Defender: A Scifi Alien Romance (Galactic Gladiators: House of Rone Book 2)

by Anna Hackett

  “Stop.” Jax’s near-silent whisper.

  She glanced up and spotted lights ahead. There was a set of large, metal doors, and beyond them, must be the walkway across the chasm to the tower.

  The doors were made of rusted and welded metal, and there were two guards flanking the doorway.

  “One is Edull, and one indeterminate species,” Magnus murmured.

  She stared at the Edull. He wore a leather mask over his face, only his eyes were uncovered. There was a valve in the center of the mask, and she knew that once you were close, you’d hear his raspy breathing. She shuddered. The Edull had blasters holstered at his hips.

  The other guard was big, with desert-tanned skin, and towered over the Edull. He had a sword harnessed on his back, the hilt visible over his shoulder.

  Jayna’s gut churned, but around her, the cyborgs were alert, faces impassive.

  “You stay back,” Mace warned. “We’ll go in and neutralize the guards.”

  She swallowed. “Stay safe.”

  He cupped her jaw, emotion boiling in his eyes. Then he pressed a hard kiss to her mouth before he turned away.

  “Toren?” Magnus murmured.

  The blond cyborg nodded and stepped forward. A metal panel on his shoulder opened, and a weapon rose up out of his shoulder. It swiveled, taking aim, then fired.

  Blasts of laser cut through the night.

  The Edull guard jerked and went down. The other guard ducked, then dived to the ground.

  The cyborgs rushed forward, sprinting with speed and power.

  Wow. Magnus and Jax were practically blurs. Mace and Acton were raw power. Toren moved slower, still firing his weapon.

  Magnus’ arm glowed, crackling with electricity. Mace had drawn his sword, swinging it to meet the big guard.

  Swords clashed. As Mace kept the guard busy, Magnus thrust his arm forward, touching the guard’s back.

  With a deep cry, the man’s body arched. His sword dropped and then his body followed.

  Jax crouched and expertly tied the men’s hands and feet. Jayna hurried forward and Mace met her with an outstretched hand.

  Magnus and Jax faced the double doors. Magnus tried to open them, but they wouldn’t budge.

  Jax frowned. “I don’t see a locking system on it that I can hack.”

  Jayna moved closer. “In Bari Batu, the guards just touched the doors and they opened.” She brushed her fingers against the metal. A tingle ran up her arm but nothing happened.

  Oh, no. Her belly twisted.

  “We can blow them, but they’ll hear us coming,” Toren murmured.

  Jayna pressed both palms to the metal. It was still warm, having absorbed the heat of the suns.

  There was a metallic squeak. The doors swung open.

  Mace grabbed her arm and pulled her back. Inside, she saw a flat, paved area that led to the walkway.

  Magnus and Jax moved inside. A second later, Mace nodded. She blew out a breath, and entered.

  Ahead, the tower rose up above them, lights glimmering from the small openings and gaps in the scrap metal that formed it. She had to admit that it was fascinating—a crazy Frankenstein mix of scrap.

  A scrap-metal walkway with low railings arrowed from their location, across to the base of the tower. Magnus moved forward and looked down into the hole.

  Jayna followed, glanced down, and gasped. Beneath the enormous tower was a roughly square chasm. It had to be man-made, or rather, alien-made. And the tower was floating above the center of it. Incredible.

  She glanced down again, into a deep, impenetrable darkness.

  “My scans can’t detect the bottom,” Magnus said.

  Jayna bit her lip. Falling down there would be a very bad idea.

  Magnus waved his cybernetic hand and stepped out onto the walkway. The imperator started across.

  With Mace at her side, Jayna stepped onto the walkway. She felt it depress a little under her weight, but it held. She followed the other cyborgs across.

  “It’s so quiet,” she murmured.

  Mace nodded, his gaze scanning around them. “Too quiet.”

  Their boots made soft thuds on the metal plates of the walkway. They were halfway across, and she still didn’t see any guards or any other sort of security.

