by Casey Lea
No. Not Blondie. Never Blondie. He was already hotter than arena sand and the last thing she needed was to actually like him. “Never do that again, rookie,” she warned, looking over her shoulder and Haze nodded, looking contrite. Yeah, right. She stalked on. “And concentrate. I won’t work with you otherwise. Be very clear - distraction will get you killed.”
The lawyer snorted. “I can best this creature.”
“I meant by me.” Silk spun back to face him and he was hard on her heels. That was a shock, which was probably why her pulse jumped. “Keep your distance, or I’ll gut you. Clear?”
“Absolutely.”
“Why are you grinning then?”
“I’ve missed you so much.”
Drak the bustwing and his weird emotions. Who smiled and laughed in the arena? Psychopaths like Sweeper who found joy in pain. No one else. “Hold onto that thought,” Silk suggested, “because right now I need some bait. Go ahead.” She gestured into the returning darkness, but Haze didn’t hesitate. He must really want it bad. He turned away, exposing his back as if he still trusted her, which was just stupid.
Her hands trembled and the fading light rippled along her glossy skin. The weakness passed in less than a second, but it was enough to bring fire to her frozen cheeks. Which should have been impossible. This had to stop. She was definitely gone, the moment their target went down.
Her eyes rose to find Haze again and he turned back, as if he felt her gaze. His forelock rose in a warm gust, before falling back and the rest of him was suddenly very still. Even his mouth and he wasn’t watching her. He was staring past, to look over her head.
That warm breeze lifted Silk’s hair then let it fall… lifted it again. Whatever was breathing on her was big - much bigger than Blondie. The next snort came with a rasp that was almost a growl and even the chainmail wrapped round her hips stirred in the wind. It seemed they’d found their target, except it was all ass backward and their prey was hunting them.
19
Teamwork
Silk swung round and charged, pushing through a blast of bad breath that was carried on a roar. Something rushed into the light to meet her. It roared again and teeth longer than her forearm gleamed, while two tiny eyes fixed on her. Oh great. A scimitar. The largest monster in the arena. The giant lizard’s canines slashed at her and she tucked forward in a roll, to come to her feet under its throat. Her fist smashed upward into scales so hard they jarred her to her heels.
The room blazed white and Haze leaped past her with a yell. His eyes looked like lasers capable of slicing the reptile into chunks, but he was tossed aside by the scimitar’s shoulder and almost impaled on its rigid neck-frill. Silk surged upright to pound at the creature’s gut. It was impervious to her fists and flakes of nail-hard skin were chipped from her knuckles. It was worse than pummelling bedrock. The lizard spun to rear over her and her upper lip cracked as it curled backward to bare her teeth.
Haze threw out a wing to knock her away from the lizard’s attack. The wing’s soft length snapped into her like a damp towel. She fell and tucked into a backward roll, to duck under a sweep of the scimitar’s tail. Its wicked curve slammed into Haze instead, who winced but went with it. It lifted him toward the lizard’s gaping mouth and one of its outsized canines slashed to meet him.
“No,” Silk screamed. She came to her feet in panic. If the fool got killed she’d have to finish the fight without backup.
However, Haze ducked under the tooth to grip a throat frill and hold tight, his heels leaving tracks in the dirt when the scimitar swung its head. Silk looked for an opening, but then did a double take, to study Blondie again.
“You look smug,” she panted.
“I’m happy,” he grunted and stabbed both of his wing claws into the scimitar’s neck. They clanged against its scales without penetrating.
The creature screeched in annoyance and its body whiplashed, colliding with Silk to toss her into the cave wall. Her carapace cracked and she felt it soften along her spine. No time for worry. She threw herself forward to smash a fist into the scimitar’s back, then hurdled a kick from its front leg to collide with Haze. “Why?” she gasped. “Why’re you happy?”
“Go for the eyes,” Haze suggested as she grabbed him to stay on her feet.
“Why’re you happy?” Silk repeated, catching her breath and his grin widened.
“You haven’t hit me for at least ten minutes.”
