“Grace, I have decided to take the position with the Praetorian Guard.”

“I knew you would.”

“I feel like I am betraying you by taking it.”

Grace rolled over in my arms and looked into my eyes. “Drake, I knew this day would come. You are not the marrying kind. You are already married to your career.”

“You have been more than a friend. You have been a piece of my life. If I could take you with me I would…”

Grace placed her finger on my lips. “Don’t say it, Drake. You will break my heart. Just give me tonight, then we will part as friends.”

I pulled her to me and kissed her with all the passion in my soul. Her naked body was pressed to mine and I could feel her respond. We had been together for five years and the fire was still as bright as that first time.

Her hands began to caress my chest. The touch of her body on mine always excited me. She started to slide down my body but I stopped her. Tonight it was all about her. I kissed my way down her delightful body. When I arrived at her garden, I began slowly. I kissed and suckled on the skin of her upper thighs. Slowly making circles around the center of her delight. Each circle was smaller than the last as I zeroed in on my target.

Her hands twisted into my hair as she whimpered her passion. I could feel her rising higher and higher, as I worked her body into a supercharged state. She knew what was coming but she was helpless to stop me. On my fourth or fifth time around her body started to quiver like the string on a violin. I continued until she was as tight as a bowstring and vibrating like a tuning fork.

I sucked her clit into my mouth and flicked it with my tongue. Her legs slammed shut on my head to the point of pain. I pushed two fingers into her flower and her back arched high. Her scream of release was music to my ears. Her flavor was like the sweetest honey. I continued to push her through her climax until she was begging me to stop. “Please, Drake, I am so tight you are making me cramp.”

I released her clit and she fell to the bed like a collapsed building. I ran my tongue along her slit and tasted the wonderful flow of her body. When she started to relax, I flicked her clit with my tongue. Her back arched and she screamed again. She pulled on my hair trying to get me off of the object of my desire.

Once again I let her go. Then I lifted her legs upward and plunged my tongue into her rear entrance. Her legs quivered in my grasp with every flick of my tongue.

She finally managed to get her legs out of my grasp and lay them out wide. This cut off my access to her rear so I sucked her clit into my mouth again. She screamed out and yanked my hair so hard I had to follow her guidance up her body.

I smiled as I lay on top of her. I was in the perfect position. One hard thrust and I would be buried inside her body. I thrust into her. Her moan was a thing of beauty. It told me how much she enjoyed what she had felt. I began to drive into her with passion. Her legs wrapped around my waist as she started to pull me into her harder.

When her orgasm made her legs fall away, I rolled us over, putting her on top. She smiled down at me and began to control the pace. She slowly built up speed and power as she rode me like I was the last man in the galaxy.

Our orgasm came together as we both moaned out our pleasure.

In the afterglow of our sex, I lay spooned up against her. Her head was on my arm and I could feel the wet splatters on my skin. She must have thought I was asleep. I let her have her secret. I let her tears fall without comment.

It was three weeks later when my shuttle landed on earth. This was the imperial home world. I was in my dress blacks even though I hated how people had to react to my medals. I was here to report as the newest recruit for the Praetorian Guard. The commanding officer had requested I wear my dress blacks.

I immediately headed to the post command office. I watched the normal soldiers on the post as they snapped to attention and saluted. I returned each salute crisply. When I entered the air-conditioned office, the soldier behind the reception desk snapped to attention.

“Soldier, we are inside a building. Saluting is not required for casual contact.”

“Sir, yes, sir. Military regulation requires salute to a IMoH recipient at all times. You are displaying four of them.”

I returned his salute. This is why I hated my dress blacks. “I am here to see the post commander.”

“She is expecting you, sir. Her office is at the end of the hall.”

“Thank you, lieutenant.” I headed down the hall returning salutes as I passed offices.

When I knocked on the post commander’s door I heard a female voice call out. “Enter at your own risk!”

I chuckled and opened the door. I stepped three paces into the office and saluted. “Colonel Daemon reporting for duty.”

The grey haired woman behind the desk was already saluting when I arrived. “General Daemon, you are in the wrong uniform. Here pin these on.” She tossed me a small velvet box with star pins in it. “You are being given command of the Silver group. The emperor gave orders to promote you on arrival. Your primary is the Princess Astalynn Rythan Melcoir.”

“Yes, Ma’am,” I said as I changed my rank insignia.

“I am Grand Marshal Pralla Waynscott. Welcome to the Praetorian Guard.”

“Ma’am, I request permission to ditch my dress blacks before reporting to my unit.”

