Among Galactic Ruins

by Anna Hackett

  “Okay, we’ll start by following the Ruins Route. It’s a well-known caravan route through the Sea.” A serious look came over his features, making him look older than his eighteen years. “Now, the Sea is full of dangers, so don’t go off the path. The desert is filled with sand traps that can swallow an entire herd of ballo beasts. Not to mention the wolves.”

  “Wolves?” Lexa asked.

  “Yes. Desert wolves. Don’t worry, they don’t attack during the day, and for the nights, I have a deterrent system.” He patted the packs hanging from his beast. Then he nudged the ballo forward. “Okay, let’s get moving.”

  With the bright-blue sky stretching overhead and the suns warm on her back, Lexa soon adjusted to the shambling rhythm of the ballo she was riding. It wasn’t that different from the horseback riding she’d done as a girl. Dathan told her the ballo beasts were herbivores and ate any and all vegetation they could find…with a special fondness for the sweet date fruits that grew on the trees at the planet’s oases.

  Damon cursed under his breath every so often, and while he looked comfortable enough on the ballo, he didn’t appear to enjoy riding. She smiled. It was kind of nice to see him not be perfect at something. Made him seem more human.

  She watched the town shrink behind them, and the dunes grow from small mounds to giant, incredible mountains of sand. Excitement was a low-level hum in her blood. Finally, she was on an honest-to-God treasure hunt. She loved working in the museum, loved handling, restoring and studying priceless artifacts, but…an adventure like this was something she’d hoped to do for a long time.

  Hours later, they traveled through a valley between two enormous dunes. Lexa stared around in wonder. Up at the windswept peaks of the dunes, and down at the trail beneath them. It was a paler color than the rest of the sand, beaten down by the hooves of who knew how many animals over the centuries. She imagined vast caravans of ballo beasts moving through here, people heading off on adventures, colonists off to new lives.

  Ahead, something nestled into the side of one dune caught her eye. She sat up straighter on her ballo. Ruins!

  “The Temple of St. Theresa,” Dathan told her. He moved easily on his ballo and looked like he’d been riding for years. “Said to have been built by the very first Terrans to ever land on Zerzura. Some say she founded the cult of the Orphic priestesses and other legends say she was the one who brought the Fabergé egg here.”

  “Fascinating,” Lexa breathed. She couldn’t tear her gaze off the remains of the graceful columns spearing upward. What must it have looked like in its heyday?

  She moved her head and saw Damon watching her.

  “You’re eyeing those ruins like other women eye priceless gems,” he said.

  “I like gems, too.”

  He snorted. “Yeah, if they came from some ancient empress’ crown, or from some priceless Terran necklace.”

  She smiled. “Well, that would just be a bonus. All girls love as least a little sparkle, Mr. Malik.”

  Lexa knew she would have been showered in gems if she’d entered the loveless, stuffy marriage her parents had wanted for her. She stared at the ruins, her blood pumping from being on this adventure. This was much, much better than all the jewels in the galaxy.

  She thought of the men her father had always forced her to socialize with. Smart, for sure, but mostly pretty boys. They wore the latest suits, got manicures every week and spent more time on their hair than Lexa did. Without her permission her gaze strayed to Damon.

  No pretty boy here. He was good-looking, but he also had that fascinating edge that drew a woman in. He was dangerous, of that she had no doubt, but he was also a protector. She’d known that when he’d saved her last night, and again this morning, when she’d found him sitting outside her door.

  She tried to dredge up the annoyance that had sparked between them the first day they’d met in Marius’ office. For some reason, it proved elusive.

  At that moment, he turned his head and their gazes collided.

  It was like being hit by an electric Tase weapon.

  She looked away and refocused on the dunes around them. A flash of movement caught her gaze, and she stared up at the dune peak. She was certain she’d seen multiple shadows up there, moving around.

  She blinked and saw…nothing but sand. She shrugged to herself. Maybe the desert was making her imagine things.

  “So, would you like to hear more about the fascinating history of Zerzura?” Dathan said, interrupting her musings.

