“Maybe I could set up the first animal refuge on your planet,” said Melody. “There’s not enough safe space on Earth to house the ones we have there. I could start an intergalactic animal refuge sanctuary. Be chief executive of my own company.”
“Our Elders might have something to say about that,” said Lazet. “Bringing diseased animals from another planet to Vorten will not be approved.”
“If your Elders refuse me, then they’re heartless,” said Melody. “Who can’t resist something this adorable?” She stroked her fingers across the head of the now sleeping belloc.
Lazet sighed, he could tell this was a fight he had no way of winning. “What are you going to call him?”
“Brutus,” said Melody. “When he grows up, he’s going to be something of a fighter.”
Urel peered quizzically at the tiny creature in Melody’s arms. “He doesn’t look like much of a brute to me.”
“But he’s tough,” said Melody, “and fearless. He came to find me and get help, so it shows he’s smart, as well. I think it’s a perfect name for him.”
“Brutus it is.” Every muscle in Lazet’s body tensed. The Fraken were summoning him with the shock collar, and they were using the highest setting possible, showing their displeasure at him saving Melody and Urel from their icy deaths.
“What’s wrong?” Melody was at his side in seconds.
The muscles in Lazet’s jaw welded his mouth shut. He shook his head and tried to fight through the pain.
“What’s happening?” Melody peered anxiously into Lazet’s face.
Urel grabbed Melody’s arm. “It’s the Fraken. They’re shocking him.”
Lazet pointed at the collar, just as another overwhelming blast of pain shot through him, and he slumped to the ground.
Chapter 19
“Lazet! Wake up.” Melody set Brutus on the ground, before cupping Lazet’s cheek in her hand. He was covered in sweat, his eyes closed, and the muscles in his arms twitched uncontrollably.
“We need to get him somewhere safe and make sure he’s okay,” said Urel. “We’re too exposed out here.”
Melody nodded. “We can move him between the two of us.” She grabbed hold of Lazet’s left arm, and Urel took the right, and they dragged Lazet to a secluded area behind a bank of evergreen foliage, Brutus following closely behind.
Urel dropped his hold on Lazet’s arm and sunk to the ground. “Being dumped in icy cold water has taken most of my energy.”
“Me too.” Melody dropped to her knees, every bone in her body feeling as if it was made of ice, and studied Lazet’s face.
Urel inspected Lazet’s collar. “This shouldn’t be strong enough to knock him out. The Fraken must have adjusted the power on it. The worst I’ve seen it do to a warrior is bring him to his knees.”
“They’re worried,” said Melody as she shrugged off her sodden jacket and wrung water out of it. “They’ll have seen what happened on the ice.”
“What did happen?” asked Urel. “I have no memory of events after we hit the water.”
“They lied to us,” said Melody. “Lazet agreed you should be set down, but just as they began to lower you, they dropped us both.”
“And Lazet got us out?”
“I did,” said Melody. “Well, I held on to you, and Lazet pulled us out.”
“You saved my life,” said Urel.
“It was nothing,” said Melody, her attention still on Lazet. “Shouldn’t we help him?”
“Until the Fraken stop shocking him, there is little we can do.” Urel touched Melody’s arm. “How did you help me?”
“I held on to you so you didn’t sink.”
“I am in your debt,” said Urel.
“Don’t be,” said Melody. “You don’t owe me anything.”
“But I do.” Urel turned to Melody and placed his hand over her heart. It was a touch she found reassuring. There was nothing sensual in it, but it suggested he believed in her. It brought a lump to her throat. “You have shown me a great kindness by saving my life. Even when we were suspended over the water, you were determined to keep me alive, sacrificing yourself to do so. You show great courage.”
Melody swallowed. “Really, it was best if you survived.”
“We both need to survive this now,” said Urel. “We are bonded together because you helped me in this way. My family will want to meet you and see the brave warrior woman who saved my life.”