“Permission denied. I want some of these soldiers to see what a real soldier looks like. Most of this post are ceremonial troops and they wouldn’t know combat if it killed them. The Praetorians are the only combat veterans here. You can dress down after inspecting your group.”

“Yes, ma’am,” I said, with a little disappointment in my voice.

She actually laughed. “If you didn’t want to wear them, you shouldn’t have earned them.”

“They weren’t my idea, ma’am.”

“I have read your file. You earned every one of them. Can we drop the ‘ma’am’ and ‘sir’ thing in private? My name is Pralla. Relax and take a seat.”

“Thank you,” I said, with a smile of relief. I sat down. “Call me Drake.”

“Thank you, Drake. We at the Praetorian Guard become more of a family. We are not allowed to marry so we are the only family most of us have. Off-duty, we ignore rank. We don’t even divide the officers and enlisted clubs. We ignore the anti-fraternization rules inside the unit. The emperor gives us this because our lives could become very lonely otherwise.”

“How are the living conditions?”

“We live in a luxury apartment building inside the compound. Under normal conditions, you are on duty eight hours and off sixteen. Under travel conditions, you are on duty twenty-four seven. We are planning on having a welcome party tonight in your honor. It is plainclothes in the club. Please join us and get to know us under free-time conditions.”

“It would be my honor, Pralla.”

“One other thing — when we are in the public eye, we are on duty. No non-professional behavior then.”

“Understood.”

“Go scare the shit out of your unit. Dismissed.”

I walked across the compound toward the building my unit used as a headquarters. The Praetorian Guard was divided into three sections. There was the Platinum unit, which was responsible for the emperor. It consisted of one company of soldiers. The Gold unit was responsible for the heir apparent. It also consisted of one company. The last was the Silver unit, which was responsible for all other members of the royal family. It consisted of four companies at this time. There were only two packages, the emperor’s wife and the prince’s wife, but it maintained two spare units. The spare units were used to rotate in and out and to pre-secure the areas for travel.

Each company had a support group on the base, which consisted of a full battalion of soldiers. Traditionally, these units were mostly ceremonial. They almost never encountered combat.

I was put in charge of the second silver company. I did not know how I had jumped from a field soldier to being in charge of the company. I knew this was going to cause friction. Some of these men and women had been in service for twenty years. This was my first day. I would be an outsider to them.

My arm was exhausted by the time I reached the building. I must have saluted a thousand times. I approached the wall around my new office and saw men standing inside.

“Attention! General on the deck!”, a voice shouted over the normal noise level. I walked through the gate to see five companies of men in full formation and dress uniforms.

I walked to the senior colonel in charge and saluted. As one man the entire formation returned my salute. “Colonel J’thob, I know the men are expecting an inspection. We would not want to disappoint them, would we?”

The colonel chuckled lightly. “Sir, your men are ready for review.”

I walked slowly along the lines of men and nit picked the hell out of uniforms. It was customary. Once the men were inspected, I resumed my position in front of the formation. “My name is Brigadier General Drake Daemon. I have clawed my way through the mud, blood, and bullets to get here today. My door is always open to the men and women under my command. If you have a problem with me in any way, you are to bring it to me. I do not accept muttered complaints. Come to me and voice your complaint like a soldier.

“I will be conducting interviews with the company over the next two weeks. I want to know the soldiers who will be standing at my side when we have to fight. You will notice I said ‘at my side’. I do not believe a soldier can be led from the rear. You are not horses — you are men and women. You deserve the simple respect of a leader who is willing to die beside you to get the job done.”

I paused to let my words soak in a bit. “Unit, dismissed!”

I was sitting in my office. It had taken me all of ten minutes to unpack my small box of personal effects. My door was open and the senior colonel walked in.

“Colonel Daggun J’thob, reporting, sir,” he said, with a crisp salute.

I stood and returned his salute. “Relax, Colonel. This is an informal interview. Take a seat and let’s talk.” Once he was seated, I started my questions. “How long have you been with the Praetorian Guard?”

“Twenty-five years, sir.”

“I assume you were a combat soldier prior to your being asked to join the PG?”

“Yes, sir, I spent sixteen years in combat service.”

“Very good. What is your feeling on the men under my command? How many of them would survive combat if they were thrust into it?”

“The PG is all composed of combat veterans. Most have survived multiple engagements. The support soldiers are all non-combat. They are all logistics and maintenance soldiers. I would give most of them a very limited chance of survival.”

