by Mira Maxwell
“Everything is quiet for now. We’re just waiting.”
His hands start to slowly rub up and down my back. That look is back in his eyes and I have to step back out of his touch in order to concentrate again.
“Can I ask you a question?” I ask, smoothing my hair back into my ponytail and crossing my arms over my chest.
“Of course.” He mirrors my body language, crossing his arms over his chest as well. I’m not sure if he’s being playful or trying to be serious, but regardless it makes me smile.
“When we first entered Attala’s atmosphere, it felt like our ship took a big hit from something. Even before we were sucked into the storm. Do you know anything about the atmosphere on Attala? Do you have any idea what we passed through when we came out of hyperdrive?”
Creases accentuate the features on his face. “There are frequent electromagnetic storms that interfere with our technology. Maybe that’s what your ship encountered.”
For the first time in days, I’m excited. This feels like something that could shed light on how to figure out what else I need to do to get the ship back in working order. With the one person on our team that would know the answer to that question back at the city, I’m going to have to use the resources that I have.
“Right after we came out of hyperdrive, all of our systems started to shut down. Almost like a power outage.” Now Lodyn is forced to be my sounding board. “Or a blown fuse. So maybe if I can treat it like a blown fuse, I can find the fried fuses on the power grid and start by replacing those.”
Yes, finally a solid plan. I have a good feeling about this. I smile at Lodyn and then turn around and hurry back to the bridge. Replacing the parts at the source is the best place to start.
“Thank you!” I say, over my shoulder as I move with purpose.
There’s amusement in his husky voice as he says, “I didn’t really do anything.”
But he’s wrong. Without even wanting it, slowly he’s becoming everything to me.
Twelve
LODYN
Pride floods my body. Not only is my fated mate sexy and desirable but she’s incredibly smart and determined as well. The more I get to know her, the more I start to understand why she has been chosen for me. And the more I start to think about it all, I don’t want to let her go. I’ve never had to deal with such twisted emotions before. This is unfamiliar territory for me.
The way she stands in front of me, thinking through her problems, talking them out. Her face crinkles in such a way that I want to kiss every line of concern away. And then her features suddenly change, a smile spreading over her face as her eyes light up with wonder.
I watch her hurry away, filled with new determination and suddenly, there’s nothing that I want more, than her. Somehow I will myself to walk away and continue with my watch. It is getting harder and harder to force myself away from her. Every instance inside of me tells me to stay close.
I’ve just left the main corridor of the ship, following the path that leads to the main hatch where Kjallak is keeping watch when I hear a faint sound in the distance. It’s still so far away, someone without such superior senses as an Attalan warrior might mistake it for the shifting of rock on the mountains or a hint of thunder in the sky.
My chest tightens and my fingers begin to tingle. The sound is unmistakable to my ears, the Salthu’s battle drums. My heart begins to pound with the realization that they figured out much quicker than we had hoped that their scouting party would not be returning. It’s even possible that they had scouts in the trees or some other vantage point that we did not see.
Branyx appears by my side at the same time that Kjallak pulls the outside hatch open. “They’re coming,” he says, stating the obvious. We all have the same ability of enhanced senses.
“Can you see them yet?” I ask.
“They’ve just come through the trees.”
“What?” Branyx asks. “They’re approaching from the West? Are we surrounded?”
“It doesn’t matter,” I say. “They came from the North last time but they’ll bring way more Salthu than they need this time. We can’t defeat them with three men.”
“Fuck,” Branyx says. He knows the probability of success as well as I do.
“So what’s the plan with Margo?” Kjallak asks. “We can’t leave her to be captured. They’ll sell her on the black market like a piece of meat to the highest bidder.”
Kjallak’s words make every muscle in my body tense. I’d die before I leave Margo to such a fate. The problem with our situation is that death seems unavoidable, which means Margo would be taken. But the thought of leaving Margo alone, without protection, makes me grip the wall of the corridor so hard it leaves a dent.
I could make her hide but if we are defeated the Salthu will claim the ship and take it apart piece by piece. She would eventually be discovered. I’d send her back in the direction of the city and hope she could find it but the chances of her getting lost and dying of hypothermia are more than I’m willing to risk. And if she is seen leaving they’ll capture her anyway. If it were just me, I’d welcome my fate as that of a warrior. Dying in battle is a great honor for a member of the guard.
This can’t be how it all ends.
“I don’t know what to do about her,” I say. Honestly I’m hoping one of them will have a brilliant idea that I haven’t thought of.
“We’ll have to make sure we aren’t defeated,” Branyx says. “The pits will slow them down. And you never know, maybe Mallyk was wise enough to send reinforcements.”
“And I found a well-stocked supply of weapons. We’re not dead in the water yet, my friend,” Kjallak says.
As soon as those words leave his lips, every light on the ship flickers and we’re left standing in complete darkness. There’s the sound of generators powering down until we’re left with nothing but the sound of approaching war drums amidst the eerie silence of the ship.
“What the fuck?” Branyx says.
