by Anna Hackett
Magnus frowned. “I’m detecting dantane in the rock. The mineral will distort our scanners and comms.” The imperator looked around the gloom. “I am detecting what looks like a large network of tunnels nearby.” He pointed, and Sage could just barely make out a distant shoreline. Maybe.
“Time for a swim,” Jax said.
Toren and Acton flicked on small lights on their cybernetic implants. They all started across the water. Sage used some breaststroke, kicking hard. While aboard the Helios, swimming was something she’d missed.
They were halfway across when Rillian stopped, treading water. A frown marred the man’s handsome face.
“Rillian?” Magnus asked.
“My symbiont is…unsettled.”
There was a splash in the water nearby, a ripple breaking the smooth surface.
Sage’s heart stopped for a moment. Oh, no.
“There’s something in the water,” Quinn whispered.
“Swim,” Magnus ordered.
They all moved, cutting through the water as fast as they could. More ripples broke out, and Sage spotted a dark body that briefly rose to the surface for a moment.
Her gut clenched, primal fear moving through her.
Acton’s arm brushed hers. “Keep going. I won’t let anything hurt you.”
There were more splashes all around them. Jeez, whatever they were, there were a lot of them.
“They’re surrounding us,” Mace growled.
“What the hell are they?” Quinn asked.
Suddenly, Toren cursed. Something yanked the cyborg under the water.
As Toren disappeared, Sage cried out. Jax dove into the water and Quinn drew a knife.
There was a loud splash behind them, and they all spun.
That’s when Sage got a good view of one of the creatures.
Her breath caught in her throat. They were shark-like robots. They were made of scrap metal, with sinuous bodies, and powerful tails covered in spikes.
And gleaming metal fangs.
Oh, fuck.
“Go!” Acton yelled.
Toren and Jax burst out of the water, heaving in air.
One of the shark bots rose up, arrowing toward Quinn. As it neared, she dodged to the side and stabbed at it with her knife.
It thrashed around, jaws snapping at the woman. It broke free, turned in a quick circle, and rushed back at her again.
Jax was swimming toward Quinn as fast as he could. She stabbed at the bot again, and one of its neon eyes flared, then winked out.
But it snapped its jaws again, and Quinn cried out.
It had her shoulder. It thrashed, throwing her around. Blood was spreading in the water.
Jax roared and slammed into the side of the shark. It let Quinn go, and with an enraged noise, Jax rammed his fist into the metal, punching a hole into it.
The shark bot floundered.
More bots swam in, converging on them. All the cyborgs turned to face them. Mace rammed into one, Toren fired his weapon, and Magnus charged through the water.
Fighting her terror, Sage felt something brush her leg.
She spun, kicking. Acton moved closer, shoving his arms into the water.
“I’ve got it,” he said, between gritted teeth.
Sage looked up and saw a pale-faced Quinn being held by Jax.
“I’ll help her.” Sage took the woman’s weight. Acton tread water, clearly not wanting to leave them unprotected. “I’ve got her. Go.”
Reluctantly, Acton and Jax turned back to the fight.
Kicking to stay above the water, Sage held on tight to Quinn. “How you doing, Quinn?”
“Fine.” A grimace crossed her face.
“As soon as we get to shore, I’ll patch you up.” Sage studied the jagged, bleeding wound on Quinn’s shoulder. “It doesn’t look too deep.”
“Always been afraid of sharks,” the tough woman said.
Sage snorted. “I could tell. Especially when you were stabbing that shark bot with a knife.”
Quinn managed a smile.
The cyborgs were still fighting, the bots thrashing in the water. She watched Magnus climb on top of one shark, punching it with his cybernetic arm.
Mace grabbed the tail of another bot, spun it around, and threw it out across the water.
Toren was hurt, barely staying above the water, but his weapon was still firing.
Acton used his cybernetic powers, a shark bot rising up out of the water.
