Claiming Their Mate

by Kallista Dane

  On foot? It was daylight when she left. In this heat, she’ll be lucky to have made it a dozen namods before she collapsed, Zhynn replied. Sound carried long distances in the vast emptiness. They’d agreed to maintain their silent form of communication, rather than alert unknown desert-dwelling life forms of their presence.

  They set a brisk pace, running through the desert, but it was one they could keep up for hours if necessary. Their warrior training kept them fit but they’d built their stamina long before that when they were lads, hunting norendaal stags on foot in the forests back home.

  Following her tracks was easy. Their human had stayed close to the convoy route, and her small footsteps appeared from time to time in semi-sheltered areas where the desert winds hadn’t erased them. The depth of the heel prints in the sand told them she was running, too.

  Hours passed. Paw and tail marks crisscrossed her route from time to time. Zandyr knelt at one point, examining a spot where she’d crouched behind some rocks, probably to avoid being spotted by one of the convoys that traveled the route.

  She’s beginning to tire. Her footprints are not as deep and they’re closer together, he said.

  Zhynn had gone ahead. That’s not what’s worrying me, he replied, bending forward to examine the surface in the dim moonlight. We’re not the only ones tracking her. Something else is. Something huge.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Delta

  She took shelter behind a huge boulder, listening intently. For the last few miles, she’d been aware she wasn’t alone in the desert. The smaller creatures didn’t concern her. She’d noticed them coming out hours ago, as soon as twilight fell. Shiny beetles as big around as her fist scurried along. lizard-like creatures covered with scales slogged after them.

  Cojee. That’s what Fatar called them. She’d seen them hanging by the neck in the market. He said they were good eating, but they didn’t look like they had much flesh on their bones. The creatures reminded her of iguanas back home. Miniature versions of dinosaurs that once roamed Earth.

  The alien being that had her worried wasn’t a beetle or a scrawny lizard. This creature was far bigger. Although it was skilled at staying out of sight, she caught a glimpse of a huge shadow once in the moonlight. And it seemed to be following her.

  She picked up a low huffing noise in the distance, and a cold shiver of fear ran down her spine. Her senses went on high alert. Both reactions remnants of her primitive brain, reflexes honed through millions of years of evolution. Traits that served the human race well in the struggle for survival.

  She made a quick inventory of her meager possessions. What weapons did she have to defend herself against an unknown threat? The water flask was useless. Made of animal skins, it would simply burst if she tried to hit anything with it, and she’d lose the precious liquid inside. I’d rather be eaten alive than die of thirst. At least it would be over fast.

  The genetic modifications she’d undergone allowed her to go for long periods without eating or drinking. But that was when she’d “checked out,” as she and her fellow crew members of the Luna called it. The process where they slowed all their bodily functions until they achieved a state of near-suspended animation.

  When she checked out, Delta could handle extreme variations in temperature as well. Her training included spending days on simulated ice planets and worlds with intense heat from volcanic activity, which was why she’d decided to attempt the journey through the desert. But those simulations required very little from her other than giving her the opportunity to practice slowing her heart rate and reducing the demands on her body. She’d never demanded peak performance from herself in one of those high-stress environments.

  Here on Borvaan, she’d been running for hours without stopping. Though she’d begun her trek while the sun was low in the sky, the heat still radiated from sand baked at incredibly high temperatures for hours. She had on one of the thin white robes, slit nearly up to her crotch in front and back so she could take long strides unimpeded by the garment. It had sheltered her from the sun’s rays, but darkness had fallen hours ago, and the winds blowing across the desert tangled the lower portion around her legs as she ran. Still, it gave her some protection from the grains of sand whipping up, sharp as tiny shards of glass, slashing at every patch of exposed skin.

  She realized her mind was wandering and recognized the first signs of fatigue. Focus, Delta. Weapons.

  Along with the water flask strapped to her hip, she carried a slim dagger with a blade about as long as her hand. Neema had given it to her before she snuck out of the twins’ suite.

