But there was no time to savor their victory. Not only were four more Gaptors rising from the dust cloud, but the relic stones must have alerted the monsters above to their position. They descended on the girls, pinning them between the two groups.
“What’s the play?” Taz barked.
Kayla flipped through options. They’d never formulated a strategy for this scenario. They would have to work independently of the boys and hope they could somehow split the groups—or would it be better to work together and combine the groups?
Where is Jaden when I need him? He’s better at working these things out than I am. If the aerial strategy game they’d played together one afternoon hadn’t told her that, all the hours spent training at Sven’s had. Time and again, Jaden was the one who came up with new and varied combinations.
How is he doing? Has he found what we’re looking for? Is he safe? Kayla just wanted him with her. She needed him and his big brain. He would know how to approach this. She was still thinking when the first Gaptor made its move.
Swerving in from above, it clipped Taz’s wing, sending her off-kilter. Taz spiraled for a moment before correcting her flight and dropping. Their attacker dived after them, his blades spinning. Kayla tore her DD free of its holster. The blade was still sliding out when the beast’s talons tipped down onto her arm.
The pain, oh, the pain! Kayla screamed as her flesh split, almost dropping her DD. Snatching at the falling weapon with her other hand, she snagged it before it fell free. With one awkward movement, she swung the DD toward the monster who had refused to back off, cackling when her blade made contact. The Gaptor screeched as Kayla ripped into his exposed underbelly. Black blood spurted over her before the Gaptor dropped away, spilling what remained of his life force.
“Are you okay?” Taz’s worried voice penetrated the haze of pain.
“Yes. You?”
“Same. Where’s Ohanzee?”
Clutching her injured arm and attempting to stem the blood flow, Kayla searched for the boys. The other Gaptors were keeping their distance. Good. That little display of the DD’s effectiveness had dampened their enthusiasm. A second later, Kayla found the boys.
They must’ve been waiting for her to call the play because only now were they sinking down to aid the girls. Transfixed, horrified, Kayla could only stare as another Gaptor intercepted them, whipping its stinger under its belly and catching Atu full in the face. He toppled off Han.
Taz moved toward the boys, but Han was faster.
Sensing his voyager’s peril, Han flipped onto his back. Before his enemy could react, Han barreled up and sank his fangs into the Gaptor’s long neck. With a vicious twist, he ripped the brute’s head from its body. As ash rained down, Han lowered his head and chased after Atu, desperate to catch him before he reached the group of Gaptors waiting below.
When Han caught him, Atu’s graceless landing revealed how out of it he was. Han shuddered as the impact jarred his injured leg, making blood drip.
Taz tensed under her. While the drip was a minor distraction, it wasn’t what had them worried. How would Han avoid the enemy below if Atu didn’t snap out of his funk? Then Atu fumbled in Han’s fur, and Kayla and Taz relaxed—marginally.
Taking a hot second to bind her cut arm, Kayla studied Atu. Blood ran down his face where the stinger had inflicted its damage. He still looked dazed. They wouldn’t have much time before the rest of the group decided they could attack. “Atu, get with it!”
Hearing her, Atu lifted his head and shook it as though to rid himself of the effects of the impact. It didn’t help. Atu reached a shaking hand into the pack and withdrew a vial. Without hesitation, he put it to his lips and downed the contents. The effect was instantaneous. His eyes cleared.
“What are you waiting for?” Atu cried, dashing blood away from his eyes. “We need to attack before they hit us again.”
Kayla smiled. Yup, he’s fine. She studied their enemies. The Gaptors bore down on them in two parallel lines, one above and one below, leering grins on their faces as they anticipated conquest. While the relic stones were powerful, Kayla didn’t want to put too much stock in their ability to take out that many Gaptors. The plan simmering in the back of her mind came fully to her awareness. They only stood a chance if they worked together.
“Eight—girls on the top,” Kayla called.
Atu grinned. Time for payback. Signaling he understood, he and Han took off between the parallel lines. The sudden challenge gave their enemies pause. The lines faltered, all the time the boys needed to begin their assault.
