by Laurie Roma
Kahla moved the view on their end to the camera on the top of the wall screen so the entire group would be seen on the other end of the vid call. She continued to stand, and when Nico’s face appeared on the wall screen, Kahla didn’t give him time to speak.
“So, you’re killing a bunch of Dinos to take their bones to make shit?” Kahla heard Matt order her to shut up, but she just kept staring at Nico’s image on the wall screen.
Nico Artane looked tired, and there was darkness behind him that showed them that he’d been sleeping when he’d answered the call.
His eyes narrowed. “Hello to you, too, Kahla…and everyone. Do you know what fucking time it is here? No, we don’t kill them. Those things kill each other often enough that we just have to monitor an area, then go out after the fighting is over to collect them. Why are you asking me, and how do you even know about this? Did you tell them, Malloy?”
“You already told her about the damn facility, Artane,” Matt accused, then he smiled. “And our Dragon Warrior friend has already visited the site, and she has a souvenir to prove it.”
“She what?” The image of him jostled, as if he had just sat up. “You’re joking.”
“I’m as serious as a jump drive exploding,” Matt said dryly.
“Holy nova!” Nico growled, “We had that facility searched five fucking times, top to bottom looking for that missing core. We almost fired two people because of it!”
Amari sighed. “Did you have to tell him? I am not giving it back.”
And good luck to anyone who tried.
“Let’s focus, people,” Kahla said. “Nico, we need you to contact your people on Vexar. We are about a week away from the planet—”
“A week?” Amari stood up. “Nay, that will not do.” She walked over until she was next to Kahla, and Nico’s eyes went wide, presumably when he saw her glowing eyes. Amari stared at him as she commanded, “You will use whatever resources you have on Vexar to search for Quilla before we get there. We will be there in two days.”
“Fuck! That bitch is on Vexar? Son of a—hold on, I’m switching screens.”
The screen changed from the view of him looking down at his wrist unit to a steadier one that gave them a view of a living room. There was beautiful art hanging on the tan colored walls, and rich brown couches and chairs were set in a “U” shape around a low table. Off to the right side was a large, open kitchen area.
Several seconds later, Nico walked into the room with Magnus and Razar. All three males were wearing comfortable pants, Magnus in white, Nico in blue, and Razar in a pale-blue. Since they weren’t wearing shirt, everyone could see they were covered in tattoos, starting from behind their ears, down their necks and over their muscular chests, then disappearing into their waistbands.
“Mmm,” Amari purred with appreciation.
“Seconded,” Kahla murmured.
Reva thought the three males looked damn good, but chose not to say anything after she spied the furious expression on Malik’s face. It’s not like she could just…not see them. They were there, right in front of her. And all three of them were good looking males, but they weren’t Malik. She winked at him, and saw him relax a little, then he tensed up again when Magnus spoke.
“Reva, I’m sorry about the circumstances, but you know you will always have a position at Artane Electronics if you want it. We could really use your expertise.”
The job offer had surprised her, though, Magnus had jokingly asked her about it every time she saw him. Heading up security at one of their locations would pay in credits, but she could imagine being bored with a position like that.
Then again, she didn’t even know if she had a future to plan for yet.
“Thanks, Magnus.”
“Do you know everyone?” Malik growled at her.
She just patted his thigh, then left her hand resting on him.
Magnus said, “We have a prototype scanner that searches for heat and sound signatures that can reach around three times farther than anything currently available. It was just taken to Vexar last month.”
“Not sharing your toys again, Artane?” Matt mocked.
“It’s a fucking prototype,” Razar growled. “That planet is one big bastard, and our people have to constantly search for and collect the damn Dinos’ bones before they aren’t viable. Of course we were going to try to create something that made it easier, but it’s new, and frankly, untested. I’m going to have to talk one of the techs through modifying the program so it will be able to search through the rocks there, and that won’t be easy.”
“She will be in the mountains,” Amari assured.
“We think so, too,” Nico said. “It’s the only safe place for her if she doesn’t want to become a Dino’s chew toy.”
“Understood,” Kahla said. “We appreciate whatever help you can give us.”
“Tell your people not to confront her if they find her. They will just get themselves killed. She has two freaking laser rockets, and a shit ton of blasters with her. She also escaped with a crew of mercenaries,” Reva explained. “And that was just within the last month or so. I can’t imagine how much shit she has stockpiled, and we don’t know who else is working for her.”
“Fuck.”
Matt nodded. “Yeah. I have the elites looking. You should just have them go with your people as added security.”
Magnus nodded. “I will tell our head of security there to talk to the commanders. We can send out teams in the armored shuttles. Unfortunately, there is only one new scanner, so the other groups will just have to make do with the old ones.”
When they wrapped up the vid call, Amari announced she was going to sleep, then just disappeared again. Lazio and Darius bowed to both Reva and Malik before taking their leave as well. Rob offered to contact the commanders on Vexar to update them before he went to sleep, and Matt thanked him before heading to the doorway.