“I’m warming up on the dragon.” Silk balanced herself against Blondie and for someone without an exoskeleton he felt rock steady. They exchanged a look and something more. For a moment she forgot the giant reptile trying to chow down on them, while they shared an unspoken plan. Then Haze jerked his head toward the monster and she was back in the world. She nodded and they struck together. His claw ripped through its leathery lid, so her fist could sink into the eye beneath.
The scimitar convulsed, throwing them both clear. Silk hit the far wall like a hammer and her skin finally cracked. It flaked away until she could feel the jelly now coating her arm. Her blow had struck deep right enough – mortally deep. That thought hit her as hard as the wall. They’d actually won. The two of them had destroyed the arena’s toughest monster. She could scarcely credit it.
The beast’s tail cracked into her and sent her flying again. It hurt this time, but she laughed anyway as she sailed through the air. Haze was right. This was fun. She landed lightly as the last of her exoskeleton drifted away and this time she kept well back from the convulsing lizard.
However, Haze was caught on the far side of the thrashing scimitar with no room to manoeuvre. The dying creature reared up and slammed sideways catching the Beserk. He dropped like rain on a heavy-gee world and for the first time that day everything slowed. Silk felt like she was wading through the tide again as she tried to sprint under a thrashing leg. She staggered when a claw caught the edge of her chainmail, tearing through it, but didn’t stop. The rookie had got himself hurt and she was the only help in sight. Exactly why she was still in sight was another question, but she was too busy dodging for her life to think about it.
20
So Close…
Someone was screaming and the sound splintered around Haze to send shards through his head. Who was that? It wasn’t Silk. He’d seen her hurt before and she never made a noise. It didn’t sound like a giant lizard either. The hoarse cry came again and he arched along with it. Pain ripped through him and so did another yell, which was definitely his. Drak. Time to divert his flecks into some serious pain relief.
The thought was enough to re-task his hidden helpers and he didn’t stop them. He needed to be mobile. The flecks waiting for a response from his team switched focus and he bit down on frustration, instead of pain. Where the hail was his rescue anyway? And why hadn’t they sent an ETA? He had no idea and now that he’d lost contact he’d just have to be patient until they arrived.
Haze stopped hurting and a warm calm washed over him. He opened his eyes to meet Silk’s cool gaze. She was upside down, which seemed strange until her realized his head was in her lap. Nice. He smiled, but she frowned back. Or was it actually a grin that was upside down too? He tilted his head until his neck throbbed, but she still looked serious. He tried to lift himself on his elbows, but only one responded and panic washed over him. “Where’s my arm?”
“You’re lying on it.”
He thought about that for a minute. “Doesn’t seem right.”
“Truly not. It’s broken, or maybe dislocated. You want me to put you out of your misery? Finish it all before something else finds you?”
Haze frowned briefly. His wife was utterly pragmatic and all she remembered now was the arena, but he knew Silk. The comment was typical of her sense of humor - so arid it could suck moisture from a desert. He found a grin and shook his head. “Get the drak away from me. I popped it before and it’s probably just gone again.”
Silk look as innocent as an angel and smiled sweetly. “You’re not going to
ask me for help then?”
Haze snorted through the pain. “Please. You’d just tell me you’re not a nurse and refuse. You’d be right too. I never met anyone with so little aptitude for healing. If anything looks unhealthy, you usually just chop it off.”
“If that was true I would’ve chopped off your ugly head the moment we met. And I still might if you don’t stop it.”
Haze scrambled upright and staggered over to the wall. He rammed his shoulder against the cliff and everything turned to stars. When he could see again he was surprised to find he was still on his feet. His face was planted against the rock, which seemed to be the only thing holding him up, but technically he hadn’t fallen. He straightened and rolled the shoulder back experimentally. Bad idea. Stars danced across his vision again and he wobbled, but didn’t faint. He turned to face Silk, whose skin darkened to radiate heat again. The world seemed to spin with him, so he leaned casually against the wall in the healthiest pose he could manage. “Stop what?” he asked.
