Neverwylde (The Rim of the World Book 1)

by Mooney, Linda

  “What kind of plans? Or do I already have a vague idea?” Fullgrath shook his head. “Never mind. I don’t want to know.” Hefting his rifle over his shoulder, he motioned to Dox. “Pick one, Dox, and let’s hustle.”

  Kyber watched as the little man hesitated, uncertainty masking his face. Kyber got the impression that the engineer wasn’t accustomed to being stymied, nor did he like indecision. After throwing the light from one tunnel to the other, Dox finally picked the left one and took off, with Fullgrath right on his heels.

  Within seconds, Kyber was left in total darkness, and the tunnels felt like they were beginning to bear down on him. Closing his eyes, he sent a prayer to his gods for Kelen’s safe return. Or that he would discover who had taken her, and be able to avenge her if she was no longer alive. When he was done, he held out an arm and found the inner wall of the second tunnel. Keeping himself focused on feeling his way through the labyrinth, he began walking.

  Chapter 25

  Confrontation

  He had no sense of the passing of time. He could have been walking for an hour, or several hours. All Kyber knew was that he stopped once for a brief rest, a swallow of water, and the chance to relieve himself against the mud-packed wall.

  His heart thudded loudly, masking the sound of his footsteps. Shaking his head to clear his ears didn’t help. It was as if someone had put a dampener in the tunnels, sucking out all sound.

  Fear sat on his shoulders. It mocked him. Tried to fill his brain with thoughts of eye worms skittering through the corridors. Or with an unknown creature he had yet to encounter, deadly and invisible in the dark. Only the hard wall kept him centered. Focused.

  Gut instinct told him she’d been brought this way. Wherever this tunnel ended, she was there.

  The corridor remained straight. It didn’t curve, didn’t slope upward or downward, and he didn’t feel another break, which would indicate he’d come to another intersection.

  His stomach clenched with hunger. Without anything to eat, he drank the last of his water and hoped it would fool his body into believing it was food. Exhaustion began taking its toll. Leaning against the wall, Kyber lowered his head and tried to make the dizziness go away. He clenched his fists and willed himself to remain strong. When he found Kelen, he’d need his strength to get her back to the others. Or to fight off whatever, whoever, had taken her.

  Rubbing his eyes, he took a deep breath and stood up. “It’s not much farther,” he muttered. “Not much farther. She’s down here, and I must find her. Not much farther.” He blinked, then rubbed his eyes again. Was it his imagination, or was there the faintest glimmer of light just ahead?

  A dozen more meters, and he knew he wasn’t seeing things. There was a light in the distance. As he drew nearer, he could make out faint shadows dancing on the tunnel’s walls, and realized the glow was coming from a fire. Knowing another chamber opened up at the end of the tunnel, Kyber advanced with caution. Keeping his back to the wall, he moved sideways toward the opening to avoid being detected.

  The vaulted room was large, but not to the scale he’d seen before. Several rows of stone steps circled a smaller pit in the center, and that’s where the fire burned. Kyber scanned the area, and found what he’d been searching for.

  Kelen sat on the opposite side of the fire, facing in his direction, but unable to see him for the flames. The fact that she was alive sent a rush of energy through him. Smiling with relief, he gave the gods a quick prayer of thanks.

  He remained where he was, partially hidden in the tunnel’s shadows, and watched her. Waiting for her to give him a clue as to who had taken her. She was still nude. Every few seconds she’d hold out her hands to the warmth, then rubbed her arms to ward off the chill.

  “How long are we going to stay here?” she suddenly called out.

  A figure rose from where it had been crouching at the far end of the room and slowly walked into the light. Kyber felt anger like heat race through his body. Baring his teeth, he extended his talons and waited for the moment when Isup had his back turned.

  “Well?” Kelen taunted. “Are you going to glower at me all night, or are you going to give me an answer.”

  “Shut up, skint. Your whiney voice is irritating.”

  “Then answer the question and I’ll quit harassing you…for a while.”

