by Leslie Chase
"Come, we're both warriors," he said. "Trying to kill each other is what we do. Now, though, I see I can profit more from you alive. And you can get rich, too, if you come to Earth with us. There is so much my employers would like to learn from you."
Amanda swallowed. She knew that was true, but it wouldn't be a good thing for Markath. The corporation that Rivers worked for would rip the knowledge from a dragon if they got their hands on him. The image of her mate strapped to a table, scientists carving him up for the secrets in his body, wouldn't go away.
Don't fall for it, Markath, please don't be that stupid.
"If you want to talk, come down here on your own. We'll talk," Markath said. The echoes had moved — he wasn't staying in one position while they pinned down where he was. "But I'm not going to betray my people, Rivers."
With a quiet click, Rivers flicked off the safety on his pistol. "No, I don't think so. If you won't trust my word, then you'll come out because of what I'll do to Amanda if you don't."
The crack of the gunshot was unbearably loud so close to her head, and Amanda jumped in shock and terror. The bullet kicked up dust ahead of her, and Jim's hand held her in place as Rivers slowly brought the pistol down again. The pistol's barrel tapped against her arm.
"The next bullet goes into her, dragon," Rivers called out. "I've not decided where, yet. A knee perhaps? Or maybe her hand? I am not a cruel man, and I will stop as soon as you come out."
Don't, she wanted to cry out. Don't do it, he'll just kill you and then me. She couldn't imagine this man letting either of them go alive. But she also knew a protest like that was useless. Markath would face any risk to keep her safe from harm, Amanda was sure. She knew it deep in her soul.
And she couldn't face being the cause of his death. She had to do something, anything, to save him.
Rivers dragged the gun barrel along her cheek, the hot metal making her flinch. There was no response from the city, and he sighed theatrically.
"Very well. Remember that you could have stopped this," he said, lifting his pistol and moving it out of her sight. Amanda squeezed her eyes shut, pulse racing and unable to breathe, trying not to wonder where he planned to shoot her. She never found out.
"Wait!" Markath called. "Wait, I will come out."
Amanda took a long, shuddering breath, her whole body shaking with a mix of relief and horror. Next to her she felt Rivers straighten up. His attention was on the fog now, and all of his men stood ready. Amanda knew with a dreadful certainty that they would open fire as soon as they had a clear shot at Markath. Rivers' promise meant nothing, less than nothing, to him and his men.
She found herself wishing that she'd never met Markath, that she hadn't brought him here into this danger. Now, to save her, he was about to sacrifice himself, and that hurt worse than she could imagine. Worse than any gunshot could. There was nothing that she could do about it.
And worst of all, it wouldn't work. Rivers would almost certainly shoot her anyway, and Markath would have given his life for nothing.
No. I won't let that happen. I can't let that happen. If he's going to sacrifice himself for me, I have to make it count.
With shaking fingers, she fumbled at her belt, hoping that Rivers and the rest were too focused on Markath to pay any attention to what she was up to. Even Jim, holding her in place, was looking into the fog. Amanda's only plan was a desperate one, a huge risk, but what the hell. She was going to die if she did nothing, so she might as well give it a go.
As her fingers found the zip she was looking for, she saw movement in the fog below the ramp she was kneeling on. The soldiers saw it too, smoothly pivoting to aim their guns at it, but none of them took the shot. Not yet, not until they were sure of their target. They could afford to wait.
Amanda swallowed, trying to keep her breathing slow and calm, to stop her panic. Everything seemed to be moving so slowly, and she seemed to have all the time in the world to notice that something was wrong. The shape in the fog was far too big.
No, that wasn't it. There was more than one shape down there.
Then everything happened in a blur. Someone started to shout an alarm as a dozen demon tigers burst from the fog, charging up the ramp towards the humans. The six limbed creatures moved with an almost unbelievable speed, and despite their training the soldiers froze at the sight of them. By the time the first one got a shot off, the devil tigers were almost on them.