“You and I are going to change that. I want every soldier under my command to retire alive. I hate writing condolence letters.”

“There will likely be a lot of grumbling over that, sir.”

“Drop the ‘sir’ and just talk to me. I don’t need to be reminded of my rank every sentence. I want the men to grumble and be angry with me. That means they are learning something. I have come out of nowhere and been put in command of these men. Is that likely to cause friction between myself and the men?”

“I would not think so. The PG understands that rank in our unit is from ability, not politics. Most of them understand your career caught the eye of the emperor, or you would not be here.”

My interviews went on all day as I talked with my command staff. I would start the non-commissioned officer ranks tomorrow. Tonight I needed my command staffs help.

All four companies of our support battalion woke up at third hour. No, they did not have a nice gentle awakening with coffee and toast on a tray.

I had walked into the barracks at second hour and found the fire watch chair empty. Then I walked through all four buildings as quietly as a mouse and found every bed occupied. They had set no guard of any kind.

I went back to the PG and woke a few of the off duty soldiers to get their help with my plan. We loaded sub-machine rail guns with noise makers and headed into the barracks.

I quietly lifted the fire watch chair and set it in the center of the barracks. Then I pulled a can of lighter fluid out of my pocket and squirted the chair down making a puddle on the floor as well. At the strike of third hour, I struck a match and lit the fluid. Then my Praetorian Guardsmen assaulted the barracks and took every single soldier prisoner in about fifteen seconds.

The confusion of the men was their undoing. No one had any idea how to react. All of them, men and women, were standing in formation in their underwear before they could even get the sleep out of their eyes.

I moved up and down in front of them. “Each and every one of you is to consider yourself a prisoner of war. You are now my property to do with as I please. Right now I feel like an early morning run.” I smiled as a light rain started to fall from the sky.

“Battalion, left face!”, I shouted. When they had all turned I raised my voice again. “Forward, march!”

When we hit the end of the formation pad I yelled, “Double time, March!”

Then I started my cadence song for this run.

“In the early morning rain

In the early morning rain

In the early morning ray aye aye ain

In the early morning rain.

Got a letter in the mail

Said go to war or go to jail

In the early morning ray aye aye ain

In the early morning rain

Momma, Momma don’t you cry.

Basic trainees never die.

In the early morning ray aye aye ain

In the early morning rain

They gave to me a hand grenade

You should have seen the mess I made

In the early morning ray aye aye ain

In the early morning rain

…

The soldiers were grumbling like volcanoes by the time we had run five miles. It was music to my ears. We made it back to the formation pad with a lot of tired soldiers. They stood steaming in the rain as I moved up and down in front of them again. “I think it is time for a little gardening. The flowers in that bed over there are out of place. I want them in this bed over here. Then you can take those and move them over there.”

As the soldiers grumbled and asked for shovels. I just smiled like a man on the verge of losing it. They got the idea. They started to move towards the flower beds.

“Colonel, would you be so good as to drop by the mess hall and inform them we will need a field breakfast, lunch, and dinner delivered here today?”

He saluted and headed out to the mess hall.

I moved along the men as they dug the soil up and started to gather the flowers. I stopped behind one of the female soldiers. She had her ass in the air and it was only covered by a piece of dental floss. “Soldier, are those military issue underwear?”

“No, sir,” she said, with a slight whine in her voice.

“Take them off.”

“Sir, I…”

“Take them off! You are on duty and you are to be wearing only military issue clothing!”

Ten minutes later I was walking around with a small basket of non approved underwear. More than half the soldiers had been wearing non-issue underwear.

The soldiers spent the next three hours moving flowers with their bare hands. At seventh hour I let them stop for breakfast. Then I turned them over to my second-shift colonel and went to get ready for my shift as bodyguard for the princess.

As I fell in with my men to start our walk towards the palace, I noticed the Grand Marshall watching our battalion scrubbing the outer walls of the buildings. I moved forward and brought my men to a halt. We all saluted crisply. “Ma’am, the prisoners are ready for review at your convenience.”

“Prisoners?”, she asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Yes, ma’am. My men and I captured them this morning. We took a whole battalion without a single loss of manpower.”

She started to laugh. “I have always heard you are a real hard ass. What is the purpose of this?”

“I hate writing condolence letters, Ma’am. I wish to give them each the best chance for survival.”

We arrived at the palace compound at the stroke of eighth hour and relieved third shift. I set the men in the customary guard positions and started to move through the area looking at the access points. I spoke to my colonel, “From now on, I want two men at those doors at all times. They are to identity scan anyone who enters and subject them to bomb sniffers.”