  The Seneecian circled the fire, stepping down each set of carved stone stairs as he approached her. With the man’s attention on Kelen, Kyber was able to get a better look at the crew member who had distanced himself from the rest. It was apparent Isup had faced his share of troubles. His fur was matted and stiff with dried blood and mud, and he had a noticeable limp.

  Isup paused a short distance away from Kelen. “We’re staying here until I say it’s time we go.”

  “Go? Go where? In case you haven’t noticed, you’re in the same predicament I am. We’re both on an inhospitable planet in the middle of freaking nowhere space. So tell me where we’ll go when you say it’s time.”

  “I told you to shut up,” Isup growled. “It’s not your place to argue with me.”

  Kelen went mum as the Seneecian continued to circumvent the fire until he reached a small pile of rocks. Grabbing a couple, he tossed them into the small pit to feed the flames.

  “Well, when you decide it’s time for us to go, will it be some place where there’s food and water? I’m hungry.” She glared at him, challenging his authority.

  Isup snarled, baring his teeth. “Do I have to backhand you again to make you cease talking?”

  Kelen sniffed and lifted her chin in defiance. Her eyes flitted from Isup to the shadows at the mouth of the tunnel where Kyber was hiding, when her face stiffened. In that brief heartbeat of time, their eyes met.

  Jerking her face away, she reached down between her feet and scooped up a handful of dirt. Making sure Isup was watching her, she threw it onto the fire. The Seneecian whirled on her in anger. “What are you doing?”

  “If we’re leaving, it’s good policy to put out any live fires,” she snapped, and tossed another handful into the flames. “Or do you want this place to go up in flames?”

  “Stop it!” Isup demanded. He turned to advance on her, when Kelen jumped to her feet and began running straight toward the tunnel entrance. The Seneecian roared and charged after her.

  She dashed past Kyber, giving him a clear shot at his old crew member. Roaring his challenge, Kyber leaped out into the open and slashed with both hands, catching the man in the arm and chest, and raking his talons through fur and flesh.

  Isup screamed at the onslaught and lashed back, catching Kyber on the side of the head. Dazed, Kyber stumbled. He tried to press his advantage, when his foot caught the edge of a loose rock. Off-balanced, he stumbled and almost fell.

  The Seneecian charged, bringing his claws down across Kyber’s back. One hand snagged a shoulder strap, slicing through it. Kyber threw up an arm and knocked Isup into the wall.

  Isup shuffled backwards, hunched over and talons ready as he faced Kyber. “I always believed it would be you who’d eventually find me,” he growled in Seneecian.

  “Speak in Terran, Isup. Inform us both. Why did you attack the Terran physician and kidnap Kelen?”

  Behind him, Kelen gasped. “He attacked Doc? Is he—”

  “He’s alive,” Kyber quickly told her. She remained far enough down the tunnel to prevent getting in the way, but it wasn’t far enough to suit him. “Kelen, go! Follow the wall. It’s a straight shot back to the bath. Go! Now!”

  “Not without you,” she declared.

  Isup sneered. “The skint survived? Guess I didn’t hit him hard enough. Doesn’t matter. I won’t make that mistake the next time I run across him.”

  “You didn’t answer my question,” Kyber whispered angrily. “Why did you attack? Why did you take Kelen?”

  “Questions, questions, questions! All these gakking questions! Isn’t it obvious? They’re skints! They’re the enemy! Our job, our orders, our duty
is to eliminate them!” Isup replied with disdain.

  “Then why didn’t you kill Kelen if you feel it’s your duty?”

  Isup straightened slightly. A vicious grin split his face. “Because I’ve been watching you, Kyber. I’ve been watching all of you. You and the skint…” He grimaced at the thought. “You’ve grown close. Too close to be healthy. I had to end it for your own good. But first, I wanted to find out why she gained your attention. I wanted to see what redeeming qualities she possesses that drew you to her.” He snarled. “I have yet to find anything substantial. She’s hairless. Her voice is irritating. And she refuses to obey the simplest commands!”

  Kyber chuckled. “I disagree. Her skin is soft. Her voice is soothing. And she pleases me by being her own independent person, and not a mindless drone.”

  Isup bared his fangs. “It doesn’t matter. Once I kill you, destroying her and the other Terrans will be easy.”