  She glanced again at the empty dune, then turned her attention to the young man. “Of course.” That sounded like a much better way to pass the time than desert mirages.

  Chapter Six

  “The first Terrans arrived here thousands of years ago, when their ship crash landed.” Dathan’s voice took on a dramatic edge. “Even then, there were already some alien species living here, and already many ancient ruins from species long past.”

  The kid had flair, that was for sure. Damon directed his ballo over some rocky ground. He suspected this speech must have been one the treasure hunter practiced for his clients.

  “I’ve seen lots of Zerzuran artifacts,” Lexa said. “Some of the ancient cultures were so old, they have no identification. We have no idea who they were.”

  “That’s right. And after the destruction of Earth, more Terrans came. They intermingled with the locals and built a thriving culture. The climate was much better then, similar to Earth in its prime.” Dathan rode with a steady hand, leading them through the dune valley. “They built cities, farms and temples. They gave the planet its current name. Zerzura was an old myth on Earth. A lost city in the desert.”

  “It must have been something to behold,” Lexa said. “And I’ve researched the Terran myth of Zerzura a little. There isn’t much information about it, but apparently it was a lost white city in Earth’s largest desert. It was said to be filled with treasures and fair-haired men.”

  Damon smiled. The excitement in her voice was infectious. He listened to her pepper the kid with questions about the local legends, and Damon shook his head. He could listen to her talk all day. Despite the smelly beast he was riding, he felt…easy. For the first time in what felt like forever.

  It didn’t change the fact she was opinionated, and a magnet for trouble, and didn’t hesitate to complain when she disliked something he did, but he was actually starting to find all of that a bit endearing.

  He watched her as she rode ahead of him, looking extremely graceful atop the ugly animal. You would have thought she was riding some prized thoroughbred horse. It gave him thoughts of her riding him, rising and falling above him, her beautiful breasts bouncing and her back arched.

  Shit. He shifted. That was all he needed, an erection while riding this shaggy monster.

  “The climate changed,” Dathan was saying, “and it killed off the Terrans’ attempts at creating another Earth.” The young man looked back over his shoulder. “Many people here have Terran blood. Or so they claim.”

  Damon scanned the magnificent dunes. Here the sands were a multitude of colors—bands of cream, yellow, orange, brown and red.

  Lexa was talking, something about the temple ruins, when her words drifted away.

  He frowned. She was staring off at the top of the dunes to the right. “Lexa?”

  “I…think I saw something.”

  He glanced in the same direction. Nothing moved, except a small stream of sand whipped off the top of the dune by the wind.

  “I thought I saw something earlier, too. Shadows.” She shrugged. “Figured I was imagining it.”

  Damon stared at the dunes again. Still nothing. But he felt that familiar tingle between his shoulder blades. The one that had saved his life many, many times before. He whipped out his high-powered binocs from his pack and scanned the dunes.

  “Anything?” she asked nervously.

  He shook his head. “Let’s keep an eye out, though.”

  They kept moving. An hour later
, they ate lunch on the move, a simple fare of bread, cheese and dates.

  Suddenly, Lexa’s ballo beast balked turning in a half circle. It made a braying noise.

  “Shh.” She held on, murmuring soothing words to the animal. Ahead, Dathan halted and looked back, frowning.

  Damon felt his tingle return. He scanned the sand around them, searching for a threat. His ballo was disturbed, too, stamping its feet and slowing down. They were nervous, as though something was spooking them.

  Suddenly, his beast reared, front hooves lifting off the sand.

  “Holy hell!” Dathan yelled.

  Damon swiveled. Racing toward them over the sand was a pack of fast-moving, dark shadows.

  Desert wolves.

  What the fuck? Damon used his knees and the reins to try and control his ballo, never taking his gaze off the wolf pack.

  “They never attack in the day!” Dathan called out.

  “Well, something’s convinced them otherwise,” Damon yelled.

  As the pack neared, he got a closer look at them. They were big, their shoulders probably reaching his chest. They had shaggy coats that were a slightly darker shade of brown than the sand around them. The lead wolf howled.