Atu raised his arm as Han zoomed forward, Atu’s DD slicing the Gaptors above them while Han’s talons raked across the backs of those below. At the same time, Kayla and Taz weaved across the top line of attackers, hitting every foe they could with their own weapons.
Kayla wasn’t as accurate as normal. Using her left arm was maddening! Despite this, she still landed a few fatal blows. Blood and gore spurted around them as the two pairs hit their marks. But when they reached the end of the line, they hadn’t thinned the enemy ranks nearly enough.
“Again,” Kayla ordered as they circled on the far end.
Their gliders tilted their wings, arcing them back to face their foes. What Kayla saw agitated her. The two groups of Gaptors, expecting a fresh attack, were also wheeling around, destroying their earlier neat lines. Which meant their relic stones were still useless. Their enemies’ scattered positions would make the upcoming run nigh impossible.
“Loop and roll,” Kayla called.
There was no other option. They would have to take out the Gaptors one at a time. They rolled around the first Gaptor together, catching him between the stones. Zap! He disappeared. They approached the next. But he veered away, and they had to let him go. The third, fourth, and fifth Gaptors bunched together. They looped, Taz taking the high road while the boys curled under.
Kayla was too close to let loose with her DD, so she slashed at the nearest Gaptor. With her less-than-reliable arm, her movements were clumsy, and she only sheared off its wing. It careened into her foot, and she let out a sharp cry as its weight smacked into her ankle. Tucking her throbbing ankle under her body for protection, Kayla watched, aghast. The one-winged beast plummeted uncontrollably right into Han and then into another Gaptor, the two brutes spiraling downward. Han howled with pain as the beast knocked him sideways.
“Han, I’m sorry!” Kayla cried. “Are you alright?”
Han wheezed. “You mean apart from my bruised ribs?”
Mortified, Kayla ordered herself to be more careful. She couldn’t be taking out members of her own team! Especially when they were all they had. As they looped over the next Gaptor, destroying it with the stones, Han’s labored breathing evidenced the gravity of his injury. Before Kayla could comment, two more Gaptors crossed their path.
Still checking on Han, Atu was a tad slow off the mark. His DD swung through the air, dispatching the first. But the second bashed into his wrist, and his DD tilted sideways, the shiny blade glancing off his left arm.
Horrified, Kayla expected Atu’s limb to fall off. But it flopped to his side, dangling limp and useless. She and Taz caught up to the boys. “What can I do?” Kayla called.
“Nothing. It’s paralyzed. Hopefully temporarily, but we can’t worry about that now.” Atu lifted his chin to Kayla’s left, and she saw the next wave of Gaptors closing in on them.
Chapter Thirty-Six
How can we fight so many? They hadn’t been able to use the relic stones as effectively this last time. Maybe the Gaptors were learning. Hefting her DD in her less-than-reliable left hand, Kayla decided they would just have to do their best. “Ready?”
Atu nodded. They resumed the looping and rolling routine they had practiced so many times at Sven’s. The memory tinged Kayla with momentary sadness when she realized those wonderfully carefree days were over. Then they were curling around their next opponent, and things sped up.
Although she and Atu
took out their first two attackers, one Gaptor nicked Taz’s tail before they dispatched it. Blood flowed freely from the wound when Taz’s continued flight widened the tear. Then a stray Gaptor talon tore Han’s side as he rolled away from the next group of beasts banded together to face them. Luckily, the wound wasn’t deep, but that didn’t stop it from bleeding profusely either.
Cursing, Kayla stabbed the Gaptor who had wounded Han, gratified when it dropped away, trailing its abominable black blood. But another Gaptor was ready and waiting to take its place. Maniacally hacking to her right and left as the Gaptors fell on them like carrion, Kayla’s arm trembled. Fatigue crept through her weakening limb. Sneaking a peek at the boys to see if they could help, she found them equally swamped.
Then it happened. Something plucked the Gaptor in front of them from the air. Stunned, Kayla and Taz watched it disappear. When Taz identified their unexpected rescuers, black shapes leaping up from the gloom below, she thrust them upward.