  “You’ll have to face Gaveer and the others before you do. We need the Terrans to survive. You have to realize that.”

  Raising his hands to show his lethal talons, the Seneecian sneered. “I have these to survive, and they have never failed me. The only obstacle in my way is you. With you gone, we can endure. But as long as you insist the Terrans stay alive, they’ll be a chain around our necks, dragging us down, choking us. Leaving us open and vulnerable to attacks by the creatures who live here.”

  Isup feinted to the left, ducking and swiping at Kyber’s thigh to knock his legs out from under him. Kyber heard Kelen’s cry of warning as he jumped out of the way. But in doing so, he misjudged the height of the tunnel’s ceiling. His head connected with the rock, leaving him stunned as he stumbled to remain on his feet.

  As he expected, Isup launched himself at him. The Seneecian caught him in the middle, tackling him to the floor where he landed hard on his back. Sitting on his chest, Isup raised a hand to bring it down across Kyber’s throat, when there came a scream of rage. Kelen’s bare heel caught the Seneecian in the side of the head, knocking him away.

  “That’s for Doc,” she panted.

  Rolling over, Kyber reached out and grabbed Isup’s leg. With his other hand, he sunk his talons into the Seneecian’s calf. Isup yowled, bringing a hand down to slice through Kyber’s wrist. Kyber jerked away a heartbeat before the claws connected.

  “Someone’s coming!” Kelen shouted.

  Both men hesitated to listen over the sound of their heavy breathing. Faintly, in the distance, someone called out Kyber’s name. He turned to Isup with a dark scowl. “Give it up, Isup. Come back to us. Agree to our conditions, and we’ll forgive you your transgressions.”

  “Your conditions? You want to turn me into a skint lover? Is that part of the deal?”

  “We have to work together. It’s for our survival.”

  Isup angrily shook his head, baring his fangs. “I can’t, and I won’t. The Terrans don’t deserve to live. They’re a drain on the food and water that’s left. When are you going to realize that?” he added almost pleadingly.

  “Don’t you think they see us in the same way? That we’re a burden to them? But we need each other’s strengths if we’re to survive on this world. We need to coexist, even if it’s an uneasy truce. Isup, you’ve served with me for years. You know I never made these types of decisions lightly. Come back to us.”

  “Kyber!” The voice came from a distance down the throat of the tunnel. And with it, the glow from a tube light. Kyber glanced over his shoulder at where Kelen stood with her hands crossed over her breasts. She looked back at him, when her eyes widened in shock.

  “He’s gone!”

  Kyber spun around to discover Isup had left, using their distraction to cover his getaway. Kyber started to reenter the cavern, but hesitated. “Kelen, do you know where the room leads to? Is there another exit door?”

  “There are four more doors, but I have no idea where they go.” Her voice quivered, and she leaned against the wall for support. It was then he saw the dried streak of blood on the side of her face and recognized the signs of shock.

  Reaching out to her, he drew her into his arms for warmth. She buried her face against his chest as she shivered from exposure. Pressing his lips to her hair, he refused to release her when Dox and Fullgrath finally caught up with them. Fullgrath eyed the couple before reaching out to her.

  “Thank God you found her! Kelen, are you all right?”

  She nodded, turning her face just enough to where she could look at the big man. “I’m okay. A bit hungry and thirsty. And I want my clothes back. But other than that, I’m just peachy.”

  “Who did this?” He looked at her, then to Kyber for an explanation.

  “Isup,” Kyber informed him.

  “You mean your crewman who ditched us up in the temple?”

  Kelen gave a wobbly laugh. “Hey, we had one go rogue, too. Don’t blame Kyber.”

  Fullgrath went on the defensive. “I’m not. I’m simply saying—”

  “It’s not important,” Kyber interrupted. “We need to return to the rest of the group. They’re waiting for us.”

  “Wait.” She placed a hand on his chest as she gazed up at him. “What about Isup? Shouldn’t you be going after him?”

  “You’re safe. My mission is complete. We need to return to where the others are camped.”

