Rion

by Susan Kearney

Since the tunnel, she’d seen no sign of pursuit. But Lex had warned them that the Unari had shut down access to platinum in the mountains.

  His words echoed in her mind. No one he’d ever sent had returned.

  Merlin had joined them on their journey, sometimes keeping them company, often scouting ahead. Marisa’s legs ached. Her feet had new calluses. So when Rion halted beside a slow-moving stream, she sat on a boulder, took off her shoes, and checked her feet for damage.

  Rion leaned over the stream and drank. “How are you holding up?”

  “I’m okay.” She rubbed her sore feet. Rion turned and kneeled beside her, took her foot into his hands, and began to knead.

  She closed her eyes, tilted back her head to the sun, and enjoyed his strong fingers. “You really are good with your hands.”

  “That’s not all I’m good—” Rion dropped her foot and tackled her.

  The air whooshed out of her lungs. His big body covered hers. She gasped in a breath. “What?”

  “I heard a tree branch crack. Like someone stepped on it,” he whispered.

  They were in a grass field. A few shrubs grew along the stream, but she didn’t see a tree anywhere. “But there aren’t any branches here.”

  “I know.”

  Something rustled in the grass. Then she heard a series of snaps, very much like someone stepping on dry tree branches. Her pulse kicked up.

  “What is that?” She looked around, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing but sky, grass, and boulders.

  Then Merlin dived out of the sky. Straight at the ground. She lost sight of him in the tall grass, but then he soared upward again, a large snake-like thing dangling from his mouth. “Merlin’s found it.”

  Merlin dropped the creature almost right on top of them. It splattered on the rock.

  “Don’t move.” Rion crawled away from her, and Marisa was happy to stay put.

  She did not want to look at alien creepy-crawly things that made snapping noises and that would give her nightmares. It was one thing to know it was there, another to have the image of teeth and dripping venom branded into her brain.

  Rion peered at the dead creature. “These snappers are not native to Honor. The Unari must have brought them.”

  Marisa heard lots more snapping and her stomach clenched. The grass around them swayed with the movements of many creatures. As fear slithered down her spine, she pulled her feet away from the edge of the boulder. “There’s more of them out there.”

  She slipped her shoes back onto her feet. “Should we dragonshape and roast them? Or try to fly away?”

  Rion stilled, just for a few seconds, but she recognized that look. He’d just had a flash.

  His face hardened, and his eyes filled with shadows. “No dragonshaping. Others have tried. According to Lex, they all failed.”

  At his hard tone, her heart skipped a few beats. “Then what do we do?”

  Rion put his arms around her and his tone was gentle. “I’m sorry I brought you here.”

  That didn’t sound good. Apparently his flash hadn’t told him how to escape the snappers.

  But they weren’t giving up. Rion never gave up. And she hadn’t crossed the galaxy to be eaten by alien snakes. Or to let Rion down. There had to be a way.

  Marisa turned into his arms and brought him close. As always, she took comfort from his embrace and his manly scent. His rugged face with his five-o’clock shadow and circles under his eyes had become so dear to her. “Yeah, you owe me for bringing me here. But you can make it up to me.”

  He raised his eyebrow. “How?”

  “Kiss me.”

  “Now?”

  “Damn it. These stupid snakes are not going to kill us. They are not going to stop us from getting platinum. Or from saving your people. Kiss me.”

  Rion’s lips came down on hers. And as always, a special awareness of him kicked in. But this time she channeled her emotions.

  Even as she held on to Rion, it took so little effort to work up her anger. The Unari had no right to enslave the Honorians. Steal their free will. Destroy the planet.

  The bastards didn’t care how many people they killed to secure the Holy Grail. But they weren’t killing Rion. And they weren’t killing her. She would not let that happen.

  She burned with rage, and as Rion kissed her, she held on to her fury. Burned and boiled with it. And then she shot it through the grasses telepathically.

  Fry, you sons of bitches. Fry.

  When she had used up all her anger and sagged, Rion caught her and held her close, his big chest cradling her. He smoothed his fingers into her hair and down her neck. “Marisa, sweetheart, I don’t know what you did, but the snappers are gone.”