Sage got a good look at the thing and a shiver worked through her. The ugly creation was built for death.
“Fucking Edull,” Sage said.
“But look at our cyborgs,” Quinn said. “Badass.”
Sage couldn’t help but smile. They sure were.
Acton swam back to them. “Come on. We need to get to the other side.” Acton gripped Sage’s arm, and Jax appeared to help Quinn.
Toren was bleeding, a trail of blood in the water behind him. He didn’t look like he was doing very well. Magnus and Rillian moved up on either side of the injured cyborg, and propelled him through the water.
Finally, they dragged themselves up onto a rocky beach.
Sage pushed up on her hands and knees, giving herself two seconds to suck in some breath. Then she crawled to Quinn and yanked a small first aid kit off her belt. She opened the pack and pulled out some med gel and bandages.
Opening Quinn’s shirt, she squirted the blue gel onto the wound, then pressed the adhesives to Quinn’s skin. The bandages sucked onto the wound and stopped the bleeding. Finding a pressure injector, she gave Quinn a quick shot of painkillers.
“Thanks, Sage,” Jax said.
“Sage,” Acton said.
She turned and saw Toren sprawled on his back. He had several bite marks on his legs and a terrible wound on his stomach. She guessed he’d lost lots of blood.
“Hey.” Sage dropped down beside the injured cyborg.
“My systems have slowed the bleeding.” His voice was a little slurred. His blond hair looked shades darker now that it was wet.
Sage cracked open her kit and pulled out the med gel. She started squeezing it into the worst of his wounds. He had a nasty scratch on his face, and she smoothed some gel over it.
“Hey? You still with me?”
He nodded and blinked slowly. He really had beautiful eyes. They were a brilliant blue, ringed by silver.
“Don’t stare at me too hard,” Toren murmured. “I’m pretty sure Acton can feel jealousy now.”
She smiled at the cyborg. He had some hidden charm, this one.
As she worked on him, she glanced up. She saw Magnus, Acton, and the others looking at the entrances to the tunnels and talking quietly.
She didn’t look forward to seeing what else the Edull had hidden in the darkness.
She pressed some bandages on Toren’s injuries. “You’re all done. Won’t be long, and you’ll be as good as new.”
“And I didn’t even need an oil change.”
She snorted. “Is that cyborg humor?”
Toren schooled his face. “Acton would tell you that cyborgs don’t have a sense of humor.”
“I think you guys are good at pretending.” Rising, she went back to the water’s edge to wash the blood off her hands.
She peered out at the lake in awe once more. It was smooth as glass.
She dipped her fingers in the water. Suddenly, a shark bot reared up out of the water.
Teeth snapped and gripped her shirt. Sage screamed.
“Sage!” Acton’s yell.
His voice was the last thing she heard before she was dragged beneath the surface.
Raw panic rocketed through Acton.
He watched Sage disappear under the water. Pain like he’d never known before hit him hard.
Sage.
He sprinted for the water, hearing the shouts of the others behind him.
But he couldn’t make sense of them over the roar in his ears. Without pausing, he dived into the water.
He followed the ripple of bubbles, kicking as hard as he could, pushing for every ounce of power he had. He enhanced his vision to see better through the dark water.
He made good distance, and in the gloom, he saw the outline of the shark and Sage appear. She was struggling, hammering her fists against the robot.
The bot was racing across the lake. Acton kicked harder as he chased them. He got close enough to grab the shark’s tail.
Spikes scraped his metal skin, but he held on tight. The bot shook its tail wildly, and Acton was thrown about. He gritted his teeth and held on. He used his other hand to punch the bot, and felt the metal dent.
Still caught in the shark’s grip, Sage’s movements were slowing. She was running out of air.
Acton’s cybernetic systems could compensate for the lack of air. He wouldn’t need it for a much longer time than she did.
He punched the shark again.
The tail shook again and he almost lost his grip.
The bot picked up speed, racing toward the rock wall.