Amanda, on the other hand, didn't hesitate. As soon as the devil tigers burst forth from the fog, she grabbed into the hastily-packed medkit on her belt. The syringe she'd filled earlier still lay on top, and in one smooth motion she buried the needle in the thigh of her captor. Jim gasped in shock, grip on her shoulder weakening. Next to them, Rivers snapped off a shot at the charging horde, his prisoner forgotten.
Amanda knew that she wouldn't have another chance. Grabbing Jim's wrist, she twisted, pulling him off balance and sending him staggering forward. He turned, eyes wide and furious, his massive fist rising. One punch from him would be enough to take her out of the fight, she knew. She had one chance.
With a heave, she slammed her shoulder into his stomach.
It wouldn't have worked normally, but between his shock and the drugs weakening his leg, he was off balance already. Amanda's shove was the last straw, and Jim fell, tumbling down the ramp into the oncoming animal charge. As one pounced on him, Amanda looked away. Jim deserved his fate, but that didn't mean she wanted to watch.
Hot plasma blasted one of the devil tigers and it howled, its charge turning into a tumble. Another leaped over its corpse, slamming into the shooter with heavy paws and driving him to the ground. The unit dissolved into chaos as the soldiers tried to get more shots off, but the unexpected charge had thrown into disarray. Now that the animals were amongst them, their guns were as much a danger to their comrades as to the enemy.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Dieter. He must have turned to run as soon as the creatures had appeared — he was already in the tunnel mouth, sprinting for all he was worth. With a head start like that, she thought he might even make it, but she didn't even consider following him. The demon tigers were close enough that there was no way she'd outdistance them.
Instead, Amanda turned and ran for the edge of the ramp. Even though fall was steep and into unknown territory, it beat staying here where everyone was her enemy. Glancing back, she saw Rivers raise his pistol toward her and ducked just as he squeezed the trigger. The bullet tugged at the sleeve of her suit, and Amanda found herself tumbling to the floor, expecting the next shot to finish her.
A huge black and red demon tiger jumped between them, and she lost sight of Rivers. Come on, come on, get up, she told herself as she tried to breathe, to move, to escape. The snapping sounds of the rifles filled the air, and all around her was chaos. She had no idea who was winning, and no idea what Markath's plan was.
But she knew that he had one, and that he was coming for her. All she needed was to stay alive until he reached her.
23
Markath
Part one of Markath's plan had worked, the chaos and confusion above told him that. A shame he hadn't had time to develop a part two, but the humans had pressed him for time. Fortunately, the demon tigers' fear of a dragon was strong, and Duke Kagurash's modifications gave them a hatred for intruders. That made driving them to attack the soldiers easy. Now that they were fighting, though, he could hear the panic in the demon tigers' cries. They wouldn't last long.
I don't need a fancy plan, he thought with a snarl. Not when his Amanda was in danger. The fury of the dragon inside him wouldn't stay confined, and he set out up the ramp at a run.
The fog around him thinned and soon he'd be vulnerable. All it would take was for one of the gunmen to see him coming and he'd be a dead man, no good to Amanda or anyone else. But he couldn't let that stop him now, not when this was Amanda's only chance. Leaving the cover of the fog behind, he shifted, charging up the ramp as his body grew and tw
isted, the nanotech inside him transforming him into his warform. Scales spread and thickened, muscle stretched, and by the time anyone saw him coming he was a full dragon rushing towards them.
The change came at a cost. The artificial skin Amanda had used to close his cuts tore as he shifted and the wounds beneath reopened, leaving a bloody trail behind him as he ran. The pain was indescribable, filling Markath's body and mind with a blinding agony that hardly let him breathe. But he wasn't going to let that keep him from his foes, and his fury overwhelmed the pain.
The first soldier to see him snapped off a shot that burned across Markath's injured wing, and then a demon tiger pounced, bearing the human to the ground. Rivers shouted something, the words lost in Markath's roar of rage and pain, and turned to fire at him. Bullets glanced off his scales, Rivers' handgun far too weak to harm a full dragon. But the other soldiers had seen him, and the demon tigers were more interested in getting away from the charging dragon than attacking the humans. Another plasma bolt struck his chest, burning away scales and staggering Markath. A third clipped through his wing, a painful but meaningless wound.