  Wearily, she lifted her head. “Thank God. It worked.”

  “What did you do?”

  “I sent them anger.”

  “While you kissed me?” He cocked his head to one side. “I don’t understand.”

  “Kissing you reminded me how much I want to live.” She sucked in a shaky breath. “But I’ve never done that before. I didn’t know if it would work.”

  Rion tenderly wrapped his hands around her waist. “Did you kill the snappers?”

  She shook her head. “My anger chased them away.”

  “Could you do that to the Unari?”

  “I doubt it. Those snappers are a way lower life-form. Their brains are so primitive that they simply feared my anger and slithered away. I couldn’t trick intelligent beings like that.”

  He kissed her forehead, his tone tender. “My people will go to bed with full bellies tonight thanks to you.”

  “Come on.” As much as she’d have enjoyed hugging him some more and basking in his compliments, they had a job to do. She slipped her hand into his. “Let’s go get that platinum before those snappers come back.”

  Marisa and Rion didn’t run into any more snappers. But as the elevation steepened, Rion had to help her more and more frequently. When they finally reached a cliff face and she could smell the rich platinum, she was eager to gather the food source and leave before dusk.

  Rion had found a sharp, spiked stone, and he used it to dig into the face of the cliff. While he dug, she gathered up the richest portions of platinum and placed them into his backpack.

  The concentrated platinum would go a long way toward strengthening his people. But they still needed a way to find the Tyrannizer. Knowing it was inside the palace helped, but without any landmarks, finding the palace itself within the enormous walled structure was no easy task.

  The more time they spent searching for the palace, the greater the risk the Unari would catch them. And the higher the chance of failure.

  “I have a crazy idea.”

  Rion kept digging. “Tell me.”

  She didn’t mention that the idea scared her so badly that she almost wished she’d kept it to herself. She didn’t mention that she didn’t want to stake anyone’s life on such a risky idea—never mind the fate of a world. But she couldn’t keep silent, either. It was too important.

  “Suppose we kick out the sensors on another floater and order the floater to take us to the Tyrannizer? Or to your father? The sphere found you, Lex, and Darian.”

  She’d half expected him to say her plan was crazy. That it wouldn’t work. Or that it was too dangerous. Instead, he kissed her again. “You’re brilliant.”

  “More likely I’m going to get us all killed.” Nevertheless, she was pleased with his praise. Pleased because she cared what he thought. Because she wanted him to appreciate all of her. Not just her body, not just her telepathy, but her intelligence, too.

  “If Lex can organize the local rebels, we can take over many floaters.”

  “How many rebels are there nearby?” she asked.

  Rion shrugged. “No one knows. But if we move fast and take the Unari by surprise, we might get enough of our people inside floaters to do what must be done.”

  The hope in his eyes scared her. Because the plan was so iffy. Th
ey should have had more intel. But she kept her doubts to herself. “The timing will be critical. For us to have any chance to save the dragons near the Tyrannizer—everyone will have to rebel at the same time.”

  “I have an idea how to get your telepathy to work.” He smiled darkly.

  “How?” She’d never seen that particular look on his face, and a shiver went down her spine.

  He rested his hands on her shoulders. “We’ll go in with a smaller force. And if you and I arrive first—we can deal with the dragons.”

  Yesterday I struggled to survive. Today I dare to win.

  —HONORIAN KING

  27

  Two days later, word had gone out to the scattered rebel underground. It was time to put their plan into effect.

  Everyone had fed on platinum. While one good meal couldn’t make up for years of deprivation, full bellies made for high spirits.

  The local rebels had come to join their prince in battle. Some had walked day and night to arrive in time. They all carried spears, knives, or throwing axes. Most of all, they joined with the will to fight to the death for their freedom.

  Women had joined their men, all of them determined to do whatever they could to help. Camaraderie was high, the mood hushed with grim anxiety. Honorians quietly shared platinum, food, and drink where they’d gathered by the river and waited for the sun to set.