  “How did you manage to hang onto this?” Delta asked when her friend handed it over.

  Neema grinned and waved a delicate hand over her massive frame. “It’s easy. When you’re built like this, they can’t possibly search every crevice.”

  Delta put her arms as far as she could around the Orythian and hugged her tight. “I’ll come back for you. I promise.”

  “I’d only slow you down. You and those luscious Tharans.” Neema shook her head. “They look so sweet, but I never even got to lick one of them. You’re a lucky girl, you know. They tried you first. One taste of this…” She did a slow shimmy, ripples moving down her bulk like thick caramel pouring over an ice cream sundae. “And they’d never have looked twice at you!”

  She laughed, a tiny tinkling sound, surprising coming from such a large creature. “No. Don’t try to rescue me. Just do as I asked. Contact my oldest brother, General Thane. I’m sure he’s been searching for me all over the galaxy ever since that slave trader kidnapped me. Thane will assemble a fleet of starships and storm this place to get me back.” Her eyes grew misty. “I’m the baby of the family. He’d do anything for his little sister.”

  Delta couldn’t help smiling at the memory as she tested the dagger, sliding one finger along the sharp blade. It was small, but it would have to do.

  Her only other option was to throw stones at whatever creature was stalking her and try to wound it or drive it away. Checking out wouldn’t help in this situation. Even if she slowed her vital signs down enough to make her body appear as lifeless as one of the rocks around her, the alien creature could still pick up her scent.

  Hiding would do no good, either, for the same reason. Any creature with the ability to survive in this desolation would follow her trail relentlessly and find her no matter how deeply she burrowed into one of the nooks between scattered boulders.

  Delta did a quick calculation. She’d been unconscious for most of the trip to Borsai, but Fatar said they didn’t dare cross the desert at night, so it must have taken one full day. The yamila covered far more ground in every step than she could, but they were also slower. By running, she’d probably matched their pace, which meant she still had several hours to go before getting to the landing station. Chances were, the creature tracking her would make a move long before she had any hope of reaching shelter.

  She scanned the horizon, looking for a place to make her stand. In the distance she spotted a tall outcropping of rock with a sheer vertical face and a reasonably flat area on top. She had no idea how large her stalker was, but with any luck she could climb up there, shove a few large rocks down and kill or injure the beast. At the very least, she might scare it off.

  I don’t know anything about the life forms on this planet. If the damn thing chasing me is like King Kong, it could just stand up, pluck me off, and carry me away in one huge hand.

  Delta forced the image out of her mind. If I give in to negative thoughts, I don’t need to worry about some unknown creature defeating me in a battle. I’ll have lost already.

  Delta took a sip of her precious water, then another. She’d need every ounce of strength to survive the next few hours. With the dagger in one hand and a fist-sized rock in the other, she took a deep breath and sprinted off.

  Her chest heaved with the effort of running full out through the soft sandy surface. She risked a look back
as she fled. The dark shape was following her, not even bothering to try and hide anymore.

  A moment later, she crashed to the ground. Her left foot had slipped on one of the small rocks dotted around the desert floor. She scrambled to her feet and bit back a cry of pain as she nearly crumpled. Delta gritted her teeth, pulled herself to a standing position, and tried again, gingerly putting weight on her left foot.

  Fuck. The ankle was definitely sprained. With any luck, it wasn’t broken. Fine. I can run on a sprained ankle. It will hurt, but not as much as getting eaten alive by some alien monster. She grabbed one side of her robe and sliced off a length of cloth with the dagger then crouched and wound it tightly around her ankle, listening the whole time for the huffing noise.

  She glanced back before standing up again. The dark shape was still moving toward her. The closer it came, the bigger she realized it was. She took a step or two, stifling a moan. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck! Maybe it is broken. Delta took off again, clenching her jaw to keep from crying out every time her left foot hit the ground.