Then he was on them, breathing fire as he came. The white-hot flame washed over soldier and tiger alike, and they scattered screaming from his approach. Some leaped aside fast enough to avoid the flames, others were caught head on and incinerated in instants. Rivers himself jumped off the side of the ramp, falling into the fog-shrouded depths below.
Markath reined in his flame, not wanting to risk hitting Amanda, and lashed out with his claws. He caught a soldier who'd gotten too close to him across the chest and sent the man flying back in a spray of crimson blood. Threaten my mate, will you? Markath roared wordlessly at the thought, fury incarnate. You'll pay, you'll all pay, for any harm that has come to her.
He couldn't see Amanda amongst the humans, his vision blurring as he looked for her. The injuries he carried were getting the better of him, and he slowed as he turned. Another shot struck him in the right arm as he smashed down a human and a demon tiger together. But the pain that wracked his body was nothing compared to the pain in his heart at the thought of losing his mate. His plan, such as it was, had been desperate. Could he be too late?
One of the soldiers had circled behind him, taking a shot into his wounded side as he tried to see where his mate was. Arching his long neck in a howl of pain, Markath tumbled to the side, letting loose a jet of fire that scorched the cave's roof as he fell. The wound burned as though he'd fallen into magma, and he could barely move.
But stopping wasn't an option. Not until Amanda was safe. With a desperate sweep of his tail he caught the soldier, sending him flying into the air to land with a final, fatal crunch somewhere amongst the ruins. Another took aim at his head, and Markath ducked just in time to avoid a shot into his eye. Even so, the near miss left a blinding afterimage as he lunged forward to crush the man between his powerful jaws.
Silence fell, and the only thing Markath could hear was his own labored breathing. The last of the soldiers had fallen, the devil tigers had run off, and he was alone on the ramp. Amanda was nowhere to be seen. For a moment, Markath almost gave into despair. His body was torn and bloodied, his life ebbing from him, and his mate wasn't here.
She must be okay, he told himself. She has to be. I will not allow it to be any other way.
Drawing a ragged, painful breath, Markath roared as best he could, and heard an answering call. He couldn't make out the words, but the voice — it was Amanda, he could never mistake the sound of her. Hauling himself over to the edge of the ramp from which he'd heard the call, he looked over it, and into the depths below. Two figures waited down there, Amanda pinned to a wall by Captain Rivers, a knife pressed to her throat.
Looking up, Rivers snarled, blood smeared on his face. His eyes narrow, his lips pulled back from his teeth, he looked like a figure from a horror story. His hand, though, was as steady as a rock, and the blade pressed into Amanda's skin.
"Change back," he barked, words slurring a little. "Change back or I will cut her throat right now and you can watch her die."
Despite the slurred words, Markath knew that he was deadly serious. And he had nothing to lose. Markath, on the other hand, had everything to lose. He shifted back with a groan of pain, collapsing to his knees at the edge of the ramp, and Rivers smiled.
"Good, that's good," the human said, looking up at Markath. "Now throw me one of my men's guns."
"Don't!" Amanda cried out. "He'll kill you!"
The movement made him wince as the razor-sharp blade dug into her skin and blood welled up. Rivers laughed, a cold and heartless sound.
"I'm wagering that your alien up there would rather take that chance than see your throat slit, Dr. Cain," he said, slowly and precisely. "But perhaps I'm wrong, and he will settle for avenging your death?"
Markath gripped the edge of the ramp with renewed fury. The pain of his injuries coursed through him and he felt weak from loss of blood. It took all his effort to stand and call down to Rivers.
"If you hurt her, I will kill you," he said.
"Of course," Rivers agreed readily. "I'm under no illusions I can finish you off with a knife. But you're not going to pretend you can save the doctor here from a cut throat, are you? Fetch me a gun, or watch me spill her blood."
