ExtremeCircumstances

by Chandra Ryan

  Homer picked up the arrow and sniffed the tip. “It smells bitter.”

  Gates didn’t know what Homer meant. Blood always smelled metallic to him. Still, it seemed important to Homer since he pulled a cotton swab out of his cargo pants and then placed the fuzzy tip to the metal. As Gates watched Homer work he had to admit that everything did seem odd. The fluffy tip of the cotton swab momentarily fascinated him. And when he looked up, the trees seemed impossibly tall. “I don’t feel so great.”

  “And I’m working on finding the reason for that.” Homer placed the swab into a vial with clear liquid at the base. As soon as the swab touched it, the liquid turned green. “There’s a foreign chemical on the arrow. Looks as if it’s from the hallucinogen family.”

  Julian crept up to where they were and squatted next to them. It took all of the common sense Gates had left not to reach out to him. “We need to get him and Jones out of here before the assailants come to finish off the job.”

  Homer looked around. “I don’t think there’s anyone out there.”

  “Someone fired the arrows.” Julian’s words made sense. But surely if this had been an ambush the attackers would be swarming the group by now. And if it wasn’t an ambush they needed to figure out what just happened.

  There was the chance it was a trap. Gates had seen it enough times to know better than to dismiss the idea out of hand. But either way they needed to clear the area. “Jules is right. We should move. Set up camp a good distance away from here and then send a couple of scouts back.” He tried to stand but his head spun dangerously at the attempt.

  “You aren’t going anywhere. At least not without help.” Homer looked around the group. “Prescott, give the commander a shoulder.”

  The only thing Gates hated more than his medic issuing orders was knowing it was necessary. He couldn’t stand on his own let alone hike to a secure location. So when Prescott hefted him up and then held him securely around the waist, he didn’t complain. Even though the sudden movement made his head feel as if it were about to explode. Sure, he might’ve moaned a little. But he didn’t complain.

  Julian, however, threw a glare at the man that made his feelings obvious to any who were looking. It would’ve made Gates laugh if he didn’t feel like shit. “How long until the hallucinogen wears off?” They’d started walking and each step was agonizing for Gates.

  “Hard to say. I have no idea what we’re dealing with or how large of a dose you were given. And since it was introduced straight to your bloodstream, there’s really no way for me to purge it from your system.”

  “We could always try leeches.” Prescott chuckled and the movement made another wave of nausea rush through Gates.

  “Let’s save the comedy act until after we’ve set up camp, okay?” Gates’ throat felt tight as he said the words and swallowing had becoming difficult but he refused to say anything about the possible swelling. If he did, Homer would insist they stop so he could examine Gates again. But Gates could hear an internal clock of disaster ticking off each second in his head. His men only had so much time to get away from the scene. He had to put their safety first.

  By the time they’d reached a usable clearing, though, every breath felt as if it were being pulled through a pillow. His head throbbed unbearably and whenever he opened his eyes the vibrant colors surrounding him actually hurt, so he kept them closed as much as possible.

  “The commander doesn’t sound so good.” Prescott’s voice boomed around him, adding to the pain coursing through his brain. It had reached the point where his teeth hurt with it.

  “Here, put him down on this tarp.” Homer’s voice was easy enough to recognize that Gates didn’t even bother to open his eyes.

  The tarp was cool and smooth under him as he allowed himself to be laid on it. His shirt tugged on his skin briefly as they repositioned it and the excess water from a day of sweat made him shiver with each brush. Then the cold metal touch of medical instruments tickled him around his sternum. He wanted to push the annoying things away but he couldn’t seem to lift his hand.

  “He’s going into respiratory failure.”

  Homer’s voice seemed garbled and far away. It was much too distant for Gates to actually worry about. He should probably be issuing orders right now. Only he didn’t want to do anything but nap.