  She smiled to herself. Maybe this was going to be easier than she’d thought. She’d been prepared for a full-scale attack, but they were almost there.

  A droning noise broke the silence.

  “Drak,” Mace muttered.

  “Cannons!” Jax yelled.

  Gasping, Jayna looked up. Large weapons were rising up at the base of the tower, aimed directly toward the walkway.

  Blue-green energy began to coalesce inside the weapons.

  Oh, crap.

  Boom. Boom. Bolts of energy hit the walkway right in front of them.

  Mace dived on top of her. They hit the metal floor hard and her bones rattled. She turned her head and watched silver sliding over Mace’s skin, turning him into a living shield.

  Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Toren down on one knee, returning fire on the cannons.

  But then there was another barrage of deadly laser fire, and she ducked her head down with a cry.

  “Keep down,” Mace growled.

  More laser fire. The walkway beneath them swayed.

  They were pinned down.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Another volley of laser fire landed near Mace and Jayna. He cursed, curling around her.

  He couldn’t move without exposing her.

  Toren was firing, his ricochet bolts moving between the cannons. One of the cannons exploded.

  “Go!” Magnus roared.

  The Rone cyborgs leaped up, moving fast. Mace stayed back, keeping Jayna covered. He’d wait for the others to eliminate the threat. He wouldn’t risk her.

  He waited, watching as another cannon started to smoke. Magnus was almost to the other side. Mace leaped up and scooped Jayna into his arms. He kept as much of her covered as he could.

  Using his enhanced speed, he raced along the walkway, dodging rogue laser bolts.

  “Incoming,” Jax yelled.

  A massive laser blast hit the walkway, making it sway violently. Mace bent his legs and saw Jax jerk.

  Drak. The cyborg had been hit.

  Magnus grabbed Jax’s arm, righting him. Jax shook his head, as if to clear it. He glanced at his shoulder—one of his metal enhancements was smoldering—but then he nodded at Magnus and the pair kept running.

  Acton reached the end of the walkway. He jumped into the air and leaped onto one of the cannons. He tore hunks of metal off the cannon, tossing the pieces over into the chasm.

  Mace set Jayna down and tugged her forward.

  “I can see now why not feeling anything is an advantage on covert missions.” Her hands were shaking a little.

  He looked at her. “I’ll never give up what you make me feel. Not for anything.”

  Her face softened. “Don’t make me want to kiss you in the middle of a dangerous situation.”

  He smiled.

  “I saw that,” she said.

  “Get moving, woman.”

  They were almost at the end of the walkway. Then Jayna gasped. “Mace.”

  He felt it.

  They weren’t far from the end of the walkway, but it was shuddering violently. He glanced back the way they came. Panels were dropping off, plummeting into the chasm.

  He grabbed her hand. More panels were cracking and splintering.

  “The lasers have damaged the walkway,” Mace yelled. “Run!”

  They stumbled forward. Ahead of them, more panels dropped away, opening up a huge gap right in front of them. Jayna cried out, but Mace picked up speed, sprinting toward it.

  “Mace!”

  “Don’t stop,” he yelled.

  They leaped over the hole and he pulled Jayna high. They landed on the other side and kept going.

  All around them, pieces were falling in
to the abyss below.

  Suddenly, Jayna stumbled and screamed. The panel beneath her feet was gone, and she was falling.

  He yanked her up.

  “God,” she said shakily.

  “Almost there.”

  They kept running, jumping over more gaps.

  “Mace, hurry,” Magnus yelled from the base of the tower.

  Ahead, there were only a few panels still in place. Focusing, Mace and Jayna leaped across them like large stepping stones.

  Jayna looked down. “Oh, Jesus.”

  “Eyes up. We’re almost there.”

  He studied the gap in front of them. It was huge and still widening. The other cyborgs had already made it to the tower and were waiting, watching them with tense expressions. Acton had his arms raised, trying to hold the walkway in place, but there were too many pieces missing.

  “Ready?” Mace said.

  Jayna gripped his hand hard. “For what?”