  Marisa felt as if she were part of them… but not quite accepted. She’d received many stares from the newcomers, a few even hostile. But no one dared outright rudeness.

  In time, they might grow to accept her. After all, they shared the dragonshaper heritage. They wanted their freedom and the choice to love and live their lives on their own terms. They were not so different from Marisa. Or was that wishful thinking?

  Rion and Erik walked among their people, and Marisa focused on Rion. She’d grown so close to him. Who would have thought she’d fall for a warrior, a politician, an alien, a prince? Despite the rebels’ high hopes, she still feared they all stood little chance of living through this day together. Dying together seemed much more likely.

  Don’t think it.

  The team leaders had gathered for instructions from Rion. “When you take out the sensors, don’t damage the floaters themselves,” he reminded everyone. “And remember, you must order your floater to open and close its doors. Also, if it doesn’t accept your first demand to take you where you need to go, don’t panic. Just work your way down the list of names I’ve given you. Hopefully the floaters will recognize one of the names and take us where we intend.”

  Rion tipped his head to the twilight sky. They’d picked just after sunset as the best time to attack.

  Even with the cover of darkness, so much could go wrong.

  If the Unari had figured out how the rebels had used the floaters last time, they could have reprogrammed them. Or used them to set a trap.

  “Here they come.” Rion pointed to the sky. “I see twenty floaters. That means only forty of us can go in the first wave. The rest of you stay hidden.” He gestured for them to hide under grass mats. “If one of us goes down, you know what to do.”

  Marisa held her breath. All hell was about to break loose.

  Rion gripped her wrist. “Stay close.”

  The floaters descended, and Operation Rebellion commenced. Rion swiftly kicked out every single eye on the first floater. She didn’t get to touch one sensor. No surprise there. But disabling it seemed too easy.

  Light beams from the floaters flared and hissed, hitting many of their targets. Rebels screamed in fear and pain. Several cursed. But no one retreated. When the paralyzers stunned several men and women, other rebels advanced to take the places of those who’d fallen.

  The moment the door of their floater opened, Rion lifted her inside. Even with the door open, it was dark. She could still hear the sounds of battle outside.

  “Close door,” Rion ordered. The door clanged shut. “Take us to Shepherd Jaqard.”

  “Shepherd Jaqard is not in my memory.” The computer spoke in the mechanical voice Marisa remembered from her last trip.

  “Take us to the Tyrannizer.”

  “Tyrannizer is not in my memory bank.”

  “Take us to the palace,” Marisa tried.

  “Location unknown.”

  “Take us to Cavus Prime,” Rion demanded.

  Marisa held her breath. And waited. The floater hummed, then lifted them into the air.

  It had worked! They were on the way.

  But Marisa worried that she still hadn’t figured out how to simultaneously broadcast emotion and a message telepathically. If she couldn’t tell every dragon to rebel at the same time, the revolt would fail. This small rebel force couldn’t possibly defeat the Unari. They needed the dragonshapers’ help, too.

  “Hey.” Rion tipped up her chin. “It’s going to work.”

  “You’ve seen that in a flash?”

  “I believe in us.”

  He always had more faith than she did. And while she adored his confidence, she would have preferred a more tidy plan, one with every step laid out. “But—”

  “Let’s not waste time talking.” His mouth swooped down over hers. His hands closed over her breasts, and his fingers tweaked the nubs.

  Oh… wow. His fast move took her by surprise, and oddly, the distraction banished most of her fear.

  She’d known their lovemaking was an essential part of the plan, and she tried to go with the flow. It was dark. She and Rion were alone. This might be the last time they ever kissed.

  She liked kissing Rion. Although she couldn’t completely shut out her fear of what would happen once they landed. So in this cocoon of safety, she kissed Rion back, breathed in his scent, reveled in his taste.

  When his lips touched hers, maybe it was the adrenaline, but he set off a spark. A deep, aching need. She leaned into him and let her feelings wash over her, accepting that Rion affected her like no other man. Sure, the lovemaking was great, but so were the conversations, the shared glances that so often told her his private thoughts. She liked Rion’s sensitive side as much as she was turned on when he went into warrior mode.

