Velkan lifts my chin and kisses me—an emphatic kiss, a kiss of promise that reaches deep inside me to assure me that this is not the end, that we will keep fighting, and that we will prevail. I lay my head on his chest, inhaling his familiar, comforting scent. “Can you ever forgive me for drugging you?” I ask.
He chuckles. “Best sleep I ever had. I only ate enough so Crank didn’t grow suspicious. He wolfed down most of it.”
I grimace. “It didn’t knock him out for long.”
“So I heard. Did you find another way out of here?”
“Let’s get out of this wind and I’ll fill you in,” I say.
Ghil, Buir and Velkan listen with somber expressions when I describe what awaits us on the other side of the mountains. “I was hoping I could find a trail so we could abandon the LunaTrekker and walk out,” I say, “but there’s no way we’re doing that after seeing those lizards.”
“I thought this was supposed to be a plague planet.” Buir hugs her knees to her chest.
“It might have been once,” Ghil reflects, “before all the plague victims were polished off by giant lizards.”
“We need to decide on a plan of action,” Velkan says. “Do we try backing out of this gorge, or do we spend the night in the LunaTrekker and find some other way to reach the stealth fighter in the morning?”
Ghil scrubs his jaw. “Night’s almost upon us. I say we wait until morning and then reverse out the way we came. Hopefully the lizard will have rejoined its clan by then. With any luck, Sarth and Crank will have taken off and that will be one less problem for us to worry about.”
“Ghil’s got a point,” Velkan says. “I haven’t seen this lizard, but from what you’ve described, I think we should give it time to slither back to wherever it came from before we head back out there.”
Buir rumples her forehead. “We don’t have any food or water.”
“It’s only for one night,” I remind her. “Hunkering down in the LunaTrekker is the best play we’ve got.”
With some reservation, we agree to settle in for the night, expecting to stare out at the stars as the hours drag on, but one-by-one exhaustion claims us.
I wake with a start at a heavy thud on the roof of the LunaTrekker. I scramble into a sitting position, rubbing the sleep from my eyes. “Something’s on the roof,” I hiss to Velkan, shaking him awake.
Before he can respond, the LunaTrekker is hoisted upward and we all go flying backward, smashing into one another as the vehicle scrapes up the rock walls.
10
Still frantically wiping the sleep from our eyes, we struggle to right ourselves, a tangle of limbs in the back of the LunaTrekker. Panic throttles through me as my brain kicks into gear trying to figure out what’s happening. One minute we were fast asleep and now we’re flying skyward. I thought for sure we were safe from the lizards’ reach down here. How did they penetrate the narrow gorge?
Straining with all my might, I pull myself up and peer through the opening at the front of the LunaTrekker as we’re jerked skyward, the metal sides scraping the walls of the ravine with a terrifying grinding sound like gnashing teeth. I can’t see any lizards; I can’t see much of anything other than rock.
“Get the guns!” Ghil yells.
I sink back down and fumble around until my fingers latch on to one of our weapons lying under the seat. Velkan locates the second gun and passes it to Ghil who has a clearer shot through the front of the LunaTrekker.
“Is it lizards?” Buir asks in a choked whisper.
“I wish.” Ghil grimaces, bracing himself against the sides of the LunaTrekker as we swing back and forth like a wrecking ball.
“What is it then?” I ask, searching his face anxiously. It’s hard to imagine what fate could be worse than being caught in those giant talons, but the look in Ghil’s eyes sends an icy tremor through my soul.
He gestures to the front opening. “Take a look. Lizards don’t hunt with nets.”
He gives me a hand up and I peer tentatively out, tenting my eyes to protect them from the dust. My jaw goes slack when I realize the LunaTrekker is caught in some sort of retractable cable net. My mind flashes back to Elo gesturing with her hands as she described a net falling from the sky, and in a flash, I realize what I’m looking at.
Body poachers!
I flick Ghil a questioning glance and know immediately that I’m right. Furax must have managed to track the Zebulux here after all. And somehow, he found us in this narrow gorge. Ghil throws a concerned glance Buir’s way before activating his plasma gun.