“At once, sir.”

I entered one of the rooms and saw the red light for the security shield over the window. “Why is that security screen non-active?”

“It is defective and maintenance has not replaced it yet.”

“Post two men at the door with heavy arms. This room is off-limits to the royal family until it is fixed.”

“We don’t give the royal family orders.”

“If they have a problem with it, have them come to me.”

The general in charge of the Gold unit came up and fell in step with me. “I hear you are making security changes.”

“I have been given the responsibility of the princess’s life. She will not even see danger on my watch.”

“When the prince is in the royal apartments, security is Gold’s duty.”

I stopped and turned to face him. “General, the safety of the royal family is all of our duty. I would not let a single member of the family face danger in any way. If you cannot handle my changes, then have the Grand Marshal relieve me of duty.”

A commotion down the hall caught our attention. I moved down there to see one of my men arguing with several of the Platinum unit. “We were ordered to identity scan and explosive sniff anyone who enters this door.”

“We are escorting the emperor and empress for their Monday morning breakfast with the prince and his wife.”

I spoke in a loud voice. “Then you should appreciate the extra security. Stand fast, soldier, and submit to scanning, or I will have my men escort you out of the building.”

He turned to look at me with flint in his eyes. “I am in the emperor’s personal guard…”

“Escort this man out of the building and file charges of failure to submit to identity scan.” I spoke in a soft voice, but the command in it was undeniable.

We all heard a light chuckle from behind the soldier as the Grand Marshal entered the room. She stopped in front of my guardsman and held her hand out palm downward.

My guardsman lifted his scanner plate and placed it under her hand while the second one passed a sniffer wand over her. The sniffer registered her side arm and both knives on her leg but no other weapons. And the identity plate confirmed her identity.

She then motioned for the other soldiers to follow her lead.

After the soldiers had been scanned, the group started into the house. “Those two have not been scanned,” I said softly, as the emperor and empress entered.

Even the Grand Marshal stared at me.

I smiled and looked at her and the emperor. “Can any of you absolutely guarantee me that they are not imposters?”

“That is the emperor, I know this for a fact,” Pralla said softly.

“Has he been in your eyesight since the last time he was identity scanned?”

“No. He has been under the care of the Platinum unit.”

“Then all you have is their word of his identity.”

The emperor started to laugh. “I knew you were going to shake things up.” He then turned to my soldier. “Would you please be so kind as to scan my wife and I so we can visit our son and daughter-in-law?”

“It would be my honor, your majesty.”

Once they were verified they were guided into the dining room area. I moved to the door of the prince’s bedroom.

They opened the door to step out a couple minutes later. “You highness, if you will please place your hand on the identity scanner?” I requested.

The prince smiled, “I wondered how badly you were going to change things. You don’t even trust yourself do you?”

“Your highness, I trust only what I know for a fact. There are only a few facts. You have been out of my eyesight while you slept so I will need to confirm your identity before I can allow access to the emperor.”

He nodded and held his hand out.

We took my support battalion prisoner every morning for my first week. On the eighth morning, I walked into the barracks to be greeted by two soldiers on guard duty. As I walked the barracks I saw and greeted each of the fire watch, sitting in their chairs. I left them alone that morning. They had learned the lesson I was trying to teach them and they had come up with the answer themselves.

Our morning run that day was bright and cheerful. All of the soldiers had smiles on their faces because they felt they had gotten one over on me. Today I would start on lesson number two. As we stood in formation after the run I spoke to the colonel. “Who is the bad ass of the group? Which one of the soldiers has a reputation for being able to fight?”

“Sergeant Spassus is an exhibition fighter.”

“Perfect,” I said, as I turned to the Battalion. “I need a sparring partner, Sergeant Spassus. Would you be so kind as to come forward and teach me how to fight?”

The sergeant ran forward and stood in front of me as he saluted. “Sergeant Spassus reporting for my ass-kicking, sir.”

I smiled at him. “If you know how this is going to go, let’s make it interesting.” I took my jacket and rank insignia off and handed them to my colonel. “Mark me, and you get a three day pass this weekend.”

“All I have to do is hit you one time hard enough to leave a mark?”

“Yes.”

“It’s a deal,” he said, as he took a position I did not recognize. His stance was semi-relaxed and his feet shuffled back and forth in what looked almost like a dance.

I relaxed myself and took a knife-fighters crouch. Suddenly the sergeant was a blur of movement. He spun and jumped. He rolled in the air like a monkey having a spasm. I watched and analyzed the style as best I could. It looked like a bunch of random dance moves blended into a fighting style.