Before we have any time to process what’s happening, the lights flash on around us as the sound of the engines firing up shakes the whole ship. “She got it running?” Kjallak asks. “Way to go princess!” he shouts down the corridor.
The ship is shaking like it’s about to lift off, only when I run to the rear hatch I don’t see fire coming from the exhaust system. It looks like the power is finally functioning properly again but something must still be keeping it grounded.
The other view that I get from the window starts my pulse racing. The swarm of Salthu have definitely left the cover of the trees and are moving in mass toward the ship. They must realize that we’re trying to take off because the warriors at the front of the line begin running toward us.
“Shit,” I say under my breath. Taking off back down the corridor, I almost collide with Branyx and Kjallak as they put on their armor. Grabbing my chest guard, I throw it on over my head and say, “They’re coming, fast. They’re going to try to keep the ship on the ground. We can’t let that happen.”
Branyx offers a grunt as a reply as they both continue to ready themselves.
“We’ll keep them from the ship,” Kjallak says. He smiles enthusiastically at me while he tests the weight of his sword in his hand. When we are given the genetic enhancements as warriors, we all react to them in different ways. Where I am able to use my body to control energy and emit pulses, Kjallak has unmatched strength and quickness with a sword. He never tires and has never suffered a cut from another’s sword. A battle is where he’s the happiest. It’s where I used to be the happiest too, until I met Margo. Now it’s like my entire purpose in life doesn’t make sense anymore.
I want to go to her right now. I don’t want to leave the ship without holding her in my arms one more time and feeling the softness of her lips against mine. But there’s no time. The Salthu are fast as well. Not as fast as us, but they’re capable of moving at quick speeds when they want to.
“Where do you want me?” Kjallak asks. Branyx is standing be
hind him, waiting for his orders.
Before answering, I go to the windows. “Branyx, check behind us. I want to know if they’re coming at us from all sides.”
Not that it really matters, they already know we’re here.
“Nothing behind…for now,” Branyx says, his voice echoing down the corridor.
“Then we’ll let the pits take out the first wave of them and we’ll all find a vantage point so we can attack with weapons while they are distracted from the chaos at the front. We’ll take out the front lines as quickly as possible and see if we can rattle them into retreating.”
“The top of the ship doesn’t give much cover but it’s better than nothing. There’s a small cliff not too far away, I’ll make for it as soon as we leave the ship,” Kjallak says. His skill with the bow and arrow are almost as impressive as his sword skills, but he’s been itching to use some of the new weapons he found aboard the ship. Luckily for us the Salthu don’t have access to modernized weapons. Unless it’s something that they have managed to acquire off of the black market. We’ll find out soon enough.
“Then Branyx, you take the top of the ship. I’ll take cover behind the snow barriers we created behind the pits.” We’re all crammed behind the front hatch of the ship, our size using all of the available space and then some. Branyx and Kjallak turn to go to the rear hatch but before they leave I add, “Don’t engage until they’ve reached the pits.” They both nod their acknowledgement before disappearing down the corridor.
I turn back to watch out the window, my hand ready to go on the release lever. There are more Salthu than I could even attempt to count. The steady beat of the drum a hypnotic presence as they march forward. The warriors at the front of the pack are close to the pits and if we’re lucky, they’ll be moving fast enough that it’ll be too late for them to stop even if they notice a disturbance at their feet.
Branyx has strength like nothing I have ever seen. He can dig a huge pit into the frozen ground as easy as if he’s digging through sand. He’s a grumpy bastard but he carries his weight in a fight. As I watch the Salthu warriors quickly approaching our first trap, I’m glad that Branyx was here to add his weight to the fight.
The first wave of warriors leap over the banks, paying no attention to what might be around them. Then, they drop out of view as they fall into the pits below. Chaos ensues as warriors behind the first group try to stop suddenly before falling themselves. Within seconds, Branyx and Kjallak discharge their weapons from above, quickly dispatching those standing in the open, too confused to take cover.
Disengaging the lock, I push open the door and run full out to the snow barriers at the bottom of the ship. I pause for only a moment before pulling my weapon and hoisting myself onto the top of the barrier to fire at approaching warriors. We need to bring down as many as we can with our weapons before we engage in hand to hand combat. There are so many of them, even with our enhanced strength, we’d be swarmed and brought down before we could do enough damage to slow them down.
I’ve only been outside of the ship for a few minutes when something looking a lot like an orange ball of fire flies past my head. At first I assume it’s Branyx or Kjallak but then the ground shakes underneath me and there’s a huge explosion visible from where I’m taking cover behind the snow. I’m ducking down when I happen to look over at the ship and see Margo standing on the ramp of the ship holding the same weapon that Kjallak was admiring on her shoulder. The end of it is smoking.
At first I think my eyes must be playing tricks on me. But the fear that I feel inside is very real. Before I can react, she jumps off the ramp, taking cover behind one of the huge metal legs of the ship. Without wasting a moment, she hoists the weapon on her shoulder again and it shoots out another ball of flame. I’m aware that I’m calling her name but it’s lost in the loud whoosh of the second cannon being fired.