“Don’t get their hopes up about me,” said Melody. “I’m a disappointment to most.”
“I’m sure that is not true.” Urel leaned forward and pressed his forehead against Melody’s. “You are now part of my family.”
“I’ve never had much in the way of a family.” Melody liked the idea of being part of Urel’s family unit. On Earth, it had just been her mom, and she’d never been much of a mother, setting Melody to work behind the bar when she was barely a teenager, expecting her to deal with drunks and deviants. It would be nice to have a family who looked out for her.
Urel took hold of Melody’s hand and hissed softly as he saw the damage to her knuckles. He placed her hand over his own heart, and she felt the slow, regular rhythm through his chest. “You are my sister.”
Melody grinned. Urel would be a great brother. She brushed away a stray tear that ran down her cheek.
“Now, let’s see what we can do for our friend.” Urel took hold of Melody’s hand as he turned back to Lazet. “The shock collar sends an electrical impulse through tiny sensors imbedded in them. All it should do is sting, but that is not pleasant to experience. If the Fraken are manipulating the strength of the collars, they may be strong enough to damage a Vorten. It would be best to remove the collar, but my attempts, so far, have failed.”
“You think the shock damaged Lazet?” A pulse of rage ran through Melody.
“It might have,” said Urel. “For now, the best we can do is get him warm and dry. You remove his clothing, and I’ll light a fire. Then you can introduce me to our new companion.” He gestured to Brutus, who stood watching them.
“That’s Brutus.” Melody nodded at the belloc as she knelt next to Lazet. “I found him injured. He’s staying with us.” She unclipped Lazet’s weapons belt and harness before yanking off his close-fitting top. Her fingers brushed over the hard muscles of his chest. There were several stripes of scarring across his abdomen.
Urel briefly patted Brutus on the head. “I have never seen Lazet behave as he did on the ice.”
“I get the impression I infuriate him.” Melody removed her hand from Lazet’s chest and went to work on sliding his trousers over his solid thigh muscles.
“Your determination to do things a certain way might be unusual to him.”
“Vorten women are not like that?”
“They are similar to the males,” said Urel. “And Vorten women do not form strong bonds with their mates. They use them for their breeding prowess before moving on to a stronger companion to spend time with.”
“They don’t have relationships like we do on Earth?”
“They do not.” Urel finished lighting the fire and moved back to inspect Lazet’s collar. “Humans bond for life, is that correct?”
“Some do,” said Melody, “but not all. We tend to have exclusive relationships if you like. So, we spend time with a particular individual.”
Urel nodded. “I understand that. The Deorg have partners who are chosen for us at a young age.”
“You have arranged marriages?”
“We don’t have marriages in the sense that I understand you do on Earth,” said Urel. “But our parents select a suitable mate for us. Someone of a similar temperament and age. Someone who is healthy and will support our endeavours.”
“What about love?” asked Melody.
“The Deorg are a loving race.”
“But don’t you love your life partner?”
“I do not have one,” said Urel.
“Why not?”
Urel dipped his head.
“I am not considered a suitable match.”
“You seem like a great match to me.” Melody couldn’t see anything wrong with Urel, and he seemed kind and clever. Why wouldn’t he be suitable to be anyone’s mate?
Urel smiled. “You are kind. But we are a race who values conformity in all areas of our life. I am too questioning for my own good. And I like to explore. My bond with the Vorten, for example, is not always accepted.”
“I thought the Deorg got on well with the Vorten,” said Melody. “There’s always some report on the comms channel on Earth about you working together.”
“Yes, in an official capacity, we work well together,” said Urel. “But friendships among us are rare. Deorg consider Vortens too dangerous to spend time with.”
“I understand why many might think that,” said Melody. “They are pretty terrifying when you see them for the first time.”
“They are,” said Urel. “But I know not to judge an individual simply by the way they look.”
“Because of your friendship with Lazet and his warrior friend, you’re deemed unsuitable to have a mate?”
