Tiegan’s voice shook. He still wore the morbid shock that Lans remembered experiencing when he first saw the footage. Shuddering slightly, Tiegan mumbled, “How did they just… evaporate?”
“We’re not sure.” Lans tapped his interface and pinched the raised holos that appeared on his arm. “According to the report, their terros believed the Healer was within the clutches of a Heronas city near their camp. They gathered all their warriors and rushed the walls only for that to happen.” Lans pressed play.
Immediately, the footage he sought expanded around them.
Light filled the room, revealing a hundred Plutonian warriors.
Valiant fighters.
His comrades.
They shared his blue skin, his tail and his loyalty to their species.
Each one was precious in their own right, but even more so because they were the last of their kind.
Or at least, they were. Before it was discovered that humans could mate with Plutonians and bear their offspring.
An image of a female filled his mind.
Pale skin. Sharp eyes. Lips so soft they often fooled him into thinking that sweet words would come out of it. And they rarely did. At least when he was around.
Korben fisted his hands and thumped them against the table. The sound dragged Lans’s mind away from Eema to focus on the matter at hand. Solving a problem as impossible as this one was ten times easier than trying to understand that stubborn human’s mind.
His terros hunched over, his back muscles pressing against his skin and his head almost parallel with the desk. Korben let out a heavy sigh. “We cannot afford to lose more warriors.”
Pin lifted slender fingers. The warrior was broad and tall. He wore a grim frown as he nodded. “I agree.”
“Denizi!” Clavas rose violently from his chair. His tail whipped the air as he turned sharply and paced the room. “If only we had gone after the Healer before the Heronas upped their defenses, we wouldn’t have lost all those warriors. They…” His voice cracked. “They didn’t have to die.”
Korben stared at his bruda. “If we did not get out when we did, we could have lost—”
“I would have rather lost my life,” Clavas snapped.
“Not only your life would have been lost.” Korben gestured to the room. “But theirs as well. You are the best strategist we have, Clavas.”
Clavas shook his head and glared at the footage.
Lans sighed. He knew not what his friend was feeling, but he could sense Clavas’ anger stemmed from guilt. He knew of that feeling. He knew what it meant to hold on to pain and anger rather than face the self-loathing that flowed just beneath the surface. Lans was well aware of how it chewed away at the heras until there was nothing but char left.
“We need a new plan,” Pin tilted his head, his eyes sharpening on Lans. “Gathering an army of warriors won’t work if we all get vaporized by that shield.”
Lans strode to Clavas and rested a hand on his shoulder. “We will find a way to avenge their deaths.”
“But they’ll still be dead,” Clavas bit out. Fisting his hands, he charged out of the room and slammed the door behind him.
Korben rubbed his temple. “I will follow him.”
“He might need space,” Lans suggested, shaking his head.
Korben clenched his jaw, his eyes flashing. “We do not have time for space. The sooner we come up with a plan to rescue the Healer, the better. Every second he is in the Heronas’s hands puts him and our entire species in danger.”
“Not our entire species,” Tiegan said.
Lans swung his head around to stare at his comrade. “What do you mean?”
“You have females now.” He jutted his chin at Korben, Pin and Zar. “All three of you returned from your mission with a mate and we know they are capable of birthing—”
“What are you saying, Tiegan?” Zar growled, his spine dagger jutting out of the back of his neck dangerously.
Alarmed, Lans shot to his feet. “Settle down, Zar. It was just a suggestion. There is no need for you to unsheathe your weapon.”
“You think the same, Lans?” Korben asked angrily.
He lifted one shoulder. “We have a future now. We have hope that our lineage can survive through the females. And they can control the zaptens…”
“Neh.” Pin glared in Tiegan’s direction. “Word of the females having Plutonian blood cannot get out. Imagine what those who have turned from our ways would do to them? Not to mention, all Plutonian enemies would seek them out just to control us.”
Tiegan lifted his chin. “Are you worried about all the females.” His eyes darted between Zar and Pin. “Or just your own.”
“The human females are a part of us,” Korben said.
Zar nodded firmly.
Tiegan lifted his hands. “I want to protect them too. All I am asking is that we consider the fact that other Plutonians would choose to protect them too.” He stood, scraping the chair behind him. “We could all use some hope right now.”
As Tiegan walked out, Korben rubbed his temples harder.
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
It eased open, revealing Chozo. He was short and thin with smooth green skin. The clunky mask on his face could not hide the youthfulness of his appearance. It was hard to imagine that he was, in truth, older than them all.
“I saw Tiegan storm out. Did you decide on a solution?”
“Neh.” Korben raised himself up. “I should speak to Sah-ah.”
Pin and Zar stood as well, no doubt intending to seek their mates too.
“They’re in the…” Chozo’s voice faded as the three warriors strode past him without acknowledgement.
The brood sighed and hopped on top of the table. “They still hate me, don’t they?”
“They do not trust you.” Lans placed a hand on the brood’s shoulder. “But you will win them over eventually.”
His long, flat fingers fidgeted. “Why are you the only one who trusts me, Lans?”
“Because…” He swallowed. “Because I know what it is like to be misunderstood.”
Chozo studied him intently through the mask. “You speak of the past.”
Soft laughter drifted to his ears. He glanced up and, through the open door, spied Eema as she crossed the outer room. Thick brown hair spiraled to her slim shoulders. The dainty features of her face held him spell-bound. Seren blue eyes. Long lashes. A full mouth. She brushed a lock of her hair behind her left ear—always her left—and nodded at Ki-ah, Zar’s mate. Eema’s tunic hugged her curves and fell softly to her thighs, revealing her long legs.
Chozo waved a green hand in his face. “Zar?”
“I speak of the past and the future.” He tore his eyes away from Eema. “Come. I need you to go over these prison blueprints again.”
Chozo winced. “Shall we relocate?”
“Why?” Lans swiped his interface to get to the blueprints. “We have the whole place to ourselves.”
A raspy voice spoke from the doorway. “Actually, we’re going to need the room.”
Lan’s venas tightened. His chin whipped up and his heras pounded as he fell into a pair of the most beautiful blue eyes he had ever seen. More sparkling than the sun and more dangerous than a dagger.
Eema’s lips curled up in a hint of a smile. “The boys had their time to play.” She smirked as the other females joined her. “Now it’s our turn.”
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The Alien Warrior's Heart : A Sci-Fi Alien Romance (Plutonian Warriors Book 3) Page 17