Drak. They were going to smash right into it. Acton’s pulse spiked.
But then, the shark dove, and darted into a tunnel that Acton could barely see. They barreled through the water-filled tunnel, Acton’s body scraping against the wall. The tunnel wasn’t very wide.
Drak, he had to get Sage free.
She was still fighting, but her movements were sluggish. Her hair had slipped free of its tie, the copper strands trailing behind her like a wave.
Hold on, Sage. I’ll get you.
Gripping on, he climbed up the robot and punched into its side. He punched again.
At that moment, Sage went limp, hanging in the bot’s jaws like a rag.
No!
Using all his strength, Acton punched through the shark’s gut.
The bot jerked. He poured his cybernetic power into the bot, scrambling its insides.
It went into a wild, frenzied thrashing.
Sage was jerked around, and one of Acton’s hands slipped off the metal. No.
With grim determination, he slammed his palm down on a spike. It speared through his palm and his systems blocked the pain. He held on. Sage wouldn’t give up on him, and he wasn’t giving up on her.
Suddenly, the shark went still. It started sinking toward the bottom of the tunnel. Acton yanked his hand free of the spike and kicked.
He grabbed Sage.
Forward or back? He needed to get her air as soon as he could, and they’d come a long way into the tunnel.
She wasn’t moving. Panic and other emotions churned inside him. He couldn’t think or calculate the odds.
He made a decision. Kicking hard, he swam forward, powering through the water.
He wound through the tunnel. Come on. They needed to surface. Sage was a tiny, limp weight in his arms, and she needed air. He needed to save her.
Then, he saw a glimmer of light above him.
He looked up. There was a tunnel above them. Changing direction, he rocketed upward. He kicked hard, with all the energy he had.
Acton broke the surface of the water. His lungs kicked in, dragging in air.
Lifting Sage into his arms, he staggered onto a rocky shore in a small cavern. The walls were lined with a glittering substance that gave off light. A tunnel entrance yawned in the darkness.
He laid Sage on the ground.
She was so still, so pale. Her hair was stuck to her cheeks and he pushed it back.
Tilting her head back, he pressed his mouth over hers and breathed.
Nothing.
He breathed into her. Again. Again.
Her chest didn’t move.
“Sage.” His voice was a broken sound.
She’d come into his life, dug under his skin and his enhancements. He didn’t want a life without her.
He breathed again, cupping her pale, cool cheeks.
“Sage, you have to live. I can’t do this without you.”
Still nothing.
Again, pain rushed through him. He thumped her chest.
“You can’t bring me back to life and then leave me.” He pressed his lips to hers, pain tearing him apart.
And then she jerked.
He sat up and helped her rise. She coughed, rolling onto her side and vomiting up water.
Then she sagged against him. “Acton?”
He wrapped his arms around her, and for the first time since he was a child, tears coursed down his cheeks.
Chapter Fifteen
Sage stayed snuggled in Acton’s arms for several long moments. She liked it there.
“Magnus, respond.” Acton shook his head. “No contact.”
She worried her bottom lip. So, for now, they were on their own. They were both wet and shaken, but they were alive.
Acton was holding her tight. Really tight. He seemed to need the contact more than she did.
He stroked her hair and she turned into him, pressing her cheek to his skin. “I’m okay, thanks to you.”
“I never, ever want to do that again.” His voice was drenched with emotion.
Oh, God, this man, this cyborg, had turned her inside out in such a short time. She pressed her lips to his and kissed him—long and deep.
Eventually, he sighed. “We should get moving and find the others.”
She nodded, rising a little unsteadily. She guessed it wasn’t a huge surprise that being almost drowned and killed by a robot shark left a girl a little unsettled. Acton watched her like a hawk, so she locked her knees.
She huffed out a breath. “I’m okay. I promise.”
He gave her another long look, then nodded. Grabbing her hand, he led her into the tunnel. A narrow beam of light clicked on from one of Acton’s cybernetic arms.