  He gripped her around the waist and lifted her. Then he threw her across the last gap.

  She screamed, and Magnus caught her on the other side, snatching her out of the air.

  Mace felt an intense sense of relief. She was safe.

  Then he built up speed, powering toward the widening hole.

  “Mace!” Jayna cried.

  He launched himself into the air, arms windmilling, as he hurtled toward the platform around the tower.

  He missed it by the smallest fraction.

  Drak. His body dropped down into the chasm.

  But then arms grabbed him, yanking him to a halt. He looked up into Toren’s and Acton’s faces. They’d grabbed his arms, and then pulled him up.

  Blood thundering through his system, Mace collapsed on the ground, his chest heaving. Jayna jumped into his arms, throwing hers around his neck.

  “God. God.” Her voice cracked.

  He stroked her back. “We made it.”

  Jax stood above them, looking back at the walkway. “Let’s hope there’s another way out.”

  Mace and Jayna rose, and he turned to see the last of the walkway had fallen into the hole. Completely gone. Jayna shuddered.

  “Let’s get into the tower,” Magnus said.

  “There’s a doorway over there.” Acton nodded his head.

  An archway of scrap-metal parts led into the base of the tower. There were no guards. No sign of any living beings.

  “Creepy,” Jayna murmured.

  They walked through the archway and into a long corridor. Faint lighting illuminated the metal walls with a blue-white glow.

  “We’ll start on the bottom level,” Jax said. “We’ll search every room for Sage, or any other humans.”

  “And if you find any prisoners, set them free,” Magnus added.

  They turned a corner. A clanking sound echoed down the hall.

  Mace’s spine stiffened, and ahead, robots appeared.

  Drak. There were lots of them, and they were all Edull construction. Sturdy bodies made of scrap metal. Some were similar to what they’d seen in Vron’s factory, others were different designs, looking like various animals.

  Mace shoved Jayna behind him.

  Magnus’ arm lit up with electricity. “House of Rone, let’s show these bots that they are obsolete.”

  With a grim smile, Mace pulled his sword off his back, watching the blade glow red. “With pleasure.”

  The cyborgs burst into action. They moved with blinding speed, all except Mace, who stayed beside Jayna.

  He turned to face her. “Stay back. Stay safe.” He kissed her—quick and hard.

  She nodded. “Mace—”

  He squeezed her shoulder, then he stepped back. His skin flowed with metal again, until he gleamed metallic silver. Then he rushed to join the others.

  He moved like lightning. God, he was so fast and powerful. Magnus and Jax were working together, whirling like dervishes and electrifying bots until they were melted metal.

  Acton used his power to lift several robots into the air. With a jerk of his arms, the bots flew into the wall with a loud crash. Toren was firing wicked bolts of energy from his shoulder weapon, leaving several bots lumps of smoldering metal.

  Mace crashed into the line of bots like a battering ram. Then ahead, she watched as the robots formed a straight line.

  Jayna frowned. What were they doing? A sudden hum of energy filled the air.

  Metal pieces peeled off the walls, whizzing through the air. They flew at the cyborgs.

  One of the metal projectiles hit close to Jayna, and she crouched down. Shit. She watched as two long strips of metal hit Jax, pinning him to the ground.

  Another rusted sheet of metal slammed into Magnus, covering his cybernetic arm and wrapping around it. The imperator twisted and jerked, frozen in place.

  Three metal sheets crashed into Mace and pinned him to the side wall. He strained and managed to tear one sheet off. But as soon as he threw it on the floor, another sailed through the air, slamming into his body.

  Acton went down, robots piling on top of him. Toren was still firing, but the robots were closing in.

  Mace pulled another sheet of metal off him, managing to take a couple of steps in the process. But several more metal pieces wrapped around him, covering his face and his body. He struggled violently against his bonds, his roar echoing down the corridor.

  Mouth dry, Jayna looked around. God. All of the House of Rone cyborgs were pinned down.

  No. She pulled out her weapon and came up firing.

