Fate of the Beast (Mate of the Beast Book 2)

by Sonia Nova

  Shit… It really wasn’t coming out right. His vocabulary was far too limited for this, but he hoped she understood anyway. That if she just got the chance, she should get the hell out of here. He would catch up later if he could.

  Naomi nodded slowly, and Arez took a breath of relief when he realized she had understood his meaning – or at least the gist of it. She was smart. Far smarter than he could ever be. The thought of that made him feel oddly proud, and a strange possessiveness rose inside him. Of his female.

  Nodding back at her as she took a step back toward the corner, Arez continued to stare at the door, listening as the steps on the other side approached them, closer and closer.

  His heart thundered in his chest and he knew he couldn’t fuck this up now. This wasn’t just his life on the line here. It was hers. And the thought of something happening to her… He couldn’t take it. Wouldn’t take it.

  The footsteps stopped behind the door, and a rustling sound emerged from the other side. Then, a low click, as the locks of the door slipped open.

  When the door started to move aside, Arez immediately rammed himself to the other side, before it had even fully opened. The light in the corridor made his vision black out for a second, but when his eyes adjusted to the brightness, he could see the surprised expressions of the Krezlian guards outside.

  He quickly grabbed the gun of the closest guard, ripping it out of his hands as he kicked the man back, straight into the two Krezlians that had been standing behind him. He shot the guard through his stomach, making blood splatter all over them in the corridor.

  Unfortunately, the fourth guard was quicker in his reflexes. He seemed to have recovered from his initial shock, and now pointed his gun straight at Arez.

  “Drop the gun,” the guard hissed at him, but Arez would’ve been a fool to listen to him.

  Before the two other guards managed to scramble up and point their weapons at him too, he quickly ducked and grabbed the gun-toting guard by his ankles, throwing him off balance and straight at the two other guards about to aim their guns at him.

  Unfortunately, the guard he tossed only managed to unbalance the nearest guard. The other one was left standing, and before Arez could do anything to stop him, the guard slipped past him into the cell, and grabbed hold of Naomi.

  “Drop the gun,” the Krezlian growled, repeating the other one’s words. “Drop the gun, or the female gets hurt.”

  “Let me go, you–” Naomi struggled against the male, but his grip on Naomi’s waist was like stone. The male looked at him with his slitted eyes, an amused expression on his reptilian face – as if he knew that by getting the female, he had already won.

  Arez cursed in his mind. How had he been so careless with her? He should’ve secured her first of all. But now, it was too late.

  He knew Naomi didn’t stand a chance against the Krezlian. Humans were smaller and weaker than nearly any species in the Alliance. And Naomi was definitely weaker than the guard. She had no chance against his iron hold, and Arez could hardly shoot him without risking her life too…

  Fuck.

  The two other guards rounded in behind him. Arez could feel their guns pointed at him, and he realized it really was the end of the road for them. Double fuck.

  Slowly, he started to place the gun on the floor, to surrender. His eyes were constantly trained on the Krezlian before him, to make sure he wasn’t hurting Naomi.

  But before the gun even hit the floor, the Krezlian in front of him was howling in pain.

  Arez’s eyes rounded in shock. Naomi – his little Naomi – had her teeth deep in the guard’s arm, in his flesh – deep enough to draw blood.

  Realizing he didn’t have a moment to waste, Arez turned on his heel with the gun still in his hand, and shot the two surprised Krezlians behind him straight through their intestines. Gore splattered all over him, but he didn’t care. He turned back to Naomi and the guard holding her, realizing that they had both now fallen to the ground, with Naomi still biting the guard and the guard trying desperately to hold onto her.

  An amused smirk formed on his lips at the sight.

  Weak…? Maybe. But smart? Yes.

  That must have been the secret to humanity’s survival. Just as it had been the secret to survival in the Krezlian Pit. Although he would’ve never guessed that her flat little teeth would have been sharp or strong enough to bite through the scaly skin of the Krezlians – or deep enough to draw blood. Weren’t humans herbivores, after all? Their flat teeth indicated as much, but now he wasn’t quite so sure anymore.