When I look over the barrier, the Salthu are scattering to get away from the explosions, but they haven’t retreated yet. Branyx calls my name and I turn back in time to see a small pack of them avoiding the pits in an effort to get closer to us. Without a second thought I dispatch my weapon, eliminating those closest to me.
We are still heavily outnumbered even with the amount that we have managed to take down. Dread slowly seeps through my veins. All I want to do is get close to Margo, put my hands on her so I can feel her and know she’s safe. I need to concentrate. Clear my head so I can decide what to do next. But my thoughts are saturated with her.
I look back to check on her again and a feeling that I’ve never felt before passes through me, shaking me to my core. Another Salthu warrior pack has emerged from the valley of the mountain, rushing toward the side of the ship where Margo’s taking cover. I need to go to her but approaching enemy warriors are coming at us from both sides.
I’m trapped.
Thirteen
MARGO
The cannon launcher is effective but it doesn’t hold a charge as long as the other weapons because of its size. I’m waiting for it to charge to one hundred percent when I hear a crunch in the snow behind me. My stomach drops at the sight of another horde of warriors approaching quickly. My heart starts to pound at a rapid rate as I realize that I’m very exposed to the warriors quickly approaching to my right.
They weren’t there when I first came out of the ship. They must have been lying in wait, a second wave of attack. Knowing they’re going to be on me before this weapon is ready, I drop it off of my shoulder and grab the thermal pulse gun holstered on my waist. I take aim at the ugly green beasts quickly approaching from the side.
They’re attacking in the same formation that birds would migrate South for the winter back on Earth. One in the lead, the others flanking him, running slightly behind. I’ve been in perilous situations before but there’s something about these creatures that chills me to the bone.
In the next moment, I’m firing at the leader. The thermal pulses discharge in quick successions, firing orange bursts that smoke when they make contact with the cold air. Time stands still as the first pulse makes contact with the warrior’s chest. There’s enough momentum that once it hits him square on the chest, it throws him backward, just not enough to drop him completely into the snow.
I think my eyes are playing tricks on me as I watch the thermal pulse being absorbed into the creature’s chest. It stops him for a moment but then he’s moving toward me again as if nothing happened. I can’t run because I’ll expose myself to the fighting taking place behind me.
I’m trapped.
Without thinking, my body braces for a fight. My feet are splayed, ready to take a hit. Luckily my hands are up, protecting my face when the beast’s arm comes right at me ready to clothesline me. Instead of knocking me down, though, he grabs me and throws me over his shoulder.
Pounding futilely with my fists I try to wrestle out of his arms but I’m no match for his strength. The sickening realization hits me that I’m not going to be able to finish what I started here. I’m going to fail the rest of my team. He turns and starts to carry me away from the ship and I know that because he didn’t kill me, a different kind of horrible fate awaits me wherever they’re taking me.
Behind me I hear what sounds like the growl of a feral animal. A battle cry given life from the depths of hell itself is carried on the wind at my back away from the only one who makes me feel safe on this alien planet. My future seems bleak, but my heart aches for Lodyn. I feel his loss above my own. The odds of them getting out of this situation alive is as small as mine. I can’t help thinking, as I’m carried further and further away from him, that I don’t want to lose him.
The last thought I have before we’re knocked down by some sort of huge explosion is that we didn’t have enough time.
I come to, slung over the back of one of the warriors, as we run through the forest. I try to wriggle out of his grasp but I don’t have much fight left in me. There’s no way in hell I’m getting out of here and even if I did I wouldn’t be able
to outrun the eight beasts in this pack. I have a lot of things to worry about but my current physical condition is at the top of my list. The brute carrying me grabbed me hard enough to knock the wind out of me. Then I was knocked out completely when there was that huge blast behind us as they took me away. Now my stomach aches from being thrown over his shoulder and all of the blood is quickly rushing to my head. I’m fighting the lightheadedness that threatens to knock me out. I don’t know what kind of chances I have but I want to be conscious enough to keep track of where they’re taking me.
The forest surrounding us is unlike anything I’ve ever seen on Earth. The trees, if you can call them that, are tall trunks. There aren’t any leaves of any kind…I’m sure nothing would be able to survive in this type of climate. But there looks to be needle-looking leaves that remind me of evergreens. The needles are much thicker and I have no idea what purpose they serve.
There definitely isn’t any protection from the wind in here. It’s just as cold as if we were standing out in the open. I left the ship so quickly I didn’t put on all of my winter gear. I’m thankful I at least have on my snow pants and jacket.
Time stands still. We’ve been traveling for a long time with no sign of anyone following behind us. I keep hoping that a huge Attalan dressed in armor with the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen will appear behind me. I have to keep hope. And besides, it doesn’t feel like Lodyn is gone. Even though our connection isn’t as strong as it could be if we were mates, I would be able to sense it if he was dead…I just know it.
At some point we finally stop and the big brute drops me on the snow-covered ground. As far as I’ve been able to see, every inch of this planet is covered in snow. A few of the Salthu wander off while the rest of them situate themselves on rocks all around us. Some on watch, some sitting closer and talking in a language that I don’t understand.