“We can’t go up against Furax and his men with only two weapons,” I say in a strained whisper. I can hear the drone of the Dreadnought’s engines now. It must be hovering right over the gorge.
Ghil gives a tight nod. “Maybe not, but we can negotiate a better deal as long as we’re armed.”
Buir’s jaw trembles, her silver hair gleaming in the sunlight that streams into the LunaTrekker. “What are you talking about?”
I bite my lip, wishing I didn’t have to tell her the truth. I was thankful she was spared the horrors we encountered on Razaran, but now she’s in the thick of things, and this time things will be worse than before. Furax will stop at nothing to get his hands on the dargonite.
“Is it Sarth and Crank?” Velkan demands.
“Body poachers.” My voice trails off as the LunaTrekker jerks violently upright again. We drop with a resonant clang onto the metal floor of a cargo bay.
Buir lets out an ear-piercing scream. Daylight slips away again as the ramp closes on the Dreadnought that has just swallowed us whole. We lay in the bottom of the LunaTrekker, blinking up at the opening, waiting for the next scene in this nightmare to transpire.
A bald-headed man peers in and gestures us out, keeping his gun trained on us. I grimace. Rigs! I’d recognize the mashed-in face and shaggy eyebrows of Furax’s right-hand man anywhere. Which means my hunch that Furax tracked us here is right. But I want to be sure before I negotiate.
“We’re not getting out until we speak to whoever’s in charge,” I say, displaying my plasma gun just enough to let Rigs know I mean business.
He gives a disconcerting sneer and walks off. A moment later, Furax sticks his head inside the LunaTrekker, his stringy mud-colored hair falling around his leathered face. “Isn’t this a sight for sore eyes? A thieving rat ensemble caught in a trap of their own making. Pass me your weapons.”
“We need your word that no one gets hurt before we hand over our weapons,” I say.
Furax raises his palms in mock protest. “Who said anything about getting hurt? We rescued you, didn’t we?” He twists his lips into a sly grin. “I was going to offer you a ride off this plague-forsaken planet as you’ve evidently had a falling out with the crew who brought you here. What do you say?”
I turn to the others. “We have no choice but to cooperate for now,” I say in a muffled voice.
“I’ll go first,” Ghil says with a curt nod. He locks eyes with Buir. “Stay calm. Fear only adds to their enjoyment.”
Buir presses her lips together, fighting to hold back tears as Ghil hoists himself through the opening and relinquishes his gun.
The rest of us follow suit. Rigs gestures to my weapon. Reluctantly, I slip Sarth’s gun from my shoulder and hand it to him.
“What do you want, Furax?” I ask.
His smile morphs into a slit of rage. “You know what I want, and you owe it to me—especially now that you blew up my ship and forced me to replace it at considerable cost.”
“It’s always about the dargonite, isn’t it?” I say. “You know Crank and Sarth are after it too.”
He leans into my face. “There are only two types of people in the Netherscape—them that’s chasing something and them that’s running from something. I prefer to spend my time chasing things.” He licks his lips suggestively, enjoying my obvious discomfort.
“How did you find us?” Velkan asks, stepping protectively to my side.
/> Furax gives a scoffing laugh. “I went to a lot of trouble to hunt you down. But I’ve mastered effective ways of making people talk.” He fixes a steely look on me. “Your fat friend at the fueling station was most cooperative after he gave up a few fingers.”
Buir lets out an involuntary gasp.
My stomach roils as I try to block the horrific image from my mind. I don’t doubt that Furax did what he’s alluding to. Guilt washes over me. I’ve caused nothing but trouble for Jourd, and all he ever did was try to help me. I’ve no idea if he’s even alive anymore. Furax could have finished him off to keep him from talking for all I know. I only hope Furax didn’t get to Roma too.
“Crank and Sarth weren’t too thrilled when I showed up at first,” he continues, “but we came to an understanding. They gave up your whereabouts in return for a split of the dargonite.”
“Where is my brother?” Ghil asks, clenching his fists at his sides.
Furax scratches his neck, looking amused. “Your sibling bond is quite touching. Don’t worry, I didn’t lay a finger on that horned freak. I gave him and Sarth instructions to follow our ship to Cwelt to collect their share of the dargonite.”