  The Krezlian’s grip had loosened on Naomi and he now held her by one arm. Arez quickly stepped in, ripping the male off her body with his hands. He shoved the injured Krezlian against the back wall of the cell, banging his head hard enough against it to crack his skull. The Krezlian grunted and fell to the ground in pain, but Arez wasn’t done.

  “This… is for touching her,” he said as he whacked the Krezlian’s head again – this time on the floor – splattering blood all over himself.

  “And this…” he said. “This is for everything your people did to mine.”

  He thrust the guard’s head against the floor again, and this time when another crack sounded, it was his neck breaking as the Krezlian drew in his last breath.

  Arez glanced up, seeing Naomi by the entrance of the cell. Her expression was grim, and she even looked a bit pale, but she didn’t say anything, simply watched at the guard bleeding on the floor. In her hands, she held one of the Krezlian guns.

  Arez’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

  “I thought you were an Ambassador?” he asked. “Talk things through, no war?”

  Naomi shook her head, seeming to snap out of whatever horrified stupor she was currently feeling, and a slight smile tugged at her lips.

  “I am,” she said. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t use a gun.” She tilted her head to the side, looking slightly unsure. “At least… in theory.”

  Arez cocked an eyebrow at her. “And could you kill a Krezlian with that gun… in theory?”

  “In theory…” Naomi blushed, clearly unsure of her skills, but Arez just grunted in amusement.

  “Time to put theory to practice then.” He grinned savagely at her, quickly standing up from the floor and grabbing another one of the Krezlian guns – along with a keycard.

  He walked out of the cell, but as he looked at the empty corridor that stretched out before him, he frowned. He looked toward the main entrance to the corridor, and heard footsteps in the distance – but none were coming in their direction.

  That was odd. He didn’t like the silence.

  “Stay behind me,” he grunted to Naomi as he started to walk toward the entrance.

  Naomi followed him slowly, and Arez wondered how it was possible that no alarm had yet gone off when they had just killed four guards and left their cell.

  But then, as if to answer his silent question, the whole ship suddenly shook like an earthquake had just hit the whole moon. Naomi yelped at the sudden disturbance, and bumped against his back, struggling to regain her balance as the floor swayed beneath them.

  Although the Agari moon was inhabitable, with nature and landscapes outside the base, it was hardly big enough for earthquakes. Which left only one option…

  The Alliance was here.

  That also explained why no alarm was blaring on the ship and why no one had come to flog them for their escape. The Krezlian soldiers were all probably so engaged in battle to hold the moon and keep the outside enemy at bay that they hadn’t been paying enough attention to their prisoners.

  Arez grunted, a mischievous smile spreading on his lips.

  That suited him just fine.

  CHAPTER 22

  NAOMI

  Another earthquake shook the spaceship, this one just as strong as the first. Fortunately, this time it hadn’t come as so much of a surprise, so Naomi was able to balance herself properly, even while holding the large and quite heavy gun in her arms
.

  Still, the ground shook so violently that she wondered what the hell the Alliance was doing. The ship was on solid rock, after all.

  She hoped they weren’t destroying the moon…

  Mareb’s voice echoed in her head, the words he’d said to her when he had betrayed her and given her people up to the Krezlians. This was exactly what he had worried about – the Alliance attacking the moon and possibly hurting its environment in the process.

  The consequences of that for the whole planet would be devastating. Just like on Earth, where the moon controlled the tides, the moons of Agaria all had a purpose for the welfare of the planet and its nature. Not to even mention for the culture. The green moon Eifan had been a common hunting planet for the Agari people for generations.

  And although what Mareb had done was horrible and wrong in so many ways, she could understand that he had hoped to avoid this battle. To have the Krezlians leave without losing the moon to them.

