his body go rigid and his eyes turn dark.

"May I ask why?" The officer asked, though Dysea could detect the hostility in his voice. "I was under the impression that your Council of Elders already approved the signing."

Dysea's emerald green eyes narrowed and she leaned forward in her chair. She still wore the same dress as when she had met with the Holy One, only now she had opted for a waist length jacket that hid her large tits from the hungry eyes of the Alliance officer, though she did note that his eyes kept drifting to where her legs were crossed demurely, but only the panties hid the thin platinum blond strip of pubic hair from his eyes.

"I am Queen of the Wood Elves Captain. And I will decide what is best for them. The Council of Elders may have approved the signing, but only I can sign the document. And I want three more weeks to review it." Dysea said.

"My superiors will want a reason for the extension." The Alliance Captain spoke. "What do I tell them is the reason for the delay?"

"You may tell them that the Queen of the Wood Elves wants more time to review the document to insure that her people are getting a fair deal." Dysea answered him sweetly.

The man looked at her. "You have had ample time to review the documents." He spoke. "Why choose now to delay the signing?"

"I wish it." Dysea told him, getting to her feet. "That is sufficient enough for your superiors. The Wood Elves do not take orders from the Alliance. That is what you will tell them. And in three weeks, if I decide there are no changes to be made, I will gladly sign the treaty and we will destroy the High Elves together."

The Alliance captain breathed an internal sigh of relief. The Elf bitch had no idea what they were planning, and she would not suspect the betrayal when it hit her. He smiled thinking of the blond haired Queen of the Wood Elves screaming out her pain and humiliation as he fucked her deep in her perfect ass. He nodded his head.

"I will so inform my superiors." He said.

Dysea smiled. "Excellent." Dysea watched him as he turned to leave, and she waited until he had reached the doorway, "Oh and Captain?"

"Yes your majesty?" He asked turning back to look at her.

"Your presence here is tolerated due to our future partnership." Dysea told him. "However, my warriors are not here to entertain you at your leisure. As of today, you will bed no more Wood Elves. Is that clear?"

The captain looked surprised. "Your majesty ... I..."

"Touch another one of my elves Captain and I will cut your shriveled cock from your body myself and pin it to my wall!" Dysea growled.

The Alliance captain saw the look in her eyes, and the cruel smile that split her lips and he nodded slowly. "As you wish your majesty, but I will have to inform my superiors of your decision."

Dysea smiled. "You may do as you wish, but my warriors will serve under you no more."

The captain nodded, his jaw clenched tightly, and he turned and left the throne room.

Dysea waited for several moments, watching the doorway, relishing in the look on his face. She turned only when Walter stepped from the ante chamber and came towards her, as did her most trusted aide. The male elf was taller than most, and an extremely accomplished warrior with unmatched skills in unarmed combat. His blond hair was almost shoulder length, his brown eyes alert.

Dysea looked at him. "Leland I need you to select ten warriors; the best that we have. I want them in full combat equipment and standing by in an hour."

"As your order my Queen," He spoke. "I must say however, the Council of Elders will not be pleased with your decision to postpone the signing of the treaty."

Dysea nodded. "I know, and that is why we must move quickly. I want our two best forensic scientists to accompany us as well. Saddle fourteen of our fastest horses, and prepare them to travel."

"Where are we going Dysea?" He asked.

As Dysea's most trusted and closest aide and friend, he was one of only a handful that she allowed to refer to her by her name. Leland and she had grown up together, as close as any brother and sister, and while nothing ever became sexual between them, he was Dysea's first and only choice as her senior aide when she was chosen as Queen.

Dysea looked at Walter for a long moment before answering. "We are going to The Roan Plateau my friend. It is the location of the last attack on our people by the High Elves, only four days ago."

Leland didn't bat an eye and he bowed his head. "I will see to it my Queen."

Dysea waited until she was alone with Walter before speaking. "I hope you are right Holy One." She said softly. "If the Council learns that I am doing this, they will call for me to forfeit the throne."

Walter smiled. "I am right Dysea, and you believe me yourself, or you would not have ordered the trip." He held his arms out to her.

Dysea stepped up to him, folding herself into his embrace without blinking. "What ... what are they like Holy One?" She asked softly.

Walter smiled as he stroked her head. "Tarifa is proud like you, with raven black hair and eyes the color of sapphires. She is an accomplished warrior, but she lacks your tempered and refined skill. She is naïve in many ways, but like you she is extremely intelligent. She will need your help and council in the days and months ahead, and you will need hers as well. She is the most gifted person I have ever known when it comes to being politically astute. I believe you will find you and she are very much alike, in more ways than you could possibly imagine." Walter finished that statement with a twinkle in his eye that Dysea did not see.

Dysea looked up into his wrinkled face, her emerald green eyes bright. "And the one you call Martin?"

"Martin ... Martin is unique." Walter said with a smile. "Of all my original creations, he is the one who remains closest to the beast within himself, the raw unguarded emotions that he allows to flow through him unchecked. He can control that beast within himself with amazing clarity of mind. In battle ... in battle he is the most frightening force of nature you will ever witness. He and Tarifa, along with yourself will be the pillar upon which you can build the future. Only together do you stand a chance."