  She fired at the robots, and tried to move closer to Mace. She fired at the metal holding him, and he managed to tear some of the metal off his face.

  “Jayna, stay back!”

  “I’m helping you.” She fired again and again.

  “Jayna! Watch out.”

  Mace’s warning came too late. A rusted piece of metal hit her arm and clamped onto her bicep. Ow. It squeezed hard, and forced her to drop the blaster.

  Cold metal gripped the back of her neck and she was lifted off her feet.

  “Welcome back.” The rasping voice of an Edull.

  Jayna raised her head and the bot holding her turned. An Edull stood in front of her, a black mask over his face, his respiration valve rasping with each breath. He had a vicious scar over one eye.

  Bile filled her mouth and memories rammed against her skull. His face. She remembered. She was screaming and he was hurting her.

  He was one of the Edull scientists who’d tortured her.

  “I thought you were broken.” He stared at her, dark eyes glittering. “That’s why I sold you.”

  Jayna glared at him.

  “I would never have sold you to Gaarl if I’d known you’d recover.”

  “Fuck you!” she shouted.

  Nearby, she watched Mace struggling wildly to get free.

  “Thank you for bringing me so many cyborgs to add to my labs.” There was a smile in the Edull’s voice. “I have lots of tests I can run on their unique physiology.”

  “You’re a monster,” Jayna spat.

  The alien shrugged. “I don’t expect you to understand the genius we’re working to achieve.”

  “Leave them alone,” she said.

  “I don’t think so.”

  She shook her head. “You’ll never beat them. They’re too strong.”

  The Edull made a harsh sound. “They don’t look strong from where I’m standing.” He waved a hand at the bots. “Take the cyborgs to the cells.”

  The bots shifted to obey the Edull’s command, moving toward the cyborgs.

  “And bring the woman to me.”

  The bot holding her raised her another inch and stomped to follow the Edull.

  “Jayna!” Mace’s roar.

  A bot had reached him, yanking him away from the wall and wrenching his arms behind his back. Metal straps sprang out from the bot’s middle, containing Mace.

  His gaze locked with hers.

  Fear filled Jayna. Fear that she was facing the Edull again, b
eing dragged back to this evil alien’s lab. But there was also anger.

  This story wasn’t happening again. He wouldn’t break her. She’d get out of this, she’d survive, and, most importantly, she wasn’t alone this time.

  She stared at Mace, struggling as she was taken away from him. Mace would fight for her.

  Then the bot turned a corner, and Mace was gone from view.

  I am not alone. She took a deep breath. I am not beaten.

  Mace heaved against the metal pinning him in place. He lost sight of Jayna and the Edull.

  That crudspawn had her. He grunted against his restraints. The bot holding him started to move.

  He’d seen Jayna’s fear under her fierce courage. He wouldn’t let her get hurt again.

  Heaving, Mace ripped one of the metal bands off his chest. “Acton!”

  The other cyborg was being carried by another bot, and looked like he was unconscious.

  Drak. Thinking of Jayna, fueled by what he felt for her, Mace pushed with all of his strength. He had reason, purpose beyond just loyalty and survival.

  He would always protect the House of Rone, but Jayna…she owned him. His heart was hers.

  And he had to get to her.

  Mace got his fingers on one of the other metal pieces holding him in place and tore it off. He reached over and slapped Acton’s cheek. The cyborg blinked and opened his eyes. He was battered—metal enhancements dented, and skin smeared with blood.

  Acton shifted, and then suddenly, there was a pulse of power in the air. The metal surrounding Acton and Mace flew off into the air, spinning off down the corridor. As one, the bots crumpled.

  Mace dropped to the floor, catching his breath. He was bleeding and bruised, but he was still upright.

  “Free the others,” he yelled.

  Mace raced down the corridor after Jayna.

  “Mace, wait—”

  He couldn’t. Not when she needed him. The inside of the tower was a maze of tunnels. There was too much interference for him to pick up any sign of Jayna. He kept barreling down the hall, stopping near a doorway.