Ki's Redemption

by Keri Kruspe

  “What was that?” He scrambled to cover Sherri’s back. Senses heightened and expanded, he drew her close. Taking in a deep, probing breath, he again tried to detect danger. Various natural aromas flooded…musky animal, the astringent plant growth, and the humid air. There was also a scent he had a hard time identifying, a mixture of metal, sour sweat and nervous fear. Grirryrth rumbled a warning for him to remain alert.

  He must have made a noise because Sherri’s head swiveled to gape at him, her short auburn hair swishing across sharp cheekbones. With a raised eyebrow, he dared her to comment.

  With a lopsided grin, she left his arms and resumed her walk. She’d changed her stance to place one foot in front of another in careful steps.

  Ki snorted. Walking in those contraptions must take a lot of concentration. “What was that noise?” He repeated his query.

  “Gunshot.”

  Ki frowned. That was the same alien projectile that almost killed King Abzu and had wounded his friend Qay. Its ammunition was a nasty, poisonous weapon to Zerins. The battlesuit would protect him, but that didn’t mean Sherri wasn’t vulnerable.

  “Are you sure?” He rested his hand atop the disintegration blaster strapped to his right hip. He extended his senses. Ah…there, several measures ahead of them through the trees. An altercation between a group of humans.

  Ki moved in front of Sherri. When she went to go around him, he pulled her behind him. “Stay there,” he commanded.

  She stiffened but made no sound or tried to move.

  “I’ll be right back.” With extra care, he navigated through low bushes and tall trees before a clearing opened. He stayed in the shadows to observe. The scene turned out to be universal, with one exception. Ki frowned. Something was off. The group being held was different from the dangerous criminals he’d expect with such a show of force.

  Weapons pointed, five uniformed law enforcement agents held a ragged collection of frightened humans. There were two elderly males and one matronly female trying to calm three wailing children.

  Ki tensed when a guard pushed the fragile oldsters and caused an elderly male to fall on the rough terrain.

  The female gave an anguished cry and tried to reach the fallen male but the guard slapped her across the face and shoved her back.

  “Stay on your knees, you fuckin’ chili shitter!” An out-of-shape male with an enormous belly draped obscenely over a tightened waistline, threatened the terrified female. In a blatant show of superiority, he raised a solid club over her.

  The children screamed, their high pitches cries laced with fear and terror. The female covered the children in her feeble arms with a hunched back.

  Ki took a step to interfere when a blur of female rage stormed past him right into the fray. “Sherri, no!” With a hoarse growl, he did his best to stop the streaking woman, but she was too fast. How she maneuvered so quickly on those clunky shoes was beyond him.

  Her clenched fists and stomping stride told him what he needed. By the father of everything that female would be the death of him! He had to get between Sherri and the possible threat. And he had to that without alerting the humans to the fact he wasn’t one of them.

  Grirryrth, human image now!

  Having a Solaherra infused into the battlesuit had advantages other than housing the dragon. He could transform into whatever form he wanted. It was one of the reasons he’d been a successful mercenary with the Alliance of Assassins. There was no trouble maintaining a near-perfect hologram for several macroclicks until Grirryrth became overwhelmed. But he and the dragon had never tested it long enough to find the breaking point.

  When Grirryrth announced the transformation was finished, Ki jumped between Sherri and the volatile situation. With a gentle hold, he pushed her behind him. With her safely out of the way, he confronted the five human males abusing the other humans. He made a move to grab a blaster out of the hidden holster under his jacket when a high-pitched squeak stopped him.

  “No, Ki!”

  Strong fingers stalled his momentum.

  “Don’t. You’ll only make matters worse!”

  Ki considered Sherri’s pleading expression before he lowered the weapon.

  She sucked in a breath as she examined him with wild eyes.

  Looks like she’d noticed his change in appearance.

  “Halt! You are interfering in ICE business, people.” One of the younger males stepped in their direction and held up a palm as if to ward them off. “Move along or we’ll arrest you for obstruction of justice.” The fingers on the male trembled as he made a move to grab the projectile weapon holstered in his belt.