Malik rose from the couch and held his hands out to help Reva up. He hadn’t even realized how long they had been up until he had seen Nico’s sleepy gaze onscreen. Since that first night they had been together, Reva had been sleeping in his quarters. Some of her things remained in hers, but she had all but moved into his, and he couldn’t have been more pleased.
“Come, helicca. Let’s go to bed.”
“Quit rubbing it in,” Matt joked as he turned around to look at them.
Kahla followed them out into the hallway, and her voice lowered seductively when she said, “Perhaps you should join me if you are too lonely in your room.”
Matt’s eyes widened, and he visibly gulped. “Ah…stars, I wish I could, but…shit, I’m sorry, I can’t.”
Kahla’s enticing attitude shifted, and insult stiffened her posture. “Seriously? You’re turning down sex with me?”
“Kahla…”
“Forget it.” She stomped down the hallway.
Before she took two steps, Matt called out, “Kahla, I wish I could, but I made a promise to your cousins.”
That had her stopping in her tracks. She turned around slowly, and her eyes burned red when she spoke softly. “What did you say?”
“Fuck. I wasn’t supposed to tell you. Not that I thought you would want to—but if…hell, Kahla, they’re my friends, but they don’t think I’m good enough for you, and well, they threatened to rip off my balls if I touched you while we were on this mission, and I’m rather fond of them. At least they would let me live, but they told Rob that they’d toss his ass out the air lock. I’m also friends with your brothers, and I know they would gut me if I touched you.”
“I am going to kill them!” Kahla growled as she stormed off.
Malik watched Reva’s lips curve as she watched Matt chase after Kahla. “I did not know she had brothers.”
Reva nodded, and looked over at him. “Rogan and Lucian Adaro own a sanctuary on Earth, in the city Zion.”
“I have heard of it.”
Amusement flickered in her eyes. “And no, I don’t know them.”
He grinned back at her. Malik was going to have to get over his jealously at some point. Hopefully, that would happen after they bonded. When she yawned, he took her hand in his. “Come, helicca.”
As they walked down the hallway to his room, he thought over the job offer Magnus Artane had given her. She hadn’t agreed, but she hadn’t turned him down either. When she rubbed her cheek against his shoulder and let out a small contented purr, he realized that it was no longer about wanting or needing her.
His energy was already so merged with Reva that he wouldn’t survive without her.
It was like a lightning strike in his head…and his heart.
And he finally understood why he had been so on edge. It was the way she deflected any talk of the future. After she hadn’t answered Magnus, it became clear.
Reva thought she was going to die, but Malik would not allow that to happen.
He would protect her…until the end of days.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Malik hated Vexar the moment his feet touched the ground.
Coming down to the surface of the planet had certainly been easier with Amari around to transport them there, but the feeling of being ripped apart, then being put back together in the matter of seconds wasn’t something he thought he’d ever get used to.
Looking at the rest of their group, he realized he wasn’t the only one who felt that way. First checking Reva, he saw that she was breathing slow and deep as he was to try to keep the meal they had eaten a few hours ago in their stomachs.
Lazio had lost that battle, and was currently bent over, heaving the food he had eaten to the ground. Matt and Darius were trying stay on their feet, but Rob’s eyes rolled back into his head as he slowly toppled to the ground.
Kahla, damn her, just looked over at him and grinned.
And Amari was nowhere to be found.
She had ordered them to stay where she’d put them once they got to Vexar, but Malik hadn’t realized that she would leave them. Still, staying where they were sounded like a good idea. They were in a circular area high up on the side of a mountain, and from their vantage point, he had a good view of the vista in front of them for miles in every direction except for behind.
Vexar was a world of muted shades of gray, purple, and black. The mountain and other rocks were dark-gray and black, and the ground below them looked like purple sand. The sky was filled with an eerie haze of lavender clouds, and there was no moon or sun visible to give him any sign of whether it was day, or if night would soon be falling. The world was hazardous enough, so he was glad they wouldn’t have to search it in the dark…unless it took longer to find where they needed to go.
In front of them, the barren land merged into a forest of white trees that spanned for miles until it met another mountain range that looked like a small, dark shadow near the horizon. To the right of the trees was a large body of water that looked black. Amari had told them the water on Vexar was a very dark purple that burned the skin if touched.
Absolutely everything was dangerous on this planet.
The vast land in front of them continued until it curved around the forest and met the water, then continued as far as Malik’s eyes could see. There was an occasional rock cropping, but it looked like a sea of purple sand and dirt, with ripples and mounds that reminded him of the wastelands on Tartarus…except for the strange color.
In the open space below the ledge they were standing on, a few metallic red bones littered the ground in shapes of animal forms. Malik was grateful that Amari had put them in a spot high enough that any Vexar roaming their way couldn’t get to them.
Well, except for the cats and birds of prey.
The trip to Vexar had gone by quicker than expected because of Amari. Malik envied her abilities, but he thought he saw the strain it took on her when she used her magic often. It was why she spent most of their trip sleeping. Actually, he didn’t know what in hellfire she did when she went back to her ship. Even though she had attached it to his, Amari hadn’t created an entrance that anyone could use so the only way into her domain was by using magic.