I stepped in when I saw my mark. I had his leg in my grasp before I realized my mistake. He twisted in mid-step and spun over the top of his own leg. His foot connected with my jaw and I spun away with the side of my face stinging. I was going to learn from this man.

My next step in was exactly the same as the first. The difference was I pulled down hard once I had his leg. Then I dropped to the ground letting his other leg pass over my head. I then rolled forward bringing him down to earth hard. My roll brought my leg down on his chest with a loud pop and he expelled all the air from his lungs.

Imagine my surprise when he continued the roll and threw me past himself. I felt the strike to my chest as I went over. He had marked me twice. He was so flexible it was like fighting a rag doll — a very strong rag doll.

I rolled to my feet to see him start dancing again. My smile was vicious. This was the first soldier I had ever faced, in one of these demonstrations, who knew a form of combat art I did not.

I had marked him, and he had marked me twice. I could hear the soldiers cheering the sergeant on.

The third clash ended it. I stepped in and he spun. I dropped below his strike and rose behind it. As he came back around I tapped the base of his throat with the edge of my hand. He knew what it meant and stepped back.

“Fill out your pass request, sergeant, you earned it. What is the name of your style? I have never seen it before.”

He smiled as he rubbed his throat. “It is an ancient earth art called Capoeira. It originated in the country known as Brazil.”

I spent the next few down times going through holos of the fighting style he named. It was a complex style based on dancing. By the end of the week I would be a master of it. My ability to learn a style by watching it paid off again.

I had been on post for a couple months and the group had adjusted to me. They understood I wanted them in fighting trim. Those two months averted a disaster.

“Your highness, has the investigation into the attempt on your life turned up anything?”, I asked the prince, as we were sitting in our morning briefing.

“No, all we have figured out is the men were bought with a very large amount of money. My father thinks it was Duchess Daria. She was second in line to marry me if Asta had not turned out to be viable. He thinks she decided to make Asta non-viable.”

“That would make sense. I wouldn’t set my mind in stone on it though.”

The Princess spoke up at that time. “I need to make a shopping trip into the city today.”

“I will form up the guard. Do you have an itinerary or is this just a ladies trip?”

“Just a ladies trip.”

I smiled an ironic smile. “I will form up the battalion to carry your packages, your highness.”

Asta gave me a dirty look. “I am not that bad.”

“As you say, your highness,” I said with a smile of pure mischief.

The prince shook his head. “How do you get away with things like that? If I did that to her, she would spank me.”

“You are her husband, your highness. She doesn’t have to take it from you.”

The shopping trip was a chore I hated. I stayed with the twenty guards who surrounded the princess while the rest of the unit would move to secure each destination on her tour. I had the battalion on call to retrieve and deliver packages back to the palace.

We made it to lunch time when the prince joined us. His detail had brought him to the princess so they could have lunch together at a street side café. This made me as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs. A sniper could be on any one of these buildings, and there were way too many to secure on short notice.

I was scanning the buildings when I heard the booming sound. Right in front of my eyes, holes appeared in the air and three jump shuttles appeared inside the atmosphere. The pilots had to be crazy. They could not burn off that much speed from that low in the atmosphere. Then my mind made the connection with their course. They weren’t going to slow down.

I activated my implant bob. “All units, the rabbits are in danger! Secure all packages!” I turned towards the royal couple and spoke. “We have to leave now, your highnesses.”

I was not gentle as I yanked them to their feet. I had them running towards the armored limousine as fast as I could. The sound alerted me before I saw them. I turned the royal couple towards the alley we were passing just as a pair of sting fighters swung up the street. The limo was a smoking pile of metal before I made it into the alley.

“Damn,” I muttered, as I saw the end of the alley was fenced off. We were trapped, and the sting fighters were already turning for a second pass.

I looked down and saw our savior. It was about thirty-six inches in diameter and made of solid iron. I squatted down and hooked my fingers into the lift hole of the manhole cover. As it started to lift a couple other soldiers grabbed the edge to help me.

We flipped the cover over and out of the way. “Get them down there!”, I yelled, as I drew my rail pistol.

We didn’t have time — it was already too late. The sting fighters had lined up and were starting their run.

The explosion saved our lives at that moment. All three of the jump shuttles had crashed into the palace. The shockwave swept the fighters sideways and offline with our position.

Two of my men dropped through the manhole cover and I pointed to the prince. “Your highness, please go down the tunnel.” To their credit, neither of them hesitated. They both headed into the sewers.