“It’s more than that.” Urel dropped his gaze. “I do not work as well as the others do.”
“Which bits of you don’t work?”
“Bits I am not comfortable discussing with you, despite you being my new sister.” Urel shot Melody a shy smile.
Melody blushed. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to pry.”
“That’s quite all right,” said Urel. “As I said, I like to explore and question too much, as well. We have that in common.”
Melody smiled at him. “I’m sure I can find you someone lovely to mate with if you’re open to human company.”
Urel blinked at Melody. “That’s not something I’ve considered.”
“Us humans aren’t so bad,” said Melody.
Lazet groaned and turned on his side. “You’re not bad; you’re terrible.”
***
Lazet’s head pounded as if it had been trampled by a herd of Taxlien water buffalo. His tongue felt swollen in his mouth, and his eyes were dry and scratchy.
“You’re awake!” Melody knelt beside him, her concerned gaze roving over his body.
“You wouldn’t stop talking,” said Lazet. “Hard to sleep when you’re constantly chattering.”
Melody shook her head. “You weren’t asleep; you were unconscious. And don’t worry about thanking us for saving your life.”
“How did you save my life?” Lazet raised his head and nodded at Urel.
“Just now, after the Fraken decided to shock you into unconsciousness with that hateful collar,” said Melody, “we got you somewhere safe and kept an eye on you, making sure you didn’t bite your stupid tongue and choke to death.”
“Oh, that.” Lazet’s head sunk back to the ground. He could feel the skin under his collar burning.
“It was serious, my friend,” said Urel. “The Fraken are not happy with you. Be prepared for more shocks.”
“They won’t be happy with any of us,” said Lazet. “They will be hunting all of us now.”
“We got you under some tree cover,” said Melody. “I don’t think they’ll be able to see in here. It will buy us time.”
“But they’ll be looking,” said Lazet. “They will send in drones or a few Fraken beasts to draw us out.”
“We don’t have much time left in this game,” said Urel.
Lazet sat up, stifling a grunt of pain as he did so. They had to figure out their final action plan before the Fraken found them again. He looked over at Melody and saw she was shivering violently. “You need to get dry.”
“My coat’s drying by the fire.”
“Take off the rest of your clothes to dry,” said Lazet. “You too, Urel. If you both get sick now, I’m not carrying you through the rest of this game.”
“I wouldn’t ask you to,” said Melody.
“Clothes off. Now.” Lazet pointed towards the fire, and after some huffing, Melody turned and shrugged off her shirt. Urel stood next to her and removed his sodden kaftan, revealing long, thin blue limbs and a concave torso.
“And your trousers, too,” said Lazet to Melody. He enjoyed watching her as she removed her clothing under his instruction. He would like to watch her do that again, but next time, it would be somewhere where they were warm and safe, and there was no chance of being interrupted or attacked by any Fraken. And, Urel wasn’t standing there shivering and stamping his flat feet.
Urel chuckled to himself as he saw Lazet watching Melody. “I do not suffer the cold so badly, but it will do me no harm to be dry as well.”
Melody nodded as she rubbed her hands over her arms and legs. “At least I know you’re not going to be leering at me.”
“I would never do that to a sister,” said Urel.
Lazet gave Melody a puzzled look. “What have I missed?”
“I have a brother.” Melody grinned at Lazet. “Urel thinks, because I helped him get out of the water, we are now bonded.”
Lazet smiled at Urel. “Good call. Although, having Melody as a sister is going to be an enormous pain.”
Urel grinned back at Lazet. “I am already enjoying having Melody in my family. She has a fire in her belly.” He prodded a finger between Melody’s ribs.
“Quit it, you two,” said Melody. “Haven’t we got some important plan to discuss about getting out of this nightmare?”
The smile on Lazet’s face faded. “We need to figure out what Axen has in store for us, how we can help him from inside the game, and hope he hurries up.”
“I can help with that,” said Urel. “It’s partly the reason I’m in here.”