The rock walls were bare, showing no signs of occupation.
“Do you think the Edull made these?” she asked.
“It looks like a natural system, but I can see that it’s been enhanced in places.”
A shiver worked up her spine. The Edull were here, somewhere.
And that might mean Simone and Grace were too.
Periodically, Acton tried to make contact with the others. But each time, his jaw tightened, and he shook his head.
“The dantane in the rock is still interrupting our communications.”
“We’ll find them.”
Suddenly, Acton paused and gripped her arm. He stared deep into the tunnel ahead.
“What is it?” she whispered.
“I hear noises. Voices.”
Her pulse jumped. Acton motioned her back behind him, and they quietly crept forward.
Moments later, the tunnel ended at a narrow ledge. A huge cavern yawned ahead of them. She heard clanking and hissing.
Sage held her breath and Acton pulled her down. She shimmied on her belly and peered over the edge.
She sucked in a harsh breath.
Edull. Everywhere. She stared down at the aliens moving below. They all wore dark robes and ugly, black masks over their faces. All around, the clanking of metal echoed off the rock walls—tools striking metal, equipment working and chugging. In some places, sparks sprayed into the air.
The Edull had rows of workbenches and construction lines set up. Boxes and containers overflowing with scrap metal were stacked all over the place.
They were building bots of all shapes and sizes.
Sage felt as though a huge rock were lodged in her throat. A gurgling sound nearby caught her ear, and she glanced over to see clear pipes filled with water that had clearly come from the underground lake running along the rocky walls.
She followed the lines down to the floor of the cavern, and saw several large vats of water. As she watched, a large bot—its metal surface glowing red-hot—was lowered into the water. There was a hiss of steam as hot metal met the liquid.
So many dangerous bots being created. She tried to pull air into her tight chest.
“Do you think they know the House of Rone is here?” she whispered.
Acton stared into the cavern. “I don’t think so. The shark bots did not appear to have any communications.”
She scanned the rest of the cavern, and then she felt Acton stiffen.
He was showing his emotions so much more freely now. She tore her eyes off his taut face, and followed his gaze.
Then she saw the cells.
A cry tried to escape, but she bit her lip. Her hand groped for his. Strong metal fingers closed on hers.
There was a long row of cells along one of the rock walls. So many.
She could see people inside the cages, some sitting, some huddled, some with their hands wrapped around the metal bars.
Sage also saw a lot of smaller figures in the cells. Children. Her belly cramped painfully.
“Acton.” A broken whisper.
He pulled her closer to his side.
“The Edull are cold, unforgiving monsters,” she said.
“That’s what some people say about cyborgs.”
“Well, some people are idiots, and don’t know what they’re talking about.” She paused. “We need to get down there.”
He nodded and pressed a quick kiss to her forehead. “I’ve managed a partial scan of the nearby tunnels. There’s a way down.” He pulled her away from the edge. “You’ll do everything I say? So I can keep you safe?”
She nodded.
“If I tell you to run, you’ll run?”
“I will.” But she wouldn’t promise to leave. She wouldn’t abandon a child, or him.
Acton pulled back into the shadowed tunnel. “Let’s go.”
Acton really wished he could contact the others.
He didn’t want to take Sage down to that cavern and into more danger. He blew out a breath. But his human was brave. Not fearless—he knew she was afraid—but she’d act anyway to save others. That was true bravery.
He pulled her through the tunnels, and soon they descended downward. At the bottom, the sounds of construction were louder, and he could feel the heat of the furnaces. They paused, their backs pressed to the rock wall.
Acton peeked around the edge of the rock. They weren’t far from the cells. There were a few Edull guards, but not too many. They clearly felt they were safe here, hidden in their tunnels beneath the sand.
One Edull guard passed by close to their tunnel entrance, and Acton pulled back, holding Sage to the wall. She glared at the Edull.