As the others climbed down, my bob activated. “Silver two, and Gold, are your packages secure?”

The leader of the gold unit answered. “We are still loose and running free.”

I reached out and slapped my hand over his mouth.

“Palace warren is declared unsafe for our charges. We are headed for the north warren. What is the status of primary package?”

“The primary package is safe in the west warren.”

We both headed into the sewers. “Drake, what was that all about?”, General Fields asked me softly. “You know there is no north warren.”

“There is no west warren, either.” I turned to the prince. “Your majesty, we need to get you to a safe location. All of our bolt holes are compromised. We are going to have to stay hidden until the Space Rangers arrive.”

The prince looked up at my change of address. “Are you sure?”

“I have not verified it but our communications are compromised. I can only assume your father died at the palace.”

He nodded and took his wife into his arms. “Whatever you think is best, Drake.”

“Thank you, your majesty.” I activated my bob again. “This is Silver Two actual. I am assuming command under imperial order. Platinum, make contact with Silver Two battalion and secure the base. Silvers One, Three, and Four, assist Platinum. We are cold and alone. We suspect a rat on our tail.”

General Fields looked at me when I said the last sentence. “You call the ball, Drake. What is your reason for suspicion?”

“All in-system jumps must be pre-plotted and cleared through system control, or the computers will not make the jump.”

“Where do we go?”

“North.”

“That is the direction you told them we were going.”

“That will make it the last direction they think we will go.”

Several hours of walking through the tunnels brought us to the location I sought. We had to surface and walk for a few yards, but it was what we needed at this point. We all smelled like a sewer. That could not be helped right now.

I heard the princess gasp as she saw were we were headed. The sign on the motel said, “Hourly Rates”.

“Your majesty, it might offend your sensibilities, but it will keep you alive.”

“I will survive, Drake. Do you think the rooms have showers?”

I smiled. “I know they do, but you might want to wear a body condom when you get in one.”

Several of the men laughed. This place was well known among the regular troops. I turned to one of my battalion troops who had managed to stay with us. “Go rent one of the party rooms, and let the proprietor know we will need lots of towels.”

“Yes, sir.”

Then I turned to one of my men. “Go to the local mega-mart and get us some changes of clothes. Nothing fancy — just ordinary street clothes.”

“On it, sir.”

I turned to another one of my men. “Go with him. We will need cleaning supplies and bath products.”

“On it, sir.”

Then I turned to the royal couple. “No offence meant, but we are all going to forget how to say, ‘Your majesty’ for a while. You will just be Asta and Robert, a couple of party animals.”

“I will make a deal with you, Drake. If you get us out of this alive, you have royal permission to use those names for the rest of our lives.” The prince spoke with a tone of gravity.

“If I get us out of this alive, I will be happy just to be alive.”

We had our room a few minutes later. I was glad this motel had these party rooms. They were large and had several bedrooms off the edges. I stationed sentries at each of the windows, and started to rotate people out for showers. Our uniforms and clothes went in the garbage a few buildings away. Then I casually set fire to the trash dumpster.

For some reason, it brought me a lot of pleasure watching the career bars, with the ribbons for my metals, burn.

We waited for two days. I made no contact with the troops during this time. I watched the news and when the space rangers arrived, I left the hotel to walk a couple miles away. I had left a note for the general of the gold unit to move the packages to a new location.

Once I was comfortable, I activated my bob. “All forces, this is Silver Two actual. You are to surrender to the Space Rangers, pending investigation. Space Rangers this is Silver Two actual. I am assuming command of your forces under imperial order until further notice. Anyone who flees surrender is to be terminated with prejudice.”

“This is General Maragrass. Is that you, Drake?”

“Yes, this is General Drake Daemon.”

“Is your package safe?”

“I have two packages in my care.”

“Give us a location, and we will come pick you up.”

“Negative on request until the traitors are identified. I have trusted too far at this point. I will turn myself in for scan once I am at base.”

“I will send a car to pick you up.”

“I will take a cab.”

An hour later, I was dropped off at the gate to the command base. I walked up to the Space Rangers standing guard and placed my weapons in their care. Then I turned and placed my hands behind my back.

I was cuffed and escorted to the general of the Space Rangers. Once there, I was interrogated under a truth beam. I was cleared an hour later. Grand Marshall Pralla Waynscott ushered me into her office. “What are your commands?”, she asked.