  A sudden punch to his chest woke him and added to his confusion and the aches of his body. He’d ask who the hell was hitting him if it wasn’t for the warm, firm lips pressed to his. At the recognition, his mind filled with images of Julian, and Gates wrapped an arm around broad shoulders and ran his tongue along the other man’s top lip. Immediately Julian had disappeared but so had the pummeling.

  “I do believe he’s conscious again.”

  Gates cursed to himself as he recognized Homer’s voice. “I thought you were someone else.”

  His medic snorted. “Obviously.”

  Gates opened his eyes to find he was now inside a tent. The orange light of a campfire that bled through one of the thin walls told him that it must be late. But other than that, he couldn’t find any reference for how much time had passed. “I came to confused and—”

  “Don’t sweat it, Commander. It’s an understandable reaction for someone who’s been through a drug overdose.”

  Gates was relieved by how nonchalant Homer was being about the whole thing. “Thanks.”

  “Is that gratitude for not pressing sexual harassment charges or saving your sorry ass?”

  He smiled weakly at Homer’s attempt at a joke. “Saving my ass. I’m still not convinced you won’t drag me in front of a tribunal when we get home.”

  “Please. I’m too happy to have you back with us to drag you anywhere. You’ve had the men on edge most of the night. It’s downright rude to make them worry like that.”

  “Yes, Mother.” Gates drew out the words to sound like a petulant child.

  Homer laughed and shook his head. “I do believe the worst of it should be past. Thankfully since it was just a drug and not a poison you should rebound from any remaining effects quickly.”

  “I should be thankful? Is that what you’re telling me?” Gates might feel a little better than before but his body still ached as if he’d been dragged behind a shuttle. He couldn’t find it in himself to be overly thankful for anything right now.

  “Yes. You should be very thankful. You’ll be up and about by tomorrow.”

  Gates groaned at the prediction.

  “The muscle aches and pains should disappear over the next couple of hours.”

  “That’s comforting.”

  “It should be.” Homer started packing up his stuff. “In the meantime Julian and Prescott have a report. They, along with a couple of the other men, went back to scout the area where you were shot.” With that unceremonious goodbye Homer crawled out the door of the tent.

  Not that Gates missed the medic. At the mention of Julian’s name Gates’ heart had started beating faster and his thoughts had become locked on the other soldier. The memory of the warmth of Homer’s mouth on his suddenly made him feel empty inside. He needed to replace it with the real thing.

  Gates sat up carefully and waited. When Julian stepped into the tent he took a second to memorize every one of the man’s features. But then Gates’ attention was pulled to the other man who’d entered with Julian. Prescott. Gates gave himself a mental shake to snap out of his fixation with Julian. They were there to give a report. And Gates was going to do his job and hear them out.

  Prescott started. And as usual the man was all business. “We wandered into a trap today. We found several more in that general area. Had we continued pressing toward the goal, we could’ve taken on some real casualties.”

  But they had suffered real loss. And Gates’ inability to protect one of his men ate at his conscience. “Jones died. He was a real casualty.”

  Prescott looked down at his lap. “I know. I’m sorry, sir. I only meant—”

  Gates immediately felt like a
dick. He knew what Prescott meant by the statement. And the loss of Jones wasn’t Prescott’s burden to carry. It wasn’t fair of Gates to lay it on him. “No, I’m sorry. I know what you meant. I’m just still coming to terms with what happened today. I didn’t mean to take it out on you.”

  Prescott nodded. “You’ve been unconscious while the rest of us were coming to terms with it. I get it.”

  Gates doubted that he did. No one could until he was in a position of power. But he let the statement go. “So who left the traps?”

  “No idea. But I think it’s safe to say that somebody knows we’re here. And they’re intelligent enough to hunt us.”

  Gates nodded at the possible answer. Still, there were other options and it was important to look at them. “I agree that something’s definitely hunting on this planet. But how do we know we’re the prey? Maybe the trap was designed to stun an animal. Whoever set it could come back at a later time and easily finish off the prey.”