  Negotiation first was what she had learned too, but you could not negotiate with people’s lives. No matter what.

  They just had to trust that the Alliance would do what was best. The Alliance knew the importance of the moon to Agaria. They might attack, but Naomi believed they would never do anything to actually harm the moon or the planet. Lady Eneria and the Va’ii would not allow that.

  Just as Naomi wasn’t going to allow anything to hurt her people.

  “We need to save the others too,” she whispered to Arez as they stopped by another corridor, waiting for a group of Krezlians to pass them around the corner.

  The guards rushed past quickly, no doubt going to take care of some security measurements against the Alliance. They hardly even looked around themselves, so they didn’t see Arez and Naomi.

  Arez glanced back at her, his expression doubtful.

  Naomi knew what he was thinking. That it was risky, dangerous. But she just couldn’t leave the other women behind. They were her people. She was the Ambassador. They were her responsibility, and she had to stand up for them and ensure their safety. Now more than ever.

  She looked back at Arez, trying to communicate this with her eyes. She wasn’t going to back down, no matter what he said. She would try to do it either with him or without him.

  Hopefully with him though. Naomi grimaced inwardly because she wasn’t sure her field training was good enough to do it alone. Although she could use a gun, Arez had been right to doubt her before. She had concentrated on politics and intergalactic communication in her Alliance education, not battle tactics and warfare.

  Arez shook his head at last. “We can’t.”

  “What do you mean we ca–?”

  “I said we can’t,” he snapped, staring Naomi in the eyes. His eyes were fierce and his muscles bulged as if he was trying to restrain himself. “It’s too risky, and I’m not taking chances with you again.”

  Again?

  “What the hell do you mean?” Naomi frowned.

  “When I left you after the attack on Eifan,” he growled. “You went to the shuttles on your own and ended up almost getting captured right then and there.”

  Naomi’s eyes widened. She knew Arez had been hesitant to leave her then, but he was obviously more than just a little upset about the fact. She hadn’t known.

  “The Krezlians were right there and I knew they could invade the station at any moment, but I left to join the fight in the airspace instead of going with you. Against my better judgment. And I’m not doing that again. This time, you’re in this with me, and I’m getting you out, got it?”

  Naomi’s heart warmed at the knowledge that he cared, even if she didn’t agree with him. She placed her hand on his shoulder and looked up at him sadly. “They’re my people, Arez… I can’t just leave them behind.”

  Arez shook his head. “It’s too risky…” he repeated, as if to himself. “The Alliance will get them.”

  “I can’t let the Alliance do what should be my duty,” Naomi smiled bitterly. Perhaps the Alliance would save them but… She was the Earth Ambassador. The humans on Agaria were her responsibility. She couldn’t just leave them here, not when she knew they would suffer in the meanwhile. She would have to at least try to do something.

  For a moment, Arez looked like he was going to argue, but finally, his expression softened.

  “Alright,” he said. “Alright, we’ll see what we can do.”

  Naomi’s heart leaped with joy at his words and she almost wanted to kiss him then and there. A huge weight had been lifted off her shoulders and relief flooded her. Thank god… She wouldn’t have been able to do it without him.

  “But…” Arez said, looking at her sternly. “If it gets too risky, I’m hauling your ass out of here before you can say a word of protest.”

  His dark eyes were hard, and Naomi knew that he meant it. But either way, she was glad he was in. Naomi nodded at him, showing she understood.

  Arez looked at her for a moment longer, then slowly nodded as well before cocking his gun over his shoulder and turning back to the next corridor. “The cells your people were in were this way. It isn’t too much of a detour on our way to the entrance. But stay close.”

  Naomi nodded, walking close to Arez again as he moved away from the wall and started to walk through the corridor to the right – where the three Krezlians who had just passed them had come from.

  Naomi swallowed as she realized they were going deeper into the ship. She hoped this was a good idea and that she wouldn’t come to regret her decision later.