Furax rubs his hands together briskly and then gestures to the stairwell. “Now, why don’t we go upstairs and enjoy a meal while we discuss our joint venture in more detail.”
Seated on benches around a large metal dining table riveted to the floor, we waste no time digging into the food Furax’s men bring out from the galley. When we have eaten our fill, Furax snaps his fingers and the dishes are quickly cleared away. He lights up a cigar and leans back with a satisfied look on his face. “That was an amusing stunt you pulled off, drugging Sarth and Crank.” He exhales a puff of smoke and scrutinizes each one of us in turn, before settling his gaze on me. “Something’s nagging at me, though. Strikes me as odd that you didn’t dump them and take off with the Zebulux—that being your specialty act and all.” He leans forward and lowers his voice. “Where exactly were you going in the LunaTrekker?”
I shrug. “Just checking out rocks before we left. I’m interested in minerals.”
Furax gives a contemptuous grunt. “Lucky those hideous reptiles on this plague-forsaken excuse of a planet didn’t eat you. They could shred that LunaTrekker of yours quicker than blades slicing through fruit.”
A shiver runs down my spine. I don’t doubt the truth of that statement after seeing a lizard up close.
Furax straightens up. “No matter. We have more important matters to discuss.”
I relax my shoulders. My explanation about what we were doing in the LunaTrekker seems to have satisfied him for now. At all costs, we can’t let him find out that Phin and Ayma are here in the stealth fighter.
“First things first,” Furax says, his eyes boring into me. “I’m in charge of the mission to Cwelt now. Once we’re on the ground, I’ll handle all the transactions with the chieftain. Sarth and Crank are to be left out of all negotiations.” He cracks a grin edged with venom. “Let’s just say they’ve been outbid and they’re no longer majority shareholders in the dargonite mines. Do we have an understanding?”
My heart strains in my chest. I need to tell him before we depart for Cwelt that the mines have been claimed. But maybe I can swing this in our favor.
“There have been some unfortunate developments on my home planet since I left,” I begin.
Furax draws his brows into a suspicious crouch. “Unfortunate for who?”
“Both of us,” I say, in a conspiratorial tone. “We need to alter our plans.”
Furax’s cheeks quiver as he fights to leash his rage. “They’re not our plans, they’re my plans, and we’re not altering them again. You’ve wasted enough of my time and resources already. Thanks to you blowing up my ship, I have debts to repay.” He slams a fist down on the table making Buir almost jump out of her skin. “We leave today. I don’t care about your petty Cweltan politics and your unfortunate developments.”
“I’m not talking about Cweltan politics. I’m talking about Maulers.”
Furax gapes at me, red-faced, his eyes penetrating and cold. “What … about … them?” He drags each word out like it’s a blade he’s tracing across my throat.
“They’ve overrun Cwelt,” I say, before I can second-guess myself. “They’ve taken control of the mines and enslaved my people.”
Furax’s nostrils flicker like a maddened beast, but I react too late to block his charge. His musclebound arm shoots across the table and grabs me by the neck, squeezing me until my throat closes like a dried-out riverbed. Velkan jumps to his feet to swing a punch at him, but Rigs and the other body poachers promptly restrain him.
“If you’re lying to me,” Furax spits out, “I will offer your body to the highest Cryogenics bidder.” He flings me away in disgust and turns to Rigs. “Send out a scout shuttle. Get me reconnaissance images on Cwelt. I want close-ups on any perimeter ships.”
“I can still give you those mining rights if you’re willing to take the Maulers on.” I level my gaze at Furax.
“You’ve given me nothing but trouble so far,” he growls. He reaches for his gun and strides toward the door. “Lock them up until we have confirmation of a Mauler invasion on Cwelt,” he calls back over his shoulder.
The body poachers set about rounding us up and patting us down for weapons. They escort us along a dark hallway to an empty bunk room and shove us inside. The door closes behind us with an ominous click.