“Once everyone on the base has been scanned and verified, I will call in the shadow group. They will bring the emperor and his wife to us. Then we will scan them all. Have the scans turned anything up?”

“We have three traffic controllers, two officers and a member of the Praetorian Guard in custody for collusion to commit regicide. There are also a couple dozen people in custody for accepting bribes. This came very close to working.”

“I know. Now we have a mess to clean up.”

It was three days later when I contacted Gold leader. “Gold actual, this is Silver Two actual. Bring the bunnies home.”

“What is the status code?”

“The status code is blood red.”

“Affirmative, we will meet at the pre-agreed location.”

I was on the shuttle that went out to pick them up. The Grand Marshall was standing behind me as the shuttle came down. “This is an awfully open area for a pick up, Drake.”

“It is perfect — trust me.”

“What about those people over there? Any one of them could be a threat.” When she spoke this time, the people she pointed out spun and drew weapons.

“Place your hands behind your back, Pralla. They won’t bring out the packages until we are secure.”

She looked at me closely. “You really don’t trust anyone, do you?”

“It is not me who has to trust here. There are two very scared members of the royal family who have just had a very rough week over there.”

Pralla and I turned our backs and placed our hands behind them. Gold leader came on board and slapped me on the shoulder. “Is she uncompromised?”

“I read her scan report myself. She is clear and so are both of the pilots.”

“Ma’am, you may turn around.”

We both turned around and watched as the people moved to the shuttle. When they came on board, Pralla asked where the royal couple was.

The prince chuckled as he pulled the hat off his wife’s head and let her hair tumble down. “We were two of the people with guns pointed at you, Pralla.” He then turned to me. “Is my father dead?”

“Yes, your majesty. They did not get him into the shelter in time.”

Robert then put his hand on my shoulder. “You will call me ‘Robert’, my friend.”

The flight back to base was uneventful. When the men on the ship saw the people there to scan and verify them, they started to question me.

Robert put an end to those questions when he stepped forward. “I would have myself and my wife scanned first. There should be no doubt about my loyalty to my father.”

I had more respect for the man that was now our emperor than I ever thought possible.

The emperor turned to me. “You are in absolute command until I am verified.”

I bowed to him. Then Asta came up and kissed my cheek. “Thank you, Drake.”

I looked at the emperor with real worry in my eyes. That simple kiss could send me so deep into the dog house I would never see daylight again. Robert just smiled and walked down the ramp.

Three days later, the new emperor had his coronation. Security was so tight that the crown was interrogated before it could enter.

The following day, the old emperor and his wife were entombed in the catacombs. One thing during the funeral stuck out in my mind. The grand duchess Daria was in attendance. But she could not keep her eyes off of Asta’s back long enough to pay attention to the funeral. I had my suspicions about the attack at that point. On that day, Robert had appointments out of the palace. If Asta had not decided to go shopping, she would have been there when the shuttles hit.

It took several months for everything to settle down. The palace had to be rebuilt, but we used the opportunity to update the security features. We also built several new bolt holes around the city. Only one person knew where all of them were located, and that was Robert.

Once the new palace was complete, Robert and Asta moved in, and things returned to normal. That was until a week later, when I was summoned to the Grand Marshal’s office.

“Drake, please come in. I have something I wish to ask you.”

“I will do anything within my power, Pralla. Tell me what you need.”

“As you know, Lieutenant Marshal Dillard was killed during the attack a few months ago.”

“Yes, I am sorry his passing and the others who died did not get better recognition. The passing of the emperor and empress overshadowed them.”

“Well spoken. I have the duty of recommending a replacement to the emperor. I would like to give him your name.”

“Pralla, we have worked together and I like to think we have been friends. A promotion to Lieutenant Marshal would skip all the general ranks. I am pretty sure the PG would go up in flames.”

“You have been here several months, and you still don’t understand how we work. Rank is based on ability. Not one of the members of the Praetorian Guard would say you don’t have the ability to earn the rank. Please tell me you will accept it.”

I stood up and walked to the window. As I looked down at the men training in the fields, I smiled. The attack had convinced the soldiers here that they needed to be combat ready.

“Pralla, why me?”

“Because the emperor trusts you, because the empress trusts you, and most of all, because I trust you.”

I turned around, and she was standing behind me. I reached out my hand and brushed my fingers on her cheek. I smiled and leaned in. Her lips met mine with a hunger I had not felt in a while.

When we broke, she looked into my eyes and said softly, “Please”.

“Tonight, I will come to your apartment after the club,” I answered with a smile.

“That is not what I meant. I am more than seventy years older than you are.”