  “You know he’ll try again, don’t you?” she insisted. “He won’t stop until we’re dead.”

  Fullgrath huffed. “Let him try. Now that we know we have to keep a lookout for him, as well, we’ll be better prepared next time.”

  Kyber stared at the two men. “Why didn’t you follow the tunnel you chose?”

  “We tried. There was a cave-in about two hundred meters in, so we turned around and followed you. Hell of a distance, too. I gotta hand it to you, Kyber. I don’t think I’d have the balls to come all this way in pitch dark.”

  “It no longer matters. Let’s get back before the others decide to send more looking for us, or choose to leave us behind.”

  Fullgrath nodded, and Dox led the way, keeping the beam of his tube light ahead of them. If either of the Terran men had anything to say about the way Kyber kept his arm protectively around Kelen, neither spoke about it.

  It wouldn’t have mattered anyway. Kyber planned to tell them all about his feelings for the female when they returned to their campsite.

  Chapter 26

  Reevaluation

  Kelen stared at the fire someone had started in the middle of the room where they would camp for the night. On the other side, Kyber sat with his men.

  “Did Isup tell you why he attacked Kelen and the physician?” Gaveer inquired.

  Massapa gave a little growl. “That isn’t difficult to figure out, as much as he hates Terrans.”

  “Then why kidnap the female and not kill her outright as well?” Tojun asked.

  “He didn’t kill the physician,” Gaveer reminded him.

  “No, but he tried,” Fullgrath intervened, and glanced over at where Sandow lay on the pallets. “What do you remember, Doc?”

  “Not much.” Sandow’s voice was weak, but he’d assured them he would fully recover. “Kelen and I were talking. I saw the Seneecian come into the chamber from the back way, but I didn’t think anything of it.” His eyes flitted over to Kyber. “At the time, you all look alike to me. I know better now.” He paused, then continued. “I started to tell him to leave, to give Kelen some privacy, when he rushed me. I think I yelled.” He sighed. “That’s all I recall.”

  “I’d ducked under the water to wash my hair.” Kelen picked up the story. “I didn’t see Isup attack Doc. I came up for air, and that’s when he clipped me.” She touched the wound above her temple with cautious fingers. “When I awoke, we were in that cavern where you found us. He was starting a fire.” She looked to Kyber. “I’d thought about escaping, but I didn’t know which tunnel to use. Besides, my head was spinning, and I was cold. The fire kept me centered. And warm.” A smile crept ov
er her face. “I knew you’d send someone to come find me once you found out what happened.”

  Mellori threw another rock into the fire. “The attack makes sense. What doesn’t add up is why the Seneecian took you with him. He knocked you out. You could have easily drowned in the pool, but he fished you out and carried you off.”

  “He’s right,” Jules agreed. “If he’d left you in the pool, we would have never known he’d been responsible for the attack. We would have written it off as some unknown creature from this world. Kelen, did the Seneecian tell you why he decided to take you with him?”

  “Probably to make a meal of her,” Dayall remarked stonily. “That, or to mate with her.”

  She slowly shook her head and inched closer to the fire. Despite having her clothes back on, she continued to feel chilled. Memory of Kyber’s warm body sent a hard longing through her, and she fought the urge to move nearer to him. Or to look at him. Something told her this was not the time or place to announce the fact that she had feelings for the alien. But it would have to be said sooner or later. If Kyber’s feelings for her were the same as what she felt for him, they couldn’t be kept secret from the group for very long.

  If he feels the same way, she admonished herself. If.

  She peeled the torn blouse away from her skin. Their clothing was torn. Smelly. In need of cleaning. And eventually, if they remained on this planet for any length of time, replaced.

  “So what now?” Jules asked.

  “Isup is still out there,” Kyber announced. “He’s promised he will strike again.”

  Fullgrath chuffed. “It’s bad enough we gotta contend with whatever creatures are on this planet, but now we have a renegade Seneecian to deal with.”

  “Don’t forget, one of your own also left,” Tojun commented.

  “He’s right,” Kelen acknowledge. “We each have a deserter to watch out for. Next time, it could be Cooter. That is, if he’s still alive.”