Ghil runs a hand over his creased forehead. “That shuttle’s only going to confirm what you told him. We need to convince Furax that it’s worth his while to raise a fleet of body poachers to go up against the Maulers.”
Velkan nods thoughtfully. “If we don’t, Furax will have no further use for us. Other than—” he breaks off, thinking better of spelling out our fate on Razaran when he sees the stricken look on Buir’s face.
“I’m going to try and touch base with Ayma and Phin again,” I say, activating my MicroComm.
To my surprise, the link connects and Ayma answers. “Where are you? Are you okay? We were worried when we spotted that monster lizard.”
“We evaded the lizard,” I reply, “but we’re in worse trouble. Furax tracked the Zebulux here. He struck a deal with Sarth and Crank to split the dargonite and they showed him the gorge we were hiding in. He snagged the LunaTrekker in one of his magnetized body poaching nets and pulled us out.”
“Are you in the Dreadnought now?” Ayma’s voice sounds elevated, and I know the horrific images of Razaran are front and center in her mind.
“Yes, but we’re safe for now,” I reassure her. “Furax sent out a scout shuttle to confirm the presence of Mauler ships around Cwelt.”
“Either way, you’re going to end up heading back to Razaran,” Ayma says in a hoarse whisper. “Furax can’t take on the Maulers with only two ships. He’ll need to rally all the body poachers to have any hope of victory.”
“Then you and Phin are going to have to follow us and rescue us before he raises his army,” I say.
“We know what we’re up against this time on Razaran, and we’re familiar with the layout of their settlement,” Ayma says. “I’ll talk to Phin about the logistics of getting you out of there.”
“Can you still see the Zebulux?” I ask.
“Yes, but Sarth and Crank have no idea we’re here,” Ayma says, a hint of satisfaction in her voice.
“Keep it that way. You’re our only hope of getting out of this predicament. I’ll be back in touch as soon as we know—”
I break off at the sound of a siren resounding through the body poachers’ ship. Flashing red lights race around the floor like panicked bugs. A fire alarm? Velkan darts over to the door and pounds on it. “Hey! Let us out!”
Buir peers out of the porthole. “I don’t see any smoke or flames.”
“What’s going on?” Ayma asks.
“Something’s wrong on board,” I say. “An alarm’s blaring throughout the ship.”<
br />
“Stay on the line. I’ll do a flyover and take a look.”
“We’re tilting,” Ghil says through gritted teeth. “Brace yourselves.”
“Ayma’s going to try and find out what’s happening,” I tell him.
Moments later, Phin’s deep voice comes over my MicroComm. “Still there, Trattora?”
“Yeah, but the ship’s pitching. Did we lose an engine or something?”
“No,” he says, quietly. “Nothing like that.”
My skin prickles at the veiled fear in his voice. “What is it?”
“A horde of lizards swarming your port side.”
11
The knot in my gut tightens. “The lizards are attacking,” I explain to the others.
“Looks like the Zebulux is headed your way,” Phin continues over the MicroComm. “Furax must have enlisted Crank and Sarth to help him fend off the attack. Do you want us to start laying down fire on the lizards?”
“Not yet,” I reply. “Let’s wait and see if the Zebulux can handle the situation. We don’t want to expose you if we don’t have to.”
“I can see the lizards!” Buir shrieks from the porthole. “They’re on this side of the ship now too.”
“The Dreadnought’s struggling to stay on course,” Phin says. “The ship might go down if we respond too late.”
“Use your best judgment,” I say. “Make the call if you need to intervene.”
“Here comes the Zebulux now,” Phin says.
The link cuts off just as the thumping pulse of automatic cannon fire begins. We crowd around the porthole, the horizon presenting at an unnatural angle as the Dreadnought struggles to right itself. Its innards shake as lizards slide off it, streaking the hull with their oil-green blood before tumbling to the canyon floors below. Enraged, the surviving reptiles ram the freighter’s hull, their serrated wings flapping wildly like demolition blades. The ship swings recklessly close to the craggy mountains below and the engines scream as the body poachers wrestle to angle the Dreadnought into a climb.
Girl of Blood: A Science Fiction Dystopian Novel (The Expulsion Project Book 3) Page 9