“You know Axen’s escape plan?” asked Lazet.
“I do,” said Urel. “I helped to get him out of the game with his human companion.”
“Do you mean Eloise?” asked Melody. “How’s she doing?”
“You know Axen’s mate?” asked Urel.
“She’s his mate!” Melody gaped at Urel. “Are you sure?”
Urel laughed. “I am absolutely certain. Their quarters are not far from mine. They are very... enthusiastic with each other.”
“Wow. Eloise has bagged herself a warrior. Good for her.”
“Their time in the game drew them to each other,” said Urel. “But I think your friend, Eloise, was the reason Axen finally decided to act.”
“So, you got him out?” asked Lazet.
“I helped,” said Urel. “But Axen had to work hard from this side to ensure the information got through to me, so I could disrupt the game barrier to let him and Eloise out.”
“That’s how he did it.” Lazet slapped a hand against his thigh. “He had you working from the other side.”
“What do you mean by disrupting the game barrier?” asked Melody.
Urel glanced around him. “We are safe enough here for me to tell you. I have been working for almost a cycle now to figure out how to damage the barrier the Fraken use to contain their terraformed games. Their methods are advanced, but I identified a flaw in their programing. I was able to slip a piece of my own code into the game network. It means I have the ability to open a door in the barrier and move from the game back into the real world.”
“And you told Axen where to be in his game so you could get him out?” asked Lazet.
“No. Axen had to send me a message to let me know he was ready to test the theory,” said Urel. “Although my idea worked in simulations, I was never able to test it on an actual Fraken game. Axen agreed he would be the test subject when we first tried. I gave him a coded message to slip through the comms channel when he accessed it to talk to the Fraken. He had the code with him for some time before using it in his last game.”
“Eloise made him use the code?” asked Melody.
“She must have done something to make him want to end the game,” said Urel. “But it was a huge risk. There was every chance the Fraken could intercept the message.”
“Your friend, Eloise, m
ust be something special,” said Lazet.
“She’s incredible,” said Melody, “as are all human women.”
Lazet grinned at her. “As I’m beginning to realize.”
Urel continued. “I never anticipated I would be on this side of the game barrier, but I have a code that will disrupt the barrier from this side. It needs to be sent through a Fraken communication link and will activate the system externally and allow a passage to be broken through the barrier, alerting Axen we are ready to leave. It will be our way of getting out.”
“So, let’s get to a comms link,” said Melody.
“It’s not that simple,” said Lazet. “A Fraken has to activate the comms link. I can wait by one for a galactic cycle, but until they’re ready to talk to me, there’s nothing I can do to get it to activate.”
“I have had some success in making them function in simulations,” said Urel. “But I’ve never tried on a genuine Fraken comms link.”
“How successful were your simulations?” asked Lazet.
“They worked half of the time,” said Urel.
“Those aren’t terrible odds,” said Melody.
“They aren’t great, though,” said Lazet. “Getting the Fraken to open a link would be easier. Not so long ago, they were shocking my collar to get my attention. They must want to speak with me.”
Urel shuffled his feet on the ground. “I was wondering if that last shock they sent was an attempt to end your life. That could be why they’ve stopped shocking you. It was a final blast to punish you and finish this game by getting rid of you.”
“They can try to finish me,” growled Lazet.
“We can’t sit around here and wait for the Fraken to react,” said Melody. “There must be some way we can get the link to work.”
Lazet climbed to his feet. “There is. I can get their attention.”
Chapter 20
The early morning light crept through the sparse trees as Melody blinked rapidly at Lazet. “What are you going to do to get the Frakens’ attention?”
“I’m going to make sure they can see me and know I’m still alive. They’ll want to talk to me after the incident on the ice, although, I doubt any explanation I give them will be good enough. At the very least, they’ll want to punish me some more.” Lazet shrugged on his still damp clothes, the fabric already drying, thanks to its adaptive technology, before clipping on his weapons harness and belt.
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