“Acting like you know me.”
“It’s not an act. If it was it wouldn’t make you so angry.” Haze took the risk of stepping away from his support and hardly dipped at all. Good, he was already mending. It seemed exercise and fresh air could work miracles, especially when combined with healing specks. Perhaps he was ready for another risk. He moved up hard against Silk and as he expected she held her ground.
Before she could protest, or knock him senseless, he lifted his good arm and wrapped his fingers around the back of her head. They tangled in hair as soft as ribbons and his touch started a cascade. Her skin cracked and creaked, then began to soften. Warmth rose to meet his palm, making her gasp.
Haze chuckled. “If that was a protest you’ll have to try harder.” His voice hardly shook, but he needed to get the trembling in his legs under control. Touching Silk made him dizzier than a punch-drunk lawyer with a dislocated shoulder. And he should know.
He curled his fingers tighter and she didn’t pull back. She moistened her lips with her tongue and his shaking seemed to be contagious, so he hooked his injured arm around her waist. His shoulder ached, but touching Silk was a quick cure. Her eyes were huge and dark and she looked so lost it hurt, but he could bring her home. He ducked his head, until she suddenly pushed back against his chest.
Silk’s eyes had been closing, but they snapped open. They were clouded with suspicion and this time he let her go. She stepped back, panting and shook her head. “You healed very fast,” she accused.
Haze tried a nonchalant shrug. “Your smile is the best medicine.”
“I don’t smile.”
“You do at me.”
“That’s a grimace of disbelief.”
Haze puffed up his chest. “You’re not the first lady to say that.”
Silk stamped her foot and Haze almost grinned, except her leg was armored again and she punched a hole in the rock floor. “Be serious,” she said. “You’ve stopped dragging your cut wing and you were using it against the scimitar. Can you fly?”
Haze started to shrug, but thought better of it and held her gaze instead. “Probably. I don’t know about taking off, but I could certain-sure glide.”
Silk’s lip curled. “So much for your noble wing slashing. You knew you’d heal before the end of the day. You tricked me.”
“No.” Haze took a deep breath to counter the panic burning through him. Saving Silk wasn’t going as planned, which he abhorred. She was the one who liked balancing on the knife edge, not him. Haze briefly forgot to keep breathing, because that insight was inspirational. He suddenly knew exactly what to do. There was always a way out and his focus returned along with his hope.
Haze stepped in close to Silk with his arms out to either side, leaving himself wide open. “Jump.”
She blinked and her toughened skin rippled, before retreating like the tide. “What?”
“Trusting me is a huge risk. So take it.”
“You think I’m that stupid?”
“No, but your instincts are outstanding and I want you to trust them. Say ‘to hail’ with cold logic and follow your gut.”
Silk spun away and kicked the side of the cave. Rock exploded around her, but she didn’t flinch, even when shrapnel nicked her. “Drak you,” she said to the wall. “I don’t know what to do. Should I cripple you again, or tie you up, or…?” She looked back over her shoulder and chewed her lower lip. “Should I trust you?”
“Whatever you wish. I won’t ar-gue,” Haze broke off when giant talons curled tight round his torso, to drag him through the dank cavern air. His eyes blazed, lighting the ground beneath just as it fell away. The creature attacking him carried him off a subterranean cliff and into space. He watched Silk sprint along the crumbling edge below, but then huge wings beat above him and she fell away behind.
Haze looked up as those leathery wings swept fetid air down into his face. He gagged and squirmed against the foot holding him, but it remained vice-tight, even when he punched it hard. His attacker screeched and climbed, with Haze dangling under it. He tried to study what had grabbed him, but light appeared beyond it, dazzling him. All he could see was a fuzz-edged silhouette stretched above. The head looked short and blunt, with no sign of a beak, so at least he wasn’t about to be pecked to death.
“Hey,” he yelled up, “Batzilla. Put me down and I won’t kill you.”