The Gaptors overhead, not as attuned to their surroundings, squawked shrilly when Taz suddenly barreled into them. Their scraggly wings flapped wildly as, comically, they veered out of the way. The Gaptors below didn’t escape. They disappeared in rapid succession, the pack of mutant rats on the desert floor picking them off one by one.
“Where did they come from?” Kayla babbled.
Taz shrugged. “Perhaps the scent of so much fresh blood drew them?”
Kayla grinned. “Well, they couldn’t have chosen a better time to appear.”
“Whatever the reason, it’s our chance for escape,” Taz said. “Han!”
But Han must’ve read her mind. He was already streaking toward them. Close enough for the girls to hear, he bellowed, “Time to make a run for it!”
“We need altitude,” Taz insisted, even as she surged ahead to keep pace with Han, their greater speed whisking them away from the remains of their enemies.
“Why?” Kayla demanded, not understanding where Taz was going.
“The Gaptors can’t match our altitudes. Not only will height allow us some battle-free time to reach that formation, it’ll also provide an excellent view of what’s waiting for us once we get there,” Taz explained.
“Simple, yet effective.” Han grinned toothily.
The teens flattened themselves on their gliders, and their aerolators slipped into place when their gliders rocketed upward. The bloody battle scene below shrank away. Kayla was rather glad. The rats were ruthless, taking down anything that moved above them. She shivered thinking about their long, yellow teeth. Then she realized it wasn’t just that making her shiver. She was suddenly freezing. And utterly drained.
Apparently, she wasn’t the only one. Taz wobbled under her as they raced toward the octagon of conical towers, their refuge. After what felt like an eon, they were high above their destination. Circling warily, their gliders approached the cones, assessing which would offer the best protection.
“The cones have side vents,” Han observed.
“That’s no guarantee tunnels lead off from them. Access to a main vent would be preferable—maybe the largest cone, over there?” Taz asked, lifting her chin toward one tower in the octagon rising higher than the others.
Kayla studied it. No sign of Gaptors. And unless she was mistaken, those pursuing them had dropped back. They must be flying faster than she’d realized. Then again, it was also almost night. The sun had already dipped past the horizon but wasn’t so far gone yet as to blanket everything in obscurity. Still, the black Gaptors would be tough to spot.
“That vent seems a suitable option,” Han said.
Since their eyesight was so much better, Kayla had to trust their gliders’ assessment. They drifted toward the vent, preparing for descent. Just as they dropped into the gaping mouth of the main vent, a black mass swarmed up to meet them.
Kayla squealed. “Taz, lift!”
But Taz ignored her. In fact, Taz seemed bound and determined to go head to head with the unknown threat. About to point out her folly, Kayla jumped when Han loosed a piercing shriek. She swiveled on Taz’s back, glaring at him. If he’d been within reach, she would’ve clocked him. “What are you doing? Why don’t you just announce our arrival?”
Her annoyance rose a notch when Taz made the same shrill sound. What is wrong with them? She looked to Atu, hoping he might have an answer, but he was just as flummoxed. Kayla’s tired mind churned, too befuddled to work it out.
Panic welled when Taz acted on her initial impulse and, instead of flying away from the inky cloud, dashed toward it. Kayla peered into the gloom, trying to make out the individual black shapes. She was tempted to lean away from what she had convinced herself would be a gruesome death. But . . . wait. In a flash, it all became clear. Gliders! They’re gliders! Kayla laughed out loud, relieved and delighted. “Taz, allies! Did you know they were here?”
Taz grinned. “No, I didn’t. But I suspect Han did.”
“So that was what he meant when he said we might have more of an advantage!”
Taz chuckled, and the girls gazed at Han. He looked extremely pleased with himself. Winding through the newcomers like they were long-lost friends, he appeared to be doing an aerial dance with them.
When Taz dived, copying his movements, Kayla assumed it was their way of greeting the others. Silently, she admired the gliders circling them, surrounding them, saluting them. Then Kayla blinked. Was she imagining things? Every glider passing Taz seemed to bow. That was ridiculous! How could a glider bow while in flight? But the more Kayla studied their movements, the more convinced she was. What is that about?