  “No sir. It had been set for us.” Julian had been so quiet that the simple words grabbed Gates’ attention immediately. “We have a guard posted near the trap. We should know more when whoever set it returns to check on it.”

  “That’s a good plan.”

  Julian smiled. “Thank you, sir.”

  “But I’m not convinced the traps were set for us. I’d hate to alert an intelligent life form to our existence when we’re just passing through.” Gates had to be sure before he’d risk being discovered. If the attack had been nothing more than a coincidence and they revealed themselves, it could lead to an escalation.

  “There was one more discovery. But since it’s Julian’s I think he should be the one to tell you.” Prescott’s stomach rumbled loudly, making Gates wonder how long ago they’d gotten back from scouting. He needed the report but he hadn’t meant to keep them from their dinner.

  “If that’s all, you’re dismissed, Prescott. Go put some food in you before it’s time to turn in.”

  “Yes sir.” Prescott nodded before he backed out the door.

  Now that he and Julian were alone, all the desire and heat of their night together flooded through him. He wanted to pull Julian onto his lap and kiss him hard on the lips. But he had no idea what Julian wanted. They’d only been together once. That didn’t exactly give him privileges. And he did need to finish hearing the scouting report. “So? What did you discover, Jules?” He cleared his throat in an attempt to get rid of some of the desire making his voice husky but he doubted the action would help.

  “When your bleeding wouldn’t stop, I had Homer check the arrowhead again. It was laced with an anticoagulant.”

  “Which would help bring an animal down if it were used for hunting.”

  “If an animal were the intended victim the compound wouldn’t have been very effective on you. Your modifications would’ve given you some measure of immunity. But this one was highly effective.” Julian shuddered and his face paled slightly in the orange glow of the firelight.

  It was true. As strong as they were, sometimes they got hurt. Occasionally they even needed to have heart valves replaced. Traditional anticoagulants hadn’t been enough when they went into surgery so the government chemists had come up with something designed for their physiology. “I take it Homer confirmed the findings?”

  “He did.”

  Gates’ stomach cramped. Only this time it was with fear. Still, he couldn’t let even a trace of it show on his face. “Whoever set this trap could be hunting the reptile men. They have to have manipulated genetics as well.”

  “They could be. But everything we’ve encountered so far has been put here to stop us—to stop super-soldiers. There’s no reason for the scientist to design a poison for one of his lines of defense.”

  He had a point. Gates lay down on the tent floor. This entire planet was one huge trap for modified soldiers. Not that he could tell his men that. Hell, they probably didn’t need him to. They were smart. They’d probably already figured it out for themselves.

  Julian ran his fingers down the side of Gates’ face in a feather-soft caress. “If this mission were easy they wouldn’t have given it to us.”

  He smiled weakly. But for the first time he began to wonder if those words were a lie. It was starting to feel as though they weren’t meant to survive this mission. As if sensing his dark mood Julian lay down next to him and wrapped an arm around his waist. “Two days and we’ll be at the goal. We are going to show this damn planet who’s boss.”

  “Damn straight we are.” It felt good to have Julian’s warm body pressed up against his. To be surrounded by his strength. He might not have told Julian what he was thinking. But he had no doubt that Julian knew anyway.

  They were two days from the goal and they were down to fifteen men.

  Chapter Five

  Julian’s heart raced and his stomach felt like a ball of knots. He should leave. Go back to his tent. But every time he closed his eyes he pictured the blood streaming down Gates’ arm. At first Homer had thought the arrow had only nicked Gates’ palm but after getting him back to camp and cleaning him up they’d discovered that a vein in his wrist had been cut. And it wouldn’t stop bleeding.

  A shiver of dread crept up his spine and he had to focus on Gates’ steady heartbeat for a second to relax. Julian took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly. “I should go. Tomorrow’s going to be a rough day. You need your sleep.”

  Gates sighed and then nodded. “Yeah. Homer tells me I’m going to be ready to hike again.”

  Julian heard the irritation in Gates’ voice and laughed. “You wouldn’t want to be stuck in this tent all day with your men waiting on you and we both know it.”