The monster ignored him and shot from the cave system. The sun sat low in the sky and shone straight into Haze’s eyes. He blinked furiously and cursed. How short was the day on Vertigo? He probably should have asked sooner, but then he probably should have done lots of things. Time for some action. His eyes came alive and blazed fierce enough to hide the sun. Targets appeared overhead, but he focused only on a line of red that pulsed up the beast’s throat. His injured wing was free to move and it hardly hurt when he unfurled it.
The creature carrying him abruptly twisted and Haze’s frond blazed a warning. Batzilla’s mind screeched violence and he sensed its tail stab forward. A sharp barb at the tip almost caught him. He wrenched his legs aside and venom sprayed from the sting as it passed. There was no pain, but his Beserk sight showed damage to the skin of his leg. He snarled and his free wing swept up, to slice across his enemy’s throat.
Blood sprayed black as oil and the creature fell - until the whistle from its sagging throat was joined by the wind whistling past. Haze had to kick and writhe to break free from its dead grip, but he managed. He tumbled twice, before righting himself and spread his arms, to hang in the sky while the air rushed past. Batzilla disappeared like a stone sinking through water.
The wind howled upward to pluck at Haze’s limbs as if it could support him, but he knew he was falling fast. The ground grew and it took all of his control to keep his wings furled. He could save himself, but if he did Silk would die. Haze clenched his teeth. That wasn’t an option.
21
Love Struck
The breeze buffeted Haze and howled for him to follow it into the sky, but he closed his eyes and ignored its siren wail. His fronds could still sense the ground leaping to meet him, and he only had seconds before it hit, but he held his wings shut. His shoulders twitched as he fought his instincts and it was hard. Even harder than staying sane in battle, but this was for Silk.
Haze opened his eyes to see a cliff face rush past, which was a disappointing last sight. He could imagine better - but still he needed to look. He could scarcely believe this was the end, even though death was about to smack him in the face. He didn’t lose. Not ever. The ground rose to meet him, as huge and red as a blood moon.
Haze tensed, braced for pain to slam into him, but something else hit first. It felt like a boulder struck his ribs and he was pushed sideways, held hard in a pair of rigid arms. He stared wide-eyed at Silk. Ribbons of fire wrapped around the crusted lava of her skin, but that was all he saw before they hit. They skidded into the sand, but she was between him and the ground, deliberately softening her skin against his to abs
orb the impact of his fall. It was far too much. The forces were incredible and even a Dragon couldn’t survive them. There was the sound of something splintering and Silk shattered under him.
“No,” Haze screamed coming to his knees with his wife in his arms. She sprawled limp and silent against him, while her skin flaked away like drifting ash. “No.” His eyes roamed her body, darting across her still form as it emerged from the ruined armor of her old skin, but his brain couldn’t follow what he saw. What did he need to look for? Was Silk breathing? No. Gods. He searched her neck for a pulse, but found nothing. Stop shaking, stop shaking. His hand stilled and he pushed his fingers deeper. There it was. A faint beat, like scattered drops of rain.
Haze draped Silk over the sand and leaned forward to press his mouth to hers. He breathed out in a slow sigh, but at the same time ordered his healing flecks to migrate. Something sparked along his jaw in electronic query, but he ignored the protest and repeated the silent order. The response was instant and crushing. When his hidden support moved to Silk it felt like a tide flowing from his body, dragging all the energy he had with it. He slumped further and the next breath he took came from Silk.
Air flowed smoothly past her lips into his mouth and Haze rolled away with a groan to collapse on his back. He stared up at the darkening sky and saw a black finger rising into the night. The tower was close. They were almost there, but he lay unable to move and listened to his wife’s breaths, counting each one. When he reached five hundred he stopped. Not because he was ready to, but because she finally stirred.
His lips shaped her name, but there was no sound. So stupid. He felt like a baby. His hand twitched and he pushed it across the sand until it rested beside Silk’s. His fingers curled over hers, although he didn’t have the energy to clasp them. His head felt as dense as rock and likely to shatter, but he shifted anyway, letting it fall sideways so he could watch his wife.
