Heritage

Heritage (Chapter 22)

Chapter 22 - Elena

"Your father is right Leon, it's not safe for you and Stella here! Now go, the both of you," I say to Leon, trying to get them to safety while he and Stella look on concernedly at myself and Ethan.

Just five minutes ago, Ethan and I were standing in the Grand Hall, jokingly discussing the whereabouts of our only son and Stella. Ethan made a few sexual innuendos, earning him a hard slap on the arm.

Ethan had requested our song and halfway through it, the warning sirens and lights started going crazy, throwing the entire party of guests into an instant panic.

Ethan and I immediately ran out of the hall, racing to the control room as fast as we could, hoping beyond hope that all of the Cadets would make it to the escape pods before the Sekrid troops came aboard and started their killing spree.

"Leon, wait..." Ethan says, stopping Leon before he and Stella leave the control room.

"Take this, just in case," he says to our son, removing his old pistol from the first war from its holster and handing it to him.

Just as Leon takes the pistol in his hands, the central monitor screen in front of me shows a massive explosion located in the East Wing of the ship, destroying most of it in the process.

"Are...are you sure you want me to have this dad?" Leon asks.

"Yes, you'll have better use of it then I will right now. Now go, get off this ship!" Ethan exclaims.

Leon nods and grabs Stella's hand, shoving the gun in his own holster before bolting out of the control room door at top speed.

I can't help but to stare at the door as they go, my heart bursting with pain as my son leaves our protection. I can't help but to think the worst, as any mother would.

Ethan spots my worried expression apparently because he turns to me with a hard, blazing look in his eyes. The same look of determination he had during our time amongst the Zeus.

"Listen to me, Elena..." Ethan says, removing his uniform jacket and draping it over my bare shoulders. "Leon and Stella are the brightest, most talented Cadets on this damn ship, they will be fine! Trust Leon, trust them both," Ethan exclaims, pulling my face to his and kissing me with as much passion as he can exude.

Just as we're pulling apart, two more explosions go off in the distance. We both turn immediately to the monitors, which are currently showing the East Wing being blown to pieces.

Ethan turns to pick up his TAPs, assumingly to contact the various squad leaders and Colonel Morgan to make a plan of attack.

"General Blake here, Colonel Morgan, we need to organize the troo—"

BAM!

The control room doors are blown completely off the hinges, sending Ethan and I both flying into a nearby wall made entirely of monitor screens. Shards of glass and broken electronics rain down on our heads and Ethan throws his torso over me, shielding me from the falling debris.

Looking up from under the piled rubble, I see two Sekrid commandos kicking their way across the room, their orange eyes glowing fiercely. Ethan heaves a huge control panel from his back, tossing it to the side.

As we both stand up, Ethan shoves me behind his body, protecting me from the quickly-approaching Sekrids.

The deep rasping voices of the two hulking mutants gurgle to each other in their own unknown language, before they turn simultaneously towards Ethan and I.

Ethan's hands snake around my waist, gripping my forearms slowly and leading them to the secondary holster on his belt. My chest is pressed securely against his back and it's a moment before I realize what he's doing.