  Why did they call themselves frozen water? No matter, the humans’ confusing terminology wasn’t important. What was important was the ramifications if he took action against these males in authority. While it would be easy to take control, it was imperative to meet with this leader Sherri wanted to instead of getting involved with something else.

  “Ki?” Sherri tugged his arm.

  He wasn’t sure if she asked about him looking human or trying to stop him from blasting them all into oblivion.

  “Did you hear me, people?” The aggressive demand came from the male as he moved closer. “You need to leave now.”

  Ki opened his mouth but another other human male ran over and interrupted.

  “Hey, Stan!” This one was even younger, his fresh face barely out of the pubescent phase.

  The first male didn’t take his eyes off them when he answered. “What, Barry?” The projectile weapon never wavered.

  “It’s that famous lady wanted by the FBI for Internet terrorism, Sherrilyn Cantor!” The youngster’s voice hitched with awe. “And we’s got her!” Strange single-colored blue eyes narrowed as he pulled out his pistol and leveled it at their direction, the tip weaving and shaking.

  A gasp came from Sherri behind him.

  By the father of all! He crossed his arms in an attempt to rein in his temper. How did this puntneji recognize her? They’d erased her identity when she boarded the StarChance. At the earliest opportunity, Ki would verify the records with D’zia. Right now the situation had to be defused.

  Sherri’s warm hand latched around his waist as she leaned into him. He held her tight, keeping a free hand to grab his weapon if necessary.

  Barry’s announcement caught the attention of the other three male guards.

  One gave a swift kick to the downed elderly male before he barked at him. “Get up an’ get goin’!” He waved the weapon to encompass the small, helpless group. The children were still crying as the female held them. The other elder male reached down to his companion before he tugged at the kneeling female to help her up.

  “Don’ get too far, now,” the male continued. “’Cause we’ll be back for ya soon enough.”

  No one had to tell the terrified group twice. The two males each grabbed a hand of a child and ran off into the woods without a backward glance.

  A surge of satisfaction filled him as the abused humans left. One less thing to worry about. Now he’d enjoy taking care of the little annoying problem that stood in their way. The only question was, should he do it himself or let Grirryrth come out and play?

  Too bad Sherri had other ideas. Somehow, the crazy female thought she could talk herself out of whatever the males intended.

  “I’m afraid you have me confused with someone else.” She opened the strange contraption she carried and foraged inside it.

  Ki had no idea what she was doing, but he noticed the twisted mask of impatience on all five human males.

  “Lady, you’d better pull your hand out of that there purse right now.”

  Ki decided Stan led this group of dishonorable males. The human had the audacity to point his weapon at Sherri. Enough was enough. No one threatened his female… A slight metallic click sounded as the human did something to his weapon to make the noise.

  Sherri stopped. With rapt attention, she addressed the male. “No need for that. I’m only trying to g
et out my ID.” Her tone was reasonable and calm. “I am a special attaché to the UN and have an appointment this afternoon with the Secretary-General. I just want to show you…”

  “I said, ‘don’t move!’” Stan’s forehead dotted with sweat that ran the length of his temples.

  Why was this human getting nervous? Ki didn’t want to admit it, but he was having a hard time understanding all the dynamics.

  “Okay, okay.” Sherri took her hand out of the contraption and put her palms up as the loops of the bag slid to her elbow. “What do you want me to do?”

  Everything stopped; the five males facing them became immobile with the same expressions of wide-eyed terror and slacked jaws. It didn’t take long for childish squeals to pierce the air as the humans turned and ran, dropping their weapons during their mad dash.

  ENEMY! Grirryrth’s shout caught him by surprise. He jerked to glance behind him. Coming through the thick grove of Earth trees came the last person Ki expected to see.

  Drirux. The male he had locked in a stasis field in Elemi. How in the blasted nine systems did he get free? Ki couldn’t believe Grirryrth hadn’t detected Drirux before this. The weight of Grirryrth’s confusion held him in place, but so did another problem.