One glider, seemingly older than the others, wafted closer. “Welcome! I am Pallaton. We’ve awaited your arrival eagerly.”
Taz inclined her head. “Thank you, Elder.” She made the introductions, then said, “You can’t imagine how comforting your presence is. We are more than relieved to make your acquaintance. As I’m sure you can tell,” she said, tipping her head toward the approaching Gaptors, “we would appreciate your aid.”
Pallaton beamed. “I think that’s something we can help with.”
Emitting a low, slow whistle, climbing in scale the longer it continued, the other gliders answered his call, moving away and fanning out above Taz and Han. In seconds, they’d arranged themselves in groups which immediately began attacking the incoming Gaptors.
Kayla, Taz, Han, and Atu remained where they were, raptly observing the precision and deadliness with which their new friends attacked the Gaptors. The backdrop of fading light before the sun’s total descent into oblivion formed an excellent canvas against which the scene played out. It didn’t take their allies long to annihilate the already decimated ranks of Gaptors. With the skies empty of threat, their friends again surrounded them, whistling and chirping as they communicated with Han and Taz.
“Alright!” Atu whooped, raising his arm and pumping his fist into the air. “That was inspiring!”
Taz smiled. “They are incredible, aren’t they?”
But Kayla was staring at Atu. “Atu, your arm!”
Atu frowned. “What about it?”
“Isn’t that the arm your DD touched?”
Atu inspected his arm, then grinned. “So it is. The effects of the DD must be temporary on humans. Another feather in Sven’s cap. He’ll be ecstatic.”
Pallaton separated from the group and drew near.
“Well done, Elder!” Taz said. “The accounts of your prowess weren’t exaggerated in our histories.”
“Thank you, Tazanna,” he answered before a worried expression settled on his elderly face. “Pardon me if I am being indelicate, but we were expecting three seekers. Could you enlighten me as to the whereabouts of the third?”
Han stopped chirping and answered. “We left him at the temple. Our departure gave him his best chance at success.”
Pallaton nodded. “Not to alarm you, but he will need you, Ohanzee. You should make haste and return to him.”
Kayla’s hear
t rate spiked. Why did Han have to get back to Jaden? Was he in trouble? They shouldn’t have left him. But it had been the only way to give him more time to retrieve the item unhindered.
Kayla’s thoughts and emotions were at war, neither giving way to the other, both building the wave of anxiety rising within her to a tsunami. Sensing her agitation, Taz turned and stared at her curiously. Kayla knew she had to get a grip, or there would be some explaining to do—if there wasn’t already. Taz was no fool. Kayla sucked in a deep, calming breath. Then another. Then a third. As her stress levels dropped, her mind snapped back to action. She had to get back to him. As if in tune with what she was thinking, Han asked the obvious question.
“He’s in danger?”
Pallaton cocked his head to the side. “Not yet. But he soon will be.”
“How does he know that?” Kayla whispered to Taz.
Her glider shrugged. “How did he know it was time for them to wake up and help us?”
Kayla opened her mouth to ask another question, but Taz stopped her. “Now is not the moment for questions. Later.”
“Yes,” Kayla murmured.
“Do I have a moment to heal Han before he leaves?” Atu interjected.
“You do, Healer,” Pallaton said. “In fact, it would be best if you did.”
“Uh, would you be willing to let me use your back so I can work more quickly?” Atu asked Pallaton hesitantly.
“It would be my honor.” Pallaton smiled, moving closer. “Jump when you’re ready.”
Atu wasted no time. Even as he uttered his thanks, he slipped off Han and landed lightly on Pallaton. Rising to his feet as soon as he had his balance, he worked rapidly, applying potions to Han’s bleeding leg and side. Almost at once, the blood stopped flowing.
“Could you lift just a little higher?” Atu asked.
Pallaton obliged, and Atu stretched his arm out, placing his hand over Han’s ribs. A small popping sound was audible, and then Han’s face brightened as his breathing returned to normal.
Destiny Series Boxed Set Page 52