  The ballo beasts all brayed in fright and bolted.

  Dammit. Damon gripped the reins, fighting to stay on, the rope burning against his hand. Ahead, he saw Dathan and Lexa doing the same, both of them bouncing hard. Lexa was holding on like a champ.

  Damon felt like his bones were rattling with every jarring step. Then his beast let out a scream.

  He looked back and saw a wolf clamped onto the ballo’s hindquarters. Its large claws were locked into the beast’s hide and the wolf’s mouth—filled with sharp, ragged teeth—was snapping at Damon.

  Fuck. The ballo slowed and started a crazy dance, trying to dislodge the wolf.

  Damon felt his grip slipping on the reins. Shit, no.

  He looked forward and saw Lexa’s horrified gaze. The rope slipped through his hands and with one more wild arch of the ballo’s back, Damon fell backward. He thought he heard Lexa scream.

  He hit the sand.

  Fuck, it was harder than he’d thought. He spat grains out of his mouth and pushed to his hands and knees.

  Then he heard a growl.

  He froze and slowly, so very slowly, turned his head.

  The desert wolf pack fanned out, surrounding him. They looked even bigger up close, with drool dripping from their jaws and rabid, yellow eyes.

  Damon pulled out his laser pistol. He fired a shot into the sand to scare them off.

  They backed up a little, wary, but they were not leaving.

  The lead animal crept closer, belly low, eyes never leaving Damon. Then he pounced.

  Damon shot the animal and it went down with a yelp, but the others were closing in. Resigned, he aimed his pistol. This was not going to be pretty for any of them.

  Suddenly, a huge body barreled past him and into the pack.

  “Yah, get away.” Lexa charged through on her ballo, barely controlling the clearly terrified beast.

  The stupid idiot. She should have gotten to safety.

  The wolves scattered and wheeled around.

  Damon fired again, picking off another two animals. Images of Lexa falling into the midst of the wolves danced in his head. She turned and charged back, wolves falling under the ballo’s sharp hooves.

  The rest of the wolves turned and ran back toward the dunes.

  Lexa pulled her beast to a stop. Damon stomped over to her, shoving his pistol back in its holster with more force than necessary.

  “Idiot. You should have left and gotten somewhere safe.”

  Her eyes narrowed in her flushed face. “And left the big bad man to do the fighting?” Her sarcasm was heavy.

  “It’s my job.” He gripped her leg.

  She snorted. “It isn’t your job to get gnawed on by crazed wolves.”

  He slid his hand up and grasped her thigh. “It’s my job to keep you safe. A damn hard job if you keep running right into trouble.”

  “I can hardly be blamed for desert wolves attacking!”

  “But you ran toward them instead of away.”

  “I was saving your life, in case you didn’t notice. Although, I’ll definitely think twice about doing it again.” She poked her tongue out at him.

  Something in Damon stretched very, very taut, threatening to snap. Lust and need were a hot rush in his body. “You poke that out again and I’ll find a better use for it.”

  She stilled, her eyes widening. Then she poked her tongue out at him again.

  His nostrils flared and he yanked her off the ballo.

  She yelped and he caught her before she hit the ground. In a second, he had her back pressed up against the beast and his chest pressed against hers.

  “Damon,” she whispered.

  He leaned down and nipped her ear. She moaned, a sound that inflamed him. He sucked her earlobe between his teeth and she writhed against him.

  “Everyone okay?”

  Dathan’s amused voice broke the spell. Damon pulled back a few inches. Damn, he hadn’t even heard the kid ride up. No one had snuck up on him…ever. Lexa was driving him crazy, making him lose his edge.

  She pushed at his chest and he stepped back. “We’re fine.”

  “Never seen the wolves attack like that in the day.” Concern covered Dathan’s face. He held the lead of Damon’s ballo with one hand. “Luckily your ballo isn’t injured, Damon. Claws didn’t make it through the tangled hide. Still, I suggest we make camp a little early and get the deterrent fence up. We can discuss the next clue on the map.”