  They walked through corridor after corridor, and the longer they walked, the faster her heart pounded in her chest. She knew the whole ship was full of hidden cameras, and she was sure that they had been noticed by now.

  She knew the longer they walked, the more likely they were to encounter Krezlians. It was their ship after all. And if they encountered Krezlians… Well, that just made it all the more difficult to get out.

  They stopped by another corridor, waiting as another group of Krezlians passed, but fortunately, they made it to a familiar-looking metallic door a moment later, all without actually coming face-to-face with any of the reptiles.

  “Can you open it?” Naomi whispered, her eyes darting from the door to Arez.

  Arez pulled out the access card he had taken from one of the dead Krezlians. They had already used it on a few doors, to get around on the ship, but as he swiped it by the door now, the access light blinked yellow, but the door wouldn’t open.

  He tried again, swiping it slower this time. Again, the light by the door blinked, but nothing happened.

  “Shit,” Arez cursed. “They must’ve found the bodies and deactivated their cards.”

  Naomi’s heart sank. Her palms started to sweat as she realized just how screwed they were. First of all, the access card had meant to be their pass out of the ship. But most importantly, their escape had now been discovered. And that meant the Krezlians were definitely looking for them.

  Panic started to build inside her. She glanced around in the empty corridor, wondering where the cameras were. Did they know they were here already? Were they coming for them now?

  Arez’s hearing had been good enough to help them avoid the Krezlians until now, but if the reptiles were specifically looking for them, taking a turn in the opposite direction of any footsteps wouldn’t help for long.

  “We need to go,” she breathed, her body paralyzed in horror for a moment. She hated to say it. Hated even the thought of leaving them behind but…

  Arez looked at her with a concerned expression on his face. Then, he turned around and swiftly pointed his gun at the electronic lock, blasting it off in a loud explosion.

  “What–? What are you doing?” Naomi asked, horrified. She glanced around in the corridor again, checking around to see if anyone had heard the explosion and was now coming for them.

  Arez turned to look at her. “You wanted to get them out, we get them out,” he said, turning back toward the door and starting to push it
aside.

  Electric sparks flew from the hole he had just blasted in the wall. Naomi thought there was no way this was going to work. But slowly, the door started moving. It was clearly heavy and Arez’s muscles bulged as he tried to push it aside but, little by little, he was able to inch it ajar.

  Unfortunately, that was also the moment Naomi heard footsteps in the end of the corridor, and two Krezlian guards appeared in the distance.

  “Arez!” she hissed at him as he continued to push the door aside. She quickly turned toward the Krezlians, pointing the gun in their direction.

  Oh, god… Would she have to shoot them?

  Could she even shoot them?

  Sure, she could fire the weapon, but it was a whole different story whether she’d actually hit the Krezlians or not.

  The guards were still far. Both of them had their guns pointed at her and they were approaching slowly.

  Naomi glanced at Arez. His muscles were strained as he pushed the heavy door, and it screeched with every slight movement. The opening was almost big enough for her to pass through when, suddenly, Naomi heard yelling behind her. She swiveled her head backwards and saw three more Krezlian guards appear on the other end of the corridor – each of them just as heavily armed as the two others.

  Oh, no…

  There was no way they were getting out of here now.

  They stood in the middle of a four-way crossing, with Arez trying to open up the fourth corridor that likely didn’t even lead anywhere except cells and a dead end. They were motionless targets, and as soon as the guards got close enough, there was no question in Naomi’s mind that they would shoot.

  Naomi swallowed, wondering whether they could make it to the third open corridor in time. Suddenly, Arez grunted behind her and grabbed her by the arm. Naomi glanced behind her as he pulled her back, and noticed he’d managed to open the door enough for not only her to pass, but him as well.

  “Get in,” he said, shoving her inside the opened-up corridor as he took her position by the door. “I’ll handle this one.”

  Naomi’s heart sank in her chest. He wasn’t going to fight them, was he?