That left her closed off from the rest of them.
They had gotten updates from the elites and the Artane Electronics people on Vexar over the last few days, and so far, they’d had no luck finding any sign of Quilla’s base. Some good had come out of their search since that meant Malik’s group wouldn’t have to look over those places again.
There was still a lot of land to cover, but Malik had convinced Amari to start them in the exact opposite area where the Alliance bases were located. It put them on the other side of the world from the elites, but that was the point. He had a feeling that if Quilla knew about the bases, she would have built her own as far away from the humans as possible.
It was what he would have done, after all.
To their benefit, the location they were in was between the drastic cold when snow would cover the land and the days when the sun scorched skin. It was cool enough that Malik was comfortable wearing his armor. Amari had also given Matt and Rob armor to wear that would protect them from the elements and the beasts that lived there.
She had created similar skin-tight black suits that matched her own for Reva and Kahla, though she had removed the shiny quality from everyone’s clothing. She’d said the black would keep them camouflaged so the Dinos would have a difficult time seeing them, and any advantage they could get was needed.
Any color would have made them look like something to eat.
And no one wanted that.
He assumed that was also the reason she had changed their swords and knives to a strange black that seemed to absorb any light that hit the metal. Amari carried a sword on her back and the red bone dagger on her belt, but Malik wondered why she bothered when she could just use her magic. Both Reva and Kahla carried knives along with blasters, while Amari had to create blades for Matt and Rob since she hadn’t been willing to allow them to the surface with just Alliance weapons.
Darius and Rob had offered to carry the small water canteen packs that fit on their backs. Since the world had no drinkable water for them unless it rained, they had to bring their own. Malik just hoped they didn’t have to stay long enough to eat or sleep on the planet.
He thought Reva looked wonderful in the form fitting black as he pulled her against him. “Are you well?”
She looked up at him. “I felt like I was going to puke my guts out…like Lazio.”
“Just ignore me,” Lazio moaned. “Pretend I’m not here.”
Kahla leaned down and lightly slapped Rob’s cheek. “Come now, sunbeam. Rise and shine.”
Rob groaned. “Am I dead?”
“No, but I’m guessing you feel like you are,” Matt said as he leaned against a rock.
“Let’s never do that again,” Lazio grumbled.
“Unfortunately, I believe that is our only option to get back to the ship,” Darius growled darkly. “And why couldn’t we bring the damn thing down here again?”
Reva snorted delicately. “And have the Dinos eat it for dinner? No, thanks.”
Darius sighed. “Right.”
Kahla looked around. “Where is Amari?”
“Here.”
They looked down and saw Amari sitting on the back of a giant, neon-yellow creature. The Dino had a long, narrow head with sharp teeth sticking out of its mouth. The creature glanced up as it lumbered toward them, then it huffed out an irritated sound as it looked at their group. There were enormous, flat plates that were pointed at the tips sticking out from all over its body, except for behind its neck, where Amari was sitting.
The crazy female.
Kahla called out, “I thought you said those things couldn’t be reasoned with.”
“I said you could not reason with them. I can.”
When they got closer, Amari hopped off its back, and stroked the creature’s thick skin on the side of its neck. It lowered its head, then bumped the side of it against her, avoiding touching her wi
th the sharp spike on its forehead.
“Thank you for the ride, my friend.”
It bumped against her again before turning and lumbering off.
“What the—?”
Amari appeared on the ledge with them, and said, “It was nice to meet a new friend so soon. Though, he was not pleased when I told him that he could not eat you.”
While the others gaped at the Dragon Warrior, Reva shook her head in wonder. “Can you really communicate with them?”
“Most of them. However, some of the species are more difficult than others, and there are a select few that will not respond to any attempt to connect. It is not how we are communicating right now. It is more impressions than words. That species is very sweet.”
“Sure it is,” Malik murmured, not believing it for a second. That creature had looked at them as if they were a meal, and would have attacked if Amari hadn’t told him that he could not. He still had a difficult time believing that she could talk to them, but with her, anything was possible.
“I did not tell you before,” Amari began, “but I wanted to find one of them to see if I could ask if they had sensed anything that might help us narrow down the search.” She pointed toward the water and the shadow near the horizon. “There is another mountain range beyond the forest. He and his brethren do not go near there now. Something about it makes him uneasy. It is a good place to start.”
“Because we really want to go somewhere that thing won’t?”
Amari shot Lazio a look. “You could have stayed on the ship. I informed you that you would not like Vexar.”
“That is an understatement for what I feel for this place, but I am no coward.”
Amari glanced down at where he’d been sick, and suddenly, it was gone and clean again. “That will attract the Dinos.”
“We’re leaving, aren’t we?”
“Aye, but that would have given them your scent, and they would hunt you until you leave this planet.”
Lazio went pale. “Thanks for the cleanup. If only I had some mouth cleaner now…hey! That’s so cool!” He smacked his lip together, then grinned. “What is that type of mint? It doesn’t matter. It tastes great! Thank you!”