“You are barely middle aged and still a very desirable woman.”

“That is still not what I meant. I meant, ‘please take the job’.”

“If it means that much to you, put my name in. The emperor probably won’t approve it.”

She smiled and kissed me again. Then, with a mischievous smile, she looked in my eyes. “He already has.”

I gave her a scowl and walked towards the door. I could hear her sigh of regret as I reached for the door handle. Then her gasp as I locked the door and swung it shut.

As I walked towards her, I took off my jacket and threw it on the chair. Then I started to unbutton my shirt.

“Drake, you’re insane! Everyone is going to know if we do that in here.”

I shrugged as I slipped my shirt off. “Maybe you should try to be quiet then.”

“I must be losing my mind,” she said, as she yanked her jacket off. By the time she reached for the buttons of her shirt, I was there and helping her. Her shirt fell away to reveal a very lacy bra.

“Why, Grand Marshal, I do not believe this is military issue.”

She giggled as I removed her bra threw it on the chair with the rest of our clothes. I took her into my arms and began to kiss her neck.

“It has been too long,” she said in a sigh, as her body seemed to melt in my arms. Her hands worked on my belt and soon my pants were on the floor. Then I unfastened her pants and they joined the pool of clothing on the floor. I reached behind and ran my hand across the bare cheek of her ass.

A little exploring with my hands told me she was wearing thong underwear. “My, my, Pralla, you seem to be completely out of uniform.”

“Not yet, Drake. My boots are still on.”

I bent down and picked her up over my shoulder. She gave a gasp as I carried her to the couch and sat her down. Then I bent down and removed both her boots and mine. Once these were out of the way, I reached up and slowly slid her panties down her legs. The silvery grey hair on her head was a perfect match for the thin strip of hair between her legs.

I put her legs on my shoulders and went for the treasure I sought. She gasped as my tongue brushed the lips of her slit. That gasp turned to a soft moan as I tickled my tongue on her rosebud. When I moved back upward and sucked on the little nub I found, she exploded. Her scream would have awakened the dead. Her hands locked in my hair and she vibrated against my face.

“Ma’am, are you alright in there?!”, a voice called, as someone tried the doorknob.

“Go the fuck away!”, Pralla shouted, and then she started to laugh. “I think our cover is already blown.”

I did not answer — instead I moved down to scoop her honey with my tongue. Her laughter turned to moans of pleasure.

“Oh god, your tongue must be made of magic,” she said, as she started to vibrate into a second orgasm. I waited until she was shuddering on the couch then, I sucked her clit into my mouth again and pushed a finger inside her. She let out another scream of passion.

I began to pump my finger in and out of her sweet flower. Each time I would hook it upward and rub that soft flesh at the top. This made her shudder each time. The fabric of her couch was getting soaked. Her fluids were flowing like a river of sugar water. She quivered her way through several more orgasms, each louder than the last. Then she grabbed my hair and pulled me up hard. I was guided up into position, then she wrapped her legs around me and pulled me in balls deep. “Fuck me until we both are exhausted.”

I started to drive into her. Each thrust was accompanied by the slapping sound of our bodies coming together. The look in her eyes was one of smoldering lust. This woman fully intended to screw me to death.

Thrust after thrust, we slammed together. Then I felt it building. I picked her up and made her roll over. Now I was behind her as she knelt on the couch. I could now give her a pounding that would make her ass sore for a week.

A few minutes later, I lifted her again and turned to drop on the couch. She was now sitting in my lap. It did not take her long to get her legs underneath her. She began to thrust up and down like an animal. She was orgasming every three or four strokes.

She shocked me beyond my imagination next. She lifted up off of me and took my cock in her hand. Then she lowered again. I realized what she was doing, as her tight backdoor slid down my shaft. I reached out my hands and caught her delightful ass. Then I began to thrust up into her.

“Oh god, fuck my ass, you bastard. Make me cum like an animal,” she moaned.

When she felt me start to tighten up she lifted off of me and dropped to her knees. Before I could even react, she drove her face fully down onto my staff. Her face bobbed up and down until I could not take it anymore. When she felt my sword pulse in her mouth, she pulled back leaving just the tip inside. My cum rushed forth and filled her mouth. She swallowed each load I delivered. I spurted and moaned until I felt light headed.

Then Pralla climbed up onto the couch and lay her head on my chest. We both heard the giggling from outside the door. We were seriously busted.

“I told you to be quiet,” I said, with a chuckle.

“I give the orders,” she said, laughing also.

---