  Damon nodded. “I second that idea.”

  Lexa tossed her dark hair back and avoided looking at him.

  Damon’s hand flexed into fists. Make camp, rest, and cool off before he either turned Lexa over his knee and spanked her, or stripped her naked and fucked her brains out.

  ***

  Lexa pressed the button on the final tent and watched it unfold from its tiny box. In three seconds, it formed a round, waterproof dome. Two others sat beside it. She glanced over where Dathan and Damon were finishing putting up the wolf deterrent fence. Stars, they were something to look at—the young, lean treasure hunter on the cusp of manhood and the older, deadlier man in his prime.

  She shook her head and focused on the fence. It didn’t look like much—two strings of thin, glowing wire strung between posts the men had embedded into the sand. But Dathan had assured them the non-lethal, directed energy field the fence gave off was strong enough to stop a rampaging pack of desert wolves.

  She glanced at Damon’s back and thought of him, crouched in the center of that wolf pack. Her stomach turned over. It had been horrifying. She’d been terrified he was going to be torn to shreds by all those claws and teeth.

  She closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath. He was fine. Clearly still pissed at her, but alive and uninjured.

  Then she thought of that hot moment after, his teeth at her ear.

  She put her hands on her hips and stared at the darkening sky. Damon Malik was a huge complication she didn’t need. A man was not on her life plan…at least, not for the next few years. Focus on her career, do good work, make a name for herself, and do something that mattered. Then think about marriage and a family.

  As she turned, her gaze snagged on the horizon and the magnificent sunset. Wow. Something inside of her eased. The beautiful scene in front of her was a vivid reminder of why she’d wanted to follow the map, have an adventure and find the treasure. Zerzura sure knew how to do sunsets.

  The huge ball of the first sun—this one shimmering red—was lowering over the edge of the horizon, and the second sun—a smaller, yellow one—was following. They were painting the sky in long strokes of orange, red, gold and pink. It looked like some giant had run paint-covered hands across the darkening sky. Stars were rapidly appearing—and it looked like there were more of them visible here than back on Ze
ta Volantis, or even on her homeworld of Econia. They were like a carpet of white jewels, scattered on velvet. Oh, and there was a not-too-distant nebula visible to the east, with its multiple shades of neon green.

  She wasn’t sure how long she stood there, but darkness had well and truly fallen. The temperature had also dropped. She rubbed her arms. Damon had started a fire not far from the tents, using a synfire cylinder. She headed over.

  “Look at you, like an old Terran Boy Scout.”

  He arched a brow. “I don’t know what that is, but I’m sure I’m not.”

  He was probably right. “Tell me you’re going to cook a feast for me, and then I’ll be impressed.”

  “Sorry. Tonight we have a choice between packets of cloned meals. Want me to list the options?”

  She grimaced. “No point. They’ll taste the same, regardless.” Cloned food was great for travel but it tasted like a sad imitation of the real thing. Ugh.

  She realized how gritty and dirty she felt. Sand coated her skin and the sweat from the hot day and their mad escape from the wolves left her wanting a nice hot bath.

  Which she wasn’t going to get.

  Still, they’d brought along a sonic shower. It wouldn’t feel as good as water, but at least she’d be clean. “I’m going to clean up before diving into those tasty rations.”

  He gave her a nod and she wandered back to her tent. Well, at least he didn’t seem mad anymore. She nabbed the small sonic shower unit and headed out behind her tent, double-checking to make sure the men were busy and couldn’t see her. She activated the shower, and a slim pole shot up from the unit. It made a low humming noise.

  It took her a moment to realize it wasn’t strong enough to penetrate her clothes. Another glance toward the fire, and she could hear Dathan and Damon talking. Quickly, she stripped off her clothes and stood there in just her bra and panties. A moment later, she ran a hand down her arms, pleased with the cleaner, smoother feel of her skin.

  She shook out her hair, brushing off the excess sand. Memo to self: she never wanted to live on a desert planet. By the time they finished this hunt, she may never want to vacation on the beach again, either.