  As she ran, she tried to clear her mind. Find that place she went to when she checked out. If she couldn’t will the pain away, she’d have to leave it – and leave her body. She concentrated on her breathing, blocking every other thought from her mind until her conscious self began drifting away.

  Calm. Peace. The pain still existed. She was dimly aware of it, stabbing her with every step she took. But that was back in her body. She’d gone beyond there, to a place where she could simply observe Delta. Be aware of the grating sound as jagged edges of bone ground against each other. Note with clinical detachment how reserves of adrenaline allowed her to pick up the pace and run faster than she’d ever thought she could. Track the progress of the monster behind her by its deep growls, growing louder as it narrowed the distance between them.

  Its scent came to her on the desert wind. A stomach-churning foul odor. She kept her breathing steady, banished the urge to gag as the stink filled her lungs. Yet another barrier to overcome.

  I’ve never had a child, but this must be what women did in the old days when they gave birth. Centered their consciousness so their bodies could produce the powerful contractions that spit a baby out without turning into screaming banshees.

  In the past, she’d always checked out in silence. Lying still. It was a helluva lot harder to accomplish when she was demanding maximum effort from every cell.

  Delta willed her consciousness to the top of the rocky crag. Her mind went there, looking down at her as she dashed the last few hundred yards and launched itself at the steep cliff, clawing for a handhold with the dagger clenched between her teeth.

  For her mind, it was as easy as flying. But her body struggled, fingers bloodying as she rammed them into narrow crevices in the face then pulled herself up. She did it all with two hands and one foot, dragging her other leg along as she made her way up, inch by painful inch.

  She’d had advanced training to prepare for her mission into space. Her rank as an officer didn’t earn her any special treatment. Every member of her team had to undergo a rigorous regime of conditioning then pass a series of physical tests to get them ready for whatever challenges unknown worlds might have in store for them. She’d pulled herself hand over hand up a rope forty feet high back in the gym, but that was after a solid night’s rest. Not after running through the heat of the desert for hours.

  This cliff was twice that height. Yeah, well, I’ve got a little more motivation this time, her rational mind reminded her. Back in the gym I didn’t have an alien beast ready to take a bite out of my ass the whole way up.

  She started to slip. Flailing wildly for any kind of hold, she landed on a narrow ledge with her full weight coming down on her left foot. The shocking pain made Delta lose her fragile link to blessed oblivion. She rocketed back into full consciousness with an ear-splitting scream.

  Her cry was answered with a thunderous roar that shook the ground. She heard jaws snapping. Despite her better judgement she looked down – into the mouth of a beast from hell.

  The cojee-ma. A giant version of the scaled lizard sold in the marketplace. She’d heard tales of it from the other females in the harem. According to legend, the first Lord of Borvaan built a wall to protect his people from the monster. Before that, it would raid the isolated settlements of desert-dwelling tribes, snatching people in its jaws. Tearing their bodies limb from limb then devouring them while their screams still echoed in the night. The beast ate anything alive, but it was said to have a fondness for the taste of Borvaani flesh.

  Authorities said cojee-ma had been extinct for at least a millennium, hunted and destroyed by brave Borvaani soldiers. But the creature still lived in the legends told by firelight late at night, even within the walls of the citadel.

  All that went through her mind in a flash. She jammed the fingers of her right hand into a tiny crack and pulled herself up a few feet. The creature got on its hind legs and clawed at the rock face, trying to lift its bulk off the ground enough to grab her legs in its mouth.

  Another ferocious roar shook the ground so hard it almost made her lose her grip. This isn’t a monster from hell, Delta told herself. It’s just a huge lizard, like one of the dinosaurs back on Earth millions of years ago.

  Yeah, well, humans weren’t around back then. They didn’t have to fight dinosaurs with nothing but a knife too small to do anything but piss them off.