  A platoon of fifty Zerins wearing the emblem of the Warriors of Light followed Drirux. That repulsive WOL emblem bit deep into his Zerin psyche—the royal symbol of the Zerin people with primitive spearheads on the left side and the starburst of the joint nine systems of the consortium on the right housed in a double-sided green field—overshadowed by an outline of a smashed fist obliterating the image.

  Through the haze of blinding rage, Ki’s lips curled at the smug face of his childhood nemesis. He ignored the disintegration blasters pointed at him and Sherri, his fists rolled into hardened balls. It took every ounce of control to consider the best course of action.

  “Well, look who we have here.” Drirux sneered as he scrutinized Sherri. “A lovely human female standing next to the inscrutable M’alalu E’eur in human form. What’s the matter, half-breed? She not like your Zerin looks?” With head cocked to the side, he folded his arms. “Or was the sight of your disgusting scarred face too much for her to handle?”

  Ki grabbed Sherri’s upper arm to stop her from approaching the male. Sometimes it was better to stay still and let the opposition talk.

  “And just how did you accomplish such a feat, eh, E’eur?” Drirux walked nearer.

  Too bad he was smart enough not to get too close.

  Four of his guards filed in line behind him.

  A quick analysis gave Ki the information he needed on the best way to disable all five. Which left the other forty-five guards as a problem.

  A loud dragon snort echoed in his mind. There is no problem. Leave them to me.

  No, not yet. Ki soothed his friend. I’m afraid you’ll attract unwanted human attention if I let you out. Let’s wait and observe what happens.

  Fine. We’ll do it your way. A mental nudge told Ki he hadn’t heard the last from Grirryrth. For now.

  “No matter, I don’t really care how you did it.” The male stood with his legs slightly apart as he leaned back.

  Idiot—keeping his arms crossed when they should be loose at his side to grab a handy weapon.

  “What I really need is for you to get out of that suit.” His crooked nose furrowed in a sneer. “And give it to me.”

  Ki’s left eyebrow rose as the corner of his mouth tipped. “You have a desire to see me naked?”

  Sherri gave a light titter and moved closer.

  Her soft feminine fragrance teased Ki. Not a good time for distractions or a growing arousal. How he could get sexually stimulated when surrounded by hostiles was anyone’s guess.

  Drirux’s sharp features turned ruddy at Ki’s mockery. “While I know I can’t harm you while you have it on, it’s not going to protect her.”

  A guard yanked Sherri away from Ki’s protection. He grabbed air.

  Trapped in a Zerin elbow hold around her throat, her face darkened.

  That mulish expression twisted Ki’s gut and clogged his throat. He couldn’t allow her to do something foolish and get hurt. He’d better get to her before she came up with something crazy on her own. “Let her go.” Ki growled. He would not ask again.

  In response, the assailant flicked his wrist and released a sharp blade that bore into her tender skin. The razor-thin metal pierced, causing a bubble of red to surface under her jawline.

  Pain filled her brown, human eyes.

  “I wouldn’t get any closer if I were you.”

  The amusement in Drirux’s voice had Ki grinding his back teeth.

  “Cueryg is one of the most bloodthirsty individuals I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting.” Drirux strutted to stand next to the Zerin fanatic holding Sherri in a tight clasp. “And he has a particular loathing for other species, especially those beneath us.” He stood well within Sherri’s personal space. With a hand under her short, red/brown hair, he lifted the strands and leaned in to take a deep breath.

  Sherri shuddered and narrowed her eyes.

  Good thing she didn’t react. Ki was sure Drirux wouldn’t hesitate to retaliate if she did.

  “While she is lovely…in a primitive, nasty way.” Drirux flicked her hair from his fingers and stepped back. “I wouldn’t be caught dead touching her.”

  “That can be arranged.” Ki’s razor-sharp incisors were on full display.

  Drirux ignored Ki’s invitation with a fanatical leer.

  Ki stiffened.

  “Just to make myself exceedingly clear to you. Cueryg will kill her, painfully and slowly if you do not give me that suit right now!”