  “Yeah. But I don’t really want to put anyone at risk by not being one hundred percent either.”

  It was a valid concern. One Julian hadn’t thought about when he’d teased Gates. “Homer knows what he’s doing. If he says you’ll be okay to hike, you’ll be okay.” Julian braced himself on one elbow next to Gates.

  “You’re right. Still, if you find out where he keeps the really good pain meds you’d help a brother out, right?”

  Julian laughed and then shook his head. “You know it. In the meantime, get some sleep.” He moved to sit up when Gates stopped him by wrapping a hand behind Julian’s neck and then he pulled him down. Julian moved quickly to put his hands on either side of Gates’ head so he could brace his weight on them and wouldn’t crush the man. “Was there something else you needed, Commander?” His voice was husky and his cock was already hard at the promise of the position.

  “Yeah, I need you to shut the fuck up for a second.” Gates pulled him the rest of the way down until his mouth collided with Gates’. The kiss was harsh and demanding. Gates’ mouth was firm and unyielding under his. Just the way Julian liked to be kissed. Julian moaned deeply at the touch. It was a reminder that Gates had indeed survived. He would be fine. And Julian needed him to be fine. Gates was his commander. He embodied strength and leadership. Without that, their entire team would be lost. Plus he sucked cock better than any other man Julian had ever been with. It’d be a damn shame to lose that just after discovering it.

  He had to pull back when his dick became too hard for comfort. “That is one way to shut me up.”

  Gates winked but let go of Julian. “Sleep tight, Jules.”

  “Don’t let anything bite, sir.”

  Gates chuckled. “No shit.”

  Julian smiled as he sat up. “And Commander.”

  “Yes?”

  “I’m glad you’re okay.”

  Gates smiled and nodded. “Me too.”

  A gentle night breeze hit Julian as soon as he left Gates’ tent. There was a spiciness to the air that comforted him and made him relax. Though knowing Gates was going to be fine definitely helped lighten his mood as well. He suspected it was ridiculous to believe that just because their commander had made it, their mission would follow suit. But he did. Gates might bitch and moan about it but he would b
e front and center tomorrow. If for nothing else he’d be there for the boost it’d give the team’s morale. And he’d probably be back to bossing everyone around again. Gates did everything bossy. Even kissing.

  Julian smiled as he remembered the kiss. Yeah, he liked bossy kisses.

  “Hey!”

  Julian looked up to find Prescott walking toward him. “Yeah?”

  “Grab some food then it’s your turn guarding the traps.”

  “Yippee.” His sarcastic tone was in direct contrast with the burst of adrenaline that swept through his body. It couldn’t be helped. Soldiers didn’t jump up and down and clap their hands with glee like little schoolgirls no matter how much they were looking forward to an assignment.

  Prescott smiled and nodded as if he’d sensed Julian’s excitement. “And make sure you put on fresh bug-be-gone.”

  “Thanks.” Julian exaggerated the dry tone of his voice.

  “I’ve got the shift after yours so don’t be looking this way for any sympathy.”

  Julian smiled and shook his head as he went to get his rations. None of the men were looking for pity. Not tonight. No one needed to say it out loud though. Julian could feel the anger radiating through the encampment. They all wanted to be the one who got a little retribution for Jones and the commander.

  The food tasted like cardboard as he ate it. But that wasn’t new. Rations weren’t designed to taste good. Still, they kept his body going and they filled that aching void in the pit of his stomach, so he ate every last bite. And then he set off with a group of four other men to the traps.

  They had flashlights but that might give away whatever element of surprise they had left. So instead they wore night-vision visors that’d been amplified to pick up even cold-blooded life forms. No one knew for certain if the reptile men were cold-blooded but if they were, the soldiers wanted to be prepared. When they made it to the traps the new watch signaled the group they were relieving and then they took their posts. The whole changing of the guard was done in almost complete silence. All that was left to do was settle in and wait.