  She gauged the distance to the plateau at the top of the cliff. Another thirty feet, and she’d be there. Even on its hind legs, the cojee-ma wouldn’t be able to reach her there. Once on top, she could lie back, check out again, and simply wait for the creature to tire and go away.

  Somehow, she managed to pull herself together. Delta put fear aside and crawled up the cliff, sometimes only managing to gain a few inches. When she found a good foothold for the toes of her right foot, she pushed off with her powerful thigh muscles and leveraged herself up several feet at once.

  When her right hand encountered nothing but air, she realized she’d made it to the top. Scrabbling in the dirt, she managed to drag her body over the edge. Delta rolled over onto her back, gasping for air, and stared up at the heavens.

  “Why the hell did I ever think exploring space sounded like a good way to spend my life,” she muttered. “But I made it. I’m up here and thank the Goddess, that thing isn’t.”

  She could barely hear her own voice over the constant roar of the beast. It sounded just as loud up here as it had when she was right above it on the cliff face. Wait… sounded just as loud? Delta got to her knees and peered over the edge.

  Fuck, fuck and triple fuck. She watched the cojee-ma dig its massive claws into the rock face, scratching away until it had carved out a niche. It hauled itself up ten feet, clawed out a foothold with its back paws, and stretched its front legs out to do it again. The damn thing knew how to climb!

  She glanced around wildly. The plateau was bare, a flat oval space roughly a hundred yards from one end to the other, the ground dropping away on all sides to sheer cliffs like the one she’d just climbed. One part of her brain couldn’t help noting it was an area roughly the size of the Roman Coliseum back on Earth.

  She couldn’t run anymore, and she had no place to hide. She’d have to fight the beast to survive.

  I’m alone here, on a desert planet, in an alien arena under the stars – and I’ve just been promoted to gladiator.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Zhynn

  He heard the scream, just before it was drowned out by an earth-shattering roar.

  Delta! Hang on, we’re coming.

  Fool! She can’t hear you, Zandyr shouted in his head. The Bond isn’t strong enough yet.

  It will never get a chance to become strong if you don’t get your ass moving, Zhynn yelled back. Besides, even if I shouted out loud, that thing would drown me out.

  He switched from the loping gait he used when covering long distances to a dead run
, Zandyr by his side.

  What in the name of the Sacred Ones do you think is after her? Zandyr asked.

  I heard stories of horrible monsters living in the desert. Beasts that have carried off unsuspecting travelers for thousands of years. They come out to hunt at twilight and rule the desert in the darkness. The Borvaani call them cojee-ma. My guess is we’re dealing with a remnant of life on this planet eons ago. A species that’s adapted and survived despite all odds.

  We’ve faced plenty of beasts over the years. Those aatapa on Semulon VI were a fucking nightmare, Zandyr replied. But one thing I learned is that no matter how invincible it seems, every creature has a weak spot. We just have to find it.

  Before it finds ours, Zhynn shot back.

  Too late, Brother. It’s already found our weakness, Zhynn said, as Delta’s screams echoed in the night.

  Delta

  She hauled herself painfully to her feet. I’ll be damned if I go down without a fight. Scrabbling in the dirt, she collected a pile of rocks then stood back from the edge of the cliff with the dagger clutched in one hand.

  If I can take out both his eyes with rocks and blind the creature, maybe I can get close enough to slip under him and slit his throat.

  Another roar shook the ground under her feet. One huge claw appeared over the edge of the cliff and sank deep into the surface of the plateau. The other claw buried itself several feet farther in. She heard a deep bellow, a harsh scrabbling sound, and the cojee-ma’s head rose into view.

  “Goddess help me,” she breathed. The creature’s body was covered with thick gray-brown scales, forming a nearly impenetrable natural armor. Two cold yellow eyes raked over the plateau. It saw her, opened its mouth, and let out another bloodcurdling roar then surged up and thrust its head forward, snapping in her direction with three rows of razor-sharp teeth, each the size of her forearm.