  Most of all, she liked how he cared about his people. He didn’t set himself apart or above. He considered himself one of them. Their problems were his problems.

  Marisa had never felt like this about a man. What was wrong with her? She couldn’t have him. She’d repeatedly told herself she couldn’t have such strong feelings about him. She was here to help him save these people. Having wonderful sex was not love. She had to control herself. She couldn’t get sucked in any deeper. Even if they survived, even if he changed his mind about marrying an outsider, she couldn’t stay here. She had to return to Earth to warn her people about the Unari.

  She and Rion had no future, period. But that didn’t stop her from wanting one.

  Rion’s kiss had her thoughts swimming and her emotions spinning, but she was still aware of when the floater ceased flying. Rion must have noticed, too, but he didn’t rush, giving her one last embrace before finally pulling back.

  He whispered, “Ready?”

  No. This was the riskiest part of the entire operation. They had no idea what or whom they would face when the door opened. Cavus Prime? The Unari army? Pain-racked dragons with orders to sear them alive? But she’d heard no fear in Rion’s question, only solid determination. She could give him no less in return.

  “Yes. I’m ready.”

  Before Rion gave the order for the door to open, something slammed into the floater. The noise almost burst her eardrums. Her elbow banged the side and they wobbled. Her knees buckled. Bright lights flashed. And a painful shock zinged through her.

  Suddenly, lights from outside shone through the cracks in the floater, pinning it in a spotlight. Uh-oh. This was bad. Someone had been expecting them.

  She peered through a crack. “There’s a squad of Unari out there, weapons raised.”

  Damn. Damn. Damn. They were outnumbered, ou
tmaneuvered, outgunned. Possibly betrayed.

  “Dragonshape,” Rion ordered.

  Normally, dragonshaping inside a structure was lethal. But a weapon had already shredded a good part of their floater. Her first glimpse through the cracked side had revealed they were inside a large building with an open area big enough to hold dragons, the ceiling high above their heads.

  She dragonshaped, her clothes shredding. The floater tore apart like tinfoil. The afterglow from their kiss helped, and at first she felt no pain.

  Her sharp dragon vision picked out details. Huge columns that held up a domed ceiling. Polished and slick marble-like silver floors that reflected bursts of light from enemy weapons. Banners bearing the portrait of the Unari leader, Cavus Prime, hung between the columns. Another likeness of his face frescoed the ceiling, his beady eyes black and soulless. Cruel.

  Weapons fired and struck her dragon flesh, stinging like the devil.

  Beside her, Rion had dragonshaped, too. In full dragon mode his wingspan was cramped. But he was gorgeous, ferocious. Huge. His flesh dark, purple, his eyes flashing a sparkling gold, he roared and shoved her with one giant wing, right out a balcony window.

  Fly.

  Marisa spread her wings, caught air, and soared. She expected Rion to do the same, to escape, to fly away with her. But he didn’t retreat. He stayed and faced the entire squad of Unari.

  No way was she leaving him behind while she flew to safety. She circled and returned to the building. The squad of Unari were firing at Rion, their whips flaring across his scales—while he stomped one to death and razed three more men with one powerful wing. Several Unari had locked their whips on him and fired continuous bursts of light along Rion’s tail and shoulders.

  Merlin flew out of nowhere and pecked at a Unari’s eyes. The man screamed and went down.

  Marisa hissed, drawing their attention. And the lash of their whips.

  The Unari lashed whips at Rion, Marisa, and one tiny owl. Rion breathed a roar of fire, instantly roasting the Unari alive. Merlin hooted and soared out the window.

  Rion had taken out one flank, but the Unari soldiers on his other side took cover behind the columns. Most of their shots went wild. But one sliced Marisa’s neck, burning a trail of agony. Turning, she roared, releasing her own fire, blasting one side of the building and felling two Unari. The pain from the whips weakened her, and not just physically. The emotional boost from Rion’s kiss was dissipating, replaced by the terrible nerve pain that shot constant agony into every dragon on the planet. Certain she was burning, her very bones on fire, she humanshaped.