  The last word raised in a warble told Ki everything he needed to know about Drirux’s unstable mental health. Ki’s stomach hardened at Sherri’s volatile predicament.

  Something must have shown in his face because Sherri jackknifed into action. She yanked the end finger of her assailant’s hand around her shoulders while she swung her leg back and kicked him in the groin with the spiky heel of those dangerous shoes. She caught Cueryg by surprise and he let her go as he doubled over in pain.

  He dropped the knife and fell backward, landing with both palms clutching between his legs. He folded into a fetal position while he moaned and cried as loud as a youngling.

  Sherri spun and raised a leg to stomp on the downed male. That would kill him if she plunged the shoe into his heart.

  Drirux grabbed her from behind and swung her away with a violent twist that caused her to arms and legs to fling in separate directions.

  Those dangerous shoes flew off her feet, whooshed past Ki’s head, and ended up embedded into a tree trunk. The shoe wobbled but held steady in the hard surface. No telling where the other one landed. Good thing it missed him.

  While he was focused on Sherri, a powerful hand grabbed his left shoulder and a large palm covered his mouth and nose. He jerked to dislodge the assailant but his body refused to obey. The hand over his mouth held a cloth coated with some sort of astringent. Pain stung his nostrils as a pinch of foulness slithered across the back of his tongue and down his throat.

  Before Ki took another breath, cognitive thought scattered into oblivion.

  * * *

  SHERRI

  When Ki fell to the ground with a loud thunk, his head, arms, and legs flopped in a boneless heap.

  A screamed bubbled in Sherri, but a large Zerin palm muffled her wail.

  “Hold still, you disgusting hysta!” A voice of gravel breathed in her ear while the malodorous smell of ripe socks made her gag. “You’ll not catch me by surprise as you did Cueryg!”

  Sherri recognized Drirux, the leader of this band of losers who held her. She turned her head as she tried to get away from the foul odor. Hard to move in his punishing grip. Damn asshole was going to leave fingerprint bruises.

  Sherri didn’t care what he said. It wasn’t in her nature not to struggle. The only problem was, her shoe
s were gone and bare feet wouldn’t have the same impact the platform stilettos had. “Let me go, you son of a bitch!” Yay! Her mouth was free. For a reward he smacked her upside her head.

  “I told you to hold still!” The bully thrust her at a waiting guard. “Here, hold this while I get that suit off him.”

  If the other Zerin hadn’t caught her, she’d have planted facefirst on the forest floor. The back of her head throbbed, but the pain faded when the muzzle of a space gun filled her vision. It took effort, but she wrenched her gaze from the narrow three-barrel weapon to peer around it.

  The asshole, Drirux was instructing two of his flunkies to figure out how to get Ki’s clothes off him.

  What the fuck was up with that? She smirked when they could discover no fastenings or tabs to loosen.

  Do not worry, they cannot take Grirryrth off your male. Cheithe whispered with a snicker.

  “Goddess damned fruk-ass!” Drirux swung a leg and kicked the prone Ki.

  Sherri tried to rush toward him, but the guy holding her jerked her backward. He dug into her upper arm with fingers bigger than that asshole Drirux’s. Purple bruises were definitely in her future.

  It didn’t take long for Drirux to stop kicking the unconscious man. Ki’s body barely moved with each strike so the sadistic jerk stopped and glared with heavy breaths and closed fists. He pivoted and grabbed a sword from one of the guards. He approached Ki and squatted next to him.

  “If I can’t get this off of him while alive, I’ll just have to kill him.” The blade swung upward, getting ready to chop off the prone man’s head.

  “NO!” An inner strength surged through and she yanked free. Sherri dived toward Ki, oblivious to any danger to herself. She had to get to him…to save him.

  The blade came down.

  Screaming, she wasn’t going to make it in time. Fury, hard and bright, engulfed her as time stilled and reality flipped. An all-encompassing power filled every cell in her body. The universe opened its secrets, giving her the will and the knowledge to save him.

  Cheithe was born.

  She was female of a species not seen in the galaxy for thousands of millennia who now moved through Sherri and morphed into existence. She’d take care of her mate.