Matching gazes with the human, Markath could see the crazed conviction there. This man no longer valued his own life, not if he could hurt Markath, and that was that.
Looking at Amanda, he saw her fear. Not for her own life, but for his. His death would hit her as hard as hers would him, and Markath couldn't cause her that kind of pain. It simply wasn't an option that he'd consider. But what else could he do? She was helpless in the hands of a trained killer.
Don't give up, my love. Amanda's spirit was as strong as any dragon warrior, and he cursed himself for ever doubting that. He wouldn't make that mistake again, and he knew that he could trust her to act if he gave her the chance.
The nearest rifle lay in the hands of one of the men killed by the devil tigers, and Markath scooped it up, holding it out over the edge. "Let her go and I'll give you the gun," he said, voice rasping in his throat.
"I promise I will let her go once I have the rifle," Rivers said, a cold smile on his lips. "Trust me. What choice do you have?"
Markath ground his teeth and took a deep breath. Trust Rivers? That would have been a joke if it wasn't so deadly serious. But he was out of options. Looking at Amanda, meeting her gaze, Markath tried to convey his feelings.
Then he threw the rifle.
It tumbled end over end towards Rivers, who snatched it out of the air with perfect reflexes. But that took his knife-hand away from Amanda's throat, and as soon as it moved, Markath leaped after the gun. With his broken wing, it was more a fall than a dive, but he had just enough control to aim himself directly at Rivers.
Everything seemed to move in slow motion as he fell. The rifle lifted towards Markath, Rivers movements perfectly controlled despite his injuries. Markath could see he was too late. He wouldn't reach the human in time to stop him firing. The barrel loomed large, seemed to fill his vision, and he knew that Rivers wouldn't miss.
He was at peace with that. The plasma bolt would kill him, but it wouldn't change his course. The impact of a dragon warrior on Rivers might or might not kill the human, but it would give Amanda a chance to finish the job. If he died saving her, Markath could die happy.
I just wish I could tell her how I feel again, he thought, seeing Rivers' finger tighten on the trigger and a spark of light ignite in the rifle's barrel.
Then Amanda barged into Rivers' arms.
The bolt of plasma erupted from the barrel, snapping past Markath's head by the narrowest of margins. He felt the heat of it burn his skin, his hair charring from it, and didn't care. He was alive!
Rivers' eyes went wide, panic filling them in the fraction of a second before Markath struck him. Markath felt the human's bones give as the two of them tumbled to the fl
oor, but still Rivers kept fighting, trying to bring the rifle back around for another shot.
It was a futile effort. Now that Markath was in arm's reach of his enemy, his greater strength won out. Plucking the rifle from the man's hands, he swung it in a short, sharp arc that ended in Rivers’ head with a wet crunch. Rivers kicked once and then lay still.
"Oh my god, are you alright?" Amanda cried out, hurrying to his side. Markath laughed at the absurdity of the question, or tried to. He'd been clawed, crushed, shot, and now fallen several stories. Of course he wasn't alright.
But none of that mattered, not when he could turn and take his mate in his arms. She was alive, and whole, and the enemy were dealt with. Markath pulled her close even as she fumbled for her medkit.
"Get off me," she said, a note of exasperation in her voice. It almost hid her relief and joy. "I need to treat these wounds."
"Not as much as I need to hold you," he said, but he relented, slumping back against a building as she started to examine him. Watching her focus on her work, he couldn't help smiling. "I love you, Amanda Cain."
That was enough to make her look up from the long gash across his ribs she was trying to close. Her eyes sparkled with tears, but she was smiling under them as she sprayed something cold onto his wounds.
"I love you too, you idiot," she told him, and the words sent a burst of joy through him that lit up his soul. "That's why I don't want you to die, so stay still while I work."
She leaned in to plant a kiss on his lips, and he smiled as he returned it. Everything but Amanda seemed to fade away as she pulled back, and he looked up into her face. She'd been through so much, but she was going to be okay and that was what mattered.
Markath watched her as the world went black. If this was the end for him, he was going to make sure he spent his last breaths looking at his mate.